Costco locations in california

1. The recently released open-source large language model Falcon LLM, by UAE’s Technology Innovation Institute, is now royalty-free for both commercial and research usage. Falcon 40B, the 40 billion parameters model trained on one trillion tokens, is ranked #1 on Open LLM Leaderboard by Hugging Face.
2. Neuralangel, a new AI model from Nvidia turns 2D video from any device - cell phone to drone capture - into 3D structures with intricate details using neural networks..
3. In three months, JPMorgan has advertised 3,651 AI jobs and sought a trademark for IndexGPT, a securities analysis AI product.
4. Google presents DIDACT (​​Dynamic Integrated Developer ACTivity), the first code LLM trained to model real software developers editing code, fixing builds, and doing code review. DIDACT uses the software development process as training data and not just the final code, leading to a more realistic understanding of the development task.
5. Japan's government won't enforce copyrights on data used for AI training regardless of whether it is for non-profit or commercial purposes.
6. ‘Mitigating the risk of extinction from AI should be a global priority alongside other societal-scale risks such as pandemics and nuclear war.’ - One sentence statement signed by leading AI Scientists as well as many industry experts including CEOs of OpenAI, DeepMind and Anthropic..
7. Nvidia launched ‘Nvidia Avatar Cloud Engine (ACE) for Games’ - a custom AI model foundry service to build non-playable characters (NPCs) that not only engage in dynamic and unscripted conversations, but also possess evolving, persistent personalities and have precise facial animations and expressions.
8. OpenAI has launched a trust/security portal for OpenAI’s compliance documentation, security practices etc..
9. Nvidia announced a new AI supercomputer, the DGX GH200, for giant models powering Generative AI, Recommender Systems and Data Processing. It has 500 times more memory than its predecessor, the DGX A100 from 2020.
10. Researchers from Nvidia presented Voyager, the first ‘LLM-powered embodied lifelong learning agent’ that can explore, learn new skills, and make new discoveries continually without human intervention in the game Minecraft.
11. The a16z-backed chatbot startup Character.AI launched its mobile AI chatbot app on May 23 for iOS and Android, and succeeded in gaining over 1.7 million new installs within a week.
12. Microsoft Research presents Gorilla, a fine-tuned LLaMA-based model that surpasses the performance of GPT-4 on writing API calls.
13. OpenAI has trained a model using process supervision - rewarding the thought process rather than the outcome - to improve mathematical reasoning. Also released the full dataset used.
14. WPP, the world's largest advertising agency, and Nvidia have teamed up to use generative AI for creating ads. The new platform allows WPP to tailor ads for different locations and digital channels, eliminating the need for costly on-site production.
15. PerplexityAI’s android app is available now, letting users search with voice input, learn with follow-up questions, and build a library of threads.
16. Researchers from Deepmind have presented ‘LLMs As Tool Makers (LATM)’ - a framework that allows Large Language Models (LLMs) to create and use their own tools, enhancing problem-solving abilities and cost efficiency. With this approach, a sophisticated model (like GPT-4) can make tools (where a tool is implemented as a Python utility function), while a less demanding one (like GPT-3.5) uses them.
17. Google’s Bard now provides relevant images in its chat responses.

Looking for a solo stove titan and solo pot 1800. I’m located in North Carolina. Thanks :)

Also any other tips for visiting Kyiv appreciated

California is one step closer to requiring bidirectional charging for all new electric vehicles. The state senate voted 29 to 9 to give the go-ahead to SB 233, which would ensure all EVs sold in the state by 2030 will be capable of sending electricity to a house or the power grid.
This could be a game changer for the state’s energy system, which is coping with surging demand and increasingly unpredictable weather. California has committed to phasing out all vehicles powered by fossil fuels by 2035, and if SB 233 becomes law, every EV in the state could serve as an energy reserve that can help support the grid when demand is high.
The bill includes all light vehicles and school buses, and it also mandates the interoperability of all charging equipment, putting an end to proprietary systems in the state. By the time it would come into effect, California is projected to have eight million EVs, more than half of the state’s current total of 14.2 million vehicles. That number will continue to grow, and by the time nearly all of the state’s vehicles are electric, they will have the capacity to store one terawatt-hour of electricity at any given time — about 30 percent more power than the state generates on any given day.
That’s a huge reservoir of energy that can help mitigate the impact of any power drought. “The battery capacity in today’s electric vehicles give them the potential to be mini power plants on wheels,” says SB 233’s sponsor, Senator Nancy Skinner. “That’s crucial as California continues to face unprecedented impacts from climate change, including record heat waves, wildfires, and destructive storms that can lead to power outages.”
The bill now heads to the State Assembly, the last step before landing on Governor Newsom’s desk.

