#4am- for 5 days- exact- no alarm- nothing-

[buttfrovski]

went through two cartons of energy drinks and a jug of cold brew this week

[mizunoakira]

Prologue: We finally meet

Chapter 0 / Prologue of Marriage is an institution (in an institution).

Suzuka wakes up to the smell of coffee.

Which is strange, because he’s not the one brewing it. And as far as he knows, he’s the only one who uses this office pantry.

It’s definitely not the type of coffee he’s used to smelling - this one seems to be a tad more acidic.

Maybe they have a new colleague?

(When he gets to the pantry, there’s no new colleague in sight; only an empty pot that he doesn’t recognise, and the smell of freshly brewed coffee.)

-☕️-

Suzuka wakes up to the smell of coffee.

He does, every day, because it is liquid fuel for his existence. Deprive him of it, and he will cease to function, in senses both literal and metaphorical.

(He fills the machine with the beans. Cranks it up. Waits.)

It isn’t like it’s his fault. Insomnia is a real problem for some. Maybe it is a problem too, for their new colleague?

He leaves some coffee in the pot, just in case the new colleague has a problem with insomnia, too, and would like some, too.

(He walks back to his office room, coffee cup in hand, thinking perhaps there hadn’t been a new colleague, after all.)

--☕️--

Suzuka wakes up to the smell of coffee.

Apparently, they probably do have a new colleague, because this time, again, Suzuka isn’t the one brewing it.

When he gets to the pantry, he realises there are two pots of coffee. One of them, the half-filled one he’d left there yesterday, is as cold as the winter air. The other half-filled one is still steaming, imparting to the pantry air a relatively unfamiliar scent.

There’s a handwritten note on the hot pot of coffee; the one that isn’t his.

Your coffee has turned cold. If you don’t mind, you could have some of this.

(Suzuka makes a mental note to leave a physical note in future.)

---☕️---

Suzuka wakes up to the smell of coffee.

He’d even set an alarm for this - he can’t put a finger to the feelings he's experiencing, but something in the deep of his gut is urging him to be the one who brews it this time. And anyway, he figures he still prefers the familiar taste that is his own coffee; the one he’s been drinking everyday for years. So, he figures, he’d better make it to the pantry early.

He does, luckily, and there are two empty pots this time. He brews his coffee, fills his cup and leaves his pot half empty.

(This time, he doesn’t forget to write his intended recipient a note.)

----☕️----

Suzuka wakes up to the smell of coffee.

He still has no idea who’s brewing it. A new colleague? An acquaintance who has recently realised the pantry exists?

In either case, it’s not his coffee, that much he knows.

(As he sips his new coffee, he realises it’s an acquired taste.)

-----☕️-----

Suzuka wakes up to the smell of coffee.

He’d woken up even earlier, this time, just to make sure he gets first dibs to the coffee-brewing. Not that it’s some kind of competition...but still. Who knows - perhaps there may really be some sort of competitive spirit in him, egging him on to feed his favourite brand of coffee to his long-distance mystery coffee partner.

He’s been using the exact same type of beans for years. A real creature of habit, he is. Maybe if he kicks the habit of coffee-drinking, he’ll kick his insomnia away, too...not happening. Coffee happens to be one of the most important comforts in his existence, and he figures that the lack of it will ironically cause him to lose sleep, out of pining. (Talk about a real chicken-and-egg problem.)

(He hangs around the pantry 5 minutes longer than usual, wondering if said long-distance coffee partner will appear. They don’t, so he disappears, too, leaving nothing but a lukewarm half-pot of coffee in his trail.)

------☕️------

Suzuka wakes up to the smell of coffee.

It’s not the one he’s most used to, though it’s the one he’s getting used to.

He’d forgotten to set his alarm clock yesterday - today morning at 4am to be precise, but yesterday night in terms of normalised time.

What is normal? Suzuka doesn’t know. Maybe he will, someday.

What he does know, however, is that he doesn’t care whether sleeping in his office room is normal. And what he does care about, is that doing this helps save time on commuting to work, which then helps reserve time for work, which then gives him more time for sleep. (Talk about a real chicken-and-egg solution.)

Being a tenured professor has its problems, such as stacks of work, including administrative duties, teaching duties, research duties, or in his case, assisting with police investigations. But it also does have its perks, and having a solo office room to himself is his favourite of them all.

He grabs a cup, fills it, returns to his office room, and sits in the sofabed he’d brought from home, sipping the gift of coffee he has just received.

(As he does, he realises his favourite brand of coffee now has a competitor.)

-------☕️-------

Suzuka wakes up to the smell of coffee.

He’d set his alarm way very early this time, so “wakes up”, here, is almost as literal as it is metaphorical. He really wanted to get first dibs on the coffee-making, because he reckons must convert his coffee partner to his favourite brand of coffee, instead of it being the other way round.

That’s a lie, though, and he knows it. He’d really just wanted to attempt to wait around for his coffee partner, out of curiosity.

Unfortunately, his handphone dings multiple times, telling him that the emails have started to come rolling in.

(He abandons the half-pot of coffee as he walks back to his office to answer the steadily increasing workpile naggingly summoning him, telling the half-pot of coffee to accost his coffee comrade for him, telling himself that the day they meet will come.)

--------☕️--------

Suzuka wakes up to the smell of coffee.

He can recognise that it isn’t his coffee, so he rushes to the pantry, hoping to catch his newfound coffee companion in action.

Unfortunately, he arrives a tad too late, because all there is in the pantry is a half-pot of coffee, lying in wait for him. (At least, he infers is in wait for him - they’ve been keeping this exchange up for a while and they no longer leave sticky notes for each other telling the other party that they are free to drink it, treating it as assumed information instead. Better for the trees, that way.)

(He sips his coffee on the sofabed in his office, and realises that he’s acquired the taste already.)

 ---------☕️---------

Suzuka wakes up to the smell of coffee.

It’s his own beans this time, because he has won - well, he has won the race to the pantry, but his beans have lost, because he has found a new favourite brand in the form of the other coffee he alternates between, these days. Or maybe it’s a tie.

Doesn’t matter anyway, because what matters is that he gets to meet his fellow coffee maker. If the insomnia doesn’t kill him, this curiosity will.

So he waits, and the insomnia almost kills him, because the smell of coffee fails to wake him up fully this time, and he almost dozes off while standing up, propped against the kitchen counter in the pantry.

Before he does, he is saved by a tap on the shoulder. He jolts awake, slightly confused, almost forgetting why he’s there.

“Excuse me, sorry, but I am trying to get my pot of coffee into my mug, and you are sort of in the way.”

Suzuka looks up, and almost forgets to breathe for a moment. What he remembers, though, is why he’s there in the first place.

Pale skin. Chin-length hair. Large, round eyes. Tiny nose, tiny mouth.

These are what Suzuka sees when he looks up, but these are all nondescript characteristics, really, because what he sees cannot be described with any word, phrase, or sentence; the only possible description is that it's a taste he probably doesn't even need any time to acquire.

He finally remembers to breathe, fully awake by now.

"Coffee?" is the only thing he says, a question in ways more than one.

"Yes," is the only thing she says, an answer, also in ways more than one.

 ---------☕️☕️---------

“By the way, out of curiosity,” Takinami pours Akira her second cup of coffee for the day. “Why do you come up all the way to the ninth floor just to use the pantry, if the Food Science office rooms are located two floors down? Don’t they have a pantry on the seventh floor, too?” Takinami coughs. “I mean, not stopping you. You’re welcome to keep using this pantry. Just curious why.”

“Oh, it’s because the Food Science profs are always up to some informal experiments there.” She responds, looking a bit green in the face. “One time I used one of the pots there and my coffee turned out green. And I can’t bring this up to the management because I’m just a newly-appointed lecturer and have zero say.”

“Oh,” is Takinami’s reply. “I look forward to our continued coffee exchanges, then.”

”Me too,” she smiles, and Takinami silently thanks his friends in the Food Science department for unknowingly helping him obtain a new coffee companion.

[janeaustenprotagonist]

"when did this happen?"

"it's hard to say-"

I know the exact moment it happened.

October 15th, around 4am. I jolt awake, sitting up with tears streaming down my face--

alarm blaring, 6:30am. you turn to turn it off, then kiss me wake me up,

"hey babe, we gotta get up"

"oh fuckola"

"I know, I know"

you sit up and turn on the lamp.

"I'm gonna go wake up the girls"

"thanks love, I'll be out in a moment"

I get up and it flashes to the kitchen, I'm making eggs with strawberries and toast with butter. two little brunette girls are sitting at the table as you walk over to me and ask help tying your tie. you help me plate breakfast for everyone as I pour us some more coffee. we all sit at the table and eat.

"bingo, you gotta eat something please"

"no"

"what if I put sugar on the strawberries?"

"maybe"

you get up and grab the sugar to put on the younger child's strawberries.

"here you go mal"

after the girls finish eating, they go off presumably to their room.

"HEY YOU GUYS GOTTA LEAVE SOON LET'S GET OUR SHOES AND COATS ON!"

"BOOO"

"god do I know it"

it flashes to you helping the two beautiful girls tie their shoes. you're incredibly patient with them, teaching them step by step how to tie their shoes as I sit quietly and watch. you turn around and ask, "how do I look"

"like the sexiest man alive"

you kiss me, the girls in the back start giggling and shouting "EW"

"I gotta run, I love you see you tonight"

"okay I love you, text me when you get the girls dropped off and when you get to work"

"I will- tell mommy goodbye"

"BYE MOMMA"

"BYE MOMMY I LOVE YOU"

"bye girls have a good day at school"

"what are we having for dinner tonight".

"it's a suprise"

"OHHHHH OKAY BYE MOMMY"

they leave and then it flashes to me making tortellini and fish for dinner, I hear the door open and three sets of footsteps, two specifically racing down the hall past me.

