#badly I’ve not really eating anything most days it coffee and soda so I can take my meds

[ghostdata]

lost nine pounds in nine days but not by choice

[danganronpa-21]

Naegiri Week Day 1 - Sweet

Happy first day of Naegiri Week! Today I bring you the most tooth-rotting fluff I have ever written. Like it is excessively sweet. Still, I even managed to make myself get all giggly and excitable during the editing phase, so I really hope you like it. I have no content warnings to issue this time around. Just pure, sweet Naegiri. I hope you enjoy it!

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“No way.”

Kyoko’s lips curled into a smile as she stared at her wide-eyed fiancé, a curt nod punctuating the statement that had caused him the utmost disbelief. Though there were plenty of things that might shock him about her, she never expected for this to be one of them.

 “Yes way.”

 “No way!” Within a matter of seconds, he’d taken hold of her wrists, shaking them with all of the enthusiasm of a small child. There was a frantic look in his eye as he shook her, clearly too absorbed in his shock to even think about how funny this would look from her end of things. God, her Makoto was a special one. Not that was a bad thing, of course. His little eccentricities were part of the reason why she liked him so much. “No way, no way!”

 It was hard to fight off a laugh as she watched his expression; he looked all too serious for the topic of conversation. He always had been a man of rather interesting passions. She had been a witness to many a debate between him and Yasuhiro about seemingly silly things, most of which she did not understand. How he found the energy to argue about flavours of soda pops, which Robocop movie was objectively the best one, and which sitcom had the weirdest actors was beyond her. Still, she found that this one was a bit… much, even for him. On the list of things that she anticipated he might get overly excited about, a topic as childish as candy was not one of them. It was a bit of a strange position to be in, watching the man she loved have a total conniption over her grandfather’s refusal to accommodate her sweet tooth.

 “Yes, really,” she did her best to not sound short with him, but she really didn’t see what the big deal was, “I missed out on a lot when I was a girl. I never had a chocoball, or a crunky bar, or caplico… There were even some traditional desserts that I missed out on, too.”

 If it were possible for his eyes to open any wider, they would have. He practically gasped at her statement, so horrified that her younger self had been denied the sweets he deemed so precious. “What desserts haven’t you had? I swear, if you’ve never tasted manju, I think I might cry.”

 Kyoko chuckled softly, rolling her eyes at him. Had he really forgotten? “No, I’ve had manju before. You made it for me for our first date, remember?”

 Makoto exhaled with quiet relief instantly, nodding his head with a nonchalance he hadn’t possessed thirty seconds prior. You’d have thought she had just told him he had not tested positive for a fatal disease or something, with the way his shoulders relaxed. “Right, I did do that,” he paused for a second, “And you liked it, didn’t you?”

 She could have laughed at how intense his eyes got over the question. She’d seen troublesome students at Hope’s Peak receive glares less intense than this one. “Yes, it was lovely,” she assured him, brushing some hair away from her face, “The variation of desserts I have yet to taste are more treats like dorayaki, taiyaki, yokan, dango, or coffee jelly.”

 To this, Makoto actually cringed. Full-on eyes squeezed shut, teeth clenched, drawing the head back slightly cringed. You’d have thought the man were genuinely pained. “I can’t believe I’m marrying a woman who’s never had dango,” the furrowing of his brows seemed to deepen as the news settled within him, “And coffee jelly! Oh, Kyoko, you would just love coffee jelly!”

 “I’ve always thought I would, but I didn’t have much of a chance to try it.”

 “Well, that settles it, then.”

 “Settles what?” Kyoko blinked, tilting her head to the side.

 A new found determination settled in her fiance’s expression; within seconds it seemed his energy had renewed. He practically beamed with elation, a cheery smile stretching across his face. “You and me are going sweet-tasting. Desserts, candies, the whole deal!”

 “Wait, Makoto. You don’t have to do this for me,” she fruitlessly attempted to wiggle her wrists out from his grasp, “It’s okay, really-”

 “No!” he interrupted her without a second thought, his movements just as dramatic as ever, “I have to. This is a matter of life and death.”

She snickered, finally prying her wrist out from Makoto’s hand with sheer force. “I think that’s a tad dramatic, love,” her now-free hand found her way to her ear, reaching up to tuck some of her lavender hair behind it, “But I suppose… I will indulge you. I don’t imagine you would give me much of a choice otherwise.”

 He chuckled. “No, I would not.” His hands rested on his hips as he puffed his chest up proudly, looking a bit like a small child who had just finished tied his shoes for the first time. “Now c’mon and get your coat! We’ve got a shop to visit!”

  Kyoko couldn’t help but smile as she and Makoto walked through the crisp winter air, the snowing raining down and settling on top of both of their heads. Fighting off the grin forming on her face as she watched her husband-to-be prancing through the snow was a fruitless endeavour, so she didn’t bother. His fingers were interlaced with her own as he led her down the street, swinging their hands forward together with uncontainable glee. It had been quite awhile since he last saw him ignited with this much energy, and to be honest, she was relishing it. His smile always felt like seeing the sunrise after waiting all night.

 “So where is it that you are taking me again?” Though she was not sure whether she should be enthused or slightly fearful, she tried her best to keep up with her fiancé’s delight. It wasn’t particularly hard, getting to see that big smile on his face and hearing the snow crunch cheerfully beneath their winter boots. Admittedly, the promise of many delicious sweets probably had something to do with it, too. After all, her grandfather had been the one to make the choice about whether or not she got them as a child. If a young Kyoko had had things her way, she would have been eating candy and desserts for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Her sweet tooth was unimaginably huge back then, and if she were to tell the truth… it was still pretty big as an adult, too.

 She was sure that Makoto’s smile would deepen if it were capable of getting any bigger. “It’s this combination dessert café-candy shop that lets you taste all of the sweets of your dreams. I was thinking we should start with desserts, and then move onto the candies to take home. I hear they have a great selection.”

 “I will take your word for it. You are the candy connoisseur.”

 Makoto rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly; his face tinged pink. “I’m not sure if I’d go that far…”

 Kyoko smirked. “The dessert director.”

 “Alright, Kyoko, stop playing around-”

 “The chief of confection.”

 His lips twitched, telling her just how badly he wanted to smile. Still, he was trying pretty hard to keep that phony scowl going. She could even see that liar biting his cheeks to keep himself from laughing at her jokes! Oh, she would get him for this falsity later. What a cruel, cruel man her lover could be.

 “Are you done now?” He asked, his tone betraying the amusement that his expression wanted to hide. She nodded contentedly, happy to know how easily she could get him to grin. With all of his seriousness about the desserts and candy, she figured that she should be able to take her turn to be silly. So, she didn’t think it so wrong that she could joke around with him, and then press a kiss to his cheek.

 “Yes,” she affirmed, “I’m done now. Care to continue on with your sweets speech?”

 “Hey!” His tongue poked out at her cheekily from between his lips. “You said you were done with the alliteration!”

 A gloved fingertip pressed itself against the space just below her lips, batting her eyelashes at him with all of the innocence she could muster. If she truly desired to portray innocence, she would be doing a horrible job of it… but thankfully, this kind of thing would work when playing around with Makoto. “Whatever are you talking about?”

 He half-nudged her shoulder before pulling his phone out from his pocket. For a moment, he swiped fruitlessly over the touch screen with his gloved hand. Then, with all of the lacking grace of a middle school boy, he pried the glove from his hand with his teeth. Sometimes, he really could be so boyish. Not that that was necessarily a bad thing, of course. It was actually something that she liked about him. It made him passionate and interesting in the same way that other people just weren’t. She couldn’t count on both hands the number of men she’d met who took themselves far too seriously, denouncing anything childish and writing horrible love stories in their ugly moleskin journals. Try-hards, she remembered thinking about them. Makoto never seemed to feel like that. In a way, she supposed that was why pleasure from his little dessert desperation blossomed so easily.

 “Anyway,” she was so lost in thought that she wouldn’t have noticed him pulling up her options if it weren’t for him shoving the phone four inches in front of her face, “They have a big menu of desserts that you can look at online. You should look at their options and see what you want to try!”

 A smirk threatened to overtake her, leaving her wondering just how cheeky she could with him before he got fed up. “I was under the impression that I would simply be trying everything I had yet to try, given that you seemed so serious about it when we first set out. I definitely know that coffee jelly is on the list, though. You know how much adore coffee and anything coffee-flavoured.”

 Keeping her mind from drifting to a cup of warm coffee was a struggle. In the midst of the frozen air nipping at their noses, a cup of coffee sounded excellent. Just holding it against her gloves, breathing in that rich aroma… Mmmm. Kyoko hoped that they might serve a cup of coffee or two at the shop. You know, to pair with the desserts. Not because of her own fixation on it or anything.

 “Well, ideally, you would try everything. I just wanted to know if there was anything you really wanted. If you don’t like it, I can always eat it for you.”

 She shook her head. “I’m sensing a bit of an ulterior motive here, my love.”

 Blush rose in his cheeks, prompting him to reach up the scratch at them in that awkward habit he never managed to kick. “I mean, that wasn’t my only plan, but… it is one of the perks, heh.”

 “So you say.”

 “C’mon, don’t give me a hard time!” The luckster whined, pushing out his lip in the fakest pout he’d given her in a while. “You can’t be mean to the guy who’s getting you desserts and candy.”

 A smile played at her lips. “Is he paying for all of it out of his own pocket, or is he snagging some of his rich fiancée’s money?” She asked, quirking an eyebrow at him expectantly. She couldn’t help watching intently to see if his blush from before would strengthen. Perhaps doing so was a tad mean, but she liked to tease him. Getting a reaction out of Makoto was always fun, especially with his tendency to get flustered and stumble over his words. If she were to be honest, she found his embarrassment totally adorable.  

 To her surprise and slight disappointment, he puffed his chest up at her. Prideful little Makoto who would pay out of his own pocket. “He is treating his special lady today, and so she pays for nothing. Although it should be pointed out that he usually pays for dinner anyway.”

 “Alright, alright. You got me there,” she chuckled, leaning over to plant another kiss on his cheek, “Now is this dessert shop very far from here? I fear my nose might start to frost over soon.”

 He giggled and reached over to place his hand on her nose. “Aww, your poor little nose,” it was hard not to cringe as he rubbed her nose, “Does this help?”

 Admittedly, his mitten-clad hand did help her nose become toastier, but having her fiancé rub her nose in public felt a little embarrassing. Like one of those things that others would judge them for. People already tended to stare at them due to their presence in the School Life of Mutual Killing broadcast, so she preferred to avoid attracting extra attention where she could. She briefly considered whether or not she should swat his hand away, but that nose warmth… it was too good to pass up. Her hands reached up to meet his wrist to keep him there, muffling any words she spoke. “Yes, that is good. You still have yet to answer my question, however.”

 “It’s just a few more buildings up the street. Something like four,” he tilted his head to the side, “Can you manage that?”

 Kyoko mustered up the biggest possible sigh she could manage. “I suppose,” She complained theatrically, batting her eyelashes at him once again. All her partner could do was snort softly and shake his head at her, keeping his hands on her nose as they ventured towards the combination candy-dessert shop.

 The rest of their walk seemed rather short in comparison to the first half; the two of them chattering back and forth lazily the whole way there. The pieces of conversation weren’t anything incredibly impressive – Makoto enthused about the snowflakes that settled within Kyoko’s silvery locks, and Kyoko murmured quietly to him about how cute his pink nose looked in the winter’s cold. A more girlish part of Kyoko squealed at how lovingly domestic this all felt. She prayed that after their wedding in the summer, the same happy feelings would persist. The mere thought of getting to go on adventures like this as a married couple made her heart light itself with new flame. Maybe, if today went well, they could even see about having a sweets bar at their reception. Wouldn’t that just be so nice, she said when she told Makoto. Her soon-to-be-husband had lit up at her suggestion, saying that he’d let her pick out all of her favourites to be displayed on the table. Next thing she knew, they were babbling excitedly about their future desserts table, barely even seeming to notice that they had come upon the dessert shop.

 “Here it is!” Makoto announced, throwing his arms open wide, “Chieko Chisu’s Confection Cabin!”

 That’s a lot of c’s was Kyoko’s first thought. Following that: this is exactly the kind of shop Makoto would pick out. Seriously, the cabin name was almost literal. The whole store appeared as if it could have been made from bulky cherrywood planks, with a pair of frosted-over, white-trimmed windows being the only clue to the inside. The door appeared to have been fashioned from lumber as well, with a forest-green sign hanging on it. The characters for ‘OPEN’ were written across the sign in someone’s swooping handwriting, portrayed by a white marker. They’d even taken the care to doodle little ice cream cones and bonbons along the sign’s edges. When her eyes found the rim of the roof, it met her with a scattering of multi-coloured lanterns, all featuring hand-painted illustrations. From the way it looked, each of the lanterns was intended to advertise its own type of dessert or candy. The purple ones all had a shiba inu snacking on manju, the yellow with an ezo red fox enjoying dorayaki, the pink featuring a deer nosing around a few choco-balls. They were so childishly sweet that she couldn’t help but grin at them, knowing for sure that they had plenty of young customers. Without going in, she could already feel the warmth radiating off of the place.

 “It’s adorable,” she told him, leaning her head on his shoulder, “Did you see the lanterns?”

 He nodded and pointed up at them; his finger directed her to one of the green ones. “The field mouse struggling to enjoy the hi-chew is my personal favourite. It’s so chewy it gets stuck in his little mouth.”

 Sure enough, there was a depiction of a field mouse with a sticky green candy in his mouth, trying desperately to chew it. She could relate to that one – Hi-chew was just fruity enough that her grandfather let her have it as a treat every once in a while, and she had many memories of it getting stuck in her teeth. “At least he has good taste. The green apple ones were always my favourite.”

 “Mine too.”

 Expectation might have led one to expect the couple to do something other than smile and take each other by the hand, but that is where it would be wrong. In times like those, sometimes the only thing either of them needed was to take the other by the hand, and lead them to a new moment of happiness.

 Kyoko refused to fight off her sigh of relief as the door to the Confection Cabin closed behind them, the homely air soothing her chilled bones. Though she would be the first to confess about having complained, she hadn’t realized how much the winter air affected her. Now that she was inside where it was all cozy, she wanted nothing more than to snuggle up in Makoto’s arms and have a nice, long nap… and perhaps peel off the layers of her coat that suddenly felt very hot. Such things would have to wait, of course, for an incredibly bubbly staff member bombarded them the moment they entered the restaurant.

 “Hello there!” The girl chirped, waving almost too enthusiastically at them. “Welcome to Chieko Chisu’s Confection Cabin. My name is Kajitani Anzu-san, and I’ll be looking after you today. How might I help you? Would you like to explore our nummy candies or mouthwatering desserts today?”

 Kyoko couldn’t help but glance over at her fiancé helplessly; talking with staff always made her uncomfortable. Not due to any snobby rich girl disdain for them, of course – her generally more closed-off behaviour simply made it more difficult for her to be comfortable with someone who was so obviously ingenuine. Makoto tended to handle it better, and certainly much more naturally than she ever could.

 “Actually, if it would be okay, we’d like to try both!” Without warning, he threw his arm around Kyoko’s shoulders, taking her entirely by surprise. She hoped the staff member hadn’t seen her tense in shock. The last thing she wanted was for this random girl to get the wrong impression about her relationship with Makoto. “You see, my fiancée here has been very deprived of sweets all her life.”

Anzu’s hands flew to her face almost comically; her brown eyes as wide as a full moon. “Oh no! We can’t have that!”

 Her fiancé nodded in agreement. “Exactly. Which is why we were wondering if it would be possible to start with desserts, and end off with some candy shopping. Would that be okay?”

 It became Anzu’s turn to nod as she clapped her hands together enthusiastically. “Of course, of course, sir! We can manage many a treat for you and your sweetheart! A table for two, I presume?”

 The only thing Kyoko could think to contribute was an awkward snicker. “Yes, please.”

 “Excellent, now if you’ll just follow me…!”

  At this point, Kyoko was very close to bursting like a balloon.

 Well, maybe that was a bit of an exaggeration, but she sure felt like it. After an hour in the café portion scarfing down Makoto and Anzu’s recommended desserts, her stomach already felt full to the point of discomfort. Their insistence on her attempting to choke down all of the candies and chocolates the store had to offer only worsened the strain, and now, she felt a bit like a beached whale.

 She supposed she could take some pleasure in the fact that Makoto seemed to be feeling the same way. He’d become so full while enjoying the desserts with her that he insisted that they call a cab to bring them home, rather than force themselves to walk the full way with the weight of their packed bellies. As embarrassing as it was to admit, she felt so overwhelmed that she had to oblige.

 Even so, it was a good trip, all things considered. Just as promised, she and Makoto packed themselves to the brim with all kinds of goodies. Mochi filled with strawberry ice cream, dango of every colour they could manage, some beautiful winter’s nerikiri, delectable banana mushi pan, and the definitely-as-good-as-promised coffee jelly… Her mouth could have watered at the thought of all of those foods, had it not been for the fullness. She could still recall sitting in her booth with Makoto, the two of them sliding dishes to one another across the table and popping treats into their eager mouths.

 “Oh my god,” Makoto had exclaimed upon taking his first bite of the mushi pan, “I think this is the best I’ve ever had.”

 Kyoko had already been in the process of enjoying her half of the bun cake, and could agree wholeheartedly. The texture was so light and fluffy that it felt as if it melted in her mouth; the sweet but subtle flavour of banana dancing across her tongue like a memory. “Me too,” she mumbled through a muffled full mouth.

 “You have nothing to compare it to! This is your first mushi pan.”

 She smiled at him with chipmunk cheeks. “And it’s the best I have ever tasted. Pass the coffee jelly, please?”

 “Of course,” he chuckled, “I knew you’d love it.”

 What a surprise, the answer tempted her far too much. Hopefully, as her fiancé, he would know her that well. Still, she held her tongue, instead choosing to take another spoonful of the jelly he’d just slid over. Pure heaven the moment it entered her mouth. Coffee jelly plus banana mushi pan tasted like breakfast but better. Together, she and Makoto had entered a sugary paradise.

 And now they were laying at home, flopped on their plush blue couch, lethargic and exhausted. Yet, strangely, Kyoko honestly couldn’t help feeling happy. The grin on her face was effortless as she laid her head on her partner’s shoulder; the two of them doing their best to ignore their aching tummies. Even if this was the worst shape her stomach had been in in a while, she couldn’t find it within herself to care. Honestly, she wouldn’t even be willing to categorize the scenario as a mistake.

 “Ugh…” Makoto groaned, sticking out his lower lip into a childish pout. “I ate way too many desserts.”

 She found herself nodding in agreement, reaching over to pat his belly. “You sure packed away a lot. You ate much more than I did… Not that I’m surprised. You always have been better at eating than me.”

 His shoulders rose and fell; a smirk snaked across his face. Clear intent to be cheeky. “What can I say? You called me the chief of confection. I had to do my best… I’m paying for it now, though.”

 “As am I,” Kyoko sighed and nuzzled her cheek into his shoulder, “But if I have to feel like I’m going to regorge a rainbow with someone, I’m glad that it’s you. Today was really special, my love.”

 She knew his cheeks started burning without looking at him. In spite of their engagement, she didn’t always have the confidence to use pet names with him. ‘My love’ was his absolute favourite, and she liked to spring it on him at unexpected moments like these. It always seemed to bring him the greatest joy. When he spoke, she could hear the smile in his voice.

 “I’m glad you liked it. I had a really good time with you, too. I hope we can keep doing stuff like this for a long time.”

 Kyoko laughed and raised her hand to eye-level, wiggling her fingers in front of his face. The rose-shaped diamond on the ring glittered at them cheerfully, as if to accentuate her point. “I should hope so. That is what you gave me the ring for, is it not?”

 “That’s true,” he snickered, “So I can have good times with the woman I love for the rest of my life.”

 “Well, I can’t promise you that I won’t spend the night regurgitating all of the desserts we just ate, but I can promise you that.”

 He leaned his head down to rest upon hers. “That’s more than good enough for me.”

[ctl-yuejie]

50 Questions Tag!

I was tagged by @earthpodd, thanks babe, warning: long list

What colour is your hairbrush?: black, although my hair is too short to use it atm

Name a food you never eat: kamaboko or nerimono in general, sea snails

Are you typically too warm or too cold?: too cold, always freezing

What were you doing 45 minutes ago?: working out at home (abandoned that very quickly)

What’s your favourite candy bar?: not really into candy bars, but if i get sweets i like the chewy sour kind

Have you ever been to a professional sports game?:  yes! i’ve been to a soccer game

What’s the last thing you said out loud?: “have a nice day” to the cashier...thanks to social distancing i’m not talking a lot

What’s your favourite ice cream?: uhhhh....i like most types of ice cream, but if i go out and buy some i prefer fruity flavours. my favourite combo is cassis & after eight but mikan comes in a hot second place

What was the last thing you had to drink?: had to????? i had coffee, which i had to drink because my body needed it, so that counts i think

Do you like your wallet?: yes! my parents bought me a new small one not knowing that my old one had just disintegrated the week before. not all my coupons fit inside but it fits in my pocket, so i can’t complain

What’s the last thing you ate?: brownies with my coffee

Did you buy any new clothes last weekend?: no, i hardly every buy new clothes

What’s the last sporting event you watched?: soccer with my roommate

What is you favourite flavor of popcorn?: not into the whole fancy popcorn flavour stuff. i like sweet popcorn and caramel popcorn when i feel fancy.

