#and my actually job title is admin assistant

[butchsaint]

i may. have hacked my way into some museum/historian experience

[mensahbots]

my humble tv show headcanon*

*this post is really just book meta with a not super funny tv show-related joke at the end. please don't be mad at me

so, some background: i think there's this idea which is fairly grounded in the books that it is totally normal in preservation society—and likely the wider murderbot diaries universe, including the corporation rim—for women, including mothers, to be in positions of power and, well... busy with things other than mothering. in the thick of action, juggling lots of important work, you name it. murderbot diaries women seem to get to have lives outside of traditionally female social roles. semi-relatedly, i think there's a lot to say about how wells vs the tv show characterize male characters and gendered interpersonal dynamics, but i'll not get into that here.

mensah is the admin director of the preservation alliance's planetary council, the steering committee which governs the alliance. it's an elected position, and while she is effectively the alliance's leader, she is also a scientist and expected to continue to work in that capacity while governing. on the preservationaux survey team, her title is captain (via "home"), and she's shown to have a variety of skills including fastidious hopper piloting, weapons handling, strategy that impresses even murderbot, excellent soft skills navigating conflict with characters ranging from murderbot to station security head indah to fellow council member ephraim, etc. book canon does not give us a lot of detail about her scientific research, but we know from "home" that she's involved with more menial aspects of academia like assisting her team with table formatting, and we can assume from all systems red that she was involved in data collection and analyses as well. she's likely the world's equivalent of a pi, the person who manages the research team and is ultimately responsible for the project.

mensah's family lives on a farm on planet, and mensah has quarters on the preservation station. her family visits her there sometimes and sometimes she goes to planet, but basically, due to the survey and her steering committee work, mensah spends a fair amount of time apart from her spouses and children. this is not framed as a big deal, morally bad, or anything negative like it might be irl. mensah has two spouses and apparently a lot of in laws who are involved in raising her children. the fact that she's referred to as "second mom" implies worldbuilding where it is normalized for there to be hierarchical parenting roles where some parents are more involved (ie farai, "first mom") while others might have work or other life situations that lead to less involvement with child rearing. (this is a headcanon, but to me, it's the most plausible idea. i highly doubt that first/second mom-ness has anything to do with genetics or a parent being preferred over another, it doesn't seem to be alphabetical, and it's unlikely that the title is purely random. i think the fact that murderbot might be considered "third mom" supports this reading. it's possible that a parent entering the family relatively late, eg entering a marriage where there are already children, could lead to this title, too.)

mensah being "second mom" is not a cause for resentment nor ever framed as her being a bad or uninvolved mother. her work seems to be seen as very important, even by her children. amena says:

I’m not a fucking hero like my second mom

i would imagine mensah's spouses also recognize the necessity and value of mensah's work. mensah's brother in law, thiago, actually seems very invested in mensah continuing to serve as the admin director, implying her family is very (perhaps overly) supportive of her job:

I said, “I don’t tell Dr. Mensah what to do.” Thiago’s jaw went tight. “I’m sure you didn’t. But she’s afraid to carry out her duties as council leader. She won’t apply to continue her term."

Thiago took a breath, made himself calm down. “But they won’t send anyone else? You said the threat percentage dropped—” “It’s at an acceptable level.” And it hadn’t been easy to get it to that level, either. Thiago watched me with a concentrated intensity I didn’t like. ART’s camera didn’t have a full-face view, but it was obvious even with the angle. “Then why did she decide not to take a second term?”

we also see implication mensah is the parent who helps sort out conflicts her kids are having— and the parent who lays down the law, despite often being apart from the kids:

I still thought it would sound a lot like the time Mensah’s youngest child had got hold of the comm and demanded that Mensah tell an older sibling to stop taking all the squash dumplings.

(Mensah said, “People, please. I’m scheduled to mediate arguments between teenagers on my next commcall home and I need all my patience for that.”)

An attempt by Amena to go around Mensah and appeal to Farai and Tano had failed spectacularly, in a three-way comm call that became a fourway when Farai had called Mensah to join in on the discussion. (I’m not sure what happened past that point. Even I hadn’t wanted to watch it.)

so is she an absent parent? i would say no. i also would not say she is ever framed as a bad parent or lacking as a parent in book canon, and her commitment to her work is not seen as a negative thing, although we can assume that post-all systems red and especially post-exit strategy, her spouses (who are implied to be in the loop) became more concerned for her safety and emotional well-being. but even then, any qualms they might have had about her work would have had nothing to do with her ability to parent, in my opinion.

so in the tv show, this episode 3 line...

My family didn't want me to come on this trip [the survey]. Two of my spouses sat me down and told me that they thought that I was doing it [fulfilling the requirements of her job ?] to get some time away from my responsibilities at home.

this moment took me aback, honestly. aside from the fact that mensah was telling murderbot that**, it's a totally new addition and surprised me. it seemed like farai and tano slander and a big departure from what i thought i was seeing in the book universe's handling of her motherhood and the book universe's society/gendered roles. i also think, you know, we see no indication that they resent her survey work, and it's more likely that the book versions of farai and tano are proud of her. their children are raised communally by a large family support network, so the idea that they'd try to convince her to stay home to take care of them is just... i don't love it.

**it did ask arada about her spouses and kids, though... maybe mensah thinks this is something murderbot might care about, lol. generous reading, i know. tv mensah is definitely oversharing here. although, given that she likely wouldn't talk to anyone else, even gurathin and bharadwaj, about what she tells murderbot here, it's possible oversharing is her way of connecting and here we're seeing suggestion that she sees it more as her equal/collaborator on the team than as her responsibility. also (me coping), she's really fucking sleep deprived here. like, would book mensah do this to murderbot in the asr era? no... but i do think this illustrates how strained tv mensah is, at the least.

so are you ready for my headcanon?

first, important book lore i mentioned above: mensah's family lives on a farm.

combined with important tv lore:

tv mensah is squeamish about flesh. cutting into murderbot is really uncomfortable and unpleasant for her. not only does murderbot quote a show to encourage her, it's basically telling her "everyone will die if you don't do this," and that's what motivates her to continue.

so, carrying over from book canon that she might live on a farm... my headcanon is:

the "responsibilities at home" that she's avoiding?

ଘ(੭ˊᵕˋ)੭* ੈ✩‧₊ gross farm stuff ✩♬ ₊˚.🎶⋆☾⋆⁺₊✧

you know...... tv farai and tano are always begging for mensah to help them, like....

˚₊‧* butcher animals ₊˚⋆

(but she's not gonna do it, and they know it)

sometimes they're like "you're a lacto-ovo vegetarian, ayda, can you at least collect the eggs?" no, because once one of the futurechickens was injured and she cried and made farai tend to it because she couldn't bear it—

but her excuse? survey prep 🫡

even the littlest kids are better farmers! but mensah tersely points out that their farm responsibilities start and end at petting and feeding the futuregoats.

oh no.... another meeting about the upcoming survey came up... good luck plucking the futurechickens... love youuu..

so yeah, now i imagine tv mensah's marriage is otherwise great, just she's perpetually avoiding doing gross farm stuff because she's so squeamish, and her marital partners are getting annoyed about it lol

[ms-demeanor]

Can I ask you how you ended up a purchasing manager and what the "technically" means? I've been a purchaser for a couple years and I'm trying to figure out what to do next. I've taken my role in much more of a creating-reports and helping-people-with-data direction than probably purchasers are supposed to, so idk if I should look for another purchasing job or something else

We're a tiny, tiny (less than 10 employee) company so I'm kind of a one-person procurement department with about eight other roles stacked on top (including marketing, website administration, and proofreading my boss's emails).

The purchasing part of what I do is I manage vendor relationships and customer licensing through our vendors, and I research hardware and configure hardware solutions for our clients then do the ordering and order management.

I think my boss's goal with "purchasing" as a job description is just to keep me distinct from accounts payable/receivable (because of the type of business we are, the purchaser at this company needs to have a significant degree of computer literacy, so the role has always been far removed from the accounting department at this business; I'm not a tech, I'm not sales, I'm not precisely an office admin, but I kind of am those things stuck in a blender with an executive assistant).

"Technically" just means that "purchasing manager" is what the business puts on my tax form but I don't have the requisite freedom to make choices to *legally* be considered a manager in California (so 'technically' purchasing manager is my job description in actual fact, but i don't 'technically' meet the requirements of being a manager - my job title is fake).

I think that in normal procurement jobs there is some data crunching that is required, but I see it more as logistics than analytics. If you're more interested in the analytics side of things than the logistical stuff, it may be worthwhile to cast your net outside of the purchasing pool.

