#but that took 20 years okay losing a pet is always devastating

[inthereellife]

This is an EXTREMELY niche addendum, but it's coming from a place of tragedy here so just. Yeah

If you have an outdoor rabbit hutch with male and female rabbits (that are not fixed), just be aware that- at least some male rabbits- will not stop having sex to cool down or rehydrate. If there are several females between him and the water bowl, that water bowl may still be his last priority. Even if it kills him.

Just, account for that and plan accordingly.

And RIP Hazel Dibbuns. I loved you, and at least you died doing what you loved I guess.

For all of the northerners that stood up for Texas during our freeze and said, "Don't make fun of them, they've never dealt with this before. Their infrastructure isn't made for snow and freezing."

This one is for you.

Where I live 108°F with 80% humidity with no wind is normal.

Pacific North West is dealing historic best waves 35-40°C or 95-105°F.

First of all. Don't make fun of them for bitching about the heat. Just like Texas isn't built for a freeze and our pipes burst, Pacific North West isn't built for heat and a lot of their homes don't have AC.

If you live somewhere with a high humidity like 80+ HUMIDITY IS NOT YOUR FRIEND. The "humidity makes it feel cooler" is a lie once it gets beyond a point.

If you live somewhere with a lower humidity, misters are nice to cool off outside.

Once you get over 90°F (32°C) a fan will not help you. It's just pushing around hot air. (I mean if you can't afford a small AC unit because they're expensive as hell, by all means a fan is better than nothing).

If you have pets, those portable AC units aren't safe. If your pets destroy the outtake thing, it'll leak CO2. Window units are safer.

Window AC units will let mosquitoes or other small bugs in. Sucks, but that's life.

Now is not the time to me modest. If you have to cover for religious reasons, by all means. If you don't, I've seen people wear short shorts and a swim top. It's not trashy if it keeps you from getting heat stroke.

If you do have to cover up for religious reasons, look for elephant pants or something similar. They're made with a breathable material.

Shade is better than no shade, but that shit it just diet sun after some point. Don't think shade will save you from heat stroke.

I know the "drink your water" is a fun meme now, but if you're sweating excessively you need electrolytes. Drink Gatorade, Powerade, or Pedialite PLEASE. I don't care if you're fucking sitting in one spot all day. That shit WILL save you from heat stroke.

Most importantly. RESEARCH THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN HEAT STROKE AND HEAT EXHAUSTION PLEASE!

If you're diabetic and can't drink Gatorade, mix water, fruit juice, and either lite salt or pink salt

If you can afford it, cover windows with thick curtains to insulate the house

If you have tile floors, lay on them with skin to tile contact. If you don't, laying your head on cool counters works too.

If the temperature where you're at is hotter than your body temperature, don't wear heat wicking clothing. Moisture wicking is safe though.

Check your medication labels. Many make you more susceptible to sun and heat

-Room temperature water will get into your body faster. This is something I learned doing marching band in high summer in Georgia, and it saved all of our asses. Sip it, don't gulp it, especially if you're getting into the red; same goes for whatever fluid you're drinking. And just in general drink during the day.

-If you are moving from an air conditioned space to an un-air conditioned space, if at all possible try to make the shift gradual. When my dad and I were working outside and in un-ac houses a few years ago, he'd turn the air down to low in the truck about ten-fifteen minutes before we got where we were going. This way your body doesn't go from low low temps to high temps. S'bad for you.

-If you can, keep your lights off during the day. Light bulbs may not generate a lot of heat, but the difference is noticeable when it gets hot enough. I literally only turn my bedroom light on in the evening when it gets too dark.

Don't be afraid to just like... pour water on yourself if you need to. The evaporation will cool you off.

Put your hand to the cement for 15 seconds. If you can't handle the heat, it'll burn your dog's paws. Don't let them walk on it.

Dogs with flat faces are more prone to heat stroke. Don't leave them out unsupervised.

