#i used to get it in the morning at my primary school in the winter

[herdarkestnightelegance]

✨Prepare for an unsolicited info dump✨

I was tagged by @onlyancunin - thank you 🖤 Now let's do this.

Do you make your bed? Hahaha nope. Maybe Saturday morning, when my bad conscience forces me to take care of the things I let slide all week.

Favorite number? -7 (a good angle for placing objects in your designs imo)

What’s your job? Art Director in Advertising.

If you could go back to school would you? Oh I don't know. You mean like jump back a few decades? It would be fun for a week probably! Have stupid teenage fun, no cares about the future, only school? No pressure of social media? Sounds nice, doesn't it? But like, learn a new trade/job? There are things I would love to do but I am a nest-builder. I need my safety, and starting off new it too scary for me.

Can you parallel park? No driver's license, so no.

Do you think aliens are real? Little green men visiting us? No. Alien life? 1000%. How arrogant must one be to believe this planet is the only one with life on it in the vastness of the universe.

Can you drive a manual car? Still no driver's license, so no.

What’s your guilty pleasure? Corny German village pop music from the 90s. There's a time of the year when I listen to the songs my parents listened to when I was young and with no worries. If it sounds like a sunny barbecue during your summer holidays I'm in.

Tattoos? No. I wouldn't know what to get? The only thing I've loved long enough to consider putting on my skin forever is Lord of the Rings.

Favorite color? Black and Halloween Orange.

Favorite types of music? My taste in music depends a lot on the season. So I get the whole range from Singer/Songwriter, Electronic Music, Classic Rock, Viking chants, Classical music, Pop, Hip Hop - you name it.

Do you like puzzles? Only if they are not too difficult. I hate feeling stupid and inadequate 🤭

Any phobias? Not phobias, no. But I will slightly panic if a hornet gets to close. Oh, also? Fuck mold! The thought of having to touch moldy food? UGH!!!

Favorite childhood sport? I never played much sport. I'm a big girl. But I enjoyed ice skating the few times I've been.

Do you talk to yourself? I think the occasional phrase is uttered. But it's only saying thoughts out loud, no back and forth.

What movies do you adore? Lord of the Rings ✨. I can't count the number of times I have seen these movies in total. But I've seen Fellowship of the Rings at least 12 times on the big screen, including special screenings, open-air in castle ruins and with a live Orchestra. That does not count my frankly countless re-watches. I take one weekend each winter, just for myself, my couch, snacks, and all three movies. Extended, OBVIOUSLY. (Besides: the white-hair-pointy-ears-kink must have started somewhere)

Coffee or tea? I'm a coffee girl, or rather, "Milk with sweetener and some coffee"-girl. But a nice herbal tea is always welcome. And I have like 8 different brands of English Breakfast the in my cupboard.

First thing you wanted to be growing up? Not quite sure. I think a sculptor? We had these rocks in primary school, they were soooo easy to carve. And I enjoy it so much :) No pressure tags, if you're up for it: @nyx-knox @littlelovelore @vixstarria @wilteddreamsofbaldursgate

[winterline13-art]

Pictober - Call

Tfw ur violently hungover and ur wife lives 12 hrs away so all u can do is call her until it all feels better Have some Wiles angst for Call <3

+Infodump abt Wiles under the cut !

So this is Wiles ! Winter and Miles, my favorite couple of all my ocs <3 I love them dearly so therefore I hurt them so so so bad <3 As u do <33

TW for mentions of alcoholism and parental abuse!

These two lovebirds have been dating since they were in high school. Right out of getting their bachelors degrees, they had their daughter Justice. Both had plans to move on to getting their Masters and PhDs, and suddenly with Justice things had to be shifted.

Luckily, Winter's program was available online. So she could stay home in District 20 with Miles' dad Mortimer and take care of Justice that way. Miles however had to go into the inner Districts to get his degree, and suddenly they were 12 hours apart and really could only call to see each other. Miles didn't get to hold his daughter all that much for nearly 7 years while he got his PhD.

During his first few years of his Masters program though Miles developed some really bad habits with alcohol in an attempt to not feel how depressing it was to be so far away from his family. Plus the general stress of his program. (not helped that his mother was also an alcoholic, and miles grew up with her before she died, so the only way he knows how to deal with stress is by following her lead, despite how abusive she was) So there were definitely times when Miles drank himself into a horrendous hangover that would last a whole day and often there would be nothing he could do but camp out in the bathroom and call Winter just to hear her voice. It wasn't much, but it was better than nothing.

He did eventually kick the habit after a close call with hitting his head really bad and ending up with a pretty nasty concussion. Something about that moment and realizing that his actions almost cost him his life, and therefore meaning he would never hold his daughter or wife again, kicked him into shape pretty quick. But it took him almost the entirety of his Masters program to get himself figured out.

It wasn't exactly roses and sunshine for Winter either, raising a toddler mostly on her own while getting her own Masters and PhD was a huge challenge. She was definitely lucky that she had her father in law and best friend to help out. And whenever her mom was in town, Wysteria was able to help out as well.

But eventually Winter got her PhD in political science (or some Ziennian equivalent) and Miles got his PhD in Cloud Networking and Security. They got a house in District 10 to live in together, as its right between where Miles' family lives, and where they both work. Perfect middle ground. :]

And now they both focus on their jobs and raising Justice together! They all love each other so so much and they're all in love! It's so so good I love them sm <333

Misc fun facts

Winter's morning sickness with Justice was sooo bad she pretty much had to camp out in the bathroom for days on end. This was primarily because she's a Changeling and Miles is a Ziennian, making Justice a Changeling-Ziennian hybrid!

Miles is trans! While it was the primary reason that his mom abused him it's also something he's extremely proud of. As soon as Miles and his dad Mortimer reconnected, the first thing Mortimer did was take Miles out to get a haircut and a new wardrobe <3

Winter was raised by a single mom who adopted her! Wysteria isn't perfect, she's a bit absent all things considered, but she does do her best and she's gotten better as time goes on. If Winter asked Wysteria for anything now, Wystie would move mountains for her baby girl.

Winter and Miles both known Ziennian Sign Language and French! Miles grew up speaking French, and they both learned sign after Mortimer came into the picture again. Mortimer is deaf and primarily uses sign to communicate.

Miles has five older brothers who all love him very much! They're just all over the world for their jobs so they don't get to see each other very often anymore. But Miles' oldest brother Mark was the one to find him after he'd hit his head real bad while drunk and Mark like. Gave him a good long talking to that kicked things into gear. We love Mark thank u Mark

Winter! Canonically! Cannot read!! This is primarily due to Changeling shenanigans where if they come across a written language it gets all garbled up and they can't read it. So Changelings have no written language because of this. But also even if she COULD hypothetically read she wouldn't be able to anyway this girlie's got dyslexia so bad she has to do the hand trick to know right from left all the time. She Cannot Read. She has a PhD and Cannot Read.

Miles can read. Just for the record.

[thehumanpuffball]

Myth is Man (1)

Throughout history, humans have always loved stories. They, in some cases, form intrinsic parts of how we teach about our norms and values. A rather famous example would be the moral tale of “The Boy Who Cried Wolf,” a very apt name in my opinion. Anyone who went to a British primary school most likely knows this one off by heart, but I do not know about other countries so here is a shortened version of it:

A shepherd boy tends to the flocks of sheep on the side of the hill at night. He works when all of the shepherds have gone to bed and his job is to protect the flock from the wolves that would otherwise eat the sheep. If he sees a wolf coming to eat the sheep, he must cry out at the top of his lungs “WOLF!” and the townspeople would come running up the hill to scare it away. One night, the boy gets bored, and he thinks that it would be a good idea to shout to the town that there is a wolf. Of course, all those who could, come running up the hill to protect the sheep which will feed them in the winter, but alas, the wolf is not there. Another night comes and the boy does the same, the wolf is still not there, and the townspeople all get angry as they have been called out of bed repeatedly in order to scare away a wolf which doesn’t exist. On the third night, there is a wolf, and the boy cries out to tell them, in hopes that they will run up the hill to save the flock. Nobody comes. He tries again but it is all in vain. Nobody is coming.

