#my bowl didn't even cost 3€

[lightbulbshineon]

If I'm anything, it's easy to be influenced.

My professor drank from a small bowl during an online lecture, and I couldn't stop thinking about it for months! Why is that one (1) fucking lecture the reason I'm sitting here now drinking tea out of a bowl like that? What is this life? Why am I like this?

This is my tea setup, rn:

[vaspider]

If you have celiac or otherwise can't eat wheat, btw, and you like bread, I highly recommend investing in a breadmaker. Even the best store-bought gluten-free bread does not hold a candle to the stuff that comes out of our breadmaker, and it's cheaper per slice even when we buy bread mix in single-loaf bags.

This is our breadmaker. Evie got it on sale, but it is an investment. I'm not going to pretend it isn't a chunk of change up front. There are cheaper ones, but the reason I like this one and think it's worth the money:

It has two smaller paddles, where our older bread maker that my mom got us and got destroyed by getting construction dust in it had one big paddle in the middle. This leaves a big hole in the middle of the finished loaf, which makes the bread much less useful for, like, sandwiches.

Zojirushi is not as well-known a brand in the US, but it's a Brand Name in Japan for good reason. Evie's had our Zojirushi rice cooker for over a decade & we had to replace the inner bowl once bc someone used metal utensils in it and scratched the non-stick coating. We expect to use this machine for at least a decade.

You can program your own cycles, which we found really useful. Evie built a custom cycle that removed the punch-down sections (gluten-free bread tends not to rise as much) and that made our perfect loaf.

A lot of bread machines produce very tall, square loaves, which are awkward to slice, store, and make sandwiches with. This produces loaves that make good sandwiches and toast, and the French toast slices don't crowd the pan.

The top heating element on this gives a really amazingly browned top crust that we definitely didn't get on our old machine.

It's so pretty.

So how is it cheaper in the long run if the machine costs $300+? A little like this:

We use Pamela's Bread Mix bc it's really consistent and easy - you need the bread mix, water, yeast, 3 egg whites, and oil. (We use avocado oil and find it best and most consistent, but regular vegetable oil works!) We buy Pamela's in bulk, and without any subscription discounts or whatever, the $48 pack of 3 bags makes about 11.5 loaves. With the cost of yeast and eggs and stuff, it ends up costing about $4.50 a loaf. (If you buy your yeast in larger bags & store it in an airtight container, you can create less waste and it's also cheaper.)

By comparison, a loaf of Franz GF Bread costs $7-8, and Canyon Bakehouse usually runs about the same.

However, that's not an apples to apples comparison because the Franz loaf is an 18 oz. loaf, whereas our breadmaker makes a 2 lb. loaf. Assuming even the lower-end cost for getting a Franz loaf at the store, an equivalent amount of bread would cost $12.42, and it's not nearly as good.

(Yes, gluten-free bread is fucking expensive. That's part of why I'm writing this post in the first place.)

Anyway, assuming you eat 2 lbs. of bread a week in your house - a breadmaker loaf, basically, to make the math simple - you'll end up spending $7.92 less on bread every week. That means that even at the most expensive cost for the Zojirushi, if you buy it at its highest price (don't do that! wait for a sale!) it'll take 50 weeks - about a year - before the breadmaker pays for itself. If you manage to get it on a 25% off sale (which we did), it pays for itself in about 9 months.

Nine months, I must stress, in which you are eating much more delicious bread.

We tend to go through a couple of loaves a week because toast, sandwiches, and melts are great food for people with low spoons.

Evie and I perfected the Pamela's mix recipe for this particular machine - I'll get it typed up when I'm downstairs next, along with the quasi-babka recipe. (Really, it's like a marble cake and babka and bread had a baby, and it's a family favorite.)

Bread good. The end.

[calumfmu]

Could…uh…we ever get a part two of Fgirlxsteve?

My love, my sweet, sweet love. Here it is. <3 Steve x Fuckgirl!Reader (part one here) 18+ mdni; smut, unprotected sex, cream pie, sweet!Steve, his idea of dirty talk is sweet nothings, fingers, eating out (female receiving), aggressive men (not Steve), 4.5k+ words

Avoiding the Family Video had been easy for you, it was just another place you had marked on your bed post. With all the pick in Hawkins, it was just another spot you had learned to add to your 'avoid-at-all-costs' list, along with the bowling alley, library down on 17th, and even the post office.

You occupied yourself with the other picking of men in the town, going after whatever you could get your hands on. They weren't as good as Steve, but you couldn't think about him. Whatever had happened between the two of you shouldn't have even been a topic of conversation, it should've been the last thing on your mind.

Yet that's how you found yourself arguing in the middle of the street, barefoot, shoes in hand with the new conquest of the week.

He was clingy, desperate to get you alone at any second he could, getting snappy when it came to other men even looking at you. It was toxic to say the least, but nothing that wasn't new to you. Toxic was your love language, but when it came to him, it was something else.

"This isn't how it works!" You yelled at him, your bag slipping off of your shoulder. The thing leather strap of it caught at the bend of your wrist, swinging in the air as you became more heated.

Taking a few steps away from him, you attempted to lean down to slide your shoes on, hopping a little in your movements.

"Babe, come on, just get in the car," the annoying man pleaded, hands waving in the air as he followed you. The two of you were walking down the middle of this road, residential area that was a little too quiet for the events that were taking place.

"Don't call me that!"

You didn't even turn to look at him, quickening your footsteps as you looked both ways to find peace away.

"Babe!" Another call of the word that made your stomach flip, eyes roll in annoyance.

The streets looked unfamiliar to you, parts of Hawkins you had yet to make your way around. Green lawns, green trees with leaves that were just starting to fall at the end of summer, abandoned children toys in the front of houses, a maroon beemer that looked oh, so familiar. The sight of it had your movements faltering, feet stumbling on the pavement.

The man that you were avoiding had time to catch up with the stumble in your gait, his hands coming up to grab at your upper arm.

