#life certificate deadline

[sharemarketinsider]

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[the-wereraven]

I hate you, Intergrated Marketing Communications

[whilomm]

okay you know what. how about this. lets post our Anti-Despair Plans. what actual actionable things, big or small, voting/organizing/charity/getting yourself together/whatever related are you gonna do.

My list only has 3 things so far cause I only want to put specific exact things on here (no "look into local groups...." on my list until i have the names of the local groups)

reup my Volunteer Deputy Registrar certification, which'll mean I can register people to vote. I had several coworkers when I was reminding them about voting say "oh I forgot to register" or "oh I can register day of, right?" (not in texas). In real life, I encountered FAR more people who didnt vote just cause they didnt know about deadlines/forgot to register/didnt know they HAD to register than I did anyone abstaining out of protest. So, thats my project, reup my VDR and register people. Get annoying about it, eavesdrop, someone saying they need to register? pull out my folder and do it.

instead of randomly donating when I feel like it, actually make a charity budget and set aside a lil from every paycheck. I'm awful about budgeting just in general, and have a "well if im not donating like $50 it doesnt matter" complex so. get better about remembering even $1 helps, and actually budget for it.

craft more. this ones just for me, but take that roll of leather and actually use it. I have patterns, I have plans, Get To It.

anyway. what specific, non-vague small actions are you planning on?

[a-mint-bear]

Her Favorite Employee

Female Yandere x Female Reader

You're the personal assistant of your company's CEO. She's controlling, married to her job, and runs you ragged. But you're good at your job, and she loves to let you know how much she appreciates you.

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"What's on my schedule for this afternoon?"

A quick recap of what was on the docket for that day as you dropped off her coffee order. Soon she’d be in back to back meetings while you handled her calls and made the rounds to the various teams she oversaw. Same as most mornings.

“Wonderful. Make sure to have the Hillmore reports on my desk by three, and send a nice gift basket to Reynolds in Sales. His wife just had twins.”

You told her the reports would be done before her lunch with R&D, and you’d already sent a basket with her name on it two days ago which included a gift certificate to a local spa for the new mother.

“I knew you’d be on it.” She smiled into her coffee. “Much obliged, love.”

You nodded behind your tablet, trying not to be obvious about your lack of eye contact. It was torture when she called you that.

It was a lot, working under her. But at the same time, it was oddly… fulfilling. She gave you so many responsibilities and trusted, more expected, you to come through. Every time.

Not even six months ago you'd been just another employee. It was a decent job; Good pay and benefits, and the work was easy enough, the hours sucked sometimes but it wasn't like you had a rich social life it was cutting into.

You didn’t make any friends in the office, you weren’t sure any of your coworkers even knew your name. To them, you were just “that one girl who refills the paper in the copier”. Because someone has to, and you work with a bunch of animals who think that the paper just magically replenishes itself. Now you were “The Boss’ secretary”, that was at least more respectable? Maybe?

But before you were her assistant, you were just her “favorite employee”. And that was more trouble than it was worth.

She didn’t care much for being called by her surname like most of the superiors in the company, but no one was brave enough to call her by her given name. So most in the company just called her Boss or Miss. And she liked it that way. You were pretty sure she just liked how intimidating it made her seem.

She was always around. At first, you thought it might've been because she was your boss. She was probably just trying to see if you were any good at your job, maybe looking for a reason to fire you if she noticed anything off. But ever since you were hired, it just kept happening. Your first days in the office quickly turned into weeks and she was still circling you for seemingly no reason.

You could excuse it to yourself, maybe she was the micromanaging type. But her attention always seemed to be on you, almost exclusively, more than anyone else in the office. And it was… intimidating. For a couple of reasons.

She seemed to love��� picking on you, if you could call it that. Any extra projects she needed done? You were her first choice. Fixing the new guy's botched paperwork before a big deadline? You were on it, of course. Overtime? Yup, you. It would be more annoying if you weren't getting paid really well. But you always got it all done, ahead of schedule, without any complaints.

And if she wasn't being oddly petty, she was being… oddly flirty.

Sitting on the edge of her desk when she talked quarterly reports over with you. Leaning a little too close when she took something off your desk. Her fingers brushed yours when you handed her things. A bump to your arm with hers here, a touch to your shoulder there… Every time you wondered if you were just imagining things, it happened again. She never did anything overtly inappropriate or pushed past any sign you were uncomfortable, but the truth was… you weren’t. It was a bit much to have this beautiful woman pay so much attention to you, but you weren’t going to lie, it wasn’t… the worst thing in the world.

It contrasted hard with her usual put-together image, prim and proper and out of reach from the mere mortals in the office. But as far as you’d noticed, she didn’t act this way in front of anyone else in the office. And you didn’t know what to do with that information.

You weren’t sure if any of it was on purpose, or if she was just flirtatious by nature. It was always hard to tell with women, as a woman. Was she into you? Was she even attracted to women?? Or did she get her jollies by flustering the office loner?

She stayed just as late as you most nights, if not longer. And checked up on you. And chatted with you when she had a minute. You just didn't get why. You weren't anyone special. And she was so…

She was gorgeous, always so well put-together and stunning. You'd never met a woman who was so beautiful it made you nervous, like a dumb teenager. But it couldn't outweigh how much she got on your nerves with how she was always in your business, so the conflicting emotions just made for long, exhausting workdays.

If she knew you were annoyed with her, she never let it show. But it wasn't long before you realized just why she'd been watching you so closely.

One day, all the creeping around and odd attention she was paying you started to make sense. The Boss Lady called you into a meeting with herself and the head of H.R. and just…

Offered you a promotion. Just like that.

"I've been really impressed by your work ethic.” She was being so poised and professional, every word out of her mouth sounded so assured, even though you were very much a deer in the headlights at the moment. “I need someone with a work/life balance that matches my own and can work with my schedule to be my personal Executive Assistant. Your hours would increase, but there will be a significant pay raise and company benefits.”

And boy, what a significant pay raise it was. You'd have to be a complete idiot to turn it down. It meant more responsibilities in the company and you'd be expected to dress up a bit more for appearance's sake, but a few suit jackets and skirts with nice dress shoes would be more in your price range now. It would mean spending A LOT more time with her though, and you weren't sure if your weak heart could take the damn near constant presence of this woman.

But maybe, SOMEHOW, it really was all in your head. Maybe the proximity to her while she was vetting you for the position just had you all mixed up?

Maybe the money was making you too eager to accept, but accept you did.

And it was normal, or as normal as things could be around that place, at least for a little while.