The next morning, the shepherd comes back to the hillside, and he says to the boy “Where are the sheep?”, for they had all been taken by the foxes. The boy replies with “I called for the townspeople, but nobody came.

This story is told often to primary school children because it highlights the importance of not lying as when the boy in the tale lies people stop believing him and when he needs help, he does not receive it.

There are so many of these stories and they are told in assemblies everywhere. They are such an important part of our lives growing up as the characters going through these very obvious and tangible events can be used in order to teach children about morals and about right and wrong more effectively than a list of rules can. Writing and storytelling is one of the oldest human artforms, our brains love a good story, once they kept us together around campfires, and now they keep us together in book clubs and at Halloween when we tell ghost stories with our friends in the dark. Fandom is also a form of this, a group of people brought together by the pure joy of loving a piece of media and wanting to talk about it.

Furthermore, it is crucial that we celebrate all writers, because not only can we find joy, peace, and delight in fiction, but we can also understand some of the more awful things in the world a little better using fiction. I know that my perception of religion and where I stand on it was somewhat guided by my reading of the His Dark Materials trilogy which has some beautiful messages about the dangers of control of only one religion, but the wonder that can be created when different people with different life experiences and beliefs all put their ideas together, and the importance of discussion and open mindedness. This part goes for writers too, it is so crucial that people keep writing the stories that they want to write, not what will sell, because every book has a soul. A writer behind those pages who put so much emotion into these characters, crafted people from the electrical and chemical signals in their mind.

Storytelling is a major part of being human, it always has been and (hopefully) always will be. Whether you are a bestselling author, or you like to make up little scary stories to tell your friends at sleepovers, your story is part of a long, long tradition, and is valuable, and beautiful.

[glazeds]

Diaries, love, or whatever it is that called teen-love.

Ever looking around and remembering the old days of how teen love works? Well, bluntly speaking, I miss those old days. What I remember much about young romantic was something that can cheer the day of mine, was something I can barely hold on to but never get bored on falling further, was something that comes like winter yet felt so warm like autumn. I'm mentioning it like my heart entirely beats for it, and I don't want to skip any beat to feel every single and details of it. My dear, I remember how I want to walk you home, I remember how I always want to have a night ride during rain, having dates after school, strolling around the hallway just to see your deep eyes, anything that keep me young. Don't ask me about how I bother to write along everything I felt during my younger days, I simply think the teen love is something I would feel endlessly. I will never quit talking about it; I live for it, I want every love of mine was based on the young romantic story.

.. PROFILE.

Name: Ethaniel Kairo Ghanara.

Preferred nickname: Kai, Ethan, Ghana.

MBTI: ENTP.

Zodiac: Leo moon, Gemini rising, Pisces moon.

Love language: Words of Affirmations, Act of Service, Physical touch.

.. REGULATIONS.

By reading the regulations below, you agree with the terms and conditions we’ve listed, regardless if you read each one or not, you are counted as ready to accept the consequences if violated.

• Primary muse: Jeongwoo of TREASURE. Secondary muses: Any member of TREASURE especially Park Jihoon, Haruto, Kanemoto Yoshinori, any member of The Boyz.

• My formal working hour is 8:00 A.M. to 9:00 P.M. but I do have a flexible hour myself. I can text you earlier in the morning but any future text after my working hours may be charged additional fees (unless I'm not asleep yet?)

• Service is provided for BA / CA / RP. Other than BA, client should provide the account as well. Twitter and Telegram are the platforms I'm using.

• My interval replying message is between 1-30 minutes, please understand I have things and schedule to do IRL so if you are someone that is looking for a fast replier, I might not be the one to expect.

• Minimum renting period is one hour and maximum is one week. Extending the period may be available but you may discuss it through the person in charge.

• My service is available for BxG, BxB, BxNon-Binary, Family and Bestfriend.

• Please respect my privacy and what I've decided to only do the SFW service while not giving OTP / VN in between. I might do, and you might send me VN if you have no energy to type but within my consent.

• No cancel. Payment will be done by QRIS and paid before the rent period started to prevent hit and run.

• Testimonials aren't mandatory. You may fill it, you may not.

• Additional of likings, I keen for NewJeans, IVE, TREASURE, The Boyz, Weeekly as my biases

[unkempt-field]

“The incident”

(TW: Attempted Suicide)

I am going to talk about a somewhat traumatic incident from my formative years. Enough time has passed where some of the specifics are fuzzy, but there are some parts I will probably never forget. Also, it may help to read my older post for additional context.

A therapist spoke to and a friend I used to vent to told me that being comfortable with sharing a traumatic incident can help getting over it. Although, to this day, I’m not certain how much this event affects me to this day, or how “bad” it was.

This happened when I was 12 or 13 (I do not remember.) It was the winter of 7th grade, or my second year in middle school. My family was not necessarily well off, probably in the lower half of the area I went to, but at the time, I thought we were doing alright. My father was the primary breadwinner of my home. I was an adolescent boy, so I didn’t pay close attention to my parents at the time.

My mother, father and I were sitting around our dinner table, eating. I don’t think we were talking at that point, probably finishing up. Suddenly, my father got up, grabbed a long knife from a drawer, shouted some incomprehensible words, and stabbed himself in the stomach. A lot of what happened after was a blur.

I locked myself in my parent’s bedroom with our home phone, as the lock to my bedroom had been broken for many years at that point. My mother was trying to help my father, and I was in tears. I called 911, explaining the situation. I could still hear my parents, with my father at one point going outside, then returning, still bleeding. I opened my door when the police finally came, to see my father pinned to the ground, and then he was tased.

I think I stopped crying at this point. There was a lot of blood around, but I went outside to talk/explain to the police, as my mother is not proficient with English. The only thing I remember from the conversation was the officer saying something along the lines of “This was a strange, bizarre incident”.

The only thing I can remember thinking at the time was “I wonder if this will end up on the news”.

When I think back to the incident, I can only remember my father stabbing himself, and how much blood there was, everywhere.

Afterwards, I stayed in my room, while my mother called a friend over to clean away the blood. Some time later, I opened up a book, only to see it still covered in blood. I started freaking out, and my mother promptly took it away and threw it out, but what I remember thinking at the time was “ Why am I freaking out so much?” Almost like I was accusing myself of faking that reaction.

The next morning, I decided to go to school. My mother insisted on driving me, and talked to me about how everything would be alright. At school, my first class was gym, but I distinctly remember spacing out for a bit, and then wondering “I wonder if anyone else notices I’m acting differently today”. After that, I just tried to focus on classes, since I had midterms coming up.

Sometime after, I think my mother scheduled us to go to a therapist, but it wasn’t very productive for me. I was preteen, and I wasn’t very receptive to most of my therapists attempts for me to open up about it. The only piece of advice I took away was to start journaling and reflecting on my thoughts and feelings more, which I felt was massively helpful. I did not listen to her advice to talk to my father when he returned from the hospital.

I learned that according to my father’s coworkers, some time before the incident, they were concerned about my father, as he had a look in his eyes, and seemed stressed. When my father heard this, he apparently wore sunglasses to hide his eyes. I never even noticed something was off.