Who’s the last person you sent a text to?: sent a link to my roomie

Ever go camping?: went often when i was younger and last time in 2014 for a festival

Do you take vitamins?: yep, b12 and some other stuff i need

Do you go to church every sunday?: nope

Do you have a tan?: no, i burn easily and always put tons of sunscreen on

Do you prefer Chinese or pizza?: as a take-out? pizza...sadly my town doesn’t have great options for either so i’d go with the vietnamese take-out which is really good.

Do you drink soda through a straw?: noooooooo, hate to drink carbonated drinks through straws

What color socks do you usually wear?: i am a collector of novelty socks so all kinds, today they are white with little whales on them

Do you ever drive above the speed limit?: no. 

What terrifies you?: people dying, deep water, roller coasters

Look to your left, what do you see?: my bedroom wall

What chore do you hate the most?: washing laundry because it takes up so much time and there are 4 floors between me and the laundromat 

What do you think of when you hear an Australian accent?: ....phrine from miss fisher’s murder mysteries...maybe....

What’s your favourite soda?: malt beer, if that counts :””D

Do you go in fast food places or just hit the drive thru?: don’t have a car, so i’d go in but get take-out

What’s your favourite number?: don’t have a favourite number

Who’s the last person you talked to?: my roomie (if you don’t count exchanging greetings with the cashier)

Favourite cut of beef?: brisket or chuck, anything with some fat that’s good for braising

Last song you listened to?: You Calling My Name by GOT7

Last book you read?: Hauro’s Moving Castle

Can you say the alphabet backwards?: yes, but it’d take a looong time

Favourite day of the week?: friday

How do you like your coffee?: black, but when the quality isn’t great i add milk to mask it (lately oat milk)

Favourite pair of shoes?: my blue sneakers

Time you normally get up?: 7ish, I try to get back to 6:30

Sunrise or sunsets?: sunrise, i like the crispness of them

How many blankets on your bed?: 2-3

Describe your kitchen plates?: simple white plates, most of them from my grandma & ikea

Describe your kitchen at the moment?: a crumbly mess cause roomie couldn’t control his ciabatta

Do you have a favourite alcoholic drink?: whiskey, cider

Do you play cards?: no, friends tried to teach me but to no avail

What color is your car?: don’t have one

Can you change a tire?: no

Your favourite state/province/country/etc.?: ...don’t necessarily have a favourite country but i had a blast in taiwan, the mecklenburgische seenplatte is very pretty, have very fond memories of the stixe’s shifting dune & akiyoshidai

Favourite job you’ve had?: never had a job

How did you get your biggest scar?: surgical scar from where they took out some tendons to replace a ligament during my 2nd acl surgery. i scar very badly, so it looks pretty horrible even though the original incision wasn’t that bad, frequently freaks out doctors who check on my knee

[somekindoftuber]

vld youtuber AU (klance, part 6)

Note: The city where Shiro and Keith live is called Springdale. I’d pictured both of these towns being in the Carolinas. Again, there are tense changes everywhere (sorry) but I plan to fix them later.

Thank you for all the great feedback!!

part one | part two | part three | part four | part five

.

Lance woke up surprisingly early on Saturday. Today they were headed to the fair. He brewed coffee and made a tentative battle plan for the day: walk around, see stalls, a few rides, some games, lunch, maybe renting a scooter to drive up to lookout hill to watch the sunset. It was the perfect opportunity for Lance to stop dancing around the issue and just tell Keith he’s in to him already.

Pidge pokes fun at him through breakfast as Lance makes a group text thread with everyone. They agree to meet up at the south entrance of the fairgrounds at 10:30.

Lance ends up making them late by spending too much time picking out his clothes. Keith and Shiro are both sporting a little pink on their noses and cheekbones from the sun on the beach the day before, but they’re all smiles as they pay for their wrist bands and head into the fair. It’s a typical American county fair ordeal, with rickety rented rides, badly rigged carnival games, and endless booths of cheap nick-nacks and fried foods. But there was always something about the Harborville fair that set it apart. There was an energy here, like the last bang of summer before cool autumn weather swept down the coast.

They buy tokens and move as a group at first, taking a lap around the fair before splitting up. Pidge and Hunk stick together as always, Allura drags Shiro off at a rather brisk pace, and that left Lance and Keith.

“Anything you wanna do?” Lance asks him.

Keith shrugs and smiles. “Anything’s good.”

They walk around for a while, stopping at booths here and there. They run into other members of their group from time to time, and Lance uses his phone to film bits of a vlog for later editing, catching Shiro and Keith in a few bits (“I’m here with my good friends Shiro and Keith! Say hi guys!”). Lance buys an inaugural funnel cake to split with Keith before hitting the prize games. Keith rolls his eyes as Lance goes for the ring toss, a game he swears up and down he’s mastered despite it being horribly rigged.

“Just you watch,” Lance tells Keith as he lines up a ring. “I’m gonna win you the biggest stuffed animal they have, and then you’ll understand my prowess.”

He swears Keith’s cheeks go red as he smiles. “Well, have fun. I’m gonna grab a soda.”

Lance is half disappointed and half relieved that Keith is no longer watching. So of course, when the guy he’s trying to impress leaves, Lance lands all three rings on a pole. He’s carefully eyeing the selection of stuffed prizes when Shiro appears at his left, seemingly out of thin air.

“You know,” he leans in a speaks close to Lance’s ear. “Hippos are Keith’s favorite animal.”

Lance turns to look up at him, confused, before Shiro gives him a knowing smile and walks away. Hippos? Okay, weird, but also kind of cute. When Lance re-examines the prizes, he spots a large pastel blue hippo near the back, with big button eyes, exaggerated stitching, and a white bow around its neck.

“That one,” he tells the game attendant, pointing.

Keith comes trotting back with a soda in each hand a few minutes later. He stops short when Lance comes up to him with the prize hippo in his arms, easily the size of a dog. Keith’s eyes go wide.

“Told you I’d win,” Lance beams, then holds out the stuffed animal. “Here you go.”

There’s an awkward shuffle as Lance takes the sodas so Keith can take the hippo, and Lance absolutely notices how Keith hugs it to his chest.

“Thanks,” Keith tells him, and his cheeks are pink in a way that has nothing to do with his sunburn.

Keith keeps holding the stuffed animal as they walk around, earning him a few stares. Lance has to admit he looks adorable - all sharp and intense, holding a giant fluffy toy like it’s precious treasure. They find the Racho Alegre food truck and Lance buys enough food for five people, setting the trays of empanadas, pork tamales, fried yucca fruit, papas rellenas and fried green plantains. He films a little, too, Keith protesting with a “don’t film me eating!” Lance passes Keith a mate soda and instructs him on how to properly enjoy Cuban food, and is pleased when Keith seems to enjoy all of it.

He might like the guy, a lot, but if Keith had ended up hating the food he grew up with? It might have been a deal breaker.

They chat at the picnic table for a good half hour as they digested, then walk around some more, Lance filming on his phone here and there. He spots the scooter rental place nearby, and eagerly points at it. But when they get closer, he frowns.

“Aw man,” Lance bemoans. “I was thinking it’d be cool to drive up to the hill to watch the air show, but all the scooters are rented out.”

Keith raises an eyebrow. “They’re not? There’s a whole bunch lined up.”

Lance shrugs. “Yeah, but those are the 50cc engine ones. You need a motorcycle license for those.”

“Yeah?” Keith looks unruffled. “I have one.”

Lance hears a record scratch in his brain. “You do?”

With a chuckle, Keith motions him towards the rental desk. “Who do you think test drives the bikes when Shiro’s done with them?”

Lance held the hippo, which he’d dubbed Blue, while Keith filled out paperwork, showing his motorcycle ID and insurance card. Lance caught a glimpse of it, and cooed.

“Aww, short hair!” He smiled at the photo of a younger Keith, scowling at the camera, and noticed two things: first, Keith didn’t have a middle name, and second, there were little tufts of what might be considered a mullet sticking out from behind his neck.

Keith shoved his ID back into his wallet. “Is your photo any better?”

“Actually,” Lance pulled his wallet from his back pocket and produced his driver’s license. “It is.”

Lance was proud of that picture - he was one of the only people he knew that actually took good ID photos. It was like a superpower. Keith was staring at his ID, his eyebrows raised.

“Leandro Sebastian McClain?” He asked.

“Uh.” Lance’s face flushed hot. “Old family name. Lance is kind of a nickname.”

Keith’s smile as he handed the ID back was magical. “Cool.”

Helmets secured, Lance climbed on the back of the dinged-up rental bike behind Keith as he started up the engine, giving him quick directions to the hill that overlooked the bay. Then, with Blue shoved between them, Lance wrapped his arms around Keith’s middle. They took off, and Lance felt a surge of adrenaline as they rode. He could count on one hand the number of times he’d been on a real motorcycle, and it was as scary as it was exhilarating. It was also cold, even the warmth of the sun unable compete with the wind that whipped past them. Lance hugged Keith tighter, wishing there wasn’t a stuffed animal between them.

It took a good ten minutes to drive up to the hill, and by the time they arrived, the wind had all but chilled Lance to the bone. The weather was beautiful that day, but it was a different story when you were going 45 miles an hour. His t-shirt and loose button up had done nothing to protect him, and as they reached the hill and stepped off the bike and took off their helmets, Lance set Blue on the bike seat and rubbed at his frozen, goosebump covered arms.

“You okay?” Keith asked.

“Yeah,” Lance laughed a little. “Just kinda cold. Wind’s kinda brutal at that speed.”

Keith blinked at him. “Oh.” Then, like they were in a movie, he removed his leather jacket and deftly swung it around Lance’s shoulders, patting it against his arms. “There, that better?”

Lance willed himself not to melt, because holy shit. That was the most suave thing he’d ever seen. Keith was one seriously smooth bastard. He caught of whiff of the scent coming off the warm leather and blushed hard. It smelled so good.

“Y-yeah,” he stuttered, letting his fingers grip the edge of the jacket and pull it close.

They sat on a patch of grass nearby just as the air show was beginning. Keith watched with rapt attention as the jets performed aerial acrobatics, leaving bright trails of colored smoke that twisted through the sky. When it was over, Keith sighed beside him.

“I wanted to be a pilot,” he said, his gaze fixed on the sky where the sun was beginning to dip towards the horizon.

Lance bumped his shoulder. “You still can be,” he said. “A pilot’s license can’t be that hard to get.”

Keith looked at the ground, shaking his head with a wry smile. “No, I mean… I wanted to be a fighter pilot. In the navy, or the air force.” He picked at a blade of grass. “But I wasn’t exactly cut out for it.”

“What do you mean?” Lance asked carefully.

Keith shrugged and leaned back on his hands. “I’m a high school dropout with a juvenile record,” he explained. “I’ve gotten my shit straightened out since then, but… that stuff sticks.”

Lance frowned. He was starting to realize just how little he knew about Keith - they talked a lot, but it was all superficial information. He didn’t know anything about Keith’s past, or his ambitions.

“It’s fine,” Keith said, interrupting Lance’s train of thought. “I can’t really complain about my life. I’ve got Shiro, I like working on bikes, and I enjoy my job. I’ve got it pretty good.”

Lance was glad to hear that, but it made him frown for a different reason. “Sounds like you’ve got it figured out. I have no idea what I’m gonna do.”

Keith hummed in questioning, and Lance let go of where he was clutching the jacket to wave his hand. “I’ve just been sort of… coasting for the last two years. I have no idea what I’m doing.” he chewed his lip. “YouTube is fun and all, but my dad keeps asking me what my career plans are, and I have no clue. I can’t just work cafe jobs forever, and Pidge is probably leaving after she graduates in a few months. I don’t even know where I’m gonna end up living.” He rubbed at his eyes.

Keith was quiet for a long time. “What about music?” he offered. Lance shrugged.

“Dunno if I want to go down that road,” he answered. “Being a musician is really unpredictable, unreliable. I doubt I could swing it.”

If Lance wasn’t spiraling into a pity-party, he would have appreciated how adorable Keith’s little pout was. “Well,” Keith offered. “What about teaching music?”

Lance blinked owlishly at him. “Say what?”

“I mean,” Keith started fidgeting. “You’ve said before that you like working with kids, and you play like four instruments, and you can read music…” He looked at Lance. “Why not combine them?”

Lance heard a record scratch for the second time that day. Holy crap. Holy crap. He’d never even considered it, but a career as a music teacher? That sounded… okay. That sounded good.

“I’d--” he swallowed, feeling his pulse quicken with excitement. “I’d probably need to get a degree in music education. But it’s doable.”

Keith beamed at him. “Yeah! Plus…” His face went pink as he looked to the side. “I was thinking, um. Since Pidge will be leaving and all, and there’s a good school in Springdale, you could..” Keith bit at his lower lip. “You could move there. With m-- with us.”

Lance inhaled softly as he looked at Keith. The sun had turned golden, lighting his face and making him glow, and it took Lance’s breath away.

“Also,” Keith put his hand over Lance’s where it rested on the grass. His fingers were shaking. “I, uh.” His voice dropped, so quiet Lance could barely hear. “I really like you.”

Lance gasped. Keith’s confession was so sincere and scared and it made his heart thump against his ribs, a wide smile cracking his face. Oh god, it was happening. He’d fantasized about this moment more times than he could count and it was happening, up on the hill overlooking the bay, with the beautiful sunset and Keith’s jacket around his shoulders. He had to be dreaming.

“I really like you,” Lance told him, turning his hand to thread their fingers together. “A lot.”

Keith huffed a little laugh and oh, he was so gorgeous, his hold on Lance’s hand tightening. Lance wants so badly to kiss him.

“Go out with me?” Lance asked.

Keith’s face fell, shock replacing the gentle smile he’d been wearing. “Oh. Um.”

It was like a bucket of cold water was dumped on Lance’s head as Keith pulled his hand away. Had he misread everything anyway? Was that too forward?

“I was thinking,” Keith began, his voice shaking a little. “That we could just… get to know each other more first?” He began clasping and unclasping his hands. “I’ve never really been in a relationship, plus we live five hours apart, and…” He pouted. “I mean, I didn’t even know your name wasn’t Lance until twenty minutes ago.”

“Oh.” Oh. Keith… had a point. Lance didn’t even know he had a motorcycle license until today. It was probably a good idea to get to know Keith better before attempting to dive headfirst into romance. Lance felt the relief like a physical weight. “You... wanna take it slow?”

“Yeah, pretty much.”

Lance could barely believe this was real. He leaned forward until his forehead rested against Keith’s and laughed softly.

“Sounds good to me.”

He thought this would be a good time to kiss, but they didn’t, eventually pulling apart to drive the bike back to the rental shop by the fairgrounds. Lance kept Keith’s jacket, slipping his arms through the sleeves and pressing his chest as close to Keith’s back as he could for the ride.

.

They made a trip to Lance’s car to stash Blue in the trunk for safe keeping, and as the sun was setting, grabbed a couple of beers and headed to the meeting point they’d arranged with everyone to watch the fireworks. Allura and Shiro had already spread a blanket out on the grass and were chatting. Keith and Lance took a seat near them, sitting close together.

Allura laughed, then Lance remembered his promise to Romelle. He whipped out his phone.

(+328) hey ‘melle you wanna come watch the fireworks at the fair??

(+396) Lance I just finished a 10 hour shift, that’s a hell no

He frowned, then discreetly aimed his camera at Allura and snapped a photo just as she was laughing, then sent it.

(+328) but cute girl looks lonely

There’s a long pause.

(+396) BE THERE IN 15

Pidge and Hunk eventually joined them, just as the grassy field was becoming crammed with people wanting the best seat for the fireworks. Beside Lance, Shiro looked a little odd, swaying slightly, his eyes dilated.

“Shiro?” Lance asked, keeping his voice down. “Are… are you high?”

Then Shiro laughed loud, threw his head back and really laughed. “Nah, no. Well, okay, yeah. Kinda.” He shrugs. “Fireworks kinda freak me out, after - y’know. So I took a xanax. They make me loopy as fuck, but I didn’t want to miss this.”

Lance blinked. He didn’t think he’d ever heard Shiro cuss before.

Romelle arrived twenty minutes later, just before the fireworks were scheduled to start. Lance did introductions and was pleased to see Romelle take a seat next to Allura, the two of them immediately striking up a conversation about coffee. Mission accomplished.

When the fireworks started, Lance leaned into Keith, feeling Keith return the motion. It was nice to not have to hide his affection anymore, or stay on guard. And if Lance watched the fireworks from the reflection in Keith’s eyes? Well, that was no one’s business but his.

After the fair, they retreat to Lance’s apartment to hang out and chat. Shiro is coming off his xanax and is having trouble staying awake, perking up only when Keith hands him a glass of water. Romelle and Allura trade social media handles and Lance feels a little smug about getting to play matchmaker for them. But mostly, he’s happy about Keith, who sits so close to him, who let Lance keep wearing his jacket.

It’s late and Allura decides they need to go, so everyone piles out of Lance’s apartment at once. Keith is the last one out, and Lance shyly lets the jacket slip off his shoulders and hands it back.

“Thanks,” He says. Keith grins.

“Anytime. See you tomorrow?”

“Yeah.”

Once the door closes, Lance leans his head against it, grinning wide. He gets about sixty seconds of peace before Pidge and Hunk lay into him.

“Please,” Pidge groans, “Please tell me you two are dating now.”

“Nope,” Lance grins wolfishly at her as Pidge flings her body backwards onto the sofa with a howl of frustration. Hunk just smiles knowingly at him.

“But you’re going to. Right?”

Lance toes off his shoes and goes for his room. “Eventually.” From the couch, Pidge yells that she hates him.

.

The next morning they have an early brunch at Lance’s favorite diner on the marina, trading stories of their adventures at the fair. Pidge and Hunk show videos on their phones of the rides and games they played. Lance films again, and takes a group photo of all of them with their mimosas and fancy biscuits.

When Lance sees them off for their drive back to Springdale, Keith pulls him into hug. It’s soft and nice and Keith is so warm, Lance taking a deep breath and inhaling his smell. When they pull apart, Keith’s eyes are glittering.

Lance waves at the car as his three friends drive off, feeling happy and light.

.

Continued in part seven!

[samcarpnter]

50 questions you’ve never been asked.

tagged by the very lovely @erumpets thank you so much <3

what is the color of your hairbrush? light pink

a food you never eat? olives

are you typically too warm or too cold? I am ALWAYS too warm ugh

what were you doing 45 minutes ago? laying in bed watching the empire strikes back with my sister

what is your favorite candy bar? probably kit kats

have you ever been to a professional sports event? yes, i’ve been to a couple mlb games and one nfl game

what is the last thing you said out loud? “fuck you” to my sister lmao

what is your favourite ice cream? anything with cookie dough

what was the last thing you had to drink? water

do you like your wallet? yeah it’s small and has a black floral pattern, it’s easy to take places which i love since i hate carrying all my shit 

what was the last thing you ate? dino chicken nuggets lol

did you buy any new clothes last weekend? nope

the last sporting event you watched? I genuinely cant remember

what is your favourite flavour of popcorn? cheddar

who is the last person you sent a text message to? one of my friends

ever go camping? never and never will

do you take vitamins? no but i should lmao

do you go to church every sunday? I used to when my parents made me go but my views on religion have since changed A LOT and i have not gone to church in like 5 years

do you have a tan? nope

do you prefer chinese food or pizza? pizza

do you drink your soda with a straw? I dont really drink soda and when i do i dont use a straw

what color socks do you usually wear? I have many different colors of socks but most of them are dark colors

do you ever drive above the speed limit? more than i should

what terrifies you? dying, being alone, never finding happiness, you know the usual 

look to your left, what do you see? a window with curtains lmao

what chore do you hate? I hate vacuuming with a passion for whatever reason

what do you think of when you hear an australian accent? ruby rose

what’s your favourite soda? I don’t really drink soda but if i do it’s usually root beer

do you go in a fast food place or just hit the drive-thru? almost always drive thru

who’s the last person you talked to? my sister

favorite cut of beef? I have no preference

last song you listened to? lonely by palaye royale

last book you read? ooof it’s been awhile since i’ve really read a book, do textbooks count?

favorite day of the week? my favorite day of the week usually varies based on when my current favorite show airs a new episode so right now it’s fridays for clone wars lmao

can you say the alphabet backward? yes i practiced it way too much as a kid lmao

how do you like your coffee? usually, iced with a lot of sugar

favorite pair of shoes? my slippers 

at what time do you normally go to bed? usually 3 or 4 am

at what time do you normally get up? usually between 10 and 11 am

what do you prefer, sunrise or sunsets? sunsets

how many blankets are on your bed? two

describe your kitchen plates. theyre circular and gray, very boring

do you have a favourite alcoholic beverage? I don’t drink

do you play cards? not often

what colour is your car? its blueish-purpleish but more blue

can you change a tire? no but i need to

what is your favorite province? n/a

favorite job you’ve ever had? math tutor for kids

how did you get your biggest scar? i stepped into a big pothole and fell and scraped my knee very badly, had to get stitches and still have a small scar, don’t really have any other scars so

what did you do today that made someone else happy? i guess i watched a movie with my sister to cheer her up after she failed a test today

tagging: @samecoin @wespers @florencepegh @blakelivey @padmcdala

[izzy-b-hands]

Hi Lee! How about 26, 31, 35, and 52, 54, and 82??

