#maintain vitality

[shreeisspecial]

As we navigate the journey of life, aging is an inevitable process that we all encounter. However, the way we approach and embrace this transition can significantly impact our overall vitality and well-being. While it's natural for our bodies and minds to undergo changes as we grow older, there are proactive steps we can take to maintain a high quality of life and age gracefully. By adopting a holistic approach that combines physical, mental, and emotional care, we can cultivate a sense of vibrancy and fulfilment throughout our golden years. In this comprehensive guide, we'll explore practical tips and strategies to help you maintain your vitality and well-being as you embrace the beautiful journey of healthy aging.

[notbecauseofvictories]

I will say, choosing to make your way through a bunch of point-and-click games on itch.io will single-handedly remind you that creativity is not "dead" or "corporatized" but actually, we as a species are still amazing, wildly inventive, and largely unhinged; if you claim otherwise, you're just not looking at the right bits.

[t-u-i-t-c]

"You'll triumph someday, as long as you never yield. I'll take you on any time." "You never fail to piss me off, Geats."

[fictionadventurer]

Today I learned that apparently I'm considered one of the easiest people in the family to buy presents for, because I like so many objects and little treats within the family gift-buying price range.

Which is an assessment I can't argue with, given the number of little treats I bought myself today.

[brittlebutch]

puppyfied werewolves becoming the bane of my existence. where is the distraught body horror. the existential terror of the body you cannot control. the dread of being lost to something not yourself and still inexorably You. the combined nausea of “what happened to me?“ and “what did i do?”. we are losing something vital here and we need to bring it back.

[ofspark]

"𝒊𝒕 𝒔𝒉𝒐𝒖𝒍𝒅'𝒗𝒆 𝒃𝒆𝒆𝒏 𝒎𝒆".

@herofists asked: why didn't they take me instead?

𝑻𝑯𝑬𝑹𝑬'𝑺 𝑪𝑹𝒀𝑺𝑻𝑨𝑳 𝑩𝑬𝑵𝑬𝑨𝑻𝑯 𝑯𝑬𝑹 𝑩𝑶𝑶𝑻𝑺 && anger in her heart. An array of questions assault the mind && leave naught but a battered expanse of unfair thoughts. Of remorse, of guilt, of desperation; his question interrupts her train of thought. && it's as if all of the anger within herself toward herself reroutes at a moment's notice. It rises in the basins of her palms, or in the way the tips of her fingers twitch in an inclination of violence. There's a desire to be free of this pain---even if only for the moment. To impart its saber's edge to the gullet of another.

It can't protect . . . The tension in her jaw sets with malice. Raw emotion goes against the grain of her patience (thin already from his showboating && overzealousness). "All of that bellyaching.. like you aren't responsible for what happened to her." Her teeth grind in the set jaw's hold; she hisses through her teeth, the bridge of her nose curls. It's a testament to her ire that holds taut to her bones like scars. Her soul is riddled with the ache of a childhood stolen away. Only to now be burdened all the more by the loss of all that held her together. && so, on a pivot of her heel, she whips around to face the broadness of her frustration's source (oh, how foul a lie that is ! lightning, o'lightning.. you know that isn't true ). A voice, a sneer; she bellows out her frustration in so deep a cut. She means to hurt him, intends to make him feel the gravity of this situation. Undeterred by the way his smile never reaches his eyes && the sorrow within. She doesn't care. She just hurts. She's hurting.

. . . It only destroys.

"It should've been you."

[not-poignant]

Hey! I got into your work recently, with Falling Falling Stars (which I adore!!), and quickly jumped into Underline the Black. I was shocked to see Dr. Gary shift to being the main love interest, but I was engaged in seeing this new dynamic with him and Efnisien. Two questions: 1. Gary feels like a different character than in FFS, and I'm wondering what were the sprouts in character traits in FFS tht you expanded in UtB? 2.What would Arden be like in UtB? (Srry if u've answered b4)

Hi anon!

I'm so glad you enjoyed Falling Falling Stars! Funny fact about that, my beta and I actually shipped Gary and Efnisien really hard in the first few chapters, but I knew they weren't end-game and it had to stay professional, so we kind of back-burnered it for over year and then Underline the Black was born.

So we actually saw the huge, huge potential for chemistry even then. Some of the readers did too, and there are actually some comments in the first and second chapters where Dr Gary is present, where people talk about their chemistry and/or shipping them. And some continue to do so as the story goes on!

As for the sprouts, I genuinely feel there are far more similarities between Dr Gary from FFS and Gary from UtB than differences, so I'll just start listing em out.