"Come on," he said your name smoothly, milky white teeth shining behind the words in a smile. "Just get in the car, and we'll work it out."

All you saw was red, his handsome features turning up to make himself look foolish. You tried shaking your arm out of his grip, but it was no use, his fingers digging into your skin. Baring your teeth at him, you hissed at him, wanting to lean into a more primitive side that was clawing to get out.

"Let. Go," the anger in your words soured the taste of your mouth. He cocked his head to the side, eyeing you up and down. "No-"

The call of your name had you looking at a house a bit of the ways down, Steve standing in the yard, looking at the scene in front of you. He questioned you again, the sound of his voice calling out and down the street.

"Steve?" You repeated back, not believing that of all places you would find yourself right in front of his house. The eye roll you tried so hard to fight was beginning to come out, a situation for disaster bubbling up.

This situation was just what you needed.

"Are you okay?" His voice drew nearer as he took a few steps towards the two of you. Your failed date still had his fingers glued to your arm, your skin turning a few shades lighter from where they dug in. "What's going on?"

"Who are you?" You attempted taking a step back away from him, but didn't make it far, his grip pulling you right back into his side.

"I'm Steve."

"He's Steve."

The two of your voices blended together as Steve arrived in front of you. His eyes dropped to the grip on your person, brow furrowing slightly as he noticed the discomfort in your face. He gave you a slight nod of his head, checking in with you to see if he was reading this situation in the way that it truly was.

You wanted to be stubborn, wanted to not see him after the last moments that you shared together. It was awkward enough that the man had called your house a few times after you left him high and dry, you didn't want him to see the down side of the lifestyle you chose. With a slight nod back to him, he understood the message clearly.

"Hey, buddy, why don't you go back in your house with mommy and daddy, and leave the two of us alone?" The man by your side huffed out his chest a little, trying to intimidate Steve into fleeing the scene.

It made the two of you give him a side eye, lips turned up in disgust at him.

"I think I'm good," Steve nodded, hands stuffed into his pockets. Taking a step closer towards your other side, you could see the gears turning in his head as he scuffed his shoes along the pavement.

"So... what are you? Her knight in shining armor?" His hand finally left your arm, your fingers coming up to rub the bruise that was already starting to form. He took a step towards Steve, eyes squinting up at him from the few inches short he was.

"Yeah, something like that," Steve bit back a laugh at the ridiculousness of the situation, raising his eyebrows.

Your date took a long look at him, gritting his teeth before glancing at you. As if he thought about it, he turned on his heel away from the two of you, waving an absent hand in your direction.

"You're not even that hot anyways," he yelled at you before angrily marching to his car. The door closed with a slam, tires screeching on the pavement before he swerved off in your direction, narrowly missing the two of you before Steve grabbed your shoulder, urging you out of the way.

The air was filled with the stench of burnt rubber and gasoline as the sound of his engine grew quiet as he sped off.

"Ouch," you whispered, grimacing at the burning of your arm and the comment he left you with. It shouldn't hurt as much coming from the biggest asshole of Hawkins, but the ache was still there.

"Are you okay?"

Steve's hand was still on your shoulder, rubbing small circles on the skin. The sleeve of your top was wrinkling under his touch, the thin material scratching at your skin. It was all too domestic for you, a new desperation filling your stomach to flee the situation.

Taking a step away from him, you fixed your hair, dabbed under your eyes, and tried to collect your composure.

"You don't have to act all nice to me, Steve," your voice was shaky as you felt as if you were under a microscope. You didn't have to look at him to recognize the confusion on his face.

"What are you talking about?" He asked, attempting to get closer again only to stand in place at the dramatic step you took back. "I'm not-I'm being a decent person right now, especially with what just happened. What?"

"Nothing just happened." You remained firm in your denial, it was the only way to maintain face.

He looked down at his shoes, awkwardly tilting his feet from side to side as he debated the situation. His hair was running wild in the wind that was just starting to pick up, his tattered grey hoodie with 'Hawkins Basketball' printed on the front rippled as he sighed deeply, faded denim on his legs lengthening him.

You couldn't keep your eyes off of him no matter how much you wanted to flee the situation, him being the most appetizing thing that you've laid your eyes once since the first day you met him. It wasn't what you should've been thinking about after the events that occurred, but he was tempting you in a way that scared you a little.

"Why don't you come inside? I could take you home-"

Your eyes cut to him quickly, narrowing as he raised his hands in defense. He nodded quickly, clearing his throat to continue his next few sentences carefully.

"-Or I could call you a cab or... something," he finished, chewing on his bottom lip. You could see the nerves eating away at him, his eyes trying not to stare at you in your baby tee and short shorts, skin prickling with goosebumps. If he asked, you would tell him it was because of the weather, not him.

You let out a bitter laugh, "Like there's cabs on this side of town."

The only sound that could be heard was the wind blowing through the trees, a far child's laughter from the nearest house to you, a barking of a dog.

"Come on," he whispered, his hand leaving his pocket. Slowly, he reached up to grab your hand. You didn't know why you did, let him grab your fingers into his grip. There was a slight clamminess to his hands, his nerves showing dominance over his posture. "Please."

With a slight nod of your head, you let him lead you two his house, a few hundred feet away from the remnants of the dramatic scene. The entry way was grand and huge, something that had you giggling to yourself over how much money this kid seemed to have.

"Nice place, Steve," you muttered, allowing him to hold the door open for you, take your bag from your shoulder, place it on a table in the foyer. It was a little too domestic for you, even if you wanted to welcome it. "Bet you have a nice trust fund to match it."

"Ha." His eyebrows raised with dry humor even as his face stayed the same. Sensitive topic, you noted.

With his hand on the small of your back, he led you up the stairs and into his room, his grid work wallpaper screaming at you as soon as the door opened. You whistled long and low, taking an exaggerated look around the room, before you turned to face him, plopping down on the mattress.

You bounced on the plush comfort of it, your palms splaying out beside you as you felt his comfort beneath your fingers.