"GIRLS YOU GOTTA TAKE YOUR SHOES OFF AT THE DOOR"

"SORRY MOMMA"

"SORRY MOMMA"

the two sets of footsteps run past me again, presumably to take their shoes off at the foot and then back past me again to their room to play. a sexy man follows behind but stops at the entrance to the kitchen, leaning against the doorframe.

"hi"

"hi"

"tortellini with...?"

"lemony alfredo, cod, and asparagus, and of course green beans for the girls"

"sounds delicious. should I get some wine out for us?"

"I'd love that"

you take the spatula from my hand and place it on the counter before grabbing my waist, spinning me around, and kissing me passionately. the years of marriage and two kids haven't changed anything, we're still the stupid college kids we were when we met.

breathlessly, "jesus christ babe"

"I couldn't help myself"

"I wasn't complaining"

"red or white, my dear"

"rosé, I'm feeling bougie tonight"

"bougie is right"

it flashes to us all eating dinner as a family. then you and I cleaning up, I'm putting the food away and you're washing dishes. the girls are watching bluey in the living room. our nightly routine. after the kitchen is clean, you go and help get the girls ready for bed. I come in and give them kisses goodnight then you read them a bedtime story that they've been begging for. I sit in the doorway and watch as they fall asleep to your voice, just as I did back when we first met. you quietly leave, turning off the lights and shutting the door behind you.

"markiplier tonight?"

"help wanted 5 is out I think, does that sound good?"

"you get it up and I'll get the ice cream"

"deal"

it then flashes to us cuddling on the couch. empty ice cream carton on the floor, half drank glasses of wine accompanying it. markiplier is playing in the background as we fall asleep, together.

--i look over at you, sleeping soundly. I try to cry as quietly as possible. not to long after I hear,

"are you awake?"

"unfortunately"

"hey, are you crying? what's wrong?"

"nothing just a weird dream"

"wanna talk about it?"

I shake my head no.

you adjust your head so it's now on my pillow, you grab my hand and begin rubbing your thumb over my hand to comfort me.

I adjust my body, laying back down so I can look at your face. as soon as I do, you grab my waist pulling my body towards yours.

we fall back asleep, together.

that's when it happened.

[suzuka-akira]

we finally meet

Happy Birthday, Takinami Suzuka! (28.9.22) (feel free to read this on ao3 if you prefer!)

Suzuka wakes up to the smell of coffee.

Which is strange, because he’s not the one brewing it. And as far as he knows, he’s the only one who uses this office pantry.

It’s definitely not the type of coffee he’s used to smelling - this one seems to be a tad more acidic.

Maybe they have a new colleague?

(When he gets to the pantry, there’s no new colleague in sight; only an empty pot that he doesn’t recognise, and the smell of freshly brewed coffee.)

--

Suzuka wakes up to the smell of coffee.

He does, every day, because it is liquid fuel for his existence. Deprive him of it, and he will cease to function, in senses both literal and metaphorical.

(He fills the machine with the beans. Cranks it up. Waits.)

It isn’t like it’s his fault. Insomnia is a real problem for some. Maybe it is a problem too, for their new colleague?

He leaves some coffee in the pot, just in case the new colleague has a problem with insomnia, too, and would like some, too.

(He walks back to his office room, coffee cup in hand, thinking perhaps there hadn’t been a new colleague, after all.)

----

Suzuka wakes up to the smell of coffee.

Apparently, they probably do have a new colleague, because this time, again, Suzuka isn’t the one brewing it.

When he gets to the pantry, he realises there are two pots of coffee. One of them, the half-filled one he’d left there yesterday, is as cold as the winter air. The other half-filled one is still steaming, imparting to the pantry air a relatively unfamiliar scent.

There’s a handwritten note on the hot pot of coffee; the one that isn’t his.

Your coffee has turned cold. If you don’t mind, you could have some of this.

(Suzuka makes a mental note to leave a physical note in future.)

------

Suzuka wakes up to the smell of coffee.

He’d even set an alarm for this - he can’t put a finger to the feelings he's experiencing, but something in the deep of his gut is urging him to be the one who brews it this time. And anyway, he figures he still prefers the familiar taste that is his own coffee; the one he’s been drinking everyday for years. So, he figures, he’d better make it to the pantry early.

He does, luckily, and there are two empty pots this time. He brews his coffee, fills his cup and leaves his pot half empty.

(This time, he doesn’t forget to write his intended recipient a note.)

--------

Suzuka wakes up to the smell of coffee.

He still has no idea who’s brewing it. A new colleague? An acquaintance who has recently realised the pantry exists?

In either case, it’s not his coffee, that much he knows.

(As he sips his new coffee, he realises it’s an acquired taste.)

----------

Suzuka wakes up to the smell of coffee.

He’d woken up even earlier, this time, just to make sure he gets first dibs to the coffee-brewing. Not that it’s some kind of competition...but still. Who knows - perhaps there may really be some sort of competitive spirit in him, egging him on to feed his favourite brand of coffee to his long-distance mystery coffee partner.

He’s been using the exact same type of beans for years. A real creature of habit, he is. Maybe if he kicks the habit of coffee-drinking, he’ll kick his insomnia away, too...not happening. Coffee happens to be one of the most important comforts in his existence, and he figures that the lack of it will ironically cause him to lose sleep, out of pining. (Talk about a real chicken-and-egg problem.)

(He hangs around the pantry 5 minutes longer than usual, wondering if said long-distance coffee partner will appear. They don’t, so he disappears, too, leaving nothing but a lukewarm half-pot of coffee in his trail.)

------------

Suzuka wakes up to the smell of coffee.

It’s not the one he’s most used to, though it’s the one he’s getting used to.

He’d forgotten to set his alarm clock yesterday - today morning at 4am to be precise, but yesterday night in terms of normalised time.

What is normal? Suzuka doesn’t know. Maybe he will, someday.

What he does know, however, is that he doesn’t care whether sleeping in his office room is normal. And what he does care about, is that doing this helps save time on commuting to work, which then helps reserve time for work, which then gives him more time for sleep. (Talk about a real chicken-and-egg solution.)

Being a tenured professor has its problems, such as stacks of work, including administrative duties, teaching duties, research duties, or in his case, assisting with police investigations. But it also does have its perks, and having a solo office room to himself is his favourite of them all.

He grabs a cup, fills it, returns to his office room, and sits in the sofabed he’d brought from home, sipping the gift of coffee he has just received.

(As he does, he realises his favourite brand of coffee now has a competitor.)

--------------

Suzuka wakes up to the smell of coffee.

He’d set his alarm way very early this time, so “wakes up”, here, is almost as literal as it is metaphorical. He really wanted to get first dibs on the coffee-making, because he reckons must convert his coffee partner to his favourite brand of coffee, instead of it being the other way round.

That’s a lie, though, and he knows it. He’d really just wanted to attempt to wait around for his coffee partner, out of curiosity.

Unfortunately, his handphone dings multiple times, telling him that the emails have started to come rolling in.

(He abandons the half-pot of coffee as he walks back to his office to answer the steadily increasing workpile naggingly summoning him, telling the half-pot of coffee to accost his coffee comrade for him, telling himself that the day they meet will come.)

----------------

Suzuka wakes up to the smell of coffee.

He can recognise that it isn’t his coffee, so he rushes to the pantry, hoping to catch his newfound coffee companion in action.

Unfortunately, he arrives a tad too late, because all there is in the pantry is a half-pot of coffee, lying in wait for him. (At least, he infers is in wait for him - they’ve been keeping this exchange up for a while and they no longer leave sticky notes for each other telling the other party that they are free to drink it, treating it as assumed information instead. Better for the trees, that way.)

(He sips his coffee on the sofabed in his office, and realises that he’s acquired the taste already.)

 ------------------

Suzuka wakes up to the smell of coffee.

It’s his own beans this time, because he has won - well, he has won the race to the pantry, but his beans have lost, because he has found a new favourite brand in the form of the other coffee he alternates between, these days. Or maybe it’s a tie.

Doesn’t matter anyway, because what matters is that he gets to meet his fellow coffee maker. If the insomnia doesn’t kill him, this curiosity will.

So he waits, and the insomnia almost kills him, because the smell of coffee fails to wake him up fully this time, and he almost dozes off while standing up, propped against the kitchen counter in the pantry.

Before he does, he is saved by a tap on the shoulder. He jolts awake, slightly confused, almost forgetting why he’s there.

“Excuse me, sorry, but I am trying to get my pot of coffee into my mug, and you are sort of in the way.”

Suzuka looks up, and almost forgets to breathe for a moment. What he remembers, though, is why he’s there in the first place.

Pale skin. Chin-length hair. Large, round eyes. Tiny nose, tiny mouth.

These are what Suzuka sees when he looks up, but these are all nondescript characteristics, really, because what he sees cannot be described with any word, phrase, or sentence; the only possible description is that it's a taste he probably doesn't even need any time to acquire.

He finally remembers to breathe, fully awake by now.

"Coffee?" is the only thing he says, a question in ways more than one.

"Yes," is the only thing she says, an answer, also in ways more than one.

[imagines-mha]

How class 1-B are in the mornings

Monoma

Have u ever seen something so tired in ur life

He’s 100% that annoying person who REFUSES to get up no matter how many times you shout at him

Takes him 39 years to actually get out of bed and he’s hellbent until he gets some form of breakfast (thank u tetsutetsu for being the typical morning provider)

Like fr he hates just about everyone

He’s the reason most of the morning dramas break out in the class. He argues with EVERYONE and it causes so many fuckin arguments there’s at least one every morning some1 restrain him

Tetsutetsu

Typical “RISE AND SHINE ITS A LOVELY MORNING WHO WANTS BREAKFAST????” bitch in the house

He’ll wake up exactly on his alarm, hopping out of his bed as awake as he’s ever been he’s so excited everyone plz give him a kiss

Once he’s up he’s up and he’s the biggest morning person in the house like he brings SO MUCH joy

It annoys the sleepy squad™️ but on the plus side he offers to make breakfast for everyone cus he’s always up so early so who rlly wins???