[romewritingshop]

Biker Book Club

Fandom: Jujutsu Kaisen

Pairing: Biker!Sukuna Ryoumen x Reader

MASTERLIST

A/N: So I wrote a smut and here's something to tide people over whilst I'm working on Part 3 of my Choso series. Thanks and I hope you enjoy. Let me know what you think! Follow, comment or reblog, IDC because I enjoy writing this fic. Please pay attention before reading.

NO UNDER 18s 🔞

WARNING: Smut, Explicit Sex, Cowgirl, Blowjob, Fingering, Use of Lube, Almost unprotected sex, Use of Protection, Slight Choking, Gagging, Slight dominance, Swearing, Talk of sex, Loss of Virginity, talks of cunnilingus and face sitting, cum eating

This wasn't where he expected to find his next good fuck but somehow he found you. He noticed you sitting at a beanbag in the library. Your glasses were pushed right up your face.

Even the way you were dressed was getting to him as he took in your black straight jeans and matching woolly turtleneck. You were reading a book with an interesting cover, it had skulls and thorns with cursive that made it difficult for him to guess the title.

What drew him to notice you was the way your face was deadpanned, almost looking uninterested in what you were reading. Why continue reading a book you're uninterested in? Your legs were crossed over and you had white headphones covering your ears, probably blocking all the sound.

He came here to look for Geto and Gojo, apparently he needed to go over details for the gig they were being security detail for. The two of them were meant to be in the library for some college assignment. Sukuna stood out with his facial tattoos and black leather jacket.

Right now, he wanted you to warm his bed tonight, you seemed like the type of girl who liked to be wined and dined which wasn't so bad as long as he got to use them however he wanted. Rolling back his shoulders, eyes locked on target, he stepped towards you.

You were feeling hot under the collar as you read your book and followed along the words with your audio book. It was embarrassing reading this in your library but lately your parents weren't allowing you any privacy. They felt that you stayed indoors too much thus you went to the library to prove that you did go out.

You were a grown woman who should be allowed to do what she wanted but you worked a retail job whilst being rejected for different jobs as an admin assistant. Apparently they didn't want to hire an inexperienced graduate which made no sense.

You were stuck to reading smutty books in libraries and working inhumane hours for minimum pay. The book you were reading currently involved a tall tattooed biker that fell for the mayor's daughter and it was hot as hell. Currently you were listening/reading about them getting hot and heavy in the mayor's office during a party.

You were just getting to the bit where the biker was going down on his knees when something tapped you on your knee which made you drop your book, phone and headphones. You let out a short scream but shut up quickly when you realised that you were in a library.

The first thing you saw were black laced boots, nicely polished before trailing up to ripped black jeans. Your eyes went up to a white form fitting t-shirt underneath a black leather jacket. He had pink hair with a black undercut which was an interesting colour in comparison to his attire.

For a moment you thought you were hallucinating and the biker from your book had somehow come to life. However the facial tattoos reminded you that it wasn't the male lead, this person was actually standing in front of you.

Sukuna found it cute the way you were reacting to him, shocked like he caught you doing something nasty. Although, it didn't take him much to realise that you probably were as he picked up your book, headphones and phone to hand back to you. He took a look at the title and snorted.

"What the hell kinda book is this?"

You crossed your eyebrows as you folded your arms expecting him to return your things. You stood up, but suddenly felt a little nervous at the fact that this man was a whole foot taller than you.

"It's an action book about a biker."

That wasn't a whole lie, the book involved a biker and a lot of actions. Just more of the sexual type but she wasn't going to explicitly say what the book was to a total random stranger. Especially one that looked like a handsome jerk.

"An action book?"

"Yes, why?"

He shrugged, tucking his hands into his jean pockets.

"Why are you reading it if it looks boring?"

You frown as you look at the book cover. It was far from boring. What did he even mean by that but he answered your question.

"It's just, I came in looking for some people … I noticed you looking bored while you were reading."

It took a second before you made an 'oh'. Sometimes reading smut made your face go straight, especially if it was written in a generic formula. You pursed back a smile as you put your hand out to ask for your book.

"Well, I was reading a very important scene and wanted to focus."

Sukuna didn't really believe you as he opened the book, flicking to where your bookmark was. With a quick scan of the page you were on, he noticed an interesting word which made him quirk an eyebrow at you, which made you realise that his eyebrows were pierced.

"Important scene, huh? So you don't mind if I read that?"

Your eyes widened as you lunged forward to grab your book. You don't know how much he saw but you weren't going to let him find out more. Sukuna was quicker as he swung his arm to raise the book above his head as he tutted.

"Ah, ah ah! Mind if I read, Rosy?"

"It's not your kind of book."

"Maybe it is, Rosy, what would you know?"

"You haven't even read the book from the start! You're not gonna understand a thing if you start from the middle."

"So what? I just wanna know why this is such an important scene."

You scoffed as you dropped your hands to your hips. You couldn't believe this guy. Sukuna smirked as he glanced up at the title page, you were clearly hiding something about this book.

"'Sides, why are you reading about a biker?"

"Because they're interesting."

"You ever met one, Rosy?"

"Pft … where would you find one?"

There was a smug grin on Sukuna's face as he spread his arms to gesture at himself, answering your question which made your eyes widen. The coincidence was creepy but Sukuna almost laughed at the reaction on your face.

"You're a biker?"

"Yup but that's a part time hobby. I run a security company, lending out freelance security guards to events and people."

You nod and he brings a hand out to introduce himself. Sukuna was his name, it was interesting and even Sukuna found your name nice to repeat on his tongue but he liked the nickname he gave, Rosy. He had you on the hook, all he needed to do was to line and then reel in.

"So, Rosy, did you happen to see two tall guys: one with a dark black ponytail and the other with white hair and sunglasses?"

You scratch your head as you think back, shaking your head. Sukuna looks at your book one more time before finally handing it back to you, along with your headphones and phone. He was gonna get you in his bed tonight as he exhaled.

"I see. By the way, are you doing anything tonight?"

You deadpanned at the fact that Sukuna was cocky enough to ask what you were doing. You weren't that easy although this has been a literal dream. He was probably a red flag in disguise as you amuse his ask.

"Why? You plan to ask me out on a date?"

"Well a certain someone won't let me read this important scene without reading the whole book so I want you to read the book to me. Think of it as a … what's that thing those housewives do where they read a book together?"

"A book club?"

"Yeah, Rosy, a book club. We'll have our own little book club."

Sukuna was amused as he watched you make several confused expressions, looking at him, the book cover and the pages.

"What?"

"Come on, Rosy-"

"Why are you calling me, Rosy?"

"I promise, you'll have a good night. All we'll do is read your book. What have you got to lose?"

It wasn't much and this was a good opportunity for you to get out of the house like your mother wanted. You tapped your toe, looking down before looking back up at his face. He was persistent for sure and as long as you held out your temptation to dive in, you'll have an interesting night.

"No funny business?"

Sukuna wanted to snort at the fact that that was a total lie but he straightened his posture and raised his hand to show his fingers weren't crossed.

"No funny business, Rosy. So your place or mine for our book club?"

"Yours."

This was too easy as Sukuna took your phone out of your hands, he unlocked it and typed a few things before handing it back to you. You looked as he saved his number as 'Sukuna' with a skull emoji.

"Send me a text with your address when you're ready and I'll pick you up, in the full biker fit and motorcycle. Don't forget your book."

Without letting you say another word, Sukuna walked off leaving you confused yet lowkey excited at the fact that you were probably going on a date of your fantasies. 

It took you half an hour to get home, your parents were still at work so you went up to your room to change. You were going to wear your plainest most unattractive clothes which was a white button up and a long lilac coloured skirt with a nice silver necklace and earrings.

He surely wouldn't be aroused by these clothes as you pack your bag with your book. You look at your phone, hesitating to send the text. You could just not go … he seemed like a conceited douchebag. But he promised an interesting night and heck he might end up being a highlight in your boring miserable life.

You sent the message and not long after you hear your phone ping with his response that he'll be at yours in twenty. This was plenty of time, you took this moment to ponder on your thoughts. You couldn't make your mind up as you were interrupted by intrusive thoughts begging you to sleep with him.

You didn't know much about him and he seemed like the type of guy that had one night stands. You didn't want to be a conquest. Plus you didn't know if he was good in bed. The cocky ones were usually all talk no bark. You had a sneaking suspicion that he maybe was good in bed.

A loud roar sound from outside, this made you jump as you rushed to your window to see who had a lion only for you to notice Sukuna outside your front door with his motorcycle. That was embarrassing as Sukuna caught your eye in the window and waved.