"Already taking me to bed, I see," you wiggled your eyebrows at him, small smirk coming up to the corners of your mouth. He rolled his eyes at you, his own smile coming up to his face as he closed the door behind him.

"There she is," he laughed, moving to sit next to you. He bumped your hip with his own as he gestured for you to make room for him.

You laid down back on his bed, your hands coming up to feel the mattress cover above your head. With the lift of your arms, you felt your abdomen become exposed, the cool air of his room hitting your skin. His eyes ran over your figure, not lingering on the exposure of your skin, but settling on your eyes. It was the most naked you had ever felt in front of someone.

"So..." One of your hands reached down to grab at the hoodie he adorned, slightly lifting it to show the tan skin underneath. "What am I here for, handsome?"

The flush in his cheeks came and went quickly, his tongue darting out to wet his bottom lip.

"You don't have to-" He began before you sat up to lean into his side. Your hand came to his cheek, feeling day old stubble underneath your touch. With the closeness, you could see the different shades of brown behind his eyes, warmth that you had yet to see in the men you slept with.

"What if I want to, Steve?" You whispered, pressing a small kiss to his cheek. He gulped, Adam's apple bobbing before leaning into the kiss you pressed to his mouth, his lips molting with yours.

He tasted as sweet as last time, only seemed to get better at kissing than your last touch. It was short and sweet, mouths moving into one as you began to run your hand down his abdomen. His chest was firm beneath your touch, his teeth were a dull tug at your bottom lip, tongue asking for entrance.

"Wait-" He pulled away from you, eyes fluttering open as a small whine left your lips. "Is this going to be like last time?"

An unfamiliar ache formed in your chest at his words, your eyes bulging slightly at the hurt on his face. It was almost like his words hurt you, the idea of him being hurt by the last time hurting you. Your mouth opened and closed a few times as you thought of what to say.

This could count as the first time a man left you speechless.

"I don't know what to... say," your hand left his body, your eyes looking everywhere but him. Everything in you wanted to run for the hills, look for that cab that he promised earlier.

He nodded, his own eyes wandering around his room. "I understand, maybe I should call some-"

"No," you said, turning to look at him as he went to raise off the bed.

He turned to look at you, glancing away every couple of seconds.

"No-don't... it won't be like last time," you said, cursing at yourself internally for the words that left your mouth. You didn't know what had gotten into you, maybe it was the promise of what was about to if you stayed a little longer and promised him something. He still looked unsure as you reached to grab his hand this time. "I promise."

"Are you lying to me?" He asked, placing his own hand on your cheek this time. His fingers smoothed the hair at your hairline, thumb running over the delicate skin. "Just to sleep with me?"

Shaking your head, your instincts screamed at you, no matter what your mind was set on.

"Promise."

You expected a clash of lips, but he came in soft and slow, nipping at your lips as the two of you moved to lay down on the bed. He was heavy over you, firm muscle and the broadness of his shoulders pining you down, pressing you into his bed.

Your hands snuck underneath his hoodie, feeling the expanse of his back under your fingertips, little bits of textured skin where you imagined his constellation of moles to be. In a swift movement and a brief separation of lips, he slid it off, revealing himself shirtless underneath.

You wanted to stare at him, run your hands over his chest, become familiar with each and every one of the beauty marks adoring his skin, but his lips proved to be more appetizing. The plush skin of them knew what they were doing, licking into your mouth and pulling at your own. He was languid in his movements, passionate kisses shared between the two of you as his hands tried to slip off of the shirt you wore, tangled up right beneath your chin as he didn't want to separate from you yet again.

Your bra exposed, he pulled away to press kisses to the globes of your boobs, sucking marks into the kiss. Blindly, his hand reached down to unbutton your shorts, fingers moving expertly as you helped take off the rest of your shirt, slipping it over your head. His free hand slipped into the other cup of your bra, toying with your nipple. You began to see stars, both of his hands and mouth busy.

With one hand dipping beneath the cotton of your panties, the other pinching your nipple slightly and his mouth nipping closer to your other one, you began to see stars. This couldn't have been the same nervous boy you saw a few months ago, his moves beginning to outshine your own.

A gasp left your mouth as his thumb caught your clit as his fingers began to dip lower, his index collecting the wetness of your cunt. It was a teasing motion, the way he teased dipping the tip of his finger in and switching back to running it along your wet seam.

Leaving your breast shining with his spit, he came back to your face, pressing a kiss to the corner of your mouth.

"You okay?" He asked, intently watching you fall apart beneath him. He had barely even touched you, but you were loving the way he made you feel.

Nodding, a moan fell from you as his finger pushed in further than he attempted before, a slight wiggle of the digit before he pulled it out again. He imitated the nod you gave him, a small smirk on his lips as he placed his hand on your forehead, thumb brushing across your eyebrow. You leaned into the touch, whining as his finger returned pressing all the way down to the knuckle.

He pumped it in once, twice before removing it all together, hand leaving your shorts.

"Good, baby, now take these off for me."

He saw the hesitation in your face as the word hit you, your eyes widening as you looked at him. You didn't give him or even yourself time to process it before you were kicking off the denim, waving your ankles as your shorts got caught. He laughed at your movements, unbuttoning his own jeans to ease up the pressure in his pants with his growing hard on.

Your underwear and bra followed suit, your nakedness feeling like so much in the room. Reaching for his pants, you wanted to see him naked, see him again.

"Tonight's about you," he said, moving you up the bed so you rested against his pillows. They were plush, your palms coming up to rest beside your head, as he settled over you. "My treat."

With a nod, you let him take over, let him press kisses to your body. He was treating you like you were a work of art, cherishing you with a trail of his love as he led down your body: a kiss to your right boob, then left, a kiss down to your belly button, a glance to you to make sure that you felt okay, a nod given to him. A kiss to your pubic bone, the spread of your legs wider before he settled down, thumb catching your clit.