“There you go.” I said and smiled a little as I handed the bag to the customer. He gave me a shy little bow and headed for the door. I was actually impressed he could bring himself to do that much. Chiefly because his purchase was one of the dirty magazines from the center aisle. His ‘friend’ clearly lacked the same courage and was standing there just on the other side ‘reading’. If you want to call it that, that is.
I had to admit, Suki knew how to arrange her store, I never thought about it before, but the aisles with ‘that’ material was facing ‘away’ from the register and had another pair of parallel aisles on either side of it, and two running perpendicular thus affording the patron some small degree of ‘privacy’ by letting them feel like they’re boxed in.
Those who visited that aisle as the day went on seemed to buy ‘those’ magazines roughly eight times out of ten, an exceptional ratio. I knew it was exceptional because tragically I have sometimes been forced to run errands for myself. When that does happen, I’ve seen what people do in the stores, I’ve seen those naughty magazines here and there, and I’ve seen young people walk by, eyeing those anxiously, desperately even.
But seldom did they buy even though they wanted to, they didn’t have the courage to look, so they couldn’t take the next step. It’s funny how that works, it really is.
Suki got them to look at it, and therefore usually got them to buy.
My estimation of my friend went up another notch. I smiled when I thought about her, she was always offering me work. Always a kind word. Always encouraging me. ‘You’re a smart girl, you could do anything you want with your life. You don’t have to just lie around and wait for life to happen, come work at my store, that way you can take care of yourself better.’
Of course there were rumors that I was rich, I was after all, a foreigner living in this country with no job, there’s no way I was getting public assistance. It was hard not to like Suki’s motherly attitude toward me, who she saw as a wayward young woman frittering away her days.
But I had no idea Suki was so savvy about her business, right down to where she put the naughty things that Jin probably snuck looks at whenever he could, like most boys his age.
The ding of a new customer caught my ear and I looked over to see a slew of students stroll in, then darted my eyes to the clock. ‘Really? That long?’ I asked myself, somehow the day had just slipped past without my noticing.
Maybe because there was always something to do, check the shelves, wipe up a spill, process a transaction… The time had slipped past with hardly a blip, and now it was later in the afternoon and school was out. I looked past the gaggle of young boys and girls to the clear day outside. Jin wouldn’t be with them, he’d be spending at least a few hours in cram school. I normally wouldn’t see him, if at all, for a few more hours.
You’d think he’d get more help with his math and other subjects there, but? For some reason he liked to ask me.
I waved to the students coming in and listened while they chattered away about whatever school drama had them occupied today. “Welcome to Toriyama’s.” I said, and then my brow furrowed not one minute later when Jin Toriyama walked in with the look of a stunned bunny on his face.
“Wha- why?” He asked, and then his eyes caught me behind the counter.
“Kayobi?!” He exclaimed and strode swiftly over the floor to stand across from me.
I snorted. “Yeah. That’s my name. Can I help you find something?” I couldn’t resist the urge. I wanted to mess with him a little.
“Wh-What are you doing here?” He stumbled over his words as he rushed them out.
“Would you believe I’m counting how many dirty magazines I see young boys buy?” I asked with a smirk, and as he turned red in the face I added, “So, what’s your number? Or do you just sneak peaks at them?”
“Ah, wha- I don’t… you can’t… this isn’t-” He stammered and stuttered and shook as he was flustered, and I did all that I could to restrain myself from laughter.
“Some of those were words. But you need to put them together right, come on, you can do it, you’re a big boy!” I clapped my hands to urge him on.
“I… why are you here?!” He demanded, his voice going up a bit in pitch as his flusteredness overtook him.
“Because here is where I take the money for the stuff people want to buy, dummy.” I said with a smirk, “Surely you’ve worked here long enough to know that.”
“That’s not what I mean, you…” He stopped, he searched for something to call me, “you!” He finally finished.
“Brilliant retort. This is why you shouldn’t be quitting cram school.” I said with a straight face.
“But… but how did you get the key?” He asked and put his hand into the pocket of his dark pants like he was checking to see if his copy was still there.
“I went by to see your mom, she gave it to me, I offered to handle the place until she gets out. She gave me her copy.” I answered, “What, did you think I broke in here?” I smirked a little, losing my deadpan expression and I struck a prowler pose, hunched over with fingers turned down and pantomimed some creeping steps. “Yes, you caught me, my secret identity is Kayobi the catburglar, and I’m so good at breaking and entering that I don’t even need a toolkit. I just teleport.”
“But…” He paused, looked over his shoulder to see that the other students who went in before him were busy elsewhere in the store, then leaned toward me and said, “How is she paying you.”
“Wait… we’re supposed to get paid? Is that why people work?” I asked and covered my open mouth with one hand, “I am shocked. Just… shocked… nay, dumbfounded! I have found the dumb, so stunned am I.”
All he could do was blink at me, so I finally showed the poor boy some mercy, “Relax, I told her I’d do it for free. When she gets out of the hospital she can just do my laundry and make a few meals and we’ll call it square.”
“I-I-I didn’t expect to find my Buddah in hell today…” He stammered, but I just shrugged it off.
“I just don’t want to do chores. So don’t worry about it. Go on and head back to cram school, you’ll be late, but just tell them you’re late because you got bitten by a stray dog or something.” I said, and he blinked at me again as he processed what I said.
“That’s… not how that expression works… not exactly, anyway.” He muttered and I reached up and flipped my orangish hair back with one hand to remind him I’m not from here.
Some of my colleagues asked me once why I don’t disguise myself as somebody who looks like everybody in the neighborhood and whatnot. And the answer is pretty simple. From my colleagues' perspective, if you look like everyone else, you blend in perfectly.
But that’s why I’m better than all of them at my job. It’s not enough to look like people, you have to act like them too, and cultural norms touch everything. On one world, when you’re about to enter a room you’ve never been to, you always tap your foot three times to let the spirits inside know you’re coming. Don’t do that, and people will know you’re a fraud, or at least you’ll stand out in a negative way.
On another world, every first meeting between strangers involves an extensive discussion of ancestry to try to find some common ground and minimize the chance of violence. If I were to go there disguised as one of those, I’d fall flat and get into trouble fast.
But when you’re obviously foreign, people excuse your ignorance as, ‘Well they’re not from here, of course they don’t know better.’
So misusing an expression slightly draws no notice. Thus I blend in by standing out.
Yeah, I’m the best. “Whatever.” I smirked at Jin and gave him a gentle punch on the shoulder, “Hurry up and get back, University waits for no one, and neither do the teachers here, I’ll lock up tonight when I’m done.” I promised.
Jin’s entire body shook, his lower lip quivered, “If you’re not going to buy something, I’m going to have to ask you to leave.”
His eyes were full of tears, and he shouted, “Thank you!” He then bowed at the waist, turned, and ran out of the store as fast as his feet could carry him.
Various heads turned toward me, he’d come in after the others rather than with them, so it didn’t seem like they realized who he was, and his voice had such an emotional crack to it he must have sounded like a stranger.
I snorted, “It’s nothing, I just promised not to tell his mother about the dirty magazine he bought.”
I recognized some of the kids in the story, and I saw relief flood the faces of the young males who promptly flocked to ‘that’ section now that they knew I wouldn’t be telling on them.
And the rest of my first day passed without incident.
The sun was descending and it was getting darker by the minute. I locked the doors when the last customer left, closing myself inside, and went behind the counter to where the two pairs of pants lay crumpled in a heap where I’d kicked them before.
I crouched down and bit my tongue while I searched the pockets for what I sought.
My prize?
A pair of wallets. Wallets stuffed with cash. I pocketed that immediately, shoving it into my purse. “Lucky me.” I thought, “I’ll buy myself a few things here before I go.”
A few dozen bento boxes, sushi platters, and some ready to eat meals and lots of sodas.
I made a list in my head, then pulled out the I.D. cards of the two twits, just like I expected, there were addresses in place, I wonder how they explained themselves to their colleagues later. ‘That must have been hilarious.’ I thought and let out a long, loud laugh as I tried to picture their confused answers.
I stowed their wallets in my purse too, put their pants under one arm, and quickly spent their money on what I’d need for my fridge and the like for the better part of the next week.
I had bags loaded down with stuff, and then with a flash, I was gone and standing in front of my door. From there, I vanished again and reappeared just inside.
I dropped my stuff on the mess of a coffee table, picked up my phone, and began to check the locations on these identification cards. I whistled. ‘Downtown? Wow, pricey.’ I thought, and unfortunately, it was also very busy.
“Great. So it’s going to be a chore.” I muttered and looked longingly at the television. I was going to marathon watch a show about a wolf goddess falling in love with a mortal human as they traveled together.
But no… I have to spend at least an hour or two on these twits. “Getting between me and my NEET time… unforgivable.” I growled and called for a car to come pick me up.
‘Oh well… maybe I can find some way to make this at least a little bit fun.’ I thought, and tried to stay positive about it as I walked back out of my apartment again.