It was time to go as you took a few quick breaths, going down and sending a text to your mother before you stepped out of your front door, locking the house and walking to the tattooed biker who was leaning against the seat of his parked motorcycle. He was still in the same clothes as before and he did not shy away from looking you up and down.

"You look nice, Rosy. Didn't know you had more colours in your wardrobe."

"I see you didn't change."

"Of course not. We're doing a book club. I'll dress nice when we have our first date."

He winked at you which made you huff before he reached around the right side of the motorcycle to hand you a black coloured helmet. You turned it around your hands in surprise as he then pulled out a red helmet for himself, sitting it on his head and lifting the visor up to look at you.

"What's the matter?"

"I didn't expect you to have a helmet."

This made Sukuna laugh as his head reared back, shaking his head. You may have read too many biker stories to come up with that assumption as he took the helmet from your hands, to sit on top of your head.

"Of course I do. Don't want my book club partner to have an accident before she can read her book to me."

You roll your eyes as Sukuna sits the helmet on top of your head properly, adjusting the strap before checking if it was secure on your head, he gives a nod and goes to take his motorcycle off its stand, sitting on it and starting it up. It had a nice loud purr that almost vibrated in your chest as he cocked his head to gesture you.

You look at Sukuna and then at your clothes, realising that maybe your plan to look unsexy may have made it unsafe.

"Sukuna, how am I gonna sit on your bike?"

"You're just gonna have to hold your skirt up, Rosy."

You crouch slightly to lift the hem of your skirt up to your knees as you step up to Sukuna, holding your skirt in your left hand and using your right hand to rest on his shoulder to help you bring a leg around his bike. You're seated properly and bunch the skirt in the middle of your legs, unsure of where to put your right hand.

Sukuna can hear you think too hard as he gets your hand to hold onto his waist. He pushes your visor down as he warns.

"Hold tight, Rosy. Squeeze or scoot closer if you're scared. I don't mind."

One rev. Two revs and the motorcycle is kicked into ignition as Sukuna pushes forward slightly before beginning to drive to his place. He's smooth at driving as he effortlessly weaves in between cars, surprisingly it's not too fast or too slow and you're able to actually look around you

Motorcycle driving was a different experience as the lit lamps gave the city a lively vibe than the sleepy one you often used to see when looking through a car window. You could feel the rush of wind on your arms as you tighten your grip on Sukuna.

He was giving you a wonderful experience and it isn't long until he reaches an apartment complex, he parks his motorcycle near the kerb. He steps off first before giving you a hand so that you could lift yourself off his bike.

You had a good time, Sukuna could tell as you took off your helmet and gave him a chance to see your exhilarated facial expression. He too took off his helmet as he led you through the doors, straight to an elevator to the third floor.

His apartment is neat and tidy with an open floor living room and kitchen. The colours were dull and grey, almost like it hasn't been lived in for a while as you examine.

"It looks nice."

"Thanks. Only moved here two months ago so I didn't get a chance to redecorate."

"Ah, where were you before that?"

"Around Japan. Never settled in one place. When I set up my company, I decided to settle here. Makes it easier to list the business."

You gave a nod, looking around, there weren't many pictures. Was he alone? There were two doors in front of you, one door to your right and one to your left as Sukuna pointed at each one.

"The far left one is the bathroom, next to it is a guest room, my room and then a laundry room."

You nod, taking your shoes and socks off by the front door as you go over to his dark grey cushion sofas, setting your bag on the white coffee table. It was better if you knew more about him and surprisingly he wasn't shying away from any personal questions which made you wonder what he was intending.

"Yeah. Been on my own for a long time."

"You live alone?"

He was an interesting open book. As you get your book out, he heads to the kitchen to look in his fridge.

"Want a drink? I got water, beer or orange juice."

You crinkle your nose at the beer and juice, instead asking for water. He comes back with two bottles of water, handing one to you and taking a sip from the other one. He was definitely not what you assumed him to be.

"No beer?"

"Don't feel like it."

That was a lie as you picked your book up, flicking to get to the front page after making sure that your bookmark was in its proper place. How were you going to do this? But Sukuna answered that as he sat right next to you on the double sofa, his arm spread on the back and his legs spread wide.

"Go ahead and start, Rosy."

With no other qualms, you started to read. You had a nice soothing voice as you began the story and Sukuna was getting into the vibe. He was curious and interested as he asked you all sorts of questions about the characters, further clarifications about certain scenes and actions.

It was a nice intellectual discussion and Sukuna was for once enjoying with you. In fact he was slowly beginning to let go of his idea that you would be sleeping in his bed. He would much rather read which surprised him.

You had reached halfway and your hands started to get clammy as you were getting to the scene you were reading earlier. This was going to be embarrassing as you rolled your shoulder back, feeling a slight stiffness as you paused your reading. Looking up at him over the book, he seemed calm and interested which somehow made it harder to ask.

"What's up, Rosy? Wanna take a break?"

You were almost thankful as Sukuna glanced at his phone, noticing you had read for a good hour and a half. Yeah you needed a break.

"Let's take a break."

"Thanks, I'll just go to the bathroom and be back."

You step off the sofa and shuffle to the bathroom, rushing in and locking the door behind you. Taking deeper, harsher breaths to try and calm your beating heart. Surely Sukuna had to have some inkling that this was not an action book else why would he insist on you reading it to him.

You pee and wash your hands, freshening up and shaking away your nerves. It was just a book and fiction, you read it quite a lot, heck you can pass off your facial expressions to not be a giveaway. But Sukuna was going to know that this was a porn book and he was going to tease you endlessly.

After a few minutes, you leave the bathroom and rejoin Sukuna on the sofa, picking up the book to pick up where you left off when he plucks it out of your hands, offering.

"Why don't I read? This is a book club and we should share reading turns. Besides, I wouldn't want you to overexert your voice."

This was the worst idea Sukuna had as he began to read where you left off. All of sudden the temperature dropped, his voice dropped as he started to talk about the female lead encountering the male lead. You kept your body still as you listened to Sukuna begin to slow his pace.

Talking about the male lead getting down on his knees, kissing a trail up the female lead's legs and nuzzling his face into her panties. It felt like a whisper in your ear and for the moment you felt like you had been transported into the mayor's office and Sukuna was the one in between your legs.

His hands stroked up and down your legs whilst he sniffed at your panties, you felt yourself lull into a dizzy lusty spell as you closed your eyes to fully manifest the image in your mind. The voice stopped and you were back in reality as you opened your eyes to watch Sukuna pout.

"Is my voice so bad that you fell asleep?"

You hadn't fallen asleep as you blink your eyes, furrowing your brows at Sukuna. His lips twitched slightly and you had a feeling that he knew what this book was all along.

"No … not at all."

"We were just getting to the scene you said was important and I can see why."

You huffed, bringing your bare feet to tuck under you as you face him fully, straight posture and slightly leaning forward.

"You knew what this scene was?!"

"I caught a glimpse of the word 'suck' back in the library but snuck a better look while you were in the bathroom. It's an interesting book."

"Interesting book? It's got explicit sex scenes!"

"And? Sex is natural. There's nothing to be ashamed about. We will have an intellectual grown-up discussion about it. I'll continue."

That he did, he brought the story to life as he read about the oral scene in the mayor's office. You tried to keep a straight face but inside you felt yourself slowly burning, from shame or excitement the two were blurring.

Sukuna, too, was getting hot under his shirt, having shed his jacket now to show you his arms which were muscular and tattooed making your eyes wonder where else is tattooed. The book wasn’t what you were expecting, since it was meant to be a highly smutty pornographic book.

It was nothing, since you listened to the story. The main leads were hot and heavy in her room and the office. You had passed your bookmark and reading the climax was … underwhelming for you. Apparently the male lead was using the female lead to get revenge on her dad by screwing her in his office. She finds out, they argue and they make up. The big sex scene which your friends hyped up was unbearably tame.

Sukuna found it incredibly hot as he finished off his last sentence, closing the book and turning it over in his hands. He got a few good tips from the book which will help him as he took a moment to look at his book partner. His eyebrows crossed with confusion as he took in your disappointed disgruntled expression.

"Rosy?"

"Yeah?"

"What you think of the book?"

You look at the book cover, taking it from his hands and reading over the reviews. In all honesty, you couldn't believe how disappointing the book was despite the four/five star reviews.

"You tell me first, Sukuna."

"Well … the plot is interesting. Both the guy and the girl had interesting chemistry which made the love scenes hotter. I liked it. Especially that argument scene."

His words eventually stopped at the growing disappointed look on your face.

"So you didn't like the book?"

