#i started it at 6pm and finished it at 11:30 and i have not stopped thinking about it

[jasntodds]

Cute boy got me to watch Cyberpunk Edgerunners last night and I actually don't think I'll ever recover

[ggukkiedae]

MIYA Kicks of Her Solo Tour, and I Went to All Three Days in Seoul

By: Shin Yeseul || 11:30 AM || June 17, 2024

MIYA started her tour “Headliner 2024” with three days in Jamsil Olympic Stadium!

Back in 2017, I wasn’t an ARMY, but I randomly ran into Miya. We talked for a bit, and her personality made me want to check out her music. Since then, I became a fan, and I managed to get tickets to all three days of the Initial Seoul stop with the help of my friend Yongsun (I love you, thank you).

I’m here to share my experience on day 1.

First of all, her stage outfits were amazing! My favorite was her act 2 outfit, which she posted on her Instagram account. I’ve included some photos in the cover of this blog post!

Before the concert even began, music videos were playing! Not just her music videos, but also BTS music videos! Although, as a Czennie as well, I’d have to say seeing the video of Miya and Mark’s SM Station both surprised me and made me sad (I miss them as a couple T.T).

Aside from the usual guidelines and lightstick connecting videos, there was a notice shown on the screens every now and then about 45% of the ticket and merchandise sales from “Headliner 2024” would go to medical and relief missions to help the people of Palestine, just like she said in her live a week prior to the concert.

At 6PM precisely, the lights turned off and the opening VCR started. It was insane, it showed some of the biggest scandals she was victim to from the early petition to remove her all the way to the last name fiasco. Then it showed her solo debut and all her achievements as a soloist and a producer, composer, music engineer, and lyricist.

Then the first act started. It began with “My House”, the first “Oh” playing without music and Miya’s silhouette appeared. There was a pause, and chills went through me as everyone’s cheers grew louder. There was the musicless chant of “Who they came to see? Me!” with the white cloth coming down at the word “me” and revealing Miya. There was another moment of silence. Goosebumps rose on my skin as she scanned the crowd. Then, the moment she smirked, the music started up again. No words can express how exhilarating the opening felt. “My House” is definitely the best song to start off a concert titled “Headliner 2024”.

She gave a ment after “My House” to welcome everyone to the tour, then finished the act with “Picture”, “Play”, another ment, “Drama”, then “Holy Moly” before the lights turned off for the next VCR to play.

The VCR started with news outlets discussing her change in “Blood, Sweat, and Tears”, saying she’d be better off not going into sexy concepts. It was at that moment that we all knew the next act would be the more recent songs. We were right. The VCR showed the reactions to her Chapter 2 Comebacks with the more mature concepts.

Act 2, which had my favorite outfit, began with low pink lighting and “bet u wanna” and “got her own”. Her ment was quicker, joking around about making sure minors who came to her concert had either their parent’s consent or a guardian with them. She continued the act with “7 rings”, “b.i.t.c.h.”, and crowd favorite “bloodline”. This act had her more interacting with the audience in comparison to Act 1 that was solely performance.

The next VCR began, this time showing netizens’ comments about how she seemed to be too different from the other members of Bangtan. It played a clip from an interview for her solo debut of her saying “People said I was different from the oppas, so I decided to actually show them what different is”.

Act 3 started off with a y2k vibe based on the songs “Shooting Star”, “Blue Flame”, and “Thirsty”. After her ment, she picked up the mood with “AYAYAYA”, “Wow Thing”, and “SHHH!”, which got everyone excited.

No one was prepared for the next act.

The VCR was different from the others. The screen was black, and an excerpt from one of her interviews on her solo debut schedules played: the audio of her saying “the members? They’re everything to me”. There was no background music when it showed seven different clips of her hugging each member before they enlisted. At the end of everything, there was a video of her getting into a car, the visuals fading to black while a reporter’s voice played saying “Now that the BTS boys are all enlisted, Miya is officially on her own for a while.”.

The lights slowly went on, showing Miya on the extended stage, guitar in her arms. Everyone’s hearts broke as she performed “breathe” live in front of an audience for the first time. She followed it with “Clued Up” before going into a ment.

She asked us all if it was okay to slow things down for a bit and to take a moment to introduce some people in the crowd who meant a lot to her. The screens behind her shifted to show people in the crowd, seated together and all looking a little confused before waving at everyone and waving their lightsticks around.

It was all seven boys of BTS.

I still remember vividly the smile on Miya’s face when the seven of them were shown on the screen. She smiled and introduced them one by one and asked them what they thought of the concert. The boys showed various versions of approval from different hearts to thumbs ups and head nods. “Glad to hear you’re enjoying. I have a surprise for you, if ARMY don’t mind.”

We all cheered, thinking she would perform “Mikrokosmos”, or “Magic Shop”. She carried her guitar over to a piano that was lifted onto the stage near her and sat there. I can’t explain the rush we all felt when Jungkook’s masked face was zoomed into on one screen the moment Miya began playing the opening notes of “Euphoria”.

Miya performed one of the members’ solo songs each, completely acoustic, and each time, the song owner’s masked face was zoomed into on one screen while she was shown on the other screen, making it look like they were facing each other.

She did “Euphoria” for Jungkook, “Inner Child” for V, “Serendipity” for Jimin, “Closer” for RM, “On The Street” for J-Hope, “Snooze” for Suga, and “The Astronaut” for Jin.

Were we all tearing up? Yeah, but so were the tannies! Once she finished everything, she got up and smiled into the crowd, in the direction of the boys. While walking backwards up the runway to the main stage, she thanked them for coming and for being her strength and her family before she introduced the last song of the concert. She performed “Trivia: Why”.

Of course, even if she said that was the end, we all knew it wasn’t. We had ARMY Time, where we all sang “LOVE”’s first verse and chorus.

Then, the lights dimmed again, and the band started playing “Nonsense”, her collaboration with Sabrina Carpenter. She changed the second verse (her original part in her collaboration) into a rap! Not to mention, she came from the crowd! She walked around while performing, taking photos with, hugging, waving at, and interacting with ARMY the whole time. Yongsun and I were a little sad she didn’t get to go to where the tannies were, but they were on the third floor of audience, so it was understandable.

She ended the song on the main stage where she began “Hype Boy”! She’d dance during the chorus, but interact with fans during the verses. Before the last chorus, the music vamped, and she introduced each of her band one by one. It was an all-woman band! She then introduced her dancers, all of which came from the dance studio that she and Jungkook set up and fund together: “Do Studios”.

After the last chorus of "Hype Boy", she thanked her friends who came. For Day 1, it was the tannies, her brothers Yoonsung and Chan, Chan brought Felix and Leeknow with him, the whole of NCT Dream + Jungwoo, the whole of TXT, Kep1er’s Yujin and Bahiyyih, The Boyz’s Sunoo and Eric, the whole of Enhypen, and Boy Next Door’s Myung Jaehyun.

Day 2 had the tannies, Viviz’s Umji, Red Velvet’s Yeri, the whole of SHINee, Chungha, Kiss of Life’s Julie, Hori7on’s Marcus, Unis’s Elisia and Gehlee, and Aespa’s Ningning.

Day 3 had the tannies and her family members, who had flown in from Australia to watch her. That’s her mom, her dad, Yoonsung (with Eunseol, Yoonseol, and Hanseol), Chan, Hannah, and their youngest brother.

These are just those she mentioned, you can find threads on twitter of other idols who watched her concert. She even reposted some of their stories or posts about it on her Instagram stories!

But she never failed to mention how thankful she was to ARMY, not just for coming to see her, but for also being a part of her effort to help people in need.

With that, she ended the whole concert with “good parts” and “Celebrity” all while roaming through the crowd and interacting with people as much as she could from both the ground and the main and extended stages.

All in all, I would say “Headliner 2024” was an amazing experience, from the song choices to the VCRs to the emotions to the cause and all the way to Miya herself. There’s a reason every location sold out in an average of 2 minutes.

taglist: @sunflower-0180 @seaoffangirling @yourwonderbelle @1-800-enhypennabi @kamiiyou @strwberrydinosaur @uraveragefangirlsposts @caratinylyfe @1-800-minji @one16core @kimhyejin3108 @chansols @akshverse @toriluvsfics @billboard-singer @stopeatread @allthings-fandoms @jammingjaem

drop an ask or a dm if you wanna be added or taken out of the taglist 🥰 requests are also open!

[archaeologistic]

When I was in high school, “wait until you’re working” didn’t mean what adults thought it did—I was *excited* to be working. Why?

Because it was *only* 40 hours a week. Only. AND I’d be getting paid. AND when I left work, I’d be able to actually *stop* working and do things that I wanted/needed to do outside work.

In contrast, my high school schedule looked like this:

- Wake up at 6am. Shower and throw on clothes, leave the house by 6:30am. Get to school at 7am so my mom could be to work by 8am

- 7-8am work on homework. 8am classes start. In class until 3:45pm (7am to ~4pm = 9 straight hours of work with a working lunch, because I always worked through my 20min lunch break).

- 4-5pm extra curriculars at school, get home 5:30-6pm depending on when my dad felt like picking me up. That hour and a half was my biggest break in the entire day, and I still wasn’t resting and didn’t have choice of activity (no reading, video games, etc).

- 6pm-bed was homework, with a 30min-1hour mandated dinner break with my parents. Bedtime was whenever I finished the homework due the next day. It was never earlier than midnight, and averaged around 2am. There were semi-frequent nights when I got less than an hour of sleep. After taking out the time for dinner, that’s an additional 5 hours of work at minimum, with no free time or rest outside of sleep, followed by at most 6 hours of sleep.

In the five “working” days (Mon-Fri, 24hx5) there are 120 hours. Out of those 120 hours, I spent a minimum of 70 hours working. Minimum. Average was closer to 100 hours, not including meals and travel.

On the weekends I would sleep 12-14 hours a night for two nights in a row just so I could get up on Monday and do it all over again, while yet again spending all day Saturday and Sunday doing homework. This kind of schedule started at age 14 (10th grade).

Why do kids hate school? Because you’d hate having to exist too if you had to work 100 hours in 5 days—and all without being paid for your labor.

My schedule was on the extreme end, yes. But even my friends in “normal” high school classes had 8-9 hours of school a day plus 3-5 hours of homework a night. That’s still 11 hours of unpaid work per day, 55 hours in five days, at a minimum. And most of them had part time jobs on top of it.

So why? Why work so much? Why not just half-ass it? Because the whole time you do it your parents, teachers, every adult in your life whose opinion you care about—all of them are telling you that you have to. That it’s your responsibility to do your best, to work hard, and to know that, above all, your future depends on how well you perform under these circumstances.

If those same adults were all told they had to work 11 hours a day, 5 or more days a week, with maximum of one 30 minute break for the first 8 hours and additional required work to perform at home with no limit on hours—I’m pretty sure they’d strike. Because that kind of schedule is nearly unlivable. No one should go through that. And yet we’ve normalized it for literal children, who don’t even have the right to vote yet. Who can’t do formal, paid labor until 16.

So…why do kids hate school? Why do make them hate it?

adults are always talking about how “kids will do anything to get out of school” and okay, first of all that’s not true, but I think we really need to ask why that idea holds so much sway.

children’s brains are hard-wired to take in new information and acquire new skills. consider, for a moment, just how thoroughly our society had to fuck up the concept of education for it to be a normal thing to assume kids are universally desperate to avoid learning.

[identityunfounded]

I get that things come up, but PLEASE don’t waste a service workers time…

I am a massage therapist at a day spa and I have a 45 minute commute to work. It takes about 30 minutes to set up my station and get my hot towels ready and my table warm and everything, plus time to use the restroom and wash my hands before my first session of the day.

So if I have a 1:30 I usually leave the house by 11:30 to give time to stop for coffee or snacks and to account for traffic. I’m usually early, but generally not more than 30 minutes at the most and 5 at the least (that was a stressful drive).

I didn’t have anyone for 1:30 when I went to be last night but by 10am this morning I did. So I finished up my house chores and left at 11, stopping at two stores on my way, and arrived about 12:30, thirty minutes before I want to clock in and start prepping.

Only when I arrive I get a text message from a coworker. The 1:30 I had, that JUST booked their session this morning, had cancelled. An hour before their appointment time.

So now I’m stuck here because the time and gas means I can’t go home. My shopping already done because I left early.

My next appointment is at 4pm.

I could have stayed home and played with my dogs, done more than just the BARE minimum of shopping, spent time with my husband who leaves at 6pm, long before I will be home, for a 12 hour shift.

Instead I get to sit in the parking lot of my work because I don’t have enough time to go do anything interesting.

So please. If you are going to make an appointment make SURE you are available. If this had been scheduled a week out or more I would understand. Things can come up. But to schedule the same day and cancel mere hours later? I feel like more thought could have been put into that action.

Here’s another fun fact. I don’t know if this is for every place, but at my day spa if I have someone no call no show on me, I get paid for my time. Not as much as if they had actually gotten their service, but it’s at least something.

But I’d they CALL in ADVANCE and CANCEL I don’t see a dime unless I’m already clocked in. If you’re the first one of my day and you cancel more than an hour before your start time, I won’t be clocked in.

I’m sure my spa isn’t the only one with a policy like this.

So, the fun fact, is that a late cancel or a no show will get you charged 50% of the service price either way. And it’s actually better for the therapist, at least in my specific case, if you no show.

Better yet, just don’t make a same day appointment. At all. Ever.

Disclaimer: this applies to my specific day spa and in some cases more broadly to other chain massage places. A massage therapist in private practice does NOT generally want you to no show, nor are they usually opposed to same day appointments if they are already in their office. But it really depends.

Personally, I absolutely hate same day appointments and walk ins in both private practice and at the spa. I do not want to sit and twiddle my thumbs for hours on the off chance someone might call and want a massage right now.

Make your appointments 24 hours in advance and be damn sure that you can actually show up.

[prettyinlimegreenboots]

Code Silver - Life in the ER

This is the continuation of my “Life in the ER” series. This takes place two months after the previous installment. As always, you don’t necessarily have to read the previous installments but it may help clarify any questions you have.

Now take note of this MAJOR WARNING - there is an active shooter situation in this chapter. There will be blood, cussing, needles, surgery and death in this chapter. You have been warned.

I do not own Dr. Leighton. His name was originally used in Code Black, which is one of my favorite medical dramas. I do not own that name. And Dr. Weasley is named after the famous red-headed family in Harry Potter - I don’t own that name either.

As always, feedback would be wonderful and much appreciated. Buckle up kids, this is going to be a doozy of a ride.

June 10, 2021 11:00am

He never wished for a normal day while working in the ER but he wished for one today. Wishing for normal days, usually, meant that the hours in the ER were filled with chaos and craziness and somehow even more casualties than an average shift. He sighed as he thought back on the long night he had. Mack had been up most of the night, and usually Race could get her settled down but he was at his wits end. Spot ended up getting up to help him, making the 5am wake up call a struggle.

“Get it gear, Conlon.” Plums teased as she stood at the nurse’s desk giving a look. “Coffee not kicking in?”

Groaning, he looked up from the keyboard he was staring at a little too intently, nodding to the white cup sitting beside his hand. “This is my fifth cup; if it hasn’t kicked in yet then I don’t think there’s hope. Little miss only wanted me last night.”

“Ahhh those days are fun. Addie is in a Jack phase right now and I’m chopped liver.” Plums grinned. “Hopefully that won’t last long?”

Spot shrugged. “It’s been a week already. It doesn’t help when I’m working the early shift. She loves to party between 2 and 4.”

“Ugh do not miss those days. Addie is finally sleeping all the way through the night. She gets up at 5:30, just as I’m walking out the door though.” She smiled as Albert slid into a chair. “You okay, Al?”

He grinned. “Yea, patient in room four needs a checkup at some point. What’d I missed?”

“Noted - thanks. Spot’s kid throwing a rager from 2-4am.” Plums pointed out.

Albert chuckled loudly. “Ahh that sounds like fun.”

“Don’t laugh - this’ll be you this time next year.” Spot pointed his index finger in Albert’s direction. Finch and Albert had announced their little bundles of joy would be arriving around the beginning of December.

The grin slid from his face as Spot’s words made him pause. “Shit. I guess I will be taking notes from you both before that time.”

A call came over the intercom as Plums grabbed a chart before heading down the hallway. “Duty calls. Meet you guys in the cafe around 1 for lunch?”

“See you then.” Spot saluted her as he finished typing up his notes, looking over his shoulder at Albert who was writing in his own chart. “You doing good?”

A smirk crossed Albert’s face. “Doing well. Finch mentioned that we should have you and Race and Jack and Kat over for a cookout.”

“That’ll be fun.” Spot sighed, typing something in the chat he was having with another doctor, groaning as he stood up. “I’ve got to go draw another vial of blood. Don’t miss me too much.”

Albert blew him a kiss as he watched him walk away with a shake of his head. “Don’t worry, pooks, I won’t.”

Spot quickly drew the vial of blood from his patient in bay 12 before walking it upstairs to deliver Elmer. “Got some fresh, still warm blood for you. Orders should be in your inbox.”

“How’s the world of emergency today? Quiet?” Elmer accepted the vial before typing a few keys on his keyboard, giving Spot a quick smile.

Spot sighed, leaning against the wall, trying to stretch his back. “It’s quiet but two ambulances were pulling up just as I escaped up here. Is it 6pm yet?”

“Sorry, you still have 6.5 hours to go.” Elmer was way too cheerful as he delivered that news to Spot, who merely groaned.

The hospital phone that was attached to his hip dinged with a message that made him smile. “Hey if you haven’t eaten by 1, we’re planning on eating in the cafe. Come by.”

“I’ll see if I can get away. These results will be in your patient’s chart by the time you get back downstairs.” Elmer grinned.

Saluting him, Spot grinned. “Thanks, Elm. You’re the best.”

Whistling along to a song that was stuck in his head, he headed back downstairs, via the stairs. He hopped down the stairs as he thought about everything that he needed to do before his shift ended. Just as his foot hit the bottom stair, the intercom blared to life with a “Code Silver” followed by the Emergency Department as the location. Words you never wanted to hear in a hospital. A shiver ran down his back as his brain processed the words. Gripping the handle of the staircase he faltered in his step. Active shooter.

Throwing open the heavy stairwell door, he found himself in a surprisingly empty hallway. His shoes squeaked softly as he made his way to an empty patient room, quickly darting behind the door for protection. Grabbing the blue hospital issued phone, he opened it, silencing the volume. He sent a message both to Plums and Albert asking them where they were.

As he waited, all he could hear was someone yelling and the blood rushing through his ears. The phone vibrated in his hand as he quickly brought it up to eye level. From Plums: Patient’s room, door locked, everyone okay. You?

Ignoring her message for now, he started making his way back towards the center of the Emergency Room. In the back of his mind, he knew he should get out while he could but not while his sister-in-law and best friend were in the middle of danger.

“Where the hell is Nicole Ridder?” A loud voice raged, catching his attention as he slid under a desk. “Where is she?”

A gunshot went off as several more screams pierced the air as a hand slammed on a desk. “Where is she?”

Looking around the corner, Spot’s eyes went wide, as he took in the scene. Albert was under the desk, the very desk the man was loudly banging his fist on. Sadie, a nurse that Spot didn’t know too well, was staring down the man. “Sir, there is no Nicole Ridder here. I just checked our in-patients and there’s no one here by that name.”

“She texted me and said she’s here and now you won’t fucking let me see her.” The man screamed as another gunshot exploded, breaking the silent air. All Spot could do was watch Sadie crumble as the bullet hit her.

The man hit his hand once more before taking several steps, waving the gun in front of several other nurses, the air returning quiet. “Nicole, where are you?”

The man neared Spot’s position, as he tried to make himself smaller. “NICOLE!”

His shouts became more desperate as he started pushing open closed doors. Spot tried to regulate his breath as the man’s footsteps came closer.

He stopped at the desk that Spot was sitting under, his hand pounding the top. His voice was gruff as he cocked the trigger of the gun. “I know there are more people here - just tell me where in the hell Nicole is and I won’t shoot up the place.”

A cry broke the silence, as both Spot and the man looked towards a closed door. Within seconds the man was standing in front of the door, the butt of the gun banging against the solid wood door.

His hand tightened around the door handle, jiggling it to open it but found it locked. “NICOLE, OPEN THIS DOOR! I know you’re in there.”

A noise behind Spot made him look. Albert and a few other nurses made a break for it, running for a door that would lead them outside. Spot felt a rush of air escape his mouth. Albert was safe. But he feared for Plums’ safety.

Plums’ POV

The jiggling of the door handle sent a shiver down her back. She was currently hiding behind the bed, with her patient and her patient’s child, trying to keep them both safe. Putting a finger to her mouth, she locked eyes with the two.

She had been about to discharge Josie, who had strep throat, when the Code Silver had come over the intercom. Immediately she had shut the door, locked it and put the chair under the handle, blocking them in the small room.

“NICOLE, OPEN THIS DOOR! Goddammit I know you’re in there.” The jiggling continued as tears crowded her eyes. She attempted to calm her breathing.

Grabbing the blue phone, she quickly typed something in and sent it to both Albert and Spot, hoping the two of them got out before this madness began.

“NICOLE DAMMIT OPEN THIS DOOR.” The man’s voice pleaded as his fists hit the door, each bang louder than the previous.

She slipped her hand into the little girl’s, giving it a squeeze, as she prayed that the ordeal would end soon.

Spot’s POV

He felt the phone vibrate in his hand as he opened the message.

I’m in the room with her and her daughter.

The gasp escaped his mouth before he could help it but the pounding on the door told him the gunman hadn’t heard. He wished he had his personal cell on him but the hospital frowned upon that. He just wanted to get a message to Race.

His thoughts stopped for a minute. Race. His husband who was out on summer break, at home with their daughter. Or maybe he and Jack took the girls out for lunch and were at least together. Leaning his head back, he stretched his neck muscles, praying that he’d get to see his daughter and husband at least one more time.

Taking a steady breath, Spot’s mind started turning. He needed to get that gunman away from that door if Plums had a chance to get away.

Opening up the phone, he quickly typed out a message to Plums Right outside the door under the desk.

His butt was falling asleep as he sat scrunched up under the desk. He slowly adjusted himself, cussing when his shoe squeaked. Spot cussed under his breath as the pounding on the door came to a standstill. “Who’s there?”

Eyes wide, Spot bit his lip in an attempt to stay quiet. “Show yourself or I will put a bullet through this door. This isn’t a game.”

Another gunshot sounded as screams pierced the air. Several more gunshots were fired in quick succession as the man growled under his breath. “Damnit, Nicole, get your skinny ass out here now. Quit playing these damn games.”

Another several gunshots were fired through the door, wood splintering as the bullet made contact. Several screams pierced the quietness, one of which was most definitely Plums.

Spot could hear the man pacing in front of the door, as his shoes squeaked with each pass. Every few seconds, the butt of the gun would knock against the door. Spot could hear him growl, growing frustrated by the situation at hand. “You leave me no choice, Nicole.”

Before he could take another breath, the gun was fired in quick rounds, several bullets hitting the wooden door as screams erupted from the small room. Spot eased out from his position, looking at the man as he screamed and unloaded his gun into the small room.

He heard the familiar click of the gun, signaling that it was out of ammunition. Spot took that moment to stand and look at the man. He moved stealthily, as he made his way to the man. Before he could think, he punched the man, successfully crumbling him to the ground. The gun went sliding down the hallway as Spot punched the man a few times. “Plums, get them the hell outta here.”

The man attempted to hit Spot back but was unsuccessful and several seconds later, the police came in, slapping handcuffs on the man before helping Spot up.

Spot stood, chest heaving as his brain caught up on what had just happened. He faltered in his step just as a police man caught him. “Sir, you okay?”

“Dizzy.” He mumbled just as he collapsed and fell to the ground.

Plums’ POV

Holding up her hands, she hurled herself over to the police and told them to get the hell in there, that the gunman had been subdued.

Without another word, she watched several police officers make their way into the building as she was led to a makeshift medical area. She was led to a stretcher where her vitals were checked and she was given a check over. She had some cuts from glass and bruises but nothing life threatening. The mental reminders would take some time to overcome. Albert wrapped a warm blanket around her shoulders as she sat on the bed. “It was Spot.”

Albert’s hands stilled as he took her blood pressure. “Spot what?”

“Spot subdued the gunman by hitting him and knocking him out.” Plums whispered as she looked at Albert.

Albert dropped the stethoscope, before pulling her into a hug, as she lost it. The tears, fears, relief all came bubbling to the surface. He hushed her, brushing his hand up and down her back as he attempted to calm her down. “Hey it’ll be okay. Jack, Race, and Finch are all outside and as soon as you’re done, I’ll bring them all back, okay?”