Frozen fruit is delicious in water.

Wet/Cold hat/handkerchief on your head/neck will help you stay cool.

Pickle juice is great for electrolytes! You can even make pickle juice Popsicles!

Heat exhaustion is more, "drink water and get you cooled off." Heat stroke is more "Oh my god call 911."

Image Description provided by @loveize

[Image description: an infographic showing the difference between heat exhaustion and heat stroke. The graphic is labeled "Heat Dangers: First Warning." Signs of heat exhaustion: faint or dizzy, excessive sweating, cool, pale, clammy skin, rapid, weak pulse, muscle cramps. If you think you or someone else may be experiencing heat exhaustion, get to a cool, air-conditioned place, drink water if conscious, and take a cool shower or use cold compress. Signs of heat stroke: throbbing headache, no sweating, red, hot, dry skin, rapid, strong pulse, may lose consciousness. If you think you or someone else may be experiencing heat stroke, call 911. End description]

Be safe.

-fae

[kinkykinard]

Saying Goodbye

Cut for pictures, personal heartbreak, and mentions of pet loss.

We just got home from putting down one of my babies.

This is Rowena.

She was 20 years old.

We got her when she was 6, I was 14.  We had moved into a new house and she belonged to the neighbors.  She used to get out of the house and creep over into our yard to play.  She was always so friendly.

Her owner died suddenly one day and the owner’s daughter had noticed that Rowena spent a lot of time with us, so she asked us if we wanted her.  Of course we said yes.

I grew up with her, playing, snuggling, cuddling.  She was always super affectionate and was like my best friend through high school and beyond.

When I moved away from home a while back, Rowena stayed with mom, but I went to visit quite often.

She began declining in health about a year ago.  She went deaf first, and she drove me a little insane because she’d meow a lot louder because she couldn’t hear herself, but I still loved her.  Then she started losing weight.  Next it was throwing up, moving around less, sleeping more, drinking more.

Still, she powered on.  She was still eating, still purring, still grooming, everything looked okay.  Then, one day recently, she began limping.  I picked her up to take a look at her on a recent visit to mom’s and one of her pupils was blown - she’d clearly had a stroke.  Still, she was active, if not a bit slow, and eating, so mom thought she was fine.  I knew better, and I said as much, but mom wouldn’t hear it. Then, over the weekend, she finally said I was right - Rowena needed to be put down.  It was that or eventually starve to death because it looked like she wasn’t absorbing many nutrients, if any, anymore.  The decision was made. We took her in today, and Dani sat holding my hand while mom held Rowena and I petted her.  They put a little IV in so they could give her the meds to put her down when we were ready, and she was so good through it all.  They swaddled her in a blanket and mom held her for a while as we all said our goodbyes.

We called the vet in when we were ready, and I sat and watched as mom held her.  I watched the drugs go in.  The propofol first, and she was asleep in moments.  Then the pentobarbital.  A few seconds passed and the vet pressed a stethoscope to her side.

She’s gone.  I’m so sorry.

And just like that, he was gone, too.  We sat with here for another fifteen minutes or so, petting her, apologizing, telling her we love her.  Then we let the vet tech take her away.  She’s going to be cremated and her ashes will be scattered on a beautiful piece of land next to a spring, where catnip grows to bring closure to the circle of life.

I’m sitting here now, trying to make myself study a little more for my last final tomorrow, but I just can’t.  I’m so tired after everything that’s gone on lately, and after this I’m so ready to just call it quits.  I’m numb.  I don’t even care if I do well on this exam, and that devastates me because that’s not who I am.  But what can I do?

I need to go on.

Onward.

[thorne93]

Days of Future’s Past

Prompt: so can i request a charles x reader one shot that i got an idea for? ok so first of all y/n and charles were super close as teens but y/n died at around 19(got mixed up in smth), charles was devastated and hes still not 100% over it as an adult so when the xmen find a mutant who can control time he ends up asking them to go back and try to save y/n? and they do try and they have to convince her to stay safe bcs 'theres someone who needs her' or some cute shit like that..?but if u do this thx!