"It just … I have completely opposite opinions to you. The guy and girl have no chemistry. There was no captivating conflict and just the sex scenes were lackluster."

Sukuna tilted his head, you were unhappy? He wanted to grin so badly, hearing you be so disgusted by the lack of creative sex, making him wonder what you were into.

"Lackluster?"

"Yes. I've read better books than that. With better chemistry and sex."

"Really? What books are they?"

You were about to answer his question when you clamped your mouth shut. Did he truly want to know what books were better? Nah there was no way. He was just doing this to get you to have sex with him. You huff and let out a sarcastic sneer.

"Maybe when we have our next book club meeting."

"Sure, you're free tomorrow?"

"Wait … what?"

You wanted to laugh, say that he's joking and get him to give up but the serious expression on his face confirmed that he was interested. More than that, he would read more books with you.

"I'm serious. Look … I'm not gonna lie, at first I wanted to have sex."

It shouldn't surprise you. It really shouldn't. This was an expectation whenever you hung out with men who wanted a quick fuck. Basically a fuck boy but somehow you were surprised and taken aback by the fact that he outright admitted his true intentions. You wished you could be disgusted but instead you felt … vindicated.

"But when you started reading and then I took over, I enjoyed reading. I especially enjoy the conversation we're having, which surprises me as much as it might surprise you. I could be satisfied just reading a book with you, tonight."

You blinked once. Blinked twice, ruminating over his words. You least expected this outcome. Did your outfit work all too well? You look down at your clothes before looking up at Sukuna, just perplexed and befuddled. Sukuna seemed to reveal something to you which made him incredibly more attractive to you.

"You're not just saying that to guilt trip or manipulate me?"

"I might look like an asshole but … I'm not just saying that without any meaning. I'm serious."

This time he called you by your actual name, not that god awful nickname. He was serious. Dead serious. Somehow that made him more attractive. You shook your head harshly to knock that thought out of your head. You were in some kind of mood. Sukuna watched you rather nervously.

"Right. Well … I guess … thank you for being honest."

Sukuna gave a nod as he turned the book in his hands, changing the topic back.

"Well thanks for reading this book to me. I guess we agree to disagree on this book. Although I still find that argument scene hot. Especially when she grazes her teeth on his dick. Shit had my dick twitch."

At the mention of his dick, your eyes dropped down to see the imprint of it against his right thigh. What the fuck? Your eyes widen slightly, looking at his imprint. He looked like he had quite a bit of length on him.

"You liked the teeth? Isn't that like a no-no in blowjobs?"

Sukuna shrugged, looking up and answering the question.

"There is no rulebook on how to give a blowjob. You just go with the way you feel. Never really considered the thought of teeth on my dick but this book proved me wrong. Would be nice if a girl was rough with my dick."

At that moment a challenge was presented in front of your eyes. Somehow you felt the urge to be that girl. To be Sukuna's girl, even if it was just for one night and if he never called again. All your logic and reasoning went out the window and you only live once.

Sukuna watched you curiously get inside your head, wondering what you were planning. He exhaled looking down at his phone to see the time.

"Well, it's getting very late Rosy and I'm hungry. Want to order some -"

He was about to get up when you stood up and pushed him back onto his double sofa. What was going on with you as Sukuna watched you get on your knees, his eyes widened.

"Hey! What are you-"

You pressed your hand against Sukuna's mouth, your other hand drawing circles on his knee.

"For the record, this is out of my own volition. Can I …"

You trailed off, almost feeling embarrassed to say what you wanted to do to him. Your bravery was all over the place and Sukuna quirked a curious eyebrow. He couldn't believe this was happening and he didn't even initiate it. He didn't know whether to stop or carry on. Either way he felt like a dick and he was going to be an inconsiderate dick.

Sukuna gently pried your hand off his mouth, holding it and fiddling with your fingers.

"Can you what? Come on say what you were gonna say, Rosy?"

You huff through your nose and bite your lip. Now you definitely weren't going to say it as Sukuna grinned. You were the type of girl to live in fantasies so he truly didn't expect you to follow through as he brought his hand onto your shoulders.

"You know this is very cute but … I'm fine with just reading. Don't strain yourself."

You hated this placating tone, like Sukuna wouldn't believe you and let you do what you wanted and this made your nose scrunch in anger.

"Fine. Can I give you a rough blowjob or are you gonna be a difficult piece of shit?"

"Well shit, Rosy. You didn't have to be such a brat but I appreciate you asking for permission."

Sukuna watched you as he gestured for you to go ahead, his eyes trailed down from your eyes to your nose, mouth and neck. He was gonna let you have your way with him as he watched you unbutton the jeans, unzipping the fly and tugging slightly so that his jeans were off his butt.

You could see the dick more clearly as you noticed it was not only long but quite girthy. It was half erect which offended you as you brought your finger to stroke along the length. Sukuna flinched at your sudden touch, watching your finger stroke him through his boxers and making it rouse to life.

This was your first blow job. Heck, this was the first time you've ever done anything sexual except for masturbating and even that was … You've read books and watched porn. You could do this. Somehow you weren't too fussed about giving your virginity to someone special. You could do this. You didn't care about your first as long as you found someone to be a lifelong last.

Hooking your index finger into his waistband, you tugged it down, almost getting smacked in the face by the sudden growth. Even more, he was circumcised, and trimmed. Sukuna was a shower for sure, looking up at him and connecting your eyes with his.

"Are you waiting for something Rosy?"

"Nah, just wanted to see if you were watching carefully."

Sukuna huffed a laugh, leaning his head back before shuffling down slightly to get his dick to brush your lips.

"Oh, I'm intending to watch everything, Rosy, especially if you're planning to use your teeth. Lemme know if you need help."

You frowned at his words, deciding to just go for it as you leaned forward to purse your lips around his tip, you begin suckling on it, pushing your tongue down to lick up his length. Making your mouth water more so that your saliva drips down as you slowly push more of his dick into your mouth.

His hands clenched the cushions of his sofa, his nose let out short breaths as he watched you slobber over his dick like a dog on a bone. You had no experience for sure but somehow this was so much better than any blowjob he had received. Your inexperience was driving him crazy as he watched your saliva droop down.

For sure you were a messy girl as you took Sukuna's dick out of your mouth, licking up and down before spitting on it and retaking it into your mouth. You bring your teeth down and gently graze against his frenulum which made him yelp. An interesting sound as you repeated your action.

This was way better and somehow his heart pumped faster every time your teeth pinch the length. You could bite down and somehow the potential pain of that made him grow so hard, and before he knew it, he was whining. He's never whined or whimpered. Your teeth teased at his girth, threatening to bite down which almost had him arch his back.

Watching Sukuna react like that made you push harder, licking down to where his balls were. You kissed them before gulping them into your mouth and sucking at them like they were a melon ball. Precum was starting to pool at the slit of his penis which surprised him because it took Sukuna longer to get to an orgasm stage.

There was something different about you as you noticed the white viscose cum on his tip. You licked at it, finally tasting what you've only read about. It wasn't great and it wasn't awful. It was salty and you began to suck his tip again in the hopes to get him to produce more.

"Shit, Rosy. Stop teasing."

Sukuna was at his whims end as he watched you guzzle his dick like it was ice cream. You weren't teasing at all in fact you wanted to try to fit him into your mouth as you sat up straighter and brought your head down. Slowly swallowing his cock to try to deep throat him.

Unfortunately you had a terrible gag reflex that made you pull up immediately, Sukuna jerked in surprise as he watched you pull away, gagging. You were an overachiever which made him grin with glee at your grumpy pout. He patted your cheek to reassure you.

"Hey Rosy, don't be so grumpy. You're doing well."

You mimicked his words and tried again but failed once again as your gag reflex made you pull up. Sukuna exhaled exasperatedly, grabbing both your cheeks to make your attention face him.

"Why are you being a brat? You clearly cannot deepthroat me so don't do that again."

"Or what?"

You were in that kind of mood as Sukuna almost guffawed in laughter. One of his hands slid down to press just below your jawline. A shiver ran down your body as Sukuna leaned in, quoting from the book.

"Or I'll fuck that throat so hard that you lose your voice."

You bit back a smile, the logic of that made no sense and you just found it funny which made Sukuna curiously tilt his head and tighten his grip on your neck.

"That funny?"

"I mean … that is so not possible."

Sukuna pursed back a smile, bowing his head slightly so he could not laugh at your words. You were by far the funniest most interesting lay, he was for sure never going to make this a one time thing as he looked up and into your eyes, trying to maintain that serious tone.

"Oh yeah, wanna bet?"

"Totally."

Sukuna shaked his head and huffed out a laugh, leaning his head back and palming his face. You and your terrible sense of humour got to him.

