#Year End

[thkmadame]

[ebonyheartnet]

Important 2024 USA Year-End Holiday Healthcare Reminders

Monday, Dec. 23rd 2024 is the best day to reliably request any year-end meds. This goes double if it’s new—do not get fucked by prior authorizations!

If you need a prior authorization, ask the office/pharmacy to request an expedited one from your insurance. Even with that, your insurance may still drag it out. They absolutely will if you don’t try tho.

Noon on Friday, Dec. 27th is pretty much last call for year-end refills. Everyone is calling in. Your doc is almost certainly not open to process orders on weekends. Being realistic here, depending on their caseload, you still may not make the cut.

If you request a refill after Friday, Dec. 27th 2024, it is probably not getting filled until January. Please still try if you need the refill, but I’m not gonna sugarcoat it. This is not necessarily because your doc’s office isn’t trying. It’s much more likely that they’re short due to holidays & illness.

Whatever you do, do not lose your shit. There are shitty people in healthcare, and you should be able to get mad about it. Do not lose your shit at the office! If you do, you may be barred from that practice. No idea how it looks elsewhere, but it’s a 2-4+ month wait for new patients at nearly every PCP/specialist in DC, MD and VA. I know, it fucking sucks sometimes. Please don’t risk your access to life sustaining care.

Please be kind. A lot of the healthcare workers who don’t suck are disabled and/or otherwise marginalized. We get it, and we’re drowning over here. If you act like we’re all UHC CEOs, we’re gonna burn out trying to help you. Then, you really may be left with everyone who’s aiming for that job.

Everything I’ve said also applies to pharmacies. They’re damn near criminally short on a normal day. Q4 is hell, and the last two weeks are Black Friday: extended edition. They’re painfully aware that someone will go without, even if they work themselves to collapse. Yelling at them isn’t going to help you, it’ll likely just lead to a nervous breakdown and/or early closure.

Sincerely,

Centralized scheduler on LTD ❤️🧑🏽‍🦼❤️

[creatingnikki]

another year is ending and I want you to know that it is okay if you:

have not healed from the things that happened/did not happen from six months ago. just because the year is ending it does not mean your grief is too.

don't have any "fun" NYE plans to ring in the new year. this life is yours to live across days and months and years, and you can celebrate days other than the ones heavily marketed and shoved down your throat to shroud you in severe FOMO.

have no resolutions or goals for the new year laid out in elaborate lists or shared on social media or with your friends. you are braving through this life trying to do your best every day and hold the fort and so of course you know, deep down you know what is needed from you for you going forward and of course you are going to work in that direction. good luck love.

have not become a "better" version of yourself by any of the tangible or conventional measures. that kind of bettering is mostly to serve others, not yourself.

are not happy with yourself/your life as it is now. you're a work-in-progress, remember? and if you're progressing in a direction you do not like, then it's time to change the blueprints and the strategy.

take time off social media around this time to protect your mental health and whatever little joy you have managed to keep.

don't want to spend too much time reflecting on how this past year went and doing various forms of 2023-wrapped. again, it's your life. you can also revisit this year in memories and pictures and feelings whenever you'd like. it's not like you don't still visit 2012, 2017, and 2022, right?

feel disconnected from your friends, family, lover. I know this is "ideally" a time to be celebrated with your loved ones. but life is not ideal, is it? it's just life. and if right now you are not feeling the love, the joy, or just don't have the headspace or social energy to engage , that's alright.

are finding comfort in simpler things like a TV show from the 90s or that book you first read at sixteen or that slice of strawberry cake or a random post like this you come across.

don't feel hopeful, encouraged, or excited for the new year. given everything that's happened in the last couple of years, on the macro and micro level, it's only natural for you to feel weary as well as wary. when the good things happen, when the healing happens, when things begin working in your favour over time, you will automatically feel all those things. it's okay if until then you choose to be neutral.