Awase

Closeted member of the sleepysquad™️

sleeps until he HAS to get up lmao he ain’t one of those “i’ll get up early to get breakfast and get prepared for the day!!” NAW he’s more like “don’t even enter my room til 10 minutes before class starts”

If you DO enter his room earlier than allowed he will end you. Like it’s one of the few times he gets really REALLY angry at people and u don’t wanna see him angry cus he can be a demon

He pretends he’s up when his alarm rings, but he’ll sit at breakfast letting his eyes shut every few minutes and it’s so easy to see how tired he is

Rin

He’s grumpy when he wakes up

If monoma or ANYONE even opens their mouth he glares so hard like if looks could kill lmao

Can’t eat breakfast in the mornings. Thinks anyone who does has deeply rooted issues

Literally. Don’t even breathe in his direction bro. It’s for ur own good

He and awase make the worst duo in the mornings to be around they can be so SASSY

Tsuburaba

Either the happiest person alive or the sleepiest. Fr it’s 50/50

One morning he’ll wake up with a start and greet everyone and get off to a happy, bouncy beginning to his day

Other mornings he can and will fall asleep in a bowl of cereal

He’s also the cutest though like he has that messy hair aesthetic and he’s literally a 4 year old in need of care when he’s sleepy

His mood depends on whether he’s showered the night before or not

Kaibara

SLEEPY SQUAD LEADER

He wakes up extremely tired: his hair a mess, pyjamas all ruffled, and he yawns 3 times per minute

Does he care though? No

Like fr an avalanche could hit the building and he still wouldn’t react heS SO SLOW

It takes him like 2 hours to wake up properly but the class find it adorable cus he has this croaky voice when he’s tired and they all LOVE IT

Honenuki

He wakes up every morning exactly 4 minutes before his alarm. He doesn’t know how to fix it

He’s learned to reap the benefits though cus these four minutes are his time™️ to get his life together for the day

He 100% sleepwalks

He’s that weirdo who does stretches in the mornings and drinks water to “fully energize himself”

In a good mood most mornings- just like he usually is tbh like they don’t affect him much

Kuroiro

Does he,,,, does he sleep?

Honenuki went into his room one night to grab a charger and found him just,,,sitting there

He doesn’t like to talk about that experience

Noone really knows what happens once lights go out tbh

He does sleep though. If you look closely in the mornings his hair’s a teeny bit more disshevelled and his voice is slightly more gruff but it takes a genius to figure it out

Komori

She is literally the defiance of logic in the mornings

10pm will hit and she’ll be snoring on the sofa, then after her 9 HOUR SLEEP she’ll wake up for school, more tired than anyone in the class

Sleepysquad queen™️

She’s dangerous whenever she’s tired like i mean she needs constant assistance cus my girl be walking into walls n shit

She just makes confused noises til class starts

Kendo

She’s tired but mom gotta work so she forgets abt it 😤

She’s the resident alarm clock of the dorms

As in she comes and wakes up the idiots who hit snooze too many times (*cough* moNOMA *cough*)

A little moody in the mornings, and it’s not a rare sight to see her arguing with a grumpy monoma or awase

Pls be kind to her in the mornings she tries so hard.

Pony

ADORABLE SLEEPY ANGEL

shes the only one monoma can stand in the mornings cus you just CANT be mean to her

Always has her hair in plaits to make it wavy and wears matching pyjamas every night

She literally is an angel she’ll wake up with a croaky “good morning everyone” and start her day with smiles and happy thoughts

Definitely a morning person she cheers everyone up

Ibara

She gets up at 5:45am every single morning to meditate and do yoga

Always the first one up

She’ll come outside the dorms and watch the sunrise in the summer with a cup of tea and her own company- if this doesn’t happen she goes from angel to demon in minutes

When everyone wakes up she’s already dressed and has already eaten and they’re lowkey jealous of her time management

Reiko

Don’t look at her in the mornings she’s a mess

Ask her a question and she’ll stare blankly at you until you go away there’s no hope for conversation sorry bro 😔👊🏻

She just sits on her phone and tries to absorb as much caffeine as possible before going to school like she litrally gives 0 fucks u could feed her paper in the mornings and she wouldn’t second guess it

Kodai

She’s the most normal when she wakes up. Not too happy not too grumpy just 👌🏻

Will help tetsutetsu make breakfast cus she’s one of the only ones who can stand his energy

She’s the go to gal for homework in the mornings. If you need to copy some shit up or finish off smth her schoolbags always open to everyone and the answers are always right

She’s the only one everyone can collectively stand in the mornings

Tokage

How does she have so much energy??? What the fuck

Wakes up ready to run a marathon

Her eyes fr snap open at 7:00am and she’s like “LETS GOOOOOOO MORNING TIME YEE HAW!!!!”

Uses her quirk to prank people in the mornings and it makes the morning clique™️ giggle

As opposed, it makes the sleepy squad™️ so fucking angry but it IS funny to be fair

Manga

U know those cute ZZZZZZZ emoji things that appear on his speech bubble whenever he’s sleepy

They stay there til midday

He just drags himself around every morning and bondo ends up carrying him HES SO TIRED

He stays up all night drawing and dancing around his room like it’s 4AM and he’s bouncing on his bed to the fuckin ghostbusters soundtrack he’s a dork

Bondo

Another angel in the mornings

If it weren’t for him fukidashi would have been dead due to tiredness

Makes all his sleepy friends their coffee and gets them ready for school

Hes a mom

He sleeps a good 10 hours a night tho like damn he does get his beauty sleep

He’ll help out as much as possible and everyone just loves to be around him

Shishida

He’s a CONFUSED OLD MAN

“Ah,,,,,kendo,,,,have you by any chance seen my glasses?”

He asks shit like this every morning and every morning they’re in the EXACT same place god someone help him pls

He sleepwalks and sleeptalks and it’s TERRIFYING because from a distance he looks so scary

Don’t get into a conversation with him in the mornings he’ll talk for hours on end

Shoda

He’s another sleepy boy

He doesn’t have an ounce of malice in him, but he’s also the most disorientated

He’s dropped and smashed so many cups on the floor from just being too tired vlad’s gonna kill him one day

He actually doesn’t give a fuck in the mornings

You could tell him the house is on fire and he’d still try and roll back over to get that extra 5 minutes lmao

Kamakiri

Do u want 2 die in the mornings? No? Ok just don’t look at him and you’ll be fine

The definition of “if looks could kill”

He doesn’t want to be awake. He doesn’t want to go to school. He wants to be in bed, dreaming abt nice leaves or some shit idk what do preying mantises dream abt??

He’s threatened monoma with a knife before and vlad had to pull them apart it was scary as heck but he regets nothing

[one-and-three-sevenths]

21 Questions Tag!

Thank you so much @rogersmeadows for tagging me!!! This has accidentally been sitting in my drafts for ages I’m so sorry lol

nicknames: I dont really have one, the only one who uses it is my mum lmao but “Lou”

zodiac sign: leo  (roger hmu)

height: 5′1.75 !!!! (.75 is very important when ur as smol as me)

hogwarts house:��ok ok dont get me STARTED i was a big HP fan as a kid and ALL MY LIFE I was a Gryffindor (this is based off of Pottermore btw) and then I thought, hey I havent taken the test in a couple years, lets try again..... AND I GOT HUFFLEPUFF. I FEEL BETRAYED AND I REFUSE TO ACCEPT THIS. so tl;dr i’m a gryffindor

last thing i googled: taron egerton as eggsy 

fave musicians: ............ this is a queen blog so i mean???? but gosh my music is all over. I also love people like Conan Gray and Dodie and Hozier, but also stuff like Motley Crue (i do not condone the actual band) and Twenty One Pilots. i also like lots of indie shit. Apart from Queen tho I dont think I could choose favourites.

song stuck in your head: can’t help falling in love by Elvis Presley ... my mum just got back from memphis so theres a lot of Elvis in the house

following: 589! (I also run two other blogs so its not all Queen haha)

followers: 165 here!!! 1,383 on my main:)

do you get asks: almost never tbh!! I get one or two very rarely and they make my heart go !! every time cus i love interacting with you guys

amount of sleep: im currently running on about 7 hours but with no alarm and no commitments I can easily sleep 12+ hours in one go. My schedule is wack so sometimes im not even in bed till like 4am

lucky number: i dont have one!!! i kinda like the number 7, he seems cool

What are you wearing: a grey hoodie from my housing company (they gave them out on move-in day) and a pair of my bf’s boxers lmao comfy lyfe

dream job: i would really love something in the film industry. I thought I wanted to be a cinematographer but after my first year at uni, I’m not sure which exact job I want! but if it could be annything I wanna be a musician (singer).

dream trip: every trip? I think rn I want nothing more than a roadtrip in some hippie fan with my friends from North California to SoCal.

instruments: i sing!!!! I can play guitar, I’m better than beginner for sure but I wouldn’t actually say Im any good. I also play ukulele pretty well:) I used to play piano but I dont anymore. (ask/dm me if you’d like to see something of me playing!!)

languages: english and a small amount of spanish and hungarian!! but very small amounts

favourite songs: hhhhhhhhHhhhhhhHHHHHH these questions make me combust bc i cant come up with accurate answers. my CURRENT faves (as in, right now, it changes basically every day) would be: Close My Eyes by Hey Violet, Son and Daughter by Queen, Drowse by Queen, Guiltless by Dodie ????? idkkkkk

random fact: i have an outie belly button👀 only 10% of the population do! and mine is super rare bc it was caused by an umbilical hernia,,, (tmi??)

aethestic: the sun on your skin, acoustic guitars, dirt under your feet, hand-holding (with everyone), vanilla, building fairy gardens, drunken karaoke, candid Polaroid’s, cat eyes, dancing in your room, colour coded notes, cry laughing, dirty boots, afternoon naps, losing your voice at a concert, summer sunsets, losing your friends at a party, denim jackets, fairy lights, pillow forts, tattoos, short skirts, getting lost in the woods, London buses, loud music

I am tagging @cool--cats and @im-addicted-to-queen !!!