He began small circles, leaning up on his elbows as his other hand ran up and down your slit. Looking down at him, he was focused on your cunt, eyes intently watching the wetness that began to pool more and more. He looked so casual, like he was filing his damn taxes as he stared down at you.

"Steve," you drawled out, hips twitching as the tease became too much. Glancing up at you, he gave a shift of his head before he leaned down to press a kiss to your folds.

It had you groaning, your eyes fluttering shut as his mouth made contact. As many men as you slept with, it had been a while since anyone had gone down on you.

He was just as slow and passionate as he was kissing you, his mouth making stake somewhere else. His tongue darting out to lick at you, kitten licks running up your folds, running over your hole, thumb still rubbing those damn circles into you.

You felt yourself dripping at the way he was working you, your fingers digging into the pillows around you.

"F-fuck."

He took it as encouragement, his tongue entering you. Moving one of your legs over his shoulder, he got closer to you, removing his thumb to replace it with his mouth.

A jolt ran through your spine as he sucked at you, loud slurping noises filling the room accompanied by your moans. Your hips were grinding down on his face, one of your hands reaching down to grip at his hair.

He was insatiable, tongue running flatly over you, fingers slipping inside to massage at your wet walls. He found that spot inside of you, spongy wall sucking him in even further. A few moans of his own sounded out against you, the vibration urging a new wave of wetness.

"Steve- I'm gonna-" you barely could warn him before you were pulsating around him, a gush of wetness soaking his mouth. He moaned even louder against your clit, the feeling of it having you pull him closer to your cunt.

He continued licking at you, another finger entering you as you fell apart. The over stimulation earned a yelp from you, your hips raising off the bed to get away from his tongue.

"St-steve, it's too much-"

He left you, fingers still pumping in and out of you as you peered up at you.

"That's all you got?" His smile was devious as he continued finger fucking you, curling them at just the right time. It felt like you were a teenager again with his fingers inside of you, your stamina keeping up like nothing ever before.

Rolling your eyes, you reached down to rub at your own clit, slightly wincing at the sensitive feeling.

"I need you," you whined, spreading your legs further.

He moved quickly before he was removing himself, towering over you while kicking off his jeans. It would've been comical if you weren't so horny, the way he was trying to hold himself up and tug his pants off, boner poking out so strong, you thought it was hurting him.

Once free, he reached around you, digging into his bedside drawer as he searched for something. A few curses left him as he came up short, items clattering around as his movements became more hurried. You could read his mind.

"It's okay, we don't have to use one," you said, placing a hand on his chest from where he hovered above you. Caught off guard, he looked down at you, confusion on his face.

"You don't-?"

"It's okay, Steve," you nodded at him, the gesture becoming a language between the two of you with multiple meanings. Your own way of trusting each other.

He returned to you, leaning on his elbow as he pressed a kiss to you. "I could find one for you, if you're unsure, I'm sure they're som-"

"Steve," you said, pulling him down for another kiss. "I promise it's okay."

With a look into your eyes, he got his confirmation, pressing his mouth to yours. The kiss was slow as he reached down between you to line himself up with your entrance. Pushing in, you both groaned into each other's mouths at the stretch, your brains becoming clouded with each other.

It was a lot, bigger than you'd taken before, the girth of his cock making up for everything you've never had before. Getting choked up, you clawed at him, wanting to bring him closer than he was, even if it wasn't possible.

Pressing to the hilt, he couldn't wait before pulling out, pushing in again with a slight force that had you moving up the bed. You couldn't help the noises falling from your mouth, your eyes squeezed shut as he fucked into you, one of his legs pushing up to lift your own up.

His mouth kissed every part of yourself that it could find, your head moving side to side as he cherished you. This was all too perfect, your chest full of an emotion you were quite unfamiliar with.

"Steve."

The tone in your voice had his hips stuttering, fucking into you a little quicker. You could tell he was close by the fast movement of his hips, jerks that threw off his rhythm, pushing into you a little too far, the press of your cervix that had your back arching with the twinge of pain. It was all too good though, the pain quickly merged into pleasure as his body covered your own.

"Fuck baby, you're so perfect."

His words had your back arching further, fingernails digging into the skin of his ass, pulling him even deeper.

"I could fuck you all day."

With a moan, you pulled your leg even higher, whining at the way his dark thatch of hair was rubbing against your clit. You saw stars behind your eyelids, his words only fueling the fire building in the pit of your stomach.

"I'm gonna make you mine, gonna cum all in you, make you mi-"

A high pitched whine left your mouth as you came around him, throbbing at the feeling of his dick deep inside. You would like to say it was the sex itself that made you tip over the edge, the feeling of him hitting your spot over and over. But the two of you knew that it was the promise of his words, the feeling of being wanted by him, needed by him hitting you in just the right spot.

Worked up and spent, you took his face in your hands, pressing a kiss to his nose, then his forehead.

"Make me yours, baby," you whispered at him, watching the way his eyes fluttered shut and feeling his hips press into you once more before he paused, warmth filling you. You felt the twitch of his cock inside of you, throbbing deep as he filled you with his seed.

Groaning, he pulled out of you with a loud squelch that filled the air, one of his eyes closing in a grimace. He laid beside you, turning on his side as he stared at you.

You felt his eyes on you as you stared at the ceiling, feeling cock drunk to a whole different level. It should've had you feeling scared, but the only thing that you could feel was the warmth of him, comforting you.

His thumb rested on your hip, running small circles over the skin. The two of you watched his hand make the small movement, droplets of perspiration being wiped away.

"You could leave if you want," he whispered, voice breaking the quiet of the air. "I'm probably making you uncomfortable."

Looking up at him, you leaned up to press another kiss to his lips. His eyes found you again, shock behind the irises.

"I think I'm going to stay," you matched his low tone, smiling once his own came across his face. "I was playing hard to get at first, but now I promise I'll be hard to get rid of."

He made a dramatic face at you, a fake groan leaving his lips. "Ooo, talk dirty to me, baby."