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

You were scheduling some meetings for her and logging them in her calendar when another co-worker knocked on your office door.

“Oh hey, do you have a minute?”

You recognized them… You didn’t remember their full name but everyone called them Jay.

They started a few months after you did, and they seemed nice enough. Right now they looked a little out of sorts, which was unusual. They were usually the cool, flirty, sporty type who was good friends with everyone, not an awkward bone in their body. The two of you weren’t friends or anything, but there was no bad blood between the two of you.

You asked them what was up, and it took them a minute before finally spitting it out.

“Okay, so… totally tell me to screw off if I’m barkin’ up the wrong tree here.” It was kind of funny seeing them so nervous. “Would you wanna… go to dinner tomorrow?”

Without thinking, you pulled up your planner, asking if there’d been an email you’d missed about some team-building thing. But they just laughed.

“No, I meant… Just you and me.”

You froze, wondering if you had heard right. You cut to the chase, asking if they meant like a date?

“We don’t have to call it a date, if you don’t want to!” They held up their hands defensively, like you were someone they were worried about offending with this. You wondered how people saw you around here for them to be so nervous. Or maybe they just… really liked you that much. “But… yeah. I wanted to ask you out.”

You gave it a moment to sink in.

You weren’t automatically thinking of saying no. Did that mean you wanted to say yes? They were tall and attractive, in a “soft beanpole with a cute haircut” kind of way. They looked good in their usual button up with the rolled-up sleeves, and pulled the look off better than half the people around the office. The opposite of your very feminine boss. Looks-wise they were nothing alike, but both had the same confident, assertive air about them. Maybe that was appealing to you, and Jay was just as much your type as the Boss was.

You scolded yourself. Why were you thinking about her? Now?

At the end of the day, you didn’t see any reason to say no. It could be a nice time. This stupid not-a-crush you had on your boss was never going to go anywhere, so why not try and see someone who went out of their way to ask you out? If it didn’t work out, you would handle it like an adult.

Jay looked nervous that you’d been thinking for so long. You told them you had a pretty packed schedule, but if you could get a night off, it would be nice to have dinner with them tomorrow. You half-jokingly told them that if it went well, you’d slap the “date” label on it. Their cheeks went a bit red, but they were grinning ear to ear.

“Cool!” They laughed, a bit too loud before catching themself, playing it cool. “I mean uh… That sounds good. Let me know.”

They quickly left, muttering to themself to “keep it together”, probably thinking you couldn’t hear. It was kind of cute, in a weird way. Maybe they were shyer than you’d originally thought.

But now came the hard part. Getting a night off.

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

“No, that won't do.” She didn’t even look up from her computer.

That’s all she had to say to your request. At first, you felt disappointed but you were ready to just turn around and leave, accepting it. But this was just... bothering you. You piped up, trying to reason with her. Her schedule was free tomorrow night and you were a week ahead on all the reports she’d put you in charge of. You hadn’t had a night off in a few weeks.

And you’d never complained. You’d even kind of liked the challenge, the effort you put into your work gave you purpose. Working as her personal assistant was the most rewarding job you’d ever had. And you even told her so.

So why?

She sighed, she seemed almost… annoyed?

“I heard some chatter in the hall this afternoon.” She just kept typing away. “Someone was asking about restaurant recommendations for a big date. They seemed excited about having finally asked out the CEO’s assistant. And that they were so surprised she’d said yes.”

So she knew? She knew you were asking for a night off for a date? What did that have to do with anything? But you kept quiet for the moment, wondering where she was going with this.

“Maybe it’s my fault.” she sighed, sitting back in her plush office chair. “I was too…generous. I wanted to make you feel comfortable working for me so I let you do what you wanted. I can admit to my mistakes.”

Generous? By working you like a dog day in and day out? By keeping you from doing something as simple as going on a date with someone who was interested in you?

You asked her why. Why was she so against you having a life? Why was she doing this?

You knew it was a bad-no, a super bad idea to be mouthing off to your boss. Possibly career-ending. But you’d done so much for her, every day for months on end and never letting her down no matter how difficult or grueling the task. And she couldn’t even give you this one night off?

You needed a reason.

“Oh, it’s quite simple.” She smiled her usual stunning smile. But you weren’t going to let it get to you this time. No ma’am. But as she got up from her desk, coming around to stand too damn close, you felt your resolve slipping.

“From the day you started working here, I knew I wanted to keep you by my side.”

As an employee, right?

. . .

Right??

“You were… quite the sight.” she sighed, a dreamy smile as she looked at you from beneath her long, dark lashes. “So put off by everyone. Always on your own. Uninterested. Unengaged. Unmotivated. At first I just wanted to frazzle you, make you lighten up a bit. You seemed so isolated, I figured a strong personality like mine would rub you the wrong way. But you had such an… interesting reaction.”

The both of you knew what she meant. The blushing, the nervous energy, all the times you tried so hard to act like you weren’t bothered by her attention. And most likely failed miserably.

“I saw how hard you worked. I could see your untapped potential. You were exactly what I needed. I knew I had to make you mine.”

You told her you didn’t understand. And maybe that was a lie. You couldn’t stop your thoughts from racing. She… wasn’t talking about work anymore, was she?

“I made you my assistant. You’re by my side, day in and day out. And… I thought that would be enough to satisfy this feeling. This... need. But it just wasn’t. And when I heard someone had taken an interest in you, I found myself quite…”

The intensity in her eyes felt so suffocating.

”Infuriated.”

You couldn't help but flinch when she laid her hands flat on your chest, just below your collar bone. Her touch burned itself into you, but you couldn’t take your eyes off hers. It felt like she’d devour you if you did.

“No one…” She grabbed you by your collar and yanked you closer, whispering in your ear. You hated the shiver it sent up your spine. “No one will ever take you away from me. Not another company. Not another department. And certainly not some little upstart from Sales.”

… She wasn’t talking about work anymore.

“If someone else took you from me... there would be no point in any of this. This job. It was so… stuffy and boring before you came along. Every day was just office politics and saying the right things to the right people.” She loosened her grip, straightening the collar on your suit jacket with an airy, light touch. “But you… You changed something. So I brought you to my side. And I’ve been watching, getting to know all about you. You play down your talents so you don’t draw any attention. But you can’t help yourself. What you want more than anything is for someone to say they appreciate you, that they need you.”

She had to know how this sounded, right? She almost sounded like…

“And I do.” She held your face in her hand, her thumb grazing your cheek so gently you could’ve convinced yourself her touch wasn’t real. “I need you, love. Without you, none of this means anything.”

