#a portfolio of recovery

[coffee-cait]

quickly popping in while i'm feeling well enough today to post a lil something for Gaming's debut!

im also screaming they really did give him canon canto psychic damage... he's like me fr fr

and in case i'm not well enough on the day of, early happy lunar new year everyone!! 恭禧發財!!

[fatehbaz]

.

[elaho]

Sebastian’s Immersive Wedding mod is now officially launched and ready to play! 

Explore 2 new wedding-based events with Sebastian, including unique wedding décor options, as well as an intimate (optional) pre-wedding event (**CW**) with Sebastian the night before your wedding ceremony. 

(**CONTENT WARNING**) This mod contains references to neglect/abuse, parental abandonment, depression, toxic family dynamics, trauma, substance abuse, and coarse language. User discretion is advised. See Mod Description on Nexus for more details. 

This mod is based off of my previous wedding outfits mod for Sebastian, Sebastian Dutch-Romanian/Dutch-Vietnamese Wedding Outfits (which as of v1.0.0 is optional). However, the décor is available regardless of whether you have the mod installed or what outfit Sebastian is configured to wear to the ceremony. 

More about this mod:

Sebastian is an INTP who is reserved, morose, and blunt, but also incredibly pensive, thoughtful, and – despite his best efforts to hide it- sensitive and caring. In the beginning, Sebastian comes across as your typical Emo/goth boy who enjoys darkness, isolation, and cryptic communication. But, as we spend more time with Sebastian throughout the game, we see that his ‘loner’ lifestyle isn’t necessarily something he chose for himself – but rather, it was a self-preservation tactic he adopted to survive his family’s toxic dynamic. Throughout your friendship, we see Sebastian reveal more about his family, his life, and past childhood experiences. Once you’re married to him, we do get to see Sebastian slightly more affectionate with the farmer in his dialogue; however, we don’t get to see how Sebastian’s relationship with the farmer influenced any significant (positive) change in his life or see him open up to the farmer in a meaningfully emotional or vulnerable way.

And because we don’t get to see that transformation in-game, unfortunately, the relationship Sebastian has with the farmer often comes across as a co-dependent partnership rather than a healthy, mutually beneficial one. With this mod, I wanted to delve deeper into Sebastian’s character and explore his journey of self-discovery and personal growth throughout his relationship with the farmer (regardless of whether you decided to marry him or not). Though this mod does go into some dark territory, I believe Sebastian’s story is something a lot of people can relate to and have experienced to some degree in their lives [myself included]. There is no magic fix for the complex family problems many of us were born into, and it can be discouraging when (well-meaning) friends or acquaintances insist that there is. It can often feel like we’re alone in our suffering or that no one can understand what we’re going through.

But we’re not alone. And we don’t have to go through our healing journey alone, either.

We may not get to choose our parents or our childhoods, but we can choose how we respond to them. When we do, start taking control of our own lives, find empowerment and responsibility in our own choices, and develop the support network that we need, so that we can create the kind of life we want and deserve for ourselves. It's never an easy journey, but it is a worthwhile one. 

And for Sebastian, facing his painful childhood and upbringing, including the absence of his biological father, is a hard but necessary step in creating the kind of life he wants for himself – one with the farmer by his side, forever.

Enjoy playing! <3 -Elaho 

[reflective-leaf]

Day 4 of my illustration series! About fantasy and replenishing oneself. Only lightly magical-themed this time…

Here is Day 3.

I’ve decided it’s going to be a week-long series, so 3 more to go!

[mantisgodsdomain]

Very fun to be an dormant Homestuck in 2023. We saw a post with an aside about the mid-to-highblood bias present in the fandom and we took a moment to think "wait, what?" before remembering how much people posted about Mallek, Lanque, and Marvus. Obviously no one asked our opinion on the matter but we think that a lot of the bias here may just be because fandom people will jump at any vaguely conventionally attractive male character who can say something angsty, and we don't see 99% of this effect because we rapidly get fatigued with any character who is overly present in the fandom and any ship that has overrepresentation in the sample size and start blocking tags.

Very highly effective approach, admittedly, but it leaves us a bit out of the loop. We only really start encountering Issues with that approach in smaller fandoms when blocking any given popular ship will instantly shrink our mutual circle to Just Us and maybe, like, one guy who we dragged in here ourself, so we have to relax blocking standards somewhat and just make it "blocked for a week" or something similar.

[aspyholdings]

Aspy Holdings LLC.

Debt Buying Solutions Company

Address- 1700 Northside Drive Suite A7 #5715, Atlanta, GA, USA 30318

Phone- +1 (833) 277-9637

Email- info@aspyholdings.com

Website- https://aspyholdings.com

Business Hours- Mon-Fri: 9am- 6pm

Aspy Holdings is a premier debt buying solutions company dedicated to providing comprehensive and innovative debt acquisition services. With a focus on maximizing returns and minimizing risk, we specialize in acquiring distressed portfolios and implementing strategic solutions to optimize recovery for our clients. Our seasoned team of experts leverages cutting-edge technology and industry insights to navigate the complexities of the debt market, ensuring efficient and ethical resolution.

