#I'm not gonna bank on it though

[janglingargot]

The night after everything goes down, when the dust has settled and it's time for everyone with a home to go back to it for some hard-earned rest...Chai ends up sleeping on the couch in the hideout.

With permission, of course! It's not like he snuck in or something. Anyway, he could have found somewhere else to sleep, if he had to. Y'know, if Peppermint hadn't offered. He's a grown adult, not a stray cat, even if it does feel like he has nine lives sometimes. He can take care of himself. (Mostly.)

It's just that, after Roxanne and Korsica and Macaron and CNMN have said their goodnights and exchanged one more round of hugs and left for their own respective apartments and houses on the Vandelay campus, Peppermint catches him a little off-guard. It's not really fair. He's distracted, kneeling down to give 808 a scratch behind the ears, when she turns to him, one hand on her hip, and asks him point-blank, "Sooo, do you actually have anywhere to crash tonight, or...?"

Chai hadn't expected her to just...throw it out there like that. Also, no, he does not, exactly, have such a place. At the moment. Strictly speaking.

(Look, he got himself as far as the Vandelay campus to volunteer for Project Armstrong--and geez, doesn't that feel like it happened a year ago?--but his plans for the future kinda had a big "???" penciled in for the part between "get a kickass robot arm" and "become a rockstar".)

And when he opens his mouth, then hesitates before answering...when he glances uncertainly sideways, as if hoping to spot a convincing lie scribbled on the wall...Peppermint's brows snap together, and she immediately says, "You can have the couch, for tonight. At the hideout. If you want."

He must look surprised or something, because she lets out a self-conscious huff and says, "What? I'm not gonna make the new Project Armstrong ambassador sleep on a bench in the park. That's terrible PR."

She's not looking at him, but 808's eyes have lit up. The robot cat bounds up Chai's outstretched arm to perch on his shoulder, and gives his cheek an approving lick.

Well, there's a vote of confidence if he ever got one. Chai isn't the fastest on the uptake, but he's figured out a few things in the last couple of days. "Thanks, Peppermint," he tells her, smiling, and stands and dusts off his knees, careful not to dislodge the kitty. "I'd like that. Uh, the couch, I mean, not the park...bench...thing."

Peppermint immediately makes a face. "Whatever, it's no big deal," she mutters. Nudging him on the shoulder with her knuckles, she adds flatly, "I'm kicking you out if you snore, though."

"Joke's on you, I'm too tired to snore," he shoots back, well aware that this is as close as Peppermint ever gets to admitting she cares. Whatever, he'll take it.

She rolls her eyes at him. "I'm almost positive that's not how it works, Chai..." But she's already headed for the door, and he's getting into the habit of following her lead. It seems to be working out pretty well for him, so far.

They end up hiking to the nearest elevator together, and pointing their weary feet toward a L.I.F.T. station with a line headed in approximately the right direction. 808 rides gamely along on Chai's shoulder, gently switching her tail.

Time for all three of them to go home.

(AO3 link for the rest)

[picnokinesis]

Okay no-one hold me to this BUT...I think I may have only two chapters left of campervan part 7 left to write...

[chaoticeddie]

trying so so hard not to spend any money but the power bank I bought 4 years ago and use constantly has started to swell and crack the case and google says that's bad so I have to buy a new one 😭

[ayakashibackstreet]

Wanna know something funny? When I saw the launch price for the Switch 2, I initially went 'aw, sweet! That's not much more than the OG Switch!'

(it's a v2 but that's how much I originally paid for my Switch near launch)

Then I started reading the discussion threads and I realised something was off. That's when it fucking hit me.

The OG Switch was $299? Did they seriously bump up the price that much for us, even though our minimum wage is way lower than the US minimum wage? (and no, it's not just VAT/EU stuff, even taking into account the taxes the price is still higher)

Man, gaming sure is fun, huh.

The only reason I was able to buy the OG Switch was because it launched around my 18th birthday and have a huge family. Everyone gave me a little something and I ended up racking quite a sum, decided to use the funds to get myself my first brand new console.