[mysongfortheasking]

Coming Home

When I was studying in my undergrad (side note: you have no idea the sick pleasure I get out of finally being able to say that in the past-tense), one of my professors told me, “When you’re in grad school, if you ever need someone to help you or to come crying to, you know where our offices are. We’re always here whenever you need us.” I laughed at the time, thinking I would never need to cash in on such an offer. Boy, was I wrong.

Last Wednesday night, I had class–”Major Figures in British Literature,” to be exact. I had been up and going since the crack of dawn (literally). My alarm went off at 4am, by 5 I was at the gym, where I worked out, showered, then left from there to be at work by 6:30. There, my job was to open the pet care department, so I cleaned out reptile bedding, checked food and water, and scrubbed bird poop for literally hours (I work at PetSmart, in case you were reading that and wondering where in the world I am having to do such insane tasks). When I got off, I came home. In the short hour and 45 minutes I had there, I took a shower in a feeble attempt to get rid of the smell of a chemical called “Poop Off” that was clinging to my skin, ate lunch, and left to go to class. I then drove an hour out to my school (getting pulled over on the way, but HUGE thanks to the kind state trooper for letting me off with a warning), and took a seat in the glorious chandeliered conference room where we have class.

I sat in my high-backed chair for three hours, grasping for straws, surrounded by my fellow students (who are not really fellow students, considering they are all in their mid to late doctoral studies and I am just now beginning on my Masters). One one side of me, a man is taking pages upon pages of handwritten notes; on the other side, a woman is texting, emailing, ordering Chipotle, and googling “Is it dangerous to get a massage during your first trimester of pregnancy?” And then there is me, trying to absorb the professor’s lecture on “What makes a literary movement a movement” and the difference between “The Beats” and “The Angry Young Men,” but walking away with nothing more than a few lines of typed notes and unanswered questions.

I walked across the street to my car, and drove the hour-long commute to my home in tears.

When I woke up the next morning, my mother asked me how class was the night before. I tried to casually say, “It was good,” but to my surprise it came out as, “I have no idea what I’m doing,” and I once again found myself crying into my morning cup of coffee.

It was then that I heard my professors words once again: You know where our offices are. We’re always here whenever you need us. I told my mom I was going to drive out to my old alma-mater. When she asked why, I said, “I need to go home.”

When I got there, I was greeted with smiles and hugs. And I tried my hardest not to, but out of emotional, mental, and physical exhaustion, all I could do was cry when they asked what I was doing there. I told them the same thing I told my mother: I just needed to come home.

I spent the remainder of my morning and afternoon there, bouncing from office to office, crying through a lot of them. But when I left, I left with more than just a few lines of typed notes and unanswered questions. I left with my head high, saying to myself, “I can do this.”

I write all of this for two reasons. One is to say thank you to some of my professors, personally.

Thank you, Dr. Amy and Dr. Danny Alexander, for taking me in as your own. I truly would not be where I am today without you both. It is because of Dr. Danny Alexander that I changed majors and realized I really do have the potential to be a great professor someday. And it is thanks to Dr. Amy Alexander allowing me to “play professor” and believing in me that I now have some experience and a foundation to stand on when I one day get a classroom of my own. Words can’t describe what the Alexanders mean to me, and all the ways they have loved and supported me in both professional and personal struggles.

Thank you, Professor (and soon to be doctor) Diane Lewis. When I entered your classroom, I was truly in a crisis of faith. And you never scolded or shamed me for asking questions. You listened, answered, and encouraged me to think and study and believe on my own. I hold everyone of our “printer-side” talks to heart. You were also one of the first people to say to me, “You should consider becoming a professor someday.” You planted the seed, and although this seed is still blooming and is growing (somewhat) on it’s own now, you are still continually watering it. You are a true source of wisdom and clarity that I (will probably forever) cling to.

Thank you, Dr. D’Juana Montgomery, for opening my eyes to so much in the literary world. Without your literary theories class, I would be running around blindly in grad school. (Or maybe I should say I’d be running more blindly than I feel like I’m already running right now–haha!) You were the one who told me I could always coming back. You were the one who told me I could come back crying whenever I needed, because you would always be there. It is also because of you that I now have an insane obsession and deep passion for Native American literature and am seriously considering focusing on it for a doctoral dissertation. You have been a true inspiration to me.

Lastly, thank you to Professor (and also soon to be doctor) Amy George. You have made a truly eternal impact with only four words you said casually near that printer: You should publish this. Before taking your class, I never even considered my writing and poetry going anywhere besides frayed notebooks and old computer files. But because of you, I have experienced a true freedom. You imparted courage into me that day–the courage to share parts of myself I never dreamed of sharing. You have taught me so much about writing and myself in ways that I may never be able to truly verbalize and express (but will continue to try through writing).

Please know that these five professors are most definitely not the only professors I ever encountered who changed my life–everyone at SAGU made some sort of impact on me. I could write something personal to all of them. I truly love and cherish my encounter with each and every professor. However, these five are the ones I got closest to. These are the ones who took me in under their wing and have become a part of my family. And for that I am eternally grateful beyond words. I hope that someday, when I am a professor, I can make the same impact on my students’ lives as you have all made on mine.

Finally, the last reason I am writing this is to address the students following behind me in the English department of SAGU. Don’t be afraid to ask questions. Don’t take for granted the time you are there. The professors there–not only the five I mentioned, but any of them–will never scold or rebuke you for asking questions. Ground yourself there. Form relationships with both students and professors that will last forever. And know that no matter where you go or what you do, you can always come back home.

[sarahburness]

How Going Offline for 10 Days Healed My Anxiety

“Almost everything will work again if you unplug it for a while, including you.” ~Anna Lamott

I wake up anxious a little past 4am. My heart is beating faster than usual, and I’m aware of an unsettled feeling, like life-crushing doom is imminent. For a moment, I wonder if I just felt the first waves of a massive earthquake. Or perhaps those were gunshots I just heard in the distance.

But no, it’s just another night in my bedroom in the Bay Area, and everything is utterly fine. But somehow, my central nervous system isn’t so sure.

The problem is the thick swirl of news media, social media, and talk among friends I carry with me every day. It’s a toxic milkshake of speculation, fear, and anger that I consume, and it has me deeply rattled. I absorb this stuff like crazy.

I suspect I’m not alone.

I know for a fact that my anxiety isn’t just some vague menopause symptom, but the result of my deep immersion in the current zeitgeist. I know this because recently I left the whole thing behind for ten glorious days. I went to Belize, and left my phone and my laptop sitting on my bureau at home.

For most of that time, my wife and I lived on a small island thirty miles out to sea with only a bit of generator electricity. We avoided the extremely spotty Wifi like the plague. Instead, we woke with the sunrise, and sat on the deck outside our grass hut, watching manta rays swim in the shallow water below us and pelicans perch nearby. The biggest thing that happened every morning was the osprey that left its nest and circled above us.

It was life in slow-mo all the way. And it was transformative.

For ten entire days I didn’t think about politics or how America is devolving into an angry, wild place where public figures regularly get death threats, and social media has become the equivalent of High Noon with guns drawn.

The toxic interplay of who is right or wrong, or the future of our democracy ceased to exist as we sailed toward that island on our big, well-worn catamaran. In fact, by the time we reached our refuge, those tapes had disappeared altogether.

Instead, we swam and we rested. We snorkeled. We read. We had some adventures involving caves and kayaks, and we hung out with the other guests. The two Belizian women who cooked for us observed us Americans with our expensive toys, and they took it all with a grain of salt. In their presence, I could suddenly see how silly and overwrought all this intensity has become.

Ironically, when given the opportunity to present a gift to a school in one of Belize’s small seaside towns, I brought along a laptop and an iPad I no longer used. An elementary school teacher received the gifts with gratitude. Yet, as I gave them to her, I noticed I felt wary.

I could swear she seemed wary as well.

What new layer of complexity was I bringing onto these shores? And was it even necessary for life to go on happily and productively?

When we returned to the so-called civilized world, here’s what I immediately noticed:

1. I was now leery of all my previously trusted news sources.

Suddenly I could clearly see the anguished bias all around me, going in all sorts of directions left and right. The newsfeeds I’d previously consumed with abandon now seemed more biased than I’d realized. I was left with one option—either drop out and start reading the classics for entertainment, or proceed with caution.

2. I had more time to sit alone with nothing in particular to do.

Before my media fast, that was a bad idea. Hey, I had social media to check and emails to catch up on. The day’s events were going by in a high-speed blur, and I had to keep up. But now life had slowed to the pace of my emotions. I could breathe again. And so, for a while at least, I enjoyed spacing out.

3. My anxiety disappeared. For a while.

So did my knockdown ambition, and my desire to overwork. Everything had just … chilled. Enormously. For a while I slept easily. I no longer drove myself to do the impossible, and my to-do list now seemed balanced and reasonable. In turn, I no longer woke up with my heart pounding, nor did I have qualms overcome me during the day. Instead, I got ideas. Inspiration landed on me, and I was energized enough to pursue it.

4. Life became lighter and more fun.

Now I found my day-to-day routine to be far more delightful. It simply was, and for no particular reason. I laughed more. I found myself singing while I did chores around the house. Since I wasn’t consuming the same fire hose of media, I now had time to have more fun.

5. I complained less.

Now that I was unplugged, I found that I didn’t have to share my opinion on every last political matter happening around me. Nor did I need to engage in fights on social media. In turn, I didn’t lie awake as much, gnashing my teeth.

6. I thought about things I’d long forgotten.

Like my childhood. I tapped into long buried feelings sitting in that glorious deck chair of mine, like how it felt to be a vulnerable kid at school, and what joy I found in standing in the water, letting the waves rush my legs. I rediscovered the great internal monologue I have going all the time. It had long been forgotten.

7. I had more time just to hang with people.

This was, perhaps, the greatest gift of all. To quietly sit at a table, chatting over empty coffee cups with relative strangers, or perhaps my wife. There we all were, on our island for days on end. So we might as well talk, right? I found people to be fascinating once again.