[consumercenter888]

Harassment Responses and Discipline - Prevent Harassment

A swift, accurate, and suitable resolution of harassment complaints can limit damages or, in the case of hostile environment claims, shield you from liability. Find out how to decide what discipline, if any, is proper Portfolio recovery associates.

Do you know what your obligations are to take disciplinary action if your harassment policy has been violated? Or, in situations where it is not clear that harassment actually took place, do you know how to prevent future harassment?

How you respond often will be the determining factor in either preventing or provoking discrimination claims. A weak reaction is no defense and may increase your legal exposure.

Alternatively, you don't want to be too heavy-handed. A reflexive or too harsh response, such as an automatic suspension or termination without regard to the severity of the conduct, may needlessly provoke a legal claim by the alleged harasser. Fortunately, however, there are several simple steps you can follow to help determine the appropriate discipline.

Duty to Prevent Harassment Your duty both to prevent workplace harassment and to take swift action to remedy it is well established. Title VII of the Civil Rights Act prohibits harassment or a work environment that is abusive to employees because of their race, gender, color, religion, or national origin. In addition, the Americans with Disabilities Act has been interpreted to prohibit harassment based on an individual's disability.

Although the most common harassment claims involve allegations of sexual harassment, the same legal analysis applies when the offensive behavior is aimed at any legally protected class. Most states also have laws forbidding workplace harassment, as do many cities and other local governmental authorities.

When Your Harassment Policy Has Been Violated Of course, discipline is generally one of the last steps in any harassment procedure. It should follow only after you have conducted a thorough and prompt investigation, interviewed all involved parties, and carefully weighed the evidence. If you conclude that your harassment policy has been violated, disciplinary action is then the next step.

As a general rule, your disciplinary measures should take into consideration the nature and seriousness of the harassment and should also reflect whether it is the first violation of the policy, or part of a broader pattern of harassment. In addition, you should follow your organization's standard disciplinary guidelines and make sure your action properly matches any similar past precedents.

Courts and the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) generally agree that in order to escape liability under Title VII employers must take appropriate remedial action that is "reasonably calculated" to stop the harassment and prevent any future occurrences. In addition, the disciplinary measures should also be appropriate to the seriousness of the offense.

Of course, for any discipline short of termination, the harasser should be warned that further incidents will not be tolerated and will result in additional action.

No Violation of the Policy If you investigate a complaint of harassment and determine that your policy was not violated, you should not take any action against the accused harasser or retaliate against the complaining employee. You should, however, explain in appropriate detail to the complaining employee why the evidence did not support the claim.

You also need to be prepared for the complaining employee's dissatisfaction with your decision. As a safety valve, most employers invite the employee to submit any further evidence and assure her that it will be investigated. In addition, you should remind the employee that she may appeal the decision using your normal complaint resolution procedure. Any empathy you show for the complaining employee's concerns will help neutralize the type of emotional reaction that often leads to a claim with the EEOC or to a lawsuit.

Inconclusive Investigations Unfortunately, there often are circumstances when the results of the investigation are inconclusive or your findings are ambiguous. However, even in these instances, you should not dismiss the complaint lightly or without explanation. Any apparent lack of concern may aggravate the problems between the complaining employee and the alleged harasser, and signal to other employees that your harassment policy is ineffective.

To preserve the integrity of your policy, you should explain to the complaining employee why the evidence was inconclusive. You also should express the organization's commitment to its policy and assure the employee that the alleged harasser will be warned about the consequences of any inappropriate conduct. In addition, you should explain the appeals process and encourage its use if she feels the decision was unfair.

Finally, if there appears to be evidence of a continuing conflict between the two parties, you should attempt to resolve it or take some nondisciplinary action to ensure it does not continue. This action can include the transfer of one of the parties or the reassignment of job duties. Remember, however, you must be sure that any action taken does not appear to be retaliatory to the complaining employee, such as a demotion or a transfer without her agreement.