Hey Zee, thank you!!!! 

26. Gum or breath mints?

Mints. In fact, I have a small addiction to them, once I find ones I like a lot. There’s a particular brand that was made at Target for awhile when I was like, 14, and they were chocolate and mint and came in a wonderful old-school style tin. At any given time during that period of my life, I would have at least three to four containers of them on me because of how fast I went through them. They quit making them sadly, and I’ve never found any quite as good since. 

31. Most dangerous thing you’ve ever done?

I had to think about this one, because like, I think everyone has certain levels of danger that are understood to be the same as other people’s idea of danger, but then there’s slightly lower levels where the activities that fall into those levels can vary wildly between people. 

That said, I think it would be the stuff I’ve done to self-harm over the years. Huffing (like certain art supplies and other things, I never went so far as to have a paper bag and spray paint-I got help before things ever got that bad, thank fuck), cutting, not eating when I should have definitely been eating, and occasionally using certain meds that I did actually need for other conditions to numb myself (did you know that if Benadryl makes you really sleepy, and you wanna numb yourself to everything and sleep for a day to avoid dealing with shit and also fight back against your insomnia, you can but absolutely should not take Benadryl to make yourself sleep? Because as a teen I found that out, and I really should not have done that. Now I only use it if I accidentally ingest something I’m badly allergic to, but I always think about how I used to use it and how I can never let myself do that again.) 

That all I think is the most dangerous for me, because I also very easily get addicted to things, and so I have to work hard to break bad coping habits like all of the above. I’ve done a lot of hard work to be better now, but the specter of it is always there, so the hard work never ends to make sure that on bad days I don’t turn to any bad coping mechanisms. I’m also sure my body has been harmed by what I did, and that the older I get the more I’ll see exactly how badly I McFucked myself, which I’m not eager for but that I accept is a consequence of what I did when I was younger. It’s dangerous in a weird way, because like I’ve also done more blatantly dangerous things like gone walking outside in a really bad thunderstorm in an area where I was the tallest thing around while there was lightening going on, but the self-harm stuff wins this title for me because it was dangerous when I was doing it, but the after-effects of it can make other stuff dangerous/triggering too so now I’m just constantly Careful and Aware of certain shit.

There’s no good way to end a heavy answer like this so I’ll just say: y’all, love yourselves even when it gets difficult, if you’re struggling ask for help even when it feels like the worst most difficult thing to do ever, and please take care of yourselves. Don’t do what I did, don’t self-medicate like I did. I accept my past and the consequences of it, and I don’t sit feeling shameful over it (because that won’t solve anything), but I still really wish someone had been there at the time to go ‘hey. let’s not hurt ourselves like this. let’s get you help and get you feeling better.’ 

35. Windows or Mac? 

Windows most of the time because more shit runs on Windows, but Mac if I have to use something like Photoshop because that’s what I learned those programs on in high school, and the old dog does not want to learn new tricks. Luckily, I can’t afford a Mac or Photoshop, so I just don’t pursue that hobby anymore and stick to Windows for everything else. 

52. Caffeine? If so, what kind?

Nowadays, it’s the occasional soda and energy drink, but I used to love drinking coffee and chai tea. I’m also much better with the energy drinks in regards to having them only once in a blue moon as a treat, in part because I lived off of them in high school. Between the insomnia and trying to to be the Best Little Academic who got As all the time despite also struggling horribly with self-harm, depression, anxiety, and at that time undiagnosed Asperger’s/ASD and PTSD, I basically never slept at all. So I used energy drinks to keep going, and as a result I’m fairly sure I have accidentally started embalming myself already. Like there’s just that many chemicals left over in me from all of them that the process has begun. I could polish off those tall boy versions of them, like at least three to four in a day, more if it was publishing time for the book our creative writing class, Lit Mag, put together each year of high school, because that meant staying after school until 8 or 9 PM working on it, so those days maybe more like finishing 7 to 8 of these drinks. 

This is just turning into a ‘do as I, not as I did’ post, but it’s so true-please don’t drink that many of those. In the moment, you can taste colors and feel So Fast, but later you’ll feel like death. Don’t do that to yourself, folks. 

54. Fast food or sit down restaurant? 

Sit down, but only if I know I have enough money to tip correctly (aka having worked in customer service I feel bad being a customer myself, so I just bring tens and twenties and put down a few of those as a tip as a way of apology.) Fast food is great in a pinch, but I’m old enough now that my body hates it and makes me feel kinda gross once I eat it. 

82. What’s something you’ve always wanted to try but haven’t yet?

I’ve always wanted to swim with sharks. In a controlled, like, out there helping marine biologists do their job and assisting them sort of way. I’m not smart enough to actually be a marine biologist, but I feel confident I could be present and like, hand them things while also enjoying being around the sharks. I haven’t because A. my degree is not something that makes me eligible for even an assistant position in that field and B. I never learned how to swim, which is arguably the bigger roadblock in my going down that watery road. 

[mageskitchen]

Codex Entry; Yeast, Baking Soda, Baking Powder

So this thing is ridiculously long and silly and the grammar of it is purposefully a mess and unedited, but I tried to keep it interesting. It’s done in a style meant to be more conversational so it can seem a little erratic at times. Also, if I goofed on anything here accuracy wise, let me know so I can fix it.

I'm going to learn y'all a thing. So gather around my brilliant apprentices because Doc is gonna to talk about yeast and baking soda+baking powder in baking. How they work, the difference, and when you usually use them. I'm a huge nerd, so be ready for a touch of science in this lesson...okay, a lot of science but don't worry, I tried to keep it descriptive and interesting so that you're not reading something with a billion technical terms because I'm not here for academic elitist crap.

For simplicity, we're only going to talk about active dry yeast and not the others because it's cheap and easy to find at the store. No, really. The stuff isn't even a dollar at the grocery store and can come in packs of three.

Anyway.

So numerous types of yeast are found in food, on your skin, on plants, the air, soil, and more. These funky fungi are everywhere, but the ones used for baking are affectionately dubbed "sugar-eating fungus." Why? Because they help in fermentation in the breaking down of glucose specifically in food. Do you want CO₂ and a little alcohol? Bust out the yeast and something that has glucose in it and let these lovely lads do their thing while swimming in the perfect temperature bath. It's a ten-course meal and spa day for them, and you make their short life glorious.

But you can't just have something with sugar in it. You need lukewarm water to rehydrate them. Not hot, not cold.

Think of it like waking up. You don't want someone bursting into your room, flipping the lights on in your face and yanking the covers off to let the cold air in while shouting "get off your lazy butt and greet the day you lil fudger." It's just rude, and you'll be less inclined to do what they want. You'll scowl, grumble, maybe even throw a pillow at them, but you're not going to get up and do your thing without a fight. Or, they'll scare you so badly with their hot rage that you die of shock.

If it's too cold, like a person, they're not going to come out from under those covers, or if they do, they're going to be dragging their feet the whole way. If you use hot water, like, scalding, you're just crisping them, and then they're useless. However, if you want your bread to be less dense, you'll use cold water. Not ice water, but cold-ish.

That's what's up with yeast. You get the water too hot, and you'll damage them. Get them too cold, and they ain't coming out to play. You gotta rehydrate them gently, with some TLC. Give them just a little sugar to coax them out of their dreamless sleep. It's like that first cup of coffee in the morning.

The same thing happens with baking soda and baking powder. The pair create the same gaseous effect to make the dough rise. Just note that, in most baking recipes, outside of your basic breads, many baked goods are gonna be like, "yeah, mix that flour, salt, baking powder or baking soda; let's get crap done ASAP, y'all. Yeehaw MF."

But back to our swell lads.

The sugary substance you use for yeast doesn't have to be granulated sugar. You can use honey, maple syrup (natural), fruit juices (all juice and not processed crap) if you wish. If I'm making a loaf of bread that I want to have a lighter, sweet undertone, I'll use honey rather than regular sugar. I've never tried the syrup or juice so idk but y'all do you. Basically, so long as it has natural glucose, you should be good to go.

Oh, and note that these packets of yeast have expiration dates, but they have a decent shelf life and can last a little longer than the date.

Anyway, so as they go to town on that sweet, sweet deliciousness that you served them, they're creating the gasses CO₂ and alcohol.

You know that bad girl Gluten? Yeah, she ain't all bad. She's like a fanfiction writer who wants to smoosh her OTP together, that OTP being the dough and the gasses. She traps them in the closet after luring them in with promises of good things to work out the kinks in their relationships, and left them to sort things out for the rest of their short, uneaten lives. Things get a little heated and boom, bread's rising faster than the water of a well in a thriller movie. That's how you get the air bubbles, by the way.

So that's how yeast works.

Now let's talk about baking soda and baking powder more in-depth and how these kind ladies do their darn jobs better than you could ever hope to.

Like yeast, they create gasses that force the dough to rise with air bubbles, and their girl Gluten steps in to lend a hand by keeping things together because that's what friends are for.

So, for baking soda, she likes a little acid. She lives for that burning sensation, and that's what helps her make gasses in foods; you can use anything from juice to honey to give her, a basic pH substance, an acidic boost to get things moving because she won't do a thing without that acid. And her buddy baking powder is a mix of baking soda and an acidic substance; you can make your own at home, but that's for another day.

These ingredients won't activate without water. If you just have a powdery mix, nothing will happen. Add a little liquid to it, and you've got yourself a room full of hot air right here.

So what makes them different from yeast? They get the job done, and they get it done quickly. Yeast takes time to eat; it savors the glucose. Baking powder and baking soda ain't got time for that. They've got things to do so they prefer fast food. Because of how quickly they do things, they're saved for what people will call "quick breads," like banana bread, cornbread, etc.

A neat thing about baking powder is that it has two steps in its chemical reaction. The initial rising when the presence of a liquid activates it, and then once it's heated. This is why my muffin batter doesn't rise in the bowl but does once I toss them into the oven. Heavens above, I love banana muffins.

Baking soda can leave behind a slightly bitter taste to the food, especially because of the acidic ingredients you have to choose from, like buttermilk for instance. Like, y'all gotta make buttermilk biscuits or cookies. That very slight zip to them is the baking soda and acidic ingredient (molasses in my mom's cookies) used in the recipe.

Baking powder is milder, and you would use more basic fluids like milk. So, you'll find it in your cakes and non-buttermilk biscuits. Usually. It doesn't leave behind as much of an acidic undertone. However, it will if you use too much because there's still an acidic ingredient found in powder.

Make sure you sift/mix them and the other dry ingredients as evenly as possible so that the mixture will have an even reaction throughout the dough/batter. That's only one reason why you don't immediately mix the dry and wet ingredients together; you don't want these ladies to get a head start on their work without all of the necessary tools. Also, don't over stir or you'll beat/stir out the bubbles, which means that crap ain't rising.

A last note about baking powder, there are two types, and different recipes may call for one or the other, but it's not important at the moment.

ANYWAY, so that's baking powder+baking soda and yeast for you.

Congrats class, you somehow managed to keep up with this hot mess of a lecture and made it to the end.

[toomanysurveys9]

Do you actually think it’s gross to talk about body functions? I’ve grown pretty immune to it since becoming a parent. Would you rather sleep (zzz) alone or next to your SO? I sleep with my kids at the moment, and I enjoy that for the most part. Otherwise, I would almost rather sleep alone so I don’t have to deal with pressure to have sex all the time, which is what happens when Jacob sleeps with me. Are you trying to forget about something? Always. Have you ever sent a love letter? Yeah. Mostly when we were in high school. When you look up at the sky do you ever NOT see a plane or vapor trail? Yeah.

Have you dated someone of another race? I have not. 

Do you wear any shoes with holes because you can’t give them up? I do not. When you go out to breakfast, what do you order? Depends where we are at and my mood. But usually an egg breakfast that usually comes with bacon and toast, or pancakes and bacon. Have you ever had a job that required a uniform? In high school when I worked fast food. What’s the best compliment you’ve gotten from a boss/teacher? My last review was an 82% from a 66%, so that was awesome. What’s a weird or interesting nickname you gave someone? Cocoa Noco is what we call one of my dogs. No idea why. Is there a phrase or mantra you repeat when you are frightened? No. What are you most envious of? People with their life in order and being successful. I want that so badly. Do you have a friend with a habit that worries you? A few. But I won’t go into details. Would you rather have coffee, cocoa, tea, or soda? Depends on my mood. I go back and forth between coffee of some sort and soda though. Although this morning I did have hot cocoa. When you walk into your best friend’s room, what do you smell? I don’t know. Have you ever purposely broken something that belonged to a sibling? Not that I remember. Do you have any hipster friends? I don’t think so.. Have you ever worked at the same place as your best friend? Jacob and I both worked at McDonald’s for a minute in high school. And Kayla and I both worked for the same company, but different group homes. Do you like to visit famous people’s homes? I’ve never done that. It seems like a strange thing to do. Do you take days off from shaving when you can get away with it? Yeah. I hardly ever shave anymore.. What color do you see when you shut your eyes tight? Black. How would you react if you found out your crush had a terminal disease? That’d be my husband, and I would be absolutely devastated. I can’t even imagine.. I don’t want to. Has anyone ever baked you cookies? Yeah. What’s the lamest present you’ve ever given? I feel like the charger cord, block, mini alcohol bottles, and peanut m&ms I got Jacob for Christmas this year was pretty lame. Would you rather eat free hotdogs or pizza you pay for yourself? Pay for pizza, for sure. I”m not really a fan of hot dogs. Do you ever wear socks with holes in them? Occasionally. Is there anything hanging on your bathroom walls? Nope. If your SO agreed, would you want an open relationship? I could never do that. You’re either with me, or not. No in-betweens. Have you ever slept with three people in the same bed? When? Why? Yeah. I sleep with my two kids almost every night, and sometimes Jacob joins too. Does your family regularly eat sit down meals together? Not anymore. I really want to do better though for my kids. Who would you like to slow dance with? To what song? Jacob. I’m not too picky. There’s a few country songs that come to mind. What’s your favorite pet name someone calls you? I don’t have one. If you could talk to one species of animal what woud it be? Dog would be beneficial. What’s the largest animal you’ve ever seen in person? Elephant. It was at the zoo and circus though. Have you ever used the change counting machine at a store or mall? I have not. Would you give mouth to mouth to your dog to save its life? Of course. If you came with a warning label, what would it say? "Overthinks and gets overemotional. Proceed with caution” or “Momma of two. Don’t mess with babies.” Have you ever tried to learn a language on your own? Yeah. Where do you keep your change at home? On a shelf or maybe a piggy bank. Have you ever had a pet destroy something valuable or important? Yeah. That gets frustrating. What’s the best burger EVER? I really, really enjoyed the Bad Boy burger from Ramshackle Café here in Florida. Did you ever show up late for an important event? It’s entirely possible, although nothing specific is coming to mind.

[duncanbarker-blog]

Admit it—you came to Italy to eat. It’s certainly the reason we’ve visited the country a dozen times and can’t stay away for long.

Eating in Italy is a serious business and the locals have strict food rules. You can find some of the best food in the world in Italy, but it’s also possible to pay over the odds for a disappointing meal. Visitors (especially Americans as the food culture is vastly different from the US) are often confused by aspects of dining in Italy and end up starving at 6pm or feeling ripped off.

By following these tips you’ll be able to avoid tourist traps, eat the best food in Italy, and avoid shocking any Italians along the way.

If you are wondering what to eat in Italy, I also share my favourite Italian dishes to try while you are there. 

Buon appetito!

This post was originally published in 2012 and was updated in 2019 after many more delicious trips to Italy.

Eating in Italy Key Facts

A menu at a restaurant in Tuscany

Here are the most important things you need to know when dining in Italy. 

Italian menus are divided into the following courses:

Antipasti – Appetisers such as bruschetta (toast with toppings), grilled and marinated vegetables, and meat and cheese platters. They can be quite filling (or absolutely humungous in Puglia and Basilicata) so we always share. Antipasti are often our favourite part of the meal as they are so diverse, feature regional specialities, and are often vegetable-heavy (less so in the north).

Primi – The first course consists of pasta, gnocchi, risotto, or a hearty soup (such as minestrone). Portions aren’t huge (usually), but it can be enough for a full meal (we usually get an antipasto as well). There are hundreds of pasta shapes in Italy so learn the regional specialities for your destination. Otherwise you might not recognise pasta on the menu as it will be called something like trofie (in Liguria) or orecchiette (in Puglia). 

Secondi  – The second course is meat or fish. It is just that—a slab of meat with nothing on the side. Very occasionally a restaurant will list a vegetarian secondo like an omelette or platter of grilled vegetables, but you’re better off sticking to the antipasti and primi. 

Contorni – Side dishes such as potatoes, french fries, grilled or fried vegetables, salad, and beans. If you want your meat or fish to have anything with it, you must order it separately. Note that salad will arrive after you’ve eaten your meat, but hot vegetables will come with it. Vegetarians can also make a meal from sides. Sometimes we order a side of grilled vegetables as an antipasto if there’s nothing else on the menu we want (or feel free to have some veg after pasta).

Dolci – Desserts. The menu is usually quite simple and will include fruit, gelato, a cake or tart, and a regional speciality. The creamy coffee flavoured dessert tiramisù is one of the most common desserts all over the country.  A cheaper alternative to dessert in a restaurant is heading to a gelateria and enjoying a cone on an evening stroll. 

Caffè – It’s very common to finish your meal with un caffè (espresso). It comes after dessert, not with it. 

Ricotta tart at Il Frantoio in Puglia

Italian dishes vary widely depending on the region. You can get pizza and pasta with tomato sauce everywhere, but don’t expect to find spaghetti carbonara in Puglia—stick to local dishes instead. I share some of my favourites at the end of this post. 

Opening hours at Italian restaurants are limited. They open for lunch between 12pm and 1pm and close between 2pm and 3pm. They open again for dinner at 7.30pm or 8pm (maybe 7pm for pizzerias). Make sure you plan for this when eating out in Italy. Grocery stores (except for major supermarkets) also close in the afternoon.

Below I’ve included tips on what to do if you get hungry in the afternoon or early evening (it’s a common problem for us!).  

When Eating in Italy

Do:

Eat gelato every day. It’s that good.

Look for the signs produzione propria and artigianale in gelaterias which means that the gelato is made on-site and in the old-fashioned way with natural ingredients.

Order more than one flavour of gelato. Even if you order a small size (which is usually plenty), you can choose two flavours. My personal favourite combination is pistachio and chocolate. 

Pistachio and chocolate gelato at Bloom in Modena. Note that the pistachio is not bright green!

Take a food tour to learn more about Italian food culture and get some local restaurant tips. We learned so much and ate so well on the Eating Italy Taste of Testaccio food tour in Rome (read our Eating Italy review). They also run delicious sounding food tours in Florence. Our Taste Bologna food tour was one of our favourite things to do in Bologna. 

On our Bologna food tour we saw tortellini being made in a local pasta shop

Read Eating My Way Through Italy by Elizabeth Minchelli which explores the differences between regional cuisines. It includes personal stories as well as practical tips and restaurant recommendations. I want to do her DIY pizza tour of Naples!

Avoid restaurants near major tourist attractions. If you do choose to eat on a popular piazza like Piazza Navona in Rome, accept that you are paying for the view and not for quality food. Perhaps just have a drink instead.

Try regional specialities. Do some research before you go or ask a local. Read about our favourites in Puglia, Liguria, Sicily, Tuscany, and Piemonte. If you order a non-local dish, it will likely be disappointing. 

Cappellacci di Zucca, a type of pumpkin stuffed ravioli, is a local speciality of Ferrara.

Order un caffè (espresso) after dessert, not during the meal.

Visit bars at any time of day. They are more like cafes and are family-friendly. Stop by for a coffee, snack, soft drink, or alcoholic beverage from breakfast until late at night. They can be a good place for a sandwich if you get hungry mid-afternoon, although quality varies and some bars close in the afternoon (especially in small towns). 