In fact, I was discovering JOMO—the Joy of Missing Out. Turns out this is a thing. Those exact words were projected on the screen behind Sundar Pichai, CEO of Google, at a recent developer’s conference. Apparently even the tech people want to turn off their screens.

So one must ask the question: did all of this good stuff last?

In a word, no.

It’s been several months since this experiment ended, and I am, of course, back online. The pull is simply too great to ignore and avoid. Since I actually make my living online, disappearing off the grid is not even an option. And yet, I’ve learned a lot.

I no longer subscribe to certain reactionary newsfeeds. While I may be more out of touch, this is alarming material, guaranteed to not make me feel better. So no, I no longer read these emails. And I cherry pick what I read in my newsfeeds with care.

I no longer reach for my phone as soon as I open my eyes every morning. I also try not to check my email on my phone at all, something I often did while waiting in the Bay Area’s many lines. In fact, I’ve learned to leave my phone at home when I go out.

Instead, I chat with other people while waiting in the line, or I just look around. Or I zone out and enjoy what brain scientists call the “default mode,” the fertile, random, and enjoyable hopscotch the brain does while at rest. I realized now that I’d been missing that hopscotch. Instead, I enjoy the fertile luxury of a good daydream.

My late daughter Teal would have understood my need to drop out perfectly. Even at age twenty-two, she refused to have a smart phone. She embraced the world, eyes forward and heart engaged, making friends wherever she went. And she did so until her sudden death from a medically unexplainable cardiac arrest in 2012.

“Life is now,” she liked to say. Usually she reminded me of this as she headed out the door with her travel guitar and her backpack, on a spontaneous decision to busk her way across the other side of the world.

At the time, I couldn’t begin to fathom what she was talking about. “Too simplistic” I thought, dismissively, as I wrote it off to my daughter’s relentless free spirit. But as it turns out, Teal was right. So now I am left with this very big lesson.

Not only is life now, life is rich, random and filled with delight. The trick is to unplug long enough to actually experience it.

Illustration by Kaitlin Roth

About Suzanne Falter

You can find Suzanne Falter on Facebook at the Self Care Group for Extremely Busy Women or on her podcast, The Self-Care Soother. She is also the author of Surrendering to Joy, a collection of essays she wrote in the year following her daughter’s death. She keeps a blog at http://suzannefalter.com/blog/.

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The post How Going Offline for 10 Days Healed My Anxiety appeared first on Tiny Buddha.

from Tiny Buddha https://tinybuddha.com/blog/how-going-offline-for-10-days-healed-my-anxiety/

[unhappyclient-blog]

John M Edwards from Madison Indiana

John and I started dating in June of 2012. We met through a dating website (POF) and he looked like the perfect guy. We texted all day and talked on the phone for hours every night. He was so sweet and even though we lived 4 hours apart, he surprised me at the most adorable of ways by sending me flowers or stuff like that. In August I moved to west lafayette since I began attending Purdue University. Between him working full time and having drill a weekend of this month (because he is in the military NG), and me going to school all during the week and working on the weekends, we only saw each other one weekend out of the month. But then, things were great. We constantly had the best time together and shared wonderful memories. We would go back and forth composing every other long sweet texts professing our love for each other and it was like a fairy tale. But I discovered it started to stop sometime in january. And when I brought this to his attention, he'd say it was because he had been busy hanging out with a friend and hed send one afterwards, or he fell sleep and forgot. In March of 2013, I found out that I was pregnant. He was supposed to be set up to Egypt that June, but the day after I discovered, his installation was cancelled and I thought it was destiny. I finished out the session and we have an apartment together May in his hometown (4 hours away from all of my loved ones and friends). I moved down there to be with him and begin our family together. I found an excellent job within 2 weeks and things were going great. Then I began to notice changes. He went out every weekend to the bars with his friends, leaving me home alone with nothing to do and nobody to hangout with or talk to. I couldnt go if I wanted to because A) I was only 20. And B) he didnt need me out in crowded public areas because theres a great deal of dumb drunk idiots out there and somebody could bump into me and god forbid it caused any harm to the baby. Well I started becoming suspicious because he would stay out in the bars until 4am, yet they closed at 3. (and in addition, he got a DUI in July after blowing a .15 and had his license suspended for a month and was put on probation for the next year, yet still went out and drank in the pubs anyways because his best friend was a cop) He'd conceal his phone and take it with him when he went to shower or poop. He kept a lock on his telephone that I constantly had the code , but then he began altering it and any moment I'd ask for this, hed get defensive or make up and explanation. And when I figured it out, hed change it again the following moment. One night I had figured out the passcode to his telephone and I unlocked it. I found he had a snapchat from some girl, so I viewed it, and it was a photo of her VAGINA. Not full blown, however, it was a straight shot of her pants unzipped with panties on. Obviously my mouth dropped and I woke him up right then pissed off asking questions (bad thought. Always stay cool and get your ducks in a row first). Nicely he course played it off and stated that she had been just a an ex girlfriend of one of his buddies and he had no clue why she'd send him something like that and that hed obstruct her. Well I knew better, but of course gave him the benefit of the doubt. He then got another part time job to help save extra cash before our daughter was born and had gone to see him one night and the women were quite friendly with me and knew we were together and expecting a child except ONE girl. Well I discovered they were friends on facebook and she too was shot with a kid. Well I added her and she never approved. Then I saw text messages on his phone between the both of them as if they had been attempting to get to know each other (such as you do when you first start talking to somebody asking for pictures, etc). He told me it was his friend in the office texting her from his phone bc his was broken. I knew that was probably bullshit but when we hung out with this friend one evening, I asked him when john had gone into the restroom and he confirmed it, so I let it go. (turns out that he was covering for him) oh and also the best part was that after I finally found out this, I found out that this particular woman lived in the same neighborhood as us, just a street over!! Well he quit that job soon after because he said he didnt like it there and got yet another part time job working in video. (he had worked there before and left on good terms so they hired him right away). Well he worked up until a few days before our daughter was born and then just stopped showing up and finally got fired bc he didnt need to have to work for thanksgiving. Nicely November 2013 comes and I have my girl, the most beautiful little girl in the world. He was right there with me every step along the way, through the 16 and a half an hour of labour. I had her and he remained there with me that the whole 3 days we had been in the hospital. He seemed so filled with love and security (like a father should have) that I thought maybe hed realize that a household is more important than anything or anyone. He'd taken another week off of work so he could stay home and be there with us I had been on paid maternity leave for 6 weeks from my job. He came straight home from work daily and could stay home every weekend (except the evenings he had drill). Well one day his buddys girlfriend (who'd become my very best friend) told me that her boyfriend (johns BEST FRIEND) had informed her one night which John had cheated on me with a woman named Olivia at the Family Video shop where he used to work. That he was shutting one night and she came and watched him and they had sex in one of the temptations (aisle 4 or something as it had no detectors ) and this happened like a week until my daughter was born. Well I was angry since this was the SAME GIRL that'd befriended me months ahead, and we had actually hung out a few times and she came over to our apartment one day after our daughter was born. I thought it was strange how he sat there on his xbox enjoying his game and hardly ackowledged her, and the way she had been absolutely fine with thumping her boob and breastfeeding her 3 month old daughter (Yes, she had a girl, was a year younger than me, and her babys dad wants nothing to do with her or his child ). That his buddy would never state anything like that and that it never occurred. Well, Christmas time comes along with his buddy (the one whos a cop) articles a standing on facebook stating hes drinking with a friend of his and invites john over. John comments on it and says no he cant (because we were sitting there watching a movie) and his friend comments back and says that his hitler-ette had to calm down and quit controlling him. So I awakened on his buddy and he explained that the only reason john was was because I got pregnant and if I was brighter and had used birth control then I wouldnt even be here right now. So john went on his buddy and actually stood me up and I told him I want nothing to do with him at all and that he is not permitted over at our home or to visit our kid. He complied and his buddys title wasnt brought up again and they never hung out (even though they'd made up with eachother and still texted occasionally). Well in february, this exact same friend of his has been caught red handed cheating on his girlfriend (my now best friend) with some girl for the previous 2 months. Well things happened between those who I say, but now instead of being a police officer, hes sitting for the next 8 years and can have no contact with either of his daughters or his ex girlfriend (my buddy ). Well the night this all occurred, I wake up into a text message saying we had been perfect. They were cheating with (so and so). So I wake john up and tell him what she said and he said that she had been making s*** up to try to break us up since her connection was about to ***. And since I had no evidence, I let it all go. Well I had posted a standing about cheaters and a week later I get an anonymous letter in the mail at my WORK, addressed to me personally, stating (in badly disguised sloppy handwriting) they saw my status and know for a fact that john had cheated on me with atleast 3 different women, and gave titles. And that they thought I must know (and one of the girls names was Olivia, from earlier in my story). This time I didnt mechanically show him my evidence and accuse him. I played it cool and wished to collect everything. So I figured out the password for his verizon accounts and looked in his telephone records and saw a number continuously popping up on there. I printed everything! That night, iIwake around 1 because my daughter started crying and I started to feed her so she could go back to sleep. I discovered it vibrate, but it didnt light up. (he's an iphone) therefore I click on the home button, and it doesnt show anything on the monitor. (keep in mind his phone is also secured, so I cant test it fully because I dont know the password). Well then it goes back, but it was a different vibration than previously and the telephone really lit up this time. I seem and its some remark notification for facebook. So right then and there's when I knew that he had blocked the alarms for texts so I couldnt see (since it shows that the first portion of the message onto the lock screen) so I waited till he finally awakened at 5:30 that morning and went to check his phone, like he does every morning. And I told him to waitand that I needed to sit behind him as he assessed it. He immediately asked why and I said since somebody texted you at 1:30 in the afternoon and the notification did not show on the display so I wanna understand who it is. He immediately got defensive and said no! That he wasnt going to continue doing so s*** and that I have to trust him. That Saturday nighthe went out to the bars and got really drunk, and for the first time in the past year and a half, I went to a bonfire with my pal and two of her woman friends. It was just the four people plus her friends husband and his friend. I requested Johns mother and sister to babysit for a couple hours so I could hangout and have a wonderful time, and they were happy to. Well once I was there for about an or two, johns sister calls me and informs me john found they were babysitting and got really pissed off that I wasnt house with our daughter. So I advised her id be home soon and she said that he was already on his way home. Well then I get a call from john who asks me what Im doing, I tell him Im at a bonfire and he flips out on me and says could O pawn off our kid to somebody else (if it was his mother and sister) and that I was a horrible mom. (yet he had been the one who was piss ass drunk). So I push instantly home and hes sitting on the sofa with his friend, and his mother and sister are sitting on the other end of the sofa with my daughter. I walk in, since the door was unlocked and he gets up and goes into the bathroom (where he began puking his guts out bc thats how drunk he was the same guy that blew a .15 and believed he was absolutely fine to push and hadnt drank so far ). Well his sister and I go out and she explains to me exactly what happened when he got home. He flew into a rage and began screaming stuff and saying how I was nuts if I thought I was going to have the ability to come in the home and blah blah blah. Nicely his sister told him into the stfu and said shes a mommy. shes going to call the cops. Youll go to prison! Stop being an idiot and calm down! . Well we didnt say a word to each other the rest of the night and his friend passed out, and I slept on the sofa. After that day, one of his own friends had called me and asked what had occurred between us bc he saw we werent together on facebook and I told him why and he explained that was actually cheating on me with this one girl, the one he maintained was texting his friend through his mobile phone. And how he bragged about it to him saying oh this woman is texting me and sending me these pics and what not all happy about it. So that next Saturday, while he was at drill, my parents and my cousin came down with their 12 passenger van and pickup and they moved all of mine and my daughters things back to fort wayne to my parents home. He freaked out on me initially and posted a lot of bullshit on facebook to get sympathy from people who had no idea what actually happened, and I filed that Monday for child service and we had our court in july because he didnt wish to agree on more than $200 a month to get support when Im paying $500 per month daily care alone. _Ùªâ I'd post the women that he cheated on me with, but to tell the truth, I dont know all of their names because there were too many to count. They knew we had been hell the whole town did because its a very small city, nevertheless still fIIked around with him. But the moment I began to get suspicious about one, hed drop them and move on to the next. So hes the actual HOMEWRECKER within this story and he deserves to be here and these chicks will get whats coming to them as will he _Ùªâ The one thing I am thankful for throughout this whole mess was my lovely daughter, along with also the fact that besides his lying adulterous ways, he's really a fantastic father to her. Read the full article