[piastree]

Take a Chance with Me | OP81

oscar piastri x reader (fc: huh yunjin)

— Part 2

Previous Part | Next Part

Summary : They are a couple caught in the chaos of a love filled with randomness and quirks. Their relationship is marked by funny and unpredictable moments, where each day feels like a new adventure. Despite frequently engaging in amusing and spirited bickering, beneath the banter lies a deep and meaningful romance. noted: idk i decided to make the part 2 haha. Enjoyyy!!&lt;3

yourusername

tagged oscarpiastri

liked by charles_leclerc, oscarpiastri, and 15,397 others

yourusername what is life if not to love and be loved

view comments

user just hit a morning, and she's already dropping bangers

oscarpiastri well i can do both

yourusername lucky me!🥰

user aww they're the cutest<3 :( I FEEL SO SINGLE

user i’m mister steal your girl @/oscarpiastri

user you guys are so freakin cute

yourusername cute has four letters, so does meeee

oscarpiastri liked the comments

user OMGGGG I LOVE HER

user cutie patooties button >>>>>>

yourusername

liked by charles_leclerc, oscarpiastri, mclaren, and 20,987 others

yourusername on duty🏁🏎️

view comments

user supportive gf out there

mclaren oscar's serotonin booster💪🧡

user not a good day for oscar, but at least he had you by his side

user sadly the luck was not here with him

yourusername the luck just took a vacation for today :(

oscarpiastri

liked by mclaren, yourusername, landonorris, and 80,987 others

oscarpiastri Gracias México 🇲🇽 Not the Sunday we planned but more points on the board. Onwards to 🇧🇷

view comments

mclaren Let’s go after it again in Brazil! 👊

user you did an amazing job right here!!!! We love you, Oscar!!🇲🇽🧡 hope you enjoyed your time here

user they look so so so cute together😭❤️

yourusername always proud of you❤️

oscarpiastri thankyou, love ❤️

user idk if i want her or to be her

yourusername

liked by landonorris, oscarpiastri, and 20,997 others

yourusername farewell to the my ginger hair era

view comments

user i can fight oscar

user MARRY ME Y/N

user the ginger hair really suited you perfectly, but the new one looks good on you as well<333

oscarpiastri lost in ur beauty

yourusername oh nooo, i'll be there to rescue you :(

landonorris get a room

mclaren we miss you, y/n! comeback sooner🧡

yourusername i will🥺

yourusername added a story

caption: send me the photo right awayyyyy @/landonorris

user my papaya boys<3

landonorris there's a small fee for this exclusive content yourusername you're charging me for a pic of my own boyfriend? landonorris his fame comes at a cost, you know yourusername fine, you'll get your donuts landonorris deal! He's officially part of my portfolio now

oscarpiastri lando must be took a lot of photos yourusername he just charged me for a photo of you oscarpiastri Oh, did he? Well, next time, tell him I charge extra for my fabulous poses yourusername haha, you're not helping :(

twitter

oscarpiastri

liked by maxverstappen1, yourusername, landonorris and 119,992 others

oscarpiastri Rolled the dice and bagged some points 🎲 Vegas, you were fun!

view comments

user and bagged fastest lap🙌🏼🧡

user bad strategy but incredible pace

user A BIG THANKYOU Y/N FOR GIVING MY GIFT TO OSCAR!! YOU ARE TRULY AMAZINGGG<3 @/yourusername

user aww she's the kindest

user you were great, deserved more than p10🧡

user wishing lando a speedy recovery❤️🙏

oscarpiastri liked the comments

yourusername

liked by lilymhe, alexalbon, oscapiastri and 39,152 others

yourusername lv dumps

view comments

lilymhe you are so lovelyyy! can't wait to see you again❤️

yourusername see u in monaco! pstt don't tell albono

alexalbon I AM NOT BLIND

user i guess the exhausting night unexpectedly brought a new friendship!!

yourusername YESS that was kind of random night

oscarpiastri my it girl❤️

yourusername ❤️

I don't know why I wrote part 2 but I enjoyed writing this, I hope you also enjoy reading this

[multipassionat]

this one's called "fuck." it's a part of a series of paintings i've been creating while undergoing treatment for my mental health.

i'm currently getting treated with Spravato which is a nasal esketamine used for treatment resistant depression. it has made a huge difference in my life and has inspired and motivated me to create more art in a few months than i've made in some years, entirely.

as someone who feels like an artist on the inside, but dealt with creative blocks for many years -- this is a huge deal for me! so here's to "fuck." i made it during one of the few negative feeling sessions. i had a "bad trip," i guess and got sick but overall the treatment has done wonders.

side note: i decided i'm using tumblr for my portfolio and this is the first one i'm posting! it's not the best and is one of the first i made, but i love it

[dearyuls]

#. — chae yul x reader (she/her pronouns used.)

#. content warnings! — extreme yandere behaviour, failed recovery, obsession, stalking, kidnapping, murder, violence, blood and injuries, gore.

#. word count! — (so far) 13,500.

#. < full fanfiction, slowburn, no update schedule just whenever I feel like writing. only three chapter have been written so far, slow updates. also being crossposted on ao3 and wattpad as “ hand in unlovable hand”

#. > 0 | 1| 2 | <

PROLOGUE.