When my father returned, I remember running to my room after I saw his face, I was scared. My mother regularly visited him at the hospital, but this was my first time seeing his unshaved beard, as my father is usually clean shaven. He also started taking medicine, I believe he was diagnosed with bipolar disorder, among other things, but my mothers explanation didn’t really stick. I kind of blamed myself for being a burden.

As things got back to normal, I mostly didn’t think about it for a while. For some time after however, I was very scared to hold/use knives, but I thought to myself “I’m overreacting, I’ll be fine”.

Thats how it was for a few years, until early on in high school, I remembered my therapists advice to talk to other people about it. So I talked about it with two close friends. They were in a voice call with me, but I was typing, as my family was home. All I can remember was them being somewhat uncomfortable, and saying “that sucks man”. I guess I shouldn’t be surprised, considering they had about the same life experience as me. I didn’t think that helped much, so I didn’t open up about it or think about it for years.

I consistently told myself that although it was a strange incident, it ultimately didn’t affect me much.

The next time I talked about it was in early college, with a friend who was a fair bit older. She was kind of seen as the “mother” by some in the group we were in, but I saw her as a person who was significantly more experienced in life than I was. One day, when all of us were talking about some deep stuff, as people were going, I asked if I could talk to her about a traumatic incident. I was hoping to prove to myself that I wasn’t that affected by it, but I shocked myself with how much negative emotion I still felt, crying while recounting it.

She explained that I was likely repressing the feelings of that event. When I asked for some advice to get over trauma, one of them was that getting used to be able to share it with others was helpful for her. She also explained that this was a traumatic incident, and I shouldn’t just brush it off. That rather than blaming myself for it, it was more akin to being dealt a bad hand.

While writing this and recounting it, I didn’t feel any very negative emotions, but I still think I don’t feel great about it. I’m not sure how much this helped with overcoming it. My main goal with this was for it to never act as a shackle, a weight that would negatively impact me, now or in the future.

[causenessus]

hello hello my loveliness !! happy self ship friday!!

pre relationship: 2

general: 9

love: 2

domestic life: 8

make sure to eat and take care of yourself!! <33333 i love love love you so much so take care of yourself always!! <3333333333333

self ship questions <3

I AM FINALLY CONTNUING SELF SHIP TUESDAY YIPEE!!!! HELLO MANGO ANON AAA I LOVE YOU SO SO SOS SOOSOSOSOSOSOSOOSOSOSOSOOSOS MUCG <3333333 DON'T LET SUNA SEE THIS OR HE'LL GET JEALOUS BC I LOVE YOU SO MUCH MANGO ANON!!! MWAH KISSES FOR YOU <333

what was their first impression of each other?

my first impression of him (we met during a class our first year of high school during a stupid ice breaker where people had to walk around while music played and talk to someone near them when the music stopped) was that he was so so cool and out of my league!!! i wanted to be around him and talk to him but i was absolutely terrified to bc his eyes were so so pretty <3 he thought i was cute bc i was standing around like a lost puppy but i def kept glancing at him and he noticed <3 and he was very curious about me too! and upon our first conversation talking to each other thought i was very sweet and shy.

who gets jealous easier?

SIMPLY BC THIS ONCE AGAIN GOES BACK TO SKATER BOY™ AND WHAT I BELIEVE WERE PURPOSEFUL ATTEMPTS TO MAKE ME JEALOUS (or maybe he was just going thru it and felt a little insecure and like wanted to be liked by multiple girls or something WHTVR A STORY FOR ANOTHER TIME!! THIS MAN HAS SCARRED ME SO BAD) i no longer get very jealous about my s/o's being with others anymore bc it makes me super anxious and i just immediately shove it down underneath a bunch of feelings that i think he probably does bc he knows i treat everyone with lots of love but also knows i'm very easily taken advantage of and have a hard time saying no to people so he def sticks by my side a LOT, arm around my waist telling other people to back off, and will say no for me. like if someone asks me to hang out and i don't want to? he already knows and is literally turning both of us away and gently and lovingly ushering me out <3 if i do get actually jealous, it eats away at me so i'll just stop talking less and be more nitpicky about my insecurities and basically take it all out on myself which he always notices and is quick to reassure me <3 we both just literally want the other all to ourselves and our friends are sick of us <3

what are their primary love languages?

gift giving is mine!! i love love love to buy him random things, or stop by his practices with chuupets for him every single day <3 and he can't stop me!! although we're constantly fighting over paying for each other and so he'll get back at me and buy me coffees all the time and everytime he buys me something i just end up sapping all over him bc people spending money on me and insisting on it without like me even saying anything DESTROYS ME /pos his is definitely quality time!! and like the time doesn't even have to be in person. if he's on an away game, texting, calling, or sending each other reels back in forth makes him feel just as loved and happy as when we're sitting on the couch both doing our own things but enjoying each other in silence <3 we both just like doing things around each other even if they're not the same things and we're vv tocuhy <3

who kills the bugs in the house?

MAN I'VE BEEN THINKING ABOUT THIS FOR WEEKS BC I SWEAR IDK WHAT'S WRONG WITH MY ROOM OR ME BUT I KEEP GETTING ALL THESE LITTLE LIKE MOSQUITO BUG THINGS IN MY ROOM!!! and every morning i wake up and pull back my curtains spend five minutes slamming my hand and fingers over these bugs on my window and then have to go and wash my hands and i think i've killed them all AND THEN MORE COME FROM SOMEWHERE AND BITE ME AT NIGHT!!!! I'M SO READY FOR THE WINTER I HATE BUGS and tbh those are the only ones i can kill bc they make me so mad and they're tiny and harmless against my hand!! but anything else?? cockroaches? spiders? moths? LITERALLY ANYTHING ELSE?? i'm crying sobbing running away hiding under the covers yelling for him to please get it out of our house or to kill it OR SOMETHING IDC AS LONG AS IT GOES AWAY 😭 he learned very quickly i do not play with this like yk those stupid men that kill bugs and then chase u with it?? nuh uh he got an earful and tears and screaming from me the one time he tried to do that and now he knows to remove the bugs as quietly, quickly, and efficiently as possible 🙂

[theloniousbach]

RETIREMENT CHRONICLES 1.5

I wrote the first installment of this series two and a half weeks ago as an end/first of the year reflection on four months of my retirement*. The asterisk reflects that I was for those four months and will be again fully engaged with the academic calendar with teaching and involvement around a very rewarding program.

But this past month has looked a bit more like retirement. I did some of that school work (grading and prep plus some like administrative work and went to campus a very very little), but largely it was up to me to organize my time, to wake up in the morning and say what should I do?

Except, of course, it wasn’t particularly spontaneous. I had plans (and, I confess, a record system) that extended the fall’s goals—exercise, reading/writing, watching music and writing about it, playing music.

Since this is what Summer when I’m not teaching will look like, Winter Break was a rehearsal just as previous ones have been for retirement.

That’s why this one is numbered 1.5 even if the May one is 2.0 and the August one will be 3.0

I kept the EXERCISE habit intact by going to the gym and taking advantage of “vitalities” that mean that I don’t hurt the next day. We walked outside as we could but I also used the home treadmill several times. My home yoga though slipped some.

I READ lots of fiction, spurred on by having now three mystery series going with those books taking me a couple of days each. But I read a couple of books in an alternative history series I’ve followed for years. The one literary novel was the second Aubrey/Maturin historical novel by Patrick O’Brian. There are 18 more which I have on loan. Those will go north for the summer as the idea of buying three Kindle books a week seems too much, even if it may not actually be more than how others get their stories by cable/streaming services.