Word Count: 2600

Warning: Language maybe, death, drug abuse, angst....

Note: This is based on an ask/request. I’ve never done an ask/request so I REALLY hope I did this justice. I loved the idea and I hope it made it everything you wanted! Flashbacks are in italics.

Beta’d by @like-a-bag-of-potatoes @amarvelouswritings

Tags: @munlis

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I awoke with a start, a tear already falling down my aging face. Today marked the 20th anniversary of you being gone. 20 years didn’t make the fact of losing you any easier. 20 years without your laugh, without your jokes, without the way you made a room light up just by walking in, without having your voice to fill my head…Not when I had 8 long, amazing years with you as my best friend. Thicker than thieves we were...

It almost seemed like it was yesterday that we were walking to class together, joking about a professor that we both had that was just terrible. I couldn’t believe today was twenty years later...20 years after I lost you…

Getting out of bed, I pulled myself into my chair and began to get ready, all the while my reflection not hiding the pain that was so evidently etched in my face. Missing you was harder today. I missed you every day, of course, but today being April 18th....God it made everything worse. I let myself cry a little as I got dressed, a tear falling here and there, and I allowed them. I didn’t fight the urge...not today.

My first class started at 8:00 am, I was early and tried to compose myself for the kids. Some of the older students who had been here a while knew April 18th was a hard day for me, the newer ones weren’t as keenly aware of the situation.

We began our studies as usual, I got through three classes miraculously, but when lunch came and I was alone again, I found myself in the conservatory, your favorite room in the house, thinking back to the day before I lost you….the day before I killed you…

“Charles, come on, that assignment is totally bogus,” you said to me as you skipped along, me happily at your side.

“I’ll admit that it’s not fun, but it’s necessary.”

“You’re such a teacher’s pet,” you teased, sticking your tongue out. I watched your figure as you danced around me on our way to class. You were losing weight, your eyes began to sink in, I knew you had started to dabble into drugs but I wasn’t your keeper so I didn’t chastise you. I tried talking to you about it a few times and every time, you fought me tooth and nail saying it was just a little bit here and there, just a hobby, but your bodily signs told differently. Other than occasional twitching, your demeanor had hardly changed and I think that’s why I ignored it...like a fool….

“Well, I do aim to be a teacher,” I reminded you. “Speaking of,” I started, grabbing your hand gently as I pulled you over to a short brick wall to sit on. “I have some good news!” I stated.

“Oh?”

“Yes, I’ve been accepted into Oxford!” I told you happily, awaiting your reaction. Expecting a hug, or a shriek, or even a friendly kiss or high five, I was speechless when the next exchange happened.

“What?” you asked in an even tone, your gaze leveling at mine. “You’re going to Europe for grad school? Charles, we agreed we’d stay state side and stay together. Remember our plan?”

“Y/N, I know but Oxford would be a wonderful opportunity for me. You can come live with me and continue college there.”

“I can’t afford that!”

“I could pay--”

You stood up, shouting, “No! Forget it! You’ve made up your mind! Just go to Europe with your fancy friends, fancy college, and all your mind reading powers and go!”

I stood, running a nervous hand through my hair. You knew of my powers, of course you did, we had fun with my powers a lot, but you weren’t a mutant.

“Y/N, it’s not like that. Please. Can’t we talk about this?”

“No, you’ve already made up your mind.” You grabbed your bag off the wall, flipped me off, and left. At this point, I knew it was a side effect of the drugs. Sober you might’ve been upset at first but after exploring our options, we would’ve made it work. You would’ve known I would never leave you behind. I sighed as I turned and went onto class.