Drink coffee standing at the bar (al banco) to avoid paying extra to sit down—up to four times more in touristy areas. 

Check the bar menu if you really want to sit down. It’s usually on the wall and you can see the prices for banco (standing) and tavolo (sitting). 

Eat pizza with your hands. In a pizzeria you’ll cut the pizza into slices yourself then feel free to use your hands.

Buy slices of takeaway pizza or focaccia with different toppings for a cheap snack. This is your best option if you get hungry outside the usual meal times. You usually choose how much you want and pay by weight. 

Tomato focaccia in Bari charged by weight

Stick with a primo (first course, usually pasta, risotto or soup) if you are vegetarian—a secondo (second course) is almost always meat and a primo is tasty and filling enough (and cheaper).

Cacio e pepe (cheese and pepper pasta) is a delicious Roman speciality

Order wine (or just water) with a meal—Italians only drink beer and soft drinks with pizza.

Ask for a glass of wine even if only bottles are listed on the menu. There is always the option of un bicchiere (glass) or un quarto (quarter litre) or mezzo litro (half litre) jug of house wine. The house wine is very affordable and often the same price as water—we’ve had a half litre for as low as 2 euros!

Choose your mineral water naturale (normal) or frizzante (fizzy). You’ll usually be asked this as soon as you sit down as a litre bottle is served with every meal. Unfortunately, Italians don’t drink tap water at restaurants (although it is safe to drink). 

Wine is an important part of an Italian meal

Enjoy a pre-dinner drink or aperitivo at a bar. This is usually a glass of wine or cocktail. My favourite is a Spritz made with Aperol (or Campari), prosecco, and soda water. Bars always provide a snack with your drink such as potato chips, olives, nuts, and/or focaccia. This helps keep us going until restaurants open. 

Fill up on the aperitivo buffets that some bars offer for free when you buy a drink in the early evenings (usually from around 6-8pm). If you are on a tight budget, it could even be enough for dinner, which is why it’s known as apericena. Although it’s frowned upon if you eat too much—in general it’s best to stick with one plate of food per drink. The best place for apericena is northern Italy, especially Milan and Turin. 

The classic aperitivo Spritz with access to a large vegan-friendly buffet cost €10 at Ketumbar in Rome

Buy olive oil from a farm (vineyards often make olive oil too). You’ll never go back to the supermarket stuff. To learn more about this liquid gold take an olive oil tour to a village outside Rome or stay on an olive farm—we love Masseria Il Frantoio in Puglia (read our review here).

Visit a vineyard for a wine tour and tasting. We did a fantastic wine tour in Umbria and have also enjoyed winery visits in Tuscany, Puglia, and the Barolo area of Piemonte. 

Simon hiking through the vineyards in the Barolo wine region

Try real aged balsamic vinegar. The 25-year-old stuff is like nothing you’ve tasted before. We visited a family-run acetaia in Modena on a day trip from Bologna.

Picnic. Even the simplest things taste amazing in Italy so buy some bread, cheese, olives, and fruit from an alimentari (small grocery store), market or supermarket and find a park to enjoy them in. Testaccio market in Rome is our favourite place for this.

Use an Italian phrasebook or app to help you decode the menu so you don’t have to eat in restaurants with English menus (which are usually badly translated anyway). This list of Italian restaurant phrases should also help.

Learn to cook your favourite dishes so you can recreate them at home. We enjoyed cooking classes in Puglia and Tuscany. Get Your Guide has lots of cooking classes on offer including making pasta and tiramisù in Rome, pizza in Naples, and a market and cooking experience in Florence. 

Learning to make pasta in Lecce, Puglia

Ask for the bill/check (il conto). Restaurant staff will not automatically bring it as they don’t want to rush you. It can take a while as they assume you’re not in a hurry. 

Enjoy a digestivo (after-dinner liquor) after your meal. The best ones are homemade and they can be bitter like an amaro, sweet like limoncello, or strong like grappa. If your server offers you a digestivo after you’ve received your bill, it’s on the house.

At Country House Tavernola near Vieste they brought us five icy cold bottles of homemade digestivi—fennel flower, laurel, cinnamon, almond, and prickly pear (our favourite)—and left us to help ourselves.

Don’t

Expect restaurants to be open for cena (dinner) until 7.30pm or 8pm. Typically Italians eat dinner at restaurants around 9pm (earlier in the north, later in the south). Pizzerias often open earlier at 7pm.

Feel obliged to order every course—an antipasto (starter), primo (first course), secondo (second course) with contorno (side dish), and dolce (dessert) is a lot of food. Pick and choose as you please. You could also order an antipasto or primo and then decide afterwards if you’d like to order another course.

Fave e cicoria (mashed fava beans with greens) is a typical Puglian dish

Order cappuccino after 10am. Later in the day, and especially after meals, stick with an espresso (ask for un caffè).

Expect much for breakfast. A coffee and cornetto (croissant, called brioche in northern Italy) standing at a bar is the norm. The best breakfasts we’ve had have been at family-run B&Bs like La Corte dei Pastori in stunning Matera where we were treated to a spread of bread, cakes, pastries, and fruit. You won’t find eggs or other hot breakfast dishes.

An Italian breakfast with a view at La Corte dei Pastori B&B in Matera

A typical Italian breakfast in a bar – a cornetto filled with nutella

Eat in a gelateria that has bright green mint or pistachio gelato—the ingredients won’t be natural. Towering puffy mounds are another sign that they use chemicals. If the gelato is hidden away in metal tins, it’s a good sign it will be high quality.

Go to a restaurant with a tourist menu or with someone outside encouraging you to come in.

The lovely osteria (simple restaurant) Ai Cuattru Canti in Finalborgo, Liguria. Menus in Italian only are a good sign.

Eat in a pizzeria for lunch. The best places only open in the evenings as the wood-burning pizza oven takes a long time to reach the right temperature. During the day stick with pizza by the slice (pizza al taglio) served from takeout places. 

Order peperoni pizza unless you want it topped with bell peppers. Order a salami pizza if you want it with meat. 

Ask for chicken or pineapple on your pizza. Italians consider this a travesty. 

Share a pizza—even kids have one to themselves. 

Roman style thin crust pizza at Da Remo in Rome. In Naples the pizza has a thicker crust—try them both!

Takeaway pizza al taglio is the best option for pizza at lunch. You usually choose how much you want and pay by weight. This was at Il Pizzicotto in Lecce.

Ask for oil and vinegar to dip your bread in. That’s not a real Italian thing. Bread is not served with butter either.

Eat bread with your pasta. Instead use it to fare la scarpetta (literally “make a little shoe”) and mop up the leftover sauce on your plate.

Order spaghetti bolognese. It doesn’t exist in Italy. Instead, ask for tagliatelle al ragù in its hometown Bologna if you want a meat pasta. 

Ask for parmesan on your pasta. Italians are strict about what is supposed to have cheese on it and what’s not. You’ll be offered parmesan if it’s appropriate. 

Expect fancy salad dressings. Italian dressing doesn’t exist in Italy. Instead you are provided with olive oil, vinegar, and salt to dress your own salad at the table. When the ingredients are this good, you don’t need anything more.

Expect complicated salads. If the menu says tomato salad, it will just be a plate of sliced tomatoes (maybe with basil). Again, you can get away with simplicity when the produce is fresh and flavourful. 

Be surprised if your salad turns up after your main. It’s not eaten as a side dish in Italy. 

A simple but beautiful raw zucchini salad

Be surprised by extra charges on your bill. Restaurants usually charge from €1-2.50 per person for pane e coperto (bread and cover charge) even if you don’t want the bread. It should be written on the menu. 

Feel like you have to tip. It’s optional.

Assume everywhere takes credit cards. Many restaurants are cash only. 

Expect American-style service. Restaurant staff can be a little brusque, especially in the big cities. Don’t take it personally.

Be offended if you are turned away from an empty restaurant. They will have bookings for later in the evening, and in Italy you have the table for the whole night. 

Touch produce at market stalls. Tell the vendor what you want (or point) and they will select items for you. 

Ask for food to go at restaurants. It’s not customary to get a doggy bag with leftovers. Take out isn’t common either except at pizzerias. Even coffee is rarely ordered to go. 

Rush. Meals can last hours in Italy—savour them.

Best Food in Italy: Regional Dishes to Try

If you are wondering what to eat in Italy, here are some of our favourite dishes. Remember that food in Italy is strictly local, so you won’t find most of these dishes all over the country. 

Dishes found everywhere

Pizza Margherita – Found all over the country, pizza is, of course, a must eat in Italy. It’s best in Naples but we also like the Roman style with an ultra-thin and crispy base. There are other varieties, but the Margherita is a classic for a reason. 

Parmigiana di Melanzana – One of my favourite things to eat in Italy is found mainly in the south—Puglia, Campania, and Sicily. Layers of fried eggplant are baked with cheese and tomato sauce. It’s usually in the antipasti section of the menu but sometimes it’s listed as a primo.  

Pasta al Pomodoro – Pasta served with tomato sauce is simple but so delicious when it’s done well. It won’t be listed like this on the menu; instead of pasta, it will say the local variety such as orecchiette al pomodoro in Puglia (a pasta shape which resemble little ears). 

Penne all’Arrabbiata – Short tubes of pasta with a spicy tomato sauce. It originates from Rome but is found in many places. 

Bruschetta al Pomodoro – One of our favourite starters is a simple garlic-rubbed toast topped with fresh tomato, basil and olive oil. It also comes with other toppings. 

Parmigiana di melanzana in Puglia

Lazio (Rome)

Tonnarelli Cacio e Pepe – Thick spaghetti-like pasta with pecorino romano cheese and black pepper. Oh so good! My favourite place for it is Flavio al Velavevodetto in the Testaccio neighbourhood of Rome.

Pizza Bianca – This is the type of pizza you get in squares from a bakery or takeaway place not at a sit-down pizzeria. It’s plain dough (almost like focaccia) drizzled with olive oil and sprinkled with sea salt and rosemary. Fresh out of the oven it’s divine. My favourite place for it is Antico Forno Roscioli in Rome’s historic centre.  

Pizza di Patate – Another type of delicious takeaway pizza slice features thinly sliced potatoes and no tomato sauce. Sometimes it comes with cheese. 

Pizza rossa and pizza bianca from Antico Forno Roscioli in Rome

Liguria (Genoa, Cinque Terre)

Trofie al Pesto – You can find pesto (a basil sauce) outside Liguria but it’s best in its home region. Trofie are little twists of pasta and potatoes and green beans are sometimes added to the dish. 

Pansotti alla salsa di noci – Cheese and spinach stuffed ravioli with walnut sauce.  

Antipasti misto – The mixed antipasti (appetiser) plates are superb in Liguria and can be adapted for vegetarians. They usually include torta di verdura, a local vegetable pie filled with cheese and greens or vegetables.

Focaccia – Liguria makes the best focaccia we’ve had in Italy. This olive oil bread is eaten plain or topped with olives, tomatoes, onions or other ingredients. It’s sold in bakeries and you usually pay by weight. 

Trofie al pesto

Tuscany (Florence, Siena)

Panzanella – A salad of stale bread, tomatoes, onions, basil, and sometimes cucumbers. It tastes better than it sounds!

Pappa al Pomodoro – Another use for stale bread is this tasty tomato soup. 

Ribollita – A hearty winter bean and vegetable soup (yep, there’s some stale bread in here too!).

Puglia 

Orecchiette con Cime di Rapa – Little ears pasta with turnip tops (a type of leafy green vegetable).

Purea di Fave con Cicoria – Fava bean puree with bitter greens. 

Antipasti della Casa – The house antipasti is our favourite part of the meal in Puglia. It can be an extraordinarily large array of vegetables, cheese, fried things and much more (mostly vegetarian). Only get one between two people and sometimes even then you won’t have space for a main course. 

See our detailed guide to Puglia food for many more recommendations. 

Campania (Naples, Amalfi Coast)

Don’t miss pizza in Naples!

Gnocchi alla Sorrentina – Simon’s favourite Italian dish (besides pizza). Gnocchi (potato dumplings) baked with tomato sauce, mozzarella and basil. 

Insalata Caprese – The simple salad of tomato, mozzarella and basil originates from the island of Capri.

Sicily 

Pasta alla Norma – Penne pasta in a tomato and aubergine sauce topped with ricotta salata cheese.

Busiate alla Trapanese – Long twisty pasta with a type of pesto made from tomatoes, almonds, garlic and basil. 

Pane con Panelle – Chickpea fritters in a roll is a popular street food in Palermo. 

Our Sicilian food guide has lots more ideas to try including the many sweets the island is famous for.

Emilia-Romagna (Bologna, Modena)

Emilia-Romagna has some of the best food to eat in Italy. Aside from parmesan cheese and aged balsamic vinegar, you should also try: 

Tortelloni– Pasta parcels stuffed with ricotta and herbs. Vegetarians should get the sage and butter sauce rather than the ragù. Tortellini are similar but smaller and filled with meat. 

Tortelloni and Lambrusco wine at Da Danilo in Modena

Best Places to Eat in Italy

Our favourite place to eat in Italy is Masseria Il Frantoio, an olive farm with accommodation in Puglia where we indulged in an eight-course tasting menu using produce and olive oil from the farm. It’s also our favourite place to stay in all of Italy.

Otherwise, we’ve eaten in so many amazing restaurants that it’s hard to choose favourites. When choosing where to eat in Italy you can see our restaurant recommendations by destination in these posts:

The Best Things to Do and Eat in Testaccio, Rome

Trastevere Rome Neighbourhood Guide

Things to Do and Food Tips for Bologna

The 24 Best Restaurants in Lecce, Puglia

A Day of Eating in Varenna, Lake Como

Rapallo: The Best Base for Exploring The Italian Riviera

Where to Eat in the Barolo Wine Region, Piemonte

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[i-am-very-very-tired]