I'll be working full time soon. I will not be spending more than half my wage on a Switch 2. It's even worse for people in like, Latin America. I've seen the price comparisons there, it's a joke. The console is only priced reasonably within Japan. US Americans are complaining about the pricing, too, which is a bad sign. And physical games for up to $90?? I don't fucking think so, especially since Nintendo stuff hardly goes on sale.

Yeah, if I'll be buying anything, it will be a Steam Deck. And I think many people will pass on the new console, even if it has a new Mario Kart as a launch title. I think we might have another 3DS situation on our hands.

[sepiasys]

Hi I got back from game night, I had the worst performance/luck but I still had a lot of fun :33 Was much better than the other ceremony, honestly ^^;;;

My headache shifted to the middle of my head (mostly) btw which sucks :( the headache/pain meds have done nothing for me 🥲 so I'm just gonna try and sleep now ^^;;

[savage-rhi]

🫂

[purgaytorysupremacy]

off to play baldur's gate 3 to get some words of affirmation from my wizard boyfriend

[kotoal1011]

WIFEY. WIFEY ARRIVED TODAY

I CAN FINALLY SQUEEZE THE T1 SCRUNKLY

AAAAAA I'M SO HAPPY LOOK AT THEM BOTH THEY'RE SO CUTE

[the-rogue-mockingjay]

babygirl's apartment is now almost completely decorated!!! Just needs a couple lamps, a couple little tables, an orchestrion, and a few plants and boom, mission accomplished!! Oh and a couple more designs for the blank walls flkjghlfdjkgh but we'll get there :)

A million thank-yous to @coldshrugs for coming up with the base design and helping me figure out how tf to do this housing thing! ❤️❤️❤️

Bonus close-up of Puck under the cut because he's such a funny little gremlin and I love him:

he's lion king-ing that little rock lmao

[autistic-shaiapouf]

Realizing I just want enough money to be able to pretend I'm rich for a few days and that's really it

[solardee]

Guess who finally got some quotes for a roof replacement and bathroom plumbing!!

Gonna be about 10 grand all together which, yes sucks a bit but is far better than I was expecting! I will have two whole functioning bathrooms in this house for the first time since I bought it finally c:

[fishthegenderwitch]

Things are changing.

At the house meeting tonight it was announced that He-Roomie had been talking to his boss about remote work from another city and that his boss had said yes. My roommates want to move closer to their family, which is 600km away from the city we live in. They aren't asking me to move with them. Their PLAN (not set in stone, not even outlined nor started) is to go for the autumn. So I will need to make arrangements to be.. elsewhere.

With rent prices being what they are, the only living spaces that MIGHT be available to me in my current job price range are bug-infested mold holes, as the last time I went apartment-hunting in 2018 that's what I could find. Back then the pickings were dire. Things have NOT improved since then in that regard.

Also, my top surgery was projected to occur in the autumn, and my roommates had said they'd help me during my recovery. This is all up in the air now. I might have to cancel it.

I'm going to go into this with a clear plan. Stop spending money and hoard it all. Sell things rather than just donate it away. Talk to people who'd have resources to help, talk to the local queer community, try and connect with more people about selling my books. I can't take all those with me; I have over 2000. I better get reading.

Anyway that all sounds rational and not panicking, because I'm trying hard not to freak out.

[imwritesometimes]

I have to submit a list of every item I want to sell & an ingredient list for each item to the county for my cottage food license 😵‍💫

[leithianeth]

.

[bloggrgirl]

after my finance internship hbo industry is lowkey triggering as fuck

[esyra]

After the hospital bombing, I finally heard back from my grandmother and confirmed that several of my relatives were murdered by Israeli bombing. Seven of them, to be precise. Three are still going, including her. We've been talking constantly ever since.

Asked if it was possible to head south, and was told they did but were also bombed there. So they decided to go back home, in Zeitoun. Their home was bombed and they were pulled out of the rumble, then driven by ambulances to the al-Ahli Arab Hospital. There were people in every corner. Gazans sheltering, sleeping on the floor. Gazans dying on the floor, waiting for beds.