"Goddamn it Rosy, I'm tryna set a mood here."

You shrugged and were about to return to sucking Sukuna's dick when he shook his head and pulled you up by your shoulders. Standing up and lifting you in his strong arms, pressing his lips onto yours. His tongue licked around your mouth, taking in his own taste.

He blindly guided you to his own room, stepping on top of his own bed to lay you down. There was no more patience in Sukuna as he let go of your lips to fully undress and show his full nude body. This time you noticed that he was covered in tattoos, all over his chest and arms and legs. You were surprised there weren't any on his dick.

"I see you admiring me Rosy."

"Nah, just wondering why your dick ain't tattooed?"

"Just cause I didn't. Now I'mma ask this once: can I be your first?"

You blinked in surprise, how'd he know you were a virgin. There was no way he should have been able to tell that. You clear your throat and unbutton your shirt.

"What kinda question is that? You're not my first."

This was funny to Sukuna as he broke out into a full blown laughter. It took a few minutes for him to settle before he loomed over you making your thighs rest on his hips as his nose brushed against yours.

"Don't try to be funny. It's actually cute that you're a virgin. Don't worry, I'll take care of you."

Sukuna pulls off your shirt and skirt, raising an eyebrow at your fox print bra and underwear. At least you were wearing matching underwear as Sukuna snapped the band of your panties against your waist.

"So this is the new kind of lingerie nowadays. You're just getting cuter by the minute."

You frowned, you weren't cute, you were sexy and you had enough of Sukuna's cockiness as you brought your hands to his shoulders, shoving him to roll onto his back. Bringing your whole body to straddle him and have your pussy press against his cock which made the both of you shiver.

"Think I'm cute now?"

By instinct, your hips began to slowly roll on his cock gradually increasing in speed which made Sukuna huff and whimper, the only thing he could hold onto was your hips. You had your hands on his chest to steady yourself. This was way better than anything you imagined as your head lolled back in pleasure.

Sukuna too was enthralled in the act, there was something about you that was making his cool dominant demeanour just fade away as you began to hump him faster. He brought a thumb down to rub rapid circles on your clit which had you convulse and beg.

"Sukuna! Fuck!"

"Shit!"

You were being brought closer to the edge by Sukuna's thumb as you gyrated your hips faster until you shuddered with pleasure. Finally reaching your high, followed by Sukuna who's cum spread: a little bit on your underwear, his stomach, his chest and his lower jaw.

You were lost in pleasure as your head rolled back and forth, Sukuna was also feeling a little out of breath but he had enough energy for one more round, this time he was going inside. He blindly reached into his bedside drawer to pull out a red bottle of lube. He squirted some onto his hand and fingers, spreading a little more onto his penis.

Sliding your underwear to a side, you let out a broken gasp at the intrusion of Sukuna's lubed fingers inside your vagina. Thrusting them a few times to get you used to the feel before sliding them out and grabbing the base of his penis. In your orgasmic daze you noticed his hand on his penis.

To help him, you shift forward slightly and guide the penis inside you. Full on moaning uncontrollably whilst one of your hands dug and yanked Sukuna's hair.

"Fuck Rosy, gonna be the death of me."

You smiled and gave a nod, finally sitting down onto his dick. He fit snugly inside thanks to the lube as your gushy walls clenched at the feel of his dick inside you. This was way better than any book you've ever read. You were way better than any woman Sukuna fucked.

It felt incredible and warm being inside you, Sukuna was never going to let you go. However something seemed to snap in your head as you squealed and pulled yourself out, hopping off the bed and going through the drawers before tossing a foil packet on Sukuna's chest.

"Fuck, you forgot protection."

Sukuna huffed with a smirk, ripping open the foil and rolling the condom on himself.

"Shut up!"

"Virgin. Totally called it."

You got back on the bed, this time sliding onto Sukuna's dick again, your insides clenched and relaxed at the feel of him inside you. A hiss left his lips, planting his feet on the bed and making you bounce up and down as if you were on those bouncy balls.

Your nails dug into Sukuna's shoulders as you couldn't control your movements, feeling like a toy. No wonder the female protagonists in the books you read were pushed to their limits in sex because sex itself was tiring. Sukuna had his eyes closed and teeth gritted whilst sweat was sticking like water droplets on his skin.

Once again feeling a little offended, you brought your right hand onto his neck, squeezing as hard as you could to get his attention.

"Hey! Sukuna! Keep your eyes open! Thought you were gonna watch everything."

He opened his eyes which made you notice that he had dark brown eyes like the bark of trees in a forest. It was the warmest kindest thing you saw from him as you watched Sukuna take your fingers to scoop some of the cum that was about to dry on his skin, moving your fingers into his mouth and sucking off his own taste.

"Don't worry, I'm not missing anything."

A few more thrusts and you were close to cumming which disappointed you. For some unknown deep embedded reason, you wanted Sukuna to cum first, to tire out first. Just anything to get rid of that placating confidence. You needed to delay your orgasm and the best way to do that was to completely move away.

Immediately you got off Sukuna, huffing and puffing rather tiredly which made Sukuna groan in disappointment. He couldn't believe that you pulled yourself off again, as he turned his face to watch you only, for you to climb back on him, slide him in and go again.

Sukuna tilted his head in confusion, unsure of what you're playing at. Although he could feel himself getting close to the edge, he was about to move his hand down to squeeze at the base of his penis to delay his orgasm but you grabbed his wrist and pressed it down beside his head. You did the same to his other hand. 

Thrusting harder and uncontrollably, Sukuna was getting very close to spilling as he hissed through his teeth.

"Fuck Rosy! Stop! I'm gonna-"

"Go 'head. I want ya to."

This was what you were playing at as Sukuna knowingly grinned. Instead he dug deep into himself to mentally block himself from coming but the sound of your words snapped him out.

"Oh Sukuna! Fuck! You feel so good!"

You were playing dirty. Talking loudly, holding his hands down and bouncing on him. Truthfully, he could overpower you, and really fuck you hard. However you were the one who initiated the sex, so you were the one in control. Sukuna was fine with that and next time he could get the upper hand and really mess you up. 

You could have this one as Sukuna exhaled deeply, ejaculating into the condom. He came harder than before and somehow he felt a little more exhausted. He looked down to where you were joined, watching his penis disappear into you and it wasn't long until you reached your high. Your vagina got wetter and started dripping down his condom.

Your arms and legs started to burn slightly as you dropped yourself onto Sukuna's chest making him huff in pain at your sudden drop. His eyes furrowed in confusion, tapping your shoulder and calling your name to see if you were still awake. You hummed slightly which made Sukuna exhale in relief.

"Hey, wake up. Gotta dispose the condom."

You frowned rather tiredly but rolled yourself off him and beside him. Taking deep breaths to cool down your skin, looking to your left to see Sukuna take off the condom and tie the end with a knot. His legs felt like they were glued to his sheets, he broke out in a smile and wiped his forehead. There was a small bucket which he used as a bin, he tossed the condom as it landed inside.

Sukuna glanced back at you, seeing you take deep heavy breaths. You were tired out like him.

"How was that for your first night?"

"That wasn't my-" You cut off at the look on Sukuna's face. There was no point lying. "It was … good. You?"

Sukuna laughed heartily, heart warm from you asking him how it was.

"I mean, I cannot feel my legs so … it was really really good, Rosy."

Your heart swelled from the praise as you bit your bottom lip and looked away which made Sukuna grin because you were shying away again. He brought his hands onto your waist to make you lie on top of him, stretching his hand out to pull the sheet over both of your waists.

"Why'd you call me Rosy?"

"Aw don't look away Rosy."

Sukuna shrugged, his fingers coming up to stroke at your cheeks.

"Cause I like how flustered you were when I called for your attention for the first time."

That was clever of him and flattering as you gave a nod. Sukuna grinned, bringing your chin up to give you a peck on the lips.

"So same thing for tomorrow's book club?"

You raised an eyebrow, bringing your finger to trace at Sukuna's lips.

"I never agreed."

"Come on Rosy. We need to read a book that's not so … lackluster as you so put it."

There was something about Sukuna that just made you roll your eyes but agree as you give a short nod.

"Okay fine. But we are strictly reading."

"Says the one who initiated this."

"I did not-"

"Really? I told you I was just fine reading but you said it yourself: 'I'm doing this out of my own volition.'"

You laugh breathlessly, agreeing and not contesting his words.

"Okay fine. But we are not recreating book scenes if we do end up having sex."

"Ugh, stop acting like a virgin now."