I WROTE less than I thought I might in part because of an identity crisis born of the realization that what I like about mysteries is the overall arc of the series and not the mechanics and puzzle of plot. I continue to have fun with it, but let me now say that what I am doing is historical fiction as I amuse myself and try to be clever by seeing how my characters intersect with actual events plausibly. I continue to hope that I don’t sabotage myself by falling back on my training as a historian. I am not that careful or deep in particular knowledge about this period, so I’m just trying to be clever for my own amusement while telling stories about my characters.

With reading being a primary escape/past time, I still watched lots of JAZZ taking advantage of the discovery that I could watch both sets of a run in close proximity using the Small’s/Mezzrow’s You Tube channels rather than wait for sets to be archived. Those 25 sets turned into 15 souvenir essays.

I PLAYED piano exactly once and briefly at that and bass not at all, so those remain aspirational. But I played lots of guitar and made modest progress with Drop D tuning where, for some reason, I have the notes in my hands and can fingerpick the melodies of tunes—lots of folk tunes based in the church like I’ll Fly Away or Will the Circle Be Unbroken?, amusingly enough—nearly intuitively. This started with a Homespun instructional video on flatpicking fiddle tunes. I have a tentative grasp on a third one of those, but it’s still unfamiliar territory for my playing. But besides Drop D, my other fingerpicking benefits too.

I’m looking forward to teaching starting tomorrow with lots of familiar and talented students.

But I’m also looking forward to seeing how I extend the lessons of this past month to mid-May through mid-August.

[speenach]

A 30-year-old enby presents to her physician due to new onset dry skin, broken fingernails, and some weight gain. Past medical history is significant for asthma, atypical depression, and anxiety. She experienced her first seizure episode with some psychotic features 4 months ago, for which she received valium and supportive care. She was recently started on lamotrigine and has been taking prozac and wellbutrin for the past 4 years, with a step down from 300mg to 150mg for the latter, immediately following seizures. She takes clonazepam a few times a week and reports more fatigue than usual since decreasing her wellbutrin dose. At the time of her seizure episodes in May, CBC showed electrolyte abnormalities. Additional laboratory studies show:

May: TSH: 13.2 (nl 0.3-4.2) Free T4: 1.16 (nl 0.9-1.7)

September: TSH: 15.8 Free T4: 0.88 Free T3: 3.4 (nl 2-4.4) Anti-thyroid peroxidase: 550 (nl <34)

What is the most likely diagnosis?

A) schizoaffective disorder B) adjustment disorder C) hypothyroidism D) hyperthyroidism E) mood disorder with psychotic features F) sick thyroid syndrome

---

i definitely have hypothyroidism, and it's probably an autoimmune disease called hashimoto's, which is the most common form of hypothyroidism in the US (if i remember correctly)! caught it before my T4 went significantly lower, but i'm still feeling it. it's kind of validating.

i got my blood drawn yesterday after emailing my primary care doc and psychiatrist over the weekend, and lab results came in last night when ben and i had just started rewatching battlestar galactica. i'll go to school to pick up the thyroid replacement meds today or tomorrow.

---

this morning, i also found out that my firstborn cat baby, my son since the 8th grade, is being put down tomorrow. his name is marlowe. he lives in texas, although i took him to RI with me for my senior year in college, and he demands ice cubes in his water bowl. parents didn't let me take him to st. louis, and i haven't seen him since i went back to get my wisdom teeth removed in 2017. i've already missed him a lot over the years, and i know i'll always be connected to himb. i feel better after being around ben when i got the news, and talking to friends after. i'll get to facetime with marlowe tonight and hope he can get something out of the sound of my voice. bff stephanie is going to be there with me to see him. i hope he can meet sophie sometime.

---

also, we get the keys to our new apartment in FOUR DAYS. right now, i feel like taking stock and packing my first load of stuff to move over, probably lots of winter clothes. my roommate moved out yesterday, and i have a lot of empty space to use. dissertation stuff is going okay. i think i have room to take a deep breath.

[thangngo]

My search for a mentor. Join me.

On a wet winter morning in 1977, we came to Sydney with no English and even less knowledge of how things worked in Australia. Once, I walked to the shops in my PJs (it's perfectly acceptable in Vietnam). A shocked neighbour scooped me up in her car to take me home and change. We were always an hour early or late going to places during day light saving time changes.

Through primary and high school, other children had parents who could help them with homework and came to P&C nights. While my parents helped by providing a loving and supportive home environment, they were of limited help with that Shakespear essay or Australian History test.

Looking back, I realised that I had to do everything the hard way, and often on my own.

Now, I'm starting again. I joined the NSW public service in December last year in a communications role, switching from a familiar private sector career in media and advertising.

This time, I don't want to do things the hard way.

The NSW public sector is the largest employer in Australia, with a headcount of over 430,000 people. A mentor would help me naviagate my new work environment, provide advice and open new connections and opportunities.

Come along on my journey

I'm inviting you to join me in my search to learn from my (inevitable) mistakes, help give me advice, celebrate when I find a mentor.

This is a journey, so expect a few more posts in the future. For this post, I'm focussed on identifying mentor(s) to approach.

Everyone is a mentor

Firstly, everyone you come across is a mentor. As long as you are learning something from what they do or how they do it, their actions make them an informal mentor.

This search is for a regular mentor that I can work with, a formal arrangement to ensure I am keeping myself on track.

Finding a mentor - my approach

Know my goals: I'll take time to look at my short and long term career goals and identify the skills, training and attitudes needed.

Know my strengths and weaknesses: how do my current skills and experience stack up to those identified? What key areas need development?

Start in my existing network: Is there someone with demonstrated strengths in the areas which I need to develop? My preference would be someone who is more senior and is outside of my immediate division, potentially even outside of my organisation.

Look outside my network: Is there someone that I admire who I don't yet know or is only a casual acquaintance? Potentially an expert in my field of interest.

Join new networks: Join and attend public service, communications and other professional groups to grow my network.

My aim is to identify three to five potential candidates to approach, with the goal of securing one on-going mentor.

Ok, I've got some work to do!

Once I've identified the candidates (I'll keep them confidential), my next post will be the steps to approach a mentor.

Did you find these tips useful? I'd love your feedback.

How you can help

Have I missed anything? I'd love it if you could share any other useful tips in finding a mentor.

Come along with me on this journey and be my network of support.

Are you a potential mentor - get in touch and let's chat.

Resources

Some resources I found useful in developing my approach:

The right mentor can change your career. Here's how to find one, NPR.

How Do I Find A Mentor? Forbes.

What’s the Right Way to Find a Mentor? HBR.

[buggie-hagen]

Sermon for Nativity of Our Lord - Christmas Day (12/25/22)

Primary Text | John 1:1-14

------------------------------------------------------

Dear People of God,

There are three persons in the Trinity. Trinity means three-in-one, a tri-unity. God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. Yet there is and has always been and will ever be just one God. For though the three persons are distinct from each other they share the same divine essence. That is what our catholic religion teaches, that there is one God and no other god. And that there are three persons in this one God. One person put it this way, “Whatever the Father speaks, Christ is, and whatever Christ is, the Holy Spirit hears.” All three persons are equally the very same, undivided God. This God has been around forever. But, of the three persons of the Holy Trinity, only one has become flesh as we are, and that is Jesus the Messiah, whom we also know as the Word. In the Gospel of St. John we hear, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God” (1:1). Here we learn that God is a Word. A Word is God. The Word is both with God and is God. And he was in the beginning. Meaning, that there was never a time when the Word was not around. The word is not a creation, the word is the one who created each of us as well as the whole world. Without him not one thing came into being. This word is the light of all people. The light shines in the darkness and the darkness did not overcome it. (1:5).