March 9, 2015 8:13 PM I brush, floss, and rinse with fluoride twice daily. Why do I always get cavities? I am asking a question for which it seems science has no answer. All my life I have had a problem with cavities. Most of my family has this problem (both immediate and extended) so it seems like it has to be at least a little bit genetic. However dentists always want to interrogate me on the lifestyle factors, so I always feel like I have to bring a character witness with me to affirm: *I brush twice daily with the Sonicare toothbrush. I use Pronamel toothpaste. I know the proper "technique" for brushing. I have a subscription for new toothbrush heads so they are changed on schedule. *I use ACT fluoride rinse twice daily. I do not eat or drink for at least 30 minutes thereafter, but usually longer. *I floss with the Reach wand each evening. Like most people, if I eat something where things conspicuously get stuck in my teeth, I will floss additionally. *I drink a can of soda probably about 3 times a week. Otherwise I drink water and unsweetened herbal and black teas (the latter of which leads to a lot of staining, but that is a different issue). I don't drink juice on any kind of routine basis. *I do not smoke or drink coffee. *My diet is diverse, but skews toward Mediterranean due to my heritage. So I eat a lot of vegetables, salad, fish, pasta, etc. I also like Asian and Indian food, and will indulge in the occasional hotdog or unhealthy snack. But overall most would characterize me as a healthy eater. I do not generally eat very crunchy foods. I have been on this regimen for at least over a decade. I have always brushed my teeth and taken basic care, but at the same time have always gotten cavities. This would result in the dentist giving me The Lecture and saying, "Now, I understand you are already using an electric toothbrush, but CLEARLY it is not as good as the Sonicare otherwise you would not be getting all these cavities..." So I kept ramping up my efforts until I landed where I am, to no positive effect. Six months ago I was at the dentist. They didn't do an x-ray and said my teeth looked okay. This time, though, they did the x-ray and found that I have SEVEN cavities in between my teeth and one may need a crown. This is the worst diagnosis I have ever gotten. They said they will probably want to do x-rays on me every six months now in order to keep a track of things. This is my third dentist. I like him, but he has no compelling ideas of why this happens or how to prevent it. I was quoted $1500 to fix all the cavities (more if I do need the crown), but he mentioned that I might just need all of this work again in no time since we cannot ascertain why this continues to happen. Pretty much any time I go to the dentist they report that I have at least one or two cavities. I consider those "good" trips to the dentist. Once the dentist works his way to the bottom of the interrogation list then we get to diet, and suggestions skew towards "Well, instead of 3 cans of pop a week, how about you never drink soda again?" My diet is great in terms of my health, so if it is to the point where I have to change it just for my teeth, then who even needs teeth? It's not like I'm eating bags of Jolly Ranchers or anything crazy. I feel like they get hung up on this because there is nothing left to try. I am not sure what else to do. It seems like I must just stop using my mouth for eating and drinking and go on an intravenous diet and see what happens. As far as I can tell there are no compelling theories for this phenomenon. This latest dentist even thought of a few off the script questions to ask me (i.e. "Did you ever live anywhere else [in case the tap water there was horrible]?"). He says saliva that is intrinsically too acidic is not a possibility. Has anyone ever had this problem and come up with a miracle solution? Are there emerging scientific theories and treatments? I feel so disinclined to spend all that money for something that just seems to be a chronic condition. posted by Angel de Lune to Health & Fitness (65 answers total) 15 users marked this as a favorite Xylitol is clinically proven to reduce cavities - try sugar free gum after meals? posted by bq at 8:22 PM on March 9, 2015 A huge part of it is genetic. If you have crappy teeth, good oral hygiene will only minimise the effects of that :( posted by DarlingBri at 8:22 PM on March 9, 2015 Do you happen to be on hormonal birth control? I had constant cavity issues that resolved when I went off the pill and came back during pregnancy. My dentist at the time, a dental school professor, said it wasn't an unusual side effect of increased female hormones. Another thing that seems to have helped is that my insurance now pays for three cleanings per year instead of two. Might be worth an extra $100 per year to pay for an additional cleaning out of pocket. posted by Cecilia Rose at 8:23 PM on March 9, 2015 Man I'm sorry your dentists have been so lecturey. Here are things that have contributed to cavities in my family: 1) Genetics. My brother & sister are both genetically disposed to excess buildup (I want to say tartar buildup but I don't think that's right). Their dentist often commented on the fact that they were just plain genetically predisposed to lots of cavities, and they both have to be extra careful 2) Bad previous dental care. I had a bad dentist who did a bad job putting sealants on my teeth as a child and I got cavities under every single one. I have also gotten several cavities under existing fillings, just because they were badly done (future dentists were pissed about this). What to do: Only thing I can recommend is post-lunch brushing (or post-any meal). And get a dentist who's not a jerk. posted by brainmouse at 8:24 PM on March 9, 2015 Did you grow up in a place without flouridated water? I did and my teeth are cavity-prone. My sister, however, grew up with me and has very few cavities. Also dental technology has improved over the past decade so that dentists can see mini-cavities that didn't even show up before and they're getting more proactive about handling them sooner. So a combination of - genetics maybe - upbringing maybe - proactive dentists maybe And it may be also that you are sensitive to the dentist's questions because at some level when you're doing everything you can you just have to laugh and say "Yeah, teeth, huh?" Some dental offices are more judgey than others. posted by jessamyn at 8:24 PM on March 9, 2015 I've gotten cavities even though I brush at least twice a day and floss at least once a day (usually more). I don't smoke or drink soda. My dentist told me I'm doing the right things, and it's probably just genetic. posted by John Cohen at 8:25 PM on March 9, 2015 I agree with brainmouse. It couldn't hurt to start brushing after lunch. posted by Kevtaro at 8:27 PM on March 9, 2015 How old are you ? I had tons of cavities and such when I was younger - and level of hygiene just never seemed to matter. As I got into my 30s, I started getting problem teeth replaced with crowns and it's made a world of difference. It's expensive, so start saving now, but those man made teeth hold up way better than my natural ones ever did - and as a bonus they are nowhere near as temperature sensitive. posted by Pogo_Fuzzybutt at 8:27 PM on March 9, 2015 I got cavities until I stopped flossing and started using the water-pik things. Not a single cavity since. YMMV. posted by H. Roark at 8:36 PM on March 9, 2015 Pasta, bread, rice and other carbs will cause cavities. posted by Nevin at 8:37 PM on March 9, 2015 I am 29 years old. I have lived in Chicago my whole life so always had fluoride in the water. I went to the same dentist until I was in my 20s and they were always accusatory jerks, so the take home message was always "this will hurt and be expensive and YOU could have prevented this if only..." I then went to a different dentist who was crazy expensive, they wanted like $800 just for a consultation and told me that marks left by my long-removed braces were cavities that needed to be filled. We didn't even get as far as x-rays. Finally I went to my latest dentist who dispelled the notion that my braces marks were anything to worry about, but he did give me all of this other bad news. He did suggest that my first dentist might have given me low quality fillings, resulting in many recurrences. The thing about the "start brushing after lunch" idea is it is just another way to ramp up my efforts when it seems like it is just a teardrop in the ocean of all the changes I've already made that created no difference. It's not like that's the divide between me and people that don't get cavities. I am feeling really cynical about further lifestyle changes at this point, when I've been so compliant for years and gotten nothing out of it. posted by Angel de Lune at 8:40 PM on March 9, 2015 Do you sip your soda over a long time period? I know that a continuous wash of sugar can be hard on your teeth. This would be true of fruit juices, too. Also, carbs, like bread, that stay in contact with your teeth for a long time (as they get stuck in the crevices of your teeth) are also more like to cause cavities. Brushing more often after meals could help. posted by dawg-proud at 8:40 PM on March 9, 2015 Okay, I posted after your update, and I know you are frustrated with changes that don't seem to help, but I really recommend that you not give up. It is absolutely true that you can be genetically prone to cavities. I am sure that my mother was. However, she gave up and made the situation for her teeth so much worse, and so much more expensive. Brushing after lunch for six months and evaluating then is so much less costly than crowns and root canals. I am absolutely not preaching, I am very sympathetic, and hope you find something that works. posted by dawg-proud at 8:45 PM on March 9, 2015 Could it be an issue with saliva production/dry mouth? Has any dentist suggested daily flouride trays? I wonder if they are seeing tartar buildup in addition to cavities, which is why they're asking about lifestyle stuff. But yes, my understanding, as someone with lots of fillings, is that badly done fillings can leave places for bacteria to collect that brushing can't reach. posted by muddgirl at 8:46 PM on March 9, 2015 I DON'T floss and I don't do a fluoride rinse, but I have literally never had a cavity. Literally never! I'm 34. I grew up super poor and had pretty inconsistent dental care in the first 20-ish years of my life. Your problem (and my tremendous good fortune) is 100% genetic. I do agree that your dentist sounds like kind of a jerk. posted by kate blank at 8:47 PM on March 9, 2015 I've had similar issues with my teeth, and the culprit turned out to be a bad case of dry mouth (caused by a combination of nightly CPAP use and various prescription medications). Might be something to look into. Xylitol mints and Biotene mouth spray have helped, and I have far fewer cavities these days. posted by Vervain at 8:47 PM on March 9, 2015 Are you getting enough calcium? posted by brujita at 8:51 PM on March 9, 2015 Not sure what you mean by fluoride tray? I do rinse with the ACT fluoride rinse twice daily. This latest dentist did ask about dry mouth, but it's not really a problem I've noticed. I told him I've had sinus problems and asked if the post nasal drip could be related, but he said no. I've been told that I don't have a tartar problem, my enamel is not thin, and my gums are good. In fact it is extra infuriating because at first glance hygienists and dentists have given me compliments on how good my teeth and gums look but then when they get into it and find all the cavities they change their tune. posted by Angel de Lune at 8:51 PM on March 9, 2015 I've pretty much been you. I do most of what you already do--the Sonicare, mouthwash, etc. Two things occur to me: (a) How often do you go to your dentist for a cleaning? Because in addition to all of what you're doing, I go four times a year because I have to get the plaque/whatever cleaned off more frequently. And I've managed to go years without a cavity now. (b) GET ANOTHER DENTIST. I've seen a lot of dentists who had no effing idea what to do with me and my problem mouth, and it sounds like yours is the same way. Try to find someone else who doesn't just nag you to get another Sonicare and throws up his hands. posted by jenfullmoon at 8:55 PM on March 9, 2015 I also have genetically bad teeth and my latest hygienist strongly encouraged me to at least rinse my mouth with water after lunch. I haven't gotten up the fortitude to make it a habit yet, but I do see women brushing their teeth and rinsing with mouthwash in the bathroom after lunch. If you do start brushing midday though, keep in mind that you can't have anything acidic (e.g. soda) in the 30 minutes beforehand. That will destroy your already weak enamel. posted by serelliya at 8:55 PM on March 9, 2015 Do you/could you drink your sodas through a straw? posted by tomboko at 8:57 PM on March 9, 2015 It can definitely be genetic. I am kind of the opposite of you in that I am not very careful with my teeth at all, ate tons of sugar for most of my life, and never flossed until I was in my late twenties. I have never had a cavity at all. Same with all my genetic relatives. I think you just got unlucky, and should do what you can, and then tell your dentist to stop lecturing or you'll change practices. posted by lollusc at 9:08 PM on March 9, 2015 (Dentist practices, that is, not your tooth-brushing practices.) posted by lollusc at 9:08 PM on March 9, 2015 I don't know if I would brush any more than you already are. My mom used to be a 3-a-day brusher until the dentist pointed out it was wearing down her enamel and making her more prone to cavities. posted by schroedinger at 9:09 PM on March 9, 2015 Well I have changed dental practices at last. I am hoping since this new dentist was talking smack about my last dentist's filling capabilities that he will do a much better job and maybe this will make a difference to my life (and be worth the money). And yes, that is another reason I am skeptical about brushing more than twice daily (wearing down the enamel). My mom tried that route and was told that it was making things worse for her. She also goes in for cleanings every 3 months but still has a mouth full of crowns and cavities. However she is a chain smoker and a chain coffee drinker, so I am not sure how much comparison between us is relevant. ;) posted by Angel de Lune at 9:15 PM on March 9, 2015 Another religious brusher/flosser with terrible mouth genetics here. Sometimes it's just the luck of the draw. My teeth are actually not cavity-prone--it's that my gums just hate my teeth, and vice versa, and therefore want to die. No matter what. All of my relatives are the same. Honestly? We all just get dentures at alarmingly young ages. Full-mouth implants eventually became MORE cost-effective for my mother than the endless root canal/gum grafting/bone grafting circus that was otherwise going to be the entire rest of her life. It's still really really expensive, but I imagine that will change in the next couple of decades. posted by We put our faith in Blast Hardcheese at 9:16 PM on March 9, 2015 I'm sorta like you... If I do *All The Things* I can decrease (but not eliminate) cavities. My super nice dentist said my teeth and gums look great, some people are just prone. I'm with Jessamyn though... My siblings and husband were all exposed to fluoride as infants (oral drops, water supply) and none of them have ever had a cavity. I didn't get fluoride until I was a toddler. posted by jrobin276 at 9:19 PM on March 9, 2015 I took my three kids to the dentist today and he recommended a prescription flouride toothpaste for one of them. Maybe when you get a non-asshole dentist you could ask them about it? Also want to add to the pile that it's way more genetics than you thought. My husband takes care of his teeth so well and always gets a 'so-so' at the dentist. I have horrible, horrible, horrible habits and the same dentist says 'looks good!'. Genes. posted by 58 at 9:20 PM on March 9, 2015 Get another dentist. Ask older folks you know (50s/60s, who take care of their teeth) for recommendations. I love going to the dentist. It's like a spa treatment to me. But dentists do have to sell the services to you more than other health care providers, and one of their sales tactics is to make you feel bad about yourself. If you are left questioning your hygiene, you might not be thinking too critically about all the treatments being pushed. And I say this as a person who loves dentistry. Find a new dentist whom you trust and like. Also - all your efforts are not for nothing - you sound very kissable! Keep it up! posted by stowaway at 9:23 PM on March 9, 2015 [Hey there, Angel de Lune, just to let you know, AskMe isn't a venue for a back-and-forth discussion. You've asked your question; now people will answer, and you can mark the ones you find most helpful. Thanks.] posted by LobsterMitten at 9:30 PM on March 9, 2015 While genetics probably play a part in it, there's truth in what Nevin says above. This is an e-book, but you don't need to read it, just scroll down to the pictures of people and you'll get the idea. Keep scrolling, there's a lot of them. The basic point, though, is that eating "modern" foods, like processed carbs and sugar, is what causes dental problems. There's case after case offered as examples. If you seriously want to keep from getting cavities, why not avoid processed food for 6 months and see what happens? posted by MexicanYenta at 9:31 PM on March 9, 2015 I've never been a sweets person, I'm a bread person. Seconding bread, pasta, and other carbs, per my dentist. All those carbs stuck in you teeth until the next time you brush break down into sugars pretty quickly. posted by Room 641-A at 9:37 PM on March 9, 2015 I mentioned upthread that pasta, bread, rice and other carbs can cause cavities. Also how frequently you eat will cause cavitieisas well. If you are snacking (rather than eating 2 or 3 meals a day) you may be more prone to cavities. Brushing one's teeth and flossing kind of helps, but what you eat, and when you eat is more important. posted by Nevin at 9:48 PM on March 9, 2015 2nding brainmouse that if you had bad work done in the past, it can have a knock-on effect. A dentist might not recognize this because they're not thinking too deeply or because they're not experienced enough to have seen this pattern over a number of patients. (Or more uncharitably, they might be loathe to undermine a colleague's work/their profession.) Keep looking for a dentist; agree with getting a dentist at least in mid-career. Ask for recs. posted by cotton dress sock at 10:01 PM on March 9, 2015 Oh sorry. Seconding your current dentist also. posted by cotton dress sock at 10:06 PM on March 9, 2015 Do you have a dry mouth? Some medications will have a dry mouth as a side effect and some people just have a dry mouth naturally, but I've been told by two dentists now and a vet that a dry mouth is the #1 cause of cavities in humans and animals. I'm on high-flow oxygen and even though it's blowing into my nose and not into my mouth, it hits the inside of my mouth continously and my teeth are just about gone now; in fact, I'm getting what's left of them extracted in the next few weeks and dentures to replace them, which is not exactly thrilling me. But when I wailed to the dentist that I work SO hard to keep my teeth in good repair and they just disintegrate anyway, he said it's because of the dry mouth caused by the oxygen. And he said that many people are on meds that cause the same problem. I'm sorry - I feel your pain. posted by aryma at 10:07 PM on March 9, 2015 Oh, and I forgot to mention that GERD - acid reflux - can be a quiet source of tooth decay also. posted by aryma at 10:08 PM on March 9, 2015 My partners mom is a dental hygienist with moving up on several decades of experience. Any question like this, she'll instantly shut down the discussion saying it's just genetics and luck of the draw. Some people never get cavities and are more prone to gum disease, and some people get cavities but almost never get gum disease. It's a give and take. All the dentists she's worked with agreed with that. Two siblings can grow up in the same family, in exact the same conditions, eating the same food and everything and one will get tons of cavities and the other wont. I've seen it happen in several families, and she's seen it happen in hundreds. I've even seen it move to the sibling that constantly has problems getting really methodical and having a regimented care routine and still just having endless decay, while the other sibling stops brushing their teeth more than once a week and never has any problems despite that. I have a feeling this is one of those things like the gut bacteria-obesity link where in 20 years or less it'll have just been definitively proven. It sucks, but it really seems like for a non zero number of people you can do everything right and still just have endless problems with this. posted by emptythought at 10:37 PM on March 9, 2015 I have pretty poor oral hygiene, and only recently have brushed more often than not at night. there was a period when I would wake up from hunger in the middle of the night for a sugary snack and go back to bed without brushing. I'm pretty sure I don't have cavities. The one thing that sets me apart is that I drink a ton of water, key element: sipping throughout the day. Water neutralizes acidity to a certain extent, and drinking is like rinsing, which is a poor substitute for brushing. So, get used to drinking water and my favorite -sipping on cups of artificially sweetened tea. Hope this helps! posted by kinoeye at 10:44 PM on March 9, 2015 I hear you, this is frustrating. I have crappy teeth and take more diligent care of them than anyone I know. Now my 13-month-old daughter, who we hold down to brush her teeth every night, and who has never had juice or a bottle in her life, is getting cavities, too. It's maddening. I think it's a combination of different things: To a certain extent, cavities are subjective. In my experience, dentists with digital x-rays pick up more and earlier cavities. Some dentists are more conservative, willing to wait and see if a cavity progresses to something. Others are more aggressive and want to fill and drill everything. I drive 2 hours to see my childhood dentist, who is extremely old school and conservative and doesn't want to put in fillings if it's not absolutely necessary because that can cause problems down the line. Dental work can lead to more dental work. Fillings--both composite and amalgam--fail over time, necessitating drilling deeper to repair. Composite fillings can mess up your bite. Sometimes food gets trapped under a poorly-smoothed filling and causes decay. And any time you go in there and drill, you risk inflaming the nerve, which is how I ended up with two abscesses and two root canals right after I got fillings in teeth that had never bothered me before. This nasty asshole. S. mutans is an infectious disease. Not everyone has the right bacteria in their mouth to cause cavities in the first place. Bruxism/grinding. This is a big one for me. I've had dentists casually mention that my wear on my back teeth looked like it was from grinding but no one ever suggested that it might be the cause of my decay, which has only ever been in my molars, often over and over again in the same teeth. I recently did some research and it turns out that bruxism can cause cavities. Whoops. I don't grind my teeth to my knowledge, but I do clench and it's only recently, after a period of stress and an aching jaw, that I've realized how bad it is. Diet. You can go down a long rabbit hole of the Weston A. Price diet/holistic dentistry and curing tooth decay naturally. Vitamins K2 and D are especially important. I'm adding fermented cod liver oil and grass fed butter to my diet and my daughter's diet, because I figure it can't hurt. I've definitely been d-deficient during times in my life and apparently people who don't eat a lot of animal proteins (vegans) sometimes have worse teeth. There are things you can do for some of this: finding a conservative dentist who you trust is key, you can get a custom mouthguard off amazon for pretty cheap if you grind your teeth, you can take supplements, make dietary changes, get prescription toothpastes like gel kam and try something like mi paste to remineralize your teeth. But it's a balance, I think. I wouldn't be happy if I were going to never eat another clementine or handful of jelly beans as a snack, if I were to brush 4x a day instead of two, and I doubt it would help that much, anyway. posted by PhoBWanKenobi at 10:45 PM on March 9, 2015 Oh! Also, look into your diet. I think it's pretty conclusive that diets rich in animal fat and protein prevent cavities, while diets rich in refined carbs promote them. IIRC, they did a study on a a traditional style hunter gatherer population, and the people didn't brush their teeth yet had amazing teeth. It was only the introduction of refined carbs to these societies (including a population in Japan I think?) that coincided with cavities. posted by kinoeye at 10:49 PM on March 9, 2015 Find a dentist who trusts you about home care. Look into the hormonal issue if you are a woman; I too have chronically bad teeth and when I was pregnant I was getting cavities and infections EVERYWHERE and especially along the gumline. My hygienist said this is absolutely typical for pregnant woman who I guess get all kinds of swelling and for some people this causes serious problems. Get cleanings every 3 months instead of 6. You're doing enough. Keep at it. A lot of people are like this and you're not alone. I have great home care too and every tooth in my mouth has a cavity. I've even lost a tooth. It sucks, but it's what I got. I just have to keep up with my home care and let the dentist fix what gets through the cracks. posted by annekate at 11:00 PM on March 9, 2015 Looks like they're still working on the caries vaccine, but keep your eye out for it! posted by aniola at 12:29 AM on March 10, 2015 Hello, fellow cavity sufferer. Like you, I take religious care of my teeth, and I still get cavities on a fairly frequent basis. It wasn't until I moved to the UK and talked to a private (and awesome!) dentist there that I got the following information: Cavities can be very genetic. It might have to do with the pH of you saliva or the composition of bacteria in your mouth. You can brush your teeth three times a day, floss, and not eat any sweets and still get cavities. This doesn't mean that you might as well give up, but it does mean that some people, like us, just have to be a Perfect 10 on dental hygiene if we want to keep our teeth. I use a special prescription toothpaste. If you're in the US, it's likely that your toothpaste has a lower concentration of fluoride than the average that you find in the UK. To really prevent cavities in those of us who are high risk, you have to get a super-fluorided toothpaste. I get Colgate's Duraphat 5000 (that's 5000ppm of fluoride). It's pricier than normal toothpaste, but I've been on it for a year now and I think it's kept the level of cavity decay down. I've also changed my brushing and flossing habits. I used to rinse my mouth with water after brushing, then floss, then rinse with a fluoride mouthwash. It turns out that all this rinsing was washing out all the fluoride from my toothpaste, thus making my hygienic routine useless. Nowadays I rinse first with water (to get out the chunks of food between my teeth), then I floss, then finally I brush with Duraphat. I don't rinse with anything (no more fluoride mouthwash, because the fluoride concentration is lower than that of my toothpaste) , and I try to make sure the toothpaste doesn't bubble or foam in my mouth at all when I brush. That means no wetting your toothbrush pre-brushing. I just spit out the toothpaste afterward, so I can feel a thin film of toothpaste on my teeth when I'm done. I also brush with regular toothpaste right after lunch, and floss if I feel that there is food stuck. If I can't reach a toothbrush, I chew Xylitol gum for about half and hour. I drink my coffee without sugar and artificial sweeteners, so it's just milk and coffee (the milk makes it less acidic). I don't have any soda at all, and I try to minimize snacking. Snacking without brushing is one of those things that also puts you into a higher risk category for cavities. Apparently fruits are also high acid and can cause enamel erosion, so it's recommended that you wait for 20 mins after eating fruits or drinking acidic drinks (like soda, wine and coffee) before you brush. Otherwise, you're actually brushing when your enamel is being softened by the acid, which can exacerbate your cavity-prone situation. Anyways, that's what I do, and that's what I was told. I know it seems unfair, my wife can eat and snack on whatever she wants and she's only ever had one cavity in her life, whereas I get about one per year now. Some of us just have to deal with the fact that we're naturally a higher risk category, and we have to keep up or change our routines. Maybe try a better toothpaste and changing your ritual? If you are a foamy brusher or if you rinse afterward, don't! Making those changes has made a difference in the amount of cavities I have. posted by the_wintry_mizzenmast at 2:39 AM on March 10, 2015 I hope your current dentist is less judgy and lecturey! Dentists, of all people, ought to know that whether you have perfect teeth or a mouthful of cavities has a lot to do with the luck of the genetic draw. Don't give up on finding a dentist who believes in customer service! Have you been checked for GERD/acid reflux? My dad had a lot of problems with gum disease and tooth decay, and once he got his severe GERD and ulcers treated, his teeth became much healthier too. The acid backwash in his mouth was eating away at his teeth. posted by Rosie M. Banks at 4:38 AM on March 10, 2015 I didn't notice any posts while skimming mention this... Calcium bicarbonate. A toothpaste with a decent amount added(arm & hammer maximum baking soda is what i use) will bond to the calcium in your teeth and even repair minor cavities. It's miracle stuff. Toms makes a baking soda mouth wash too. Also flourosis. This is what happens when too much flouride is put on the enamel on teeth. It actually starts to eat it away and will significantly reduce the shine of enamel and leave you prone to cavities. Google it. Also flouride was originally used after the discovery of "Texas teeth" which was caused by Calcium-Flouride. If you check the ingredients on your toothpaste and mouthwash you will see it is not this chemical compound and is either sodium flouride or the other long name one i forget. I do not doubt that flouride bonds to enamel and helps. The effectiveness of the chemicals used today in water and toothpaste i do doubt how effective they are. Also genetics is huge. Also my mom said she started taking vitamin d3 and this helped her teeth. It helps with the absorption of calcium immensely. The same as the suns Rays which also contain the true vitamin d we need for this process. 50% of organ failure is caused by calcium build up in organs caused by the lack of vitamin d.. just a side note. I do use fluoridated toothpaste and alcohol based rinses. I switch them up daily with more natural products as well, like Toms baking soda wash and neem toothpaste(sans-flouride). Please use baking soda somewhere in your regimens. Good luck with your teeth!. Flouride rinse twice a day is probably over kill with regular toothpaste use. Those little new floss tooth picks are awesome and water picks are cool too. Get the softer picks also, not the hard plastic ones. posted by bfease at 4:40 AM on March 10, 2015 Novamin is a compound that helps remineralize and rebuild enamel. It's in toothpastes in Europe but hasn't made it through for approval in the US yet. It's available imported from Europe via Amazon. I got it for my husband who is very prone to cavities and grew up just east of where you are now, along with a Sonicare he is religious about using at least once per day. He's been cavity free for a year now. We also moved to the eastern seaboard so the water etc. are different, but it might help you too. posted by bookdragoness at 6:38 AM on March 10, 2015 There is a theory espoused by Dr. Gerald Judd that there is a continuous cycle of demineralization and remineralization of teeth. He believes that the glycerine in toothpaste blocks the remineralization. He recommends brushing with soap, not toothpaste. Also, he thinks flouride is terrible. For decades I had terrible tooth sensitivity. Even though I used sensitivity toothpaste, if I ate anything acidic (fruit, pickles) I could not even brush my teeth because of the intense pain. I heard about tooth soap and after 3 weeks I can eat fruit, pickles, sauerkraut. I do not know if it would help with your cavities, but it seems like more remineralization might mean fewer cavities. I have not had any cavities in the 5 years that I have been using soap (just deteriorating existing fillings and crowns). Also, my gums seem to be getting better. This is a tooth soap I like. I like the mint and hate the clove. posted by H21 at 7:21 AM on March 10, 2015 Just wanted to offer my sympathies. I am also 29 and while I have excellent dental hygiene, I also constantly get new cavities. It's so unfair. Things I've been told to do: sip water while eating ANYTHING sweet, EVEN FRUIT. Brush after lunch. Use prescription fluoride toothpaste. Use "MI PASTE" calcium and fluoride paste. Never, ever eat sweets or drink soda. posted by Cygnet at 7:34 AM on March 10, 2015 Do you have your wisdom teeth? I have three wisdom teeth and decided not to get them removed because they all came in pretty much without a problem. I am now finding that they are causing my other teeth to move a bit, mostly closer together. I eat healthy and while I haven't always been the best about flossing, I never developed a cavity until my wisdom teeth came in. My dentist, whom I trust and who has not led me astray before, says the cavities are caused by my teeth cracking due to the pressure of the wisdom teeth shoving them around. posted by Urban Winter at 7:49 AM on March 10, 2015 I also sympathize. Things that have reduced my cavity train from 5 in a visit to 1 in 10 years: - bite guard for night - I have a custom one because it's more comfortable to me, but a cheapo one you kind of mold to your mouth works, too - very, very little soda - very little fruit outside of meals - lots of water - prescription toothpaste - this has worked better than act fluoride rinse did posted by Ms Vegetable at 7:55 AM on March 10, 2015 Here's how to choose a dentist: are there big, glossy ads for them all over town/TV with headshots showing their perfect white teeth and taglines like "We're in the SMILES business!"...? They are not your dentist. When you go in does the lobby look like a set in a Kubrick film? They are not your dentist. Do they discover that they need to do another crown every single time you go in there? THEY ARE NOT YOUR DENTIST. I lost one tooth to a crown-happy freakshow like this and fled after she discovered another molar in dire need of crowning. Never again. This was like five years ago and the needful molar is still in my head, unmolested, because I switched to university faculty practice. They operate out of a secret lair deep in the dental school that nobody knows about. They don't advertise. They don't have a massive office staff that gives you an appointment card and then mails out reminders--you have to remember, yourself, because they aren't paying anybody to remember for you. The lobby is a room with some unassuming lobby chairs in it and a poster or two from 1986 and 10-year-old carpet. They don't need to flog teethwhitening or do unnecessary crowns in order to pay for billboards. Consequently, I spend a whole lot less money, I have many more of the teeth I was born with, and my dentists are the same people teaching dentistry to the next crop of dentists to come out of the school, so I'm pretty sure they're on top of any new dentistry developments. If you don't happen to live in a community with a big university dental school, visit several dentists before you let anybody drill. Find the most conservative one in town. posted by Don Pepino at 7:56 AM on March 10, 2015 Adding my sympathies. Nthing perhaps it is genetic. I have never had a cavity at 46 years old. Believe me, it's not super oral care -- sure I brush (with a regular brush) and floss (most of the time) but I am not super careful about it. My dentist has told me I am just lucky and it's my genetics. (I do have a major crown -- since I chipped a tooth in half -- so not super lucky.) My partner -- who is a much better flosser -- and uses a Sonicare all the time -- gets cavities. posted by Lescha at 7:59 AM on March 10, 2015 Happens to me too. I have soft teeth, always have, always will. I do all those things you talk about. posted by Jewel98 at 8:46 AM on March 10, 2015 nth-ing genetics. Not your fault. Also, another vote here for MI Paste Plus fluoridated toothpaste. It's like a mini-fluoride treatment at every brushing, plus correctly balanced bio-available calcium/phosphate for your tooth enamel. It's been incredibly helpful to me, I get it from my dentist. Even available on Amazon. posted by k8oglyph at 9:06 AM on March 10, 2015 My sister and I never, ever got cavities but my little brother gets them all the time. Our dentist guessed that it was because he had had a fever at some certain age when he was a baby (my mom confirmed.). Apparently a badly timed fever can spoil your enamel for life. posted by BusyBusyBusy at 9:28 AM on March 10, 2015 oh man, seconding Don Pepino's advice on choosing a dentist. I tend to go to dentists whose degrees are from impressive programs but whose offices are, like, a couple of rooms above a CVS. Sure, I'm still probably paying for the dentist's boat, or their kids' college funds, but somehow those don't necessitate the high-intervention hard sell that recurring ad costs and skyrocketing rent seem to. The first thing I say to any dentist: I have never had cosmetic dentistry, and I don't want it; I just want my teeth to chew food and not hurt. If they seem even the slightest bit grumpy about that, I bail. My current dentist and I joke about how we both grew up poor, and she readily admits that while she does a lot of adult braces, they would likely be a pointless intervention at my age (whereas every. other. dentist. I've been to has tried to sell me on cosmetic braces). I don't even think she does veneers or any of that stuff. And my teeth and gums are doing better under her care than they ever have before...not least because I actually GO to see her. posted by We put our faith in Blast Hardcheese at 10:05 AM on March 10, 2015 I haven't had a chance to read all of the responses, but I wanted to suggest something that has completely changed my life (well, my dental life anyway): the gum stimulator. My dentist gave me one of these about a year ago, to clean a specific section of one of my molars where there was some recession (and therefore a tiny hole that food was getting into). After a few weeks, I started using it after flossing/brushing to gently wipe along the gum line of all my teeth. My dentist hadn't suggested this use, but I just started doing it one day. I couldn't believe how much thick sticky clear gunk was coming up as I used it. I just run the tap and rinse this stuff off of the stimulator after it accumulates a bit on the tip. At any rate, when I went for my first dental cleaning after starting this regimen, the hygienist couldn't believe how clean my teeth were. I guess using this thing before your plaque hardens makes a huge difference. I didn't really have a problem with cavities before, but there used to be a bunch of hardened plaque for the hygienist to clean off..... now there is hardly anything. So it could help you if you tried using it. It usually only takes me about 2-3 minutes extra in the evening. I actually find it really satisfying to get all that gross stuff off my teeth. I thought I was getting my teeth clean before, since I floss and brush properly every night. But I was surprised at how much gunk is still left on the teeth afterwards. posted by barnoley at 10:36 AM on March 10, 2015 Some ideas. Do you have sinus problems or mouth breath when you sleep? Your mouth drying out at night can increase cavities? Do you grind your teeth at all? Are you sure? I would have sworn black & blue I didn't tooth grind but it turns out when I'm stressed I do in my sleep. While it hasn't done huge direct amounts of damage with direct grinding wear and tear it does weaken/crack the enamel so I am more prone to cavities. You can get at home fluoride treatments & also sealers put on your teeth which may help. posted by wwax at 10:41 AM on March 10, 2015 Has anyone mentioned Sjogren's Syndrome to you, yet? It's a not exactly rare autoimmune disease in young women (Venus Williams has it) -- your body attacks moisture producing glands, usually saliva and tears are what people notice (in my case I didn't feel like I had a dry mouth but my saliva had turned acidic). The road to my diagnosis was bumpy because of shaming about oral health care. I went from having no cavities at age 27 to what my dentist called (not to my face!) "meth mouth" at 28. It was totally insane; my teeth began sort of slow motion crumbling and my dentist just smirked and smirked and smirked. I only got to the root of the problem when I went to my rheumatologist (MD). They do blood tests and salivary gland biopsies to diagnose this. The Sjogren's Foundation has a list of friendly dentists available via their hotline - I bet that would be a resource to you regardless. Those dentists tend to be health focused. What helps Sjogren's people is toothpaste, mouth wash and artificial saliva for dry mouth (dentist words: Xerostemia or Sicca Syndrome -- but don't quote me on that). Plus deep (periodontal) cleanings every three months. Lately I've been going in ~once a week to try to stay ahead, after avoiding stuff for a long time. I hope this isn't your problem but a nurse telling me about it probably saved my teeth! posted by sweltering at 11:16 AM on March 10, 2015 I would also like to suggest xylitol. It actually inhibits bacteria growth by staving it, which cuts down on plaque. When I use it regularly it keeps my mouth feeling so much cleaner. I use a toothpaste with xylitol and fluoride and eat xylitol mints after meals. Sometimes I also add a tablespoon of granulated xylitol to a big jug of water which I drink through out the day. 6-10 grams per day is the suggested amount for dental uses. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Xylitol#Dental_care posted by Shanda at 11:28 AM on March 10, 2015 Oh and there are absolutely medications to help! I take Salagen which does exactly what it sounds like. My now-dentist is really impressed by how it's improved my dry mouth as well as keeping the saliva better balanced. The first week you drool but this is a small tradeoff. I have been told it works for anybody with dry mouth, saliva not right somehow or Sjogren's. I know there are two others but they interact with my medications somehow undesirable. I'd really suggest going to an MD, re: sicca syndrome, dry mouth (xerostemia - Also? I denied that my eyes were dry when they tested me for that and it turned out I had no tear production) or Sjogren's. Mine got so bad I got a jaw infection and lost three teeth. Don't be avoidant like me. This could be your whole system. Oh, and the oral surgeon I ended up with, a specialist in these things, was able to bill my medical insurance because it was systemic. That was huge and I got better care. posted by sweltering at 11:33 AM on March 10, 2015 Have you tried drinking more water? Since I was a baby, I've always required much more than average drinking water, which in turn keeps my teeth strong. Drinking more water keeps the saliva flowing, and saliva has calcium and other minerals that keep teeth strong. Can't hurt to try. Keep a water bottle next to you and make sure you are sipping it in addition to your normal liquid consumption. posted by Neekee at 12:50 PM on March 10, 2015 Just nthing what emptythought said - my sister and I grew up in the same household, eating the same things, brushing/flossing/mouthwashing consistently, and I've never had a cavity in my life. She came back from the dentist two weeks ago with twelve cavities. That's the worst it's ever gotten for her, but she almost always has at least one cavity if not several at her six month dental check ups. She and I both also have issues with drymouth, due to medications we take. And we both use drymouth-specific dental hygiene products to combat it. So, no guarantee that even if you have dry mouth (as an explanation for the continued cavities) it can be 100% resolved with something like Biotene or Therabreath. My recommendation would be, if you can afford it or if you have dental insurance that covers it, go to the dentist 3 times a year. My dentist has recommended this for me and has said it really should be the standard of care. In addition to everything else you're doing, a little extra monitoring from the dentist may go the distance in keeping this at bay. (Oh, and shop around for another dentist, of course, because yours sounds a little too judgmental - and unhelpful - to be seeing three times a year!). posted by nightrecordings at 7:31 PM on March 10, 2015 Mostly here to sympathize. I have excellent teeth but my gums have been inexplicably melting away for the past decade, starting in my mid-30s. So I may eventually have no teeth anyway. My dentist extolls the virtues of the proxibrush, which is part of my daily routine along with flossing, of course, and the sonicare (sensitive brush!) I also use the MI Paste mentioned above, as recommended by my dentist and periodontist. And the Pronamel, not the whitening kind of course. Waterpik with salt water to rinse. My bedtime brushing routine takes about 20 minutes, morning is faster, just brushing and waterpik. I go for professional cleanings every three months. Good diet, I exercise, I'm in good shape. Your basic boring healthy lifestyle. This is keeping my gums healthy-ish for the moment, though the recession marches on and the gaps between my teeth are pretty horrendous. I, like you, spent lots of time feeling really bad and judged and like I wasn't doing anything right. No one in my family but me has these shitty gums. But at this point, after almost a decade where I have never once missed a day flossing or brushing, where I have semi-routine scaling and root planing and I've experienced the delights of gum grafts I have mostly given up and realized that if my teeth fall out I've done all I can. I'll probably be happy to move on to dentures even at a relatively young age. You can only do so much. Hang in there. posted by Cuke at 7:42 PM on March 10, 2015