You smack Sukuna on his shoulder which makes him squeeze your thighs, staring down into your eyes whilst raising his eyebrows. You technically hadn't recreated a sex scene as Sukuna informs you.

"Well if you wanna get technical: we only recreated an oral technique. We've still yet to recreate a sex scene. Did I tell you that I have an office for my company? We can do the office scene there."

"We're gonna have sex, again?"

"I mean …it's only a suggestion."

It sounded like a challenge again as you pierce your eyes together. Somehow you manage to gain some strength in your body as you push yourself to sit up on his thighs.

"Why wait for your office when we can just go ahead and recreate the bedroom scene? This time following - it - exactly."

He liked where you were going with this as he nudged your body to shuffle forward slightly.

"Sure, why not? But you're gonna have to scoot up and take a seat on my face because I still can't feel my legs."

[mariacallous]

I don’t know what you actually do for a living, but one thing I secretly think about you is that you are waaaay too smart for it.

My business title is "analyst" and I work for city government, but I do a bit of everything - I do some data analysis, but I also do a lot of exec/admin assistant stuff, I touch on procurement and fiscal/budget matters, I do training facilitation.

I don't know if I'm too smart for it (my supervisor has said more than once how "awesome" and "exciting" it is that this job allows me opportunities to be doing the kind of work that usually involves master's degrees when I only have my bachelor's) but I know that I'm fucking over it.

[heliopauseentertainments]

Pairing and 2 AUs: Jazz/Megatron (because I am predictable) or Megatron/Nickel (because it would be fun) - you choose.

Either way for AUs:

(a) fae, or

(b) academia (not a college AU, but the sort of thing where all the focus is on the professorial types - Oxbridge SCR/David Lodge style New Uni struggles/whatever)

I have basically zero knowledge of anything fae-related (it's not a cultural feature here), so by default I have to pick option B, but with the disclaimer that I don't recognize any of the the names you mentioned (beyond that Oxbridge is a portmanteau of Oxford and Cambridge).

Also, further disclaimer, as uni admin staff, my feelings towards faculty are... complicated at best.

This one is difficult to assemble.

The trick is finding departments where any of them would come into contact with each other.

I will make the following assumptions:

They are still robots in a Cybertronian cultural context.

We're using a loosely IDW1 continuity.

Academia on Cybertron functions at least somewhat similarly to real-world. I am using the US context because that's what I know, but I realize this is not universal. I.E. I'm using similar positions, academic divisions, fields of study, and issues.

The best I'm coming up with is if Nickel works with some department of Population Health (to keep in line with her medical background) and if Megatron were brought it in from a more statistics-based humanities (what would a Cybertronian equivalent be?) department (demography, social statistics, labor studies, etc.) for a data consult.

Jazz would almost certainly be working with a music and/or dance department. He probably even has a dual appointment.

Finding a department fit for Megatron is very difficult.

The bigger struggle is "who let Megatron into a university? who let him graduate and get a job?" because he would butt right up against the systemic discrimination against working class grad students and likely be forced out via dubiously legal black-balling from faculty not approving projects and/or requiring him to pay for mandatory activities and conferences out of pocket.

In a Cybertronian context, the biases against manual class mechs, even post-Zeta lifting fanatical functionism, would function similarly to the real-world working class bias, along with the black-balling probably actually being more overtly allowed.

I'm also struggling to see him actively choosing to work in academic environments, but the spite of "I am going to go be an asshole and do it anyway" is a good motive for him.

Alright, I've got two options:

Jazz/Megatron - Jazz with his dual appointment and Megatron having a tentative appointment in labor studies doing cross-disciplinary research on music's (and dance's) role in labor movements. This would also allow them to both draw on their strengths and experiences to reach a common ground.

Nickel/Megatron - Nickel requiring outside assistance to set up and account for certain social variables for a new project that is part of a government research grant and the only one available from the appropriate statistical or demographic department is Megatron. The focus would be their struggle to mesh their terse and obstinate personalities to actually work together and complete the project and keep that sweet, sweet grant funding.

Both actually have a lot more potential than I would have thought before noodling it through. It's hard to pick, but I think I'm actually going to choose option 1: Jazz/Megatron.

I think it could be a solid 10k or under one-shot. However, I wouldn't want to actually parallel too many real-world issues, so this is something I wouldn't ever actually write.

Title: Building Bridges

The description is already a good loose summary.

[chrissieshauntedbones]

This is not the slightest bit true.

Maybe for some corporate offices / corporate based retail chains & the like where you are just a number, then MAYBE this could be true... but in today's world, this doesn't seem to hold up, or, it at least hasn't been my experience.

I have worked in some form of management role between three different jobs over the course of 7 years prior to the car crash I had been in, back in 2023. When I had interviewed for each position prior to getting them, I had been my genuine and authentic self.

For context, I was an assistant manager, then was promoted to a store manager, and managed two different store locations for a retail CORPORATE store. I was, however, being underpaid, so I had requested a review and raise, and though my review went spectacularly, they could not offer me the pay I wanted, and I left to work in a Doctor's office. I got weekends off and had great health insurance, and the latest I would be home would be 7pm most nights vs 9pm, so it was a no brainer to leave.

When I worked in the Doctors office, I climbed the chain fast, and went from a front desk worker, to a site supervisor, before being promoted to the front desk manager for all SIX locations. A few months later COVID hit, and I lost a lot of my staff. I HAD to work, I couldn't afford to stay home... So, I got worn down real fast, and wound up butting heads with the practice admin. She was honestly awful. There was no way I could come to any sort of compromise with this woman, so, when I received a job offer from a friend, I left to work in a construction based field doing office work...

After 5 months in my most recent job i had been promoted to the office manager/service manager, then was relieved of the service manager position, but was given the sales manager title that way my skills could be better utilized.

In every role I applied for, I had been honest, polite, attentive, and I asked questions. I didn't try to pretend to be anything I wasnt, and wound up getting the jobs.

In these management positions, I was responsible for interviewing, hiring, and training new staff members, as well as doing my own job duties, which usually went hand in hand with whatever my team was responsible for.

In every field I had been working in, when I went to interview someone, depending on the role I was hiring for (receptionist, cashier, scheduler, customer service rep, etc) the criteria obviously changed slightly to fit the role, but overall, I looked for people who had experience with the position I was looking to fill, and I looked for people who could show an overall level of basic competency.

I also always looked for:

Empathy

Compassion

Kindness

Responsibility

A sense of humor!!!

The ability to work under pressure

The ability to work as a group or on their own

The ability to ask questions (you would not believe how often people are afraid to ask questions about all sorts of things in fear of being judged)

The ability to take constructive criticism as well as give constructive criticism

I actually called prior employers to confirm employment dates, and would just ask how they were overall. I never asked for specifics. Just how they were seen in their role, and if they had any issues that needed coaching, or caused write ups (it would not be held against the applicant, just so that way I could understand a separation from the previous job better).

I almost always hired people based off of their personalities, and their eagerness & willingness to work (as long as the experience was there).

I worked with my employees, and constantly trained, offered help and support, and did what I could for them.

I would always want someone to be honest with me at an interview, because spewing information at me isn't going to prove your ability to do a job or work with a team... It's just going to prove that you can read, which I suppose is important, but there are far more important qualities people have which make them valuable employees.

remember that interviews are not about giving a good and honest first impression that they'll carefully consider. interviews are about saying the special words and phrases they're looking for that give you points and when they tally those up whoever earned the most job points wins

[sociallygraceful-blog]

What I’ve Learned from Being Easily Discouraged

I know, the title sounds a bit negative. But hear me out.

I’ve accumulated a total of five years of work experience, which, when I stop to think about it, is actually pretty impressive. Out of those five years, three were spent working with established companies—by "established," I mean traditional, in-person jobs where I had to go through all the necessary processes to land each position.

Over the past five years, I’ve gained diverse experience working as an English tutor for Acadsoc and Rarejob, an insurance agent, an admin support specialist, an event hostess, a BPO employee for Alorica and Eperformax, and a virtual assistant. There was one common denominator in each of those companies—and that was me.

Now, here’s the thing that not many people know about me until they spend some time with me: I rarely finish tasks. There are reasons behind this, but honestly, I’m not going to bore you with all the details. Plus, this is going on my blog, and who knows who might read it? (My boss could be one of them!)

So, what did I learn?

I’ve grown tired of my own habits, especially after one of the companies I interviewed for pointed them out. It was honestly pretty embarrassing, but it was also a wake-up call. I realized I’ve been letting distractions and self-doubt control me, and it was preventing me from being the best version of myself at work.