She nodded, her breath coming out in gasps, as he took her blood pressure. He did a few other checks, she figured for bullets or any other damages before jotting down something on the piece of paper at the makeshift table. “Do you want me to stay or go get them?”

“Can you stay and have someone get them? Also, where’s Spot?” She asked, eyes wide with the fear still radiating through her body. She knew the adrenaline would be cursing through her body for some time yet.

Albert nodded, stepping out for a moment before coming back in. “Maddie is going to get Jack, Race, and Finch and she’s checking on Spot.”

“Albie?” She asked, clutching the blanket tighter around her.

“Yea Plums?” He asked, scribbling something on a chart in front of him. He looked up, looking at one of his family members, trying to keep it all together.

She sniffled, looking at the cut on her hand. “Was anyone killed?”

He stilled with the question, dropping the pen before walking over to wrap her in a hug as she broke down crying. “Shhh.” He whispered as he ran a hand up and down her back.

Tears clouded his eyes as he listened to her heartbreaking sobs. Soon they turned to snuffs as she pulled away from him and wiped her eyes. “Sorry.”

“No, Kat, you have nothing to apologize for.” He shook his head. “You’re safe and your body is trying to regulate itself. It’s okay. But to answer your question, I haven’t heard anything about anyone. Once I got out, they checked me out and said they needed help with injuries so I’ve been doing this. I was just relieved to see you run out.”

Looking up, she gasped seeing Jack, Race, and Finch all standing there. Before she could do anything, Jack was pulling her into a hug as she busted into another round of tears. Jack was mumbling stuff in her ear and running his hand through her hair as she immediately felt safe in Jack’s arms. Leaning back, she pressed a kiss to his lips. “Love you too.”

Stepping away from Jack, she pulled Race into her arms as he sniffled. “I’m so glad you’re okay. Where’s Spot?”

“He was the one who subdued the gunman. He’s probably talking to the police.” She mumbled, watching Race’s face crumble.

She watched many emotions cover Race’s face as he faltered. “He did what?”

“I don’t know how but he knocked the gunman out and told me to get out of there.” She looked at him. “He’s a hero, Race.”

Tears clouded Race’s face as she pulled him back into a hug. “He was fine when I was running out of there so I’m sure he’s talking to the police.”

She soothed him, by rubbing a hand up and down his back. She watched Jack talk to Albert and Finch. “Where are our girls?”

“Medda has them.” Race pulled back, wiping his eyes. “Jack and I were hanging out at your house when she stopped by. When this came across the news, Jack said we needed to get down here. We held our breaths every time the door opened. We got here just after Albert came running out.”

Nodding, she sat back on the bed, wrapping the blanket around her. She looked over at Finch, whose fingers were laced with Albert’s. “Hi Finch.”

“Hi Kat. Glad you’re okay.” He smiled, squeezing Albert’s hand.

Nodding, she looked at the men in the room, sighing. “Hey Al, can you go check with Maddie?”

He nodded, leaning over to kiss Finch before escaping out of the medical area.

Sighing, she kicked her legs, antsy with wanting to know what was keeping Spot. She figured the police would want to talk with him but he should be done by now. She felt Jack stand behind her with his hand on her shoulder. She knew it would be a long time before he would be able to have her out of his sight.

Albert’s face was stoic as he returned with a police officer. “Plums, this is Office Ramirez. He’d like to talk to us for a few minutes.”

“Katherine Kelly, sir. This is my husband Jack and our friends, Tony, Albert, and Patrick. Tony is Sean’s husband. Can you tell us what’s going on with Sean Conlon?” Plums sat up straight, trying to look more authoritative than she felt. Her heart plummeted into her stomach as he was introduced. Usually having a police office come talk to them was never a good thing.

Officer Ramirez shifted, pulling his hat off before looking at the same group of friends. “I was first through the doors when I saw Sean on the floor punching the gunman. Several officers took care of the gunman while I went over to Sean. I got him to his feet when he mumbled that he was dizzy and before I knew it, he had fainted.”

“Doctor White was in the vicinity and immediately started checking Sean. In the initial check, he had blood on the left side of his scrubs. Several nurses and Dr White loaded him onto a gurney and rushed him upstairs to surgery.” Officer Ramirez’s face was grime as he relayed the information. Race gasped, processing the information. “If you’d like, I will escort you up to the surgery floor where you can wait?”

Kat sat back as the words hit her. She looked over at Race, who staggered a bit, only for Albert’s arm to wrap around his waist. “That would be great. But I have one other question - was anyone killed today?”

The officer paused. He was conflicted on how much he should actually tell them. “There were two nurses and an orderly that were killed. There were several that were injured by the stray bullets.”

Tears crowded Kat’s eyes as she thought about her coworkers and their families. Hanging her head, she let a sob out as someone put their arms around her. She looked up at Race whose face was tight with a mix of emotions as he hugged her. Wiping the tears from her eyes, she looked at Officer Ramirez. “I’ll need a few minutes to talk with some of my colleagues but after that, can you escort us upstairs?”

“Absolutely ma’am. There will be a police officer outside the waiting room just for some extra protection. And we will need to speak with you and Mr. DaSilva at some point.” The office said, as Kat nodded.

She pushed the blanket off of her before she looked at Jack. Leaning up, she gave him a quick kiss and hugged Race before walking out into the still mayhem scene.

Maddie came up and gave her a hug. “I’m glad you’re okay. Any word on Spot?”

“He’s in surgery but that’s all I know. We’re going to head up to the surgical waiting room. Can you let the head honchos know?” Plums asked, giving the young nurse a look, as she looked around the mayhem of police officers, nurses, and patients.

Maddie quickly nodded. “I can do that. Do you want me to have food sent up?”

“Thanks, that would be nice since all of us just want a status update.” She smiled at Maddie.

“Consider it done. Just let us know when he’s out and doing okay?” She asked, as Plums quickly agreed before going back to the medical area.

Making sure they had everything, Kat gave Officer Ramirez a look as he led them through the eerie empty halls of the Emergency Room to the elevators. Katherine moved quickly, not wanting to be reminded of what had happened there just a short while ago. The group was silent as they got on the elevators, watching the numbers slowly rise up to level 8, the surgical floor.

Several police officers were already waiting outside of the waiting room as they stepped off the elevator. Kat led the group into the room, where a couple of styrofoam containers were on a table along with two sets of scrubs. “If you need anything, my officers will be outside. When you’re ready to talk to us, just let us know.”

“Thank you for everything. Let us get changed and get some food, then at least I’ll be ready to talk.” Kat told him before she looked at Albert, who nodded.

Officer Ramirez gave her a slight smile before stepping out of the room and closing the door behind him.

She watched Albert and Finch walk over to the food as Jack and Race hovered near her. She smiled weakly at them both before picking up a pair of scrubs and walking over to the bathroom to change. Not wanting to see the scrubs she had on ever again, she threw them into the trash before joining the men in the waiting room. As the door closed behind her, she pulled her hair down, wanting her hair to be done, instead of up in a ponytail like it normally was when she was on shift.

Jack and Race had styrofoam containers balanced on their knees as they ate. Finch and Albert were throwing theirs away.

“There’s a sandwich and mac and cheese there for you.” Jack motioned over to the table as he continued to eat.

Nodding, she sat at the table, immediately opening the mac and cheese container and eagerly eating the cheesy goodness. “Any word?”

Shakes of heads were her answer as she sighed and banged her head against the wall. She knew she should go downstairs to get hers and Spot’s stuff but she just didn’t have the energy.

Her eyes darted around the room. Apart from the eerie quietness, the people in the room were okay. She just wished she could find out what was up with Spottie and why it was taking so long. Her brain kicked into medical mode and she wondered how serious Spot’s injuries really were.

“Kat?” Jack broke her train of thoughts by softly calling her name. She raised an eyebrow at him. “The police are ready to talk to you if you are.”

Nodding, she quickly threw away her trash, grabbing a water bottle before she walked out of the room, ready to be done with the day.

Jack looked at Race who was twiddling with his hands, looking absolutely lost. “Race?”

“Yea Jack?” He asked, looking up from playing with his wedding band.

“I know it’s a stupid question but you doing okay? Do you need anything?” He asked.

Race shrugged, sighing. “I just want to lay eyes on him and make sure he’s okay. My mind keeps playing the what if game and it won’t stop until I can see him.”

“Do you want me to have momma bring up the girls?” Jack asked, knowing Kat would want to see Addie sooner rather than later.

Race was torn. On the one hand, it would be good to hold Mack until he knew about Spot; on the other, the little girl would want to explore the unfamiliar place and Race didn’t know if he could be patient with her as his nerves were already frayed. “As much as I would love to say yes, she’s better off with momma at the house.”

Jack nodded. “Do you want to play cards?”

Race loved his brother but he could slug him at the moment. He understood what Jack was trying to do but he just wanted to know how the hell Spot was doing. “No Jack. I’m fine. Just anxious to hear how Spot’s doing.”

Silence fell over the room as Race began to day dream. He thought back to earlier that morning. Did he even say he loved Spot as he said goodbye to him? Did he say have a good day or that he’d text him later? Race let his head fall backwards as it collided with the wall. Tears crowded his eyes at the lack of updates and knowledge of what the hell was going on.

Race wasn’t going to lie. It was painful to see Jack and Kat along with Albert and Finch reunite as he sat there awaiting the news of his husband. Race just prayed to whoever that Spot was okay and he would be back by his side soon.

His eyes met the clock on the wall. 1:35. Just over two hours since he heard the news about an active shooter at the hospital and his heart damn near stopped.

Pulling out his phone, he noticed there was a 40 in the top corner of his messages. People had been contacting him to find out if Spot was working and if he was okay. Race just didn’t have the heart to reply to any of them. The only one he opened was from momma as she had sent a photo of Kenzie sleeping. He smiled slightly before locking his phone and putting it back in his pocket.

The opening of the door caught his attention as a nurse slipped through. “I’m Maeve. Is this the family of Sean Conlon?”

Nodding, Race looked at the young nurse with a pleading look. “I’m his husband. Is he out of surgery?”

“I was in the operating room. The doctor is just finishing up surgery and will be in shortly.” Maeve tight lipped smiled at them.

Race cleared his throat. “Is he okay?”

“I’m sorry but the doctor will be out shortly.” She apologized as she slipped out of the room.

Jack stood, stretching his back. “I’ll go let Kat know. Anyone need anything?”

Everyone shook their heads, watching him leave the room. Race tapped his feet, a renewed energy knowing that soon he’d have some answers and maybe he could see Spot sooner rather than later.

Kat joined Jack as they came back into the room. Before she took a seat, she held something out to Race. “I had the police collect his belongings from downstairs. He has quite a lot of missed calls and texts.”

Race accepted the phone and Spot’s canvas bag with a nod. He didn’t go through it, and merely pocketed the phone. “How was your talk with the police?”

“Okay. They just wanted to make sure they had all their ducks in a row. They’re going to want to talk to Spot and you, Albert.” She directed her last words to him as he nodded, fingers laced with Finch’s.

“It might be a few days before Spot’s up for it.” Race gave his sister-in-law a look.

She quickly nodded, looking at him. “The police are well aware of that fact. His doctors will have to clear it before he is able to do so. Plus he’ll have us by his side when he does talk to them.”

The door opened once more as they all looked up. “Doctor Leighton.”

“Katherine, I’m glad you’re doing okay.” He gave her a side hug as he turned to the other four. “I’m Doctor Leighton, I did Spot’s surgery.”

“This is Tony, Sean’s husband. My husband Jack. You know Albert and his husband Finch.” Kat made the introductions. “How’s Spot?”

Doctor Leighton nodded at all of them before taking a seat. “Spot’s okay. He’s in recovery at the moment. It was tough and go for a while. He had a bullet hit him on his left side. We ended up having to remove his spleen but he lost a lot of blood. We’re currently giving him blood transfusions to try to replenish what was lost.”

“Will he make a full recovery? Can he live without his spleen?” Race asked, looking between Kat and the doctor.

The doctor nodded his head. “Yes, he will make a full recovery and at this point, we don’t see any cause of concern. We’re waiting for him to wake up. And yes, he will be fine to live without his spleen.”

“What are your concerns for him in the next 48 hours?” Kat asked, as Race was glad she asked because he didn’t know what else to ask.

Dr. Leighton sighed. “You know the concerns, Katherine. Since the spleen is so instrumental in fighting infections, I’m a bit more concerned with him catching infections going forward. He will need to make sure he’s up to date on all of his vaccines after he’s discharged.”

“So I should be more concerned when he comes down with a cold?” Race piped up as the doctor nodded.

Kat nodded. “Yes, especially in the next year as his immune system adjusts.”

“When can we see him?” Race asked, his toes tapping anxiously, just wanting to lay eyes on his husband.

Dr. Leighton looked at Race, smiling softly. “Give us about 20 minutes to get him moved to a room then you can see him.”

“Thank you Dr. Leighton.” Kat stood, shaking his hand as the rest of them did the same. He gave them a tight smile before he left them alone.

“Well he was helpful.” Race choked out as Jack Finch, and Albert both snorted.

Kat shook her head. “He’s a brilliant surgeon but he’s got little bedside manner. I’d request him in a heartbeat, a thousand times over some of the surgeons in this hospital.”

Race nodded, trusting her 1000% with anything medical related. Standing up, he started pacing, just wanting the time to go by fast so he could see Spot. “Race?”

He stopped, looking at Kat who softly called his name. “Do you need anything?”

“Just to see my damn husband.” Race sighed. “Sorry but I can’t think of anything else until I lay eyes on him.”

Kat nodded, as she couldn’t imagine if that was Jack in surgery and wanting to see him to make sure he was okay. “You heard Dr. Leighton, Race. He’s okay but I understand your frustration. Do you want us to hang back when you first see him?”

“Do you mind?” Race asked, his voice small, not wanting to give away how scared he truly was.

She stood, pulling him into a hug, running her hand up and down his back. “Of course not. You should be the first to see him. We’ll hang around while you go to visit him. Al still needs to talk to the police so he can do that while you go see him.”

The door opened and the nurse from earlier stood there. “We’ve got him settled into his room. We still have him sedated but you can go ahead and see him.”

Kat nudged Race. “Go see our boy and give him our love. We’ll hang back and see him later, alright?”

Nodding, Race hesitantly stepped forward as he followed the nurse down the hall to a room in the corner. “I’ll be right at the nurse’s desk in case you need anything.”

She propped open the door as he silently walked inside. There were two IVs, one going in each hand, one fluid of clear liquid, the other full of blood. He stood at the foot of the bed, looking at the step up, two chairs, one on each side of the bed, along with a table and two chairs off in the corner. Stepping around the bed, he sat in one of the chairs, and being careful of the IV, lacing his hand with Spot’s.

“Hey Spot.” He whispered, torn between waking him up and letting him sleep. Race had always loved watching his husband sleep, due to the fact when he was awake, he was never still. Spot was always moving around, unable to really settle unless he was sick or sleepy. “I heard through the grapevine that you’re some kind of hero. You saved a lot of people today, Spottie.”

Time, Spot only needed time. Time to heal, time to recover, time to wake up. “I know you want to sleep but I really want to see your pretty brown eyes. It’s been a pretty rough afternoon and I need to tell you I love you, because I’m not sure I actually said it this morning.”

“I’m not leaving, Spot. Wild horses couldn’t pull me away.” Race promised, squeezing his hand. “Kat, Jack, Albert, and Finch are out in the waiting room. Momma is at the house with Mack and Addie. As soon as you wake up, I’ll get her to bring the two of them up to see you.”

He continued to ramble about random things, always being told that patients could hear when they were unconscious. He didn’t want Spot to be alone and promised to fill the quiet room with his cheerful chatter.

Race held his breath, knowing that Spot would wake up with time but he wasn’t the most patient person. Squeezing his hand, he felt himself relaxing in the chair for the first time since arriving at the hospital. Race kicked his feet up onto the bed and let his head fall back to the back of the chair, listening to the constant beeping from the monitor, his eyes closing as he dozed off.

Kat’s POV

She watched Race leave the room, wanting to join him as he saw Spot but knowing Race needed some time to adjust to having Spot in the hospital bed. Standing up, she felt antsy from waiting so she paced the room as she answered texts from family and friends concerned about her.

“Kat?” Looking up from her phone, she looked over at Jack who had concern written all over his face. “You okay?”

She sighed, walking over to him and sitting beside him. “Just antsy. I’m glad Race gets to go see him but I want to check up on him as well.”

Pressing a kiss to her head, Jack nodded. “I know. Despite our rough start, Spot is like a brother to me and it’s hard when we don’t know what the next few days or even weeks will look like. But we have to go along with the doctor who seems optimistic that he’ll be alright in the long run.”

Kat reached over and laced her fingers with Jack’s. “We’ll see him soon. Let’s give Race some time with him.”

She looked at Finch and Albert and smiled sadly at them. “You two doing okay?”

“Just hanging out until we can see him.” Albert looked as worried as she felt. “You two hanging out for the night?”

Jack shrugged, giving them a look. “Depends on what Race wants us to do. We’re kinda letting him dictate what we’re doing. I just checked in with momma and she said the girls are down for their afternoon naps.”

She didn’t get a chance to answer as the door opened slowly as an older man poked his head in. Standing up, she weakly smiled at him as surprise was evident in her voice. “Dr. Weasley.”

“Katherine, they told me you were up here. I just wanted to check in with you, Spot, and Albert to see how you were doing.” He said as she nodded.

Motioning for him to come in, she sighed. “Spot had emergency surgery and he’s in a room down the hall. This is my husband Jack and Albert’s husband, Finch. Guys, this the director of the ER, Dr. Weasley. We’ve just been hanging out here waiting to see Spot after his surgery.”

Dr. Weasley nodded. “I heard that he had to have his spleen removed - he’s a tough nut and will be okay. I’ve come to tell you that you and Albert have the next week off. There will be a check-in before you’re allowed back into the hospital, per guidelines. As for Spot, we’ll take it day by day with him and when he’s cleared to return.”

“Is there anything we need to do in the meantime?” Albert came by Kat’s side as he was curious what the requirement was going to consist of.

Dr. Weasley smiled at them. “You’ll both need to see one of the hospital’s trauma specialists before you’re released to come back. You will also need to take the mandatory 5 days off before you step back in here.”

“How long will the ER be shut down for?” Kat asked, knowing it was only one of three emergency rooms within the city.

Dr. Weasley shook his head. “It’s going to be shut down for tonight but obviously the hospital doesn’t want it down for too long. They’re hoping to have it back up and running tomorrow morning.”

Frowning, Kat shook her head. “It doesn’t seem right. There were people killed in that ER earlier today and tomorrow it’s back to business like their lives don’t even matter.”

“I agree with you Plums but you know how the head honchos are.” Dr. Weasley agreed as he shook his head.

She rolled her eyes with a sigh. “It’s just not right. But I make pennies compared to them and I know nothing.”

“Keep up that attitude Plums and you’ll be alright.” He smiled, looking between her and Albert. “Do either of you need anything?”

Albert shook his head with a smirk. “Million bucks, new scrubs, better hospital food?”

“Noted but not sure what I can pull out of my magic hat.” Dr. Weasley looked between the two of them with a shake of his head. “You have my number if you need anything. I’m glad you two are okay.”

Watching him leave, Kat shook her head as the door shut gently behind him. “That was nice of him to check up on us.”

“You know it was because we’re not down at the ER with the rest of the staff.” Albert told her with sarcasm laced in his voice. “He knew it would’ve gotten around the ER if he didn’t come check up on us and Spot.”

Kat nodded. “True. I’m going to check up on Race. You guys staying here?”

Albert agreed while Finch and Jack stayed behind, letting the two of them go. Her shoes squeaked as she walked down the hallway. Pushing open the door, her shoulders immediately relaxed as she took in Spot’s appearance in the bed. A noise drew her attention away from Spot and to the chair beside him where Race was snoring away.

Stepping up to the bed, she looked Spot over as his quiet breathes matched Race’s deep snores. Albert shook his head as he reached up to wipe his eyes before taking Katherine’s hand and squeezing it. “He looks better than I thought he would.”

“What did you imagine?” Kat asked, looking over at him with a smirk.

Albert shrugged. “Bruises, black eyed, ruggedness. You know, someone who just got into a fight but he actually just looks normal.”

“Excuse you, I’m ruggedly handsome.” A voice drew their attention from each other to the bed. A smirk was on Spot’s face as he looked at two friends.

Kat’s eyes immediately watered with tears as she looked at him. “Spot.”

“I’m sore . . . what happened?” He asked as he tried to move but felt instant pain.

Albert stepped up, giving him a look. “You had surgery. They removed your spleen due to a bullet. You fainted in the ER just after the police came to take the gunman away. Race was really worried about you and had been in here for about 20 minutes before he must’ve fallen asleep.”

“Is that what that train sound is?” Spot asked, craning his head to look over to Race, who quietly snored away.

“Yes. He’s been worried sick about you.” Kat smiled. “Do you want me to wake him up?”

Spot shook his head. “Nah, let him sleep. Who’s got Kenzie?”

“Momma’s got her and Addie. Last we knew, they were taking their afternoon naps. Jack, Race, and Finch have been here most of the afternoon. They watched Albert run out.” Kat explained.

Spot nodded, as he bit his lip as a wave of pain coursed through his side. “Anyone killed?”

“Two nurses and an orderly.” Kat frowned. “But thanks to you, no one else was killed. There’s a few injuries but you saved a lot of people, Spot, including Nicole and her daughter.”

Spot shook his head. “I about died when you texted me that you were in the room with them. I knew I had to draw him away from the door in order for you to escape.”

“I’m thankful that you did but I almost passed out when I saw you slugging him.” Kat shook her head. “You’re an idiot Sean but I do love you.”

“Love you too Kat.” He reached over and squeezed her hand. “Do you want to go get Jack and Finch? I don’t know how much longer I’ll be awake.”

Albert rushed from the room, leaving Kat and Spot alone with the sleeping Race. “He doing okay?”

“Worried about you but he’s been alright.” She smiled. “He has your phone but hasn’t done anything with it. I got your stuff from downstairs.”

Spot nodded. “Thank you, Kat for everything. Any idea how long I’m in here for?”

“Dr. Leighton didn’t say but I’m sure he’ll be around to see you later.” Kat shrugged. “I’m guessing in a few days you'll be released. Albert and I are on mandatory leave for the next week and we have to see one of the trauma specialists before we’re allowed back in the ER.”

Spot didn’t say anything as the door was opened as Jack and Finch stepped into the room with Albert behind them. Kat stepped back, letting the two talk with him. Albert came over and wrapped his arm around her. “Counting your blessings?”

“Something like that.” She smiled, laying her head on his shoulder. “Just really glad my family is okay. Really glad my closest coworkers are alright. Sad that we lost some good people but happy that everyone else is okay.”

Albert shook his head. “Love you Kat.”

“Love you too Albie.” She squeezed his shoulder. “Are you and Finch heading home?”

Nodding, Albert sighed. “I just want to go home and put today out of my mind. I have a feeling we’re in for a few rough days.”

“Agreed. We’ll be around if you need someone to talk to.” She smiled. “I’m only a phone call away, okay?”

He nodded, a ragged sigh left his mouth. He watched Jack and Finch joke with Spot as he started to doze off. Once he was asleep, Finch and Albert made their way out, leaving Kat and Jack with Race and Spot.

“What do you want to do? I’m sure you could use a shower and some Addie cuddles.” Jack suggested as he looked between the two sleeping men in the room.

Kat stretched, a groan escaping her mouth. “You’re probably right but I just don’t feel right just walking away after everything we’ve been through this afternoon.”

“Kat, you’re not walking away.” Jack gave her a look. “How about I take you home, you can shower, cuddle Addie, then we can come back up here and bring them food? Does that sound like a plan?”

Nodding, she pushed off the way, pressing a kiss to both Spot and Race’s foreheads before walking out of the room, hand laced with Jack’s.

An Hour Later

The rustling of bedsheets was the sound he heard as he slowly woke up. Cracking open his eyes, it took a minute to figure out where he was. The hospital, active shooter, Spot surgery all came rushing back to him.

Sitting up in the uncomfortable chair, he cracked his back as he looked at the bed. The most beautiful sight he had seen was staring back at him. Spot, with a smirk on his face, and eyes opened as he stared at Race. “Hi.”

“After all this time and scaring the literal shit out of me, all you can say is hi.” Race was out of the chair and sitting on the side of the bed smirking. “Hi yourself. How are you feeling?”

Spot grimaced. “Sore, really sore. But other than that, okay. Kat and Albie filled me in on everything that had happened when they were here earlier.”

“You were awake and they didn’t wake me up?” Race frowned, giving Spot a look.

Squeezing their linked hands, Spot looked Race in the eyes. “I asked them not to as you were in a deep sleep. I’m sorry I didn’t wake you but I needed to know what had happened.”