      We are gathered on Christmas morning because of something in particular that the word did. As we heard, “The word became flesh and dwelled among us” (1:14). I remember as a kid growing up in Wisconsin that my school wanted to teach us something of what it means to be a parent. You’ll have to tell me later if other states do this or if they even bother to do this at all anymore. So first they gave us each an egg and told us to bring it back in 24 hours without breaking it. In my proud little five foot tall body I can say that I lasted longer than most of my classmates in not breaking that egg. But my name was added to the list of shame when by the afternoon I twirled the winter hat that held my egg and it smashed on my desk in computer class. With all two brain cells my 10-year-old self could muster I still could not succeed in this thing. Then came the second stage of learning to be a parent where they gave me a mechanical baby for a week and said, “Take care of it.” At any time day or night it would go off and you had to feed it or change it or rock it. I will say I was not too happy to get up at 2am to shove a plastic bottle in its mouth. When we hear scripture say to us that “the word became flesh” we are not saying that the word became an egg or a mechanical, imitation baby like I had in elementary. We are saying that the word, this word who is also God, became an actual baby with the same flesh and blood as you and I have. I like this line from one of the Christmas hymns that Martin Luther wrote: “O Lord, you have created all! How did you come to be so small?” (ELW 268:9). This is to say, our Lord Christ, the word become flesh, also experienced the same baby things that we experienced as babies. This strange God of ours, who created all things, who is the word-in-flesh, pooped his pants. Wet himself. Grew hungry. Got cold. Slept in his mother’s arms. Cried for everything. Smiled when you smiled at him. The light that shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not overcome it, became not a pretend baby, but a real baby. And in that way alone, in his flesh and blood, God chooses to show his favorable heart toward us. That is still how he approaches us—with his word in his flesh and blood.

            As the world currently is, it is filled with darkness. Sin, death, and the devil wreak their havoc. The darkness is so strong that it is at work in all of us. The darkness of the world is one that hates God. The world knows nothing of God, does not fear or love him, and seeks after its own interests rather than the interests of God. It is the darkness of the world, the darkness that we have also, that ended up putting the Christ-child to death on the cross. It is the darkness that crucified and murdered this precious child of Christmas—who is the light. For it is true, people have loved the darkness rather than the light. And that remains true to this day. Few can be found who care for and love the word. Nevertheless the light is still at work. You and I this morning have been given this light of God in the form of a promise of God that cannot be undone—“the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not overcome it” (1:5). In his resurrection from the dead, we learn that our Lord Jesus Christ is a brilliant beam, nothing can snuff him out. This very same word that has become flesh comes to you now in the preaching of the word and in the administration of the sacraments. That light that shines, that word that is made flesh, that cannot be overcome, has been placed in your ears and into your heart. And thus, not even your own darkness can overcome this light given you. God has put his word in you by the mouth of another human being. This word: Your sins are forgiven you, you have been blessed with eternal life, and you are freed from all that binds you. Christ was born for you, for you. And he will never leave you.

            I want to take a brief moment to address the one to be baptized this morning. Dear Stevie, you are about to encounter the very same word of God that became a baby. As your brother John before you, you are to be baptized in the name of the Holy Trinity—in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. It will look very simple, there will be water poured over you. A word said over you. it is not an impressive thing in the eyes of this dark world, the world rejects what is about to happen. But know this, God is the one doing it. Little Stevie, the creator of the universe is about to make a promise to you in your baptism. Remember this, it is not a fake or mechanical promise, it is real promise with flesh on it…this promise of God can never be broken, you can’t mess it up. This promise, that he will be your God forever. Through thick and thin you forever will belong to him. Just as on the first Christmas morning, when God came down from heaven, born of the Virgin Mary—so again on this Christmas morning, in the sacrament of Holy Baptism, the word that became flesh will come from heaven to earth to be with you. He will place his word in your heart, he will make his home in you. In this sacrament God will forgive you all your sin. Not just now, but forever. He will bestow on you a life eternal. And he will free you from all that burdens you. You may not understand this all now. But by God’s grace, so you will never forget it, God has provided you with parents and sponsors and pastors and any who have been made God’s children by his word, to teach you and remind you of God’s gracious promises—to strengthen your faith. Through them God will place in your hands the holy scriptures, God will feed you with the holy supper of the body and blood of Christ, and God will again and again come to you in the preaching of his word in a sermon. You are about to have a holy bath, to be given grace upon grace. To be given the word made flesh. This promise of God will belong to you from now on: The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not overcome it. No matter how difficult your life may get, what dangers you face, what wearies your heart or strains your body—this promise will yet remain true, the darkness cannot win, it cannot overtake the light God is about to give you in Jesus Christ. That is the gift and blessing of baptism. Merry Christmas, everyone!

[survey--s]

411.

What is your favourite dog breed? Beagles. I love spaniels too but they’re a bit too hyper and energetic for me, lol.

What colour nail polish do you wear the most? Purple or red, but only on my toes.

Do you use lip balm regularly? Several times a day in winter, but I don’t bother the rest of the year.

Do you drink soda? Yeah, Pepsi Max - or sometimes Tango.

Do you drive? I do indeed, I’ve had my license for about four years now.

If so what kind of car do you drive? A metallic grey Hyundai i10.

Look to your left, what do you see? A cat on the floor staring at me as he wants his lunch but he’s not getting it this early lol.

How many people have you dated? I don’t really keep track of things like that.

Do you use hand sanitizer frequently? I never use it. I actually think it causes more problems than it solves - dry and cracked skin, for starters, but also, germs are healthy and it’s not a great idea to try and totally sanitise everything in your life.

How many hair products do you use? Just shampoo and conditioner.

Are you happy with your appearance? Yeah, I mean, if I could change things overnight, I would, but in reality I’m far too lazy for any of that nonsense.

What is the last book you read? I honestly don’t remember. I’m not much of a reader these days..

What website do you visit most often? Tumblr, Facebook, Mumsnet, Google, Reddit.

Have you ever broken a bone? Nope.

Are you artistic? No.

Have you ever been to a concert? Yeah, I went to quite a few when I was a teenager.

Have you ever performed in a play? Yeah, school plays every year when I was younger.

Do you like to dance? No.

If you could change one thing about yourself what would it be? I would give myself perfect vision as wearing glasses is expensive and a real pain in the arse when it rains.

What search engine do you use? Google.

Do you have a facebook account? Yeah.

What is your favourite food? Steak, pizza and fries.

Can you use chopsticks? Yeah, but I don’t bother.

Do you use a flat iron? I still own one but I never really use it anymore.

Do you have a cell phone? Yeah, an iPhone 13 mini.

What colour underwear are you wearing? Black. All my underwear is black.

What colour are most of your clothes? Black, grey, purple, green and pink.

Do you collect anything? Wax melts, cosy jumpers, books. What colour are your eyes? Dark brown.

Do you have any tattoos? Just one.

Do you play video games? Not really - I play a few mobile games but that’s about it.

Do you speak any other languages? Yeah, French and a little bit of German and Italian.

Do you wear makeup? Very occasionally.

How many times have you moved? 6-7 times, including moving around as a student as I had to change accommodation every year.

What was the last food you ate? Crumpets. What was the last thing you had to drink? Coffee.

Do you liked grilled cheese? I love the idea of it but normally I find it really greasy and I never finish it. Do you eat breakfast? Yeah, I work a really physical job so I need to eat before work or I end up feeling sick and dizzy by mid-morning.

Do you have a cat? I have three cats.

What is your favourite childhood memory? Visiting my cousins in Australia and hand-feeding kangaroos. Going to France and playing on the trampolines by the beach and then eating crêpes.

What was your favourite movie as a kid? The Lion King.

Have you ever dated someone online? I’ve met a few people online that I ended up dating, yeah.

Do you like to take walks? Only with dogs. I don’t really like walking otherwise, though, I find it a bit boring.