Your breathing was shaky, you never imagined that this would- could ever happen in a million years.

She drew you closer, a soft gasp slipping out when you realized just how close. If anyone else popped in, it would be completely obvious what was going on. But you didn’t push her away. If anything, you wished she would just close the gap and take it out of your hands.

“So what do you say?” She whispered in your ear, the warmth of her breath making you feel weak. “Are you mine?”

As if you could say anything else.

Yes, Miss.

It was so soft a response that you weren’t sure you’d said it out loud until you saw her smile. A finger to your lips, she laughed. Not her usual teasing, mischievous laugh when she was trying to get a reaction out of you. It was sweet, delighted and charming.

She was so close, her breath on your lips, her lashes just barely brushed your cheek.

“And I'm yours, love.”

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this one has been a long time coming, writing femme yanderes is difficult lol

this y/n ended up being a lady, and it didn't come into play much. but the hypercompetent assistant girl in love with her powerful boss lady is a wlw pairing near and dear to my heart.

Boss Lady's tentative full name is Lenora. she doesn't care for it, she goes by Nora. i originally gave her a last name to be called by in the story to make her seem more imposing, but it came off as awkward, like she has a name, but i didn't want her to be known by an unimportant surname

Jay started off as a lady, but i wrote her as more androgynous and it felt right to make them nb instead. it helped keep the reader's sexuality more ambiguous. i wanted to write them as wlw, but not strictly a lesbian. but she reads very much as a "useless lesbian" trope lol. Boss lady had to flirt with her for literal months on end before y/n caught on

i don't quite know how old Boss Lady is, i imagine her as late 30s, very early 40s, and there could be an age difference here, but it's not a necessary part of the story.

this Boss Lady COULD be the same Boss Lady as the one in Boss Lady has a House Spouse, sometime in the future of their relationship. maybe y/n gets burned out or quits for some reason and then becomes a domestic partner. But Boss Lady who obsesses over her employee was imagined as a separate Boss Lady originally. you can never have too many boss ladies.

and that header. i've said it before that editing the femme yandere headers is so awkward because the office lady ones just turn into their chests in tight button-downs lol

*whispers* would you guys find it weird if she called the reader "good girl"? 'cause i almost included it at the end there but thought it might be a bit much. i have a problem✌️

[andhumanslovedstories]

I'm working on a story where the protagonist and main POV character is the only character I haven't named yet. I'd sorta convinced myself that if I kept using the placeholder name for long enough, that would just become her name, but it hasn't, and now I'm doing final edits like God am I gonna send her out into the world with the wrong name because I can't think of anything better? Am I not gonna get a good grade in character names?? It doesn't matter too much, I mean there's no way the name would bother other people as much as it's bothering me, but also I made the choice to have basically every character use she/her pronouns so I have to use names all the goddamn time so you can follow the action at all. This name is in like every sentence. And I don't like it, but I can't think of a single name I like better. So I keep planning to figure it out later. But I'm getting closer and closer to finishing my edits. I'm writing this for a deadline, so I can't even just take a break and keep thinking about it. It seems increasingly likely that my last edit will be changing the name.

And I keep thinking fuck, naming a child would be so goddamn stressful. I simply could not do it. I would think about names every single moment of every single day of the pregnancy or adoption or kidnapping or whatever, and then baby would still have a blank birth certification for the first two weeks their life. Shoutout to people who name people, it truly couldn't be me.

[nowtoboldlygo]

so anki is the love of my life, and i'd like to discuss it re language learning.

spaced repetition systems in general

SRSs are helpful tools to prevent memory loss for specific facts. there's some criticism behind the specifics, but it's pretty safe to say that it's good to have a huge flashcard deck with relevant flashcards where you review the new-to-you stuff with relative immediacy and your already-reviewed stuff with relative distance.

flashcard model recommendations

go for a monolingual deck!!! if you absolutely can't, edit the flashcard to monolingual after you're vaguely familiar with the word!!! (i use wordreference - it's good but imperfect)

edited to add - a TL/NL vocab deck can be very efficient if languages are from the same family

i use a picture for the front unless the vocab word is too high concept, and using a picture would just be misleading/ineffectual.

i use soundclips about half the time - i pull clips from wiktionary, forvo, & the collins dictionary.

i use the fill-in-the-blank feature (cloze) pretty heavily with antonyms, and if i'm trying to remember specific usages of common words/phrases

i also use the fill-in-the-blank feature for chunking, altho i use this fairly rarely

i recommend 25 new words daily, or anything that'll set you for your regular pomodoro time for studying vocab (which is 25 mins for me).

i'm not at an advanced level yet for language learning, but this format is recommended for higher levels!

i lowkey recommend including example sentences on the backside, re chunking, but the utility really can depend on the vocab word

limitations

some limitations are a bit obvious - the quality of your study is 100% down to the quality of the flashcard (e.g. accuracy, relevancy, does it need more explanation for you to understand it)

it's also a hell of a time-suck to create these decks. i study 25 new cards a day, which means i have to create about two hundred flashcards every week. i make this quicker by having an ongoing list of words to add to my deck, instead of trying to look up vocab lists or whatever in the moment. i also do the whole week at once because i do get into the rhythm of dictionary-picture-audio searching while watching tv or whatever.

there are some fun add-ons (like for deadlines), and some complicated customization within anki itself. i usually just google if i have a question - a ton of people use anki, so there are tutorials for almost anything you want to do.

fluent forever

if you're unfamiliar, the fluent forever guy wrote a book about language learning which really hinges on a specific model of flashcard. he has tons of tutorial videos on his website, but basically he incorporates the phonetic alphabet, Google Images, and other relevant info for a vocab word (and grammar) in a flash card.

i think his flashcards take an unrealistic/unproductive amount of time, with a bunch of useless filler. however, i do recommend doing a quick read-through of his model and reasoning, as he might speak to something that you're struggling with. (for example, i've never struggled significantly with pronunciation so i think the IPA stuff is 100% useless.)

here's an integration to create the fluent forever flashcards much much faster. i don't use it but i've seen it recommended before.

outside of language learning!

i've used anki to learn for my work certification, for english vocab words from books i'm reading, and for titles of paintings that i want to remember forever. i wouldn't recommend shared decks for language learning, but i emphatically recommend them for other subjects!

[darkshrimpemotions]

If you are trans or love someone who is trans, I highly recommend you read this article. I've included some steps from the article on how trans people in affected states can help prepare and protect themselves below.