“You doing okay, Spottie?” Race asked, worry in his voice.

Spot sighed loudly. “To be honest, I don’t know how I feel. I’m angry that someone interrupted the safe space the ER was. I’m upset that I lost coworkers. But I think I’m mostly grateful that Albie and Kat are both okay and safe.”

Leaning forward, Race captured Spot’s lips in a kiss. “I love you and it’s completely okay that you’re not okay. There were a lot of emotions involved in today but I’ll be here for you as we go through the next couple of days, weeks, and months. Kat and Al aren’t going anywhere and they’ll be here for you, when I can’t.”

“Love you, Racer.” Spot smiled slightly. “Also, you did tell me that earlier this morning before I left the house.”

A light blush raised on Race’s cheeks. “You heard me?”

“Yeah . . . but it was a big foggy so I couldn’t actually tell if you said that or if it was my mind playing tricks on me.” Squeezing his hand, Spot sighed. “I kept kicking myself that I didn’t have my phone on me. I only wanted to get you a message that I was okay and that I loved you. I’m just glad I have the opportunity to tell you that now.”

“Love you Spottie.”

“Love you too Racer.”

Later that Evening

He found himself sitting up in bed, a course of antibiotics and pain medication surging through his body. He was happily slurping on a strawberry milkshake while Race was cracking jokes with Jack. Kat was watching her husband and Race with an amused smile on her face. A few of their coworkers had stopped by to check up on them both, not staying long but to say their thanks to Spot for being a hero.

“You okay, Plums?” He asked over the crackle of Race’s laughter at something Jack had just told him.

Looking up from her fast food chicken nuggets, she smiled. “I’m fine. I got to cuddle Addie and Kenzie, take a shower, and pet Basil for a little bit. I had a good cry in the shower.”

“Promise me, you’ll text if you need anything?” Spot gave her a look, knowing full well that she was just as likely as him to keep things bottled up.

Nodding, she smiled. “Of course. I’ve been made to promise by Jack, Albert, Race, and now you. I scheduled my appointment for the trauma specialist for next week.”

“Good. I’m proud of you for scheduling it out already.” Spot said, giving her a look that he knew what she was thinking.

She couldn’t say another word as there was a knock on the door. Kat raised an eyebrow to Spot, silently asking if he knew who it could be. He shook his head, as she got up and answered the door. She smiled at the guests as she reached out and grabbed Addie. She pushed open the door as Momma walked in, Kenzie in her arms.

“Momma!” Spot sat up and grinned despite the pain on his side. Race stood, taking Kenzie from her arms before kissing her cheek loudly. “What are you doing here?”

“Thought it might be a good idea for you two to see your daughter. Addie is just along for the ride, though I thought her parents could see her too.” Medda grinned, watching Jack take Addie from Kat’s arms. “Besides, I wanted to check up on you to make sure you were okay.”

Spot grinned at the woman who had been the replacement momma in his life. Ever since he and Race started dating, Medda had taken him in as one of her own. “Doing alright momma. Will be laid up for a little bit as I recover but I’ll be just fine in the long run.”

“Good.” She patted his foot. “You make sure that son of mine takes care of you, waits on you hand and foot.”

Race, cuddling Kenzie, looked up at his mother with an insulted look. “Hey! As if I wouldn’t wait on him hand and foot! I take offense to that.”

Laughter sounded around the room as Medda shook her head. “I’m just thankful you, Spot, and Katherine are okay. I checked in with Albert and Finch earlier and they’re doing as well as could be expected. I’m just glad all my babies are okay and here with us tonight.”

Kat looked around the room, locking eyes with each of the people in it, giving them a smile. “I’m glad today is almost done and tomorrow is a new day. Tomorrow we start to move on from today and though we'll never forget, we will start to move on.”

Kat and Spot locked eyes. Though they had always been close since college, it seemed their bond had dug a little deeper. And she smiled, there was no one she’d rather have in her corner than Spot Conlon, as he would always have her back, just like she always would have his.

Feedback would be wonderful and I'd love to hear your thoughts!

[crackedoutgiraffe]

To the Moon and Back

Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Part 5 Part 6 Part 7 Part 8 Part 9 Part 10

A/N: Chapter 11  Some of the dialogue in this chapter is in Spanish, I am in my 4th year of Spanish classes, the translations are in bold at the end of the paragraph they're in. 

You and Spencer spent the entire day together. The two of you mainly just watched TV and movies, while cuddling on your couch. Your night was cut short when Spencer’s phone started to ring, “Hello, yeah Hotch,” he was being called in for a case. “Can I stay in DC for this one?” he nodded at whatever your boss was saying, “I’ll be there as soon as I can,” he stood up from the couch and headed toward your bedroom, “Can I bring Y/N? We’ll stay in the round table room,” you knew it was bad to eavesdrop, but it was so fun. Spencer and Hotch spoke for a little longer before he hung up.

“What was that?” you asked, trying to seem oblivious.

“We have a case,” he grabbed his coat from the stool in your kitchen. “Hotch said that you can come to quantico with me if you want,” he stood by the door and waited for you to respond to his offer.

“Thank god, I don’t think I could be stuck inside for any longer,” You stood up from the couch and went to your bedroom. You changed out of your pajamas and grabbed your briefcase. Spencer was still waiting by the door when you came out, “Do we need to stop at your place?” you grabbed your keys and headed for the door.

“No, can we stop for coffee though?”

You threw him the keys, “You’re driving,” he fumbled with the keys before opening the door for you and locking up your apartment. You two made the twenty minute drive to quantico in silence, other than when he stopped at a starbucks. He ordered a black coffee and you ordered some peach tea. It was almost midnight so the need for caffeine was understandable.

When you finally arrived at the office, you were greeted by Garcia, “oh my god! You’re here and you’re okay!” She gave you the biggest hug imaginable.

“It’s good to see you too,” you returned her hug, being careful to avoid your wound.

“Garcia, we’re heading to the round table room to work,” Reid put his hand in the small of your back and led you away from the smiling blonde. You knew she had seen the ‘more than friends’ vibe between the two of you.

You and Reid finally got to the conference room and set your stuff down, “Alright, the team went to New Mexico. Three men were found in the desert without their hands. 30-year-old Jesus Perez, 27-year-old Andres Flores, and 31-year-old Toni Moreno. They were all dehydrated and had wounds from a BB gun,” Reid started to read the case file that was left for him.

“They were all of Mexican descent, is it possible these are hate crimes?” you tried to connect the dots between the seemingly unconnected victims.

He had that look on his face, the one that told you he was thinking and questioning every word that came out of your mouth, “it’s possible, the town that they all lived in had many anti-mexican regimes.” It felt nice to contribute even if you couldn’t be with the team.

“Alright, that’s a start,” you grabbed your tea and stood up, “I’m going to talk with Garcia for a minute,” you started for the door.

“Do you need any help with the stairs?” Reid turned around from the board and stared at your stomach, looking for any sign to keep you with him.

“I’ll be fine,” you sent a smile his way and started your walk to Garcia’s office. “Hello, Garcia,” you opened her door and walked into her office.

“Good morning, Doctor,” She spun around in her chair with a smile on her face.

“Good morning, Garcia,” you entered her room and pulled up a chair next to her.

She spun around to face her computers, “What’s going on with you and boy genius?” She started to type on her keyboard.

“What do you mean?” You tried to play dumb, but she was smarter than that.

“I’ve seen the way he looks at you,” she turned and smiled at you.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” you learned how to lie from a young age, control your breathing, your fidgeting, and maintain eye contact.

“Ok,” she sighed and turned back to her computer. Her phone started to ring and she answered, “Hello, chocolate thunder.” You were taken aback by the strange nicknames they had for each other.

“Hello, baby girl,” Morgan’s voice came through the phone. “Can you look for connections between our victims and the United Constitutional Patriots.”

“Morgan, who are the United Constitutional Patriots?” you were trying to get enough information to bring back to Reid.

“They are a right wing militia group. They have been grabbing asylum seekers at the border before handing them over to border patrol,” he explained.

You nodded in recognition of the new information, “So you guys are thinking that someone from this group is killing the men?” 

“Exactly, princess,” he acknowledged. “I’m glad you're ok.”

“So is Reid,” Garcia mumbled.

“What?” you and Morgan questioned in unison.

From Morgan’s side of the phone there was some sort of shouting, “Morgan what’s happening over there?” you asked.

“There is a lady yelling, in what sounds like, Spanish,” Morgan sounded nervous.

“Give her your phone,” you told him. You heard the woman over the phone and Morgan trying to calm her down. “Hola, Señora, ¿Qué es su nombre? Hello, Ma’am, what is your name?

“Gloria Martinez,” the lady responded.

 ¿Qué necesita?” Garcia seemed shocked at your sudden language shift. What do you need?

“Mi hijo, no sé dónde está,” the woman frantically shouted into the phone. My son, I don’t know where he is.

“Ok, ¿cuándo fue la última vez lo Ud. vio?” you tried to get as much information as you could form her. Ok, when was the last time you saw him?

“La noche pasada,” she seemed to be calming down. “Él me dijo que él iba estar allí para cena pero él nunca vino a mí casa.” Last night, he told me he was going to be there for dinner, but he never came to my house.

“¿Qué es su nombre?” you asked, you heard the door open behind you and Garcia; Reid walked into the room. What is his name?

“Es Mario Martinez,” she was trying to stay calm, you could hear it in her voice. It’s Mario Martinez.

“Bien, Señora, ¿puede dar el teléfono al hombre quien la dio a Ud.?” Reid looked surprised to hear you speaking a new language. Good, Ms, can you give the phone to the man who gave it to you?

“Sí,” she took the phone away from her ear. Yes.

“Hey, I didn’t know you spoke Spanish,” Morgan returned the phone to his ear.

“It was my minor in college,” you answered, “Morgan, I need you to take Ms. Martinez into the conference room and put the phone on speaker,” you barked orders at the man.

“Ok,” you heard the door shut on the other end. “You’re on speaker.”

“Señora Martínez, este hombre te preguntará preguntas en inglés, voy a traducir,” you tried to explain to her what was going to happen. Ms. Martinez, this man will ask you some questions in english, I’m going to translate. “Morgan, ask her question about her son, I’ll translate for you,”

“Ms. Martinez, where did your son like to hang out?” Morgan started to ask questions, like you asked. 

“Sra, ¿dónde su hijo le gusta pasar tiempo con su amigos?” you translated.

“En bares, las vías del tren, lugares similares.”

“Morgan, she said, ‘Bars, the train tracks, similar places,’” Reid looked proud to see you helping even after what you’d been through.

“How old was your son?” Morgan asked

“¿Cuántos años tiene su hijo?” you hoped this was helping Morgan.

“Veinte años,” she stated.

“He’s twenty years old,” you translated. The questions and answers continued for a half an hour.

“I think we’ve got all we need, thank you Ms.Martinez,” Morgan finished.

“Tenemos todo que necesitamos. Si necesitamos más información, ¿podemos llamarte?” making sure that you had a way to get more information. We have all that we need. If we need more information, can we call you?

“Sí, puedo escribir mi numero de telephono,” She wrote down her number and you heard her stand up to leave, “Gracias.”

“Gracias, señora,” you heard the door open and close.

“Thank you for that, Y/N,” Morgan added.

“Yeah, it’s no problem. If you need anymore, call me,” you finished.

“Adios, mi amor,” Garcia added, and then hung up.

You stood up and got ready to leave, “Garcia, can you get membership lists of the United Constitutional Patriots in the area?” 

“Will do,” she started to type on her computer.

Reid put his hand in the small of your back as you walked out of the office, “I didn’t know you spoke Spanish?”

You waited till the door was closed before responding, “There’s a lot you don’t know about me, Dr. Reid.”

“What else can you say in spanish?” Reid asked you. 

“I can say whatever you’d like,” you winked at him.

The two of you walked back to the roundtable room. You two worked diligently on the case for the next few hours. Before the sun started to come up. Reid left to get the two of you breakfast.

While he was gone, you moved from the table to the couch, eventually, falling asleep. You woke up with a blanket on you. The clock said it was 10am.

You sat up and saw Reid sitting at the table, “Mmm, pancakes,” you rubbed your eyes and walked over to the table.

“You were sleeping so peacefully, I didn’t want to wake you up,” he looked up at you.

“Thank you,” you sat down and started to eat the pancakes in front of you.

The clock kept ticking by and there weren’t any more victims for a while. Ms. Martinez’s son eventually showed up. The team was out of leads before someone came into the police station and said that they knew who was responsible. The lead checked out with Garcia. They eventually apprehended a white supremacist just north of the border. Once JJ called you and Reid with this information, you and Reid stopped looking at the files. The team was supposed to be back in DC before 6pm. You and Reid stayed around and worked on paperwork to give the team less to do.

“It’s good to see you here,” Rossi entered the bullpen with open arms.

You got up to give him a hug, “Rossi, it’s good to see you too.”

“I have a gift for you, it’s in my office,” Rossi led you to his office.

“You really didn’t have to get me anything,” you giggled at the man’s kindness.

“When you got shot in LA, your dress was ruined,” he started to explain the nature of the gift, “You seemed to really liked it, right?” 

“I did,” you thought back to that night.

“Well, I bought you a new one,” he grabbed a dress bag from behind his desk.

“Rossi, this dress is $450,” you were shocked.

“And?” he handed you the dress and walked toward the door.

“I can’t accept this,” you were smiling ear to ear.

He opened the door, “You can and you will.” You walked out of the room but waited for Rossi before continuing along, “Besides, you can wear it on your date with Reid.”

“What?” you were stunned by the brazen comment, Reid hadn’t asked you out. You hoped Rossi was quite enough that nobody heard him. If someone thought you two were dating, you could get fired. You walked down the stairs to the rest of the team. They all wanted to give you a hug, you returned all of their hus. It was finally time to leave and go back home. Reid walked you to the elevator, he helped carry some of your stuff. 

“Hey, i was wondering, I know this is a bit out of the blue,” He started to ramble, “would you maybe want to go on a date with me sometime?”

“Of course I would,” the elevator door opened and you entered with all your stuff. Reid waved bye as the doors closed. Holy shit, is Rossi a psychic?

[yaboylevi]

After rereading the chapter with the official translation and looking at the timeline once again, I’ve been very confused by the timing of Hange and Magath’s meeting. The main problem is that we don’t know when exactly the Rumbling began, but I’d say that it probably happened in the afternoon, some hours before sunset.

This theory on Reddit really made me think about the timeline a lot... The theory speculates that Hange and Levi have received a different message in the Paths, at a different moment compared to the others, namely at night. This would explain why Hange and Levi identify the problem in Zeke only, not Eren. I have already thought of some potential counter-arguments for that theory (also thanks to the official translation - though I still have to check the Japanese version), so I’m not too sure it can be possible...still, the timeline is very confusing.

When Hange meets up with Magath&Pieck in chapter 125, the sun is setting, and it seems to be right after they have escaped the battlefield. The Colossals are still there, and the Marleyan airships are retreating.

But then Hange, after being transported into the Paths, says that half a day (12 hours?) has passed since Zeke and Floch headed for Shiganshina. Well, then it should've been night-time when Hange and Levi were in the forest. But when they get out of the forest it is still light outside. Sure, it could be the morning of the next day. Maybe we were just tricked by the sequence in chapter 125 (Connie and Falco riding in the sunset light - and right after that we have the Commanders' meeting). As Jean said he joined forces with Marley “the night before”, we would have another night where supposedly Hange and Pieck, etc got in contact with Jean&Mikasa. And also met with Connie, Armin, and Annie...But if this happened in less than 24hours, it was way too fast, based on how much spread out across Paradis everyone was.

Hence why I’m thinking 2 night could have passed. Let me break the timeline down. Btw, judging by their clothes, it seems autumn or spring so the hours of light should approximately be from 7AM to 7PM...probably.

Here’s a map of the walls:

DAY 1 - Afternoon (& DAY 2 - Morning)

Eren gave his brain radio signal a bit after the Rumbling started, let’s say around 4-5PM.

Connie and Falco rode into the sunset. He must have separated from the 104th at 4:30PM and we see him again at around 6PM riding with Falco. To get from Shiganshina to Ragako, Connie stopped for the night, and so he and Falco arrived in Rakago the next morning (approx 7-9AM?). So it took at least 13-16 hours, more or less, and they were riding slowly.

Armin and Gabi departed from Shiganshina a while after Connie left, let’s say 6:30PM, the sun hadn’t set yet. He then caught up with them in the morning. He didn’t stop to rest, so by horse at full speed, it should’ve taken...10-13 hours maybe?

If Mikasa&Co defeated the titans in one hour, then the discussion between Armin and Mikasa happened around 5:30PM, with Armin departing one hour after that, tops. After their fight, there should be still 1 hour and 30 minutes of light. Mikasa goes to see what Jean’s up to where Floch is.

Annie and Hitch meet in the late afternoon, the sun is setting while they ride out of Shiganshina. The next morning around lunchtime, in a place not specified, they meet Armin&Connie.

NIGHT 1

We see what all of the 104th and Hitch did that night in between the afternoon of DAY 1 and the morning of DAY 2. During this night they’re all in very different places. 

DAY 2

For Armin, Annie, Connie, Gabi, and Falco to get back to Shiganshina, since they stopped to eat in a village between Rakago and Shiganshina District, it must have taken more than 10 hours for them to reach Mikasa. Let’s say 12-13 hours? So if they departed from Rakago at like 9-10AM, this would mean they got to Shiganshina when it was night already.

During the morning, we see Mikasa helping out as a doctor, she talks to Louise. The flow of the chapter seems to imply this is the same morning Armin met with Connie, but we can’t be 100% sure. It would make sense though.

I can really only make a guesstimate for this as well, but...The last Colossals leave Shiganshina at around 11AM (?). A bit after that, Floch talks to his Yeagerists. Later on, let’s say 2PM, Floch tries to execute Yelena and Onyankopon, but the plan concocted between Pieck, Hange, Jean, Armin, Mikasa etc is already ongoing. How is this possible if it should've taken a lot more for Armin to get back to Shiganshina? Hence why, imo, another day passed that we didn’t see. So 2 nights. 

If this is the case, it would explain why, when Hange and Magath met, the Colossals were still marching in Paradis: it was the afternoon of DAY 2, and they later on contacted Jean&CO during the second night. It doesn’t align with Armin’s timeline, though, and it wouldn’t make sense for Magath and Pieck to be stranded in the middle of nowhere without food or water for 24hours. (I have a headache, can you tell?)

Now, let’s analyze Hange’s timeline!

Zeke: he and Floch left the Forest of Giant Trees and 12 hours later, Hange and Levi got the radio message from Eren. They talk for a bit, Hange finishes the cart for Levi, straps him on it and they exit the forest. Meet with Pieck&Magath. It is afternoon, the sun is setting (7PM?). If we count backward, keeping the Rumbling+Eren’s message at 4-5PM, then Zeke blew himself up at 4AM that day, which is impossible, as there was daylight when the storm cleared up.

The Forest of Giant Trees on the map seems to be at least a bit closer to Shiganshina. At full speed, it might’ve taken 7 hours to Zeke and Floch to reach the battlefield in Shiganshina. Let’s say the battle lasted 1 hour since their arrival. It means Hange saved Levi at around 8-9AM. It checks out, because Zeke made himself explode a bit after sunrise, I’d say, during a rainstorm.

So, actually, Hange’s timeline doesn’t check out, imo. According to it:

8AM Hange finds Levi

3PM Zeke reaches Shiganshina

4-5PM Rumbling starts, Eren video calls everyone.

8PM (12 hours later finding Levi) Hange and Levi got a paths-call from Eren. (Night 1)

After a while, they exit the forest and it’s (still? already?) afternoon.

If they had gotten Eren’s message at 5PM(?) like everyone else, Zeke should’ve blown himself up at 5AM (12 hours prior). But when, right after that, the skies cleared up, it was already well into the day.

Also, I fear I am already putting the Rumbling too late during the day, but if it happened even before 4-5PM, then Hange’s timeline above (”half a day has passed”) really doesn’t make sense, IF WE WERE TO BELIEVE THAT HANGE AND LEVI HAVE MET UP WITH MAGATH AND PIECK THE SAME DAY THE RUMBLING STARTED AND ZEKE BLEW UP.

It would’ve taken a really long time for Hange to get from the forest to the outskirts of Shiganshina where Pieck and Magath are, considering Hange was transporting an injured person on a (poorly) self-made cart-thing, so they must have ridden slowly. How can it still be the afternoon of the first day? Unless the river current brought them a lot closer to Shiganshina than expected and they were resting in a different, smaller forest. 🤷

Hange must have taken track of how much time passed by looking at the sky, which imo must’ve been already pretty late if Hange could tell 12 hours had passed when they got Eren’s message.

So, if Hange&Levi received a message from Eren (?) at night, finished the cart, rested for the remainder of the night because heck, Hange must’ve been exhausted, and the next day met with Magath, it would’ve made sense. But:

The Colossals are still there during their meeting, so it must have been the same day? Because the citizens said the last few titans left inhabited areas on what I guessed was DAY 2, I’d say between sunrise and midday.

Then again:

Jean says they joined forces with Marley the night before. But Armin’s group couldn’t have been in Shiganshina by that morning/early afternoon (the timing the Floch-Jean scene seems to happen) because it would’ve taken them longer (11+ hours) to get to where Mikasa and Jean were. Armin’s group were also taking their sweet time, as Gabi states there was no rush, since Reiner would be sleeping for 2-3 days.

So MY CONCLUSIONS ARE:

- If only one night has passed between the start of the Rumbling and the SC teaming up with Magath, then that theory can’t be. But the timing of everyone reuniting doesn’t make any sense, unless they literally teleported around the island.

- If two nights have passed between those 2 main events, then the timing is correct, and the theory could be onto something. In this case, we haven’t seen what the main cast did for one whole night, which was skipped. Considering a LOT of very important interactions were skipped, that’s possible. But it wouldn’t make sense for Eren to deliver the message to everyone, except Hange-Levi, and later give only them a different one. Unless...? ;)

- Ultimately, I suppose it could be a continuity mistake, or there could be a different explanation in the next chapter(s).

[thewrongjackpot]

Pidgeot used Whirlwind

Last few days have completely spun me around. I had my third round of chemo this past Thursday, and that in itself went fine. Afterwards, much else started to take a different turn. First of all, there were issues with my re-feeding because I went essentially from eating barley 400 calories a day (if that) to working up over three days to about 2200 calories in a full day. My labs showed some issues with my electrolytes and a couple other things. I had to drop my feeding to almost a fourth of that, and had to go back in for labs on Sunday. 

Sunday is where things get… interesting. I went in for labs, which should have been a 20 minute visit, and we could head back home. I brought up with the nurse that the area surrounding my PICC line looked a little red and there seemed to be some kind of white gook around the catheter. They thought it looked questionable too. So I had to have blood cultures and cultures of the entry site taken. Thinking it could be some kind of infection, I had to go down to the ER for it to be evaluated. What came of it was that more blood had to be drawn, and my PICC line had to get pulled. YUP. I had this thing for barely three weeks. I have absolutely no idea how this even happened, but my line was pulled. UGH. I was and still extremely frustrated that I have to get another one placed because I still can’t be sedated because it’s still not safe (more fun expansion on that to come). Getting the PICC placed sucked. SUCKED HARD. Next, we had to wait to see if I could just go home with some antibiotics or if I had to be admitted. And just my luck, on SUPERBOWL SUNDAY, may I add, I had to be admitted when we already had Superbowl plans because we’re still normal Americans. 

So I mainly had to be admitted because they needed to administer antibiotics by IV, which they had to throw one into my arm because bye bye PICC line. They also needed to watch for fevers for me because I ran one in the ER, and I ran one that night. Initially I was supposed to be admitted only until Tuesday so long as I no longer had a fever for more than 24 hours (which I didn’t), and my cultures came back clear for 48 hours (which they did). 

BUT NO, apparently with me, it’s never been that simple lately. Life has been loving throwing some curveballs. I saw my main doctor on Monday, and we talked (well mainly she talked, I wrote and grunted). We discussed how it seemed like this newer piece in the front of my mouth has been growing pretty rapidly, and it seems the golf ball has been shifting. Despite little pieces of the tumor flaking off here and there, it seems that to some degree, my tumor is still getting bigger, despite what was hoped for. Also, on Monday, I started feeling like I was having more trouble breathing because I was having thicker mucus that seemed to be stuck behind the golf ball. I couldn’t really swallow it or spit it out entirely, so it was causing me some breathing problems. 