Both doctors of niche psychology that most psychologists don't really want to go into and/or specialise in.

Both CEOs of Hillview

Both controlling in their personal lives

Both extremely private people who reveal almost nothing about their personal life by preference (this is not just Dr Gary's job in FFS, he's the same with Mika in The Moon is Down).

Both familiar with BDSM and kink

Both enjoy prodding and poking at a person and even deliberately provoking discomfort in them verbally.

Both enjoy trouble-shooting complex issues, but sometimes have significant blind spots and/or become so focused on one thing they miss another.

Both are quick to apologise when they recognise they've done something wrong, and naturally seek to repair a situation

Both are semi-competitive with their colleagues, but also friendly with them.

Both are highly professional, and will use that professionalism as a front to hide their true feelings about a situation.

Both feel extremely strong bursts of empathy or compassion.

Both have a golden retriever named Polly (Efnisien tries to break the glass in the photo of Polly in FFS - this is the scene where Gary says it's Perspex).

Both have practice dealing with volatile situations and people.

Both enjoy topping / dominating others in the bedroom (though they do have other styles, the biggest departure is here, because Gary is a peak alpha in one story and just a tired person in the other).

Both overwork extremely and;

Both need Efnisien to learn how to work more realistic hours for their health.

Both are friends with Henton (and are betrayed by him)

Both prefer structured forms of support rather than spontaneously reaching out for support, though Dr Gary in FFS is more mature here than Gary in UtB is.

Both dress the same way

Both have the same style of talking, and the same way of framing thoughts when they speak.

Both dislike disruptions to their personal life.

Both are very zen about the fact that 'bad things happen in the world' which gives them an unusually large capacity to work in fields where other mental health professionals often don't want to work (omega rehabilitation sciences for Gary in UtB and aberrant juvenile psychology in FFS)

Both have a laconic and dry sense of humour and are not frequently prone to outbursts of emotion or laughter.

Despite being quite 'closed in' on the surface, both can be quite transparent about their emotional state, but not often in a very labile way. So they will calmly state they are sad while feeling sad, instead of tearfully stating it.

I could go on and on and on anon, but to me, you can see that I pretty much see the main departure as being purely biological/hormonal re: Gary being a peak alpha and the changes that have had to happen along that strata.

Otherwise to me, they are both very much Gary!

As for Arden, I suspect he'd be a beta dominant probably living the same kind of life he's living now in FFS!

[irelandseyeonmythology]

The reason I am, of course, not tossing Bres’ name into the ring is that we all know that (1) no one cares about Bres (but the Tumblr girlies) and (2) ...Bres IS a babygirl and a girlboss, but he is most importantly a meow meow.

[medugo]

Track your health records in one place - Download the App now.

[watchmakermori]

picked up attack on titan again after stopping for no reason (why do I always just randomly stop watching things even when I’m enjoying them) and I am really liking season 4 so far. the writing feels as good as it ever has, even if it’s a very different feel to the earlier seasons - which it needs to be, given how much we’ve learned about the world and how much the characters have changed

i think there’s a really interesting conversation to be had about the conflicting interpretations of this series, especially with regards to whether it is facist/antifacist and the complexities of using persecution against fantasy races as an allegory for real-life prejudice. I can definitely understand where the view that AOT is antisemitic comes from, and to some extent I agree with it, but I think the discussion needs nuance. the portrayal of the eldians has a lot of layers and grey areas.

i’ve never come across a series where people interpret the themes in such polarising ways, and that’s very interesting to me. AOT is problematic and should be watched with a critical eye, but it still does some really interesting, valuable things in its narrative - especially with regards to how it subverts its own premise by turning the ‘kill the mindless, invading monsters!’ trope on its head. I’m going to wait until i’m caught up on it before i post any thorough analysis here, but I’ve been thinking about it a lot already

[maramahan]

What an interesting species 😄

Thanks, I’m glad you think so!

Just for kicks, some more fun worldbuilding lore details:

The alien species is capable of mimicking human speech, but amongst themselves they communicate via percussive noises and cricket-like chirps

They don’t ‘read’ or ‘write’ in a way humans would recognize — but they DO carve irregular ridges into things so that a chitinous finger dragged along the surface ‘speaks’ a message

Also though individuals rarely interact in person (because of the cannibalism), folks with adjoining territories ‘sing’ to each other — swapping stories and circulating their living history

Gender = bug. When dealing with humans, pronouns are chosen entirely on a whim

[hualianisms]

verified ways to donate to gaza directly

[this post is outdated. up-to-date version here.]