Four were declared dead on arrival, three were in need of surgery and other three were just bandaged. Then, a bomb was dropped in the parking lot that made parts of the ceiling collapse, like Dr. Ghassan Abu Sittah reported in that horrific conference/interview. Those in need of surgery died.

By the way, just in case you didn't know: the Church of Saint Porphyrius, the third oldest in history, bombed by Israel a few days back, was located near the hospital.

When looking for new shelter, they saw schools with signs hanging outside, "We can't take any more families." They met families, sympathetic but already sheltering too many people. They're now staying in an apartment building they found empty. Sleeping in the corner of the living room. If the family comes back, they'll apologize and leave.

Told me she was saving her phone battery for when the bombing stopped, and she had to ask for help to rebuilt the neighborhood. But she doesn't think it's gonna stop anymore. The ones still with her are mute most of the time, like they're saving energy, but she feels lonely and wanted to talk. There's no internet and to connect to WhatsApp, people are buying "a card from the supermarket, there's a password and username." Not sure what she meant. Still, the internet is inconsistent and won't load neither videos or images nor pages, so she doesn't know what's happening on the outside world.

Told her there were a lot of people protesting to stop the genocide, she replied, "The bombings are getting worse by the day." The bombing yesterday was the worst she ever witnessed. The entire neighborhood is infested with the smell of death, of decomposing bodies. Bodies are piling up in the streets and she's not sure if it's because they ran out of places to store them, but most of them are in bags. The smoke of the bombings hide the blue sky—she hasn't seen the clouds for a while.

Asked if I could share their pictures, names and dreams with people and was told, of which I partly agree, "they're not entertainment." If anyone genuinely cared, they would be alive—I'd argue there are people who do care, but I'm not gonna lecture her pain. And they don't deserve to be used to fulfill someone's sick fantasy. Told me to remember what some Israelis do with pictures of dead Palestinians. And I do.

For those of you who are not familiar, many times before settlers got together to celebrate the murder of Palestinians. For one, in 2015, Israeli settlers set a house in Duma, West Bank on fire. An 18-month old baby, Ali Dawbsheh, was burnt alive. Both parents later died of wounds and only a 5-year-old, Ahmad, survived, although severely injured.

Two celebrations of their murder are widely known, one at a wedding and others outside the court in which two were indicted for the terrorist attack. In the wedding, guests stabbed a photo of the toddler, Ali, while others waved guns, knives and Molotov cocktails. Israel's Minister of National Security, Itamar Ben-Gvir, was present.

That's what happens in an apartheid. Palestinians are so abused by authorities that their "innocent civilians" come to accept the brutality as necessary or are desensitized by our suffering. After all, it's been 75 years—get used to it!

So I won't risk the image of my loved ones, in fear they are used in these kinds of depravity. I will say, though, the world lost a young footballer. Lost a female writer and an aspiring ballerina. Lost a kind father, who was also a great cook, and a loving mother that enjoyed sewing and other types of handicraft art. Lost a math teacher and a child that wanted to become one.

People think Israel is testing new weapons on them. There's civilians arriving at the hospital with severe burns, which they thought was from white phosphorus, but apparently the pattern is different from the one caused by white phosphorus. It's widely believed Israel tests weapons in Palestinians.

Jeff Halper, author of War Against the People, a book on Israel's arms and surveillance technology industries, said: "Israel has kept the occupation because it's a laboratory for weapons."

They've ran out of drinkable water and the "aid" Biden sent was only for the South of Gaza and no fuel, for hospitals, was allowed in. Many shelves in the supermarket are empty. She said many are convinced that if they don't die from the bombing, they'll die from starvation or dehydration, or whatever disease will develop from the dirty water they're drinking.

Told me all people do now is pray, cry and die. Told me she hopes West Bank is spared. Told her Israel bombed a mosque in West Bank and dozens of Palestinians in West Bank are being murdered by settlers, so she bided me goodbye.