So the rest of Monday went like this. I met with an ENT surgeon so she could get a better grasp on my story. She then brought a scope and another surgeon. The purpose of this was to see if in the case of an emergency, they could get a breathing tube in me. The answer is yes, they could. Next, I went and got more MRIs. I tried to tough it as long as I could on my back, but it got to the point where I could not breath. So we got creative, and I was on my side, and they could finish off the rest of the imaging. My doctor came back after they got the MRI results, and yes indeed some areas, especially in my mouth, have still grown significantly, and the golf ball was moving more to the right and back. So I was meeting with the radiologist the following day because they needed to attack this more aggressively, and they feel very confident that this tumor will respond very well to radiation. Lastly, to top it off I was made aware that also in the event of an emergency, ICU has been made aware of my situation, and may talk to me...just in case. OH! And my intended two day stay because of the new changes has now turned into ONE WEEK. I’ll get into this shortly.  

Tuesday, day 3 of this nonsense. So now since the plans have drastically changed, the biggest reason I’m being kept so long is because with me about to start radiation, in the beginning, the tumor will sometimes get bigger before it starts to shrink. This is not ideal for someone who’s golf ball is definitely playing around with the joys and luxuries of breathing. They had also started me on a steroid on Monday to help combat some of that swelling, which on Tuesday, some current swelling went down. The radiologist was in the building earlier in the morning and stopped by (he’s not at this hospital, but in the same system and in a different building down the road). He told us I would be starting radiation today. We got transported there at 11:30, and we didn’t come back til almost 6pm. We talked to the doctor, and he showed up the MRIs with comparisons to the imaging in January, and in that time my mouth portion grew significantly. The portion creeping near my brain grew some, but not much. Not bad, but not great either. For now they’re just using regular (photon beam) radiation as they’re currently focused on my mouth with a short term plan, then in the following weeks they’ll come up with a more complex plan, and possibly switch me over to the proton beam radiation. Radiation is currently set to take place for 7 weeks, Monday - Friday concurrently with chemo. Next, they did a simulation first and made this mask to go over and keep my head in the same place for the treatment. They found a way for me to get propped up just enough that I could still breathe during the whole thing. We had about 4 hours of down time until the actual radiation treatment again. The nurse was super nice because mom winked at her, and she let us stay in the room. I even napped some. Total life saver instead of having to stay in the waiting room that long. The actual treatment is very quick, maybe 20, possibly 30 minutes long. I didn’t feel a thing, but afterwards, you could see the redness on my skin. We got back to the hospital afterwards. Last major thing to happen was the whole main ICU team came up here to talk more about emergency procedures and get introduced to one another. 

Finally, this leaves me here, sitting in my bed, on my laptop, past 2am on what is now Wednesday. I’m going to get a new PICC line placed today before I get a fun five days in a row of chemo beginning Thursday. 

Anyways, I thought the other week was crazy, but this week is way more nuts. However, I'm just going with the flow of whatever and enduring what needs to be to get fixed. I trust in the process and the doctors. And this point, I feel like I've endured a good amount, that these extra morning pokes for blood don't even phase me since I dont have a line to just grab blood easily. I've been through worse at this point.

Hope all of your first week of February has been going better. 

P.S. I’m bald now, well, buzzed, but even the little hairs are slowly falling out.

[zanemitchell-blog1]

Day 1

I’ve never had a blog before, so I am not exactly sure what I should be doing here. I do know though that I am starting this because I am about to start a 100 day challenge that even I think might be too extreme, and I want to hold myself accountable to completing it.

I really do hope you will get something out of my posts, and if you’re just here out of curiosity I am happy that you’ve taken the time to check in on me. If you don’t know, I have already lost 55 pounds since I started taking my health seriously again over the summer. At my heaviest I was 240, and I am down to 185. I accomplished that through a mix of exercise and diet, but in my personal experience tracking everything that I eat was the most important factor. At this point I am pretty happy with my weight though, so I just want to maintain. I don’t have any real goals at this point, so that makes what I am about to try to do so appealing to me. I just want to see what happens.

For the next 100 days I am going to be doing a mix of intermittent fasting, working out daily, and significantly increasing my calorie consumption. I plan to put my body under as much stress as it can handle. I may have alcohol (wine), but all other alcohol and added sugars are out. My first 10 days will look like this:

·        Thursday January 2, 2020: Finish a 26 hour fast, that began at 1:20 yesterday, at 3:20. At 2:50 I will go for a 30 minutes walk around the pond outside the office. Between 3:20 and 8 I will eat 2,900 calories. At 6pm I will goto a HIIT class. At 8 pm my food window closes and I won’t eat again until 6pm on Friday. Then at 9pm I will go for a 45-60 minute walk.

·        Friday January 3, 2020: Finish a 20 hour fast at 6pm. Between 6 and 9pm eat 2,700 calories. At 7pm goto yoga. At 7am, 1pm, and 9pm walk for a total of 2.5 hours.

·        Saturday January 4, 2020: Finish an 18 hour fast at 3pm. Between 3 and 7pm eat 3,000 calories. Between 430pm and 630 pm goto the gym and row, use machines, and ropes. At 7am and 9pm walk for a total of 2 hours.

·        Sunday January 5, 2020: Finish an 18 hour fast at 1pm. Between 1 and 8pm eat 3,000 calories. At 3pm goto the gym and focus on heavy weight lifting. At 7am and 9pm walk for a total of 2 hours.

·        Monday January 6, 2020: Fast the entire day. The fast that begins on Sunday at 8 will not end until Tuesday at 3 pm for a 43 hour fast. At 7pm goto the gym and use machines, assuming my body is up to it. At 7am, 1pm, and 9pm walk for a total of 2.5 hours.

·        Tuesday January 7, 2020: Finish a 43 hour fast at 3pm. Between 3pm and 9pm eat 3,000 calories. At 7pm goto yoga. At 7am, 1pm, and 9pm walk for a total of 2.5 hours.

·        Wednesday January 8, 2020: Finish a 20 hour fast at 5pm. Between 5 and 9pm eat 3,000 calories. At 6:30pm goto the gym and focus on heavy weight lifting. At 7am, 1pm, and 9pm walk for a total of 2.5 hours.

·        Thursday January 9, 2020: Finish a 19 hour fast at 4pm. Between 4 and 8pm eat 3,000 calories. At 6pm goto HIIT. At 7am, 1pm, and 9pm walk for a total of 2.5 hours.

·        Friday January 10, 2020: Finish a 22 hour fast at 6pm. Between 6 and 9pm eat 2,700 calories. At 7pm goto yoga. At 7am, 1pm, and 9pm walk for a total of 2.5 hours.

·        Saturday January 11, 2020: Finish an 18 hour fast at 3pm. Between 3 and 7pm eat 3,000 calories. Between 5 and 7 pm goto the gym and row, use machines, and ropes. At 7am and 9pm walk for a total of 2 hours.

I am obviously going to be healthy about this. I get all my vitamins and minerals, I already track all my macros, and if my body isn’t up to it I will stop immediately. As far as what I plan to post here? I’m not sure. I will update this daily, likely in the evening. I will list my diet daily, my fasting routine, and exercise routine. I only just started intermittent fasting a few days ago so I will probably talk a fair amount about that. I am not going to be posting any progress photos, but I may post schedules and snapshots of the various apps I use. One of the most daunting parts of this is the thought of trying to eat 3,000 calories in such a short window, especially since I am a vegetarian who has gotten into the habit of eating very clean an healthy. In order to accomplish this I am going to need to come up with some recipes, so I plan to post those too. I will be doing this for 100 days. While the schedule above is what my first 10 days will look like, I do plan on doing a prolonged 3-5 day fast once every 3 weeks. Especially during my first fast like that I do not expect to be doing much exercise at all. I am going to try to aim for atleast 140 hours of fasting a week, which should should put my body into to 68 hours of ketosis, 32 hours of heavy ketosis, and 18 hours of autophagy a week. During my long fast weeks I hope to get to try and get my body into 50-70 hours of autophagy. If you have questions, or tips, please let me know.

[dragon5kulls-blog]

Losing Her

Losing the one person I've ever told "I love you"....her. (lets call her Guava, cause that was a nickname given to her cause she likes guava juice/soda) I've always been very closed, reserved, and if you would know me IRL, you would of never noticed me sad, depressed. You would just seen me as somewhere in between quiet and calm, but that is because I have always been great at hiding emotions. We broke up about 12 hours ago. She was my first. 16 years single until about a month ago for the very reason that I knew that I would get so attached and it would hurt the day they left. Scared of losing someone I love. It was an LDR which most people say really ever works out, and even knowing this, I still gave her a chance. We first met on discord, march/29/2019 a friday, and I would normally just pop in different channels and my typical lines were "oh yeah yeah" "oh no no" and "oh boi". She told me that she was in one of the channels were I joined and she repeated back what i was saying, and it went for a bit, until i went to another channel. Now its march 30, and I went around playing piano to others. There was this one guy who could sing and I started to voice record, me playing bich lasagna and him singing it. Then I went to another channel, were there she was again. It was a channel with 4 other people in it. I joined into her telling a FanFic about...Hitler and Jesus . Yep... and i'm not religious myself but I was (still am for about 2 more weeks) in a catholic class on Sundays, so yeah....oh boi. It was weird, but I was bored, so I stayed in the voice channel. We decided to just make a group chat just for us 5 people so she could finish the FanFic. She read it, we had our reactions and we just kept talking on that call. After some time, one by one they left the call until it was just me and her, we talked for a couple of min until I said that i'm just going to head back to the there server because it was a bit awkward now since I never had female friends, except for one who i met online( lets call her Mia), and neither have I been interested in being in a relationship so it just felt a bit weird. When I told her i was just about just head out and go back to the server, she told something along the lines of "oh, you just gona leave the call, i see how it is" and that very day, I had the choice to stay or to go. As I said, I would of always just left and not think about it, but I something something different this time. I chose to stay. We talked about my Dog named Max, cutest dog ever, yeah he isn't really well with other dogs, but he was my little max. At some point in life I did feel suicidal for other reasons that involved my parents, me, and my brothers. But thanks to max, whenever I used to start thinking about just ending the pain that went on for months, I would always look at max and start cuddling with him. Thanks to him and Mia, a friend that i trusted enough to talk about the situation i was in at the moment, i would always stop myself and feel a bit better. We talked about a few other things too, by this time its been around an hour or so that we have been talking and i receive a dm from one of the people that was in that group (lets call her Caitlin). Caitlin saw that we were still in the call and just typed "i ship it" and i was like uh, oh no no. and she told me, why not. I said that i wasn't here for that, and she told me, there is no harm in sliding in Guava dm's and getting to know her. So Caitlin now joins the call as well and asked her how old Guava was, and she said 16, she asked me and i said 16, then Caitlin sent me a dm saying to go for it, i just kinda ignored it. So I talked for a few more min to both of them, until i told them I was goin to the store real quick, so I just muted and left. When i came back I un-muted and said my usual phrase "oh yeah yeah, im back boi" and they was like oh, hi again. The three of us were talking about music and a few other things. Because this Sunday church class was close to where my mom and brothers lived, every Saturday my dad would drive me to my moms house in the afternoon and pick me up the next day. So I told them that I had to go, said bye and just left the call. About 3 min later as i'm getting my stuff ready to go, I receive a dm this time from Guava saying "where did you go ?:(" and i told her that my brothers came over and that i had to go to their place. Then she told me if i will send pictures of max, i told her, if I remember then yeah. Then her next text was " he’s sO cute(like me), you better remember" so I kinda avoided responding to her dm by talking about something else, a few the rest of the text were from her saying " it’s like almost 3pm over there right?" I said "Yep" then she said "it’s so sad, well can you do me a favor before you go >:0" i asked "Wut" she said "call real quick and say oh yea yea :’o" So obviously i already can tell she kinda into me. So I finish packing up my stuff and go back to my laptop to shut it down, but as im closing apps, i see that I left the voice recorder on, and im sitting there like, oops. and so I was hearing the audio so i can know when to edit out the rest that wasn't the guy that singed bich lasagna. I got a bit curious and remembered that they were talking when I left to the store earlier, and so I skipped to that part where I muted my self and left. Caitlin asked her what were we talking about and she said about max and a few other things and that I seemed cute. Caitlin told her to slide in my dm''s then, and Guava sounded unsure, so Caitlin told her that she should just said "fuk it" "just go for it". At this point I was surprised, I ended up saving that part of the recording but had to go now cause my dad was waiting for me in the car. So i'm at my mom's house and its around like 6pm for me, and she is in a different time zone, 6 hours ahead. So i decided to call her, forgetting that its 12pm for her, but she picked up. I showed her max for a while and then went back to just voice chat. We talked for a bit more and then they left the call again. i talked to guava for while again until like a half an hour later when I realized that she has fallen asleep on the call. so i'm like, 0of, her phones battery is gona be dead when she wake up. So I ended up get a call from the group chat shortly after. The rest of the group chat we talking and I told Caitlin that Guava fell asleep on the call, Caitlin just said, cute, I responded with "oh no no". So we stayed on the group call for about 2 more hours, Once in a while I checked on Guava to check if she still had the call open, and she did, I joined once in a while and said "Oh yeah yeah" I even texted her that im tying to wake her up cause her phone was gona die. At around 9, I started watching youtube and getting ready to sleep at around 11. Its Sunday morning and I wake up to a text from her saying " i-, my phone is always on battery save, so it can literally survive on 1% for an hour, I woke up alone still in the call at 8am with 3%, thanks tho, for trynna wake me up" I told her that I joined once in a while and said Oh yeah yeah, she said that was cute and she wish she would of woken up, but the way I say Oh yeah yeah is soothing, so of course she wouldn't wake up, I and so I say, wut... that's a first. To switch up the convo, I told her that Max has just woken up and she wanted to see him. The room was dark and i didn't want to turn on the light cause I didn't want to wake u my brother, so instead I sent her pictures of Max, and then we sent each other a bit of memes. That was that for the day, Monday comes, and i remember that she is 6 hours ahead, so at 12:42pm my time I sent her a text saying to wake up cause its time for school, and she said she still had time for a few more min of sleep and then asked me if I shouldn't be asleep. I told her thats its 12:42pm and she told me to not stay up to late. I told her why not, she stays up late too, and then she asked me if she can send the pic of me to Caitlin. Yesterday she asked for a pic of me, and was saying nah, im good. She kinda ended up pressuring me to send it, so I was like fine. I sent her a pic that I took about 3 months ago of me and max laying down. So she's asking if she could send it to Caitlin cause she wanted to know how I looked like too. It was time for her to go school by now so she just tells me goodnight. I went to sleep and then I left to school. Came back and then we were just texting for a while, then we just called for a while till she left to eat. About and hour and a half passed by now and decided to give her a call, she didn't pick up so I just went back to the other Server and talked to other random people. She texts me back like 30 min later saying sorry that she was busy playing minecraft, and so i tell her, nice, me and another friend from school were planning to play minecraft, but he never picked up. Then I tell her to go to sleep cause for her it was 2am, she just replied with "no u". We texted for a few more min, and then I remember that the day before, she wanted me to learn a song on the piano, so I told her before she goes to sleep, if I can call real quick if she wants to hear the bit that I learned, she said yeah. I called her and showed her the bit that I was practicing and then we just talked for a few more min. Then again, she fell asleep on the call, and of course I stayed on the call this time and said oh yeah yeah once in a while. After a few hours she just left the call with out saying anything, so im like...ok. Discord bot kicked me from the call after 5 min. I stay up till like 2am again and she text me saying, damn, that she didn't know she fell asleep on the call again. I told her that I did the same thing, saying oh yeah yeah once in a while. I went to sleep, and woke up to her text that said she felt tired cause she stays up late too, and I tell her "oh boi". I had to go to school but I wanted to keep talking to her, so I skipped my first period class and kept texting her. She told me she doesn't want to go to work, and she told the time she has work and then we were talking about other stuff too. I went to school late, we made cookies in class that day, and so when I came back, I told her what we did and so on. She ended up reading stories she found online and then would you rather. We ended up talking about, lets just say, "stuff" as well, and then I decided to show her the voice recording, and we talked. I told her that I have never been in a relationship and idk. After that, everyday we talked every time we could, and on April 3rd, I showed her the screenshots of Caitlin that she was telling me to go for it and stuff, she also showed me screenshots that Caitlin told her too. We talked every single day playing minecraft, watching movies by screen sharing my screen, anything that just had us on a call. On April 14 we even stayed on the call for 14 hours, and we had an idea, to see if we could even do a 24 hour call. This was also the day in which i opened up to her about the stuff I've been through in the past, which was hard, but I trusted her. She is a big fan of Marvel, mainly Spider-man, in particular Tom Holland. and we planned to see Endgame the same day it came out. Whenever we couldn't get on a call for reasons, I would still text her, and she told me, "why is time going so slow when I’m not talking with you" and I would say the same, but at the same time it when ever we were on a call, it also felt like forever, but it a good way, in which I enjoyed every single second of it. One of the other things we did was having my webcam facing the table and we both just draw. Fast forward to 26 of April, Another thing we did was that during her lunch periods at school, she would always call me, so we are talking, and then she says she has to go they got an announcement that told everyone to meet up. She texts me a bit later and tells me that there was something that happened at her school, they were all crying cause they had a teacher that just passed away in the building. This was also the same day we both we gona see Endgame. We keep talking like normal again. On the 28 of April is when I finally said yes to her. I started to get to school late and leave early often because I wanted to talk to her. I always use to soft talk her to sleep to now, it was our thing where we just keep the call on while we sleep too. A few of the times where she was sleeping, she mumbled "I love you". This was one of the many things I found adorable about her, like the way she giggled when I used to make her laugh, when on Saturdays it was me who woke up to her voice on the call, whenever I was feeling sick she used to just say in a soft voice "don't worry about it", we used to tell each other to imagine what a warm hug from us would feel, and we had our little nicknames for each other too, and another thing that we used to said was "I love you 3000". So now its May 5, and this day we were sent to a catholic retreat that was required to pass this church class. Like a week before this day, my mom called to let me know I had to go there, the first thing I did was that I told her that I had to go to this place for 3 days, cause that is what I was told. I told her that If I wasn't able to call, ill at least text her whenever I can. So the day comes and i'm letting her know that i'm in the car with the teacher and the other 2 people that was going too. So I made sure to let her know when I get on the car, and when we got there. So we get of the car and I have my backpack with cloths and stuff, thinking that we just gona walk in and see what this is all about, but before we left the car, the teacher told us that we had to leave our phones in the car for now. So i'm like, ok, maybe they just want to make sure we pay attention to where we were, what we gona do, ect. So before I left my phone, I texted her that our teacher told us to leave the phones in the car. We left them and went in. We went to a place that was like a hotel, they had our names already, took our bags, and told us to go to a bigger room. Here is where there was like 50 other people too. So i'm like wow. We just standing there wondering what is we going to do now. They explain the schedule and said we were goin to have a room with a roomate, so im like, dope. So after like an hour of talking and getting to know one another a bit, they tell us we can now go to our rooms and rest. So im like, yess, im feeling tired and I already miss my baby nugget, that was one of our little nicknames. So as people were heading to their rooms, I start to look for our teacher to ask him for my phone now, he ends up saying that we aren't getting them back till this is over, because he wants us to fully live this experience we were going to get. So at this point, in the inside I start to feel sad and mad because I promised Guava that I would have communication with her. I felt like I was going to let her down. I head to my room and see my roomate, I say whats up to him and then we just start to talk for a bit, he 19 and was very chill and nice to talk too. By this time its late and I was bored, and then I remembered that I had a notebook in my bag, so I take that out and a pencil, then I start writing exactly the way I would text her, It started with like 2 sentences and I thought by the time we leave this place, I would have like possibly 2 whole pages written down, but nope, I ended up writing 15 pages, top to bottom, and I even drew a rose for her one of those days. They had the windows covered with stuff and there wasn't any clocks, so we didn't really have a concept of time, those 3-4 days actually felt like 1-2 weeks, but I kept writing about what we did, the people I met, the food, but mainly how much I missed her. As I said before, i'm not religious my self but the stuff that was said there, really did make us change the way we saw stuff. We promised to not say what was spoken over there, cause what was said there, stays there. But Ill briefly talk about what changed with me. Growing up I never treated my brother, like an actual brother, and thinking back at it, he has always been there for me, but I can't say the same for him. There was times where he has taken the blame and punishments that I was responsible for, treated him a bit like shit, always distanced my self from my family members, I never gave him that trust with him. He is about a year and a half younger than me, and I regretted so much how I never acted like his older brother, someone he can can talk to if stuff was bothering him, someone he could trust. So what I ended up picking up there myself was to be grateful for having him there for me, even though I haven't before to him. I ended up promising to myself that I would trust him and I want to be there for him as well. Since I always been reserved, nobody in my family knew I was dating Guava. So I promised myself that once I go back, I will tell my brother everything, how the situation with our parent affected me, how I knew that he used go to sleep crying cause he hated seeing my parents like that and I never said or did anything. I also wanted to tell him about me and Guava. So the day finally comes, May 5th, the day we get to go back, when I saw the teacher I rushed to him as he was getting out his car and I didn't say hi or anything, I wanted my phone so badly so I can text to my baby nugget, cause it felt like almost 2 weeks with out her. So i'm turning on my phone expecting texts from her saying she missed me too. I open discord and I see " i already miss your voice in the morning", "i missed your voice at work", "and rn laying in my bed", " i cant sleep:( ", " i miss my baby nugget", " i need your voice to help me sleep" on May 3rd. Then on May 4th "weekend..", "and again, I miss you", " this is weird", "I really miss you and it hurts", "it randomly just happens and I go “aw I miss my baby nugget” and almost cry ". And this is when it really hurt, in the afternoon that day, she started saying " honestly fuk you for making me fall for you ", " I bet you haven’t even thought about me these 2-3 days ", " and im over here missing you like crazy ", " its stupid ", " i guess you’re gonna be back tomorrow right? ", " I told you it was probably gonna end it:( ", " ew I just realised I’ve been spamming you with “updates” ", " goodbye baby nugget ", " i mean eduardo " (thats my real name btw), " welp i can’t sleep ", " i mean you said 3 days, today is basically the 3rd, i guess you’ll be home tomorrow then ", " i wonder if something happened ", " i hope you’re having fun ". May 5th, earlier in the day when I still didn't have my phone, " i have 4 theories ", " 1. you aren’t back yet, so you’re still at the camp ", " 2. I was right and it ends here ", " 3. you lost your phone and your dad didn’t give your laptop back ", " 4. something (bad) happened to you ", " number 4 is bad and im hoping that’s not it, please rather number 2 than 4 ", " i have my first exam tomorrow, I’d hoped you’d be back in time to wish me good luck ". I got my phone back later in the day and responded with "I LOVE YOU" and then told her that they took my phone for those days, and that of course I was thinking of her all the time. I told her that I missed her so much and also wished her luck on her test. My battery was at 2% by this time since its just been in a car or wherever he kept them for those days. She ends up responding with " fuck you " and I responded with " No, baby why ??? 1% btw ", " I LOVE YOU ". She texted back " I hate you ". Since I've never been in a relationship before or been close to anyone like that, I haven't ever felt this kind of pain before. But I was in a larger van with more people heading back home, all I wanted was to cry and hug her as I tell her that i'm sorry for not being able to to talk to her those days, it felt like I loss her. I wanted to cry so badly but there was others around so I held it in, and for those who hold in pain like that, you know how that tight feeling around your throat and that intense pressure around your head. I tried to go to sleep until we got back home, but I couldn't when we finally got back to our church, we went to the basement and there was most of our family members waiting for us. We sat at some tables in the front while they were were all in chairs facing us. Our Aux's (that is what the people that took us through everything, like teachers, but they also went through stuff like we did) they were standing on the side giving mini speeches on how going over there helped us each with different things. We also talked about how our experience was and the new friends that we got close to. But I was kinda shaking while I was talking, not because I was nervous, but because I remembered what Guava told me. Its now like 9pm and I charged my phone while I took a shower. I went back to my phone and texted her again that I love her and that i'm sorry for not having my phone those days. I went to the kitchen and started to take pictures of each page of that notebook and sent them to her. I told her that it wasn't even my fault that they took our phones and how I was feeling when I saw those texts. Next morning, May 6 Monday, she responds saying that she didn't mean it, and she read most of the pages, and she had to go take the exam. She also has religious parents and in their religion, she was starting Fasting that day too, which she told me that they were going to eat at 9:30pm and 3:15am their time. She also says " we need to talk.. ", " I thought a lot while you were away ". I come back from school and text her that i'm home, she doesn't respond, a couple min later I decide to call her, she doesn't pick up. I text her that ill be watching youtube till she calls back. Around an hour goes by and I decide to call again, no answer. Like 5 min later I text her by her real name, and then she responds with "what". Instantly I knew what was going on, but I acted like I didn't know, so I just told her that ill be on my laptop in a bit. She tells me again that she still wants to talk about something, I called her and she picked up this time. She ended up telling me that those days gave her time to think, and she said we were moving to fast, and she wanted to take it slow and take it back to before we were a thing. I didn't know what to say. I try to not sound upset, I just said, it was her decision if if she wanted to take things to before we were a thing, then fine. I left the call and went to take a shower. She texted me again at around 1am the next day telling me that she has her math exam and she is stressed. I tell her good luck on her test, and she replies with " thanks baby nugget " and then tells me to go to sleep. At this point i'm confused now, cause she made me feel "that way" the day before, saying she wanted to take it back before we were a thing. After she told me to go to sleep, I just say, Fine. About 10 min pass and she texts me back saying she forgot something at home, and I just say Oof. She says its a good thing that she lives 5 min away from her school, and I just start answering the same way I would text other "friends". She tells me that she ran and got it, I just say, great. Now she starts to ask "baby nugget, are you okay?" And i'm just so confused/stressed, but I tell her yeah, i'm good. Later on in the day, she asks me if I want to call. I was about to say no, but I ended up saying yeah. We talked again for a few hours and ended up agreeing on taking it slow, so I went back to being more reserved from her, act like there wasn't anything but an online friendship. Wednesday May 8th, instead of texting her, I decide to go to the server and talk to some random people again. Half an hour later I see that she is also joining channels, so I try to avoid her so its not awkward. Sometime later, she texted me that she sees me going around the server and that I haven't text her. I just tell her that someone was playing guitar and I was bored. We text just a little bit, and she ends up saying " we barely talk, it’s sad ", so i'm still confused and simply just asked her if she wants to call or not, she says maybe, so I say " im not gona rush anything u dont want, i talked to someone for help, and they told me to not rush u, but just wait". The person that I asked for help was that online friend named Mia. Guava ends up saying " just call me already " and so I did. She told me that even though she wants to take it slow, she doesn't want me going back to being reserved. We talked for a while until she fell asleep again. She woke up a few hours later, as I was about to go to sleep. I asked her if she knew that the new season for Lucifer finally came out, she said yeah, she knows, we both like watching that show. After like 10 min of talking, I told her that she should just go back to sleep because its 3am for her and she tells me, " baby nugget nO ". To be honest, at this point I kinda started to just feel frustrated because I felt like she was just playing around, saying she wants to take it slow, but then calling me, baby nugget constantly. After she told be that in a hour it will be 4am for her, and if she stays up for an hour, she would of still gotten enough sleep, again, I told her to just go back to sleep, and she says " can’t I just stay up and talk with you:(". I was like, I don't even know, does she want to get back or not. We talked for like 20 min, then I told her I was getting sleepy, so I was gona go sleep now. Next day, May 9, its a thursday, she texts me like at her time 7am to wake up, but im still sleeping so she just says " goodnight/good morning ", " bby nugget", " ttyl". We talked a bit more again when she came back from school, she told me that fuck taking it slow, that she loves me and was just sad that she felt that I left her for those days. And after some talking , I told her that I love her too, I made made myself distant because I wanted to respect her decision and if she wanted to leave, it wouldn't hurt as much because I would of already accepted the fact that we are no longer together. We watched Lucifer for a while, and then I had to go to a parent teacher conference with my dad. I left the call on my phone, I was happier, because we were together again, after I came back, I heard that she was sleeping, so I just texted her, good morning to whenever she sees this text. She woke up like half an hour later saying she fell asleep, I told yeah, "i know, keep sleeping bby nugget" and she said, " im tired, but I want you ". So we started to talking again just like before. Every time we called, if I felt sick or something, just hearing her voice made my day. May 11, she ended up confessing why she got distant the days after I came back, it was because she was mad at herself because of something she did while i was gone, she started to take to other people and one of those people she talked to, she got a bit close too. I told her that i'm not even mad, disappointed....a bit, but I was glad that she told me the truth, I wanted her to be honest with me. She started to cry a bit on the call, but I told her that I understand why she would of felt like that when I left her for those days cause I didn't have my phone. Like I said, when she stopped replying to my texts, I felt like I loss her too and it was only like 2 days that she wasn't responding like she used to, and for her, I left for 4 days with no texts at all during those days. While she was crying, she asked me why was I being so understanding, I said...Cause I love you 3000. I ended up telling up telling Guava who was the one helping me to try and get guava back when she was being distant. I didn't want to tell her earlier because she felt a bit jealous, but I made it clear to her that she is only a friend that helped me when I was younger. We promised to not keep secrets from one another, and at that point I think I felt the closest to her. On May 12, that is when we completed the 24 hour call we said we were gona do. These days she wasn't feeling well because of the fasting thing that she is doing, so going so long without eating made her feel sick. I kept telling to eat something because I didn't like when she felt sick, but she said she can't cause of fasting. I tried to make her feel better by telling her " I'm so lucky because... I have you, someone who acually cares about me and makes me happy. I'm smiling while I'm typing this. Even if it's only been about 2 months, Thank You for being there for me". I waited for her to wake up the next day and talk, she taught me how to say, "I love you" in danish, " jeg elsker dig". Meeting her made me feel the happiest I ever been in years. Whenever she woke up at 3:15am her time to eat, I used to help her wake up by quietly saying her name or just talking about the way she always made me feel, after she ate and came back, I always asked her what is it that she had to eat and then soft talk her to sleep again. I used to love it whenever she used to sometimes soft talk me to sleep, the ways she used to tell she wanted to cuddle with me and max. The type of food she wanted to teach me how to cook. On Wednesday 15, when we were on a call during her lunch period, she told me that they got a printer in their class now, so I gave her the idea that she should print out memes, and put them around the classroom, and she did, it was a spider-man meme, she ended up printing 5 of these and started to putt them up around her class. One of the things that she helped me with a bit was in school, cause I started to do some work while I was on a call with her in the mornings. She gave me a reason to wake up early everyday and since I was always in a good mood while being on a call with her, I decided to multi task a bit. So I thanked for that. Thursday comes and I just picked up some bluetooth earbuds that I ordered mainly because of I wanted to to talk to her when I wasn't at home with a good mic, my phone's aux input is a bit messed up and makes a static noise whenever wired earbuds moved, so I bought those bluetooth ones. That day I called her twice and she didn't pick up, but she was on the server talking to others so was like fine, she talking to some friends or something. She ended up calling me at 3am her time, so I asked her what happened because she didn't call or barley texted me that day. She said that she just didn't feel like it. I felt a bit sad but told my self, its fine, she was just busy and forgot. The next day we got on a call again, she didn't have school this friday, so we stayed on the call till I went to school, but she mainly just watched youtube instead of talking. I went to school and when I came back at 12am, told her I was back, gave her a little text once in a while cause she didn't respond till about 2 hours later, saying she was busy. Again...kinda felt sad cause I started to feel her being distant again, and I really didn't want to lose her. I started to feel sick, like really light headed and stomach ache, I told her how I felt sick, she asked if I was okay, I said not really. She called me for like 2 min and told me to drink some water, and call my dad if I kept feeling sick. Then she left the call again. She called back at around 5pm my time. Again i'm feeling her being distant because her time it was already 11pm, and we really didn't talk that day, just enough for her to tell me to soft talk her to sleep. I did soft talk her to sleep, but when I knew she was asleep for sure, I talked about how I was really feeling, that I was scared of losing her, the one person I have ever told them "I Love You. I texted her at my time She wakes up at like 8:20pm my time, she talks for a few min until she goes eat. She didn't call back or even let me know what she ate, like we always used too. So at like 3:40am my time, I sent her a text. She calls me back at around 4am my time, and says she had to go like around 6am my time, and again all she really just do was just watch youtube. Now im really worried if I did something that she doesn't want to text or talk to me for these last few days. She ends up coming back and we get on a call at 11am my time. Again she didn't want to watch Lucifer or talk like before, she just used to watch youtube videos and tell me to mute my self once in a while, cause she wanted to watch her ASMR videos. At around 2pm, I decided to take a nap because I didn't feel well again. She didn't even want to soft talk me to sleep. So I just slept. Woke up an hour later and my dad was going to take me to the clinic because I wasn't feeling well. I told her before that we were going to travel to mexico to see family members in particular my grandpa, since he may not be around next year due to age. So at 5pm, I let her know as soon I knew, the dates we were going to travel, but this time I was going to have my phone for sure. She said ok, and then went to sleep at like at 5:30pm my time. Since it was a Saturday, we were heading to my moms place. Later that day we talked again like around 7pm for a while, since max and my little cousin we playing together I had the camera on. This is when she actually talked to me in a while, instead of just watching youtube. She ended up sleeping on the call and woke up at 10:30pm, she fell asleep again and she woke up at 2am my time, over there it was already 8am. This time I fell asleep to her voice, I wake up at 6am and see her text that says " my baby it’s so cute I can hear you breathing in your sleep ", " I just wanna hug you and cuddle you " I replied with "Aw", " I love you 3000", " That wut u said earlier was so adorable, I was awake when u was laughing, and was smiling. You just warm me up with the smallest things you do, I love you 3000!" by text cause my mom was sleeping still. It kinda made me forget how she was being distant that last few days. We texted for a bit when I got out of church class at 1:30pm . I called her when it was like 3pm, I saw that she was talking to others again, so I just let her know that i'm with Max. She responded at 3:50pm saying she had dessert, I asked if she wanted to call, she said in a bit, she didn't call, she responded with a text at 8:30pm. Again i'm noticing that she just doesn't want to talk, and I guess I already knew that she has/is losing interest. At 9pm my time she tells me if I wana call? And I already had a feeling that I knew it was time she was going to say what I've feared from the start. For the past week that I felt her changing, I always asked her, what wrong? Did I do something? If there is something she wanted to talk about, just say it, she would just keep saying that nothing is wrong, and I alked her, why is she talking to me less, she said, its normal don't worry about it. By this time, for the past two days, I asked for help about this to 3 other people, one of them was Mia. She told me that obviously it was't normal, maybe she was having other issues which she couldn't rely on my help for, she told me to just give her some time. Guava kept saying nothing is wrong, but before she went to sleep, one of the last things she said was, there is something she wants to talk about. I knew it was time...but she said that she was going to tell me the next day instead. I woke up at 12 like usual to tell her good morning, instead of her texting at least for a bit, she just said go back to sleep. At this point i'm just sad because I know there a 90% I already loss her. But still had that little bit of hope that it wasn't what I was thinking. Hoping it was something else...I could even sleep that day and stayed up waiting till 5am, for our usual call during her lunch break...she didn't text or call at all. There was no text no nothing till when she called me at 4:28pm. She told me exactly what I was scared of, she said that she wanted someone who she can actually cuddle with rn, someone who wasn't in a different time zone, someone who isn't on the other side of the earth. All this time that we have been talking and said that distance/time zones matters close to nothing when that someone means everything. I just had one question, "Did you ever mean it when you said "I love you"....She said "probably" I left the call. She later asked me an hour later if I was okay only cause Mia was talking to her because she was trying to help and she asked Guava if I was okay. I texted her 2 hours later " dont worry about it". Deep down I wanted to tell her nO! im not okay, my eyes feel like they burn every time I blinked cause of all the tears, that I felt like my chest was being crushed and I couldn't breath, it feels like I have been dumped in boiling water of how hot I started feeling, how my whole body feels numb, that I was sorry for anything I did that lead her to this choice, and most importantly that I love her, I don't want to leave me. She taught me how it feels to be loved and also how love can hurt as well. Its currently Tuesday 21st, 10:24pm and I haven't talked to her since yesterday at 8:32, my last message being, "Don't worry about it". She has told me before that if this just didn't work out for some reason, that we could still be friends. I said sure, but now looking back at this all, I gave all of my trust to her, and she started to talk to someone else, I forgave her for what she did when I was gone for a few days, saying I didn't want to just argue and just leave, that I wanted to fix whatever issue that would come. I....I trusted her again and she gave me false hopes. Fuked up how she wanted to be back together after I forgave her for what she did, just so she can tell me that she wasn't even sure she meant it when she used to tell me "I love you", and this wasn't even a month later, this was just 9 days after she said she didn't want to take it slow anymore, that she "loved me". Currently its now 10:41pm. I started to type this hoping it would help, seeing it from a third person view. Now I can see that our relationship wasn't really working out, I was putting her over everything else, school, my heath, my time, and even potentially moving back with my mom because of the fact that I chose to live with my dad, but since I've been skipping school, and failing classes because I wouldn't even show up since I was at home, talking to Guava. I changed my whole sleeping schedule so I could give her the most time I could. If I was accused of lying about something during our relationship, I would say, yeah I lied to Guava about something, the fact that I used to tell her not to worry about my sleeping schedule, I use to tell her that I was sleeping great to not worry, but nope, I would get about only 4 hours of sleep for the past month and a half, and that some of the days I was home from school earlier was because of tests, and we got to leave early. I changed so much, not "because of her", but "for her," but looking back at it, there wasn't much she did to try and make it work for my time zone. If you do ever read this, i'm NOT trying to say that I changed my life for the worse because of you, I just want to show you how much I cared about you, what you made me feel for you those first days we met was something real and after time, I really wanted you to be "the one"