You laughed at him as he leaned over you, pressing several kisses to your neck and chin, slathering you in his love. It still made you a little uncomfortable at the gestures, all of this a foreign concept to you. His touches began to feel a bit more like home to you, something that had been missing in all of the men that came before.

Masterlist. Inbox and requests are open! <3

[am-i-the-asshole-official]

AITA for giving away my sisters fish?

This is a dumb and very long story (i could probably shorten it somehow but I don't know how) and I know the title makes me look bad.

Ok so, one evening my mom and my little sister(let's call her Jess) brought home a container of four fish that mum said she saw a guy selling on the road for about 2 dollars (I'm not american so I just calculated and it comes out to around 2 dollars)

This was during the end of year break when Jess was home (usually we all go to boarding school) None of us had ever had pet fish before and we didn't know what kind of fish they were, they looked different from each other and their size difference was pretty big too(the largest was about the size of three nail clippers stacked on top of each other and the smallest was about the size of 1/2 of a car key). So we weren't sure of the species of any and bought the most nondescript pack of fish food we could find, they ate it so we thought things were ok.

About 1 month into the break though (the end of year break where I am is 2 months), 1 of the fish died for reasons we still don't know (we changed the water every 3 days) and two weeks later a second one just disappeared, it wasn't in the bowl, and no one knew what happened. So by the time school started there were 2 fish left (Jess was sad but we also have dogs so she wasn't too sad)

All of us go to different boarding schools but ive been going to a day-school this past year because I'm scheduled for a surgery, so when everyone went back it was just me with the fish.

My elder sister (let's call her Kat) came home from university for a while and she thought the fish were cool so she asked my mom if she could tell her where she got them so she could get some for her dorm. My mom told her she just got them from some guy on the road who didn't have a stall and probably wouldn't be there if she drove to the place she found him. So she went back to uni without any fish

Flash forward, 4 weeks into the term, my mom comes to get me from school and she says was passing the area she saw the guy and he was there with another container of fish this time with about 10 fish also of various muddy and sandy colours, about length of the diameter of a soda-bottle cap (my mom said they also cost her about 2 dollars). I said we could split the fish in half, keep 6 and give Kat 6 for her dorm.

So I'm sitting in the car, holding the container of fish my laps and my mom suddenly stops the car because a person walking on the sidewalks falls into the trenches on the sides of the road. The person is ok but the car stops so suddenly and I'm not holding the container securely so it falls from my laps.

The container has a lid so the car is ok but the guy added some small rocks and a fake plant to the container so they kind of bury the some of fish and 6 of them die. I look on like an idiot while mom tries to settle the rocks but another fish is buried when the rocks are settled.

By the time we get home and transfer all the living fish into the bowl we already have, we have 5 fish in total. We move them to a new, slightly bigger bowl and feed them but by the next morning when I'm going to school i see 3 fish left.

When I get home, I tell my mom that maybe we aren't ready for fish and we should give them to Kat whose dorm may be less of a safety hazard (during the end of year break we used to play with the fish a lot, trying to touch their tails etc so we're definitely the reason the first batch died anyway. We're also 8 kids and there are kids older and younger than me so it would be hard to stop EVERYONE from being rough with the fish). I also had exams coming up and I was starting to put of changing the water and cleaning bowl until i saw algae growing on sides.

Kat has a roommate who thinks the fish are cool too so incase one of them forgets maintaining the fish the other can do it. (I also kind of secretly hoped the all fish would just die a week or two into being with them so it wouldn't bother them anymore I feel bad about it)

Anyway, 3 weeks later when Kat came home she took the fish with her. It's around the middle of the first term so it was Visitation Day at Jess's school yesterday (I think the name is self explanatory) and the first thing she asked about was the fish. I didn't know what to say so I told her the truth and she was so SAD!!(I mean obviously she'd be sad but visitation day is supposed to be a good day) because we named the fish and everything(the first batch, not the second) . I tried to tell her how Kat and her roommate were nice and would give the new fish good name but she said that was dumb I knew that was dumb and I wish had just lied about the whole thing and asked my mom to buy new fish but I feel like Jess would know so said nothing else

My mom kind of cheered her up by saying that during the holidays they could go get a good tank and actual goldfish from a better place but she was mad at me because I suggested that the fish be given to Kat and I feel like she's right because it would be stupid to ask Kat to bring the fish wish her the next time she came home.

All my other siblings not just Jess also got attached to the fish so I'll just be breaking the news to everyone for the next three weeks (because all schools where I am schedule visitation day in the same month) and just generally ruining the mood.

What are these acronyms?

[arichaa]

Taking care of Akaza's wounds

Hi! This is my first oneshot... I just hope you'll like it ♡ So it talks about Akaza being injured and we take care of his wounds yeah? Alright good good hahahahahahahhhahahahahahha

Precisions: Female human reader; Akaza's personality is like... shy, maybe a little bit tsundere? And too proud to show weakness; the infinity castle dynamic isn't like the one in the anime, but it's more like a big big house where they all live together or smth; Demons can be injured and don't have any regenerations abilites.

Nobody knows why Muzan needed a human in the Infinity Castle. Y/N might be important for his plans. She seems to know that she has no choice and is conscious of her duty in all this. A duty no one else needed to know. Muzan commanded the Upper Moon 3, Akaza, to protect her at all cost. To be her "bodyguard" when she needed to go outside the Castle, for instance.

Y/N is always kind and respectful with the Uppers Moons. She doesn't know them personally and some of them scare her, so she decided to interact with them only when needed. She knows what demons are capable of, although she tries to comfort herself into thinking that they would never disobey their master by hurting her. Or worse.

What doesn't help is that she's absolutely beautiful. Irresistible. So elegant. Pretty inside and outside. The fact that she blushes and loses her grip when someone compliments her accentuates her beauty. The Upper Moon 2 just has no shame in making her uncomfortable using this weakness, but it's just to tease her, according to him.