Hey everyone, so I was chatting with a fellow Redditor on this subreddit and he mentioned that he thought I was someone that Oxenforge hired to handle marketing in the USA and it made me realize that I never got the chance to properly introduce myself to you all.
My name is Brad and I'm the founder of Oxenforge. I'm the only one that has access to this Reddit account, so feel free to reach out to me directly here or email me at [[email protected]](mailto:[email protected]) for business inquiries.
I'm Canadian/Chinese/Filipino and I've been in China for the last 8 years. I founded Oxenforge because I've always been passionate about wok cooking and when I learned about Zhang Qiu Woks, I ordered one for myself. I realized that I had been sold a fake. Returned it and ordered from another seller. Guess what? Fake again. I repeated this process 10 times until I eventually got a real one.
A few months went by and I visited Zhang Qiu myself to learn more about how the legendary woks are forged. It turns out that many businesses capitalized on the popularity of Zhang Qiu woks and opened factories in Zhang Qiu that mimic the look of these woks. The government tried to crack down on this, but legally, they are allowed to call themselves Zhang Qiu Woks because their production location is in Zhang Qiu.
I talked to the locals and tracked down blacksmiths that actually hand forge these woks. I visited workshops all over the district and found the best craftsmen in Zhang Qiu. Even amongst the real hand forged woks, the quality can range. Over time we've built a partnership with the best blacksmiths. They have been making woks their whole lives and they are excited by the idea that people outside China are so interested in their work.
Anyway the reason why I founded Oxenforge was to share the genuine high-quality Zhang Qiu Woks with the people outside China. It started with sharing to family and friends and now to you guys and to the rest of the world.
Thanks for being so welcoming to me in this subreddit! I'm really enjoying having discussions with all of you. Feel free to ask me anything! See you around!

Hey yall, first post here. I guess i’ll start by saying i’m a 20 year old trans man living in the southeast united states, and HRT treatment has been impossible for me to locate since i came out at 14. When i came out my parents took me to a therapist who confirmed i was trans and prescribed me HRT, but my parents never let me get treatment saying that it was unsafe and unnatural. Well, now i’m 20 and have been struggling to find HRT treatment since i was 18. It’s either too far away(i cant drive), too expensive, or the requirements are too elaborate(such as extensive and expensive therapy i cant afford for a year leading up). I did, however, find out recently that planned parenthood offers HRT with much less requirements, so i’m planning on booking an appointment as soon as possible. Does anyone have any advice for me? What was your experience if you received HRT at planned parenthood?

Discover the ins and outs of franchise restaurants. From investing in popular franchises to understanding the rising trend of multi-location food concepts
"Success in the restaurant industry isn't just about great food; it's about understanding the business behind it."

What is a franchise Restaurant?

A franchise restaurant is a restaurant concept in which a person pays a restaurant owner to buy one of his franchises. It doesn't mean that the investor bought the property. It is an agreement in which investors buy the right to use the name, trademark, branding and business model of the franchisor.

The Appeal of Fast Food Franchise

Fast Food Franchises offer quick services of food. That's why they hold a special place in the restaurant industry. They offer a customer base menu. They are the choice of most of the people.
Note: I have just shared a few lines from my article, and I am currently in the process of improving it. I will soon share the complete topic with those who are interested in reading these types of articles. Thank you for your patience and stay tuned for the full article!