He swore to himself that this would be a new chance, he wouldn't waste the second chance at life that Eun Sian had graciously gifted him, in not ruining his life, that was all he could do in thanks to his dear person...well. Ex-dear person.

It was only one picture, he wouldn't let it get out of hand again, he probably wouldn't see you ever again, fate was cruel like that, and more than anyone, he knew he couldn't bend it to his will, even if he were to break all of his fingers doing so.

He had been moved far away from Sian, all on his own. A fresh slate. And, now he had no school to preoccupy himself with, he figured that finding a job would be the best thing for him to do in order to try and get his life back on track from the disastrous place he had steered it to, he blamed himself for it all, so, he decided he must be the one to fix it.

His father had given him the money to move in, and apart from that, he had no contact with his family in the slightest, he had no family left that wanted anything to do with him, he had no support system, and with this came more reason to job hunt, with no money he wouldn't be able to feed himself, or pay the bills he had.

Since he was already skilled in photography, that was the easiest first step in his mind, he'd build up a portfolio and become a photographer for events ,such as weddings, and put his prior experience to use.

It was a somewhat warm day in spring, Yul stood outside, camera in hand, snapping pictures of the scenery around him, he was just wandering around, finding whatever he saw pretty he wore a plain outfit, all black, with a hat on so that less of his face was visible, he was aware nobody that knew him could be here, they had actual lives to attend to, but, the thought of it happening but him on edge, he was lucky to be holding his camera or he would've bitten his fingernails half to death.

" At least it's a nice day out.." he mumbled to himself, as he moved to snap a photo of a water fountain that he had found in the middle of one of the nearby parks, surrounded by the greenery it made for an aesthetic picture, just what he was looking for.

CLICK!

The shutter went off and Yul waited to check the photo on the screen...

Fuck, He'd have to retake it, he couldn't have that person standing in the frame.

He looked up, he had to see if whoever you were had moved, and, it was as if the first domino had been pushed over, you were looking away, it appeared an orange butterfly had caught your attention, so you didn't make eye contact, but Yul felt his heart speed up. The rays of sunlight painted your face, the gentle breeze made your hair flow ever so slightly..and you were just wearing the cutest outfit..he wondered what Sian would look like if she wore it.

He slapped himself in the face. He hated the way he thought, he needed to stop thinking about her, it wouldn't get him anywhere. He wanted to change, it was what she wanted. He knew Sian would never wear a skirt like that, what a dumb thought.

By the time he'd finished his self argument, she had already gotten out of the frame, and Yul hesitated before taking another picture, he wouldn't delete the first photo, something compelled him not to.

He bit his lip, harsh, almost like trying to draw blood as he went back to the first photo, infact, your presence there seemed to elevate the scene, maybe it was better with you in it... the more he looked at the photo the more he seemed to agree.

He shook that feeling off and kept walking, he had to learn to do something by himself without the thoughts of her creeping in.

By the time the sun started setting Yul had already gone home, he felt strange, unable to take anymore pictures. His mood had turned completely dejected. It hasn't been all that great after getting out of hospital, he had been miserable despite trying, and today he just started to feel worse.

He was on his computer, which sat on a little desk in the left corner of his room. And was clicking through the photos which he had taken, figuring out which one would be the best to show to professional companies, he had only found two of actual quality for that day, and he clicked right, going to the next one, the one with that girl in it.

He zoomed in, and in and in.

He just sat in his dimly light room, illuminated by a single lamp, with his eyes pressed to the computer screen. Staring at you, Unblinking.

He stared, and stared, and stared.

It didn't take him long to realise he was being creepy, this behaviour wasn't right. He needed to stop.  In the short time he was at therapy, he had been taught a few ways t stop himself when he got all worked up like this, but, it was a shame he couldn't remember a single one of them.

It had been some time since he showed proper interest in anyone, and, you were just some random girl, he wouldn't let it get any worse again, he didn't even know your name or anything, plus he didn't even know anything about you.

Despite the kind look on your face and your general demeanour, you could still be a serpent lying beneath.

Why was he even questioning any of that? He didn't even know you, why was he trying to figure out what kind of person you were? He shook his head, minimising his gallery before closing his computer completely, maybe he was just feeling vulnerable and this is why his strange feelings started to act up again..

Yul had no other explanation outside of it being that, so, he decided to try and sleep it off. He got up from his desk and draped himself over his bed, staring up at his empty walls. With no pictures spread over them, it didn't look right, he could just imagine her face staring back at him...but she wasn't there. She had abandoned him she was horrible she was

Something he no longer needed to worry about, he reminded himself. He had no right to be angry.

He just needed to search and find something to overwhelm the still lingering feelings he has,  or he needs to actually get better, one of the two, he'd settle for.

[essektheylyss]

You know what I'm thinking about? That trip to Vergessen.