I remember that when I first started typing this yesterday, I was feeling depressed, sad, confused. But surprisingly It has made me feel better. If she does ever want to be to be together again but this time, seriously , I wouldn't say no right away, because I would be lying if I said that I don't start felling sad at random times and that I don't miss her even though its only been a bit over 27 hours, but I would tell her to first to earn my trust again and just be friends while we are online for now, Once we are sure that we meet IRL then I will gladly move to the next step.

I love you 3000 baby nugget

[remembermemorablememories]

Monday, February 11, 2019

post #399

main points:

- visit starbucks reserve roastery again

- get dim sum at din tai fung / stop by barneys

- walk to pike place market to get some cherries

- walk to gameworks and play left 4 dead 

- walk over to underground tour

- thai dinner with andrea, toby and jwoos

- pack up

writing this on wednesday february 13

today i:

- woke up at 10am and chilled in bed for a bit before jwoos woke up at 10:30am. then we both got ready and left the airbnb around 11am. we walked over to starbucks reserve roastery again

i got my mom some coffee beans, sun brazil, which is supposed to be a lighter coffee with citrus-y flavors. it’s the one we tried a few days ago at the bar the first time we went. jwoos got an affogato type thing, then took some pics of the baristas

we left and then walked through the convention center area to din tai fung in the pacific place shopping center. before we went up to the fourth floor for dim sum, we stopped by barneys new york. jwoos wanted to see what size shoe he’d need for a shoe he was interested in, it was like a white leather type shoe that cost $400 retail. it was in european size so he needed to find his equivalent. he’s gonna buy it for resale cause retail way too much

- ate lunch at dim sum. we split xiao long bao (they were tiny o_o), fired noodles, and a pork rice wrap appetizer. it was pretty good overall, but the soup dumplings were soooo tiny

- walked down to pike place market again to get some cherries. jwoos got some chocolate cherries as souvenirs to bring home. then we walked around the basement area again, looking at some shops. we looked at a japanese store and an artists’ shop. just browsing around trying to figure out what to do. it started snowing again outside... T.T and the flakes were actually like huge... adding to the already existing pain of walking in the snow

- we walked back to the convention center to check it out but there was a microsoft event going on, called microsoft ready (?). it was closed off to public so we were like... now what?? it was 3:30pm and we planned to go to the underground tour with andrea for 6pm. we saw gameworks was right across the street so we went there. we browsed around looking at arcade games and saw an esports section with PCs and consoles. we signed up for an hour for left 4 dead 2 and played from 4:15-5:15pm ish. it was pretty fun, though i sucked LOL. jwoos carried pretty hard. and also i think the mode we played may have been on easy or something, cause i remember playing with dimitri and martin in singapore and it was hella hard then. idk what campaign we played but it was in a circus area and the last part was fighting in a concert area

- walked over to the underground tour in pioneer square. that walk was like 20 minutes but it was suuuuuper rough. it was like light flurries, sort of rainy. the sidewalks were covered in snowy slush as a result from the snow earlier today and then the subsequent rain ish. my shoes got super soaked... feels bad man. super uncomfy and it was fairly cold, like 30 degrees. i just wanted to be at home and warm and dry

- we got to the underground tour, around 5:50pm, just before it started, bought our tix. then we were brought upstairs for a history talk/lesson. andrea and toby were a bit late (like 5 minutes) but were fortunately able to make it in and sat down with us :D 

we learned about crappers and the seattle spirit (being stubborn about potentially terrible ideas), the first mayor, and other stuff. the tour guide was interesting... toby described her as deadpan and i think that’s a good description. her jokes were funny at times but also kinda weird LOL. after the history talk, we walked around the surrounding areas being brought underground. there were 12 of us total (including the tour guide). she told us about the history of why there is an underground. there were actually stores down there during that time before they built over it to the main sidewalk, we saw some cool purple glass tiles above us that were on the sidewalk. they were purple because of the material that they were made of. after enough sunlight they change color. there was apparently a ghost hunter episode or something done here in 2007 where they were inconclusive about the results after living down here for 3 nights. also it was really moggy, like mold growing above us on the ceiling, water seeping through from the rain/snow above :s

we finished like an hour and a half later and ended up in the gift shop around 7pm

- then we took the link back to capitol hill. first time riding the public transit, yay :) it was interesting cause they only had one line but pretty smooth. they have a caltrain like card tapping system where you tap in and tap out which is neat

- we got thai food dinner at manao thai street eats. i got pineapple fried rice and we just hung out talking. it was nice, we got to learn more about toby and his work life. we also talked about the trance music played in cal anderson park a few days ago, seattle vs NYC, joking about april fools pranks/instagram followers, and other stuff. lots of laughter and fun :) 

we said good bye to andrea and toby and then jwoos and i walked back to our airbnb. ugh it was so bad out :( my feet were so cold and soaked, we’d done a lot of walking today in the snow. since seattle doesn’t have infra to handle snow, most uber/lyfts weren’t driving around much

- we got back home, each took a shower, then packed up all of our stuff. i packed up all my dirty clothes, laptop and stuff, figured out how to get the two shoes in there, and then called it a night. we decided to wake up at 4:30am tomorrow to catch our flights, so i went to sleep around 11:30pm/12am

the end!

[limforbiddendesiresolstice]

一，

Sunday woke up by 4:50am now. 一, sebelum ini, pentadbiran persekutuan Pakatan Harapan mengurangkan jumlah cabutan khas tahunan dari 22 kepada 11 pada tahun 2019, dan jumlah itu dikurangkan kepada lapan pada tahun 2020. Selain itu terdapat tiga cabutan "biasa" dalam seminggu.

Namun, pemerintah Perikatan Nasional (PN), yang mengambil alih dari Pakatan Harapan, dilaporkan menaikkan semula jumlah cabutan khas menjadi 22.

https://m.malaysiakini.com/news/592643

一，

always, i woke up by 4:50am Malaysia time to protect kidney, then meditate. 一，

have warm plain water is 👍.

Do not shower or wash head between 6pm ~ 10am.

2

cure diabetes, cancer etc: Jogging continuously 30 minutes in daytime only after digested breakfast, light lunch & then walked 10000 steps for sweating & bone health is 👍.

To prevent illness: Avoid cold sugar drink & dessert after meal (at least an hour. Better stop). AVOID chili for recuperating all illness including cough, flu, diabetes, etc.

Sugar, sweetie and cold water will incur to the brain a false signal of hungry which is 👎.

Start from warm-watered the legs, not the head when shower. Do not shower or wash head before 10am & finished shower before 6pm or then use hot water but not late than 6.30pm.

Reduced desire less than two times/month especially May, June, Dec, Jan, Mar, Sept...2protect life.

Have 12pm noon eyes' rest about 15 minutes (after light lunch & then walked minimum 100 steps).

Sleep before 10pm to discharge toxic & wake up by 3:40am every day

i

s

👍

.

[primortravel]

New Post has been published on https://primortravel.com/the-camino-frances-walking-stages-the-detailed-itinerary/

The Camino Frances walking stages - the detailed itinerary

The Camino Francés is a 790km pilgrimage route from St.Jean Pied de Port to Santiago de Compostela. It’s the most popular route of the Camino de Santiago network followed by the Portuguese Camino. This Camino route is walked by hundreds of thousands of pilgrims every year. The Camino starts in France and on the way to Santiago crosses several regions in Northern Spain; Navarre, La Rioja, Castille and Leon, and Galicia. In this post, you’ll find a detailed day by day itinerary for the Camino Francés.

A typical scenery on the Camino Francés

Camino Frances route overview

St.Jean Pied de Port the beginning of the Camino Frances

Our detailed one-month itinerary for the Camino Frances

Day 1. St.Jean-Pied-de-Port to Roncesvalles, 25 km

Day 2. Roncesvalles to Zubiri, 22 km

Day 3. Zubiri to Pamplona, 22 km

Day 4. Pamplona to Puente La Reina, 24 km

Day 5. Puente La Reina to Estella, 21,5 km

Day 6. Estella to Los Arcos, 22 km

Day 7. Los Arcos to Logroño, 28 km

Day 8. Logroño to Navarrete, 12 km

Day 9. Navarrete to Azafra, 23 km

Day 10. Azofra to Grañon, 22 km

Day 11. Grañon to Villafranca Montes de Oca, 28 km

Day 12. Villafranca Montes de Oca to Cardeñuela Riopico, 24,5 km

Day 13. Cardeñuela Riopico to Tardajos, 27,5 km

Day 14. Tardajos to Castrojeriz, 30 km

Day 15. Castrojeriz to Frómista, 25 km

Day 16. Frómista to Carrión de los Condes, 20 km

Day 17. Carrión de los Condes to Terradillos de los Templarios, 26 km

Day 18. Terradillos de los Templarios to Bercianos del Real Camino, 24 km

Day 19. Bercianos del Real Camino to Mansilla de las Mulas, 27 km

Day 20. Mansilla de las Mulas to Leon, 19 km

Day 21. León to Villar de Mazarife, 21 km

Day 22. Villar de Mazarife to Astorga, 31 km

Day 23. Astorga to Foncebadón, 26 km

Day 24. Foncebadón to Ponferrada, 27 km

Day 25. Ponferrada to Villafranca de Bierzo, 24 km

Day 26. Villafranca de Bierzo to O Cebreiro, 28 km

Day 27. O Cebreiro to Triacastela, 20 km

Day 28. Triacastela to Sarria, 25,5 km

Days 29-33. Sarria to Santiago de Compostela

Camino Frances planning resources

Camino Frances route overview

Total distance – 790 km

Number of days required – 29-34 days

Average cost – 25-30 Euro per person per day

Accommodation – public and private albergues, hotels

Our detailed guide to the French Camino contains a lot of useful information for planning the walk. There you can find the cost of the Camino, how to get to St.Jean Pied de Port, accommodation options on the Camino, where to get a Credential, the best months for walking, and more.

Make sure you don’t pack too much stuff take only necessary clothing and gear. We have a detailed Camino packing guide with tips on what to pack for men and women for different seasons.

We’ve created PDF files with walking stages and places to stay on the Camino Frances. You can download them for free and use them for planning your Camino walk. Keep in mind that in 2021 some public albergues are closed you might have to stay in private albergues quite often.

St.Jean Pied de Port the beginning of the Camino Frances

It’s a very lovely town where everything is about the Camino de Santiago. France is noticeably more expensive than Spain don’t worry if everything costs more than you expected once you’re out of France prices on the Camino Francés go back to normal.

There are many places to stay in St.Jean including one municipal albergue that gets full quickly in the season if you arrive after lunchtime your chances of getting a bed there are quite small.

Getting to St.Jean Pied de Port

You can get here through France or Spain depending on where your international flight arrives. We have a detailed explanation of how to get to St.Jean from both countries.

Accommodation in St.Jean Pied de Port

Booking accommodation on the Camino. In the beginning, I didn’t book anything because I walk fast I always arrived early enough to get a bed but after a couple of weeks, I was pretty tired of this bed chase I started booking places. Remember, municipal albergues can’t be booked. Booking over the phone was complicated (though I speak Spanish fluently). You have to phone first to book, then a day before your booking phone again to confirm, they usually hold the booking till 3pm so if you’re arriving after 3pm you have to phone again that day to say you’re still coming. I ended up booking places through booking.com (if I could find anything suitable there) it was quick and easy. In this post, you can find links to the most accommodations on the Camino Frances that can be booked online.

Our Camino Frances video, part 1 walking over the Pyrenees, from St.Jean Pied de Port to

Our detailed one-month itinerary for the Camino Frances

Day 1. St.Jean-Pied-de-Port to Roncesvalles, 25 km

Distance – 25km

Time – 5h30min.*

Walking on asphalt – 14km

Walking on the road – 3km over the pass, a very quiet road, there were one or two cars

Ascent – 1400m

Descent – 650m

Difficulty level – 5 out of 5

*walking time only. I walk fast, I’d suggest adding 1-2 hours to my times.