Right now, I’m in a great company, undergoing training to become a better employee. I’ve come to realize just how disorganized I am and how easily I get distracted and discouraged. It’s not a trait I’m proud of, but I’m thankful for the opportunity to change.

I’ve learned to endure and push through. I’ve learned to stay because now I have stronger reasons to. My prayers are being answered, and I’m starting to build a future I never thought I’d even come close to. A lot of this is thanks to the love of my life. His patience is beyond anything I can truly grasp. He has taught me that I’m capable of more than I thought.

I’m so grateful that the Lord has placed the right people in my life, and that I’m learning the right lessons at the right time. The people you surround yourself with really are the biggest influences on your thoughts and actions. My boyfriend has been a key part of this growth. He’s taught me not to focus too much on the small stuff and to prioritize what’s truly important. Through his support, I’ve learned that I am worth it, and that I can do things not because they’re easy, but because I am able.

I’m far from perfect, and so is my boyfriend. But learning and growing together in this thing we call life is such an exciting experience. I’m starting to realize that what we’ve built together isn’t just about the good times, but about how we support each other through challenges, pushing each other to be better. This journey with him has truly been one of the most transformative experiences of my life. My goal is to become the ideal employee, someone I can feel proud of at the end of the day. I want to reduce my insecurities and excel in my role.

[danniswrites]

A Frustrated Secretary

When I worked in Georgia State University Library in 1994, one of my duties as a Library Assistant II was to buy supplies for the Reference Department. Librarians would tell me weekly what supplies they needed. I'd call in the order to Admin and get it approved. Then, I would go to the 4th floor to Admin and get the library's card to charge for the supplies in the department that actually filled the order and carry them back to Admin, return the card, then carry the box down to my desk and distribute the items.

On one of these trips, I had to wait for the secretary, who was on the phone at a desk with her computer's CPU on it, open. I cringed, because lay people don't know to be careful about static electricity, and she was wearing a blousey shirt. So, I went over there and listened. Since it was quiet, I could hear parts of the other end of the conversation. The library apparently had a contract with Dell for tech support. This poor secretary was very upset and pale. The conversation didn't go on long. She was holding a computer card with chips on it that I recognized as computer memory, that is used to expand the RAM. When she hung up, I asked her what was wrong.

"This computer has to be shipped to Dell! I need to get a travel report out by the end of today because the Library Director's going to a convention!"

Ok. I touched a pair of scissors and got ready not to move a foot on the static-y carpet and took the strip of green plastic that held the chips. I tried to plug it in. Immediately, I saw the problem. The plastic was about 1/4" too long. No wonder she couldn't plug it in! Manufacturing defect. Something that fella on the phone couldn't know about without seeing it.

There wasn't any solder on that end. Nothing to get damaged if I could somehow shorten it. The wheels were turning. I explained what I used to do at Georgia Tech. By this time, her boss and several other folks gathered around. "Have you got any tools? A file, so I can take some of this plastic off?"

"I don't know. Let's take a look!" They had a bottom file cabinet drawer with a very few tools. One was an iron file about a foot long. Perfect!

Needless to say, I explained to our library director that this operation would void the warranty on their brand-new memory. I'd never tried to alter a computer card in all the unusual problems a computer tech comes across, in a job where I was actually supposed to do this kind of thing! But, I gave her my opinion that if I could whittle the plastic part of the card down enough, I could plug the memory in. She approved it.

For the next 45 minutes, I filed. And filed. Blew it off and wiped it carefully off and tried to plug it in. Then I filed some more.

Finally, with many anxious looks from people as they worked, I finally sawed enough off that it fit and made contact! Memory cards in those days had a little lever that had to click in to make the contact. I got the click! I brought up the machine. Success! It came up normally. Apparently it had a bad chip and this was the replacement RAM, not an upgrade. In those days, on a Pentium x386 Windows PC, all the chips had to work or the machine wouldn't boot. There were 4 chips on the card. With glee, I brought it down, put the case together and hefted the thing back under the desk. She had just enough time to get that report out. I knew because I had to come back, supplies in a box under my arm, to return that library charge card. Everyone was grateful and the library director left for the airport. This was a Friday and the staff of Administration got off at 5 pm.

Yes, I was very late getting back to Reference with the supplies, but my boss was happy I was able to help with that. I didn't get in trouble. And, I was also able to leave work on time to get to the daycare.

Later, when the Computer Support Librarian [I think that's the title] left, there was no one to update the CD-ROMs for the library databases. So I volunteered to do this in a secured room every week. I also did a good bit of troubleshooting, from using F-Prot to clean viruses off PCs to trying to bring up the dumb terminals in the clusters of library catalog terminals. They probably missed me a lot when I moved to Tennessee.

Graphic created with GIMP by Dannis Cole from photos on pexels.com by CottonBro and Felicity Tai listed below. https://www.pexels.com/photo/boy-in-green-long-sleeve-shirt-writing-on-white-paper-4708866/ https://www.pexels.com/photo/woman-in-long-sleeves-talking-on-the-phone-7964504/

[illegiblescript]

I made this blog for talking when I feel like I have no one to talk to. I've been using it to let out a lot of negative feelings, but sometimes I feel like I don't have anyone to talk to about the good stuff either.

I mean, I haven't used this blog in a while, so I've actually had people who talked to me and listened to me and hung out with me and made me feel included for a bit! I went to job corps as an office admin trainee. I finished in less than 5 months and now I have an awesome job as a title clerk/administrative assistant.

at job corps, I had a large group of decent friends and a smaller (but still pretty big) group of close friends and found myself hanging between friend groups very often. I miss them every single day. my instructor was amazing and really, because of her truly believing in me so much that I had no choice but to believe in myself, I was able to say for the first time in my life that I was proud of myself. I've been proud of things I've done, but never of myself. for a large majority of my time, my dorm was a family to me. we all lifted each other up and, even though things were going smooth because of my distance from home, I knew that if I needed someone to talk to, I could knock on any door and someone would listen. it's been difficult not having that anymore.

but after job corps, I started this sweet job! it pays well, I'm getting experience for the position I want to retire in, I enjoy what I do, and it's just me and my boss and my boss is so cool. I cannot express how much she has made this enjoyable. not only is she just an all around enjoyable person to be around, she and I both have adhd, so the way she teaches Perfectly matches the way I learn. it's unreal. I haven't even been there a full month yet (very close) and when I did orientation, I told her I had planned a trip and wanted to know if it would work for me to go on it and she was totally okay with it and keeps bringing it up, asking for pictures. ah! it's awesome!

I mean, there are not so awesome things too, but even though they really upset me for a brief moment, I've learned to handle it. before job corps, I wouldn't have reached out to a friend to talk about it, but I did and the response was what it should be when you have a friend in need and enough space to listen. long story short, I've been feeling really lonely. people like me, but not enough to make the sacrifices I've been making and that friendships require. I recently had a friend completely stop talking to me after I asked for better communication. I hurt him on accident, he hurt me on purpose in response, and although I apologized (he hasnt responded) and I'm worried about him, I don't think I want be friends with him anymore. on top of that, I've kinda noticed that no one really talks to me. if I don't start any conversations, I will not have any conversations. there are certain friends I don't expect that from, but when I can go nearly any length of time without anyone trying to start a conversation with me, it gets disheartening. I've tried not to let it bother me and I've decided to start playing viola more. I'm more excited to play viola more than I am upset about being lonely. things are alright B)

[vanitysunday]

Finally feeling basically 100%. It really took almost two weeks. My period started two days ago so it has just felt like I've gotten my ass kicked back to back. I had a gynecologist appointment last week for a Pap smear and HPV test and the results came back clear. Happy I got that out of the way.

I scheduled an audit for March 1st and the bookkeeper left me a message at the beginning of the month confirming the date. While I had covid I spent a lot of time worrying about it because I really don't want to do an audit at an employer's location just yet. I want to get comfortable with the audit process first before doing one from start to finish at an employer's location. I tried to call her last week to have her send me their records by email but I couldn't reach her. Thankfully today I got a hold of her and she'll send me the records Monday or Tuesday so that I can do the audit from my office 😌.

As of the 25th I'm officially a Revenue Examiner 1. Nothing changes except my pay and title. I'll continue to do the work I was doing as a trainee the last two years. Now that I've experienced a lot of different situations and did hours of research to back up my decisions, I feel a lot less anxious about my job. There are still some situations I will experience for the first time but I'm at least confident in my ability to document and back up my decisions. I actually kind of enjoy my work. I like the freedom for sure. I speak to my boss between 0-5 times a month. I see my boss between 0-2 times a year 😂.