Donate to a Palestinian family directly:

gazafunds.com - Donate directly to a Palestinian family in urgent need of evacuation, medical treatment, daily necessities or more. Site run by Palestinians, all GFMs verified (full list here). Spotlights 1 stagnant GFM at a time. (*If you can't decide who/where to donate, just go to gazafunds.com & donate to the 1 GFM they show you!)

masterlist of 200+ verified Palestinian families' GFMs: Operation Olive Branch

Help provide tents:

The Sameer Project: Currently providing tents & transport for families in Rafah who urgently need to evacuate to Deir Al Balah. Has a team on the ground in Gaza who have supplied tents to 1% of the displaced population in Rafah. Run by Palestinians. (paypal) (gfm)

@helpgazachildren: Currently helping Palestinians in a refugee camp in Rafah flee the Rafah invasion to Khan Younis. Funds go directly to Hussam, a Palestinian in Rafah who hosts a refugee camp. Funds will cover the cost of tents & transport fuel. Managed by a Palestinian @.fairuzfan. (gfm)

Food:

Care for Gaza: Palestinian charity on the ground in Gaza distributing food, cash, medicine & other essentials to displaced families. Proof of their work found on their Twitter. (paypal) (gfm)

We Feed Gaza: Team of Palestinian volunteers in the heart of Gaza distributing food & water to 344+ families. More details & proof in their gfm. Vetted & promoted by LetsTalkPalestine on IG. (gfm)

Direct Aid for Gaza: A Palestinian activist on the ground in Gaza distributing food, cash & other essential supplies to displaced families. Proof of their work found on their twitter. (paypal) (gfm)

Water (*urgent and crucial!)

Gaza Municipality: The official Municipality of Gaza is doing vital, life-saving work to rebuild the water pipes in Gaza City to restore access to clean water & waste management services for the people of Gaza.

eSIMs (*very urgent):

guide to buy & send esims to gaza

Crips for eSims for Gaza: donate any amount to this team of volunteers who pool funds to buy & maintain gaza esims regularly (see their financial accountability document).

Medical Aid:

Gaza Wound Care: Palestinian doctors in central Gaza treating injured/sick children & mothers in neglected displacement camps far from hospitals. Facing a severe shortage of medicines, equipment, and medical supplies. Currently raising funds to support their efforts to battle infectious diseases in refugee camps. (gfm) (paypal) (gogetfunding)

international charities: Palestine Red Crescent Society, Palestine Children's Relief Fund, Medical Aid for Palestinians

How to help if you can't donate:

Share & amplify Palestinian fundraisers in your irl & online circles

Organize or help to run an online/irl event to raise funds for Palestine

Boycott

Get involved with a protest/strike/direct action in your area

Contact your reps

Educate yourself & others both irl & online

Daily clicks on Arab.org

(you can even adopt 1 fundraiser campaign to regularly boost it & make materials promoting it online, or print posters/flyers about Palestinian fundraisers to encourage others to donate. (poster/graphic about gazafunds.com: here, flyers about esims: here, flyers about gazafamilyfunds: here)

(longer masterpost of all ways you can help)

(*all these links and more now in this rentry page. will no longer be updating this post, instead refer to the rentry page)

Last updated 3/6/2024 with Gaza Wound Care & We Feed Gaza. Wanted to focus on Palestinian-run grassroots initiatives that will actually reach Gazans on the ground, so all of these except eSIMs, PCRF, MAP are by Palestinians. Donating to international orgs is not ideal rn as aid is still being stopped at the border. Please focus on Palestinian-run initiatives on the ground in Gaza.

Remember, small donations really do add up. Any amount counts, even $1!

[narrators-journal]

Today's interest: persona 2, but make em demons and sins!

[charliextea]

sorry to just be live blogging my life i guess. lol.

i’ve just come out of this zoom on a break and my roomba (off brand) was vacuuming while i was listening to adults trauma dump their entire teaching careers (royalty move), and i’ve never ever been turned on by clean floors but i’m serious it’s making me a little horny that i’m walking in bare feet on clean floors. no dust in sight and i did nothing to earn it. i hate the phrase king of the castle except today. i am the king of this castle. this very clean fucking castle

[stil-lindigo]

I am so sorry to bother you with this stupid question, but Bisan has asked for a complete stop in economic activity. Can I still donate to help Palestinians or is it better to avoid any transactions for the week ? Thank you so much for what you're doing

hello anon. don't apologise, you're a breath of fresh air after the recent visitors in my inbox. I think a slightly more accurate description of Bisan’s ask is to stop or minimise all economic activity not in direct support of Palestine. Now more than ever, I would encourage people to donate to escape funds for Palestinians, to direct aid organisations like CareforGaza and the PCRF, and to buy e-sims as they’re running low.