WHAT TO DO:

Many transgender people may be concerned over what to do next if they live in these states. Reading Kris Kobach’s opinion, it is possible to see some ways that the damage can be mitigated in the immediate term. According to The Associated Press, Kobach emphasized that transgender individuals would not have to relinquish documents they already possess, but the documents would not be legally correct.

This also applies to birth certificates. Instead, any new copies of birth certificates or driver's licenses issued in the future would reflect their original gender markers. Consequently, there is an avenue for transgender individuals to safeguard themselves in the short term in these states:

If you live in states that have passed or could pass these laws and have not had your markers changed, it may be prudent to get gender marker changes done now. Contact your local LGBTQ+ organization to learn how - if you are in Tennessee, the Name Change Project may be your best bet until July 1st, 2023.

If your gender marker is already changed, get several copies of your birth certificate. Kobach points out that you would not be required to surrender old copies, and so you can likely continue to use these for the rest of your life as birth certificates do not typically expire.

If your drivers license is coming up for renewal, renew your drivers license before the law’s deadline. This will give you the maximum amount of time you can have a correct marker on your drivers license.

If you are affected by these laws, contact your local LGBTQ+ organizations or legal organizations. These organizations will be looking for plaintiffs.

[fleckcmscott]

Help Wanted

Summary: Shaw & Associates needs a new girl. Patricia doesn't get it.

Words: 1,485

Warnings: None

A/N: Does this fit the category of fanfic? It takes place in Gotham City - in the universe of Joker - but it deals with original characters we've gotten to know in the Watch What Happens series. 🤔 Ah, well. Whatever it is, here you are. 😂 Please enjoy! Much appreciation to @jokerownsmysoul for beta-ing!

Also, I've left Sarah's name in rather than replace it with Y/N. Anyone who cares enough to read the adventures of Pat & Matt already knows her true identity. 🤣

If you have any thoughts or questions, please comment, feel free to message me, or send me an ask. Requests for Arthur and WWH are open!

Reviewing the latest replies to the Help Wanted enticed Patricia about as much as the lint covered LifeSaver at the bottom of her purse.

Even with just herself and attorney Matt Stone, half the calendar was hard to fill. More twig than branch, this was the smallest satellite office under the Shaw & Associates umbrella. Most of the Wayne empire's legal matters were handled by colleagues in name only, men in suits glimpsed at annual galas or awards ceremonies honoring Thomas and Martha, Gotham's first couple.

No bankruptcy claims lurked in their files, no accusations of money laundering or tax evasion. No public scandals of affairs with maids to provoke cease and desist letters.

What would be the point of hiring someone when business was as slow as the zoo in the dead of winter?

Patricia browsed carefully typed pages, their perfect margins, streaks of dried whiteout. Nearly all were from local women. About half had attended community college, a handful had gotten certification from the city's Continuing Education program, while the rest had high school diplomas. The applicants ages ranged from nineteen to forty-four, with the vast majority in the under thirty crowd.

Her placid expression was at odds with the tightness of her stomach. At fifty-one, she could be referred to as a classic. When her husband Robert had been drafted to Korea and home had become too empty, she'd joined the firm as a typist. The seventy-five cents an hour had barely covered her train ticket to Old Gotham. But the long rides and scenery had been a welcome distraction from war worries.

Being a natural at shorthand, she'd advanced to legal secretary in a mere seven months, and with that came a recognition she hadn't realized she'd lacked. Between her mother's second-shift cleaning jobs and the day-to-day of keeping a home, praise had been a rare prize as kid. Now it evoked a drive to better herself even when life was pretty good.

By the time Robert had come home, she'd grown to love the legal profession and the part she played in it. After the start of his HVAC repair business and the birth of their daughter, Patricia enrolled in night school for legal assistant certification. She'd spent classes tucked in the corner of the classroom, textbook and notepad on her lap, a bag of coloring books and toys for Ruby strewn across the animal phonics rug.

The promotion to paralegal and transfer to this twig was one of her proudest moments. She'd worked hard to get where she was, enjoyed the routine of her job, overarching calm peppered by deadlines that kept her blood pumping.

Patricia flipped the pile of resumes over, tried to flip her reservations out of sight, out of mind. While Matt could be an oaf, he was an excellent lawyer and fair boss. She'd offered him a handkerchief when his wife had left him, and he'd sent flowers when her grandson was born. They worked well together, to the point where she'd finish his sentences before he'd had a chance to dictate the stop.

And yet the truth nagged. If she was about to lose all this to a younger model, it'd be impossible to land another job.

Mug in hand, she aimed for the breakroom to the right, which doubled as a conference room for three, four if one was standing.

But Matt called from his office. "You got a minute?"

Once she was seated in the high-back reserved for clients, he perched across from her, on his desk. He twisted to reach behind him. "Take a look at this and tell me what you think," he said, and held out a sheet of paper.

It was blinding white, 24 lb, watermarked with the word Eaton. The presentation came off as pretentious, but when she glimpsed the address of Boonville, Missouri, it became clear it was a small town's way to impress.

Sarah Thompson. Thirty-seven. Divorced. "She didn't list her height or weight," Patricia remarked. That put her in the upper third of candidates.

"I called her while you were at lunch. Sharp woman, good education."

A four-year graduate of Missouri State East. Patricia straightened. "Her work history's a little light. Two firms, one with her last name?"

"That's more than half the applicants," he said with a dismissive wave. "And I asked her about that. Ex-husband's firm. But if she's still there ten years after they split, she must be all right."

"Her background is probate and family court. That's outside of our scope."

"That experience'll be good for our upcoming pro bono work."

Pro bono work? They barely had enough paying work as it was. A skeptical shake of her head. "Matt, I've got to be honest. With things as slow as they are, I don't see the rationale of bringing anyone else on."

He glanced over her shoulder, stepped to close the door behind her, as if they were guests at the Watergate and the furniture could spy. Circling to his tufted executive chair, he folded his hands together, pointer fingers steepled. "Thomas Wayne is looking into a mayoral run."

"He's a cardiologist. Why on earth would he want that job?"

"Something about his family's legacy, the Waynes fixing Gotham, yada yada. Anthony Mancuso - remember him? He's from the Wayne Foundation, we met him at the New Year's party. Anyway, he's taking charge of the foundation's charity arm. The public works project they funded to rebuild the viaduct will be done in June, and the Wayne Boys Home has secured enough funding for the next five years.

"The foundation has an idea for a free medical clinic in Otisburg. And not just a rinky-dink place for VD testing and condoms. It'd be a substantial investment in the city-"

"That coincides with the campaign," Patricia said.