Are you going to college right now?  No, I graduated 11 and a half years ago which makes me feel really old, hahah.

If so, what is your major? I studied Modern European Studies.

Do you like school? I liked primary school up until about Year 5? It just got worse from then on, hahah.

Do you keep a journal? If so how often do you write in it? This is it, lol. Sometimes I do 5-6 surveys a day, sometimes I go for days without even logging on, it just depends how busy I am.

Have you ever traveled outside of your country? Yeah, I travelled a lot when I was younger and my parents were paying for it.

Do you chew gum? No.

Do you live in a big city? No, I live in a tiny little coastal town.

How often do you go out to eat? Once a month on average, maybe. Less nowadays as prices have shot up recently and it’s just not worth it.

What is the last movie you saw in theatres? Cats, which was way before COVID was even a thing, lol.

Have you ever dyed your hair? Yeah, I used to do it all the time. Do you drink tea? Yeah, most days I have a cup of two.

Do you subscribe to channels on youtube? Yeah, just so I can watch TV shows on there though.

Do you have a tumblr? No, this is all a figment of your imagination.

Do you watch anime? No.

Can you cook? Yeah, but I don’t enjoy it so I pretty much never bother.

How old were you when you first started dating? Fourteen.

Are/Were your parents strict? My dad was, but my mum was never very strict and often overruled him, lol.

Is your room messy? My side is spotless, Mike’s side...well, the less said about that the better, lol.

Do you have Netflix? Yeah - well, Mike does and I just use that.

Do you have any regrets? Nope. How are your grades? I always got decent enough grades, I just didn’t enjoy school so I never really put in a huge amount of effort.

Do you get nervous easily? Not really.

What do you look for in a BF/GF? A good sense of humour, a love of animals, decent work ethic, good morals.

Have you ever written a song or poem? Just when we had to do it for school.

Have you ever written a short story or novel? We used to have to write short stories for school.

Are/Were you in a school club? Yeah, I did loads in primary school - dance, gymnastics, trampolining, chess and various baking/sewing ones too. Do you play an instrument? Not anymore, but I used to play guitar, piano and cornet.

Where do you want to be in 5 years? Honestly, I don’t think about the future all that much.

What do you never leave the house without? Phone, keys.

What food(s) do you refuse to eat? Tripe.

Favourite candy? Reeses Pieces.

Do you have a good relationship with your mom? Yeah, we’re really close and speak most days.

Do you have a good relationship with your dad? No. It’s not a bad relationship as such, we just don’t have anything in common and pretty much never speak to each other.

What did you have for dinner last night? I just had random snacks.

Do you wear glasses? I do.

Do you have any siblings? No.

Do you watch reality tv shows? If so which ones? Yeah, I like Below Deck and cooking competitions like Bake Off.

What do you miss most about your childhood? Not having to worry about money or bills.

How many pets do you have? Four - one dog and three cats.

What colour are the walls in your room? A very pale purple.

Do you write "To-Do" lists?  Nope.

Do you procrastinate often? No.

What is your favourite book? Alice in Wonderland, Neverwhere.

Did you hate any of your teachers? No, I just found most of them incredibly patronising and annoying, lol. Have you ever been depressed? Yeah, I’ve been on and off anti-depressants since my teens.

How do you handle stress? I don’t really handle it very well. I seem to muddle through at the time and then completely break own afterwards. What are you looking forward to? Christmas holidays (five days to go!) plus my beach ride, and a day out for lunch and shopping with my mum in ten days or so.

[manlyaustralia]

Divinely tranquil family home with rear northern aspect in quiet cul-de-sac

[uglypastels]

I will probably never understand putting milk in tea. Sorry 💖

[silversatin2105]

Shaman king Fan fic : A Case of mistaken Identity

This fic has two ends to read to the bottom, This covers a scenario between a Fem- Reader deciding their future list of characters featured below.

Yoh Asakura

Hao Asakura

Anna Kyoyama / Asakura

Fem- Reader

Now with that out of the way enjoy the fic

Main scenario: The ribbon of Destiny

You had been friends with Yoh for four months, Ever since you met him on monument hill one fateful night as you were there to attend to the grave of one of your ancestors, It would have been a brief conversation until you said “By the way can you see that samurai” with those words Yoh’s interest was peeked, For the rest of the night Yoh and you talked He explained that he was a shaman and the samurai explained that he was Amidamaru who had became Yoh’s spirit ally when their goals aligned.

You agreed to meet with Yoh on a nightly basis and so you did, It was a month into these evening meet ups that you noticed you were beginning to have feelings for him however you knew about Anna and she knew about you, Anna did not like these meet ups I mean she really didn’t like them as she punished Yoh for meeting up with you like that, Even though he assured her that it wasn’t like that.

Everything came to a head the night after the comet of destiny appeared, Anna caught you confessing your feelings to Manta, The next thing you felt was the sharp sting of a hand across your cheek and the harsh words that were spoken “I forbid you from seeing Yoh ever again, I will let you go with just this but if you show your face here again I will make sure you suffer in your afterlife”

With these harsh words you broke into tears, Nothing could console you and you knew this would be the only outcome for not dampening these feelings, you KNEW that Yoh and Anna were meant to be but stupidly you held up hope that he would reciprocate those feelings, After that you dropped out of the school you all attended and started attending a school in your district, Any spirits you made friends with in your brief moments in Yoh’s life you ignored and for the most part you returned to the world you came from.

Half a month had passed since you had saw Yoh and you were back to your old life, You studied in your free time for your finals and you focused yourself on getting into a good college as you went back to your primary goal of getting a degree in (Insert what you want to do here), It was late as you left cram school and you knew it was your turn to pick up ingredients for the evening meal as you left the store with meat and rice for the dinner you spot a familiar face, It couldn’t be, Yoh ?

Without a moments thought you ran towards the familiar figure “Yoh, are you alright?, Its been awhi” your words were cut short as you dawned on your mistake, The person in front of you did indeed look like your one time crush but he was different, You could not see warmth in his face and as you looked into his face you noticed a deep sadness, Your thoughts trailed on as you had noticed you hadn’t spoke since the hick up you only snapped back when the figure in front of you began to speak.

“Hello miss you seem to have spaced out there, Are you okay?” He enquired as you stepped back from him; you collected your self and did a bow of apology.

“I’m sorry you look a lot like someone I used to know” You managed to speak out, your face turning red as you hid in the folds of your scarf, Something must have amused the familiar stranger as he burst into a mocking laugh, He gripped his sides as he continued to laugh.

“Wow the people in this country really are polite” He remarked whilst regaining his composure, Soon after he stopped laughing he introduced himself as Hao, The future king , this statement you found strange but you put it to the back of your mind as one of his eccentricities.

He asked you to meet him tomorrow night at the same time to which you agreed with caution, You made your way home to which you were scolded for being back late after your apologies and a bath you went to bed with so many questions on your mind.

Throughout the next day you couldn’t focus at school, Were you actually going to meet up with that Hao guy or were you going to go straight home and forget your encounter with him, Every hour that passed you flitted between your going and your not going with one final decision and out of actual curiosity you agreed to meet up with Hao.

Walking thought the darkening streets you found your way back to where just a day ago you met Hao, He waited there for you and offered you a sat by him, After a brief conversation in which you asked him the important questions of why he asked to meet you and what was his intentions he stood up and brushed himself off.

“If you want to know, Walk with me” Hao spoke out whilst walking away from you as you stood to follow and within no time the streets turned into woodland, If you weren’t curious about what he had to offer, This would be the part where you would book it and go home but still your curiosity still had a hold on you.

After walking for what felt like an hour you both came to a clearing that was far from town, Hao stopped walking and turned to face you with an eyebrow raised as he crossed his arms and sat on the floor.