This thread is for anyone to recruit or request others to help them out. It's open to all types of recruitment, and you can recruit any day of the week!

• Asking for help from other players or offering to help? Go ahead and share your name!
  
• Need people to do a certain kind of run? Put your name out there!
  
• Want to recruit for your clan? Do it!
  
• Anything else you want other players to add you up for? Get the word out and see who offers!
  

Please provide the following information in your comment (in no particular order or format):

• Platform (PC/PS4/XB1/Switch)
• In-game name (to add to contacts), or clan name if recruiting
• Location (for lag concerns or looking for players from specific regions)
• Goal (What are you going to be doing?)

No formatting necessary! That's right, format your requests or offers howeveryou want! The nicer and prettier it is though, the easier it is to read so keep that in mind!

Read the other comments! If no one answers your response, add the others who have shared their info! Keep checking back to see who else is out there! Request away!

And remember...

You can recruit any day of the week!

Mate, Last week I had been to an art exhibition organised by the NABARD Group of rural banks [ a National level Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development] at Maleshwaram, Bangalore, India.
There I found this unique piece of art collection so called 'Pattachitra' which is one of the oldest forms of art existing thousands from of years, till today.
So, i bought my self some and thought why don't i share it to people who would appreciate it and hence came up with this idea of a blog.
Talking about the nfts, and its functions:
Firstly, The pictures that are drawn on the palm leaf are strictly based on sculpture carved around the walls of the temples, which makes it unique and stands up from those art which are computer generated .
Secondly, the origin of the art comes from Puri district of Bhubaneswar, which is the major hub for Pattachitra art, located in Odisha India.
Lastly, the ding about buying this nfts would be that there are about 700 temples in Odisha, which is also known as the land of temples, and our aim is to make it life time ticket free entry to the special VIP darshan to one of the most ancient temples in Odisha.
Pleasure speaking to you about this vision.
Thank you, have a nice week.
Jai Jagannath. drjxvi

Hey I am representing a buyer looking to purchase 80 million euro worth of bitcoin slightly below market. Could anyone lead me in a direction where I would be able to locate individuals like that?
PS. already applied to multiple institutional trading sites.

We usually discourage posting image only posts; this isn't Instagram. At ULTexas, we try to have substantive discussions concerning backpacking in our great state. However, it can be fun to check out other hikers' pictures.
Feel free to post those pics here! Please include when and where you took those pictures. Locations can be left vague. No need to give us the latitude and longitude numbers. The name of the park or trail will do.
Nostalgic pictures are fine as well. Maybe you'll see a picture that inspires you to get off reddit and get outside.

Hello!
I am a future school counseling student looking for ways to fund my program without having to pull out too many loans. I will attend in August 2023 and expect to graduate within two years.
I will be studying for my PPS and LPCC.
I'm looking for grants, scholarships, or any tuition assistance to fund my education.
So far I have looked into the Golden State Teacher Grants and some scholarships but some require for me to have a G.P.A. first.
What information can you share that helped funded your tuition?
Please and thank you!

Does a Oyster Perpetual 41 mm, blue dial, really take the 10 month wait that my AD told me? That seems usually long based on the research I’ve been doing… Does my AD not take me seriously? Should I try another location?
I’m in my early 20s and don’t have a purchase history.

Link to article: https://www.dropbox.com/s/7a3jg85eroufam5/AG%20-%20David%27s%20Bridal%20-%20Flyer%20-%2005-24-23%20v2.pdf?dl=0
Link to the video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qZywAaAjNcU&feature=youtu.be
David's Bridal Closing List:
Alabama
Montgomery, AL
Arkansas
Jonesboro, AR
California
Chico, CA
Los Angeles, CA
Oxnard, CA
Colorado
Colorado Springs, CO
Florida
Pensacola, FL
Port Orange, FL
West Melbourne, FL
Georgia
Atlanta, GA
Columbus, GA
Hawaii
Pearl City, HI
Iowa
Davenport, IA
Marion, IA
Sioux City, IA
Illinois
Champagain, IL
Lombard, IL
Springfield, IL
Vernon Hills, IL
Indiana
Clarksville, IN
Lafayette, IN
Kansas
Topeka, KS
Kentucky
Paducah, KY
Louisiana
Bossier City, LA
Massachuessts
North Dartmouth, MA
Missouri
Columbia, MO
St. Petres, MO
Mississippi
Hattiesburg, MS
Tupelo, MS
Montana
Billings, MT
Nebraska
Lincoln, NE
New York
Blasdell, NY
Horesheeds, NY
Ohio
Mayfield Heights, OH
Strongsville, OH
West Chester, OH
Oregon
Eugune, OR
South Carolina
Spartanburg, SC
South Dakota
Rapid City, SD
Texas
Abilene, TX
College Station, TX
Corpus Christi, TX
Hurst, TX
Utah
Layton, UT
Orem, UT
Virginia
Hampton, VA
Roanoke, VA
Vermont
South Burlington, VT
Wisconsin
Madison, WI

Hello,
I am looking for someone to share a studio apartment with me. It is located in downtown Storrs (the oaks) and is within walking distance to UCONN. it isn’t a lease transfer or a sublease, we would be living in the apartment together. The rent is about $850 a month and the application fee is about $325. The lease starts August 20th - July 31st. I am a woman and I am looking for another woman to join me. A little bit about me: I am a rising senior in the school of business. I am fairly clean and I am pretty chill. I like rules and will like to have rules for the apartment so we are all on the page. Also no pets please.