[verifiedcomplaints-blog]

John M Edwards from Madison Indiana

John and I started dating in June of 2012. We met through a dating website (POF) and he looked like the perfect guy. We texted all day and talked on the phone for hours every night. He was so sweet and even though we lived 4 hours apart, he surprised me at the most adorable of ways by sending me flowers or stuff like that. In August I moved to west lafayette since I began attending Purdue University. Between him working full time and having drill a weekend of this month (because he is in the military NG), and me going to school all during the week and working on the weekends, we only saw each other one weekend out of the month. But then, things were great. We constantly had the best time together and shared wonderful memories. We would go back and forth composing every other long sweet texts professing our love for each other and it was like a fairy tale. But I discovered it started to stop sometime in january. And when I brought this to his attention, he'd say it was because he had been busy hanging out with a friend and hed send one afterwards, or he fell sleep and forgot. In March of 2013, I found out that I was pregnant. He was supposed to be set up to Egypt that June, but the day after I discovered, his installation was cancelled and I thought it was destiny. I finished out the session and we have an apartment together May in his hometown (4 hours away from all of my loved ones and friends). I moved down there to be with him and begin our family together. I found an excellent job within 2 weeks and things were going great. Then I began to notice changes. He went out every weekend to the bars with his friends, leaving me home alone with nothing to do and nobody to hangout with or talk to. I couldnt go if I wanted to because A) I was only 20. And B) he didnt need me out in crowded public areas because theres a great deal of dumb drunk idiots out there and somebody could bump into me and god forbid it caused any harm to the baby. Well I started becoming suspicious because he would stay out in the bars until 4am, yet they closed at 3. (and in addition, he got a DUI in July after blowing a .15 and had his license suspended for a month and was put on probation for the next year, yet still went out and drank in the pubs anyways because his best friend was a cop) He'd conceal his phone and take it with him when he went to shower or poop. He kept a lock on his telephone that I constantly had the code , but then he began altering it and any moment I'd ask for this, hed get defensive or make up and explanation. And when I figured it out, hed change it again the following moment. One night I had figured out the passcode to his telephone and I unlocked it. I found he had a snapchat from some girl, so I viewed it, and it was a photo of her VAGINA. Not full blown, however, it was a straight shot of her pants unzipped with panties on. Obviously my mouth dropped and I woke him up right then pissed off asking questions (bad thought. Always stay cool and get your ducks in a row first). Nicely he course played it off and stated that she had been just a an ex girlfriend of one of his buddies and he had no clue why she'd send him something like that and that hed obstruct her. Well I knew better, but of course gave him the benefit of the doubt. He then got another part time job to help save extra cash before our daughter was born and had gone to see him one night and the women were quite friendly with me and knew we were together and expecting a child except ONE girl. Well I discovered they were friends on facebook and she too was shot with a kid. Well I added her and she never approved. Then I saw text messages on his phone between the both of them as if they had been attempting to get to know each other (such as you do when you first start talking to somebody asking for pictures, etc). He told me it was his friend in the office texting her from his phone bc his was broken. I knew that was probably bullshit but when we hung out with this friend one evening, I asked him when john had gone into the restroom and he confirmed it, so I let it go. (turns out that he was covering for him) oh and also the best part was that after I finally found out this, I found out that this particular woman lived in the same neighborhood as us, just a street over!! Well he quit that job soon after because he said he didnt like it there and got yet another part time job working in video. (he had worked there before and left on good terms so they hired him right away). Well he worked up until a few days before our daughter was born and then just stopped showing up and finally got fired bc he didnt need to have to work for thanksgiving. Nicely November 2013 comes and I have my girl, the most beautiful little girl in the world. He was right there with me every step along the way, through the 16 and a half an hour of labour. I had her and he remained there with me that the whole 3 days we had been in the hospital. He seemed so filled with love and security (like a father should have) that I thought maybe hed realize that a household is more important than anything or anyone. He'd taken another week off of work so he could stay home and be there with us I had been on paid maternity leave for 6 weeks from my job. He came straight home from work daily and could stay home every weekend (except the evenings he had drill). Well one day his buddys girlfriend (who'd become my very best friend) told me that her boyfriend (johns BEST FRIEND) had informed her one night which John had cheated on me with a woman named Olivia at the Family Video shop where he used to work. That he was shutting one night and she came and watched him and they had sex in one of the temptations (aisle 4 or something as it had no detectors ) and this happened like a week until my daughter was born. Well I was angry since this was the SAME GIRL that'd befriended me months ahead, and we had actually hung out a few times and she came over to our apartment one day after our daughter was born. I thought it was strange how he sat there on his xbox enjoying his game and hardly ackowledged her, and the way she had been absolutely fine with thumping her boob and breastfeeding her 3 month old daughter (Yes, she had a girl, was a year younger than me, and her babys dad wants nothing to do with her or his child ). That his buddy would never state anything like that and that it never occurred. Well, Christmas time comes along with his buddy (the one whos a cop) articles a standing on facebook stating hes drinking with a friend of his and invites john over. John comments on it and says no he cant (because we were sitting there watching a movie) and his friend comments back and says that his hitler-ette had to calm down and quit controlling him. So I awakened on his buddy and he explained that the only reason john was was because I got pregnant and if I was brighter and had used birth control then I wouldnt even be here right now. So john went on his buddy and actually stood me up and I told him I want nothing to do with him at all and that he is not permitted over at our home or to visit our kid. He complied and his buddys title wasnt brought up again and they never hung out (even though they'd made up with eachother and still texted occasionally). Well in february, this exact same friend of his has been caught red handed cheating on his girlfriend (my now best friend) with some girl for the previous 2 months. Well things happened between those who I say, but now instead of being a police officer, hes sitting for the next 8 years and can have no contact with either of his daughters or his ex girlfriend (my buddy ). Well the night this all occurred, I wake up into a text message saying we had been perfect. They were cheating with (so and so). So I wake john up and tell him what she said and he said that she had been making s*** up to try to break us up since her connection was about to ***. And since I had no evidence, I let it all go. Well I had posted a standing about cheaters and a week later I get an anonymous letter in the mail at my WORK, addressed to me personally, stating (in badly disguised sloppy handwriting) they saw my status and know for a fact that john had cheated on me with atleast 3 different women, and gave titles. And that they thought I must know (and one of the girls names was Olivia, from earlier in my story). This time I didnt mechanically show him my evidence and accuse him. I played it cool and wished to collect everything. So I figured out the password for his verizon accounts and looked in his telephone records and saw a number continuously popping up on there. I printed everything! That night, iIwake around 1 because my daughter started crying and I started to feed her so she could go back to sleep. I discovered it vibrate, but it didnt light up. (he's an iphone) therefore I click on the home button, and it doesnt show anything on the monitor. (keep in mind his phone is also secured, so I cant test it fully because I dont know the password). Well then it goes back, but it was a different vibration than previously and the telephone really lit up this time. I seem and its some remark notification for facebook. So right then and there's when I knew that he had blocked the alarms for texts so I couldnt see (since it shows that the first portion of the message onto the lock screen) so I waited till he finally awakened at 5:30 that morning and went to check his phone, like he does every morning. And I told him to waitand that I needed to sit behind him as he assessed it. He immediately asked why and I said since somebody texted you at 1:30 in the afternoon and the notification did not show on the display so I wanna understand who it is. He immediately got defensive and said no! That he wasnt going to continue doing so s*** and that I have to trust him. That Saturday nighthe went out to the bars and got really drunk, and for the first time in the past year and a half, I went to a bonfire with my pal and two of her woman friends. It was just the four people plus her friends husband and his friend. I requested Johns mother and sister to babysit for a couple hours so I could hangout and have a wonderful time, and they were happy to. Well once I was there for about an or two, johns sister calls me and informs me john found they were babysitting and got really pissed off that I wasnt house with our daughter. So I advised her id be home soon and she said that he was already on his way home. Well then I get a call from john who asks me what Im doing, I tell him Im at a bonfire and he flips out on me and says could O pawn off our kid to somebody else (if it was his mother and sister) and that I was a horrible mom. (yet he had been the one who was piss ass drunk). So I push instantly home and hes sitting on the sofa with his friend, and his mother and sister are sitting on the other end of the sofa with my daughter. I walk in, since the door was unlocked and he gets up and goes into the bathroom (where he began puking his guts out bc thats how drunk he was the same guy that blew a .15 and believed he was absolutely fine to push and hadnt drank so far ). Well his sister and I go out and she explains to me exactly what happened when he got home. He flew into a rage and began screaming stuff and saying how I was nuts if I thought I was going to have the ability to come in the home and blah blah blah. Nicely his sister told him into the stfu and said shes a mommy. shes going to call the cops. Youll go to prison! Stop being an idiot and calm down! . Well we didnt say a word to each other the rest of the night and his friend passed out, and I slept on the sofa. After that day, one of his own friends had called me and asked what had occurred between us bc he saw we werent together on facebook and I told him why and he explained that was actually cheating on me with this one girl, the one he maintained was texting his friend through his mobile phone. And how he bragged about it to him saying oh this woman is texting me and sending me these pics and what not all happy about it. So that next Saturday, while he was at drill, my parents and my cousin came down with their 12 passenger van and pickup and they moved all of mine and my daughters things back to fort wayne to my parents home. He freaked out on me initially and posted a lot of bullshit on facebook to get sympathy from people who had no idea what actually happened, and I filed that Monday for child service and we had our court in july because he didnt wish to agree on more than $200 a month to get support when Im paying $500 per month daily care alone. _Ùªâ I'd post the women that he cheated on me with, but to tell the truth, I dont know all of their names because there were too many to count. They knew we had been hell the whole town did because its a very small city, nevertheless still fIIked around with him. But the moment I began to get suspicious about one, hed drop them and move on to the next. So hes the actual HOMEWRECKER within this story and he deserves to be here and these chicks will get whats coming to them as will he _Ùªâ The one thing I am thankful for throughout this whole mess was my lovely daughter, along with also the fact that besides his lying adulterous ways, he's really a fantastic father to her. Read the full article