Elevation profile of day 1 on the Camino Francés. Stage from St.Jean to Roncesvalles

It’s one of the toughest days on the Camino Frances especially considering that for the majority of pilgrims it’s their first day on the Camino. I’d strongly recommend for inexperienced walkers to book a bed in Albergue D’Ornisson which is about 8km from Roncesvalles. This way you can split the first day into two and walk half of the ascent on the first day and the rest of it and the descent on the second day. Unfortunately, Albergue D’Ornisson is the only place to stop and it’s not very big definitely book your bed in advance. There are a couple of places before it about 4-5km from Roncesvalles.

I’d strongly recommend starting walking early especially in summer, to finish ascent before it gets too hot and to get a bed in the Colegiata (albergue) in Roncesvalles. There are 200 beds here but there are always people who don’t get a spot. For this reason, it’s better to book this place in advance, you can do it via e-mail, there are 70 beds (every day) available for booking.

As I said the walk was challenging, the ascent starts right from St.Jean and finishes at 21km, the last 4km it’s a steep descent to Roncesvalles. There were a couple of places to refill water on the way and one food stall at about halfway. 

 Highlights

Stunning scenery; mountains, green hills, lookouts, patches of the forest if it wasn’t for the steep climb it would be a very pleasant walking day.

Albergue Colegiata in Roncesvalles a big and impressive old building.

Beautiful service at the church of the Colegiata at 6pm. 

Challenges

A very long and sometimes quite steep ascent, 1400m over 21km

A very steep descent, 650m over 4km

Albergue La Colegiata

Despite its size (200 beds), the albergue is nice and comfortable. There are three big rooms with 70 beds each, every room has many cubicles with four beds and four lockers. The beds are big and comfortable, the facilities are good, everything is quite new and well placed. The rules here are strict, the lights go off at 10pm, after that time pilgrims are not allowed to be anywhere but in their beds. Albergue opens at 2pm but we could check-in at 12pm and had just to wait till 2pm to get inside. and Price 12€. Open all year. Book your bed in advance.

Kitchen – yes

Hot shower – yes

Wi-fi – no

Power sockets in the room -yes

Blanket – yes

Washing machine – yes, 3,5 Euro

Other – lockers

More accommodation options in Roncesvalles

Day 2. Roncesvalles to Zubiri, 22 km

Distance – 22km

Time – 4h20min.

Walking on asphalt – 8km

Walking on the road – 500m

Ascent – 443m

Descent – 871m

Difficulty level – 3 out of 5

Elevation profile stage 2. Roncesvalles – Zubiri.

We were woken up at 6am, the lights went on and the Gregorian Choir music started playing. Everything in the town was closed, no place to stop for coffee or breakfast we had to start walking in the dark, a headlamp here will be very useful. Today’s walk is much easier than the day before but still not very flat with many uphills and downhills. 

Some people keep walking past Zubiri to the next place about 5km away for me 22km was a good distance I felt that I needed some rest after the previous intense day. I decided to stop here despite arriving very early at 11.30. I found a nice private room with bathroom and wi-fi they let me check-in at 11.30 I was very happy to have the whole day to rest.

In case you decide to walk on some guide books and websites say there is a small albergue 4km from Zubiri Albergue Espeleku, in fact, this place doesn’t exist anymore, they turned the albergue to a holiday house. The next place to stop after Zubiri is Urdániz (5km) or Llarasona (6km) away. 

Highlights

Burgette a small town with a nice church

Espinal another small charming town; old houses, flowers, a church etc.  

Zubiri – a very peaceful place with the Medieval Bridge, a small square, and a couple of small streets. 

Challenges

Many short ascents but nothing compared to the previous day

A steep and quite long rocky descent just before Zubiri

Municipal albergue

The municipal albergue in Zubiri was closed (September 2019), many people couldn’t get a place to sleep in the town, as a result, they had to keep walking and some of them walked 10km extra before they could find anything available. Zubiri is a very small place if you walk in peak season make a reservation here. I stayed in a private room with an attached bathroom at Pensión Amets, it is nice, very quiet, and clean.

More accommodation options in Zubiri

Day 3. Zubiri to Pamplona, 22 km

Distance – 22km

Time – 4h

Walking on asphalt – 11km

Walking on the road – 1,5km

Ascent – 405m

Descent – 491m

Difficulty level – 2 out of 5

Elevation profile stage 3. Zubiri to Pamplona

It was the easiest day out of three with many small ups and downs in the beginning but in general nothing challenging. My main problem was finding an open place to have coffee or breakfast, the first one I got was at 9km.

Many pilgrims continue walking on past Pamplona I was thinking about doing it as well but when I arrived in the city I really liked it and decided rather stay here. I arrived early, get a bed in the municipal albergue and the rest of the day just walked around the city and ate a lot of pintxos. 

Highlights

A couple of charming towns on the way.

Pamplona is one of the most beautiful cities on the Camino Frances. The Historical center is spectacular; the Cathedral, the Citadel of Pamplona, Museum of Navarra, Plaza del Castillo, and so on. 

Eating pintxos and drinking local wine is a must here, there are many inviting bars in the center.

The Historical center of Pamplona, a nice stop on the Camino Frances

Challenges

Many hills mostly at the beginning of the day

Municipal albergue Jesús y María

Another massive albergue on the Camino Francés, 112 beds. There are three halls with bunk beds on the ground floor and a big room on the top floor. The place is neat and clean but when there are that many people there is always a queue to showers, washing machines or toilets. They sell Credentials at the reception. The albergue opens at 12pm. Price 9€. Open all year, except 5-14 July and 22nd December – 13th January.

Kitchen – yes

Hot shower – yes

Wi-fi – yes

Power sockets in the room -yes

Blanket – no

Washing machine – yes, 1 Euro

Other – lockers, dryer – 1 Euro

More accommodation options in Pamplona

Day 4. Pamplona to Puente La Reina, 24 km

Distance – 24km

Time – 4h40min.

Walking on asphalt – 13km

Walking on the road – 500m

Ascent – 477m

Descent – 567m

Difficulty level – 3 out of 5

Elevation profile stage 4. Pamplona to Puente la Reina

The day went quite quickly probably because I was woken up at 5am and started walking before 6, as a result, I arrived at Puente la Reina before 11am which wasn’t bad because the town is very pretty. Most of the day the Camino goes through wheat and sunflower fields I believe in summer it looks really beautiful but in September it was just bare land with dried sunflowers. 

Highlights

El Alto del Perdón the famous sculpture group representing pilgrims walking the Camino de Santiago. It’s probably one of the most famous photo spots on the Camino Frances.

A couple of nice towns with beautiful churches on the way.

Puente de la Reina and its atmospherical Church of Santiago which is definitely a must-see here. It’s probably one of my favorite cathedrals on the route. There are more sights to see in the town; the Old Bridge, Plaza de Mena, a couple of other churches built in the Middle Ages. Walking along the Calle Mayor (Main Street), pay attention to the wooden gates, they are used to cut off the streets for the bull run during the festival.  

Probably the most famous monument on the Camino Francés and definitely the most photographed one.

Challenges

A long ascent to the Alto del Perdón with a subsequent steep and rocky descents

No shade to hide, in summer it’s better to start walking earlier.

Municipal albergue Padres Reparadores

It’s one of the cheapest albergue on the Camino Frances with 96 beds. The place is nice with good facilities, clean, a big garden, friendly hosts, just outside the center, about 5min. walk. Opens at 12pm. Price 5€. Open all year.

Kitchen – yes

Hot shower – yes

Wi-fi – yes

Power sockets in the room -yes

Blanket – no

Washing machine – yes, 4 Euro

Other – dryer, 4 Euro, big garden, vending machines

More accommodation options in Puente La Reina

Day 5. Puente La Reina to Estella, 21,5 km

Distance – 21,5km

Time – 4 hours

Walking on asphalt – 4,5km

Walking on the road – 500m

Ascent – 483m

Descent – 437m

Difficulty level – 2 out of 5

Elevation profile Camino Francés stage 5. Puente la Reina to Estella

It was a very quiet day with not many people on the way, mostly walking through the fields and hills, past a couple of villages.

Highlights

The Historical center of Estella; the church of Santo Sepulcro, the Convent of Santo Domingo, the Carcel Bridge, Plaza de los Fueros with the street market where you can buy some local specialties like cheese, chorizo, etc. Don’t be lazy the town is beautiful it’s worth spending some time exploring it, go to the square drink a glass of wine, eat a couple of tapas.

Challenges

Some slight ascents and descents but in general an easy walking day.

Municipal albergue de Estella

A nice and big albergue (96 beds) with good facilities, located close to the center, on the Camino route. A big albergue with good facilities, a nice garden, very social. Opens at 12pm (off-season opens at 2pm). Price 6€. Open all year except 15th December – 15th January.

Kitchen – yes

Hot shower – yes

Wi-fi – yes

Power sockets in the room – yes

Blanket – no

Washing machine – yes, 3 Euro

Other – dryer, 3 Euro, garden, vending machines

More accommodation options in Estella

Day 6. Estella to Los Arcos, 22 km

Distance – 22km

Time – 4h16min.

Walking on asphalt – 5km

Walking on the road – 0km

Ascent – 435m

Descent – 414m

Difficulty level – 2 out of 3

Elevation profile French Way, stage 6 Estella to Los Arcos

Leaving early today was quite a drawback because one of the highlights of the Camino Frances the famous wine fountain is just a couple of kilometers outside Estella. I arrived there still in the dark I managed not to miss the fountain (like some people who I met on the way that day) but to be honest drinking wine at 7am it’s not a great idea, especially considering that you still have about 20km to go. I did have a sip of it.

Highlights

Wine fountain (tap) at about 3km from Estella at Bodegas Irache; one tap is with wine and another one with water.

Rolling fields of wheat and vineyards. I walked the Camino Francés in September just before the harvest there was so much grape everywhere it was truly beautiful. 

Challenges

Nothing in particular just slight ups and downs all the way

Municipal albergue Isaac Santiago

I stayed in a private room at Pensión Mavi. I did it at least once a week if I could find a nice private room. It’s just so nice to be the only person in the room and to have your own bathroom. I had a quick look at the municipal albergue, it looked fine but I’d say a bit overcrowded and dilapidated. It opens at 12pm. Price 6€. There are 70 beds. Open from Easter weekend till October.

Kitchen – yes

Hot shower – yes

Wi-fi – no

Power sockets in the room – no

Blanket – no

Washing machine – yes, 3 Euro

Other – dryer, 3 Euro, garden

More accommodation options in Los Arcos

Day 7. Los Arcos to Logroño, 28 km

Distance – 28km

Time – 5h

Walking on asphalt – 11km

Walking on the road – 2km

Ascent – 488m

Descent – 553

Difficulty level – 3 out of 5

Elevation profile Camino Frances, stage 7, Los Arcos to Logroño

The entire day was through the fields and over the hills with many short but sometimes steep ascents and descents. 

Logroño is a big city and usually finding accommodation in big places is easy but if you arrive here on the weekend and don’t want to stay in the municipal albergue I’d recommend booking a place. Logroño is a very popular place for Spanish people from all over the area to come for the weekend to celebrate Birthdays, weddings, bachelor parties, etc. It’s a very nice vibe in the city but it gets crazy busy.

Some people prefer to stop in Viana which is 18km first because it’s a shorter walk and second because Viana is a smaller town. Considering that the next day I felt a bit tired and walked only 12km to Navarrete I could have stopped in Viana and instead of having 28km and 12km days I’d had 18km and 22km.

Highlights

Olive tree plantations and vineyards – picturesque scenery and very sweet grapes.

Viana – a beautiful town with a beautiful cathedral, cobblestone streets, many restaurants, a good place to stop for lunch.

Just before Logroño, the Camino enters La Rioja the wine country of Spain and its smallest region.

The historical center of Logroño; the Cathedral, several churches, Calle de San Juan (San Juan street) with hundreds of pintxo bars. I tried some delicious pintxos here, the best pintxos on the Camino Frances. I’d recommend skipping dinner here and going out for pintxos and wine.

Grape harvest is one of the advantages of walking the Camino Frances in September

Challenges

Long walking day, the longest on this Camino so far.

Many ascents and descents in the first half of the day

Last 5km of walking on asphalt which is always tough on your feet especially after walking more than 20km.

Albergue Albas

The municipal albergue was still closed when I arrived in Logroño but there was already a long queue of pilgrims, I didn’t feel like waiting and went to a private albergue instead. I stayed at Albergue Albas, it’s a nice and clean place, with a great location, close to the cathedral, the facilities are good. They have private rooms as well but it was fully booked I got a dorm bed.

Municipal albergue of Logroño

As for the Municipal albergue, it’s quite big (88 beds), there are many beds, the facilities are good, it’s located in the center, on the Camino. Opens at 1pm (at 3pm in winter). Price 7€. Open all year.

Kitchen – yes

Hot shower – yes

Wi-fi – yes

Power sockets in the room – yes

Blanket – no

Washing machine – yes, 3 Euro

Other – dryer, 3 Euro, garden

More accommodation options in Logroño

Day 8. Logroño to Navarrete, 12 km

Distance – 12km

Time – 2h30min.

Walking on asphalt – 8,5km

Walking on the road – 300m

Ascent – 194m

Descent – 90m

Difficulty level – 1 out of 5

I decided to take “a day off” so I walked to the next town and checked into a hotel. Not sure if it was wine and pintxos from the previous night or I just was a bit tired after one week of walking but I felt like I needed some rest.  I must admit it was the right decision. If you have time, I recommend having a short walking day every once in a while and if you can afford to stay in private just to chill out a bit.

The Camino goes through Logroño for about 3km after that it turns into the fields there are many water taps along the route but no places to stop for coffee or breakfast (everything in the city was closed at 7am). Navarrete was the first place to stop for breakfast.

Highlights

Navarrete a small quiet town I really enjoyed staying here after bustling Logroño, it’s a perfect stop for a relaxing day on the Camino.

Challenges

Quite a bit of walking on asphalt.

Not many places to stop for breakfast.

Hostal Villa de Navarrete

I stayed in a private room again just because I finished very early and didn’t feel like sitting outside and waiting for the municipal albergue to open. I was lucky to get the last private room at Hostal Villa de Navarrete, a very nice place, right on the Camino, close to the supermarket and restaurants, clean and comfortable.

Municipal albergue of Navarrete

As for the municipal albergue, it looked modern and neat, it’s not very big, there are 6-8 beds in every room. Opens at 1.30pm. Price 7€. There are 36 beds. Open from 1st April to 31st October.

Kitchen – yes

Hot shower – yes

Wi-fi – yes

Power sockets in the room – yes

Blanket – yes

Washing machine – yes, 3 Euro

Other – dryer, 2 Euro, coffee machine

More accommodation options in Navarrete

Day 9. Navarrete to Azafra, 23 km

Distance – 23km

Time – 4h

Walking on asphalt – 7,5km

Walking on the road – 500m

Ascent – 354m

Descent – 316m

Difficulty level – 2 out of 5

Elevation profile stage 9 Navarrete to Ventosa

The next couple of days the Camino goes through La Rioja the main wine region of Spain. It’s a very pleasant area for walking; vineyards, farms, green hills etc.

Highlights

Walking through vineyards most of the day, there are some wineries on the way that probably do wine tasting but everything was still closed when I walked there in the morning

Nájera a beautiful town; cobblestone streets, the Cathedral, the old bridge etc.

Challenges

A couple of slight ascents and descents

Municipal albergue of Azofra

The town itself is not too impressive compared to Navarrete or Nájera but the albergue is quite nice, there are many small rooms with two beds each you have more privacy here, 50 beds in total. This albergue accepts bookings and backpacks delivery. Opens at 12.30pm. Price 10€. Open all year. Phone for booking +34 941 379 325

Kitchen – yes

Hot shower – yes

Wi-fi – yes

Power sockets in the room – no

Blanket – yes

Washing machine – yes, 3 Euro

Other – dryer, 4 Euro, garden, a small pool

More accommodation options in Azofra

Day 10. Azofra to Grañon, 22 km

Distance – 22km

Time – 4h

Walking on asphalt – 5,5km

Walking on the road – 0km

Ascent – 400m

Descent – 234m

Difficulty level – 2 out of 5

Elevation profile stage 10 Azofra to Grañon

It was the first rainy and cold day on the Camino due to that I didn’t enjoy it that much. The first place to stop is a strange town of Cirueña. It looks like a ghost town despite most of the buildings are new and there is a huge golf estate in the town. Luckily I had breakfast in Azofra because I didn’t feel like stopping here. 

The second half of the walk from Santo Domingo was almost all the way on the gravel path next to the road.

Highlights

A couple of kilometers after Grañon the Camino exits La Rija and enters Castile and León.

The historical center of Santo Domingo de la Calzada unfortunately many buildings were under renovation.

Challenges

A couple of ascents and descents throughout the day.

Albergue La Casa de las Sonrisas

In Grañon stay anywhere but in La Casa de las Sonrisas. I stayed there and was terribly bitten by bedbugs, it was my worst bedbug experience ever. I read some comments on Camino forums and many people complain about the same. A couple of days later when I stayed in a municipal albergue the hospitalero looked at my bites I asked if by any chance I didn’t stay at La Casa de Las Sonrisas in Grañon which made me think bedbugs in that albergue are permanent residents. 

Albergue Parroquial San Juan

There is another albergue for donation Albergue parroquial San Juan Bautista. It’s a very basic place, more like an old-times albergue with mattresses on the floor, no wi-fi, etc. People say it’s a very interesting experience if you’re up for that. Otherwise, stay at one of the private places.

More accommodation options in Grañon

Day 11. Grañon to Villafranca Montes de Oca, 28 km

Distance – 28km

Time – 4h45min.

Walking on asphalt – 7km

Walking on the road – 0km

Ascent – 488m

Descent – 234m

Difficulty level – 3 out of 5

Elevation profile Grañon to Villafranca, stage 11, Camino Francés

It wasn’t the most impressive day on the route, long stretches of walking along the road. Many towns to stop on the way but all are pretty small with one bar and a couple of albergues not much else.

Highlights

Sunflower fields though it was September and flowers were dried out but in summer it must look impressive. 

Challenges

Monotonous parts of walking along the road.

Albergue San Antón Abad

The municipal albergue in Villafranca is currently closed, most pilgrims including myself stay at albergue San Antón Abad. It’s a big place with a couple of rooms, some have normal beds (12 Euro), some bunk beds (10 Euro). There are 49 beds. The facilities are fine but bathrooms and a kitchen could be bigger considering the number of people staying here. The second half of the building is a nice hotel you can get a private room here but it’s significantly more expensive. Opens at 11am. Price 10-12€. Open from 15th March to 15th November.

Kitchen – yes

Hot shower – yes

Wi-fi – yes

Power sockets in the room – yes

Blanket – no

Washing machine – no

Other – restaurant

More accommodation option in Villafranca-Montes de Oca

Day 12. Villafranca Montes de Oca to Cardeñuela Riopico, 24,5 km

Distance – 24,5km

Time – 4h20min.

Walking on asphalt – 4,6km

Walking on the road – 3km 

Ascent – 413m

Descent – 456m

Difficulty level – 3 out of 5

Elevation profile stage 12 from Villafranca to Cardeñuela

I really enjoyed this day the first half was through the forest very nice and quiet. The second half through the fields with many small villages on the way. The first place to stop for coffee or breakfast is 12km after that there will be plenty of places.

Highlights

First 13km of walking through the forest

A beautiful monastery and church of San Juan de Ortega

Nice villages; San Juan de Ortega, Agés, Atapuerta

Challenges

250m ascent right at the exit of Villafranca Montes de Oca. The first 4km of the route is up. 

Several smallish ascents and descents throughout the day

Municipal albergue of Cardeñuela

A very small place, two rooms with 3 bunk beds each (12 beds in total), on the second floor of a bar, not many facilities; beds, showers, a table, and a couch. You can get food at the bar. Opens at 12pm. Price 5€. Open all year except the last week of December.

Kitchen – no

Hot shower – yes

Wi-fi – yes

Power sockets in the room – yes

Blanket – no

Washing machine – no

Other – bar

Day 13. Cardeñuela Riopico to Tardajos, 27,5 km

Distance – 27,5km (including 2km of walking around Burgos)

Time – 5h.

Walking on asphalt – 20km

Walking on the road – the first 5km if you take the route through Villafría

Ascent – 103m

Descent – 193m. It was a very flat walk (like everywhere in the Meseta), no elevation profile needed.

Difficulty level – 3 out of 5

I left early in the morning in the dark with an idea to spend some time in Burgos and continue walking to Tardajos. Walking in the dark I missed the split that is about 2,5km from Cardeñuela, just before the airport. The left route goes away from the road, it follows the river almost all the way to the city. The right route continues along the road for 5km and then goes through the industrial area of Burgos. I definitely recommend taking the river route through Castañeres. You can mark it on Google.maps to make sure you won’t miss the turn. Distance to Burgos on both routes is more or less the same.

The split on the Camino after Orbaneja, the red route goes to Burgos following the road and past the industrial area, the right route goes along the river

It was the worst day on the Camino so far, first 5km walking on the road which wasn’t busy at all but considering that you start in the dark it’s still quite unpleasant. After that, there were about 8km of walking through the industrial area of Burgos. It was one of my least favorite days on the Camino Frances.

The Historical center of Burgos is very beautiful, the cathedral, the square, many churches, the castle, etc. I was thinking of stopping in Burgos but 13km felt too short to stop there. I did spend an hour or so walking around the city. The cathedral of Burgos is not to miss here.

Note! In Burgos on the way to the center, the route marking is not very clear if you don’t see signs just follow Calle Vitoria and sooner or later you’ll see the arrows and shells again. To walk out of the city after that there was a gravel road through the fields all the way to Tardajos.

If you have time or just want to have a day off you can stay for the night in Burgos, it’s a beautiful city with a lot to see. There are plenty of places to stay here including the Municipal Albergue of Burgos.

Places to stay in Burgos

Highlights

The beautiful historical center of Burgos; the cathedral is stunning from outside and inside, I definitely recommend visiting it.

The famous Meseta a long stretch of plains that starts from Burgos some pilgrims like it some don’t but it’s one of the most recognizable scenery on the Camino Francés. For the next two weeks (basically till Astorga) the scenery will stay pretty much the same.

Challenges

5km of walking on the road (if you don’t take the alternative river route).

8km of walking through the industrial area of Burgos (again if follow the main route).

20km of walking of asphalt. I think on the river route there will be less asphalt.

Albergue La Casa de Beli

I stayed at the private albergue La Casa de Beli because I arrived in Tardajos just after 1pm and the municipal albergue opened only at 3pm I didn’t feel like waiting, plus the price difference was only 2 Euro. La Fabrica was a nice place, clean, comfortable, nice yard, good restaurant though there is no kitchen but I just asked for a plate and a knife and made sandwiches and cut some salad. They have private rooms as well. There are 34 beds. Opens at 12pm. Price 10€. Open all year.

Kitchen – no

Hot shower – yes

Wi-fi – yes

Power sockets in the room – yes

Blanket – no

Washing machine – yes, 3 Euro

Other – dryer, 4 Euro, restaurant, garden

More accommodation options in Tardajos

Day 14. Tardajos to Castrojeriz, 30 km

Distance – 30km

Time – 5h.10min.

Walking on asphalt – 8,5km

Walking on the road – 7km very few cars

Ascent – 331m

Descent – 335m

Difficulty level – 3 out of 5

Elevation profile stage 14 Tardajos to Castrojeriz

It was a nice walking day mostly through the fields and over the hill with not many towns to stop on the way, make sure you carry enough water.

Highlights

A couple of nice town on the way; Sambol, Hontanas

Beautiful ruins of San Anton Monastery 4km before Castrojeriz, there is an albergue next to it for donation but it has very basic facilities (no electricity, no hot water).

Challenges

Quite a long walking day with few places to stop in between.

Municipal albergue San Esteban

A typical municipal albergue; one big room with 35 beds, a basic kitchen, a couple of showers and toilets. It looks a little bit dilapidated at first sight but it was bad at all. Opens at 12.30pm (2.30pm in winter). Price 5€. Open all year.

Kitchen – yes

Hot shower – yes

Wi-fi – yes

Power sockets in the room – yes

Blanket – no

Washing machine – no

More places to stay in Castrojeriz

Day 15. Castrojeriz to Frómista, 25 km

Distance – 25km

Time – 4h.33min.

Walking on asphalt – 3km

Walking on the road – 1km, very few cars

Ascent – 268m

Descent – 281m

Difficulty level – 2 out of 5

Elevation profile stage 15 of the Camino Francés, walk from Castrojeriz to Fromista

You start noticing that you’re walking through the Meseta, a flat open area with wheat fields. I think in spring it might be different, green fields and flowers but in fall it looked a bit sad. The Meseta is an important part of the Camino Frances. Some people really like it, some don’t.