[tessaractwasp]

The REAL Truth About ADHD: An Open Letter to Nicole Arbour

Hi, Nicole.

I’m Tessa. I am 19 years old- that’s right, a legally full-grown adult, old enough to make my own doctor’s appointments, pay for my own medications with the money that I make from my very own job, and make my own decisions about said medications and doctor’s appointments (which I kind of have a lot of).

Here’s the thing. I have ADHD. Attention Deficit/Hyperactive Disorder. Me. The full-grown adult (in the eyes of the law at least, but probably not to you if I had to guess). The person who has never had an entire cup of coffee in her life. The person who hasn’t had soda since she lived at home full-time and it was the cheapest drink at the grocery store so it was what my family bought. The person who had to have a lot of junk food growing up because it was what we could afford since, you know, fresh fruits and vegetables or whatever you might approve of are pretty damn expensive. But also the person who has since been eating much healthier since she’s been at college where the food- the fruits, the vegetables, the almond milk, the vegetarian options- is provided to her for free under her meal plan.

I was diagnosed about 2 weeks or so before my 19th birthday. I was a freshman in college, midway through my second semester, and was having a decidedly difficult time. I had managed to make Dean’s List first semester (I have yet to find out if I made it second semester), but that didn’t stop me from calling my parents at 11 or 12 at night, crying because I couldn’t do the reading for my class. I couldn’t do any of them. We had one or two readings each night, and I hadn’t done any. Not for lack of trying, I just couldn’t do it. I would sit down, and an hour later, was still on the first page. So I tried removing all distractions- I hid away my phone and my computer, cleared my desk, and removed all distracting sounds from the area. But still, I couldn’t get through it. I would read the same few sentences over and over again, but it was like my eyes were reading it but my mind wasn’t. I just couldn’t remember what I’d read. So I tried listening to music. Listening to music without lyrics. Listening to music I’d never heard. Listening to soft sounds of the beach or the forest or a city. I tried listening to nothing. I tried highlighting and not, annotating and not, reading out loud and not. But still, it would take me an hour to read a single page. I would go and discuss my difficulties with my professor almost once a week, trying to come up with strategies to finish these readings. They weren’t particularly long, by college standards- they were usually under 25 pages. But still, nothing helped.

So I would tear my room to shreds, tearing and throwing papers, throwing my books and my folders and my notebooks around, ripping my hair out, hitting myself, and just crying because I hated myself. I hated myself, because this wasn’t hard, but I couldn’t do it anyway. I hated myself because I was sure that I would fail every quiz and every exam that was thrown our way because I wouldn’t know anything since I hadn’t done any of the readings. I would punish myself because I thought that it was my fault, that I just wasn’t trying hard enough, that I just didn’t care enough, even though my efforts would prove otherwise.

Then, one day someone asked me, have you ever been tested for ADD? And I started thinking about it. I hadn’t ever been tested. But two of my brothers had ADHD, and I didn’t act anything like them. In fact, most of the time, I couldn’t stand them and many of their behaviors. I was never really hyperactive. As a child, I was stubborn and a pain in my parents’ necks, I never acted out or misbehaved in school, I got As and Bs. But I still had ADHD. Because ADHD doesn’t just mean a hyperactive child, because, yeah, those are common. But in fact, there are a few different kinds of ADHD. And I just happen to have Inattentive-Type ADHD- one that is more common in girls than in boys, too. So I wasn’t just daydreaming when I got distracted in class. I wasn’t just overreacting when I couldn’t accomplish a small, menial task. It wasn’t my fault that I got bored quickly and easily, that I was insanely disorganized, or that it took me more explanations and more tries to learn to do something than it ought to.

And so the more I thought about it, the more it made sense. I couldn’t do the readings, because I’d be sitting there trying to read, but all of a sudden I was thinking about what my brother said two years ago, or what my friends were doing then, or what other assignments I had to do, or what was going on outside, or what dresses I had in my closet, or where I had put my book, or who else throughout history was born on my birthday. I could never remember where I placed anything- on multiple occasions I had lost my phone and searched up and down campus for it when it was in my purse the entire time. I was always fidgeting in my seat, changing positions over and over and over again even in short 50 minute classes. I started thinking back, too. In high school, I never did the readings for some of my English classes, either. I convinced myself it was because they were boring, because I didn’t want to, because I didn’t care enough, but I realized it was because I couldn’t and since I knew I couldn’t I then wouldn’t want to. I would try to sit down and read the first few chapters, but a single page would take me 45 minutes. So I just wouldn’t do it. I hadn’t been able to finish my English midterm my freshman year in high school not because I was tired or hadn’t studied enough- I knew the material perfectly. I just couldn’t concentrate in the silent room, and instead fixated on the poster across the room or the outlet on the wall to my right. In 6th grade, when we took the placement test for math for 7th grade I got placed in the lower math class because I hadn’t been able to finish the test. I told everyone it was because the boys in the classroom were being loud, but I knew that wasn’t it. I was just too embarrassed to admit I just hadn’t been able to finish it. And it certainly wasn’t because I wasn’t good at math- I was in the advanced 6th grade math, and finished that lower level of 7th grade math with a 99 overall average.

And so, I talked to my parents about it. We made an appointment with a psychologist. We went out to the appointment together. And, for most of the appointment, I talked to the psychologist by myself. Since I was an adult, and not only was I able to, but I was legally obligated to make my own decisions on the matter.

But here’s the other thing. I also have Crohn’s disease. So when that psychologist wanted to prescribe me with a stimulant, which is proven to have an opposite effect in those diagnosed with ADHD as in those without, I told her I would have to get back to her since a stimulant could be bad for my Crohn’s disease. And because of my Crohn’s disease, guess what. I am on 5 prescription drugs. Every morning, I take Hyoscyamine so I don’t feel like I’m going to vomit every time I take a bite, and that way I can actually finish an entire meal instead of being dangerously underweight from avoiding food. Every morning I take a prescription strength Omeprazole so acid doesn’t burn another hole in my esophagus for no reason, like it already has once before. Every night I take Junel Fe, a birth control, not because I am having sex and need birth control, but because the hormones control my period which in turn guarantees that I won’t have a severe flare-up where I’m trapped in the bathroom for 3 days before and all 7 days of my period having severe diarrhea and cramping so bad I have to stay home from school and work the entire time. Every night, I take Indomethacin so I don’t have migraines so bad that I have to stay in my room all day in silence, with the blinds shut and the lights off because my head hurts so badly I can’t walk. I very frequently take prescription steroids so that I can stop vomiting and go to class, instead of continuing to vomit for hours.

So, yeah, I was taking 5 prescription drugs when they prescribed me another one. But those drugs help me be as functional as you are.

Since I was diagnosed with ADHD, guess what else. I haven’t torn my room apart, haven’t ripped papers to shreds or hair out of my head in fistfulls, haven’t cried for hours because I couldn’t do a simple 20 page reading, haven’t physically harmed myself because it should be easy but it wasn’t. In fact, since I started that ADHD medication, I’ve been able to sit down and finish a reading in one go. I sat down and finished one reading in 45 minutes instead of spending 2 days on it, getting nowhere, and giving up. And I finished a reading several times. Because I could do it now. I could sit down and concentrate.

Nicole, ADHD doesn’t mean hyperactive child that acts out in school. ADHD means I, the 19 year-old adult who lives away from home full-time and makes her own legal and health decisions, just don’t work the same way you do. And I just need one more prescription drug to help me be as functional as you are. You said in one of your videos that you’ve had chronic pain. That you’ve been clinically depressed. You would think this would make you more receptive to this issue, to taking medications just so you can function, just so you can get through the day. So please, when you try to tell the world that “ADD and ADHD are not real things,” try to take the whole picture into consideration.

Sincerely,

Tessa

[lovemesomesurveys]

Do you have the boobs to work at Hooters? Nope.

What time did you go to bed last night, what time did you wake up? I fell asleep around 2, I think. I woke up at 7, but fell back asleep until 9.

Are you an obsessive hand washer? No.

Do you feel more comfortable with a male or female doctor/nurse? Female.

Do you miss anyone? Yes, a few someones. 

Are you in a good mood? I’m eh.

Is there anyone getting on your nerves at the moment? No.

Does anyone hate you? Not that I’m aware of.

Are you wearing a ring, if so who gave it to you? No.

Have you ever walked on the beach at night? No, actually. I would like to.

When was the last time you talked to your best friend? I always go back and forth now about whether I even have a best friend anymore.

What was your last thought before you went to bed last night? I don’t even remember, I was so tired.

Is anyone else in the room with you? No.

Do you have any siblings? I have two brothers.

When you say you don’t care, do you mean it? Very rarely.

Have you ever had the cops called on you? No.

Do you want any children? I don’t know. I’m not thinking about that at this point in my life.

Do you have an older brothers? I have one older brother.

Was a person the reason you last cried? No.

Are you wearing something grey? I am, actually. I’m wearing a gray hoodie.

What is your current profile song? I don’t have a song on my profile.

Would you rather read minds or see the future? Gahh. I kind of think reading minds would be useful, but also I don’t think I really want to know what some people are thinking. That opens up a door to what they’re thinking about you, and I already think people think badly of me. I wouldn’t want it to be confirmed and know it’s true. I’m also scared of the future, and what it holds for me. Soo.

Is your hair longer than your shoulders? Yeahh. It’s past my ribs, just about touching my lap.