So my friend and I had the problem of not being able to create a harmonic brain. We both have the hyalian brain (or however ist called) and we got to the marked location with the obelisk, we talked to it and nothing happened. It just said the standard things it should say but nothing about the brain. I only found 1 report of this bug in the weekly bug report thing, but no answer. we also tried abandoning the mission and restarting it a couple times but still nothing. So if anyone could help me i'd appreciate it, because I really want to get my hands on an interceptor.

Warhead,
As much as I wanted to write, "They offered me $500K to get out of your life and never talk to you again. So, umm... BYE." I get the sense you're not in a joking mood.
Your giant spazz-out yesterday wasn't appreciated, but I promised I wouldn't leave you hanging. You will at least do me the favor of not repeating anything I'm about to say. I have never asked this of you before, but I have my reasons. I had an early dinner last night at the Yard House with Barb, Janelle, and Lanie.
I hope I never see Lanie Bostwick for the rest of my life. Her appearance and demeanor are bizarre, unpleasant, and I immediately got the sense that neither Barbara nor Janelle warned me, deliberately, just to see what my reaction would be. Miss Bostwick smiled once during the entire meal that I sat directly across from her, and that was only when someone said something particularly obnoxious (about me, not you, actually).
I'm guessing she didn't like me much, either, as she kept kicking me under the table, until I crossed my legs up beneath me on the seat. I will not bother to describe her appearance. I figure you already know. Remember, she and I are the same age, somehow. We look like different species.
Janelle, by comparison, is clearly a "Life of the Party" type. I didn't find her offensive, but I'm kinda glad she lives in California. She'd be exhausting. Barb, who had pneumonia (and is still going to work) appeared to enjoy herself immensely. I didn't make any smart or sarcastic remarks. I excused myself shortly after we ate, thanked them for the drink and the calamari appetizer, and went home immediately.
I really need to stop meeting people who are hard of hearing in loud, dark places. Otherwise, everyone is still alive, and I presume that Janelle might have found me charming, at best.
While, yes, you were obviously discussed—and this was never initiated by me—I kept my responses brief and direct. Be VERY careful, if you are told that I did or said anything that doesn't sound like me. I know exactly what was discussed, and I didn't leave room for interpretation. I also said I had hope for you, and that you and I would work together on whatever you wanted to do, after release.
I'm not upset that I chose to do that. It felt necessary. I hope they got whatever they thought they wanted. As you know I am usually unfailingly polite, that should be the only impression anyone had. However...
For a woman I was told "loved gay guys," Lanie spent the entire hour shooting daggers at me when she thought no one was looking. I figure, given her family situation, the less I say or write about her, the better. Too bad. I was hoping she'd be useful.
Now, I want nothing to do with her, ever again. Do you feel better, now?
Love, — $palephx
PS: If I don't pick up after two calls, I'm not available. Stop taking it personally, and figure out how to get your visitation privs back, ASAP.
PPS: I have told you repeatedly how I feel about you. You recently told me I can't discuss it with anyone else, specifically your family. You have a right to control info with your family, and I'm not running my mouth on FB. If you don't actually believe that you're important to me, then why do you care?

Been going there for years so this sucks.
I've googled but just in case I missed something—any recommendations? I live in Red Hook so Gowanus, Park Slope would be good locations.
Squat racks, barbell exercises, free weights. No need for classes, just equipment.
I'm seeing places that include coaching which adds a lot more to the monthly price :(
The places I've checked out online, curious if there's recent feedback/opinions from the sub:

• Retro Fitness—read nightmare cancellation reviews, but how's the equipment and vibe there? Looks like a club from pictures. Monthly is $25.
  
• Cliffs at Gowanus—how's the gym there? I saw their pictures on google maps but couldn't get a good look. I also considered picking up rock climbing so I don't only spend time in the gym. Monthly is $125 I think.
  
• Red Hook StrengthWorks—$225 with coaching and you gotta book slots I think. If I'm paying this much I'd like open access (maybe they do but I can't tell from their website).
  
• OPEX South Brooklyn—$900 6-week trial with unlimited access... $480/4-week for 5 visits per week...
  
• Gowanus Fitness—$265/month for 8 classes, unlimited open gym.
  
• Harbor Fitness—$79/month, reviews on google maps sound good and it's near the old NYSC—is this worth a shot?
  
• South Brooklyn Weightlifting Club—Equipment looks great and looks like I'd like the place, but anybody know how much it costs? Can't find it on their website, they haven't responded to my text after they texted me ... I'm usually not a fan of these practices—why aren't they transparent about pricing on the website?
  

So did I miss anything? I don't think I'd be a fan of Crunch/Blink.