Highlights

Can’t recall anything specific maybe a small river a couple of kilometers before Frómista.

A couple of nice churches in Frómista 

Challenges

A steep ascent right in the beginning of the day, about 220m up

Not many places to stop, only two villages on the way with one bar and a couple of albergues each.

Albergue Luz de Frómista

The municipal albergue in Frómista costs 10,50€ the reviews were not that great, it doesn’t have a kitchen just a microwave. I decided to stay in a private albergue. I stayed at Albergue Luz de Frómista, a very nice place with great hosts, comfortable, clean with all you need for a nice stay. 26 beds in total. The place is very popular it’s usually booked if you want to stay here it’s better to book in advance. Opens at 12pm. Price 10€. Open all year except Christmas.

Kitchen – yes

Hot shower – yes

Wi-fi – yes

Power sockets in the room – yes

Blanket – yes

Washing machine – yes, 3 Euro

More places to stay in Frómista

Day 16. Frómista to Carrión de los Condes, 20 km

Distance – 20km

Time – 3h.30min.

Walking on asphalt – 10km

Walking on the road – 6km along the road

Ascent – 110m

Descent – 74m

Difficulty level – 1 out of 5

There is a split at Población de Campos, about 3km from Frómista; the right route goes through the countryside, the left route continues along the road. The countryside route is 1km longer. Both routes join the first time at Villarmentero de Campos, after about 6km and the second time after about 10km at Villalcázar de Sirga.

The split on the Camino between Frómista and Carrion de los Condes

Highlights

A nice walk next to the river and through the fields on the alternative route

Carrión de los Condes; Monastery Santa Clara, Church of St.Maria del Camino, Contemporary Art Museum etc.

Challenges

Last 6km of walking along the road

Albergue parroquial Santa María

A nice albergue with good facilities and a good location. Though it’s a parish albergue, nuns don’t come here often it’s run by volunteers. Sometimes it’s students, sometimes people from Friends of Camino Association. Some guide books say the nuns make communal dinner every night it’s not true they hardly ever cook dinner for pilgrims. There 58 beds. Opens at 12pm. Price 5€. Open from 1st March to 31st October.

Kitchen – yes

Hot shower – yes

Wi-fi – no

Power sockets in the room – no

Blanket – no

Washing machine – yes, 3 Euro

Other – dryer, 3 Euro, garden

More places to stay in Carrión de los Condes

Day 17. Carrión de los Condes to Terradillos de los Templarios, 26 km

Distance – 26km

Time – 4h.45min.

Walking on asphalt – 8km

Walking on the road – 4km

Ascent – 216m

Descent – 158m

Difficulty level – 3 out of 5

It was probably the day with the most monotonous scenery, luckily I met a very nice couple of Norway and the first 17km went pretty quick. 

Highlights

The main highlight was a restaurant at 17km with cold drinks and some food.

Challenges

For the first 17km there are no towns on the Camino, make sure to take enough water. In season there is a food truck at about 8km and a small bar Oasis at 10km.

A long and tiring day of walking through the plains with nothing around.

Albergue Los Templarios

There is no municipal albergue in Terradillos de los Templarios there are two private albergues. I stayed at Albergue Los Templarios in a private room with an attached bathroom for 28 Euro. There are 9 private rooms and 34 beds. It was really nice, comfortable and clean. They have dorm beds as well, for 10 Euro. There is no kitchen but you can get food at the restaurant it wasn’t too expensive. Open from the end of March to the 31st of October.

Kitchen – no

Hot shower – yes

Wi-fi – yes

Power sockets in the room – yes

Blanket – yes

Washing machine – yes, 4 Euro

Other – dryer, 5 Euro, garden, restaurant

Day 18. Terradillos de los Templarios to Bercianos del Real Camino, 24 km

Distance – 24km

Time – 4h.

Walking on asphalt – 4km

Walking on the road – 500m

Ascent – 193m

Descent – 254m

Difficulty level – 2 out of 5

At 6,8km there is a split, one route continues along the road (it’s a little bit shorter), another one goes through the fields for about 3,5km both routes merge in Sahagún.

At 19km there is another split the left route (the Official route) goes through Bercianos, the right route (the Roman road) goes through Calzada del Coto both routes join the next day in Mansilla de las Mulas. The alternative route follows the Roman road Via Trajana. I took the Original route (like most pilgrims). Some of my friends took the Alternative route and they liked it but some people were complaining that there was a lot of walking on cobblestones that hurt their feet. The distance on both routes to Mansilla de las Mulas is about the same.

The split on the Camino after Sahagún; the red route is the official route, the blue route is the alternative route on the Old Roman road

From Sahagún the Camino (the Original route) goes along the road (gravel path) all the way to Bercianos.

Highlights

Sahagun; Church of San Tirso and Church of San Lorenzo.

Challenges

Not many places to stop on the way, between Sahagún to Bercianos for 10km there is nothing just fields.

Albergue La Perala

I again stayed at the private albegue La Perala. It’s a very nice and comfortable place with many rooms both private (single – 28 Euro, double – 38 Euro) and dormitories (10 Euro). The dormitories have only four single beds each and an attached bathroom is you’re four people together it’ll be like a private room. There are 56 beds. Open all year.

Kitchen – no

Hot shower – yes

Wi-fi – yes

Power sockets in the room – yes

Blanket – yes

Washing machine – no

Other – garden, restaurant

Albergue Bercianos 1900 is another good place to stay in Bercianos.

Day 19. Bercianos del Real Camino to Mansilla de las Mulas, 27 km

Distance – 27km

Time – 4h30min.

Walking on asphalt – 2,5km

Walking on the road – 500m

Ascent – 141mm

Descent – 194m

Difficulty level – 2 out of 5

Most of the day the Camino just followed the road though it wasn’t busy at all hardly any car mostly cyclists.

Highlights

Beautiful sunrise, actually in the Meseta every day if it’s not cloudy you can see the sunrise, don’t forget to look back from time to time. 

Mansilla de las Mulas – a nice town with a beautiful church and a couple of restaurants.

Challenges

Not many places to stop on the way

Municipal albergue of Mansilla de las Mulas

The albergue is quite big (74 beds), it looks a little bit dilapidated it has all you need including a fully equipped kitchen. The location is great as well, right on the Camino, next to two restaurants, a supermarket is just 5min. walk. The hosts are quite fun and entertaining, at night they took out a guitar, there were music and singing, it was one of the best evenings on the Camino Frances. It opens at 12pm. Price 5 Euro. Open all year.

Kitchen – yes

Hot shower – yes

Wi-fi – yes

Power sockets in the room – yes

Blanket – no

Washing machine – yes, 3 Euro

Other – dryer, 3 Euro, garden

More accommodation options in Mansilla de las Mulas

Day 20. Mansilla de las Mulas to Leon, 19 km

Distance – 19km

Time – 3h30min.

Walking on asphalt – 7km

Walking on the road – 600m

Ascent – 164mm

Descent – 140m

Difficulty level – 1 out of 5

The day was better than I expected there wasn’t a lot of walking through industrial areas, next to the road etc. like it usually is when you approach a big city. At 3,8km there is a split, the right route continues along the road (not recommended), the left route goes through the fields and small towns. The day was short and easy with a couple of ups and downs. You walk about 4km through León before you reach the historical center. 

From León, it’s possible to walk to Oviedo following the Camino del Salvador (4-6 days) and from Oviedo continue to Santiago following the Camino Primitivo. It’s not very popular but some pilgrims do combine the Camino Frances or the Camino del Norte with the Camino Primitivo.

Highlights

The historical center of León; the Cathedral, the Basilica of San Isidoro, La Plaza Mayor, La Plaza San Martín, several churches. If you happened to be in León in September-October don’t miss the Organ Festival in the Cathedral, the concerts take place several times a week at 9pm. For me, it was the most impressive Cathedral on the Camino Frances.

A Pilgrims’ Mass takes place every day in the Basilica of San Isidoro at 7pm. at the end of it, you can get a blessing and a stamp.

Going out for tapas is another must-do activity in León, El Barrio Húmedo and El Barrio Romántico in the center are famous for their tapas bars. 

Challenges

Short parts of walking next to the road

Walking through the outskirts of Leon (nothing bad or ugly)

Albergue Muralla Leonesa

I stayed in a private albergue Albergue Muralla Leonesa in León. It was good and clean, small rooms, bedding, a kitchen. There are 60 beds. The good thing about this place is that you can come in and out any time you want, the entrance door has a code. Open from March to October every day, from November to March only Thu-Sun. Price from 12 Euro.

Kitchen – yes

Hot shower – yes

Wi-fi – yes

Power sockets in the room – yes

Blanket – yes

Washing machine – yes, 3 Euro

Other – dryer, 4 Euro

More places to stay in León

Day 21. León to Villar de Mazarife, 21 km

Distance – 21km

Time – 3h45min.

Walking on asphalt – 12,5km

Walking on the road – 3km (very few cars)

Ascent – 276mm

Descent – 232m

Difficulty level – 2 out of 5

The beginning of the day (walking out of Leon) wasn’t as bad as I thought, it took quite a while to walk out of the city but it wasn’t really an industrial area more residential areas. At 8km after the church of Virgen del Camino, there is a split (well-marked); the right route (the Official route) goes along the road to San Martín del Camino. The left route (the alternative route) goes through the countryside and fields to Villar de Mazarife. The scenic route is 5km longer (over two days), both routes merge the next day at Hospital de Órbigo. I don’t like walking next to the road if there is an option I always take an alternative route.

Split on the Camino at La Virgen del Camino, 7km from León

Highlights

Church of Virgen del Camino

Challenges

The first 8km walking through the populated area of the city

Albergue de Jesús

The place is fine, not super cozy or comfortable but has all the necessary facilities. There are 50 beds. Opens at 12pm. Price 7 Euro. Open all year.

Kitchen – yes

Hot shower – yes

Wi-fi – yes

Power sockets in the room – yes

Blanket – yes

Washing machine – no

Other – restaurant

Day 22. Villar de Mazarife to Astorga, 31 km

Distance – 31km

Time – 5h45min.

Walking on asphalt – 7km

Walking on the road – 0km

Ascent – 293mm

Descent – 329m

Difficulty level – 3 out of 5

A long walking day through the fields and hills from now on the Meseta part is over, the Camino is entering green and rainy Galicia, from Astorga on there will be more mountains and forest. Two very nice stops along the route helped to make this day less tiring and more fun though, to be honest by the end of it I was quite tired.

The Via de la Plata or the Silver Way, one of the longest Camino routes in Spain merges with the Camino Frances in Astorga.

Highlights

This day was full of highlights and unexpected meetings.

Hospital de Órbigo – a beautiful little town with cobblestone streets, old houses and an impressive Medieval bridge Puente del Paso Honroso.

Villares de Orbigo – it would be just another small village on the way if it wasn’t 22nd of September. The village celebrated the First day of harvest as a part of the celebration they invite pilgrims who walk through the village for breakfast in the Pilgrim’s House. Unexpected moments like these become some of the brightest memories of the Camino.

Another very interesting encounter on the way, the famous David’s place; a great stop on the route about 5km before Astorga. David is a Spanish pilgrim who’s been living on the Camino for the last 7 years, he’s walked many different routes. He lives in a small house and every day puts food, fruit, water and cool drinks for pilgrims who walk by. It’s a donation place. The money that he gets from donations he uses to buy more food for pilgrims. David is an interesting person to talk to but even if you don’t feel like talking, it’s a great rest stop on the way in the middle of nowhere. There are chairs and benches with shadow to sit down and rest.

The historical center of Astorga; the Cathedral, the Gaudi Palace, the Plaza Mayor, Old Roman Walls, etc. The city is not big all the main sights are close to each other. 

My personal highlight staying at a spa hotel in Astorga, it was absolutely worth the money.

The main square in Astorga, one of the main towns on the Camino Frances

Challenges

Long walking day, 31km

A couple of ascents in the second half of the day

Hotel SPA Via de la Plata

I decided to spoil myself and stayed at Hotel SPA Via de la Plata, it was quite expensive but well worth the money. I really enjoyed the day in the hotel; a big room, a private bathroom with an amazing shower, a very comfortable bed, it was definitely the best sleep I had on the Camino Frances. I paid 12 Euro extra for 1 hour in SPA; swimming pool, sauna, contrast shower, hydromassage, etc. The next day I felt very relaxed and well-rested.

Municipal albergue of Astorga

There is a municipal albergue for 5 Euro in Astorga Albergue Siervas de María, it’s very big (156 beds), located in the center. Open all year.

Kitchen – yes

Hot shower – yes

Wi-fi – yes

Power sockets in the room – yes

Blanket – no

Washing machine – yes, 3 Euro

Other – dryer, 3 Euro

More places to stay in Astorga

Day 23. Astorga to Foncebadón, 26 km

Distance – 26km

Time – 5h.

Walking on asphalt – 6,3km

Walking on the road – 800m (few cars)

Ascent – 642mm

Descent – 100m

Difficulty level – 3 out of 5

Elevation profile Camino Francés stage 23, Astorga to Foncebadón

I decided to enjoy my hotel and sleep late (first time on the Camino Frances), I already had an albergue booked so I didn’t have to worry about arriving in time to get a spot. I started walking only at 10.30. I did it a couple of times when I stayed in private I booked a place for the next night that I didn’t have to get up early and start walking and could enjoy a nice sleep.

It was a very nice walking day with beautiful scenery I was pleased to see different landscapes, some hills and a little bit of the forest, especially in the second half of the walk. Finally, I was out of the Meseta!

Highlights

Rabanal del Camino – a beautiful little village

Different scenery; green hills, forest, mountains.

Challenges

A long ascent in the second half of the walk, 600m up

Albergue El Convento de Foncebadón

I stayed at a private albergue el Convento de Foncebadón. A comfortable, clean, and not very big albergue with private rooms and dormitories with 3 bunk beds each and an attached bathroom. Opens at 12pm. Price 11 Euro. Open from the 1st of March to the 30th of November.

Kitchen – no

Hot shower – yes

Wi-fi – yes

Power sockets in the room – yes

Blanket – yes

Washing machine – yes, 3,5 Euro

Other – dryer, 2 Euro

More places to stay in Foncebadón

Day 24. Foncebadón to Ponferrada, 27 km

Distance – 27km

Time – 5h

Walking on asphalt – 7,5km

Walking on the road – 1,7km

Ascent – 308mm

Descent – 186m

Difficulty level – 3 out of 5

Elevation profile stage Foncebadón to Ponferrada, Camino Francés

The first 17km till Molinaseca were absolutely spectacular, one of the best views on the route so far. Right in the beginning at about 2km from Foncebadón, you reach the Cruz de Ferro a symbolic place on the Camino Francés where people leave rocks, shells, letters, etc.

Highlights

El Cruz de Ferro

Spectacular mountain scenery during the first 10km

A couple of small beautiful towns; El Acebo, Riego de Ambrós, Molinaseca

The Historical center of Ponferrada; the castle, the

Molinaseca a pretty little town on the Camino Francés

Challenges

Steep and sometimes rocky and slippery descent for 1100m

Walking on the asphalt for the last 5km

Albergue Guiana

I stayed at a private albergue again. Albergue Guiana is a nice place with many rooms with 3 bunk beds each and a bathroom, 90 beds in total. The location is good, close to the historical center, restaurants, and shops. It’s clean and comfortable. Opens at 12pm. Price 12 Euro. Open 1st March to 31st October.

Kitchen – yes

Hot shower – yes

Wi-fi – yes

Power sockets in the room – yes

Blanket – yes

Washing machine – yes, 5 Euro

Other – dryer, 1 Euro; breakfast, 5 Euro

More places to stay in Ponferrada

Day 25. Ponferrada to Villafranca de Bierzo, 24 km

Distance – 24km

Time – 4h30min.

Walking on asphalt – 18km

Walking on the road – 2km (on a gravel path along the road)

Ascent – 316m

Descent – 351m

Difficulty level – 2 out of 5

Elevation profile stage Ponferrada – Villafranca del Bierzo

The beginning of the day was a little bit disappointing though walking out of Ponferrada wasn’t a big issue, it didn’t take long. Once out of the city the route goes through suburbia areas, next to the road not really spectacular scenery compared to the previous two days but the second half was much better and more scenic.

Highlights

Beautiful vineyards for the last 10km.

Villafranca; the Collegiate Church of Santa Maria, the Convent of San Nicolás El Real, the Church of Santiago with its Puerta de Perdón (the Gate of Forgiveness) that get opened only in Holy Years.

Challenges

First 11km the Camino goes next to the road with the not very impressive scenery.

Walking surface, most of the day you walk on asphalt.

Hostel Venezia

In the second half of the Camino, I was a bit tired from getting up at 6am every day and being worried about finding a bed and decided to book places in advance for this reason I ended up staying mostly in private albergues or hotels. Hostel Venecia is a good albergue, it’s clean, cozy, and comfortable. It’s a bit away from the town center if you want to go to the supermarket or restaurant you’ll have to walk 10-15min. The hostel is very small, two rooms with 3 bunk beds each, max 12 people, nice and quiet place. There are private rooms as well. Opens at 12pm. Price 11 Euro. Open 1st March to 31st October.

Kitchen – yes

Hot shower – yes

Wi-fi – yes

Power sockets in the room – yes

Blanket – yes

Washing machine – yes, 3 Euro

Other – towels, lockers, included breakfast

More places to stay in Villafranca

Day 26. Villafranca de Bierzo to O Cebreiro, 28 km

Distance – 28km

Time – 5h.

Walking on asphalt – 18km

Walking on the road – 16km along the road with very few cars

Ascent – 905m

Descent – 138m

Difficulty level – 4 out of 5

Elevation profile stage Villafranca del Bierzo to O Cebreiro

From Villafranca there are two different route options from Villafranca; the main route follows the road from time to time you get to walk on or next to the road, it’s easier with not many ups and downs, most pilgrims choose it. The second route Camino de la Montaña (the mountain route) goes over the mountains and has more ascents and descents, it’s about 1,5km longer as well. Both routes merge 10km later in Trabadelo. I took the main route since it’s walked by most people.

Two route options on the Camino Francés after Villafranca; the official route (red) and the mountain route (blue).

The day was quite long and tiring considering the last part to O Cebreiro which was the pure ascent to 700m over 6km. For some people, it might be very challenging stopping before O Cebreiro is an option. There are really many nice small villages on the way. You can split the day into two and walk 20km to Las Herrerias which is just before the ascent and the next day walk 9km to O Cebreiro or continue walking past it to the next place.

Highlights

Many small cozy villages on the way; Trabadelo, La Portela de Valcarce, Las Herrerías, La Faba etc.

Stunning views on the way from Las Herrerías up to O Cebreiro.

Beautiful sunset from the viewpoint in O Cebreiro. 

Stunning view from O Cebreiro

Challenges

A lot of walking on the asphalt and along the road.

A very steep and long ascent for about 700m over the last 6km, the ascent starts at 21km after Las Herrerías. One of the toughest days on the Camino Frances.

Casa Navarro

This time I stayed in a private room at Casa Navarro , a guest house in O Cebreiro. It’s a nice and small place right at the entrance to the village, clean and cozy. After the long ascent, I was very happy that I’d booked a private room because I was quite tired and could have a very good rest. I booked this place almost a week ahead there are not many places in O Cebreiro and they get full very quickly.

Municipal albergue of O Cebreiro

There is a municipal albergue in O Cebreiro, many people say that there are too many beds too close to each. I haven’t been there but it’s a very big albergue for 100 beds. Opens at 1pm. Price 8 Euro. Open all year.

Kitchen – yes, no utensils

Hot shower – yes

Wi-fi – no

Power sockets in the room – yes

Blanket – no

Washing machine – yes, 4,5 Euro

Other – dryer, 1 Euro

More places to stay in O Cebreiro

Day 27. O Cebreiro to Triacastela, 20 km

Distance – 20km

Time – 4h.20min.

Walking on asphalt – 2km

Walking on the road – 0km

Ascent – 305m

Descent – 1063m

Difficulty level – 3 out of 5

Elevation profile of the walk from O Cebreiro to Triacastela

It was a very long and tiring day. At 22km after Triacastelo there is a split one route goes through Samos a small town with a beautiful monastery it’s the original route, the second route is 6km shorter and it goes through San Xil.

Highlights

Great views on the way down to Triacastela

Challenges

Several ascents and descents in the beginning

A long and steep descent to Triacastela

Municipal albergue of Triacastela

The albergue is located right at the entrance to the town, a bit far from shops and restaurants, the facilities are quite basic. There are 56 beds. It opens at 1pm. Price 8 Euro. Open all year.

Kitchen – yes, no utensils

Hot shower – yes

Wi-fi – no

Power sockets in the room – yes

Blanket – no

Washing machine – yes, 4,5 Euro

Other – dryer, 1 Euro

More accommodation options in Triacastela

Day 28. Triacastela to Sarria, 25,5 km

Distance – 25,5km

Time – 5 hours

Walking on asphalt – 11km

Walking on the road – 6km, quiet road, not many cars

Ascent – 210m

Descent – 320m

Difficulty level – 2 out of 5

Another split on the route at the exit from Triacastela; the right route goes to Sarria through San Xil, the left route goes through Samos. Both routes merge at Aguada, about 5km before Sarria. The route through Samos is about 7km longer than through San Xil, 26km versus 19km. It would be an obvious easy choice (I mean the shorter route of course) if it wasn’t for the spectacular Monastery of Samos an active Benedictine monastery its history dates back to the 7th century though it was rebuilt quite a few times since then. I really wanted to see it and didn’t regret this decision, a 19-kilometer day sounded too short for me anyway.

Highlights

An incredible Galician forest from about 5km after Triacastela, a very peaceful walk with no towns, roads or people.

The Monastery of Samos – a beautiful and huge complex if you have the time it’s worth visiting the church.

Impressive monastery of Samos, Camino Francés

Challenges 

Quite a long stretch in the beginning right after Triacastela along the road, about 4km but there were practically no cars.

Arriving in Sarria might be a bit challenging due to an overwhelming number of pilgrims there, Sarria is located just over 100km from Santiago which is the required walking minimum for getting the Compostela. There might be twice as many people on the Camino from Sarria on. Don’t worry there are many albergues, restaurants, and hotels on this part of the route.

Places to stay in Sarria

Days 29-33. Sarria to Santiago de Compostela

A detailed itinerary for the last 100km from Sarria to Santiago you can find in our post walking the Camino Frances from Sarria. As an option after finishing in Santiago, you can continue walking to Finisterre, it’ll take 3-4 more days.

Camino Frances planning resources

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[theaspiringwanderess]

Booking WCT Parks Reservations and Transportation

Return to My WCT Story | Packing: Food/Clothes/Essentials |  What to Expect, Fees, Travel Plan + Emergency Contact, Registration Process, Registration Day Key Take-Aways, Transportation Options

Booking A WCT Reservation Through Parks Canada

To book a hike on the West Coast Trail you have to make a reservation through the Parks Canada Reservation website. Parks Canada opens online reservations at the beginning of each year. Normally this opening date is in January, however due to the covid-19 pandemic the trail was closed in 2020 and opened later than usual for reservations on April 30, 2021. This allowed Parks Canada to make important and informed decisions about how to proceed with orientation practices, trail maintenance and ensure that vaccine/infection rates were at acceptable levels to keep safe the at risk indigenous communities who live in the remote areas along the trail.

Also due to covid-19 and increased down time for many people, hiking has become an insanely popular newfound pass time and this has dramatically increased the number of people clamouring for the more elusive bookings. when I logged into the Parks Canada website April 30, 2021, I was greeted with an anticipated [second] round of what I’ve dubbed the ‘Parks Canada Hunger Games’. Luckily because the official grand opening of the Parks website for all other bookings was April 16 (2021), I had a tasted of what to expect. It took almost 8 hours to get through online waiting periods and make my reservation and I actually didn’t get my first pick of dates, but it worked out in the end and frankly I know so many people that didn’t get through so I felt extremely lucky. I expect as things return to normal this will phase out and return to more normal waiting periods, so don’t be deterred.

The online booking process through Parks Canada includes almost all your fees with the possible exception of the water taxi required to cross at Nitinaht Narrows. In my experience both times the Parks Canada website says this fee is not included in the registration process. However, on both occasions once at Nitinaht our party was told the fee was paid. I still recommend bringing the $62.50 fee with you in cash because if for some reason your booking doesn't include the fee there is no other way to cross the narrows and complete the trail.