[suckitsurveys]

Whose place did you last chill at and with who? Randal’s, with a bunch of people at a party.

What woke you up this morning? Alarm clock.

How many hours of sleep did you get last night? Like 5.

Has your heart ever truly ached for somebody? Yes.

Last time you wore the opposite sex’s clothing? Currently. Most of my t-shirts are men’s t-shirts.

Are you going to get hurt anytime soon? I don’t know.

Anybody tell you they miss you lately? Yes.

Are you a good babysitter? I am.

Have you ever kissed someone who was high? Yes.

Are you an alcoholic? No.

What were you doing at 4am this morning? Sleeping.

Would it be hard to kiss the last person you kissed? Nope!

You’re trapped in a room for three days with the last person you hooked up with, what do you do? That would be my husband, so it wouldn’t both me. I would be more concerned with the fact that we were locked in a room.

When is the last time you were in a photo booth taking pictures, with who? A few years ago, with Lydia.

Explain the last time you threw up: I don’t remember.

Have you ever made up/sang a song for someone you cared about? Eh.

Ever had a song sang about/for you? Eh.

Kissed someone older than you? Yes. My husband is 5 years older than me.

Are you in a good mood? No.

Are all of your friends in relationships? No.

When was the last time you had a real smile on your face? All of my smiles are real?

When you’re cranky, do you take it out on others? Sometimes.

Do you ever suddenly jolt awake when you’re almost asleep? Yes, I hate it.

Has a bookshelf or desk, etc, of yours ever randomly collapsed? I don’t think so. 

What’s the longest you ever stayed at someone else’s house? Just a couple days.

What time is it right now? 10:20 am.

Have you ever been lead on? Sure.

Do you know a secret about your ex and if he/she pisses you off, will you tell? No. My exes are all irrelevant.

Is there anybody you wish you could be spending time with right now? Yeah.

Are you excited about anything today? I get to see my nieces.

Do you think the last person you kissed is nice? He is very nice.

Tattoos are hot, right? I think they are neat, but not necessarily “hot.”

Do you have a good relationship with your mother? I did when she was alive. We had our moments but it was generally pretty good.

Next time you will kiss someone on the lips?                                         Tonight.

What are you doing tomorrow? Getting my hair done.

Do people ever call you by your last name? Nope.

Name something you dislike about the day you’re having? I’m tired.

What are you sitting on right now? My office chair.

Have you ever been with someone while they were throwing up? Yes.

Did you speak to your father today? I did. I popped in his office on my way to clock in this morning.

Meet anybody new this week? I wanna say yes but if I did they aren’t ringing a bell haha oops.

Any upcoming events you’re excited about? BOSTON!

What movie do you wanna see? Nothing right now.

Do you wear shorts a lot? I do.

What’s something you really want right now, be honest? To lose about 50 lbs.

How do you feel about your hair right now? It needs to be dyed but I actually still get compliments on it because it’s basically pastel green, which is a color people strive fo.

Are you going through any type of pain at this exact moment? Yes.

What is the heaviest thing you carried today? My purse.

How do you feel about the weather today? I love itttttt. I would take this weather ALL the time.

Are you friends with all of your exes? Nope.

You’re locked in a room with your most recent ex. Any problems? Why does this survey want me locked in a room so bad? When was the last time you received a compliment? Today. The barista at Starbucks said she liked my hair, speaking of it getting compliments even though it needs to be dyed really bad.

Is it more common for your phone’s ringer to be on or for it to be on vibrate? Vibrate.

What did your last text message say? I’m not gunna type the whole thing out but it’s from Ellen. She was talking about her dog and then asked me a question about what I’m doing tonight.

What’s the closest thing to you that’s purple? The wall and the carpet in this room are purple.

How many people have texted you today? Did you reply to all of them? Ellen and Rachel and my sister.

Have you ever gone camping? Yes.

When was the last time you drank something with alcohol? Last night I had a lil vodka in my a sprite.

What is/was your school uniform like? Did you like it? We didn’t have one.

Was the last person you held hands with a boy or girl? A boy.

Do you miss the way things used to be? Some things.

Have you ever slept with a member of the opposite sex without having sex? Yes. Mark and I don’t have sex every night.

Miss anyone you shouldn’t? Nope.

Would you like to put last night on repeat, and live it forever? No.

What would you say if someone asked you to get high right now? I’m at work so that wouldn’t be appropriate.

When’s the next time you will consume alcohol? Maybe later tonight.

Do you believe that everything happens for a reason? Yes.

When’s the next time you will go shopping? I need to order some bathing suit bottoms and some bike shorts so maybe today.

Did you wake up in the middle of the night last night? I did.

How do you feel right now? Tired.

Describe what you are wearing in detail? No.

Where were you at 7pm? It’s 10:35 am.

Could you do a long distance relationship? I did for a while with Mark.

Have you spent money this week? If so, on what? Oh good lord.

Would you rather have love or trust? Love.

Do you pour the cereal before the milk or vice versa? Cereal first because I am not a heathen.

[heckyeahsurveys]

#249

When’s the last time you did something you knew was wrong? idk, i’m on the phone to kt and she said “starting smth w/ jack when u don’t know what u want” ://// dont agree but ok

Do you hate the last guy/girl you had a thing with? idk what u define as a thing but gonna go w/ no 

Have you ever been out past curfew? yeh but never rly had a proper curfew 

Who was the last person you cried in front of? my whole family lol everyone was crying

Did anyone see you kiss the last person you kissed? yeh

Did the one person who hurt you the most in your life apologize? nah never apologised to myself 

(from here is cont. on 4/5/17, started it two days ago lol)

Latest you stayed up in the past week? And why? 4am bc we went pub n stayed out till like 3 n then i was messaging jack until i fell asleep on him lol 

Do you cry a lot? Have you recently? yeye n yeh but probs no more than usual. idk i did for a few days but now i haven’t cried for a couple of days

Do you think that you’re a good person? not rly tbh 

What was on your mind most today? this fucking cold n how tired i’ve been, also jack/the situation lol 

Have you held hands with anyone today? nah

Last thing you and your ex boyfriend/girlfriend talked about? idk i don’t remember, i talked to her like all day 

Have you ever thought about getting your lip pierced? thought about it but i wouldn’t

Have a best friend? yeye

Have you had more than 3 boyfriends/girlfriends at the same time? no

Is a best friend/boyfriend/girlfriend or ex pissing you off at the moment? no

Do you have any plans for the weekend? work n revision :(( altho me n dad are going cinema tomorrow night but that’s it :/

For the rest of the week? well there’s only tomorrow so college n the cinema 

Are you in a good mood right now? no i can’t stop coughing 

What’s bothering you right now? this cough

Are you on medication for anything? yeah

Who was the last person you spoke to on the phone for over an hour? mayb kt but i think it was 50 minutes smth so not quite an hour

If you were upset, who’s the first girl you would go to? jenny probs, or just no one tbf

Do you need to say anything to someone? idk mayb

What was the worst mistake of your life? idk

When was the last time someone yelled at you? i don’t remember 

Who is the last person who called you? metro taxis x 

How many kids do you want to have? none

Have you kissed someone in the past month? nope :(

What made you sad today? idk life 

When was the last time you were disappointed? everyday 

Have you ever liked someone older than you? well yeah

cont. again on 5/5/17 cos am a mess lol 

Do you have a good relationship with your parents? ish, it depends 

Do you believe exes can be friends? ofc

Do you think relationships are ever really worth it? idk 

Have you ever been a gymnast or a cheerleader? i did gymnastics when i was little but i quit at like 9 or smth

Will you talk to the person you like/love on the phone tonight? no, idek who i like anymore lol anyways 

What woke you up this morning? my alarm

What are you looking forward to in the next three months? the end of exams 

Has anyone ever told you they want to spend the rest of their life with you? no

Do you think you can last in a relationship for 3 months? idk probs 

If you were pregnant, would your parents make you keep the baby? no??