When it comes to Upper Moon 3, he doesn't care about her link with Muzan or what she is here for. Because why would he? Muzan didn't thought it was necessary to inform them about anything. No. What he cares about is her as a person. He gives his all. He gives his all to not embrace her tightly when she's worried. He gives his all to not absolutely destroy this colored eyed idiot's face everytime he pronouces a syllable directed at her. His all to have a non emotional discussion everytime he talks with her. He tried everything. Nothing worked. Maybe it's because Y/N stayed here for too long... no... just one month? He has never been like this, in his demon life and human life. He knows it's wrong, so he keeps giving his all desesperately. -----------------------------------------

Upper Moon 3 has been training with his colleague, Upper Moon 1, Kokushibo. He doesn't shows any mercy in his trainings, but that's a sign he appreciates him and wants him to get stronger. Akaza would rather die than ask him to be less harsh with him. He keeps collecting bruises and other injuries, but he doesn't talks about them because he just doesn't want to bring attention to him and show any signs of weakness.

Y/N is cleaning the kitchen. She doesn't have anything to do so why not? She hums, rearranges a little. Akaza happens to walks into her. There she is. Not that he looked for her. And if he was, it would only be to assure her protection. Nothing else. Come on. He knows he can't convince himself into thinking that. She didn't noticed him yet, tiptoeing to reach a bowl on the shelf. She looks adorable as always. He swallows, then clears his throat to annouce his presence. She looks behind her shoulder.

Y/N: Ah... Akaza dono, good evening.

Akaza: Good evening, Y/N.

Y/N: How was your day?

Akaza: Not bad, thank you.

Y/N: Good then...

They just look at each other, not knowing what else to say. Maybe he should leave now. It's just a greeting. The more Y/N looks at Akaza, the more she turns around completely to face him.

Y/N: Akaza dono.

What? What does she want? She swallows again, apprehending.

Akaza: Yes, Y/N?

The way she looks at him, it doesn't look good for him. She approaches him, looks at his chest. His wounded body. Then she looks back at his eyes

Y/N: You look severly injured. Is it because of your trainings?

Akaza is taken aback. He doesn't know how to respond correctly.

Akaza: Ah... "Severly" is a big word don't you think?

She tucks her hair behind her ear. Trying to keep composure.

Y/N: I picked this word because that's the only accurate one. *sighs* Don't you think you should... take breaks sometimes? Or, at least treat your wounds?

She knows these kinds of words might upset demons, so she tries to keep a calm voice to balance. He is the last person she wants to upset. Akaza doesn't know what to think. She is the last person he wanted to attract pity from. Yet he likes that she is worried about him.

Akaza: My... wounds don't need to be treated. And I don't have time to rest.

Y/N bites her lip, thinks for a second and takes his hand before walking towards her room. Akaza is absolutely flabbergasted. Of course it wasn't the first time they had physical contact. It would happen when he had to carry her around or when she tripped. But this time, it is initiated by her. He can do nothing but follow her. His neurones are all focused on her soft, small hand. They arrive in front of her door and Akaza regains composure.

Akaza: Y/N... What is this?

She looks at him, flustered

Y/N: I... Please... Let me take care of your wounds. I know you will never do it.

Take care of his wounds. That's what she wants to do. But Akaza is the one supposed to protect her. He doesn't want to be a burden to anyone, especially to Y/N.

Akaza: I'm not letting you do that.

She opens the door and slowly pulls his hand to make him enter. It's crazy how he can't even make himself clear to a human. To a woman. No. To Y/N.

Y/N: With all respect... Please sit down. I hope to see you in my room when I'll come back.

She leaves the room and runs to another. While Akaza, still standing, puts his hand on his hips, sighing from embarassement. He wonders how he managed to get himself in this situation. He just goes to sit on her bed, waiting for Y/N to come back. When she does, Akaza sees in her hands an aid kit, with everything needed for a healing session. She closed the door then goes sit next to him, at his right.

Y/N: Hearing you refusing my hand, I thought you would leave unnoticed.

She plans to do this step by step, his right arm first. She takes his hand again, his palm showing. Y/N just stares at his limb. Bruises and cuts everywhere. She wouldn't have survived if she had all these injuries. Or maybe she worried too much. After all, Akaza is strong, well build... Those muscles... She swallows then focuses on her mission.

Akaza: I appreciate your concern, but I really don't need all this.

Y/N: Cuts are open doors for infections. It can end badly, Akaza dono.

He sighs. That's too much for him. He already loved her to death. She didn't need to do this. Y/N looks at his arms, while he looks at her. Her focused expression makes his heart beat like drums. They're so close he can hear her breathing. That little mouth makes him imagine situations. It's the same thing on Y/N's side. She tries to keep a regular breathing. While she puts cottons on his cuts, she also tries to caress his skin for her own pleasure. Maybe it's inappropriate. But as long as he doesn't notice.

Of course he did. He hopes with all his soul she doesn't look at him to see a blushing Upper Moon. Y/N goes towards the shoulder to try and heal his wounds. Just the perfect height to hold her close. Her close presence distracts him from the stinging of the alcohol. They have been silent for a while now. They both know they should say something.

Y/N: If there's any intern injuries, I'm afraid I won't be able to help.

Akaza: There isn't. And you're doing enough, thank you for this.

She now treats his chest, full of deep cuts. That chest of his she always had to look away from. She touches him with her fingertips, evaluationg the seriousness of each bruise. While Akaza seats here, not moving. If he does nothing, he can't do something bad. He stiffens everytime she touches him.

The neck is the next step. While Y/N does her magic, she glances sometimes at his face, admiring his features. His cheeks so kissable. His little nose she wants to rub hers against. His eyes reminding her of a sunny day. She finds it ironic because Akaza can't go out in the sun. That mouth makes her lose her mind. And his hair urging her to caress it. Akaza looks back at her. Her heart does backflips.

Y/N: Ah! I was just... uh... checking if there's any wounds on your face. Yeah...

Akaza: I didn't say anything.

Y/N: Haha, indeed...