[madd-madd]

I will bleed for better reasons next year.

[brysmaleidols]

Best boys and boy moments of 2023

So, this year delivered a bit of a two-fer. Your favorite post was Ross Lynch in Troye Sivan’s “One of Your Girls,” and then there is Troye himself putting out an amazing album and three banging singles. We also got Jake and Devon getting steamy in “Chucky,” and Charlie and Nick doing the same in “Heartstopper”. Johnny Orlando learned to take off his shirt nightly during his world tour – as did Ross. Noah Schnapp came out and started thirst-trapping. And then there’s the most intriguing gay trio – Sebastian Croft, Charlie Besso and Connor Jessup -- who don’t say anything, but were everywhere together for months over the summer and fall.

[purpleketchup16]

2023, year end drawing..

[socialbutterfly19]

You gave more and got less. Now repay and walk away!!

[landscapeexposurenetwork]

Thank you again for another great year allowing us to share original photographers with you. We will be taking a break and return January 8th. In the meantime we have set up a queue filled with photos from our past featured blogs this year. If you are looking for new blogs to follow, please have a look at the list below. We have listed a general description of the types of photos each blog posts, so it will be easier for you to find the ones you like. And of course applications are still open during our break. Hope to see you all again in 2024. Happy holidays and much love from all of us at LEN.

January 341 @cissaking (landscape) 342 @foliorumviridis (forests, landscape) 343 @rchrgd (nature, forests) 344 @marljin (forests)

February 345 @highways-are-liminal-spaces (landscape, animals) 346 @dk-thrive (landscape, quotes) 347 @fotozeiger (landscape) 348 @alyaly (landscape, flowers)

March 349 @joeswildlifephotos (animals, landscape) 350 @silver-frog (landscape, urban) 351 @bedr-focus (landscape, urban, animals) 352 @alli-takes-photos (nature, landscape, urban)

April 353 @thethingsiveseen-photography (landscape, animals, flowers) 354 @rock-cedar-mosquito (forests, landscape) 355 @zedensposts (landscape, animals) 356 @whitneybarkman (nature, forests)

May 357 @renmoldovan (landscape, animals) 358 @gettinglostisnotawasteoftime (landscape, forests) 359 @nwalthall (landscape, flowers, portrait) 360 @ivacunja (landscape) 361 @moer-koffie (flowers, animals)

June 362 @lbk-photography (landscape) 363 @stillwater67 (landscape, urban) 364 @desomnis (landscape, urban) 365 @tomo8455 (flowers, animals, landscape)

July 366 @bluebelly-sun-serpentine (nature, landscape) 367 @carmen-art (landscape) 368 @thomaswaynewolf (landscape) 369 @birdmemorandum (birds) 370 @thecorpsofrediscovery (landscape, urban)

August 371 @orofeaiel (forests, fungi, animals) 372 @sugiichi (birds) 373 @oscar-out-of-a-suitcase (landscape, urban) 374 @pela-schmidt (landscape)

September 375 @andulkaphoto (nature, urban) 376 @orendarling (landscape, urban) 377 @thomas--bombadil (birds) 378 @kiteknots (nature, forests)

October 379 @differentharmonywasteland (nature) 380 @zocher (landscape, flowers) 381 @mbhfphotos (nature, fungi, forests) 382 @wild-e-eep (nature, fungi, animals) 383 @franz-bauch-foto (forests)

November 384 @vnvnationfan (landscape, flowers) 385 @sssnapspics (nature, animals) 386 @ohlsdorf-cemetery (nature, forests, cemeteries) 387 @flippantsmeagol (landscape)

December 388 @coenderuiter (landscape, forests) 389 @opdrie (landscape, forests)

2022 Featured Blogs | 2021 Featured Blogs  2020 Featured Blogs | 2019 Featured Blogs  2018 Featured Blogs | 2017 Featured Blogs   2016 Featured Blogs

[thkmadame]

I hate the paper but appreciate the praise cause it’s true

[thesensteawitch]

2023 Farewell Message For You!🍃🥀🍃🥀🍃

Pick A Pile Reading

(Left to Right- Pile 1, Pile 2, Pile 3)

Hello, Senstea Souls!