One of the things that gave me the most anxiety when I was an accounting clerk/admin assistant was dealing with the general manager. Mostly because he operated at an energy level that was overwhelming. He would ask for things and give me deadlines as if I wasn't performing two roles at once. If there is one thing I will never do again, it's taking a job that is two positions in one and having to answer to two separate bosses. Admin work isn't for the weak. I am weak.

Anyway, I'm hoping to get back to working out soon. My cramps are debilitating and I know they shouldn't be but my period is only 4 days long so it's no big deal.

[triflesandparsnips]

Unfortunate Theories (NOW EDITED TO REMOVE NONSENSE AND TO BETTER PROMOTE NEW FAV IBRAHIM THE QUARTERMASTER):

Izzy Hands was not, in fact, Blackbeard's First Mate. Not on Blackbeard's ship, anyway. There's another guy over there, a Quartermaster, let's call him Ibrahim. Ibrahim is watching all these shenanigans from a good distance away, drinking endless cups of coffee and making a note in the log every time a new crazy flag goes up or down the Revenge's main mast.

So who was Izzy?

We know that, canonically, Ed's actual direct requests of Izzy seem to be comprised of:

Collect gossip for Ed

Do small tasks that could otherwise be given to others for Ed

Make Ed tea

Fetch people who Ed would rather talk to

Listen to Ed as he describes clouds

Help Ed down from his high-wire act

These... are not matters for the second-most important person on the crew.

So my questionable theory? It's Ibrahim the quartermaster who does a bang-up job of actually running the dang ship for Ed. But Izzy... is basically Ed's assistant.

(...maybe rising to the level of Toxic Personal Assistant. But even that is giving him a level of management over Ed's actual day-to-day life that just isn't present in the canon. He doesn't even own a Blackberry.)

So Izzy's whole Thing about getting to have power of his own really starts with him coming over to the Revenge and no longer just being responsible, primarily, for random gofering. But hey, we believe in upward mobility! Shadowing opportunities! Gaining important industry experience in a competitive field! Izzy's been in the same position for a while and hasn't really developed the additional skillsets it takes to earn a promotion, so Ed thinks this is a nice chance for Izzy to maybe try taking on more responsibility in a low-impact environment, giving him a title he absolutely doesn't have the experience for but doesn't particularly need to be great at anyway while he gets some key on-the-job training with his fellow staffing professionals.

Meanwhile, Ed is on this rather nice office retreat with his new friend Stede.

(Ibrahim is, in fact, also having a nice time back on the Queen Anne, having the crew tidy up the decorations from the most recent fuckery, meditatively making himself endless pots of coffee, and drawing up new pages in the inventory so everything is set for the new fiscal year. It's great.)

But anyway. Izzy, unlike everyone else, is not have a good time. He's fairly sure he's acing this First Mate thing, but Ed doesn't seem to be giving him the, ahem, Respect he deserves now that he's no longer a lowly assistant. (Izzy is still very much an assistant.) Izzy still somehow has admin-things he has to do (help Ed down from the fuckery! also probably do the laundry!), but no real First Mate duties, and even his previous daily tasks seem to have taken a cut (he didn't make the best cup of tea or whatever, and it was certainly no task for a Very Important First Mate, but... now Stede was making it? What the fuck?)

So Izzy, rather than seeing all this for the relaxing vacation and/or training module it could be -- as, in fact, everybody else on the ship has decided it is -- takes all this as some kind of, well, demotion. And, from there, decides to become what even the kindest HR rep would term "a goddamn nightmare."

So we end season 1 in a significantly worse state than we started: Ed, saddled with an admin who could at any moment poison his tea and yet still thinks he should have access to Ed's calendar; Izzy, attempting to both recreate his previous job and engage in a low-level administrative coup that wreaks havoc with everyone's work-life balance in the process; and Stede, who's fucked off to a conference without telling his team or remembering to charge his phone, thereby putting the whole retreat off schedule.

Suppliers are raising prices, stocks are going down, and the company newsletter is three days late. Disaster.

(But, completely uninvolved in this extended office drama, there's Ibrahim. He finally has a chance to shift everything in the hold for the first time since November, really get the crew in there to scrub the corners, do the regular repair work, it's great. He wonders if this is that "vacation" thing he's heard so much about. He loves being able to really catch up on all these backburner projects.)

(...This is his coffee pot.)

(...and okay, I have spent too long as an admin. Write me fic about Ibrahim the quartermaster instead, I want him drinking coffee and being competent, I beg of you.)

[pumpumdemsugah]

What is your job title? I’m really interested in your shift into tech✨🤧

I don't really consider it tech but I am around alot of numbers, data and coding so I guess lol. It's more a data role than anything with finance and coding. Idk about saying my job title ( it's a pretty broad term and I might change my mind in the future) but I'm more than happy to tell you if you directly message me and answer any questions. I'm happy if any of my advice can help other women skip some of the nonsense I went through

I wanted to become a data scientist or UX designer but my brain was not having it lol and I just didn't have the skillset years ago to make the jump in a year so I had to figure out what my bridge job to that path would be. My previous job put me on a course for data science. I completed the dell data science associate and analytics, which helped and the benefit of doing courses is it will expose you to even more jobs involved in that sector. When I applied for my previous job, the job title was, data administrator but the title changed.

It got long sorry lol

When I was trying to go from customer service roles to office roles years ago, I looked up assistant positions for jobs I wanted and wrote out a list of the software, skills, achievement and main duties from the job specifications I kept seeing. This gave me a rough idea for a time line for how it will take to gain certain skills and what I'd be willing to do ( willingness is key )

Then I tried to figure out how to force my customer service job to give me opportunities to do lesser versions of these tasks, which was easy because I'm assertive and I'd just flat out ask lol. All customer service jobs usually involve admin tasks the key is figuring out what data or tech skill is similar enough that you can call those admin tasks " database maintenance"

YOUTUBE is actually really helpful for understanding what a specific skill looks like in action. It's one thing to read a duty for a job being, creating a database but you might not realise a spreadsheet is a database and that's how lots of people end up under-selling themselves. That way you can describe your skillset in a more accurate and flattering way

Going on indeed and searching for assistant versions of certain jobs and going on sites like https://www.prospects.ac.uk/ and looking up related jobs or career progression for roles can help you better apply for or find role titles, related to what you're trying to do because you might have enough skills to get entry level roles in close proximity to more data and tech jobs

Tbh data is much easier to get into but I'm in a data role so I'm biased lol

I've also tagged this and some of my other posts about this and jobs as "job blah". Hopefully something is useful and I really don't mind answering any direct messages. My job doesn't ramp up for a few weeks so I'm bored lol

However easy these YouTube videos make it sound that you can become a data analysis in a few months, ( it is possible with a good plan and Adderall) it's normal that it takes longer lol. My ADHD means everything I do takes longer.

Also I forgot about looking into credible certificates or professional certification you can pay for ( ranging anywhere from £300 to £2000 ) that you might need for certain jobs. Just make sure it's a credible provider ( LinkedIn certificates, udemy and most things on coursea don't count though it can help you learn more but jobs don't care about LinkedIn certificates)

[madtomedgar]

There is just something so. Belittling. About being Carefully Questioned about whether or not, as someone whose last job had director in the title, I am actually Qualified for a job as an admin assistant.

There is also something so belittling about the fact that the answer to "can you perform high quality data entry and calendar management with a side of spreadsheet analytics" is "probably not because my disabilities directly intersect with all parts of those tasks."

[commandershepardvasfuckit]

So for the last year I’ve worked at the school district. I was hired as “office support 1” which just means secretary.

Now it’s only me and the program planner in my office, which is bad.

We’re in charge of all home education students in one of the largest districts in the US

Just the two of us

There was always 4 people before

One retired so they hired me, then two others left and they decided that hiring a secretary was enough and they didn’t have to replace the two admin assistants who left

So my job title and pay is “office support 1” but my actual job is administrative assistant

I confronted the higherups about that and got almost word for word a “we know you should be given the title and pay of an admin assistant, but we’re not interested in spending more money on your department”

So while I was already looking for a new position now I’m looking for it quickly and without remorse

Now the program planner, my only coworker and my direct supervisor, is a sweetheart. She has no say or part in my position or pay and has gone to bat several times to get me up to admin

But they shoo her off too

Well the department we share an office suite with wants me as an analyst in a position that pays a minimum of 10k more a year than I’m making now and that’s before the union pay raises go in affect in a few months, so it’ll go up too.

Literally the manager cornered me in the hall and goes “you know we have an analyst position open and we all like you and know you work hard and want you here in our department”

So I applied and messaged the manager who is also the person who gets the final say in who they hire

So fuck you to my department (except Cheryl) good luck getting someone else to stay in my old position!