WCT Fees paid through the online booking process include: *more info can be found here on the Parks Canada website

West Coast Trail Overnight Use Permit (per trip, per person): $130.31

Reservation Fee: (per person): $24.50

Additional ferry fees (if applicable)

Gordon River Ferry: $22.00 (needed to complete the full hike end to end)

Nitinaht Ferry: $2.00 (if you enter or exit at Nitinaht Narrows ie- half the hike)

Fees (*potentially) not included in the online booking process:

National Park Entry Fee (this can be purchased at a daily rate, an annual rate, or you can purchase a Parks Discovery Pass)

Water Taxi Fee (Nitinaht Village – Nitinaht Narrows, one way): $62.50

Travel Plan + Emergency Contact

You will need to have a travel plan prepared in advance in order to make your reservation with Parks Canada. A travel plan includes what day you will start the trail, what day you plan to finish, and how many nights you expect to spend on the trail.

As a precaution, you also are expected to provide this information to an emergency contact of your choosing who will not be hiking with you. This can be a friend, family member, etc. I also personally recommend having a contact plan in place for your departure and return times. This means, text your contact the day you leave BEFORE you lose cell reception and text them the day you arrive back in town as soon as you get back into a reception area. Often times situations occur such as hikers finishing the trail a day early or a day late or they might miss the bus and run a day behind. Be sure to have this discussion with your emergency contact and prepare them for this possibility.

Registration Process

The person making the reservation will need to need to provide their name, address, phone number and email. If you can, I recommend hoping onto the Parks Canada website a few days in advance to create an account (GCKey) so that you just sign in quickly rather than risk delays during the registration. If you have an account already, freshen up on your login and password details and have them ready for the big day!

For each guest you are booking you will need their full first and last legal name and an emergency contact’s name and phone number. This information can also change year to year so it’s a good idea to have your guests on standby for the day incase you need anything else last minute.

Key Booking Process Take-Aways

Give yourself lots of time to make bookings. Set aside the day, be prepared to spend many hours online on the phone on hold.

Have your travel plan and emergency contact information ready (entry point, exit point, how many days you expect to be on the trail for, emergency contact name and number and having had a chat about timelines).

Have the information for each hiker ready in advance. Have each party member send you their info prior to the day and have it ready and waiting. Ask your party members to be on standby incase you need any additional info last minute.

Know your fees in advance. This will help you prepare, especially if you are booking multiple hikers and will avoid any cost shocks.

Have a payment method ready and waiting. Credit Cards are usually the easiest way to go, but if you know what your fees will be you can use pre-paid cards or visa debit as long as you have the appropriate amount of funds available.

Transportation To And From The Trailhead

When I first did the WCT, only 5 years ago, there were far less options and ways to communicate with other parties to make alternative transportation arrangements. This time around I learned about so many other cool options to tell you about!

West Coast Trail Shuttle Bus

Driving

Bus + Driving Combo

Ride Sharing

West Coast Trail Express Bus

My choice of transportation to and from our entry (start) point for most my Vancouver Island hikes thus far has been the West Coast Trail Express Bus. These guys are so amazing and I cant speak highly enough of the service they provide. You must book your fare in advance, online is the easiest way and its best to book parties all together to ensure everyone gets a seat. The rates are varied based on the distance you travel and if you book a round trip fare (there and back at the end of your hike) you receive a 20% discount! For my 2021 WCT trip I originally booked 3 adult fares, Victoria to Gordon River (heading to the trail) and Pacheena Bay to Victoria (leaving the trail) and it cost $143 per person. They also have a pretty fair cancelation policy; cancel more than 10 days in advance and receive a refund minus a $5 admin fee. After 10 days they will charge a 10% fee per day (ex. 9 days notice receives 90% refund return).

The shuttle bus essentially does one big loop, depending on travel length it may offer a restroom stop or sometimes an opportunity, time and route allowing, to grab a quick refreshment. You are travelling on some rough logging roads though and the ride can be at the very least described as bumpy... but with some great scenary! It leaves Victoria once daily at 6:30 am from the Capital City Station and heads up island. They stop along the way at trailheads for the Juan de Fuca as well as the WCT. It usually takes a couple hours to reach the Gordon River WCT trailhead in Port Renfrew. The bus stops directly in front of the information station where you can unload your pack and head inside to register and attend an orientation. In 2021 we saw a lot of construction though and this did cause us delays, arriving at 10:30am (next orientation was then at 11:30). It did give us lots of time though to read the important info, grab a snack and use the luxurious flush toilets one last time!

From Port Renfrew the bus continues northwards to Pacheena Bay, potentially making stops at Nitinaht along the way if they have a registered passenger. It does a round into the small town of Bamfield (roughly around 1:15pm) and then heads to the Pacheena Bay Trailhead Information Station for about 1:45pm. At this time it picks up any passengers heading south back to Gordon River, Port Renfrew or Victoria. If you have finished the trail at Pacheena Bay and are hungry or in need of a shower you can take a taxi from the Info Station to Bamfield and catch the bus there also, just be aware of your timelines. Leaving Pacheena Bay at 1:45pm we were the only passengers going back to Victoria and normally would arrive back in Victoria at 5-6pm but unfortunately with construction again we actually rolled back into town at 8pm (! ... lots of delays and one-way traffic lanes). This is no fault of the bus service, I have to say our driver Jeff was absolutely the best company and filled us in on all the news we’d missed and the ferry creek protests going on at the time. He was AWESOME!

Driving

In case you’re rather particular about buses or maybe you prefer to travel solo, you can indeed drive up to either WCT trailhead / Information Stations. However, if you plan to go this route there are some things you should be aware of.

First, before anything else, it must be said that many of the roads are rough. Like backwoods, gravel, logging road rough, and thus are rough on your vehicle.

Plan your route. Map out in advance the roads you will take, and note where service stations are if you need one, or even if you just need a break and opportunity to stretch those legs!

You might also want to consider staying at a halfway point overnight to breakup the drive. A friend’s house maybe, or, there are some really amazing B&B’s or hotels along the way or in the area. Or you could even plan to camp the night at either end if that’s appealing! Of course rates do apply so consult the Parks Canada website.

There is paid parking at each trailhead / information station. Look up the rates in advance per day and I’d advise even calling ahead to see how much parking they typically have available and if they’ve been busy lately. Space is limited.

If you are driving/parking, what is your plan to get back to your vehicle once you come out the other end of the trail? ... If you’re unsure, consider one of the following combo options! Or, if you are fairly confident about your finish date and that you wont be delayed you could consider having a friend or family member pick you up. If you opt for this, maybe stash a set of clean clothes in the vehicle and consider treating them to lunch for the effort ;)

Bus + Driving Combo

If you have no local friends or family on the island to pick you up (or at least none willing to make the drive!) one option is to leave your vehicle at one of the trailhead lots and book a one way bus shuttle fare back once you finish. For example, if you start at the southern Gordon River entrance, you’d park there and finish at Pacheena Bay where you’d catch the bus back to Gordon River. The trip between the two is only about 3(-ish) hours normally. Though again in 2021 construction made this closer to 4 hours for anyone opting for this. But rather than arrive back in Victoria at 8pm, they probably beat us by a few hours at least! One last thing to consider is that the bus only stops at Pacheena Bay once per day, and if, say, you started from this end and left your vehicle there, the bus will arrive at Gordon River much earlier and only go northwards once. So you’d need to be off the trail and waiting by roughly 10am if you finished at Gordon River. This makes starting at the southern point and finishing at Pacheena much more appealing if you are opting for this combo since the north end is a much faster end hike.

Ride Sharing

Consider that there are tons of people wanting to drive their own cars each year. Why not consider making arrangements to swap vehicles? For this to work you will need someone with a similar (or close to) start/finish date and who is starting at the opposite end from you. You will also need to decide where to meet up with the vehicles (ideally, most likely at Gordon River so only one vehicle is driving furthest northwards). You also will need to feel confident they will care appropriately for your vehicle. Consider some vetting questions like, age, perhaps confirm they have personal vehicle insurance, are they traveling with a family or friends, etc.

How do I find someone who might want to ride share? A great place to start is the super cool WCT Facebook Page! This is not a Parks Canada page, however, it is a very neat place to find others with WCT reservations, swap info, ask questions from recent hikers and more!

Also, since cell reception is very unreliable on the WCT, many who choose this option also make advanced arrangements to meet at a specific campsite on a certain day so they can swap keys. Though, some people choose to hide a key on the vehicle itself. If you are considering hiding the key, keep in mind that while Pacheena Bay is a bit quieter, Port Renfrew is a bustling tourist town in the summer and the parking lot isn’t patrolled.

Return to My WCT Story | Packing: Food/Clothes/Essentials |

[starrywinters]

missing — an ong seongwoo fic

requested by @sweetpoisonousmilkshake 

genre: slight horror??? idk, mystery? thrill? yo holY this is just a mess & a flop

based off of this post by @tokyo-coffee 

a/n: happy 300 to me :0 honestly, thanks guys!😫🎉💕 i don’t think i deserve these 300 followers but ((((’: and MERRY EARLY CHRISTMAS!🎄

also, legit hope you guys enjoy???? because i don’t like this,,,, no matter how many times i’ve edited this to make it sound better, it just doesnt????

“where are you guys?”

“i’m so lost

.

.

what is happening”

saturday - december 23rd

“breaking news, following after the missing cases of 9 other boys, 22 year old kang daniel has been reported missing after a 24 hour waiting period of no response.”

-zip- closing the tv, seongwoo cannot believe it.

what is happening, the missing 10 people are all his friends

who is behind this and what is their purpose.

for the past two weeks, one of his friends would be reported missing every day of the week, weekends aren’t touched,

guess every criminal needs their breaks too.

-

day 1 - ha sungwoon

december 11th

a group of 11 boys met up at the center of a mall. the best of friends, enjoying themselves around the mall, until…

“hey, guys, i’m going to the restroom, i’ll meet up with you guys in a bit”

“meet up at the food court when you’re done, sungwoon hyung”

“don’t clog the toilet in there HAHAH”

the day goes by and the clock hits 6pm, sungwoon still a no-show

he doesn’t pick up his phone, the boys split up to look in every restroom in the mall

still no sign of sungwoon,

-ding- seongwoo looks at his phone, it’s a message from sungwoon

“1 down, 10 more to go.”

frantically, he dials sungwoon’s number, the person on the other end picks up

“HEY WHERE’S SUNGWOON HYUNG, WHO ARE YOU AND WHAT DO YOU WANT”

and the person hangs up.

day 2 - bae jinyoung

december 12th

“okay everyone, you guys need to stay safe. be on the lookout for anything suspicious,” mother yoon jisung orders

“especially you maknaes, don’t go anywhere without an adult. or walk in crowded places.”

bae jinyoung, a child of mischief, does not listen. he feels like he can protect himself as he’s taking boxing lessons from jihoon,

he leaves his house at the usual time of 4AM, an early head start to school, his only source of light are the street lamps

a white van driving at, probably, 5mph was following him closely from behind,

creeped out he starts walking faster, the van starts driving faster, at this point he’s sprinting to school,

the van zooms by and stops a yard in front of jinyoung. the door slides open and three people steps out, taking bae jinyoung with them.

-ding- “9 more”

day 3 - hwang minhyun

december 13th

“ultra fast delivery? hm” the thing that has caught hwang minhyun’s eyes is an iRobot Roomba 880. issa a vacuum cleaner

the option of it being delivered right away caught his attention as well, placing his order, he expects the vacuum to arrive in 30 mins max, but

a minute later his doorbell rings, “wow i didn’t expect ultra fast delivery to be this quick,”

opening the door, he comes face to face with a masked man, his eyes look somewhat familiar, or am i picturing things

minhyun didn’t even get a word out before the guy places a cloth over his mouth, gasping which is not a good idea minhyun pls, chloroform.

“8”

day 4 - yoon jisung

december 14th

walking home from work, enjoying the fresh air of the night, he doesn’t notice someone suspicious following him.

even though he was the one who told his friends to stay cautious

going on his phone to check up on the news of his missing friends, no luck

no one can find them, the criminals didn’t leave any clues, what smart people.

“i just want my friends back, i want life to be normal again.”

the suspicious person took this opportunity to strike and attacks jisung,

hitting him at the back of his neck i’m sorry jisung ;-; he drops to the ground, unconscious.

dragging jisung away, all that’s left is his phone with a message sent to seongwoo

“7 more”

day 5 - lai guanlin

december 15th

the stress of not being able to communicate well with others as he’s a foreigner has finally hit him.

he feels left out and wants to collect his cool before he bursts out at his friends, thinking going to the beach will satisfy him, he did just that

spending an hour max at the beach swimming and screaming to his heart’s content, has allowed him to calm down

he feels more motivated to learn korean better, to be able to have fun with his friends too.

swimming back to shore, he didn’t notice how far he swam out, stranded in the middle of the ocean he didn’t know where to go

an incoming big wave crashes into him and he drowns, but a boat passes by and saves him

however,

he never makes it home.

“6”

day 6 - park woojin

december 18th

he went to the park where he heard there was a hurdle tournament going on,

saw some online ad and wanted to participate.

he didn’t bother considering it to be a scam since all that was in his head was winning the grand prize of $1000

the event takes place at the time of 6PM and ends at 8

woojin ends up going and upon his arrival, doesn’t see anything set up for a hurdle race

“scam? i was really looking forward to this too,” kicking some nearby rocks, he pouted.

he saw an ice cream truck parked by the park and thinks why not treat himself and make his day better with ice cream?

after getting his ice cream, he turns around, takes a few steps and bumps into someone, “ah sorry”

his ice cream fell in the process, “hey it’s ok why don’t i get you another ice cream?” dragging him to some place unknown, woojin is confused as he’s walking in the opposite direction of the ice cream truck

“i know a really good ice cream place, let’s go”

woojin never gets back home and worries his dorm mates

“5, halfway there.”

day 7 - kim jaehwan

december 19th

jaehwan started out busking as his hobby which soon became his way of living.

the many years of his field of work has never had anything serious happen, sure some delinquents would try to steal his money but he’d find a way to get it back

never in his life has he ever dealt with what’s about to happen to him

a person who self-claims as a manager from a big music entertainment walks up to jaehwan, hands him a card and tells him to go audition,

looking at the information presented on the card, “YMC huh, this sounds a bit sketchy sir,” when he looks up the man had already left

“guess i’ll give it a shot” and shrugs.

after busking, he makes it a mission to go home and rest early to go audition tomorrow, but as he walks home, some guy walks up to him and knocks him out

his guitar falls to the ground and he is taken away to someplace where his other friends are presumably taken to as well.

“4”

day 8 - lee daehwi

december 20th

worried about woojin’s disappearance he went to look for him at the same park that woojin went to,

he unknowingly meets the same guy who took woojin and asks if he’s seen a boy about “yay tall and sounds like a dolphin when he screams”

the guy doesn’t respond and keeps staring at him, wth this guy is so creepy????

“ah i’m guessing you haven’t i’ll take my leave now, thank you for your time.” turning around to leave, he feels a hand take hold of his wrist

“i know where he is,”

“AH REALLY? CAN YOU TAKE ME TO HIM, PLEASE MISTER”

the guy smiles mysteriously, leads daehwi to where woojin is supposedly at and daehwi never ever came back either

“3”

day 9 - park jihoon

december 21st

tired after his boxing competition in london, he packs his bags and waits for his manager to finish whatever he’s doing.

knowing how long this manager usually takes, he finds a place to sit in the lobby of the hotel he resided in, and closes his eyes for a small little nap

a black figure slowly creeps up to him and is about two seats away, reaching out

“hey jihoon-ssi, hey, wake up.” waking up to someone tapping his shoulders, he sees his manager in front of him, “let’s go we’re almost late for our flight”

the black figure has hid behind a newspaper so he wouldn’t get caught,

heading out and arriving at the airport, the manager leaves to go check in for them first, letting jihoon take his time walking

lost in the crowd of people, the same black figure was following jihoon, feeling something was suspicious he walks faster and looks for a restroom to wash his face and clear his mind, thinking he was imagining the feeling

walking into the restroom he unexpectedly gets jumped and gets knocked out by a chloroform cloth, the same black figure getting up and cleaning the ‘dust’ off his hands and pants,

“2”

day 10 - kang daniel

december 24th

coming back from his b-boy practices, he feels a little hungry, going to the convenience store down the street from his house, he buys a few snacks and drinks

walking out of the store with his phone in hand dialing seongwoo’s number, to check in on him and to just chat, he almost crashes into a guy

taking the faster way home, he walks by an alleyway right as seongwoo picks up, and gets dragged inside,

struggling to be set free, he turns and sees the face of his kidnapper,

and finds out who it is as his eyes widens, dropping his phone and his bag of snacks,  

“You- mmph”

“hello? daniel? are you there?”

and he hears a muffled voice speak into the phone,

“1”

-

seongwoo feels frantic, all his friends have gone missing

what will he do now, what if something happens to them, is this all a dream?

is this a christmas prank? this is a cruel prank then

seongwoo, not knowing what to do, wants to cry. not being able to sleep two nights in a row in worry of his friends’ safety.

day 11 - ong seongwoo

december 25th, christmas day

getting up out of his bed, he heads to his living room,

his house looking like a caveman ransacked his place in search for food, he grieves over his friends’ disappearance,

he receives a letter from an unknown person; inside it, in cutout letters from magazines, was spelled out

“0, you are next.”

thanks for reading!♡ omg plus, winter break is almost here, bless. im ready to watch the downfall of my grades throughout this week, ugh finals week im ready to fail every test given to me ((’:

[thechroniclesofbeansmom]

Birth Story

Ok so I realized that I never posted a birth story and I’ve been wanting to do so for awhile so here it goes!

I woke up on December 02 2017 with a little bit of an upset stomach. It was about 7 am and Jordan was still asleep. He’d gone to bed a bit later then me and I didn’t think he’d be up for at least another hour or so, so I went to the bathroom and came back to bed. I tossed and turned for a bit, not being able to get comfortable, so I thought I’d try and see if I needed to pass a bowel movement. After sitting on the toilet for a bit and doing the business, I did feel a little better and was able to go back and lay in bed and fall asleep for about 30 minutes. 

Jordan woke me up about 8:30 and we laid together in bed, chatting and turning on the TV to watch a little bit while we were still drowsy. I told him my stomach was hurting and it was coming and going, every 10 ish minutes I would notice it but it would go away and wasn’t that bad, we discussed maybe it was the pizza from the night before or something. At this point, I was at 41+1 and honestly it should of occurred to me to think about contractions but we’d been having so many on and off inconsistently and these didn’t really feel like them. Jordan was hungry and we didn’t  feel like making breakfast, so he drove down to the A&W to get some food. I passed on the breakfast as I just felt off and didn’t think greasy a&w would help at all. He came back, and started  eating and we watched some YouTube and then our favorite - the Office. After he was done it was around 10:00 and I was talking to my midwife via text about how I was supposed to come by later in the day for a sweep to be done to try and get things moving - otherwise I was going to be induced on the Monday. My doula also happened to text me, saying she was going to be in Kelowna going all the way out to the airport and wanted to make sure I was okay and wasn’t going to need her for a few hours. I said that it sounded good to both of them as I didn’t feel like labor was anywhere close, even with the mild stomach cramps. It was now nearing 10:30 and I decided to get up and have a shower, my stomach pains were now getting a bit more frequent, and a little stronger. I went in the shower and noticed them not fading but definitely getting more strong. I finished up and started a timer, noting that they were pretty consistent - about 4-6 minutes apart every time. I came back into the bedroom and told Jordan that I was pretty sure that labor was starting!! He didn’t believe it, and frankly neither did I really. So I called my doula and told her what was going on - feeling bad that I had literally just told her to go on and I was fine. She said that after she was done she would come by and see me and we’d see how things were going - but to her it sounded like early labor! 

Well next thing you know, it’s about 11:15 and my contractions are STRONG. I’m needing Jordan during every one to rub my back, and hold my hips like how our doula showed him. Contractions are lasting a minute, 3-5 minutes apart and they hurt like a bitch. I texted my midwife and told her and she said to keep her posted as I told her my doula was coming. I called my doula again and she listened to me through a few contractions and determined she’d be leaving straight for me as labor definitely seemed to be progressing faster then she would of thought. Jordan frantically had the quickest shower, tidied up the house a little bit (all while still running to me during every contraction), and I tried to eat a banana muffin to get something in me as I know I was going to be needing energy at some point. 

My doula arrived about 12:30 ish and she came into the bedroom and hooked me up with the Tens machine to help during the contractions. It felt good and it distracted me but I was definitely in tons of pain. I could barely talk through them anymore and they were always strong and never longer then 4 minutes apart. My doula called the midwife around 1:30 or just after,  and we determined it was time to head into our midwife center as we were planning to birth at the birthing suite there opposed to the hospital. The drive was about a 40 minute drive so we started to get ready. I remember getting in the car and saying goodbye to the cats, and thinking how next time I came home life would be completely different. 

We left just after 2:00pm and the drive was pretty uneventful, Jordan held my hand during every contraction (which was pretty impressive considering we drive standard and he was shifting and driving with one hand lol). He made sure to take his time and not go over and bumps or anything too fast. We got to the midwife center at around 3:00p[m and unloaded all of our stuff. Our doula got us settled in and we waited for our midwife to arrive as she had been at a few house calls before and was meeting us there. I got settled into the room, and took a Tylenol and a gravel to help with pain and nausea. 

Our midwife arrived and performed the first check to see where I was at. At this point I was only 3cm dilated but I was about 70% effaced. She knew we lived farther out, and she thought with the pain I was in that I’d definitely be giving birth sooner than later, so we could stay at the suite. The next 3 hours were kind of a blur, just a lot of sitting around with the contractions and making small talk. At around 6pm, things kicked up and my nausea really peaked. I threw up a few times (which I HATE) and then felt a little better -enough that I could lay down and almost sleep for about 30 minutes. Jordan sat in front of me holding my hands the whole time. At about 7pm my doula called our midwife back for another check. At this point I was about 6-7 cm dilated and felt like I had to poop. So off I went, I pooped and came back and was in so much pain. I remember thinking I couldn’t do this for much longer. I bounced on yoga balls, and I walked, we went to the kitchen and once again, I threw up multiple times. My midwife gave me a shot of gravel to help with my nausea and I took another Tylenol. 

At about 9pm I went into the bathtub and started laboring in there. At this point I was definitely in very active labor and contractions were every 2 minutes apart and extremely strong. I never wanted to use the tub or be in there, but at that point I didn’t care and just wanted the pain to stop. My Doula and Jordan alternated holding my hand, and running hot water down my back as I had a lot of pressure and pain through my hips and back - it was worse then the contractions to be honest as it never let up and I couldn’t get any relief. I remember thinking over and over and saying how I couldn’t do this for much longer and I needed someone to do something. Our midwife checked me around 12:30 and she determined I was 9cm and she broke my water for me as it hadn’t broke yet. From there I progressed to 10 cm and by 12:45 she gave me the OK to begin trying to push. 

Pushing felt like a blur... it did and didn’t feel relieving for me. The pressure from my back and hips remained constant and that was what didn’t help at all - but it helped with the contractions and being able to push during them was nice. The funny thing was at this point, I had sunk so low in the tub, my head was almost submerged. My ears were plugged with water and I had my eyes shut. I couldn’t see or hear anyone very well at all which looking back was pretty funny... I was just going with the contractions and pushing and then trying to catch my breath. Around just before 1am on December 03 my midwife noticed Jax’s pressure was dropping and she switched me into a squatting position. The next 15 ish minutes were a blur of pushing and screaming and wanting him out. 

Finally at 1:14am on December 03 2017, Jax was born weighing 9lb 5oz and he was 22 inches long. He came out with the cord wrapped around his neck - but he had his hand up by his face which helped prevent him from having his oxygen completely cut off. I was still squatting when he was born and then I was flipped over onto my back and once the cord was unraveled he was placed on my chest. I remember saying “hi little guy! Hey how’s it going?!” and he just layed there and made a few gurgles and a little cry here and there but otherwise just was content laying with me. I remember hearing Jordan cry a little bit behind me, and he kept telling me I did it. He was able to cut the cord for Jax, and then shortly after my placenta was delivered (which definitely seemed like a breeze compared to pushing).  

After that was basically just a blur or getting him to nurse for the first time, learning I had only the tiniest of tears to my urethra and no stitches were necessary at all. Then lots of family cuddles for the first time.

Overall, my labor and birth were not quite what I wanted but I’am very proud of myself for it. I labored with only Tylenol and gravel - despite constantly thinking that I needed something more and wasn’t going to be able to do it.We did it in a tub, at our midwife center. Jordan was there the whole time being the most supportive and encouraging person I could ever need, and I will forever cherish those moments of us together bringing our baby into the world. 

(I just want to note that this post isn’t meant to shame anyone who birthed in a hospital, or used pain medication/epidural etc - I’m just explaining how my birth went and what I wanted/and how proud I am of doing it that way).