Later that night, I went by your dorm to see if we could talk about things, to see if you had calmed down yet. I reached your dorm room, and knocked. There was no answer. I knocked again and no answer, I imagined it was you giving me the silent treatment as you always did when we had a disagreement, which was rare. You lived alone here so when I tried the door, it was locked. Breaking my promise to you, I tried to read your mind, just to see if you were okay, but….I got nothing. There was no mind on the other side of the door...So why and how was it locked if no one was in there?

Worried, I called campus security and they came by with a master key and opened the dorm. Nothing could have prepared me for the sight of you on the floor, needle in your arm, your lips purple as your eyes stared straight ahead, lifeless.

“Y/N?! Y/N?! Wake up!” I shouted as I ran forward and dropped my things on the way, books and folders crashing to the floor as I dropped to my knees. I began shaking you, in a fit of shock, thinking it would make you wake up. Security saw the sight and called the police and an ambulance. You were only 19...How could this be happening? No. no. no. no….I was going to tell you I was in love with you tonight, that’s why I wanted you with me in England, but you reacted so quickly, I couldn’t. And now...now I’d never get to tell you just how much you meant to me.

The coroner said you accidentally overdosed on heroin….The realization that you were so upset, you weren’t paying attention to what you were doing, you accidentally killed yourself because you thought you were losing me...It was was all my fault...I lost my best friend and love of my life because I was too stupid to help you.

A student cleared their throat and said my name, waking me from my memory.

“Professor?” the meek Rosalie said as she stood in the doorway.

“Yes?” I said as I turned around to face her, clearing my own throat and taking a deep breath.

“Are you alright?”

“Yes...Just...thinking.”

“I see.”

In that moment, an absolutely ludicrous idea hit me. “Rosalie...You can travel in time, right?”

“I can control it, yes,” she answered, stepping farther into the conservatory.

“Could you go back, twenty years?”

“It might take a toll on me, but I’m sure I could do it...why?”

I pursed my lips, weighing the consequences...Was I really going to intervene with your fate? Bring you back for entirely selfish reasons? The moment I knew Rosalie’s mutation was time control, I wanted to ask her to save you, but I couldn’t do that. In good conscious, I couldn’t abuse her powers that way….But the pain and guilt has been eating away at me for so many years, this could be the only way to save me. How wrong could it be to bring you back? In this moment, on today of all days, my conscience took a backseat.

“Could you go back in time, and stop a friend of mine from making a terrible mistake?”

“Um, I could try? There’s no guarantees.”

“Excellent, what do you need?”

“A quiet place and uninterrupted time.”

“Come with me.”

I lead her downstairs to the hallway where we kept Cerebro but I directed her to another room, a quiet room that I use for the more shy students to do some of their training.

“Alright, do you need anything else?” I asked as we settled in the dark room with a few pieces of sitting furniture and a couple of tables.

“Would you like to come back with me?”

“You can bring me?” I questioned.

“Yes.”

“If I’m there, in the past, can it complicate anything?”

“Not unless you tell yourself you’re you...Otherwise, you can just say you’re a distant relative.”

“Then I say we go for it, shall we?”

“Alright, give me your hands and tell me the time, date, and place.”

I gave her my hands, my heart thrumming a million miles per hour. I was really about to see you again - alive. Even if this didn’t work in saving you, I’d get to at least see you one more time. I gave her the information she needed.

“Okay, just relax and take ten deep breaths.”

I followed her orders and suddenly, it was all black around me, much darker than when I first closed my eyes. Then, as if waking up, the surroundings were white and blurry, until I saw...me, I saw myself and you on that brick wall right before the fight broke out.

You looked even more beautiful than I remembered, even with being sick on the drugs, you still had this light, bubbly air about you. Seeing you again, in real life, where I could touch you again, where I could hear your voice again, even if you were shouting at me, was like a blessing all in itself. I remembered how we used to debate movie endings, dancing like fools in my house to records, how you used to make giant sundaes for us when we didn’t do too well on a test, how we used to race each other to the lake on my property to swim in the ungodly heat. All the wonderful memories had been tarnished all because I was a fool who didn’t go after you.