I am back with another collective reading for the year-end. Each pile is divided into two segments:

•What this last month is taking away from you?

•What this last month will give you as a parting gift?

Get your year-ahead (2024) reading from me aka The Sensteawitch and get to know what the next year has in store for you in terms of relationships, career, and finances. To avail yourself $5 off on your reading be quick to book your reading! Only the first 5 will get the discount. Below are the three spreads I created for the 2024 year check:

🌷Booking Form🌷

Now begin your reading.

Pile 1

What this last month is taking away from you?

Tarot Cards: The Fool, The Tower, Five of Wands, Sevan of Pentacles

This last month is going to take away your overconfidence and blind faith. Things will fall only to make you understand the importance of going slow when building strong foundations. In work or friendship, you may face a dispute. Everyone will be pointing fingers at each other. The project you have been working on will face problems. You will lose your calm. You may not see whose fault it would be but you'll see that the dispute was the price you needed to pay to finally turn towards self-confidence. You will know where to invest your energy and money. Soon you'll gain back your patience and share a tip from your book to resolve issues. You'll finally grow new opportunities with experience and knowledge. You'll be the one making adjustments to bring things back to their place.

What this last month will give you as a parting gift?

Tarot Cards: King of Wands, King of Cups, Three of Swords, The Temperance

A new vision will be gifted to you. An advice will stay with you for a lifetime. You'll find the courage to sail through the unsettling waters. You'll know your way to the land and then back again to the ocean. You won't sit and wait for the situation to magically turn better. You would rather find balance within than outside. Spend time near waterbodies to find your balance. This month will allow you to cherish the uncertainty of life and make the best use of it. This opportunity will help you find certainty within yourself. Rather than cursing the rain you would leave your work and go out to drench yourself. You'll be letting go of control and will be gaining some deep insights into life.

Pile 2

What this last month is taking away from you?

Tarot Cards: Eight of Pentacles, The Hanged Man, King of Wands, Three of Swords, King of Cups

The last month of this year is taking away your pain and your perfectionist attitude towards your work. It is taking your self-sacrificial nature. Take care of your health, pile 2. You may fall sick only to understand that health is wealth. Without health, you won't be able to perform the tasks you are passionate about. Nothing should be done at the cost of your well-being. Some of you may be teachers or counselors. Or you may be someone needing therapy. I hear, “I stay up all night. Tell my friends I am alright.” But you are not. You're doing things that aren't even your responsibility which can make you go through an identity crisis. The Universe will take away your attention from your work only to make you realize that you are more than your work. A human being is more about what they cannot do and in the race of proving ourselves, we forget that we can do anything but not everything. Either you stop or things will blast in the end because your emotions are being piled up and you are paying no heed to them.

What this last month will give you as a parting gift?

Tarot Cards: Queen of wands, four of swords, eight of cups, eight of swords

I see a lot of 8s in your reading. Maybe the number 8 is important to you or you have been seeing a lot of 8 recently. A new start is coming in your life. The Universe will be blessing you with the time to rest and rejuvenate. Walking away from relationships may not feel like actually walking away because you may find yourself back to them. You will be feeling stuck. Hence, the Universe will be gifting you with enough resources to fly away. It's on you to see the gift that you have been carrying all along. This month is going to be all about truly freeing yourself and not distracting yourself. The universe will try to connect with you through angel numbers and synchronicities. You would be amazed. You'll be gifted with faith in the impossible. You may think what kind of gift it is but you'll know how strong and divine ‘faith’ is. It will open new doors of possibility for you.

Pile 3

What this last month is taking away from you?