Not the memorable one. The super innocuous one, in which Ludinus and Trent insisted they'd just dug this weird rock out of the ground weeks ago, it's nothing to them, the Bright Queen can have it. The one where Eadwulf told Caleb he looked good despite having just crawled out of an eldritch horror's sludge and then showed off his super muscular, super tatted arms.

Let's return to Eadwulf's arms in a moment.

The scourgers were helping out with the Assembly's research portfolio, which at the time had included Ludinus's pet project of developing dunamantic super-serum. The scourgers had also previously been involved—in their off time, when they weren't doing their primary duties of torture and execution—with human experimentation of methods of augmenting a mage's personal reserves of magic.

Sound familiar?

(Really, Ludinus, are you too old to test your experiments on yourself?)

Back to Eadwulf's well-sculpted arms. By the time we meet him in 836 PD, whatever might've been done to them in 810 PD has been covered with those pointedly geometric tats. Somewhere around the same time span, an assassination attempt is made on the life of the Voice of the Tempest by assassins using what was likely a prototype of Otohan Thull's dunamantic contraption, which is a kind of harness that uses the distilled dunamis created by Yeza Brenatto from studying the stolen beacons. This attack of course left multiple Ashari dead and beyond the point of recovery, among them Derrig and Will.

Six years later, Otohan Thull of course would kill Fearne, Orym, and Laudna in battle using that contraption, and not long after would also use the same assassination tactic to draw out the Champion of the Raven Queen so Ludinus could press him into an orb.

Still with me?

In Molaesmyr, after the Solstice had been stuck in time, Team Wildemount find a number of interesting items in Gildhollow, Ludinus's forsaken bachelor pad. Notable among them is a chest harness designed to consume various natural sources of power in order to augment the wearer's arcane abilities.

I think it's incredibly likely that the human experimentation component of the scourger program, given its scope, was requested if not designed by Ludinus, in an effort to further his research in the realm of augmenting mortals' capacities for magic. (Mechanically, I imagine this equates to additional spell slots per day, or the capacity to singlehandedly pull off experimental spells beyond the scope of ninth level, i.e. Dunamantic Nap spell, but that's just speculation.)

Primarily my point here is to demonstrate that its entirely possible if not likely that even the minutiae of the Assembly's horrific program to create child soldiers may have been part of Ludinus's effort to release Predathos and kill the gods, in an effort to show how broadly this may touch even other previous campaigns.

Additionally my point is to say that if anyone has reason to lead the vanguard (pun intended) of righteous warfare against Ludinus Da'leth, it's a Liam O'Brien PC, and frankly, at this point, given all of this character reasoning to do so, I do not care which one.

[reasonsforhope]

Toledo City Council just approved a plan to turn $1.6 million in public dollars into as much as $240 million in economic stimulus, targeted at some of the Ohio metro’s most vulnerable residents.

“It’s really going to help people put food on the table, help them pay their rent, help them pay their utilities,” says Toledo City Council Member Michele Grim, who led the way for the measure. “Hopefully we can prevent some evictions.”

The strategy couldn’t be simpler: It works by canceling millions in medical debt.

Working with the New York City-based nonprofit RIP Medical Debt, the City of Toledo and the surrounding Lucas County are chipping in $800,000 each out of their federal COVID-19 recovery funds from the American Rescue Plan Act.

The combined $1.6 million in funding is enough for RIP Medical Debt to acquire and cancel up to $240 million in medical debt owed by Lucas County households that earn up to 400% of the federal poverty line.

“It could be more than a one-to-100 return on investment of government dollars,” Grim says. “I really can’t think of a more simple program for economic recovery or a better way of using American Rescue Plan dollars, because it’s supposed to rescue Americans.”

How It Works

Under the RIP Medical Debt model, there is no application process to cancel medical debt. The nonprofit negotiates directly with local hospitals or hospital systems one-by-one, purchasing portfolios of debt owed by eligible households and canceling the entire portfolio en masse.

“One day someone will get a letter saying your debt’s been canceled,” Grim says. It’s a simple strategy for economic welfare and recovery.

RIP Medical Debt was founded in 2014 by a pair of former debt collection agents, and since inception it has acquired and canceled more than $7.3 billion in medical debt owed by 4.2 million households — an average of $1,737 per household...

Local Governments Get Involved

The partnership with Toledo and Lucas County is the third instance of the public sector funding RIP Medical Debt to cancel debt portfolios.

Earlier this year, in the largest such example yet, the Cook County Board of Commissioners approved a plan to provide $12 million in ARPA funds for RIP Medical Debt to purchase and cancel an estimated $1 billion in medical debt held by hospitals across Cook County, which includes Chicago.

“Governments contract with nonprofits all the time for various social interventions,” Sesso says.

“This isn’t really that far-fetched or different from that. I would say between five and 10 other local governments have reached out just since the Toledo story came out.”