Below I’ve compiled a list of resources below but this is definitely just a small sample size of what you can do to help during this strike. This post here is an extremely comprehensive resource that I’d recommend you have a look at.

credible organisations that are doing work on the ground in Palestine:

Care for Gaza:non-profit charity that distributes money, food and other resources directly to families in Gaza.They maintain a regular presence on Twitter and Instagram. You can donate to them via Paypal here.

PCRF / Palestine Children's Relief Fund: non-profit organisation that distributes essential food and resources to families in Gaza. Most recently, they delivered 30 tons of vital medicine, and 82,000 pounds of flour.

Medical Aid For Palestinians: deploys medical teams to treat Palestinians suffering under Israel's malicious bombardments.

Donate e-sims to Palestine: massive post with tutorials and relevant links, with discount codes included in the post and in the replies.

help people leave palestine (donate what you can)

Help a Family Evacuate Gaza (GoGetFunding)

Save Sanaa and her Family (Gofundme)

Save Amjad Saher and his family (Gofundme)

Help a family of 13 escape Gaza (Gofundme)

Help a Palestinian children's book illustrator save her family of 12 (Gofundme)

[wasif-health-tipps]

Mastering Blood Sugar Control: Strategies for a Healthier Life

Maintaining stable blood sugar levels is crucial for overall health and well-being. Fluctuations in blood glucose can lead to a range of health issues, from fatigue and irritability to more severe conditions like diabetes. Here’s a comprehensive guide to mastering blood sugar control through diet, exercise, and lifestyle changes.Understanding Blood SugarBlood sugar, or blood glucose, is the amount of glucose present in the blood. It’s a primary energy source for the body, but maintaining it within a healthy range is essential. Blood sugar levels are influenced by the food we eat, how we exercise, and various physiological factors.1. Balanced DietA balanced diet is the cornerstone of effective blood sugar management. Focus on these dietary principles:Choose Low Glycemic Index Foods: Foods with a low glycemic index (GI) release glucose slowly into the bloodstream, helping to maintain stable blood sugar levels. Examples include whole grains, legumes, and most vegetables.Incorporate Fiber: Fiber slows the absorption of sugar, which helps in controlling blood glucose levels. Opt for fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and legumes.Control Portion Sizes: Eating large portions can lead to spikes in blood sugar. Use smaller plates and be mindful of serving sizes.Limit Sugary Foods and Drinks: Reduce the intake of foods and beverages high in added sugars, like sodas, candy, and baked goods.2. Regular ExercisePhysical activity is vital for blood sugar control. Here’s how exercise helps:Improves Insulin Sensitivity: Regular exercise makes cells more responsive to insulin, which helps in managing blood sugar levels.Aids in Weight Management: Maintaining a healthy weight through exercise can improve blood glucose control and reduce the risk of developing type 2 diabetes.Enhances Overall Health: Exercise supports cardiovascular health, reduces stress, and boosts mood.Aim for at least 150 minutes of moderate-intensity exercise per week, such as brisk walking, swimming, or cycling.3. Consistent Meal TimingEating meals at regular intervals helps in stabilizing blood sugar levels.Don't Skip Meals: Skipping meals can lead to blood sugar drops or spikes. Aim to eat every 3-4 hours.Balanced Meals: Each meal should include a mix of carbohydrates, proteins, and fats to provide a steady source of energy.4. Stress ManagementChronic stress can affect blood sugar levels. Incorporate stress-reducing techniques into your routine:Practice Relaxation Techniques: Techniques such as meditation, deep breathing, and yoga can help manage stress.Get Adequate Sleep: Aim for 7-9 hours of quality sleep per night to support overall health and blood sugar regulation.5. Monitor Blood Sugar LevelsRegular monitoring helps you understand how different foods and activities affect your blood sugar levels.Use a Glucometer: Track your blood sugar levels as recommended by your healthcare provider.Keep a Log: Record your blood sugar readings along with information about your diet, exercise, and any symptoms you experience.6. Seek Professional GuidanceConsult with a healthcare provider or a registered dietitian to create a personalized blood sugar management plan. They can provide tailored advice based on your specific health needs.ConclusionEffective blood sugar control is achievable through a combination of a balanced diet, regular exercise, consistent meal timing, stress management, and diligent monitoring. By adopting these practices, you can maintain stable blood sugar levels and support your overall health. Remember, individual needs may vary, so working with a healthcare professional is essential for developing a plan that works best for you. Blood Sugar Control: Strategies for a Healthier Life