This is part of my little series about the adventures of Vr'ocria and Human Aldrick. If you'd like to read previous parts, they're linked below, along with brief summaries of each:
Part One: Alien learns what "sleep" is and how humans prefer to do it in a comfy bed with blankets and pillows. And they find it utterly adorable.
Vr'ocria and Human Aldrick are sent on a survey mission together. Things go south, Aldrick makes sure they're safe, and then Vr'ocria learns what human sleep is and how vulnerable humans are when they sleep. Vr'ocria's people don't sleep, but enter stasis, a form of rest in which they typically stand, and they are still slightly aware of their surroundings. Vr'ocria finds human sleep utterly adorable, and also decides she will protect Aldrick while he sleeps. And she also develops a massive crush on him. (Her scales turning purple is her version of blushing)
Part Two: An alien + human adventure with such shenanigans as poison drinking, befriending dangerous wildlife, and fighting a space pirate. Oh, and they have a huge crush on each other.
Vr'ocria and Human Aldrick end up assigned together for another survey mission. Vr'ocria tries to deny her feelings for Aldrick after a tense conversation with her nestmate about the danger of humans, but when they're ambushed in the night by a pirate and Aldrick takes a blow to save her, becoming injured in the process, she comes to realize just how strongly she feels for him. She kills the pirate, carries Aldrick to safety, and the two share a tender moment.
Part Three: When a cold-blooded alien has to cuddle a warm-blooded human for warmth
Vr'ocria and Human Aldrick are assigned to an ice plant for their next mission. Aldrick chews out Command for assigning Vr'ocria there when they know she's cold-blooded and not built for the cold, and when the power goes out, they cuddle to keep her from freezing. They finally confess their feelings for one another, and Vr'ocria learns what kissing is.
Part Four: A human leaves a hickey on his alien lover. Her nestmate doesn't understand what a hickey is, and thinks the human injured her
Vr'ocria enjoys neck kisses, and asks Aldrick to indulge her. Later, she has a video call with her nestmate Galek. Galek is already wary of humans, and when he sees a bruise on her throat that she didn't notice, he figures out Aldrick is responsible and freaks out, thinking Aldrick intentionally hurt her. Vr'ocria dresses Galek down, explaining that it's not an injury, and also that he needs to get over it and respect her relationship with Aldrick.
Now for the new story!
TW: There will be blood and broken bones.
—
"I have a bad feeling about this."
Vr'ocria turned to Human Aldrick in the pilot seat next to her. He was drumming his fingers on the console, brow furrowed, as he watched the Xenthum solar system approach.
"What do you mean?" She asked.
"I dunno. I just–" he bit the inside of his cheek. "You ever just get an ick feeling about something?"
Vr'ocria frowned. "No. Can you explain it?"
He scratched the back of his neck. "It's hard to explain. Like, there's nothing wrong that I can tell about this mission, but ever since we got within visual range, I've had this gut feeling that we need to turn back."
Vr'ocria wasn't sure she understood, but she didn't like seeing him uncomfortable. "Well, we're here on orders–"
"I know, I know, I don't want to get us in trouble, I'm already on thin ice after yelling at Lieutenant Prax–"
"–but the minute anything starts to go wrong, no matter how small, we can turn around."
He glanced over at her. "Thanks," he said with a grateful smile.
They had entered the Xenthum system now. Its main planet was sparsely populated, used mostly as a trading outpost since it was so close to the Dridian border. The trick was navigating through the minefield of asteroid clusters. Aldrick let Vr'ocria take the lead piloting, since of the two of them, she was more skilled at delicate maneuvers.
They were almost to the planet when an alert pinged. Aldrick sat up to check the sensors.
"There's a ship nearby," he reported. "A big one."
"Where?" Vr'ocria pulled up the sensor on her screen. "I don't see anything. Just asteroids."
"Turn on the warp detector and increase the ion frequency."
Vr'ocria pressed a few controls. "Oh wow, you weren't kidding." She frowned. "It's way too big to be in the middle of an asteroid field. What are they doing?"
"I don't know, but I don't like it." She could feel the tension radiating from him.
"You want to get out of here?" she asked.
He chewed his lip. "Y'know what? Yeah. Let's at least take an alternate root, we can–"
But before he could finish, there was a loud BANG and they were sent flying from their seats as the shuttle rattled.
"What the fuck?" Aldrick yelled as he scrambled to his feet, lunging for the console. "Did we scrape an asteroid?"
Vr'ocria crawled back into her seat as well and banged out a few commands on her screen. Her blood froze.
"No," she said in a low voice. "It was phaser fire."
They'd been so focused on the massive ship that they'd missed the tiny shuttle creeping up from below them.
BANG. The screens flickered and glitched.
Aldrick cursed. "We've lost shields!"
There was another hit, then another, and another. Sparks were flying now, and the sensors were screaming as the shuttle's operating systems started failing.
Vr'ocria was tossed against the wall in one particularly brutal crash, and the last thing she saw was a broken panel flying right towards her face.
—
Everything hurt.
Especially her nose. The tang of blood clung to the back of her throat.
There were muffled voices somewhere nearby, and the sound of metal scraping. When she tried to move, she abruptly registered something cold and hard encircling her wrists.
"She's waking up."
Vr'ocria coughed, blood splattering from her lips. Moaning in pain, she managed to lift her head and crack her eyes open.
The scraping sound was the heels of her boots sliding across metal grate flooring as she was dragged by her wrists. She craned her head back, pain shooting through her neck, and realized that her wrists were clapped in rusty manacles. A massive blue hand fisted the rust red chains that suspended her arms over her head.
"Wha' th'fmm–" she slurred. Her brain felt like sludge.
Suddenly she was yanked even higher into the air, her toes just brushing the floor. A shock of cold assaulted her and she yelped, flinching as water dripped down her face.
"You awake now?"
A man was standing in front of her, tossing aside a now-empty bucket. There were several people, actually. All different species, all looking very pleased, and all wearing distinctive black Norvidian armbands.
Pirates.
A hand cracked across her cheek, sending more blood flying. She bit back a cry as the shockwave laced through her broken nose. "Fuck you," she spat instead.