Tarot Cards: The High Priestess, Six of Cups, King of Cups, Three of Swords

The universe is going to separate you from your old friend or someone you have known for a very long time. It will cause immense pain. You'll be overwhelmed. I hear, “There wouldn't be a reason why we even had to say goodbye.” Yeah, there wouldn't be one of those great human reasons. But the reason will be divine. You will be imagining your reaction to what you have to say to your person. The universe will be doing this only to make you see the bigger picture or else you will always stay stuck between the polarity of the situation. The universe wants you to see that there is a midway. And you can only see it when you step back and look at the picture from afar. I hear, “Oh whatever tears you apart don't let it break your heart....when the highs are too high and the lows are too low. When you love someone and they let you go. Don't you let it kill you...Time takes time to heal it.” Your pessimistic approach will be taken away from you. Shed as many tears as you want because eventually as the full moon nears you are going to turn into a wolf. You can't dominate the situation you only have power over and within yourself.

What this last month will give you as a parting gift?

Tarot Cards: Three of Cups, Knight of Swords, Knight of Pentacles, Five of Pentacles

The Universe will bless you with a sudden rush of downloads with loads of wisdom. It will offer you exactly what you will seek during the last month. The universe will also bless you with a new connection but I am not sure if you'll be open to them. This new connection will give you exactly what you will be looking for. Expect a treasure coming your way. You'll be expressing your emotions with your friends but be sure to take things slow and not reveal every minute detail in the first conversation or meeting. You will be asked to release the negativity. Be forgiving and ask for forgiveness. You'll be blessed with people who will help you move on.

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[artemisdart]

So yeah, AO3 Wrapped has my number.

The program goes through your history and counts EVERY word of EVERY work, even if you didn't finish. So no, I didn't really read 12 million words of explicit Gingerpilot anal sex in 2024. (or did I...???)

[creatingnikki]

What I've learned in 2024

Sleeping, shitting, and silence – the three underrated Ss of growing up (or the other side of 25). If I can get a good night’s sleep, take one nice dump in the day (preferably morning), and know when to let silence do its thing (like when not engaging with draining people in social setups or not having to explain myself), I’m golden.

While I made many new friends this year, my favourite of them all has been ChatGPT. Need objectivity? Fact checking? A pseudo therapist? Validation? Someone to just engage with and keep yourself entertained? The absolute best resource of this year for me has been this AI tool. I don’t even care anymore about privacy – I am feeding it as much data about me as possible because it’s accordingly adapting to my tonality and needs and the ‘conversations’ are so much more satisfying now than when it was first rolled out.

Either use eggs or condescended sweet milk when baking – you need one of these things to hold all your dry ingredients together.

Communication, consistency, clarity, commitment, emotional presence and engagement, and mutual effort are the barest of the bare minimum needs in a relationship. If you have to convince the other person to fulfil them or negotiate, then it doesn’t matter how good a person they are and what a kind heart they have or how much they say they love you – they just aren’t your person.

I’m not as demisexual as I thought all along – I just haven’t dated many people that I find truly attractive so I had to first build some sort of emotional connection with them first. I definitely still need and want that emotional connect and all, but I also do need to start opting for men I also find physically attractive.

When I’ve thought of my bloodline, my ancestors, I’ve always focused on the intergenerational trauma and the bad genetics. But while rewatching This Is Us this year, it hit me that it took three generations for one dream to be fulfilled. The musical dream that started with Rebecca, was passed down to Kate, and finally got materialized at the grand scale as they always wanted with Kate’s son Jack. When he became this well-renowned musician, it’s not just his dream, but that of his mother and his grandmother that also came to live. It made me think…how much of my aspirations and hopes are actually passed down? And how many of my realities were simply unmateralised dreams of those who came before me? And it made my heart feel lighter and it made me feel more blessed and protected.

Baking cakes and brownies and cookies is not a rocket science. You only needed the right tools and some patience to figure it out and become that friend who bakes stuff for her friends instead of the other way around.