“Before I tell you what I have to say I must find out if I can trust you, What are your intentions with the one called Yoh” He questioned in a tone that you knew if you answered with anything less that the truth would lead to dire consequences.

“I bare Yoh no ill will, I used to have feelings for him but I knew that it was stupid to, we have not spoke since his fiancé told me to back off, I went back to my life and that’s, that” you answered looking Hao dead in the eye, Your heart pounding in fear of what could happen, Its true that he looked like Yoh but you could sense he was a different kind of person, With Yoh you knew he’d never hurt you but with this person you were sure he’d kill you if you put a toe out of line.

“I see, So you have no ties to him at this moment in time” He asked.

“No like I said I have not seen him since Anna scolded me” You replied.

Hao then stood up and paced around looking deep in thought “Usually id kill any outsider that would be threat to my plans, But I find you interesting so ill let you live, Spirit of fire, this girl isn’t to be touched” you wondered what he meant with that, You were about to enquire when before you appeared to be a red demon cloaked in flames offering its hand to Hao.

“Now if you wish to know more, Meet me here tomorrow night If not go back to your life and I assure you we will not meet again” Hao remarked before disappearing from your sight, You found your way back to town and went home to mull things over.

I could not decide on what the reader would decide so to end the argument I will dedicate a page each to 2 sub scenarios 1 in which the reader doesn’t follow Hao and 1 where she does and you can decide which 1 you like the best

Scenario diverge: Plume of white Daisies.

(This scenario covers the reader’s choice in remaining at home and the results of this action)

There was no way you could go with him, Hao may have spared your life but that did not mean you owed him anything, You owed it to yourself to put this whole incident behind you and be content that for a brief time in your life you were a minor character in something important.

The next day at school all who knew you were shocked out of speaking, You walked into class and took your seat as one of your classmates broke the silence.

“why did you cut your hair? (insert name),I thought you were growing it” they asked as you looked at them with a warm smile and replied whilst opening your text book.

“I Just fancied a change of pace”

Years passed and the brief time you spent as part of the shaman world had faded from your mind, You were now an adult and now worked in the field of your dreams and were engaged to your S/O who you met whilst studying for your (insert field) Degree, You no longer lived in your hometown as you had to go where the work was however you returned every summer and winter for a week.

During one of your returns to your hometown you decided to visit the grave of your ancestor, not much had changed since your last visit there other than the fact that the grave looked to be attended to frequently and that Daises had began to grow upon the grave.

As you left the old graveyard, You spot a familiar face in the distance approaching a group of people, You came to recognise the tallest one as your long lost school crush and the other as you presumed right now wife, A little boy clings to the legs of his mother.

With a slight nod to them both you make your way back to your parents home, Petals of daises fill the air as you walk towards the future.

End Scene

Scenario Diverge: Scent of hibiscus

(this covers the readers choice to follow Hao and the results of this action)

The morning after you were given the ultimatum from Hao, whether to remain in your world or follow him into the dangerous world of shamans and spirit fight, your mind was made up, You would follow Hao and learn what you could of the world he lives in.

It was early morning as you checked downstairs to make sure the house was empty, It was as your parents had left for work, You began packing a bag of the things you thought you would need and you wrote letters to your loved ones explaining that you were okay and that you didn’t want to be found.

When night approached you stood where Hao told you to meet him, you held you packed bag on one shoulder as you paced waiting for him hoping it wasn’t a trick, hoping that you didn’t need to go home and awkwardly say that your letters were a prank.

“Ahh you showed up, Right choice” You heard a familiar voice say as you turned to face Hao.

“Yes I did now show me what’s to be done”

You spoke out before you both disappeared into the night.

Years had started to pass, In that time you had trained under the watch of Hao and had become his Itako, You both travelled from place to place brining spirits (usually by force) to his side, You did go home from time to time al though meet ups with your family usually ended in arguments, Your parents accused Hao of derailing your path to success and that you could have been more than you are right now.

You didn’t care, You never regretted your actions not even when Yoh looked at you with suspicion when he saw you at the tournament nor when Anna accosted you intending to tell you the truth, The shock on her face was priceless when you told her you knew and didn’t care.

one night whilst sitting down for a cup of tea, you and Hao spoke of the past and the night you both met, he joked of your embarrassment before giving you a bouquet of aromatic hibiscus that to your shock had a ruby ring on one stem, that moment he got down on his knee and smirked.

“Well will you be my queen?”

“You need not ask my king”

End Scene

[detectivejigsawpines]

Just a Normal Day

A short drabble about sea grunks having an average adventure, written in honor of their birthday.

Even before they got attacked by the Cthulhu beast, it had been a pretty average morning on the sea for the Pines twins.

Wake up at the crack of dawn (Ford) or closer to late morning (Stan); eat breakfast; reset the spell to ward off the vengeful leprechauns who might still be after them for stealing their treasure in case they’d figured out they were chasing a decoy trail by now; do a little late morning fishing, while keeping an eye out for that golden fish Stan was sure he’d seen swimming under their boat last week, and which he was hoping laid golden fish eggs or something; finally notice what time it was (Stan) and head inside to make lunch.

Just another normal day.

Stan was examining their supplies, trying to decide if it was worth breaking out some of the canned hamburger meat and throwing together sloppy Joes instead of making them eat fish again, when he was knocked skiwampus by the boat being yanked to a halt; as he struggled to regain his balance by grabbing onto the table, a vicious, blood-curdling roar came rumbling through the air from outside.

Stan sighed, and wondered if the kraken was back. In one swift motion he grabbed the spare harpoon they had hanging over the door, and stepped out to see if Ford needed help dealing with it.

It wasn’t the kraken.

It still looked like some kinda big octopus monster, though, with a mass of writhing tentacles where its face should be, and a bulbous head in the back just like an octopus body. The rest of it, at least as far as the torso, was kinda like a human’s but a little bigger (about the size of a baby whale), with slimy-looking green-brown skin and a pair of big, wrinkled, wet wings sticking out of its back. Whatever this thing was, it had grabbed onto the back of their boat, and was looming menacingly over Ford as Stan stepped outside.

“...and you are now my prisoners!” he bellowed, as his piercing golden eyes landed on Stan. “Surrender your weapons now, puny mortals, and I might be merciful!!!!”

“Yeesh, did we trespass on his territory or something?” Stan asked, leaning on the harpoon.

Ford shrugged with one shoulder, since he was trying to write in his journal at the same time. “He didn’t really say; he just jumped onboard and started threatening me.”

“Huh.” Stan looked up at the beast. “You the lord of this part of the ocean or whatever?”

The beast blinked-which looked pretty weird, his eyelids went sideways instead of up and down like humans-before nodding vigorously. “Yes! I am the lord of this part of the ocean, and you must surrender to me now, or else suffer my wrath!!!!” He slammed a fist down against the side of the boat, making it rock up and down so hard he had to scrabble to keep his balance. Stan coughed into his fist to hold back a snicker.

Ford tilted his head. “I could have sworn this was still the primary territory of the Manatee-Merfolk Alliance. Are you sure you haven’t made some kind of mistake?”

“What part of prisoners did you not understand?!” the beast demanded, spreading out his wings and shaking them as his tentacles writhed angrily. “Give up your weapons, now-all of them!!!!”

“...You sure you want that? It’s kind of gonna take awhile-”

“NOW, or I crush your boat in my mighty fist!!!!”

Stan glanced at Ford, who rolled his eyes and nodded. With a small sigh, they began disarming themselves.

********

...A minute passed and they were still at it.

Ford’s pile of weapons was almost as tall as he was, mostly consisting of long-range weapons like guns, but with a few vials of poisons and some handcuffs thrown into the mix.