The man chuckled. He was tall, muscles bulging through his coat, and his skin was blue. He must've been the one dragging her. "Picking up human words, I see."
Vr'ocria's blood turned to ice. "What have you done with him?" She demanded in a low voice.
His grin only widened. His teeth were crooked and rotting. "I'll be asking the questions here."
Her scales burned a bright and hot yellow and snapped as they turned on end. But before she could respond, his hand lashed out and grabbed her throat–not enough to choke her just yet, but enough to make her freeze.
"You're the lizard bitch from Theta-7, yes?" The grin was gone now, replaced by a withering glare.
Understanding dawned on Vr'ocria. Blast. Oh, blast.
He saw the realization in her eyes and slowly released her throat. "You are."
"What's it to you?" She snapped.
He sneered. "You killed one of my men."
"He attacked us first!"
Stars burst behind her eyes as the air was forced from her lungs, and it took her a moment to realize that he had punched her in the gut. All she could do was cough and gasp, trying to regain her bearings through the pain as he turned away from her and towards the others standing around. He raised his arms.
"We are Norvids!" He boomed, and the others whooped in agreement. "We stand together! We protect our own!"
Vr'ocria tuned him out as he kept proselytizing, using the opportunity to look around the room. It was massive and almost all metal with towering walls. Crane chains hung from the ceiling, and crates and barrels of different sizes were scattered about, everything dusty, rusty, and old. A storage room. An old cargo ship? She wondered. That would explain why it was so big.
She ran a quick headcount of everyone she could see. Seventeen.
But where was Aldrick?
Vr'ocria felt sick. You better be okay…you have to…please be okay…
The man–the captain, she guessed–finally turned back to her. He drew a dagger from a sheath strapped to his arm, and her eyes went wide.
"A life for a life," he growled, stalking towards her.
But before he'd made it even two steps, a voice rang out through the cargo bay.
"Don't you fucking touch her."
It was enough to stop the captain in his tracks.
Footsteps sounded from behind her, and Vr'ocria tried in vain to twist her body around.
But she didn't have to. The man approaching from behind came forward and stepped in between her and the captain, and she didn't have to see his face to know who it was.
"Aldrick," she nearly whimpered.
The caption sneered. "Well well, a little escape artist, are we?"
Aldrick was silent.
Deathly so.
Vr'ocria swallowed.
Even the captain, who was twice Aldrick's size, seemed to waver. Vr'ocria wasn't sure she wanted to know what he saw on Aldrick's face.
Finally, Aldrick spoke. "Any of you touch her, and you will die." His voice was so cold it pierced her to the bone. She could see his clenched fists trembling at his sides. He's not even armed!
The captain began to laugh, his voice echoing around the bay. The others laughed with him.
"And who's gonna stop us?" He demanded. "You? Little human, you don't know who you're messing with." He dashed forward, raising the blade, ready to strike.
"Aldrick!" Vr'ocria screamed.
But Aldrick dodged as easily as water flows through a river, ducking under the dagger and going for the captain's legs. He barreled his full weight against his hips, and with a shout, the giant fell, the dagger clattering from his grasp. Quick as a whip, Aldrick snatched it up–and drove it directly into the captain's throat.
Vr'ocria couldn't help but watch in horror as green blood frothed forth, spraying all over Aldrick. The captain's eyes were wide, and he choked and spasmed as his life drained out onto the dirty floor.
By now, the others were surging forward, shouting, screaming, and brandishing their own weapons.
"NO!" Vr'ocria screamed as they converged on him. She kicked and yanked uselessly at her chains, desperate to help, to do anything. The manacles bit painfully into her scales, some of them even popping off onto the floor, leaving beads of blood welling up in their wake. But the manacles did not yield.
When she looked back, she was terrified she'd see Aldrick lying dead on the floor.
But he wasn't.
In fact, there were three pirates–no, make that four now–sprawled lifelessly instead. Aldrick was a whirlwind of limbs and gnashing teeth–he ducked and dodged, spat and kicked, slashing at knees and elbows, slowly incapacitating or discombobulating each one until he was able to sink the dagger into throats, chests, between ribs–bodies were dropping--he was covered in blood now, eyes wild–
"BEHIND YOU!" Vr'ocria screamed.
Aldrick turned just a second too late, and a woman covered in dark fur landed a kick directly to his chest. He hit the floor, the dagger flying from his grasp. The woman pounced, her hands wrapping around his throat. His legs thrashed as he clutched at her hands, and he was just able to roll them over until he was on top. From there, he simply started punching, and punching, blood spraying his face with each hit.
A large man behind him had stumbled back to his feet. He lunged forward and yanked Aldrick into the air by the back of his shirt, throwing him bodily into the air, where he crashed against a metal crate.
He hit the ground and didn't move.
Vr'ocria was screaming. She didn't know if she was saying words anymore, but she was screaming, and blood was streaming down her arms now from how hard she was pulling against the manacles. All she could do was watch as the final three pirates approached her mate where he lay lifeless on the floor.
They stopped before they were in arms length, looking between each other. She couldn't hear what they were saying, but one of them finally edged forward and poked Aldrick's side with her toe.
Vr'ocria wanted to rip their entrails out with her bare hands.
He still didn't move. Seeming satisfied, they moved forward, and one bent to grab him.
All at once, her human surged back to life. The man closest to him hit the ground as Aldrick swung his legs around, sweeping the man's feet out from under him. Once he was down, Aldrick bashed a crane hook–one he must've picked up from the floor–into the man's skull so hard that it caved in with one blow. Still lying on the floor, Aldrick used his vantage point to kick the woman's knee backwards, and she collapsed with an agonized scream. One more strike with the hook, and she was silenced.
That left just one. The final pirate appeared to be reptilian like her, although he had large spines stretching across his head and shoulders. This one didn't try to rush Aldrick. Instead, he kept his distance, watching warily as Aldrick climbed to his feet.
"So it's true," the spined pirate said, "what they say about humans."