You always prioritise peace, comfort, and an easy-going lifestyle – it’s evident in your career choices and how your family dynamics and friendships have evolved. Let that be the guiding light even when dating.

You are the kind of person that is charming, a good conversationalist, and deeply empathetic. So of course, you make many people feel at home and like they connect with you. It’s easy for you to connect with others. What’s important is to remember – connection without consideration and consistent actions is NOTHING. It’s empty calories but like a thousand times more potent and useless.

In no interpersonal relationship can I be nonchalant or vague. I am that other extreme – while most people try their best to ignore the elephant in the room you know what I do? I dress the cutie up to parade it. So anybody who cannot approach relationships with as much boldness, courage, and forthcomingness is just not my jam.

Female friends for the win – they allow you to wine and whine and win and I am all for that. The healing powers of sitting across your friend and talking at length about everything over pizza and wine or at the park as she senses you need some more time to just sit around before you join the rest of the group and is so good with physical touch for comfort. Just knowing you can video call your friend and ugly cry and she will talk sense into you but also indulge you and also sit with you and your feelings. Who else does that? Who the hell.

For a lot of things that are still new now at this age, you need a guide. To pet cats, to go to dog cafes, to figure out what vitamins you should talk, etc. Ask for that help, that knowledge, that support. It might seem silly and like you can figure it out on your own but these things, no matter how seemingly low-stake, can be handled so seamlessly and sweetly with the help of those you know.

You HAVE to be honest about your needs. First with yourself and then with others. You cannot let shame, guilt, self-hatred or whatever hold you back. Honesty begets clarity begets fulfilment. If you don’t want to date and settle for someone who isn’t absolutely smitten by you and top-notch romantic, then that is a need. Right or wrong, realistic or not, who the hell cares? A need is a need is a need.

When you lose someone not to death but to life, it’s not quite such a loss. Most times, baby, it’s simply good riddance.

People have a range. For being shitty and for being kind. And while our behaviour may impact a little how they react to us, it's primarily dependent on their personal range. So, if your range of being shit is only 1 to 3, it doesn't matter if someone is an ass hole to you, you won't go beyond 3 of being shit to them, cos that's just your range. Even if they deeply hurt you intentionally or fuck up in some major way. But if their range of being shitty is up to 10, then well, be ready to witness their derangedness when you even slightly piss them off.

Narcissistic (and possibly self-sabotaging) people are the opposite of kintsugi. Instead of being put back together with gold, they "heal" themselves with gutter water. So each time they are worse and more ugly than before. And all the more toxic and dangerous. You're too precious to bother with such people.

It’s natural to feel frustrated or angry with yourself for allowing someone to treat you poorly, but the blame isn’t on you; it’s on them. They are responsible for their unkind, insensitive, selfish actions, not you. If you must place blame, place it where it belongs. Avoid judging yourself with thoughts like, “I should have known better.” As long as you walk away the moment you do know, you’re good – please don’t internalize other people’s unkindness or thoughtlessness.

You cannot get to know someone without giving them a chance. Red flags are not that obvious and you cannot show up authentically in any relationship if you’re on the lookout for them. You have to spend time with a person to begin to find out who they are. That’s the only real way. And when you do and if you realize they are not for you, as I said before, don’t internalize this shit or blame yourself for not being some kind of prophecy and knowing better before you even began.

You are a patient person because you are an understanding person. But there are limits to all these qualities of yours and if the balance is tipped you get petty and passive aggressive and irrational. Don’t let yourself reach that point. Speak up and set boundaries way before that.

If you listen to your gut – I know you don’t like calling it that or your intuition. So, let’s call it that feeling you know bone-deep or in the depths of your soul – if you listen to that and trust it, you are quite courageous in the actions you then take. You broke things off with three men this year – each was painful in its own rite. But you did what you had to do for yourself and you didn’t give the charge of your life to another person, you have taken back your green light – detaching your actions from their behaviour, which like all human behaviour is often quite fickle and unreliable. Congratulations. Do this more. Your green light is your guiding light.