Well that's embarassing. She ends her awkward laugh with a sad smile. Akaza can be cold, but never mean, especially to Y/N. She knows it. And the Upper 3 just tried to not let himself do something he might regret by avoiding eye contact. But her stare was too long to avoid it indefinitely. And why did he have to say that? Out of all the other things he could've answered with... Akaza becomes more self conscious and tries to control his gestures and strength. He doesn't want to scare or hurt her.

Now they exchange words about the other moons, his injuries and other small talks. That makes them feel more comfortable. Y/N even starts to hum. She's almost done with the last body part she needs to treat, his left arm. She put bandages on each cuts. After finishing his hand, she brings it to her lips, closes her eyes and kisses it... kisses it?

Her brain is still trying to process what she just did. After all, that cutie used to take care of her nieces and other children's bruises and kept the reflex of the kiss on the little boo-boo. Heck she even made that "mwah" sound... She stayed on automatic mode for too long. What is she supposed to do now? Pretend it didn't happen? Apologize? Leave the room? She just keep looking at his hand and swallows. She is anxious about what would happen if she makes eye contact.

Akaza's brain is in the same state as hers. He can't even breathe anymore. She did it first. He can't do this anymore.

Y/N: ...Wait... let me explain, it's a ref...

The demon gently holds Y/N's hand, guides it towards his mouth and puts his lips on her fingers while closing his eyes. She didn't miss a second of that. Their movement are now only fueled with want. She looks so moved by his gesture. Y/N comes closer and caresses his cheek. He leans in her touch, pressing her hand with his.

Y/N: Akaza dono... I...

Akaza: Shhh... no need for words...

Akaza takes her in his arms, holding her tight. Her eyes are wide open as he shoves his face in her neck. She gently pushes him to make him lie on the bed so she can cuddle with him, her head against his chest. She tighens her hug by embracing his waist. And of course he lets her do whatever she wants with him. They both dreamed about it. They don't care about consequences now.

Akaza: Y/N... I know I shouldn't but... I'm in love with you. From day one. This moment between us, it was the last straw.

Y/N: I see... *chuckles* I love you too, Akaza dono...

Akaza leans in for a kiss. He slowly catches her lower lip between his, as she wraps her arms around his neck, and his around her waist. As sweet as he imagined. She intensifies the kiss by caressing his hair. She keeps kissing his cheeks, lips and nose while he blushes and smiles. He would've never thought she was the kind to show that much affection and he loves it. Y/N kisses him one last time on the chest and closes her eyes to feel his embrace.

Y/N: *whispers* I know your containing your strength. Don't hold back and hug me really tight. I need to feel you.

She didn't need to say more. He makes himself more comfortable and holds her for all the times he couldn't while putting his cheek on her head.

Akaza: *whispers* You can call me Akaza from now on.

[shitpostingkats]

Obsessed with these tags OP omg

First of all, how dare you stab me in the heart with that comparison to Jesse. I can absolutely see it. Now I want to know how Jesse would come into play in all this- Cod I love Spiritshipping they were meant for each other <3

Second, I know I already requested Yuya and Jaden interactions (and oh boy did you deliver), but now you have me intrigued. Like it doesn't even have to be the groupchat AU, I'm just genuinely curious now how you think Jaden would interact with all four of the Yu Boys. I am giving you an excuse to write Jaden and Yuri interacting also because to be completely honest I love Yuya to bits and pieces but Yuri has always been my favorite of the four. <3 "Yuri is the violence" Dear cod I want to see the two of them tear into someone. I have no idea who exactly but they would be terrifying. Give them an audience perchance. Maybe the rest of the protags. (I live for reactions) I'm living for this.

Jaden meets them and it's like witnessing all the parts of himself he keeps tucked to his chest exposed for everyone to see. He sees Yuto and wants to wrap him in a hug and tell him nothing was his fault. (He's a hypocrite, he knows he (Jaden) deserved everything he got. He didn't, he really didn't) He sees Yuya and sees the mask he's put up for so long, sees his attitude of "maybe if I ignore this then it'll all go away" and wonders if his own mask ever looked this close to cracking. He sees Yugo and wants to scream and tear his hair out because when did he lose that part of himself? When did the mask truly become a mask, when did he lose that spark that made life seem actually worth living? (He knows damn well when he lost it.) He sees Yuri and sees a world where he gave in completely to the madness, where he found comfort in the pain because it was the one time he truly felt like he was in control. He wonders what it cost him, if it cost anything at all. He wonders what friends he sacrificed to get where he is now, and if it was worth it. He looks into his eyes and thinks maybe it was. He wonders if maybe their worlds aren't as dissimilar as he first thought. (That thought alone might scare him more than anything.)

It's late and I'm not very good with words (at the moment at least) But you have got me HOOKED and you are currently my only source for this dynamic, I will be plaguing your ask box for a good week at least, I hope you know this- (Feel free to tell me to chill out at any time btw, I just saw your blog description and took that as a personal challenge sdfghj /lh)

Much love <3

*hands you back your worksheet and it looks like this*

*hands you stickers hands you a candy from the candy bowl, never worry about blowing up my inbox, I love hearing from people, hands you a tangerine*

Bestie you are doing such a good job thank you for the kind words, also your mind. I hadn't realized the potential for Yugo + Jaden interactions until you started messaging, now I am rocked by the implications. Now I have to write the yu-bois into the gc au. Can't promise I'll publish anything anytime soon, but I'm always excited to talk about these funny card game guys.

Yuri and Jaden the reformed supervillain and the still-thinks-he-has-to-be-the-evil-brother. Jaden is trying to nudge the guy in the right direction but totally worried because he is only barely older than him and still kinda a mess, meanwhile Yuri would gladly sell Jaden for one corn chip but also belligerently hangs out with him because he kinda is one of the best fusion duelists in the world, maybe he can learn some things. Yuri is like "Let's rob this 7/11! >:3" and Jaden is like "Oooh! There's a deal on slushies!"