Aldrick returned a deadly stare. "And what's that?" His voice almost didn't even sound like his anymore.
"You're monsters. Demons. Scourge of the universe."
Aldrick grinned, but it looked more like a feral animal baring its teeth. "That's me."
The pirate's spines flexed. "You could join us," he said. "Join the Norvids. We'll find another crew, you can be captain."
They were circling now, Aldrick crouched like a predator ready to strike, the pirate shuffling back with his hands held out.
"You could be rich!"
Aldrick picked up a rusty chain from a barrel as he passed by.
"Think of the power you would wield!" The pirate cried desperately.
Aldrick still said nothing. He forced him back, and back, until the pirate realized, too late, that he was cornered between two crates. His back hit the wall and he slid down, cowering, as Aldrick loomed over him.
Vr'ocria could barely hear because of the distance, but the metal room carried Aldrick's low hiss as he bent down to the trembling pirate: "You hurt my mate. Now, you die."
The rusty chain crackled as Aldrick wrapped it around the pirate's neck in one fell swoop. He pulled the loop tight and the pirate clutched at the noose, his eyes and forked tongue bulging out. Then, with one swift and hard yank, an audible splinter-snap filled the room–and the pirate was dead before he hit the floor, his neck bent at an unnatural angle.
Aldrick dropped him in disgust. His back was turned, but Vr'ocria could still see his chest heaving.
He turned and met Vr'ocria's eyes, and the demented expression drained from his face. He stepped towards her, slowly at first, and then broke into a sprint.
It seemed like he wanted to throw his arms around her, but he came to a sudden halt before he could touch her, instead raising his shaking hands to her face. "Vr'ocria, 'ria, my Ria, I'm so sorry–" his voice broke and his eyes welled with tears that quickly spilled over and began running down his face, carving tracks into the grime and blood spatter.
"Aldrick," she whispered, drinking him in. He's alive.
"Hold on, hold on, I'll get you out of these cuffs, fuck–" he turned to the dead captain on the floor and rifled through his pockets until he produced a key.
He returned and had to stand on his tiptoes to reach the manacles, and with a scrape and groan of metal, the manacles cracked loose.
Vr'ocria collapsed onto Aldrick, her legs too weak to hold her up. Her arms fell over his shoulders, and he caught her around the waist. Together they sank to the floor until they were both on their knees, clutching at one another as if they would disappear.
Aldrick buried his face in her neck, shaking with silent sobs. Vr'ocria tangled her hands in his bloody hair, not caring about the mess. Her people couldn't weep like humans did, but she might as well have with the way her chest heaved with stuttering breaths, her scales burning bright red.
Aldrick clutched her tight enough to hurt, but she didn't care. "Ria, my Ria, my love," he gasped like a mantra.
She finally took his face in her hands and pulled him back, forcing him to look at her. "Are you alright?" She implored. "Are you hurt?"
He let out a half-laugh, half-sob. "You're asking me?"
She used her thumbs to wipe away some of the grime on his face. "You took on all of those people by yourself," she croaked. "And the way he threw you–planets, I thought you were dead."
His hands slid up her back to clutch her shoulders. "I'm alright," he assured her. "Bumps and bruises is all. But you–" he looked her up and down, rage rekindling in his eyes. "Son of a bitch, what they did to you–"
She shook her head. "They're dead now," she said firmly. "It's over and done." She leaned forward to squeeze him again, resting her head on his shoulder. "Let's just go home."
"Don't have to tell me twice." Aldrick rose, pulling her up with him. Her legs were still too unsteady to walk, so instead, he slid one hand under her knees and swept her up into his arms. She settled against his chest as he carried her out of the cargo bay.
"Should we be worried about any other crew members?" She asked, casting her eyes around the barren corridor.
Aldrick shook his head as he walked. He seemed to know where he was going. "It was just them."
"How do you know? And what happened to you, by the way?"
His arms tightened around her. "After you got knocked out, they locked a tractor beam onto the shuttle and pulled us inside."
They came to a fork in the corridor, and he turned left. "I thought they were just raiding for scrap metal and Union tech, but when they boarded the shuttle, they went straight for you. I–" his voice cracked. "I tried to protect you, but there were so many of them and I was so caught off guard..."
Vr'ocria stroked the nape of his neck with her thumb. "It's okay, it's not your fault."
Aldrick swallowed before continuing. "They took you away and locked me in an old storage container. Thankfully the hinges were on the inside, so I just popped the pins out once they were gone. I was able to access the ship's computer and scan the whole ship, because the idiots didn't know how to encrypt anything. All brawn and no brains, I guess. That's also how I was able to figure out where they kept their own shuttles, since ours is pretty busted."
"Is that where we're going?"
He nodded. "Anyway, I used the scanner to find your location, and then I just crawled through the air ducts so I could get inside without them knowing." He stopped. "We're here."
They'd arrived at a loading door with a rusty label that read "SHUTTLE BAY."
Twenty minutes later found them back out in open space in the least-old shuttle they could find. The engine puttered every few minutes, but with any luck, they'd reach their ship in an hour or so.
Vr'ocria had regained her bearings, and she was rummaging around the storage box at the back of the cabin. She finally found an old "in case of emergency" kit, but frustratingly, all the first aid supplies had been picked clean. She did, however, find an unopened package of wet wipes.
Vr'ocria took the wipes back to the front of the cabin. Ripping the package open, she knelt by Aldrick where he sat in the pilot seat.
"What're you doing?"
"Hold still," she murmured. She raised a wipe to his face, and began gently cleaning the blood off. His eyes became soft as she tended to him, throwing the dirty wipes aside one by one while she worked her way down his face and neck.
When she was done, he took her hand before she could get up. He reached for the package as well, and began wiping the blood from her arms, taking care around the nasty scrapes that marred her wrists. "We need to get these bandaged up."
"It's okay. They're not bleeding anymore, we have time."
Aldrick placed a hand on her cheek. "I love you so much," he whispered. "And I'm glad you're okay."
Vr'ocria leaned into his hand, closing her eyes. "I love you too."