What's the Deal with Medical Debt?

An estimated one in five households across the U.S. have some amount of medical debt, and they are disproportionately Black and Latino, according to the U.S. Census Bureau...

Acquiring medical debt is relatively cheap: hospitals that sell medical debt portfolios do so for just pennies on the dollar, usually to investors on the secondary market.

The purchase price is so low because hospitals and debt buyers alike know that medical debt is the hardest form to collect...

The amount of debt canceled for any given household has ranged from $25 all the way up to six-figure amounts. Under IRS regulations, debts canceled under RIP Medical Debt’s model do not count as taxable income for households...

Massive Expansion Coming Up

After not one but two donations from philanthropist MacKenzie Scott, totaling $80 million, RIP Medical Debt is planning for expansion.

It’s using a portion of those dollars to create an internal revolving line of credit to expand to places where it can find willing sellers before it has found willing funders.

The internal line of credit means the nonprofit now has new, albeit still limited, flexibility to acquire debt portfolios from hospitals first, then begin raising private or public dollars locally to replenish the line of credit later and make those funds available for other locations.

“People often ask, do you only work with nonprofit hospitals, or do you work with for-profit hospitals? And I’m like, I just want to get the debt, regardless of who created the debt. If it’s out there, I want it,” Sesso says.

Fundamentally, they are not solving the issue of medical debt, but easing its pressure from as many lives as possible — while also upping the pressure on lawmakers and the healthcare industry.

“We’re intentionally taking the stories of the individuals whose debt we have resolved, and putting their stories out into the world with intention in a way that tries to push and create more of that pressure to fundamentally solve the problem,” she says.

-via GoodGoodGood, 4/6/23

[bullet-prooflove]

Meet The Writer! - Also a Year in Review

I don't usually do this but I thought I would throw up a meet the author post so you could get to know me a little more!

I think sometimes it's hard to remember that's actual people behind the usernames we see on our screens so I thought I'd pop up and say Hi.

So a few things about me:

I'm 36 heading towards 37.

I have a Master's in Creative Writing and run a very small, local social media company, which is more side hustle then income but I love my clients.

In April I came off my antidepressants for the first time in over a decade and it was like I could see the world in technicolour, music sounded richer to me and it completely changed my life.

I've struggled with mental health issues the majority of my life, the latest being August of this year when I had a breakdown which has led to a complete re-evalutation of my life. It made me very ill and I am still in recovery as we speak.

In August/Sept I started putting out my work for publication and have been published three times this year.

In Nov I quit my job working with teens in the care system due to a toxic workplace situation that caused my breakdown. This was truly terrifying as I am not entitled to any benefits because frankly the UK benefits system is a joke.

Doing this has given me the space to look at what I want to do moving forward. I signed up to a few places as a creative writing tutor and had my first client on 30th Dec. I honestly loved the experiance and have decided it's something all the time. So if you're looking for help with that pain in the ass manuscript hit me up!

I'm also developing a portfolio as a makeup artist and gel nail tech, things I wanted to explore when I was working full time but never had the chance to.

When I look back I can't believe how much has changed for me in the past year and I never envisioned that I'd be where I am now. There have been times when I've thought I wouldn't make it through the year but I did and I'm still here, still growing. I guess I hope that if there's anyone else out there, who has struggled or is struggling this resonates with you.

You're not alone, I've been there and so many other people have too. We are more than just names behind a keyboard and I thought it was just important to remember that.

Anyway I've rambled long enough!

Happy New Year to everyone who is trying to make it in this messy world.

[reflective-leaf]

Day 6 of of my 7-day magicky illustration series about recovery/replenishment.

Here is Day 5.

One day to go!

[eris-snow]

𝐁𝐢𝐫𝐭𝐡𝐝𝐚𝐲 𝐆𝐢𝐟𝐭

Tags: Revelation (Deku's birthday series 2024), izuku x fem!reader, angst, plot, class a shenanigans, filler, I'd die for Izuku, birthday, fluff

Masterlist

July 13th. Crack and break.

---

There were 3 things you knew had happened yesterday.

Number 1: Your days with him had ticked from 4 to 3. This version of Izuku would go poof in a matter of days, and you were going to miss it. Somehow, Izuku had compacted a year's worth of memories in the span of two weeks, and now, you didn’t want him to let go. This was the closest he’d ever got to remembering you, thrashing against binds and battering against an unbreakable wall. You’ll miss it, of course you would.

You’ve never seen him try this hard for you.

Don’t leave me, Izuku. I’m scared of the look in your eyes when you don’t recognise me. Even if you don’t need me, even if I don’t need you, I want to stand by your side. Please don’t go. Please remember me.

Number 2: Izuku had found something 

Ever since Izuku had come back from the clearing, he’d been distant. He’d found something, of course he did.