What did you have for dinner last night? Chicken tenders and homemade Chick-Fil-A sauce. lol.

If you could be anywhere right now, where would you be? I don’t know.

How has your day been so far? Eh.

Do you have any weekend plans? Nope.

Are you wearing matching socks? Yes.

What genre of music are you listening to? I’m not listening to music.

Have you ever traveled out of your country? Once.

Do you drink at least eight glasses of water a day? Haaaaaa, no. I get at least two glasses in a day, sometimes three. I tried to aim for four, but it doesn’t usually happen. That’s about it. I drink coffee twice a day, and that has water. Also, so does soda. Hahah. In all seriousness, that whole eight glasses a day thing is debated. It certainly doesn’t hurt, and if you can drink that much then go for it. I know people drink like liters of water a day. I don’t know how ya do it, but hey that’s great. It’s good that I drink the amount I do drink cause I really don’t care for water, and I just drink it out of necessity. It works for me. I used to not drink it at all some days. My other issue is that I take a long time to finish a drink. I’ve never been one who could chug or drink anything fast. So, there’s just not enough time in the day to get any more in than that. lol. We also get some water from the foods we eat and other drinks we have as well. So, unless you’re not eating or drinking at all, then you’re probably okay. Get as much as you can, but don’t worry if you don’t get eight.

Do you know any Spanish? Some.

Have you ever highlighted your hair? Yeah, I did that for years.

Do you like to go skiing? I’ve never been. I don’t know how that would work for me.

Do you like your school? I love my Alma Mater.

Do you watch any reality shows? I watch a lot of reality shows.

Do you live near a Taco Bueno? We don’t have that here. I live near a Taco Bell, though.

Would you rather wash dishes or dust furniture? Neither.

Do you know how to read music? I used to be able to a little when I took piano. I couldn’t now.

Can you write well in cursive? No. My handwriting sucks, and my cursive is worse. My signature is so ew.

Have you ever written and sent out a letter? Yeah.

If someone of importance checked your profile, would you be embarrassed? Which profile? I’ll go with Tumblr since that’s what I’m on. I showed Ty my blog once and yeah, I was embarrassed. I’m like, if you care to see a ton of photos of Alexander Skarsgård then go for it. Hahah. I definitely didn’t show him this one because I share a lot on here, and I talk about him a lot. I would die if he saw my surveys. These are like my diary entries. I did show him a post I wrote about him on my main blog, though. I don’t know why. I was so nervous about it, but it said things about how I felt and it was easier to show him that than say it. I was dying the whole time, though.

How many pets do you have? Zero.

Has anyone ever told you “forever”? No.

Can you cook or bake well? Nope.

Do you want to visit Paris, France? Most definitely.

[nintendo-666]

killing time while I wait for my bf with a questionnaire I rememeber doing back in like middle school lol

1. Would you have sex with the last person you text messaged? My phone has been dead all day and therefore I cannot recall whom I have texted most recently. 2. You talked to an ex today, correct? Ye me and Dylan still talk most days, he’s like my bff 3. Have you taken someones virginity? lol yeah. like too many times. idk I became sexually active really early in life so yeaaa. 4. Is trust a big issue for you? Yes actually. Which you wouldn’t expect because I overshare so much but ye. 5. Did you hang out with the person you like recently? The love of my life visits me for his lunch breaks every day that he’s working and I’m not so yeah I saw him a few hours ago c: 6. What are you excited for? Doing some more xtc and doing a d with my baby tonight. 7. What happened tonight? Nothing yet tonight, but last night I also rolled pretty hard and stayed up too late lel 8. Do you think it’s disgusting when girls get really wasted? Fuck no. Let girls do whatever they want, let people live their lives, drinking is fun, stop being judgmental. 9. Is confidence cute? This is a very insecure and weird question to ask. I don’t think a person’s cuteness is defined by their like self esteem and social skills. 10. What is the last beverage you had? I’m drinking a fruit punch rn!! 11. How many people of the opposite sex do you fully trust? I don’t have an opposite sex and I don’t trust a lot of people. 12. Do you own a pair of skinny jeans? lol I only have one pair of pants that are not skinny jeans. 13. What are you gonna do Saturday night? ooh that’s tonight! so yeah my night plans are the same, except now I’m also gonna check out kk slider on my new save file on acnl. 14. What are you going to spend money on next? electric bill lol 15. Are you going out with the last person you kissed? Yes!!! <3 <3 <3 <3 16. Do you think you’ll change in the next 3 months? I mean I’ve been growing up a lot lately so I’m hoping that’ll continue. 17. Who do you feel most comfortable talking to about anything? uhhh Gary, Dylan, or my Mum 18. The last time you felt broken? pretty much constantly tbqh 19. Have you had sex today? Ugh no I had multiple surgeries on my reproductive organs in the last two weeks so like I’m not supposed to have anything happening down there for some days or weeks still. tragic. 20. Are you starting to realize anything? That’s so 2016 21. Are you in a good mood? Yeah I suppose! 22. Would you ever want to swim with sharks? YES 23. Are your eyes the same color as your dad’s? Nah. Somehow his eyes are brown and my penetratingly bright blues powered through them dominant genes. 24. What do you want right this second? Status report of my night lol 25. What would you say if the person you love/like kissed another girl/boy? :^///// 26. Is your current hair color your natural hair color? Nope, never again. 27. Would you be able to date someone who doesn’t make you laugh? Oh absolutely not 28. What was the last thing that made you laugh? I cannot remember :o 29. Do you really, truly miss someone right now? Yeah dude I miss all my friends in different states and countries pretty badly. Mainly my Massachusetts bff Jamie and my dad. 30. Does everyone deserve a second chance? Not everyone. 31. Honestly, do you hate the last boy you were talking to? Lol yeah but I also love that lil shit 32. Does the person you have feelings for right now, know you do? Yep! 33. Are you one of those people who never drinks soda? Oh god no way I drink it at every opportunity. I love soda. 34. Listening to? Bob’s Burgers is on in the background 35. Do you ever write in pencil anymore? I mean not really. 36. Do you know where the last person you kissed is? Yeee 37. Do you believe in love at first sight? No. However sometimes you can immediately be attracted to someone, and you just so happen to also have very compatible personalities and this develop feelings for one another quite quickly. 38. Who did you last call? da boifwend 39. Who was the last person you danced with? Oh god I have no idea. #toocooltodance 40. Why did you kiss the last person you kissed? Because I’m in love with him and his lips make me happy. 41. When was the last time you ate a cupcake? Uuuuuhhhhhh whenever the superbowl was? 42. Did you hug/kiss one of your parents today? No :c I don’t see them like all the time these days. Which is a TRAVESTY. 43. Ever embarrass yourself in front of a crush? Oh constantly. I’m in an endless state of crippling embarrassment. And combine that with my very obvious social anxiety and mild clumsiness, I’m always doing things that are impossible to live down in front of people I very much like. 44. Do you tan in the nude? I do not tan under any circumstances. 45. If you could, would you take back your last kiss? Hell no. 46. Did you talk to someone until you fell asleep last night? uhh yes and no. We basically talk until we decide we’re too tired, then quietly cuddle to sleep. 47. Who was the last person to call you? I haven’t the slightest. Probably my insurance or something boring like that. 48. Do you sing in the shower? Yeah dude I’m a superstar in there 49. Do you dance in the car? YEAH DUDE I’m a superstar in there 50. Ever used a bow and arrow? Tragically, no. 51. Last time you got a portrait taken by a photographer? I have no idea. I do casual photoshoots with pro photographer friends kind of a lot. 52. Do you think musicals are cheesy? Fuck no I love musicals. 53. Is Christmas stressful? Only if you let it be. 54. Ever eat a pierogi? This question has always perplexed me. But yeah. Just the cheese and potato ones tho. 55. Favorite type of fruit pie? I mean like I want to say raspberry or strawberry, but they always end up too acidic. So I guess like apple, cause it’s always sweet and hard to fuck up. 56. Occupations you wanted to be when you were a kid? Astronaut, actor. 57. Do you believe in ghosts? It sucks like I can’t reasonably justify the belief with everything else that I think and feel, but the thought of ghosts is just so fun, you know? 58. Ever have a Deja-vu feeling? Yeah it’s so weird I dun like it 59. Take a vitamin daily? Nope 60. Wear slippers? I don’t think I own any 61. Wear a bath robe? Sometimes Gary drapes his across me in the mornings if I get cold. 62. What do you wear to bed? naked when I’m with Gary, shirt and underwear while I’m alone. 63. First concert? I saw Say Anything with two of my friends in middle school!! 64. Wal-Mart, Target or Kmart? Target fosho but Wal-Mart for food and sometimes Kmart is best for clothes shockingly. 65. Nike or Adidas? I really don’t care 66. Cheetos Or Fritos? Cheetos all day, Fritos are gross. 67. Peanuts or Sunflower seeds? Peanuts are way more fun 68. Favorite Taylor Swift song? Ugh 69. Ever take dance lessons? I did Irish Dance briefly as a small child. 70. Is there a profession you picture your future spouse doing? I want my spouse to do whatever makes them happiest. However I do sincerely want to be with Gary forever and I know he’s very good at his passion, which is recording and audio mixing and stuff for bands. Also his drumming skills are insane. 71. Can you curl your tongue? I’ve never met a human being who cannot and also it has nothing to do with kissing skills so who cares? 72. Ever won a spelling bee? UGH NO I came in like 3rd place because I had to pee really bad and I misheard the word. 73. Have you ever cried because you were so happy? Mhmm 74. What is your favorite book? I really don’t like reading, man :/ I got a focus issue. It’s really sad actually. 75. Do you study better with or without music? I don’t studyyy 76. Regularly burn incense? Yeah c: 77. Ever been in love? Yeah, a few times. 78. Who would you like to see in concert? I just need to see Marilyn Manson again. 79. What was the last concert you saw? Marilyn Manson in Boston lol 80. Hot tea or cold tea? idk both are great, it really depends on the mood. 81. Tea or coffee? generally coffee for effectiveness, but tea for enjoyability. 82. Favorite type of cookie? I don’t too much care for cookies, but oatmeal raisin soft cookies are pretty tolerable. 83. Can you swim well? Yeah dude I grew up in Florida. 84. Can you hold your breath without holding your nose? I actually really struggle with it lmao 85. Are you patient? Not at all man 86. DJ or band, at a wedding? Ohhhh that’s a tough one. I feel like both would be cool. They’re just so vastly different, you know? 87. Ever won a contest? omg yeah recently I won a $600 Epiphone Les Paul Custom Pro from work for signing people up for the same prize in a sweepstakes. 88. Ever have plastic surgery? Nah but I’m not against it by any means. 89. Which are better black or green olives? Green olives can go and fuck themselves 90. Opinions on sex before marriage? lol it’s so stupid not to 91. Best room for a fireplace? idk I guess like a living room or something???? 92. Do you want to get married? Yeah tbh

[sugarlinnie]

𝐆𝐞𝐭 𝐓𝐨 𝐊𝐧𝐨𝐰 𝐌𝐞

1. What is your full name?

Lai Kuanlin!

2. Do you have any nicknames that aren’t derived from your actual name?

Mommy calls me angel! And sometimes monkey!

2. Do you have any allergies?

Strawberries. :( But guess who still eats them! yummy.

4. What is the longest your hair has ever been?

It was down to below my butt once!

5. How well can you write in cursive?

:/ Gross.

6. Name one item on your bucket list.

Uhm! I really wanna go to France.

7. Have you ever been on a blind date?

I’m not blind? How could I have gone on a blind date? haha

8. What is the oldest piece of clothing you still wear and how old is it?

Uhm, five years? Maybe? It was one of the first things my mommy bought me and it’s white and really pretty!

9. How often do you eat out at a fancy restaurant?

Uhm… maybe four or five times a month? Mommy has lots and lots of clients.

10. How grammatically correct are you when you text?

lol not @ all c;

11. Can you drive stick?

...C-Can i what?

12. What foreign country would you most like to visit and why?

France! Oh, it’s so so beautiful! Mommy went once and told me all about the lovely people and the nature and the SIGHTS! She said I would love it, that there’s this quaint little cafe with the bet cupcakes. . . I want to go so so badly..

13. Nutella or peanut butter?

Nutella! Yummy!

14. At what age did you have your first kiss?

Uhm…. fifteen?

15. DC or Marvel?

Icky.

16. Have you ever hosted a wild party?

My mommy hosts some! But they’re not interesting.

17. Name/author of the last book you read cover to cover. Do you recommend it?

I read one of the Harry Potter books I think, but I don’t remember the author! I don’t really read unless it’s for class :(

18. How many of your Facebook friends do you actually hang with?

Facebook is for old people

19. Have you ever donated blood?

Yes! And it hurt really bad :( But they gave me a cookie and some juice after and the mommy convinced them to give me an extra one. And then gave me hers :)

20. From 1-10, how much do you like decorating for holidays?

13!!!!!!!

21. Coffee or tea?

Tea!

22. What is your go-to Starbucks drink?

I like the pink drink but mommy says its too sugary :(

23. Last show you binge watched?

Spongebob! I watch it a lot but not when mommy is home. She gets annoyed and good girls don’t annoy their mommies.

24. Dogs or cats?

KITTIES!

25. Favorite animated Disney character?

I like Flounder!

26. Have you ever cooked a big family meal by yourself?

My family is me and mommy so yes! I’d say so! I’m not very good at cooking though..

27. Favorite winter activity?

I like building snowmen! We do it on the building’s roof because there’s not much free land outside where we live. :(

28. Have you ever butt dialed anyone?

Have I ever what?

29. Can you blow a bubble gum bubble?

Yes! Once I blew one so big it popped and landed on mommy! She didn’t think it was very funny...

30. How early in the year do you start celebrating Christmas?

September is when I start hunting for gifts and I make mommy decorate with me right after Halloween!

31. What emoji best describes your life right now?

The heart eyes!!

32. Are you fluent in more than one language?

Yes!

33. What is the longest you’ve ever kept a New Year’s resolution?

Uh…. i’m not sure!

34. Have you ever successfully been on a diet? Did you gain any of the weight back?

Mommy says I’m perfect. And that diets are only to help people feel better about themselves. So I don’t diet.

35. Are any of your grandparents still alive?

Yes, my grandma!

36. How good are you at communicating through facial expressions?

Apparently, I’m very expressive.. Mommy calls it funny. :(

37. Have you ever gotten a commercial jingle stuck in your head?

The Geico commercials :( But mommy gets mad when i sing them all day..

38. Have you ever left a movie theater before the movie was over?

no

39. Do you consider rapping singing?

no

40. Does your home have a fireplace?

Yes! A really big and really pretty marble one!

41. Favorite non-chocolate candy?

SKITTLES!

42. If you could have only one superpower, what would you want and why?

I want to talk to animals

A lot

especially kitties

43. Have you ever locked your keys in your car?

i don’t drive !

44. Do you listen to any religious music?

no ew

45. Do you drink soda? If so, which one is your favorite?

i like dr pepper! sometimes!

46. What was your ACT score?

34!

47. Rice or quinoa?

I like rice better :(

48. From 1-10, how good of a driver do you consider yourself?

-2 i suck :(

49. Do you like horror movies?

YES I LOVE HORROR MOVIES MOMMY CALLS ME HER LITTLE SPOOK

50. How easily do you cry?

:/ very easily :/

51. Do you have any tattoos? If so, of what and where?

I have a cute little ghost tattooed on my forearm! He’s got little fangs and a cute little smile!

52. You are hanging with your closest friends. What are you most likely doing?

mhm … by closest that means bella and yukyung so probably shopping!!

53. Can you handle spicy foods? What is your spice limit?

gross no :(

54. Can you play any musical instruments? If so, which ones?

i can play the piano really well! i’ve been learning since i was little and mommy even got me a tutor for a while so i could learn to play the longer songs! i play for a little every day and when i’m sad or nervous, i write my own little melodies!

55. Are you more introverted or extroverted?

mommy thinks i’m an ambivert and i agree!! I think i’m a little of both!

56. Last CD you bought?

the red summer!

57. Do you like roller coasters?

no!!!!

58. What day of the week is laundry day for you?

mommy has the staff do our laundry.. so it varies!

59. Have you ever played spin the bottle?

noope

60. How long have you known your best friend?

eight years! I love my bella :((

61. Can you eat using chopsticks?

yes yes! mommy giggles because i don’t really do it right, but i always get more on my sticks than she does so i’m the real winner here :)

62. Do you have any stickers on your laptop computer? If so, what are they of?

yes !! i have tons! little kitties and i have a few rainbows and uhm, i think a unicorn maybe? there’s also lots n lots n lots of pink!

63. How often do you say y'all?

huh?

64. Favorite flavor of ice cream?

Chocolate! but strawberry is a close second!

65. How long was your longest relationship? Are you still with that person?

i’ve been with mommy since i was fifteen. so four years so far!

66. Star Trek or Star Wars?

neither

67. How good are you at math?

>:(

68. Have you ever acted in a play or a musical?

noooo

69. How often do you read/pay attention to your horoscope?

eh.

70. What is the shortest your hair has ever been?

my shoulders! but it was really ugly :(

71. Have you ever broken any bones?

my nose! and i broke my wrist a few months ago because i tried to be a big girl when mommy wasnt home and it didn’t go well :(

72. Do you like to go fishing?

no yucky why would you take fishies out of their ponds

73. Do you believe in evolution?

mommy calls me a monkey and says i definitely used to be one but i don’t think that’s evolution

74. Favorite costume you wore for Halloween? How old were you?

ooo!!! i love this question! last year for halloween, we went to a party for mommy’s work and i got to play princess all night!! she got me a pretty swooshy pink dress and the prettiest pink heels and she even hired someone to do my makeup and my hair for me!! everyone thought i was the best princess they’d ever ever EVER seen!

75. Real or fake Christmas trees?

real why would you ruin Christmas with a fake tree :(

76. How many pillows do you sleep with?

eight! but i usually end up laying on mommy’s chest so …… :)

77. Do you live in an apartment or a house?

it’s a loft! it’s really expensive so we each sort of have our own floors? if that makes any sense? it’s on the business side of town, so i don’t have many friends or anything, but the loft is split into the lobby ( you have to have a passcode to get in and everything! ) fourteen different subfloors, the penthouse, and then the roof! but if you get on the elevator, a teeny little hallway leads to the different loft on each floor so for instance, if you step off on the wrong floor, you’re not walking directly into someone else’s living room!

78. How many of your friends are of the opposite gender?

It’s too hard to count all of my friends!! :(

79. Have you ever had a near-death experience?

no!

80. How long have you been at your current job?

since i was seventeen!

81. What kind of car do you drive (year, brand, model, color)?

i have a cute little mercedes that mommy bought for me but….. Again…. I suck at driving

82. How flexible are you?

i can do the splits going straight down AND to the sides, and i can put my feet behind my head!

83. Have you ever ended a romantic relationship?

no.

84. Phrase you say the most?

‘ cute! ‘

85. Have you ever kissed anyone of the same gender? If so, did you like it?

i kiss mommy all the time!

86. Do you own any homemade clothing?

i make a lot of my clothes! heejin and i learned how to sew from our aunt and i really liked doing it so i make lots of sweaters and things!

87. Do you like fast food?

yes yummy!

88. Have you ever given anyone CPR?

nooo

89. Have you ever learned to do anything from a how-to video on YouTube?

i learned how braid my hair!

90. Describe your sense of humor.

i dunno i just really like those funny little vines

OH AND KITTY MEMES!!

92. Favorite cereal?

chocolate lucky charms!

93. Have you ever auditioned for a reality competition show?

no

94. Have you ever gotten a TV theme song stuck in your head?

no

95. Do you believe in ghosts?

YES

96. Do you think there is life on other planets?

YES YES MOMMY THINKS ITS DUMB BUT I MAKE HER WATCH DOCUMENTARIES AND THINGIES WITH ME !!!

97. Have you ever given money to a street performer?

yes! everytime i see someone i give them whatever i happen to have in my purse!

98. Your deepest fear?

being alone

99. Pancakes or waffles?

waffles! mommy makes the yummiest waffles and she covers them in strawberry sauce and chocolate chips for me!! if i was a good girl the night before, i even get whipped cream!!

100. Are you still friends with anyone from high school?

yes i’m still friends with tons of my high school friends!

101. From 1-10, how good of a dancer do you consider yourself?

7!

102. How much of a patient person are you?

:/

103. Do you know your IQ?

nooo

104. Do you eat meat at all?

if i could be a vegetarian i would but i like baked chicken and tacos too much :(

105. Do you own any clothes from a garage sale or a thrift store?

yes ! i own tons of clothes from both!

106. Have you ever bought anything from a flea market?

yes mommy and i love visiting flea markets! It’s where we found a lot of our lazy day outfits!