The observation hung in the air before Matt gave a loose shrug. "That coincides with the campaign. No one's sent in any details yet, but business is expected to pick up. It'll require a lot of filings. Our pro bono hours were already on the low end during out last audit." He gestured at the resume. "We'll see how the new hire does with that and go from there."

"I'll be working on the Wayne case?"

"Primarily, but I reserve the right to drag her into it when it gets hairy."

She eyed Miss Thompson's address again. "I wonder why she wants to move all the way up here."

"That's the beauty of it. She's only seen Gotham on the news. She doesn't know the politics, she has no opinions on the Waynes. And the best part? No kids. And at her age, they're unlikely. She can pick up any extra hours we need - unless you want the overtime."

Matt's loyalty buoyed Patricia's heart and mind. But how far would that loyalty stretch if the chips were down with a 2-9 offsuit? She crossed her legs at the knee. The hem of her wool skirt shifted at her shins. "What if all this doesn't go as planned?"

Forearms braced on his desk, he leaned forward. "You're not going anywhere. You've been here longer than I have, and you know how to work the coffee percolator."

Relief loosened the corners of her mouth.

"Missouri's an hour behind, right?" He checked his watch. "I'll call her and give her the good news." After punching in the number, he grabbed a key from his pen stand and tossed it to Patricia. "Head to the basement and see what we've got down there. Desk, chair, typewriter, you know the rest." Akin to a bird, his head darted down and towards the receiver. "Hi, Miss Thompson? This is Matthew Stone from Shaw & Associates. Fine and yourself? Good, good. Are you sitting down?"

Patricia sidled out of his office and closed the door. She surveyed the room, the acanthus leaves carved into mahogany cornices. Bronze fluorescent light fixtures. The eight-by-ten space that'd been all her own for the better part of two decades.

Legal pad in hand, she took a breathed a cleansing breath and went out into the hallway.

Her nerves were nearly gone. She pushed the elevator call button, and the predictable hums and whirs of pulleys and gears calmed the rest. She tapped her pen to her notepad and considered. If she was worried, this Sarah Thompson must be just as nervous. Likely more so, what with having to relocate to the city where Patricia was born and bred. She had to adjust to sharing with a colleague; this woman had to adjust to a whole new life.

A sudden sympathy tipped the scales, a reflection of the heavy heart that'd led her to this path so long ago.

Sarah must have a story. Patricia made a note to learn it.