The Saviour of the world can pride himself on his unreasonable number of Quirks and excellent portfolio, but he couldn’t lie to save his life. If there was one thing in heroing he’d be bad at, it’d be undercover missions.

You drink coffee from the cup, shiver at the bitterness, and take another sip. You need to stop psyching yourself out, otherwise, you’re going to combust from the inside out. Splattered organs would not look good beside a fucked up kitchen.

And the 3rd thing…

There was a student found on campus in a pool of blood.

There was no indication of an intruder, so when she was admitted into the infirmary and patched up, everyone thought she was fine until she woke up and started bawling uncontrollably.

Depressed, Recovery Girl had said, right before admitting her into the hospital. Can’t even remember how to smile.

Chisuke had been on campus.

If Izuku hadn’t left with you yesterday, that could have been him.

You highly doubt that the villain could so much as graze Izuku, but what if he’d came in at night? Lurking in the shadows, waiting for the right time to strike…you shake your head, instead pushing your thoughts to homework.

Aizawa had reassured you that everything was under control, so why couldn’t you shake the feeling that something was going to go wrong?

—

Maybe you were being paranoid, but being paranoid saved lives okay, and if you had to look at another question involving differentiating a product rule in a fraction, you’d personally find a person with a time travelling Quirk, go back in time, and strangle whoever decided they were smart enough to jam math with letters instead of numbers.

Aizawa dms you the files within an hour, and you open and devour the multi-paged document like it was the latest chapter of a manga.

Chisuke Suzuki, the younger brother of Isamu Suzuki, has a Quirk that can shut down one emotion of his choice permanently. You sit back and read through the file, eying his details carefully before you scribble some of it down.

Analysis was good, because it also was a handy distraction. From Izuku’s dazed responses, he had his own things to work through that he didn’t want to tell you. The conversation mainly went like so:

“Hello.”

“Mm, bananas.”

“Midoriya, I was going to ask if you were doing alright? You seem pretty out of it.”

“Apples are great fruits too. I think Tokoyami can help you.”

“Midoriya, if you don’t give me a proper answer, I’m gonna take Kacchan and wham you over your head.”

“Sounds fun.”

Nothing’s more frustrating than Izuku being deep in thought.

And maybe part of you, a tiny part of you, was hurt by the fact that Izuku didn’t even think of telling you.

Shaking your head, you sigh. It doesn’t matter, it’s alright.

It’s okay, because in 3 days, Izuku won’t remember any of this at all.

—

Izuku shuffles and rereads the words in his mind once more.

Tit for tat, this for that. A brother for a brother, and pain for bits and scraps.

You want to find your memories? I understand. My Quirk is simple, very simple. Pain is not worth the weight of knowledge. Your trade is insufficient.

Try again.

“A fair trade.” He whispers, hand over his mouth as he works his way through the thoughts. “Your memories…for mine?”

Izuku shuts the thought down immediately because there’s no way that was fair. You’d kept them, held them dear to your heart and stayed by his side this entire time. You are not losing your memories to his hands.

What can I do? What can I exchange? What do I have to lose.

“Oi, idiot, you’re muttering out loud again.” Katsuki says, flopping down on a nearby beanbag. Izuku promptly ignores him.

Your trade is insufficient. Try again.

Try again.

Izuku glares down at his hands with a look that could kill, trying, but failing to find the right instrument to strike the right chord.

Other memories, perhaps?

(”Dude, is he okay? Seriously, I feel sorry for his cup, man, He could boil tea with that gaze—")

Try again.

An arm? A leg?

Try again.

His Quirk? Izuku pauses in contemplation, jerking his head up.

“Oh, he’s alive,” Shoto says tonelessly, from somewhere in the background

There’s a faint hum in his mind, an answer bubbling up to the surface, until—

Try again.

Izuku slams his head against the table.

“Bro, come on,” Kirishima whines, swiping his pancakes off the table. “My breakfast!”

“Sorry,” Izuku mutters, forcing a sheepish smile, before he dives head first back into the table.

“I think he’s lost it,” Kaminari whispers all too loudly from the safety of the couches.

Izuku chucks the pillow on his lap at Kaminari as the blond ducks.

“Haha, missed me—DUDE WHAT THE FUCK, THAT WAS A WHOLE ASS CHAIR.”

“Please get your sorry ass up to Y/n’s room and date her already.” Ochaco murmurs.

Izuku’s head shoots up from the midst of his table toppling. “What?”

“Wait no, don’t do that.” Ochaco hums seamlessly, yanking her already split coffee from the table. “Okay, you can have the table now.”

“Thanks.”