Stan’s pile was more proportionate, but the number of places that weapons were produced from (including a smoke bomb that he’d somehow managed to keep tucked under his beanie) was frighteningly impressive.

The monster watched their progress with increasingly wide eyes; finally, as Stan produced another set of brass knuckles out of a secret pocket sewn onto the inside of his coat, he spluttered, “...Where were you keeping those?”

Stan just grinned shamelessly. “Trust me, sunshine, you don’t wanna know.”

“Okay, I think that’s everything,” Ford said at last, indicating the pile of weaponry.

“Yeah, well, I’m still workin’, gimme a minute.” Stan produced a switchblade, and tossed it onto his pile. Then, in a brief sleight of hand, he snatched another one from the pile and pretended to draw it out of his coat to toss it on next. “Hey, tentacles-face-ya think you could bring us back by Wednesday? We got a Zoom appointment ta keep, and our niece and nephew hate it when we’re late.” Another sleight of hand allowed him to scoop up another weapon.

“That’s not how this-now see here!” The monster drew himself up to his full height, nearly falling backwards off the boat. “You guys-you puny mortals are my prisoners! And as such, you need to understand that this is not a joking matter! I could squash you both like sea slugs if I wished! I’m all-powerful, an eons-old abomination whose very name would send you into madness if spoken aloud! So you better start quaking in fear and begging for mercy like proper captives!!!!”

Stan looked at Ford. “Sounds like we’re his first.” He looked back at the monster. “You’re doin’ great, buddy-good job on the whole threatening schtick.” He offered a thumbs-up, while using the other hand to snag another weapon that he pretended to produce from another hiding spot.

Ford winked at him, and looked back at their ‘captor.’ “Is this some sort of coming-of-age ritual for your species?” He produced his journal again, pen poised. “Very clever move, by the way, threatening our boat to get us to disarm ourselves. In the future, though, I would suggest that you try taking one of us hostage first, in order to create maximum-”

“STOP IT!”

The monster abruptly started pounding his fists against the side of the boat, nearly tipping it over before instead pitching him all the way onto the deck. “YOU’RE NOT SUPPOSED TO BE LIKE THIS! YOU WERE SUPPOSED TO-I’M YOUR-IT’S NOT FAIR-!”

It took Stan a moment to realize that the angry noises leaving his mouth (?) were accompanied by the sound of frustrated sobs.

He hissed through his teeth, and shot Ford a guilty look.

“...Oh boy. Looks like we got a little one here.”

********

Stan crossed the boat and crouched down in front of the weeping monster, putting a hand on his back and rubbing the spot right between his wings.

“Deep breaths, in and out. You’re not gonna get anything done like this, so just take a bit ta calm down, okay?”

The monster hiccuped and coughed, shrinking in on himself in a way that was painfully familiar to both of them.

Ford knelt down at his other side. “Maybe if you tell us why this is so important to you, we can provide some assistance?”

The monster shook his head and buried his head in his arms. “I just wanted-hic-to show my friends I could catch the Pines twins all by myself,” he croaked.

The two old men looked at each other in a mixture of surprise and slight alarm. “...You know who we are?”

That was finally enough to get him to sit up, wiping his eyes with his tentacles. “You kidding? Every creature of the seas knows who you are! You’re the guys who beat up krakens and steal gold from leprechauns and then you and your boat vanish without a trace! You’re the coolest cryptids ever!”

It took both of them a moment to digest that. By the time they did, though, they were grinning in equal delight.

“We’re cryptids?!” Ford asked, eyes practically brimming over with overjoyed tears.

“Yeah! And people at school were sayin’ you’re just a myth, but I knew you were real cuz my uncle saw your ship up in the Arctic last winter, and I was gonna capture you and bring you to class to show everyone how wrong they were and then I’d be famous and they’d stop calling me a weird runt all the time!” After a second his wings drooped, and he stared miserably down at the deck. “...Guess it was pretty dumb of me to think I could catch you all by myself.”

Stan put a hand on his shoulder. “...Kid...as much as we wanna help, we can’t just be your prisoners. We got our own lives ta get back to.”

“Plus, neither of us is able to breathe underwater,” Ford added.

The monster sighed, and pulled a strip of kelp from around his neck, turning one of the leaves until it was facing him. He squirted a stream of black ink from one of his tentacles, and dipped the tip of another one into the ink and used it to trace something that looked like a bunch of gobbledygook to Stan onto the leaf. “Humans...don’t...breathe...underwater.”

Awww...he’s a super nerd, just like Ford and Dipper!

That gave Stan an idea.

“Hey.” He nudged the monster. “What about a picture of us instead? Along with genuine proof of a close encounter?”

The monster’s head jerked up. “A picture?! Like with one of those weird magic boxes you humans carry around sometimes?!”

“That’s the one.” Stan grinned. He looked at Ford and jerked his head towards the cabin; his brother took the hint and headed for it, returning with an antique Polaroid camera that Ford had been experimenting on, but still took good pictures.

The monster’s tentacles began writhing around his face like they’d come to life, and he let out a high-pitched squeal of excitement.

“This is the greatest day of my life!!!!”

********

It took a bit of staging and directing and trying out different angles, but eventually they produced a set of photos that appeared to be of an eldritch abomination in training being attacked by, and bravely fighting off, the ferocious monster hunter Pines twins (hopefully nobody would think to ask how and why the monster had managed to get these pictures taken).

Then, while Stan took them into the cabin and soaked them in a special substance Ford had invented that would render them waterproof, Ford sat on the prow next to the young cryptid enthusiast and offered tips on future hunting adventures, comparing notes with him on some of the creatures they’d both seen. He also (with permission) took a few samples from the monster, including a long strip of skin (“Make it look like a wound I got in the fight! Man, this is gonna be so cool, Yog-Sothoth is gonna eat his heart out! Possibly literally!”) and some of the ink from his tentacles.

When Stan came back with the photos, he also handed over one of his spare brass knuckles that had lost a corner. “Have another souvenir, kid.”

The monster’s tentacles lashed out and wrapped around their faces in what felt like a really weird version of a hug before pulling away, leaving them covered in some of the slimy stuff they were coated in.

“Thank you so much! I really really hope the leprechauns don’t catch you-if they come this way I’ll make sure to eat some of them so they won’t!” He waved at them joyfully as he dived back into the ocean and disappeared.

********

After a moment Stan wiped his face on his coat sleeve.

“...Well, that happened.”

He turned away and began gathering up his weapons.

“Such a strange mixture of childlike innocence and barbarity,” Ford mused as he pulled out a jar and gathered the slime into it for yet another sample. “His culture must be fascinating-I almost wish he would have taken us with him so I could have seen it.”

“You would’ve drowned before you could gather any data.”

“...You don’t know that.”

“He literally didn’t know that humans can’t breathe underwater, Sixer. Not gonna happen.”

He ignored Ford’s sulking and kept cleaning, while musing to himself over the possible monetary opportunities being a couple of cryptids could bring...

[myhoneststudyblr]

21|12|2020

i’m hoping to get a bunch of english work done today so wish me luck 😳

Day 21 of My Winter Studying Challenge!

❄️ 21st December - What was the most memorable holiday celebration you had at school? ❄️

in my primary school we used to do a christmas play/musical and all of them were really memorable (including that one time i had tonsillitis and did a dance with a fever and feeling like i was dying 😂). another fun thing is that the last day of school at my current school is called charities morning (causes it’s a half day and we raise money for different charities) and they are so much fun! we all wear christmas jumpers and we have to learn a song to perform as a choir and then the year 12s and the teachers both provide entertainment for the whole school! we couldn’t do it this year though because of covid which is a bummer since it’s my last year there 😔