Ding! beckoned the elevator door. Stepping inside, she started her list. "Order name plate and business cards."

~~~~~

Tag list (Let me know if you want to be added!): @harmonioussolve​​​​​ @ithinkimaperson​​​​​ @sweet-nothings04​​​​​ @stephieraptorr​​​​ @rommies​​​​​ @fallenstarsabyss @gruffle1​​​​​ @another-day-in-chuckletown​ @hhandley80​​​​​ @jokerownsmysoul​​​​​ @rafaelbottom @ralugraphics​​​​​ @iartsometimes​​​​​ @fleckficgirl

[pecanwriter]

Fog Lifted

Themes: comfort eating, unplanned weight gain, emotional overeating

TW: the character is clinically depressed

Words: 1501

Part: 1/1, completed

Hector bit the inside of his cheek, trying to keep himself from crying. Another ridiculous email from his boss, requesting something basically impossible. Not only that, it was outside of his work description and with a deadline of twenty-four hours. Of course. 

“Hector, in my office, now.” Mr. Richards appeared at the door momentarily, just to disappear again. 

Hector took a shaky breath, his palms sweating and his stomach a block of ice. He was working late every day, barely keeping his head above water, not getting paid for his overtime and now he was getting called into the boss's office? Hector was close to snapping, he could feel it beneath his skin, at the back of his head, pulsing in his brain…

“As a company, we’ve given you everything for you to show us what a competent creative manager you are.” Richards licked his finger to turn a page in the stack of documents in front of him; he didn’t even bother to look at Hector. “And there are no results. Or rather, the results are mediocre.” 

Hector’s exhausted brain chose that moment to snap. 

“You know what? I don’t need to listen to this, I quit.” 

Richards looked up.

“What?”

“I’ve given this company all I could, sacrificed my private life… And you treat me like garbage. I’m done. I quit.” 

Richards stared at him, a vein pulsating at his temple. 

“I will leave my resignation with Marla,” Hector said, unfolding himself from the uncomfortable chair and leaving.  

“Oh God, what have I done?” Hector gasped. He was sitting in his car, still in the parking lot in front of the office building. He quit. Without another job offer, without any plan, he just… snapped. 

And without any plan or even a vague idea of one, Hector went home. He stopped at the nearest supermarket and bought an embarrassing amount of cake. 

Hector ended up pacing his flat for hours, nearly sick with anxiety. Finally, exhausted with worry and shaky from not eating all day he sunk into the couch and brought the whole cake with him, not bothering with a plate, simply digging into the massive dessert with a spoon. 

Somehow, the explosion of chocolate moose, spongy dough and chocolate icing made him feel better. It felt like a sweet, sugary hug he was giving to himself. 

From that point on, Hector remembered very little, everything felt foggy in his head. He spent the next few weeks applying for jobs in the morning and then stuffing his face until it was time to fall into restless sleep. Hector was vaguely aware of how his belly was slowly pushing outwards and how his body softened. Soon, the distended belly turned into a round ball of fat and not long after that, the ball was so large and heavy that it came to rest on Hector’s lap. 

When he popped a button on his jeans Hector was momentarily aware of how much time had passed without him actually remembering it, but that awareness didn’t last very long and he soon drifted back into numbness, stuffing his face some more.

Finally, after months of draining his savings and barely consciously drifting through the days, Hector decided to apply for a job at a warehouse. Even before he became a creative manager, he got a certification to operate the forklift; after all, Hector was a firm believer that you always needed a plan B. And he was proven right when soon after applying he was invited for an interview. 

Hector stuffed himself into a suit that was long overdue for a size up and went to the job interview. The interviewer eyed his clearly overfed body suspiciously and said that “there was no need to go to all this trouble for an interview at a warehouse”. And so Hector became a forklift operator. 

He spent his days managing the warehouse and if the day was slower he’d sit in the office in front of the tiny TV and stuff his face. He liked the new job; he didn’t have to deal with the toxic office environment, he didn’t even have to think most of the time, just loading, unloading, loading, unloading… Hector went through life on auto-pilot, at work numbing his brain with mundane tasks, at home numbing it with sugar and grease. 

Hector didn’t really have any particular feelings about his weight gain, he wasn’t oblivious to it, obviously, he could see he was getting fat, but it was of absolutely no concern to him. All he cared about was that when he was shoving enormous spoonfuls of cake into his mouth he felt at least marginally better and not like everything was falling apart. 

The fact that he had to constantly ask for new uniforms at work when the old ones became too tight or that walking around the grocery store was becoming way more laborious than he ever remembered didn’t really tip him off about just how fat he was getting. 

That realisation came a while later when one day he waddled up to his forklift and hefted himself into the seat only to discover that he couldn’t reach the controls which were completely obstructed and hidden beneath the giant mound of flesh that was his belly. 

And so Hector lost his job as a forklift operator. He once again fell into a state of complete numbness, sitting on his couch and gorging himself on sweets. 

But enough was enough, and no matter how Hector felt, he knew he needed to get money from somewhere. So he bought a new tent-sized suit and started applying for jobs in creative marketing again. 

The company was a complete mess, with no structure and no process to speak of. But it wasn’t nearly as toxic as Hector’s previous job, and so he stayed. People at work were making fun of him behind his back, but they were not so discrete about it that he didn’t know. He knew they made fun of the obese creative manager who could barely walk, waddling like a penguin and making the entire office floor shake. 

One day Hector got asked to the boss’s office and he was almost sure he was going to get fired, but instead she told him that she was concerned about his well-being and that he obviously needed help. And so she sent him for a health check-up. 

The GP was so shocked he went white when he saw Hector and Hector feared the man would pass out, but he only berated Hector and told him that “This is dangerous, you must lose all this weight immediately!” and gave Hector a referral to the psychiatrist. 

Hector, now medically proven to be 736 pounds, went to the psychiatrist and was diagnosed with depression. He received anti-depressant medication and a referral to a dietician. 

And Hector dutifully did all he was told to do. He took his medication, he followed the diet plan. 

The pounds were falling off Hector almost as easily as they previously piled on, and yet he felt nothing. Most of the time he couldn’t even remember what he did the day before, or even earlier the same day. It was all like a haze, he just went through the motions, his head completely disconnected from his body. 

Surprisingly soon, Hector reached his target weight, and the doctor was thrilled. He signed Hector up for surgery to remove the excess skin. 

Hector thanked him, took his referral and left. As he was leaving he threw the referral note into the bin. 

On the way home he bought three cream-filled chocolate cakes. Hector was miserable, when he was skinny before, then when he was obese and now when he was nearly skinny again he was still miserable. But there was one thing that made him happy. Food. If anything could clear the fog around Hector’s brain it was food. And so Hector ate. 

He ate and ate and didn’t look back. Soon, people at work were whispering behind his back again, laughing that the fat fuck couldn’t keep away from stuffing his face for long. And Hector did. He stuffed his face at home, at work, during the holidays, on the weekends… Always. 

And something incredible happened then.

As Hector’s loose skin slowly started to fill up with fat again, the fog was lifted. 

Hector realised that the anti-depressants actually worked quite well, but because of how exhausted and worked-up he’d been from following the strict diet regime his head was still as clouded as before. Now, when he was medicated and well-fed, he felt amazing. 

And so Hector ignored the snarky comments at work, happy for the first time in a long while. He patiently fed his deflated body all that it desired, feeling how it expanded anew every day. Hector was happy, but he knew he would be even happier when his loose skin was once again overstuffed with fat. 

Perhaps, he would get even fatter than he did before. 

[weird-dere-writes]

Hi Twyla! Your wedding is so beautiful, and you make a stunning bride 💕 I apologize for a last minute change to my +1, but Mitsuya got hit with a last-minute deadline change for his designs. Luckily, my ex-husband Rindou is always down to attend a party. We wish you the happiest of marriages and gift you an envelope to be opened on your first anniversary (it's a bunch of gift cards and/or certificates to some of our favorite date spots: mini golf, spa, private movie theater, a beachside hotel in France, etc. there's at least 10 of them).

Mitsuya designed our suits, so he's still present even though he's not physically here!

Thank you so much, beloved! 🥺

And thank you for coming! You and Rindou look absolutely STUNNING and I am sending Mitsuya my good wishes for creating such stylish fits for y’all. Fits that go hard, if u will. LMAO.