“Noo, Midoriya, man! I thought Kacchan was the mean one! Please don’t stab me with a table leg! I swear, it was just a—AHHHHH BAKUGOU FUCKING HELP. HEELLLPPPP, MIDORIYA’S GONE STIR CRAZY, HE’S MAD WITH POWER, HEL—”

—

When you walk downstairs and find your first love chasing a certain idiot blond around the living room with a whole ass table in tow, you stop and stare, before making eye contact with Ochaco. She shrugs.

Katsuki raises an eyebrow, as if to say “Why the fuck would you expect me to know?”

Izuku’s muscles are taunt and firm as he hauls the table. You watch his biceps flex, tune out Kaminari’s screaming, and lick your lips.

There’s a camera flash, and you pocket your phone.

Picture-perfect, really.

—

It’s only when Izuku returns to the dorms does his headaches come back in full force. Truthfully, he should have been expecting it. Staggering, he barely has enough time to lock his door before he falls to his knees on the ground. Everything is ice-blue, and the ringing in his ears add to the disequilibrium he’s experiencing. He’s on the floor, but he feels like the world has tilted sideways.

Pain is not worth the weight of knowledge.

He groans, and in his agony blossoms another image that tastes like blood and tears.

It’s his birthday, and the sun is out and bright. It’s his birthday, but tears are running down your cheeks, and you’re holding him like he’s dying on the battlefield and ashamed like you murdered someone with your two hands.

“Zuku, please.” You sob. “I’m sorry, I’m sorry I’m so sorry—”

He wants to say it’s okay, wants to tell you he’s fine, but he’s frozen still.

Stop meddling.

The voice whispers, disgruntled and annoyed.

Hox wax coats his brain as he screams, easing himself down from hell. Cotten candy melting in his mouth, iridescent rainbows, fluffy clouds, beautiful skies—

There’s another loud crack, and the wall fragments even more.

He yanks himself out of his own mind, and gasps at the return.

His birthday at 10 was laid bare in front of him. His Quirk Accident.

The day he forgot you, wrapped up in a neat bow and presented to him like a birthday gift.

[brightowldarkpigeon]

James Somerton Apology 2.0

Someone on Reddit asked what a genuine apology from Somerton would look like, and I outlined it there. I thought I'd share my post here in case it helps any others who are trying to understand what a sincere apology looks like!

(To be clear, I think that in general matters that are not as severe as James's, hoping to recover your career or asking for forgiveness are perfectly fine. For James, his betrayal was strong and defrauded so many people financially, that there is no way to make restitution without a years-long break from making content).

If he wanted to make a genuine apology, it would have to be done without any expectation of the recovery of his career. It would have to be very much the last thing he'd say on the matter, the only video on his channel, and demonetized. He would need to make the apology, then leave for at least a year, if not longer.

Then he would need to follow the standard five steps of apology:

1. Expression of regret

He'd have to say, "I am genuinely sorry for plagiarizing the work of others and taking great pains to obfuscate that fact." He would say, "I'm sorry that I told lies in my videos and did the bare minimum to create as much content and wealth as possible in as short a time as possible." He would also say, "I am sorry for the misogyny and anti-trans bias that I perpetuated both with my words on this channel and my actions toward other creators."

2. Acknowledgment of responsibility

This is essentially to say how it hurt the other person. "I am aware of the enormous harm that I caused to both the queer creators that I stole from and the viewers I deceived. My misogyny and transphobia have harmed not only the women and nonbinary people I offended, but also all other white cis gay men who do not want to carry on this legacy of upholding patriarchal sexism." I'd like him to make this the longest portion of the video, showing how plagiarism, deception, and misogyny cause real, tangible harm, and how his actions were wrong.

(It would be extra nice if he could take real responsibility and say, "I did all these things because I was greedy and lazy, and because I have not done the work to dismantle my own biases against women and trans people.)

3. Making Restitution

Here's where he says he's going to

a) PAY BACK HIS PATRONS. Seriously. That would be such a start. I understand that he needs money to survive, and it might take a long time to get back to that level of income, but he deceived both his patreon patrons and the backers of his Talos project.

b) Publish the names and works of every author he stole from.

c) Create a queer youtuber fund or something like that.

4. Genuinely promising change

He will need to GET. OFF. YOUTUBE. STOP. MAKING. CONTENT. It's time for him to find a new job, even with his fucking epilepsy, he's a decent video editor with a large portfolio and he absolutely could get work doing video editing from the bazillion people who have never heard of him. (They do exist!)

Or get literally any other WFH job. Do customer service if you have to. Take a break from being a star.

And of course say, "I do not think I will ever make original content again since I've lost the trust of this community, but if in a few years, I do try again, I will devote my time to properly crediting and uplifting other queer creators.

5. Requesting forgiveness

No. Don't do this. It's beyond forgiveness right now. Once james has SHOWN he's changed by educating himself and taking some time away from youtube, and DOING ALL THE RESTITUTION HE PROMISED, then he can ask for forgiveness.

Hope that helps.