Have you ever eaten raw pumpkin? nope

What was the reason you last received flowers? i don’t remember tbh

Do you have any neat scars? nah

Have you ever donated blood? nope

What did you do for Valentine’s day? went to jenny’s bc it’s our tradition :)

Have you ever joined a gym? nah

Do you eat breakfast daily? usually yeh

Are you irish? no

Who was the last person to cook dinner? me?

Is having sex on your mind? it wasn’t

What color is your bra? i’m not wearing one 

Do you answer the phones at your job? I don’t have a job

What movie do you really want to see? nothing, i wanted to see the new guardians of the galaxy but saw it today so

What time will you be getting up this morning? what?

How are you feeling at this exact moment in time? bad lol

Does your car have a name? I don’t have a car

What’s on your agenda for tomorrow? work n revision :((

Will you be in bed within twenty minutes? i’m in bed 

Who is your best friend? jenny n katie 

Can you sing at the top of your lungs right now, and not get in trouble? no my mum would go sick 

When was the last time you went to the zoo? years ago

Have you ever sworn in front of your parents? yeh all the time 

When was the last time you exercised? fuck knows

What sport did you last play? idk

Do you know how to insert a tampon? yeh

Have you ever seen a guy take a survey? no? idk i probs have tbh

Last thing that really hurt you? probs myself 

Are you ever afraid to be yourself? i guess sometimes? idk 

Did you kiss or hug anyone today? kidd no but yeh i hugged my dad

Does your heart ever ache for anyone? i guess

What makes you happiest right now? rn nothing

How many people have told you they were in love with you? none

Is any part of you sad at all? all of me 

Would you kiss anyone you have texts from in your phone? yes ://

Honestly, if you could go back one month and change something would you? my intial thought was yes, i would change so many things but then I thought about it & nah cos that could change things now and also some things couldn’t rly be changed?? like it just wouldn’t work to change something, idk it’s just bullshit rly isn’t it 

Are you the same person as you were at the beginning of 2008? well no

Has anyone told you they missed you lately? no

Do you have a bad temper? definitely

Do you believe that there’s good in everybody? idk, yeh but there’s bad in everybody too

What are you drinking right now? just finished a lemsip lol

Have you ever gone to work with a hangover? no bc i don’t work

Are you emotional? extremely

What’s something you wish you could go shopping for right now? idk nothing 

Something you want right now? to have no stresses or worries or things making me sad 

When you’re upset, who do you turn to? i usually don’t turn to anyone tbh

Have you done anything illegal in the last three days? i don’t think so??

[lisandyworldadventure]

Magnetic Island or shall we say Magic Island?

Arriving back into Airlie Beach we had 1 more night until we continued onto Magnetic Island. That day was spent yet again lazing around in the hostel mainly as it was raining quite a bit so hibernating for a few hours after all the Whitsundays antics was a good idea, especially in a nice air conditioned dorm room. In the evening we went out for a few drinks with some people from our sailing boat but ended up cutting the night short as we were due to be up at 4am the next day. Shame as there was some real entertaining beer pong action happening.

4am the next morning and the alarm goes off for a 5am departure, trust us this travelling can get quite stressful. Especially when there is a torrential downpour and arriving at the bus stop, Lisa does what is now known as a good old ‘valuables check’. As part of the check she realises she can’t find her glasses case. Heading back to the room and getting drenched in the process she returns even more stressed as she is not able to find it. We later of course find it as nothing ever gets lost, it’s just 'temporarily misplaced’. Well apart from a couple of torches which were left hanging up on the tent at Fraser Island! Although again you could say they werent lost as we know the exact location where they were left.

Enough about that as it was time to hop over to another island, Magnetic Island. Also known as Maggie Island, the name comes from the apparent “magnetic” effect it had on the ship’s compass of Captain Cook as he passed the island when sailing up the east coast of Australia back in 1770. Today that magnetism applies on visitors due to its large populations of endemic wildlife creatures including rock wallabies and koalas, its many beautiful bays and its easy going lifestyle. We chose to spend three nights here as the other option with our organised company would have only meant one night. And trust us, we did not regret our decision to stay that long.

Our first day on the island was cut short as it involved actually getting to our hostel of course. Still we managed to get over to the famous forts walk on the Western side of the island. Once littered with fortifications and trenches to protect Australia against any possible attacks from Japan during WWII, today the walk is popular amongst tourists due to the lookouts over some of the nearby bays and of course a great opportunity for spotting koalas. Introduced to the island in the 1930’s, today’s population is believed to be just under 1,000 koalas, not bad for a total population of around 40,000 in the whole of Australia. The reason they thrive is due to the unspoilt nature of the island. We managed to see 4 or 5 of the little furry creatures and even got to hear the strange humming noises they make. Heading to the top of one of the old lookout forts, we had some amazing views over Radical Bay and the the thick bush forest that covers the island, quite incredible. Now we know why these forts were placed here, the Japanese would have been seen a mile off. That night we returned to the hostel to win the weekly quiz, probably the least deserving of the $50 bar tab as we were all knackered after the 4am wake up that day. Still we managed a couple of free drinks, of course!

No hangover the next day and it was nice as we were able to soak up the sun and enjoy a full day lounging around the pool catching up on some of this blog and diary writing. It was whilst relaxing on the sun beds that we or shall we say Andy, got roped into partaking in the ladies night dress up. I guess for $1 punch backpackers will do anything right? That evening ended up being pretty social as we played innocent games that would become less innocent when you have to start taking clothes off to stay in the game (hard when you’re only wearing a dress). Lisa and Mark showed their skills at the 'bite the box game’ once again as they made it to the final round, not quite winning though. Mark took it one step further by winning the next game, 'semi naked musical chairs’. Yet again more free drinks, evidence in the picture of Mark above. Oh and one final thing Andy would like to say for this day:

I absolutely rocked that dress!

Our third and final day on Maggie Island we decided to rent a 4x4 to take us round some of the islands’ bays as well as other must see spots. But before we did we headed for the YHA hostel for their special 'koala breakfast’. Of course it didn’t involve eating the poor little endangered species but just a close ecounter with them, including a photo opportunity holding one. Prior to hugs we did actually have a proper breakfast and my word what a breakfast, the best we have had on our travels we would say! Everything from cereals and muesli to cooked breakfast, french toast, pastries, fruit and even freshly made pancakes, we were in breakfast heaven. Following the mammoth brekkie we had the opportunity to come close to some of the parrots and reptiles they had at the sanctuary. And of course one of the lizards decided to go for number 2 on Andy’s hand. If you thought such a small creature wouldn’t actually create that much excrement then think twice, it was pretty big. Despite this it was cool to handle them and Lisa even dared a kiss with the blue tongued lizard. Finally before leaving, the time had come for Lisa to have her much anticipated Koala cuddle as it was defintely one of her Australia’s must dos. Andy had already held one last time he was here but still he also got in on the action standing next to it. A good souvenir to have hanging on the wall one day, though our koala seemed a bit floppy.

Finally getting round to picking up the rest of our crew for our drive round the island, we headed for our first stop at Geoffrey Bay for some snorkelling. A little underwhelming with the waters being quite merky and not that many fish or coral. Hence why we swiftly moved on to our second bay (Radical) for a quick swim and some beach games. Apart from Horseshoe, all of the bays were incredibly peaceful with only just us there, giving them an extra special touch. We would have liked to have gone to Balding Bay, an even more secluded and nudist beach but it required a 20 min walk there and back, time which we did not have. Instead we headed to another snorkelling spot at Florence Bay. Another slight disappointment as the waters were incredibly merky here with particles of dust having fallen from the nearby rocks. The water was also strangely luke warm which we found so bizarre for such a big sea. What came next was certainly not disappointing as stopping on the side of the road to go to the Alma Bay lookout Mark saw a koala sitting right on the path, barely 3 metres away. Of course it ended up climbing the tree but we got a pretty good look at the ball of fluff.

Moving on from the small and secluded bays we headed up to Horseshoe Bay, one of the biggest and a little more lively as it has some residences, restaurants and shops on the waterfront. Here we had a spot of lunch overlooking the sea and then went for a swim inside the stinging net provided at the bay, so no need for the attractive stinger suits, a real shame as we were starting to rock those bad boys. Our penultimate stop was back where we originally started at Geoffrey Bay for our final wildlife encounter on the island. Hidden in the rocks near the water there were some cute little creatures also native to Australia, the wallabies. Here we saw tens of the little creatures and got to feed them for a while. They were also rather thirsty so a few of them got some water which they lapped up pretty dam quick. The final stop required a drive to pretty much the other side of the island at a place called West Point to enjoy the pristine sunset over the horizon. Getting here was half the problem but it was the first time we actually needed the clearance that the 4x4 offered as we drove for around 45 min on some unpaved roads with more potholes than you can shake a stick at. We did actually want to rent one of the iconic barbie cars that most people seem to go for whilst on the island but the clearance on those is too low for the unpaved roads. Arriving at West Point we were treated to a magnificent cloudy sunset, which in our opinions is one of the best as they make for awesome snaps. We could have stayed forever if it wasn’t for the fact that the car had to be back for 7pm, a deadline which we had already extended from the original 6pm drop off.

Wrapping up this section we have to say we absolutely loved Magnetic Island, we would even venture as far as saying that it was our favourite place on the whole of the East Coast. Being so close to charismatic creatures like koalas and wallabies, soaking up the sun on the many stunning bays, driving a 4x4 on unpaved roads and of course the breakfast (how could we forget) are just some of the experiences that we enjoyed so much.