Life happens so I understand the sudden change! His is still your guest and welcome all the same :3 🫶🏾. I hope you both enjoy the festivities and we thank you both for your blessings 💖💖💖.

I see the envelope you had over and go to open until you stop me in a hurry and let me know it’s for later. And I just smile giddily like “Ooh~. Mysterious~.”

Ichi makes sure to keep it some place safe for us after it’s all said and done up until our first anniversary uwu. And when we do open it that year later and I see all the stuff you got us my jaw is on the floor. LIKE. A BEACHSIDE HOTEL IN FRANCE???? AMONG OTHER THINGS?

The way I’m screaming like I won the lottery and running to call you IMMEDIATELY to tell you thanks AGAIN and promise I WILL kiss you the next time I see you >:))))). Ichigo also wants to meet and shake hands with Mitsuya fr mhm mhm 🙂‍↕️.

But plssssss, I don’t know it yet on the night of the wedding but this is so so thoughtful and generous and thank you so so much 🥹💗💗💗💗💗.

I love yew 💋

~ you’re invited ~

[dertaglichedan]

‘American Pickers’ Star Frank Fritz’s Cause of Death Revealed

The cause of death has been revealed for former American Pickers co-host Frank Fritz just one month after he died at age 60.

A death certificate obtained by TMZ showed that Fritz died of “late sequela of cerebral infarction.” As noted by Deadline, he died from a “stroke resulting from cerebral vascular disease, with aortic stenosis and COPD also contributing to his death.”

“Cerebral vascular disease effects blood vessels in the brain and cerebral circulation, while aortic stenosis restricts blood flow from the heart to the rest of the body,” noted Deadline.

Fritz died in late-September of this year after co-hosting the history channel series for 10 years between 2010 and 2020. The show famously featured him and co-host Mike Wolfe traveling the country buying rare American artifacts from collectors to either resell or add to their collection.

“It’s with a broken heart that I share with all of you that Frank passed away last night,” Mike Wolfe announced at the time of Fritz’s death.

“I’ve [known] Frank for more than half my life and what you’ve seen on TV has always been what I have seen, a dreamer who was just as sensitive as he was funny. The same off camera as he was on, Frank had a way of reaching the hearts of so many by just being himself,” he added. “We’ve been on countless trips and shared so many miles and I feel blessed that I was there by his side when he took one last journey home. I love you buddy and will miss you so much I know [you’re] in a better place.”

[87dvhnk]

the second someone states they support abortion "in cases of rape and incest," they've just shown their whole, entire ass. yes, "someone," male or female. in regard to rape, they are condemning the child for the parent's actions, i.e., the child was morally tainted by the father's rape, and their life rendered worthless by impurity. additionally, the dumb motherfuckers really think it's possible to complete a rape trial before an abortion week deadline, when trials drag to the toddler fucking years, if you can even get a trial. and none of this is even mentioning the joke rate of conviction. by dragging a man to court with the laughable goal of getting a conviction before the abortion deadline to kill the rape baby, all you are doing is signing his name on the birth certificate. this is all if you know your rapist (ask someone who states this how a woman is expected to proceed if the mythical masked stranger raped her and then ghosted, never to be caught), like if your rapist is a member of your own fucking family, which leads to exception two. why is the product of incest less worthy? is it morally tainted, too? are we going off of intangible moral taintedness? or is it because you know incest babies are genetically fucked. you know. like down syndrome babies are fucked. like babies afflicted with the thousands and thousands upon thousands more genetic defects are fucked. why make an exception for incestuous rape babies, when, especially if the incest is not multi-generational, there'd likely be less crippled by their dna than babies born with other defects? dumbass thought processes all around. there is no reason to support to support the killing of rape babies and products of incest in particular beyond knee-jerk self-soothing, i,e, "oh, rape is bad! and incest is bad! i am a good person! : ) " logically, you should support all abortion, even if abortion makes you feel icky icky ; ( , but you don't have a lick of logic in your head. zero thought. it is impossible to respect someone after they've shown the gaping hole in their brain by stating this.

[thedemisapphic]

GoFundMe info!!!

Hi again! So, this is where I'll go into some more detail about this gofundme and why I feel I need it. Info about my rottmnt redbubble designs at the bottom too.

Please read this over, it's important to me that y'all don't just scroll past this.

At like the beginning of this month, me and my bestie were on a phone call catching up, when she pitched the idea to me about possibly moving in together. Shit's so expensive in America, so having a roommate is more than ideal. And having one you actually know well is even better! And I feel like I can't make any more progress on my mental health until I move out and get a fresh start! So, I accepted! The catch is, her lease ends in March. And I don't have any savings rn (I was going to get a job this month anyway and slowly start saving money to move out in a year or two, I was caught off guard). But I feel like I'm ready for this. It's just going to get a lot worse before it gets better because ✨stress ✨.

I've spent the last couple weeks coming up with a budget, goals, and some planning. And the big issue I've come across is a car! I am more than capable of making the money on my own, but under these circumstances, I'm not sure. I am also just so stressed and overwhelmed right now. I was overwhelmed with things going on before this, though not nearly as bad. The stress of needing to make enough money in time for the move is just eating me alive. A couple days ago, I started crying because of a totally optional class I do not have to take, that would give me a nice certificate for me to put on my resume (I never went to college so that would make my resume look better). My grandma had to remind me I don't need to do anything I don't want to, and went to the store the next day to get me some natural stress relief pills while I go through this. Because I keep breaking down and stressing about it. I've never had a job before, and I want to do everything right. But I don't want to jeopardize my mental health. So starting part time, taking things slow.

But I can't go TOO slow or I won't meet my deadlines!!!

Not only do I need to save enough money to get a car (which is a big requirement- if I don't have my own car then I can't move out) but I also have to get that done early enough for me to save up money for when I move out. Down payment on an apartment should be like 2.5k I think, will save to 3k if I can. And I need a couple extra thousand for things we might need, like furniture or dishes or whatever. I don't think we'll need a lot, but I need to be ready. PLUS when I get my car, I'll then need to pay monthly expenses and gas. And when I move out I'll have even more monthly expenses, so I want some money in my account to make me feel safer while I adjust.

Y'all are probably gathering why I need help lol.

SO to the point, my friend has been helping keep my head on my shoulders and walking me through it since she's been living on her own for a little bit now and is able to give advice. I am super grateful to have her, and she helped me find some affordable cars + how to tell if they're worth your time or not. Nothing less than 5k for a car, clean title, check all the features, just don't leave anything unturned. My budget for a car is 7k. I found a green slug bug that I really like, and I'm hoping to get that one. But it could easily get sold, so I have some other cars in mind just in case. Some kind of automatic slug bug.

This is a very big change in my life, and this transition is a LOT for me to handle. I have some good resources on my side to help make sure I set everything up as good as I can, but my mental health is the only thing I'm really worried about because it is SUCH a small timeframe to get that kind of money. At least I think it is. Either way, I'm fucking stressed and could use help getting money for a car! I'm planning on making money, myself, just in case this doesn't work out. But it doesn't hurt to ask for help. And I don't really know many people. Plus my Nana was kind of judgy about the idea of a gofundme as if I'm above that kind of begging, like no I am not lol I'm on my way to a breakdown if I don't get something situated. So I don't want to tell my family about this gofundme. I don't have the energy to deal with their doubts rn, and nobody can give me money anyway.

So, what I'm asking you lovely people to do is share this around. Donate if you can but if not try to get the link to people who are able to. I know 7k is a lot, but that's why I think if more people know about it, then I can reach my goal that much easier. And the faster I reach it, the more likely I am to get the green slug bug I like! So please like, comment, reblog, share the link wherever you deem appropriate. Whatever you are able to do, I appreciate it.

This post will be linked to my masterpost, so if you ever want to revisit it, you can go there. If you have any questions or suggestions, you are more than welcome to ask. I've never made a gofundme before, so making sure I'm totally transparent about it all is important to me. Again, thank you so much for helping. I really hope I can reach my goal, because that kind of support would make so much of a difference for me <3 that's all, you can go about your day now