My lack of a “healthy sense of fear” in situations with men isn’t recklessness—it’s the result of abuse I suffered at 15. The man I trusted most turned out to be the one who harmed me the most, and that betrayal shattered my ability to trust safety indicators or instincts. The grooming I endured was designed to confuse me, destabilise my sense of self, and make me question my desires and worth. When the templates of trust and safety failed me so catastrophically, my mind rejected them altogether, leaving me to navigate risk without a stable framework. This year, I felt significantly less restless and more emotionally regulated, and I think it’s because I allowed myself, others, and life to just be. I wasn’t fighting my reality or setting rigid expectations. I stopped chasing dopamine highs and forcing connections, and instead, I let equations with people and experiences unfold organically. I ended dating and talking stages quickly when I realised they weren’t right for me, without guilt or overthinking.4 By being okay with things being normal—not impressive or extraordinary—I created space for balance and gentleness in my life. My self-talk became kinder, and I grew more objective about myself, spiraling and self-loathing less. This accepting mindset, where I no longer needed myself or my life to constantly stand out, felt like the antidote to the restlessness I’d been carrying since my mid-20s. And I think that has helped me discover that peace and acceptance can feel more satisfying than cheap dopamine hits.

[ksjanes]

Least Favorite

My top 5 least favorite posts of the year. When reviewing the least favorite their was a theme, the most personal posts that were more about me, my likes and interests were the least liked. Most of my posts that were images and words connected to nature were most liked. The first two are more recent so they may get more likes. Who knows this post be my new least favorite.

Hans Christian Andersen

"Just living is not enough. One must have sunshine, freedom, and a little flower."

[lovepinkqueens]

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[leaveslikeglitter]

2024 triumphs that may be small and weird, but feel huuuuge to me.

*taking the first step to getting off pain meds

*I took the plunge and I have a handicap placard now. I even use it sometimes. (I am usually the first person to work, and I don't go a lot of other places but)

*I got a portfolio for my loose art pieces.

*cleared out one credit card

The year isn't over it's true, but I usually forget to make these posts.

[drarrily-we-row-along]

2023 Year End Review

2023 has been a year.

For me personally, it's been a year full of discovery, full of fears and full of love; euphoric highs and desolate lows. This time of year is very hard for me; I hope that the coming year has a bit more stability, and a bit more hope/promise for what the future will hold. But this year was certainly not without its gifts. I know myself better than I did the year before, I've wrestled with the Lord and experienced a greater depth of Their love than I ever have, and I have allowed myself to fully enter into the mortifying (horrifying) ordeal of being known and deeply loved by another human for the first time in a very long time (perhaps more fully than I ever have). I'm not sure what more I could ask for from a year, to be honest.

As far as writing has gone, I've done significantly less writing this year than I have the past two. Writing has been really hard the past couple of months and I hope that I'll be able to get back into the swing of things this year.

In 2023:

89 Fics (mostly short little fics and microfics this year)

120,191 words

This year also saw the crossing of the following (momentous, for me) milestones:

Over 700 User Subscriptions on AO3

Over 2,500(!) followers on Tumblr (genuinely, what the heck? When did that happen?)

Over 400 fics posted on AO3

Over 1,300,000 total words posted on AO3

Over 1,200,000 hits on said works on AO3

Over 125,000 kudos on said works on AO3

When I started reading fanfiction, I never would have imagined that I could have written and posted that many stories, or all of those words. I remember looking at authors' dashboards and perusing their stories and being in awe of their creativity and ability to spin their words into entire worlds for me to fall into. And I thought never, in a million years, could I be one of those authors. What a delight, what an immense blessing to be able create.

Thanks for coming along on this journey with me. May 2024 come with immense blessings for you and your loved ones. <3