107. Have you ever quit a job?

noo

108. Have you ever gotten a song you dislike stuck in your head?

yes :(

109. Any movie(s) you can watch over and over and over again and enjoy just as much each time?

ALL OF THE DISNEY PRINCESS MOVIES

110. Do you or have you ever worn glasses?

yes i have to wear them sometimes :(

111. Have you ever skinny dipped?

once or twice with mommy!

112. Are your birth parents still together?

yes! :)

113. Have you ever been in the audience for the taping of a TV show?

no

114. Favorite type of cookie?

CHOCOLATE CHIP

115. Have you ever been broken up with?

uh yeah. i guess..

116. How often do you smile when getting your picture taken?

i smile in them pretty often actually!

117. Have you ever accidentally dialed 911?

yes :(

118. Oldest memory?

baking cookies with eomma for my appa back in taiwan!

119. Have you ever been the victim of a nasty prank?

i’d rather not talk about it.

120. How often do you snort when you laugh?

never!

121. From 1-10, how good of a singer do you consider yourself?

-4 but guess who sings anyways!

122. Favorite Disney song?

scales and arpeggios and i see the light!

123. Where do you see yourself 10 years from now?

i really want to be a professional photographer..

124. What is your Myers-Briggs personality type?

enfp-t!

125. Have you ever had a fortune cookie fortune come true?

no

126. Name one thing you wish people would stop posting on social media.

weird challenges :/

127. Last musical artist you saw live?

red velvet! mommy took me!!

128. Credit cards or cash?

cash

129. Favorite fandom?

uh ...

130. What is your astrological sign?

I dunno!

131. Have you ever been fired from a job?

no

132. Any hidden talents?

I can actually dance really well!

133. Can you surf?

no

134. What motivates you to do well in life?

making my mommy proud of me.

135. Your worst physical feature?

my mouth i think :( it’s really red and annoying sigh

136. From 1-10, how much are you like your father?

2

137. How lucky do you consider yourself?

very!

138. Name a moment in your life when you were pleasantly surprised.

the day i met my mommy.

139. Have you ever been summoned for jury duty?

hm?

140. What type of shoes do you wear the most?

my boots! they’re black but they have a cute lil fabric bit of flowers sewn to the inside!!

141. Favorite summer activity?

swimming!

142. Favorite song to sing in the shower?

uhm…. likey!

143. Have you ever lived with a roommate you did not get along with?

no!

144. Have you ever lived on a farm?

no haha

145. Have you ever kept a diary or a journal?

yes! I write in it every day!

146. TV show or movie you quote/reference the most?

none???

147. How often do you get mad at yourself?

Lots :(

148. Have you ever gotten any stitches?

yes on my belly when i was thirteen!! there’s a lil white line :((

149. Have you ever been hunting?

no! that’s nasty!

150. Favorite YouTube channel?

I don’t watch much youtube.

151. Have you ever had a pet besides a dog or a cat?

i had a bunny! i named him carrot :(

152. From 1-10, how well do you work with others?

10!

153. Are you friends with any of your exes?

all of them!

154. Apple or PC?

Apple!

155. Do you collect anything?

i collect funky little jewelry pieces!

156. Have you ever seen any Broadway plays or musicals?

no :( i’d like to though!

157. Any missed opportunities you wish you had taken?

no

158. Have you ever uttered a spoken hashtag?

no?

159. Do you have a pool at your house?

Yes! It’s on the ground though. and it’s not mine haha

160. What is the longest you’ve gone without sleep?

twenty - seven hours!

161. Last thing that made you laugh?

i saw a video of a cat using a human toilet!!

162. Disney or Nickelodeon?

disney

163. Name one celebrity you wish was still alive.

uh

164. From 1-10, how much are you like your mother?

9

165. Your best physical feature?

my eyes! and mommy says i have cute thighs!

166. Earbud or earmuff headphones?

earmuff headphones!!

167. Have you ever wished you were born the opposite gender?

no

168. Do you have any piercings anywhere besides your ear lobes?

yes i got my nipples done a month or so ago!

169. How often do you wash your hair?

every two days but i shower every day!

170. Showers or baths?

baths !

171. Have you ever been a bridesmaid or a groomsman?

yes, for sohee!

172. Bottled or tap water?

bottled !

173. What was your favorite TV show when you were a kid?

I dont remember :(

174. Any guilty pleasures you’re willing to discuss?

does.. Does chocolate count

175. Favorite video game?

animal crossing!!!

176. Have you ever gotten a New Year’s kiss exactly at midnight?

yes each year from my mommy.

177. How many of the United States have you visited?

I havent! but i’d really love to visit Los Angeles, New York, Chicago and Canada!

178. Have you ever given money to a homeless person?

always.

179. Have you ever gotten a surgery?

no

180. Your least favorite food?

fish :(

181. From 1-10, how competitive are you?

5

182. Do you like wearing hats?

no not really

183. How much of a jealous person are you?

:/ i get jealous so easily..

184. What was your SAT score?

669

185. Have you ever voted for a reality competition show?

i vote for p101 all the time but it’s not really reality i don’t think

186. Does anyone in your family currently serve in your country’s military?

no

187. Snowboarding or skiing?

neither

190. Have you ever dyed your hair?

yes!

191. From 1-10, how good of a cook do you consider yourself?

-2

192. You have just opened up a web browser. What is the first site you visit

my work blog!

193. How many things can you do with your weaker hand?

i can legibly write my name!

194. Were you involved in any academic clubs in high school?

nope

195. Have you ever played hooky from school?

sometimes

196. Are you comfortable with watching rated R movies?

yes

197. Do you root for any sports teams?

no :/

198. First thing you do when you wake up in the morning?

cuddle my mommy

199. If you could take home any one animal from the zoo, which one would you choose?

panther! grr!

200. Tell something about yourself most people don’t know.

I’m actually really, really scared of people rejecting me.

[myfuckofffundjourney]

Money Diary, Week #3

Thursday Jan 18

Wake up, bus to the shuk - 5.9 nis. Grab a coffee and I don’t even want it. 11 nis. So weird. Maybe it’s because I’m already running late and feeling anxious about time. I drink half and then grab groceries for the client I’m cooking for, all of which I’ll get reimbursed for so I won’t list them. I also cab to their place - billing them as well. Nobody got time to haul groceries on a bus #lazy.

After cooking for 6 hrs (hey guess who just made +1200nis!!) I pack a meal from what I made (chicken, potatoes, and an Asian pear, and it’s all fucking delicious, and free, and I even had a container because of yesterdays lunch that I took to school, score!) and bus to the central bus station. 5.9 I’m feeling a bit woozy so grab soda water to calm my stomach. 7 nis. I decide to finally buy a pair of Blundstones, a decision I’ve thought about for literally like five years. I see a pair that I like that are on sale for 350 and I grab them. Also add 50 nis to Rav Kav. The boots feel great in the store and for the dash to the bus, but as soon as I’m off the bus and walking to class, they start to kill! I’m worried I got the wrong size, even though the next half size up is way too big on me. I take them off in middle of class to make sure I don’t fuck them up too badly. Finish class, head home, make toast with peanut butter and hang out with Josh.

Friday Jan 19

Wake up and peel myself out of bed to grab some random groceries - I have no coffee in the house, and really feel like having eggs for breakfast. At the grocery store, I also find an avocado thats not hard as a rock (fun fact: apparently there were no deliveries of avocados to Israel for a week and so the price doubled, and none of them are ready yet. I don’t care that the price is doubled - it’s only like 6 shekel anyway and i’ve been wanting an avocado all week.) I get eggs, an avocado, and laundry detergent - 28 nis. There is a massive bag of Tide for 60 shekel (8 kg) and I think I might get it because it smells so nice and is cheaper per kilo than anything in the store and will last for like, half a year or something. And in two weeks I’ll even have a HOUSE to store it in!!!

I stop at my favorite coffee grinder guy and pick up 100g of coffee for 6 nis and think back to when I was living in Florentine and I could find the same amount for at a minimum 10 nis, usually more. Thank you, Jaffa gods, for making prices reasonable.  This usually can last for almost a week, but it’s exam season and I’m going to be mainlining coffee.

When i get home, I make a good breakfast (toast, eggs, salad, coffee) and THEN I CAN DO MY LAUNDRY! FOR FREE!!!! I’m so effing excited, it’s been literally four months without a washing machine at my disposal. I’ll probably need to throw some things in the dryer at the laundromat because its going to be a fucking COLD weekend and I have no clean socks and stuff, but still!

Anyway, I’m at my next conundrum, which is the fact that it’s now sale season and there are so many things I want/need. In the wants column, we’ll just put new clothes. I’m v bored of that I have and would love some new additions. In the needs column, we’ll put shoes - this is a biggie, I hate buying shoes and spending money on them - house items (coffee table, bed, closet, curtains, oven), a new phone (this one is pissing me off with its jerkiness and general crappy demanour. I could probably get it to work well if I do a factory reset but the screen is also cracked and replacing it will cost at least 400 nis. I’d rather get a new/secondhand phone.) Anyway, IKEA is having a sale, all the clothing stores are having massive sales, and I’m not sure what to do. These are more investment type items, but it’s still hard to justify spending the money. And then the fact that Uri and Jordana are getting married soon - I’ll actually make a bit of money from catering his aufruf kiddush/her shabbat kallah dinner, but not a ton.

I FINALLY get a message that I’m getting paid for an event I did like, three weeks ago - that’s another +1,630. YESSSS. That plus an extra +500 for shabbat will be so helpful for the move.

Run out to throw some things in the dryer - I just collect random shekels and don’t actually keep track, but i think it’s around 8 nis. While waiting for my stuff to dry, I get some binders, highlighters, little page markers, and also use the stores hole-puncher to hole-punch LITERALLY like 500 pages of notes. Don’t have to buy a hole-puncher though! It’s still 33 nis. Ugh.

I end up heading to Jerusalem kinda stupidly late, and end up taking a taxi to the bus station with Josh, but he covers it because he owes me money for groceries. The sherut is 35 nis - ugh. I’ve left my purse at home so Josh lends me a 50 that he also says to use toward groceries.

Saturday Jan 20

I work for WAY longer than I would have wanted to, and it really isn’t very much money, and I really needed the time to study, but on the other hand, it was pretty easy and it was 500 nis. So, balances out. After Shabbat is out I head to Jerusalem - 5.9 for the train, and 16 nis for the bus. When I get to Tel Aviv, the bus to my house is a friggin half hour away so I have to walk home, which is a massive waste of time. Really need to sit and calculate how much that half hour was worth to me, because I’m SOOOO behind on my studying, but can I just stay up a half hour later? Does life even work that way?

I make a peanut butter and banana wrap. Wraps are THE BEST thing to have around but I never buy them because I feel like they’re expensive? But a friend left these at my house and they’ve been the base of many a quick happy dinner, so maybe I’ll keep them around. Also come up with a plan to market myself as a meal-prep delivery service for people who can’t cook at home... i wonder if I’d ever actually execute that.

Sunday January 21

Basically spend all day inside studying/making food/cleaning/doing laundry. All of these are relatively money-less endeavours! On my way to school I do grab some fruit because I have none in the house. 9 nis

A friend coming from New York places an order on amazon for me for bamboo toothbrushes and charcoal exfoliating gloves - those guys are the shit and I hate throwing out plastic toothbrushes. They last quite a while and it only comes out to 70 shek - I’ll pay him when I see him.

Monday January 22

I meet Kim at the shuk for a grocery shop. It doesn’t really feel so smart to do the shop before my CSA gets in. I need to recalibrate my weeks so that I can do it on Tuesday morning and not be starving. Anyway, I get:

Parmesan and goat cheese - 24.6

Oatmeal, wild rice, and raisins - 20

Salmon - the guy cuts me way more than I asked for and I tell him off. I asked for 300 grams for a reason, mister, not for 350 grams. I’m turning into an asshole lol. 33 nis

Avocado, sweet potato, zucchini, chilis - 18 nis

Clementines, potatoes, cherry tomatoes, and an impulse buy dragon fruit - 34 nis

Green onion - 5 nis

On the way home, I still can use my transfer on my Rav Kav. Hell yes. Now I just need to stock up on things like more coffee, wraps, and one or two other things, but between this and the CSA I should be good for the week.

At home i make a big pot of rice, roasted veggies, two sauces (one using up cilantro that was going bad and yogurt I didn’t feel like eating), salmon, and sauteed greens from last weeks CSA. Now I have food options! And I only need to finish my celery and romaine lettuce from the CSA. Don’t know what to do with it though. Hmm.

Buttttt ugh I get an email from the school. I owe tuition, I think it’s loan time. I’m thinking of asking them if I can consolidate the debt, and when I do a huge work event I can throw a few thousand shekel at tuition. PAYING FOR SCHOOL IS SUCH A BITCH. But at least the loan system here doesn’t blow. I also get an email about a grant. GRANT I NEED YOU GET IN MY WALLET.

CSA box comes with some dope looking ingredients. I’ll have to cook wisely this week so nothing gets wasted though - my fridge is already FULL of food. What a nice feeling :).

Tuesday January 23

I wake up late, ugh. Go grab coffee - this time i get double what I got last week - rice milk, and cashews, to maybe turn into butter. It comes out to way more than i anticipated - 44 nis. Eek.Still though, haven’t eaten out once this week except for one coffee and one bottle of water, so I’m feeling good! Then I feel terrible when i think about tuition and moving. Gah! Cashew butter tastes amazing though, so there’s that!

Finally get an answer to an insurance claim I filed (and won) months ago! They had sent me a cheque (srsly who does that) which I never received, so they are going to cancel it, and wire me the funds. It’s around $350 - just wish I’d done this before the dollar crashed so hard. Oh well. Still free-ish money!

Buy an eclair. I need some comfort sweets. Interestingly, I don’t think I’ve had anything with overt amounts of processed sugar in a few days - since Saturday, I guess. I’ve had honey in my tea and stuff, but that’s it. I wonder if I’ll feel anything? It’s only mediocre but I needed to get out and interact with a human who is not Josh/the dog. 10 nis.

Wednesday January 24

I have to print some notes for this exam that i am definitely in no way passing (hi moed bet!) It’s way more expensive than it would be at school. Damn. 12.5

Total: 770.7 - minus shoes - 420.7

School/misc- 403 (includes a 350 nis pair of shoes that are too small and that I will try to return)

Groceries- 221

Eating out- 28

Transportation - 118.7

Money earned: 500, 1620

The takeaway from this week is: School is effing expensive, and I spent freely on groceries to not be tempted to eat out which worked (slash my extreme isolation/studying helps too) but I also bought a lot of “nice things” that I don’t need. On the other hand, I’ll have lots of food stored for the next week or two. Wins all around, I think. Would be nice to get most of my weeks spending to look like this (minus the shoes) - I could be down with spending only 400 nis a week.

[evils-corner]

I meant odd numbers! Nooo!

Hehe I figured that’s what you meant~

1. Would you have sex with the last person you text messaged?

THAT’S A HARD NO FROM ME THEY AREN’T EVEN AN ADULT YET ANYWAYS KASF;Jdlk;daKFDJ

3. Have you taken someones virginity?

NOPE LMAO 

5. Did you hang out with the person you like recently?

Not too recently no

7. What happened tonight?

Nothing interesting, it was pretty boring~ Got home from work and basically laid straight down, my back and my hip and my feet are killing me =^=; I was gonna play some dream daddy but...ehhh......too much effort

9. Is confidence cute?

I think so yes!! 

11. How many people of the opposite sex do you fully trust?

uuhhh.............uuuuuuuhhhhhhhhhhhhhh..........I...don’t think there is one. That I fully trust.

13. What are you gonna do Saturday night?

Saturday night I’m gonna eat burgers and watch movies with my family!

15. Are you going out with the last person you kissed?

nah cuz I’ve never kissed anyboooddyyyy

17. Who do you feel most comfortable talking to about anything?

....uuhh........probably....the people I feel most comfortable talking to are @datonegaimidnight and @acrylicqueen buuttt........even then I don’t know if I’d talk about ANYTHING with them,,,,but I definitely trust them more than anybody else to talk about most things

19. Have you had sex today?

HAHAHAHAHAHA that’s funny 

21. Are you in a good mood?

I’m in......a decent mood I suppose

23. Are your eyes the same color as your dad’s?

I’ve........you know I actually have no idea. I think my dad has green eyes, and I have hazel/brown with a green ring.......? 

25. What would you say if the person you love/like kissed another girl/boy?

I don’t think I’d really say anything to them, or about it...maybe I’d be a little hurt but. What am I gonna do about it lol?

27. Would you be able to date someone who doesn’t make you laugh?

Prooooobably not, I like being around people that can make me laugh and smile and I don’t think I’d be too happy if someone couldn’t do that..

29. Do you really, truly miss someone right now?

Uummmm well I really REALLY miss like, being around my friends....like talking to them through like text is one thing but actually hanging out.....I miss that :/

31. Honestly, do you hate the last boy you were talking to?

uuhh.....not really? The last boy I talked to was one of the guys at work (who is actually kinda cute tbh) sooo

33. Are you one of those people who never drinks soda?

Nah. For years I literally drank nothing but Dr. Pepper and I fucking HATED IT (we didn’t buy. anything else to drink. except water.) so I finally got fed up with it and made my dad buy me Kool aid mix, and I stopped drinking soda for...about a year or two straight. I drink it every so often now but not as much as I used to haha

35. Do you ever write in pencil anymore?

Yes I do! I take notes for some of my classes in pencil, and I do assignments in pencil, and I write myself notes in pencil and whatnot. also I draw with pencil and when I draw I always make little sidenotes so...

37. Do you believe in love at first sight?

Not really. There’s definitely attraction at first sight, but not love. Love takes time I think.

39. Who was the last person you danced with?

The last person I danced with........would probably be my friend Elayne, at our Prom. We slow danced together hehe. I’ve also danced like....with.....friends to dumb music but not like....WITH them.....yaknow??? 

41. When was the last time you ate a cupcake?

.....it’s been a while actually. I don’t normally eat cupcakes because....uh...regular...? regular frosting hurts my teeth really badly. Whipped frosting doesn’t but a lot of cupcakes don’t really...have whipped frosting unless you ask for it specifically and we..don’t...

43. Ever embarrass yourself in front of a crush?

God probably, I’ve embarrassed myself in front of like. Every single damn person I’ve ever met LMAO

45. If you could, would you take back your last kiss?

It never happened so //shrugs

47. Who was the last person to call you?

Last person to call me waasss....my boss! Making sure I had my work schedule after I flew back into Colorado~

49. Do you dance in the car?

I do, but I don’t know how to dance so it’s more like ‘awkward movements and throwing my head and singing into a fake microphone in the car’

51. Last time you got a portrait taken by a photographer?

That would be my senior pictures, in highschool!

53. Is Christmas stressful?

Not really, no! I mean, I’ve never had to really buy gifts for everyone/more than a handful of people, or host parties or anything sooooo..?

55. Favorite type of fruit pie?

I don’t like fruit pies.

57. Do you believe in ghosts?

Yuuuuup I sure do!

59. Take a vitamin daily?

I haven’t taken vitamins in....an embarrassingly long time...

61. Wear a bath robe?

I have one, and.....I’ve worn it maybe like three times lol

63. First concert?

I went to my first concert last year, which was Josh Groban and Sarah Mclaughlin 

65. Nike or Adidas?

I.....don’t care either way

67. Peanuts or Sunflower seeds?

Sunflower seeds!! I used to eat them all of the time!! My brother and I could go through a HUGE bag together in two days hehe

69. Ever take dance lessons?

NOOOOPE AND I CAN’T DANCE FOR SHIT LMAO!!

71. Can you curl your tongue?

I can......do the taco? if that’s what you mean?

73. Have you ever cried because you were so happy?

YES I HAVE I’M,,,,,EMOTIONAL,,,,I CRY SO EASILY ABOUT SO MANY THINGS,,,,,

75. Do you study better with or without music?

Hummm it depends really, on how I’m feeling. If I’m super stressed then sometimes I’ll turn on music or the TV for background sound, otherwise it just distracts me.

77. Ever been in love?

No, I don’t think so

79. What was the last concert you saw?

Josh Groban and Sarah McLaughlin, again. First and only concert I’ve been to!

81. Tea or coffee?

C O F F E E

83. Can you swim well?

Ummm....well enough to not drown, I suppose? I’m not like super amazing at it or anything I don’t think

85. Are you patient?

I’m........somewhat patient. It really just depends. I try to be as patient as I can be, and try to keep my temper at bay by..grinding my teeth more often than not. And grabbing things tightly. I have a very bad temper, haha...

87. Ever won a contest?

Yes! In 5th grade I won a reading contest and won a bike!

89. Which are better black or green olives?

BLACK OLIVES HANDS DOWN GREEN OLIVES ARE GROOOOOSSSSSSS

91. Best room for a fireplace?

The sitting room!! Or living room! Where people are most likely to be/sit together in the evenings