edit: ALSO I have redbubble designs that should go public sometime this month, early next month at the latest. Depends on how long it takes Redbubble to review them. Buying stuff from there supports me too!!! And sharing any promotional content I make about it!!! It's a pet collection with Leo, Raph, Mikey, and Donnie. Leo and Raph are already done and should go up within the timeframe I specified. Mikey's is almost done, and will go up a little later than theirs. I haven't started Donnie's yet, so it will be a little bit before y'all get access to him. Follow and turn on notifications if you want to be notified when the first round of designs goes public, so you can help other people know about them and hopefully support me! :D

[zalrb]

Could u tell us about ur time in college? Where’d and what did u study. What did do while studying (work , parties). Did u go abroad? Do u think it was useful for ur career present day?

Yeah, I've spoken about it before. I even posted grad photos because I was graduating when I first got on tumblr lmao. So I always knew I was going to do something with writing or something with film so I curated my studies, I did English and Cinema Studies in undergrad plus a creative writing certificate at the school of continuing studies, which was in Toronto and then I did my MFA in New York. I did one summer semester in Italy in undergrad. In undergrad, I volunteered at the Toronto International Film Festival for three years and worked all four years, mostly retail, sometimes at amusement parks. In grad school, because I was an international student, getting a job was a little bit harder, I did one summer job on campus and then I interned at a literary agency where it was basically my job to read the slush pile, which was a really interesting experience. Because it was difficult to get a job in New York, I would come back home during holiday break and do seasonal work. But I was extremely, extremely broke during those years. Literally the best part of the summer job I had was that I worked for a summer program and employees got to eat lunch with the students so that was one less meal I had to worry about but we were all struggling because they also weren't paying us on time so my friend/colleague was nearly evicted from his apartment because he just did not have the money, I had to cuss everyone out to get our first two pay cheques, lmao.

Undergrad I didn't party that much because I was living at home, I had a strict mom, I also had to commute about two hours to get home, and I was working, and my friends also had very strict parents so like there wasn't really much of an opportunity for a busy social life, although Italy was like a crash course in undergrad partying because I went there the summer between first and second year while mostly everyone else was in third or fourth year so I was actually the youngest in the program and when I explained I'd never really gone to an undergrad party back in Toronto or had that much of a social life, it kind of became a collective goal for the other students to take me clubbing, take me drinking, and give me the sort of dorm experience. And then in third year for various reasons, I did more drinking and clubbing, it was also the year I had the heaviest course load so I think I just needed a lot of stress relief and I always tell people to never pack your schedule with courses, it's not worth it, haha.

My MFA was a loooooooooot of drinking but it was also just the culture of the writing program because, like, authors were teaching us, not profs, and authors do like to drink so we could literally be having classes in a bar or if an instructor didn't mark our stories because they had their own deadlines or their own issues, they would apologize by getting us a couple of rounds at the bar, sometimes we drank in class, haha, and then our program just had a lot of readings or a lot of parties so grad school was basically writing and drinking for two years. That was just fiction though. The nonfiction students and the poetry students had different experiences. Because I was New York, I got to see/meet a lot of different authors who would come through for lectures or book tours, I even got to introduce an author at one of her lectures, so that was also really cool.

[the-bjd-community-confess]

CW: discussion of death and legal processes surrounding it

Hard Truths

IANAL but as someone adjacent to that line of work SPECIFICALLY in what happens "after" a death, requesting a death certificate is literally so par for the course. There is nothing immoral or wrong about it. It is unfortunate, but it is literally what is required to do basically anything -- and candidly, every single one of you reading, whether you're an eighteen-year-old that hasn't moved from home yet or a nintety-year-old who has a penchant for expensive plastic dolls, should have their affairs in order and be ready for the inevitability that at some point in your life, someone you love (or at least are responsible for- or related to- or knew in some way because let me tell you debtors are the ones with no shame) is going to pass on, and then you will be forced to manage wrapping up their affairs.

If JJDL had actually passed on and wasn't a charlatan trying to get out from under their business responsibilities, then the people who survived them should expect to have multiple copies of the death certificate on hand -- I recommend a digital one, though most government entities won't take them insurances and individuals certainly will and it cuts down on the cost of having them printed! -- and that literally tens of people are going to want one if they have any outstanding expenses or unfulfilled obligations. Bills, credit, business orders, particularly aggressive neighbors from whom they borrowed a lawnmower... unfortunately the reality of the situation is that in order to file a claim or get a refund, you first need to prove that the party who owed you a good is no longer with us, and the first step in doing that is getting that death certificate. (In any case, if you run a business of any kind- even if you just make and sell things for funsies- consider seriously investing in liability insurance if you don't want your loved ones on the hook for things left unsettled.)

As for doxxing and so on... you can't really doxx a business (outside of specific circumstances which aren't in play here.) And again, if you are selling things... you are a business now. Calling the county coroner is absolutely fair game, especially with hundreds or thousands of dollars on the line. It's... cruel to say, but the reality of the matter is that no one is obligated to care for the person who sold them a thing, and there is nothing wrong with being chiefly concerned with the security of their investment first and foremost. From what I've heard about this person -- and from what has since come to light -- I do not at all blame those who immediately sought to find proof in this matter in an expedited fashion. We prioritize deadlines over people, and paypal's refund window waits for no man.

It is unfortunate that this is how things are, but business isn't about feelings, it is about pragmatic and unsympathetic regulation. Even if you aren't a business owner, even if you are literally Just Some Guy, expect this web of unpleasantness to ensnare your loved ones when you pass. Blame the fact that in society we so heavily prioritize money and deadlines over human lives and dignity. The last thing anyone wants to deal with in these situations is the bureaucratic bullshit, but it won't wait, and it's better to be prepared. It is kinder to be blunt and direct about how things are, in my opinion.

~Anonymous

[emmbrr]

How did you get into kid lit, and how could I get started if that's a path I want to take in my life?

hello hello! what a great question! i'll do my best to answer.

my interest in kid lit first happened when i was in AP art in high school (for those who don't/didn't have AP art, it means 'advanced placement' and is considered a college-level class that you have to put together a portfolio for review by a board, they grade it, etc, if you pass it can cover an art credit if you go to college). during our AP art show, the school principal asked if he could have a copy of one of my works (much different than the work i do now) for his young daughter. i was like :0 childrens books! fantastic. now people don't have to make fun of me and say i'm going to art school to draw anime (-_-)

my path to my current situation was a winding road, but long story short i did attend art school and study childrens book illustration. i took a long break from art (like, years) before deciding that kid lit was something i really wanted to work in. i think if college isn't for you, or if kidlit is something you would like to try out first, you could find a local class that specifically teaches it. otherwise, there are a few online courses i'd recommend but they are expensive (namely lilla roger's online childrens book course). for me personally, i took a certificate course at a local art school before returning to college to study it. you could theoretically teach yourself with youtube videos and mocking up illustrations for a pre-existing story, as i'm sure a lot of other kidlit illustrators have, but imho nothing beats in-person critiques and feedback. not only that, but sometimes getting an assignment of something you don't want to do is very much like real life client work, and forces you to get out of your comfort zone to complete the task by a deadline. i hope this was somewhat helpful!