Now, you were getting up to leave and I made haste getting over to myself, I wasn’t going to make the same mistake twice.

“You, you there!” I said as I saw 21 year old me spin to face myself.

“What do you want?” younger me asked.

“Stop her.”

“What?”

“If you don’t go after her right now, you’ll regret it...believe me.”

I eyed myself wearily but I believed me, so younger me walked up to you but you pushed him off and he started to give up so I raced up in my chair, Rosalie following.

“Y/N, Y/N,” I called and you turned on your heel to face me.

“What?”

“I know you’re upset now. I know you think he’s abandoned you. I know you’re hurt. But believe me, Charles didn’t want to hurt you….I know right now, you think the only thing will help are the drugs to numb this pain but it’s not.” How badly I wanted to smack younger me and scream at me to tell you that I loved you, and how badly I wanted to shake you and beg you to never touch the heroin again….But I couldn’t, and that killed me. I think knowing what was about to happen hurt even more than finding your body...

Rosalie spoke up and said, “You need to stay safe and take care of yourself, someone needs you…”

“Who are you?” you questioned as you looked at us, more curious than angry now.

“We’re...friends of Charles’ here. We’re concerned friends.” They both stared at us a moment before I continued, “Well, we’ll leave you to it…”

We walked away and Rosalie took my hands again. Teleporting back to the future, we found ourselves still in that room downstairs, nothing out of place there.

“Did it work?” I asked as I let her hands go.

“I’m not sure. Sometimes--”

The memories hit me so hard I let out a slight shout. After Rosalie and I left, I didn’t let you go. Younger me confessed that I was in love with you. Instead of going back to your apartment to overdose, you followed me to a pizza place to talk about our relationship and Oxford. You said you loved me too and would go with me. And you did. We lived in England for five years before coming back home, both of us graduates. When we got settled back home, I asked you to marry me just as the X-Men were forming and the kids helped give us a wonderful wedding. Because you had been fighting your feelings for me and you were struggling in school, you had turned to drugs, but because we became a couple, you openly shared with me more and the move to England was just the ticket to get you sober. You happily vowed to help me with the school for gifted youngsters, accepting each and every one as your own and the kids loving you like an adopted aunt. You helped with the school and became a professor yourself at a local college to help with more funds for our school. New memories of your laugh, us going to the movies, reading together in bed, taking Sunday naps, you making me sundaes when we’ve had a long day with the kids, how you met the new students and made them feel welcome and loved and gave them a tour of the grounds.

We raced upstairs and in the foyer, there you stood, talking to Jean and Scott.

“Y/N?” I gasped, unable to believe my own eyes.

You twirled, your face slightly aged but still just as radiant and beautiful. Seeing you, it made the doubt of bringing you back disappear.

“Oh, hello darling, where were you?”

“I was….I was just with Rosalie….”

“Well, come on, your final class of the day is starting, right? Then movie night with everyone?!” you asked as you turned to a lot of the kids in the foyer as everyone cheered. The kids went on to their class but I couldn’t stop staring.

“Charles, dear, what is it? You look as though you’ve seen a ghost,” you said, kneeling down putting your clipboard in my lap.

“I...I...You’re here, you’re really here.”

“Well of course, why wouldn’t I be?”

I didn’t answer, I just grabbed you in an embrace, my hand tangling in your hair as I kissed you so hard. You laughed against my lips.

“I don’t know what I did, but tell me so I can do it all the time,” you said with a giggle, the sound bringing life into me.

“I love you so much. I always have, remember that, okay?”

“I love you too, dear. Now, come on, let’s finish Friday’s studies so we can begin Friday night festivities. How does that sound?”

“It sounds perfect, my love,” I breathed as I took your hand while you stood up, smiling to each other.