Reformed murder hobo in the body of a college student tries to reform child murder hobo: seven injured, Yugo's on the roof, more on this story at 11.

[venbetta]

This is Tumblr, we're all wild animals with zoomies. Please share your thoughts.

You right... you're so right

Time to vomit all of my thoughts then-

I’m gonna have to be so sparring with the pictures due to the 10 image limit *sob* whatever i'll figure it out,,

Also I'm gonna say this- Freddy isn't possessed by Michael Afton in this. I don't mind Glammike, but I love the idea of Freddy just becoming a “deviant” I guess. Robots becoming human. They should totally make a game or something… wink wink.

I'm gonna just dig into the lyrics and breakdown my thought process for some of the frames… (I'm not doing every lyric, only some that stood out)

So, the meaning of “My Way” is based around self determination, that's the basic gist. I personally interpreted it as individualism, seeing how the lyrics have certain phrases based around it.

I had heard this song at the beginning of this year and immediately thought of Freddy. I also remember hearing the ai cover version at one point… (moving on)

And it was pretty obvious that most people agreed that this was his song.

Let's break it down >:]

And now, the end is near

And so I face the final curtain

I started the scene with Freddy walking on the third floor atrium, and I guess I took “I face the final curtain” literally since he's looking at the main stage lmao

My friend, I'll say it clear

Small side note, it's literally the most miniscule detail, but I felt like he was referring to Bonnie when he said “my friend” … It doesn't help that he's on the same floor as Bonnie Bowl.

I've lived a life that's full

Freddy reflecting about his “life” performing alongside his friends, I specifically added Chica because she's one of the remaining members of the original trio. :)

Regrets I've had a few

But then again, too few to mention

I did what I had to do

And saw it through without exemption

This verse was the best way to describe Freddy's situation. He had to not only escort this kid around the pizzaplex but he had to make sure Gregory wouldn't get hurt. He didn't want to hurt his friends but he couldn't let them hurt Gregory either. While it's shown that the other glamrocks were shattered, him saying he has regrets, I thought about whether or not he did the shattering himself or it was Gregory.

I mean, canonically, it was all Gregory's doing, Freddy was an accomplice… (sort of), but in the back of my mind, a messed up part of me wanted it to be Freddy's doing. Especially when we get to the confrontation scene. Honestly it can be interpreted both ways. I've read a fic where Freddy killed his friends… very gruesome but badass.

Anyways have a Freddy ear wiggle... cutest fucking thing ever.

Yes, there were times, I'm sure you knew

When I bit off more than I could chew

But through it all, when there was doubt

I ate it up and spit it out

I faced it all, and I stood tall

And did it my way

Another one of those verses where I went fucking crazy and said “THAT'S HIM.”

So as it's seen in the animatic, Freddy is trying to keep Gregory safe. Gregory was originally going to be in his stomach hatch during this fight scene, but as I mentioned, Freddy wouldn't have wanted him to be in serious danger, so.. I changed it to him carrying Gregory.

“I'm sure you knew when I bit off more than I could chew” refers to Gregory being aware of how much he was in danger, and Freddy deciding to bite the bullet towards confronting his friends. Even if it meant someone was going to get hurt.

“When there was doubt, I ate it up and spit it out.” God, I loved drawing Freddy clenching his fists. The hesitancy before just accepting that he has to protect Gregory at all costs. Maybe I took some of the lyrics and made them slightly literal? Idk. Either way, this scene was powerful, especially when he and Monty clashed together.

“I stood tall” to me shows how Freddy was no longer going to let his soft persona get in the way. This part was just very fun to draw and put together… :3

I've loved, I've laughed and cried

I've had my fill, my share of losing

And now, as tears subside

I find it all so amusing

Once again Freddy is thinking about his friends and life, I found this part kind of hard? Originally I wanted him to be surrounded by his friends, and have it fade to just him standing alone, but I didn't like how it was drawn lol. I improvised and had it be a poster instead.

Also there's something heartbreaking about how he examines his plushie. “I find it all so amusing”, I interpreted that as him being melancholic about the situation, looking between the plushie and Gregory by the exit.

To think I did all that

And may I say, not in a shy way

Ah yes, Freddy setting the plushie on fire. I like to think he makes up his mind at that moment that none of this was worth it anymore. Once again, that interpretation of him being complacent to his friends being shattered kinda fits into this line a little, “I did all that”, as if he's surprised he had it in him to go that far to protect Gregory.

I did it my way

…self explanatory. Freddy said, “Yeah nah I'm done. Burn this bitch to the ground.”

I mean, that's basically the fire escape ending if I'm being honest. Mine's just funnier.

For what is a man, what has he got?

If not himself, then he has naught

To say the things he truly feels

And not the words of one who kneels

The record shows I took the blows

And did it my way

The final stretch. So this verse is pretty heavy, also I had to pace this correctly… I'm surprised I managed to fit the climax in.

“For what is a man” when I heard that line for the first time… fire no pun intended. It's also kinda ironic(?) Freddy says this, since he's an animatronic… but me personally, I saw it as an epiphany for him. He's acknowledging his own individualism, and that's all he has now. He made the decision to protect Gregory, to fight his friends, and now he's making the choice to burn everything down.

“To say the things he truly feels, and not the words of one who kneels” Good shit. He's not taking orders from anyone anymore, he's gone full deviant now.

And with the confrontation with Vanny, he makes the impulsive decision to take her out, going down with her. “I did it my way” the grand climax of the song, where he throws both of them off the building… lowkey my favorite part. I had fun using the tracking tool on the editing program to make them pan across the screen in slow mo…

But yeah, Freddy was gonna go down his own way- even if it was unnecessary.

Yes it was my way

The fall and the brief daze and fear in his eyes…

There's something about the acceptance in his eyes that makes my chest swell.

I'm surprised I haven't cried to this animatic yet.

I'm sure I'm not the only person who doesn't like this ending of SB… it's so weird and confusing. I laughed my ass off watching it due to how whacky it was… also I still believe that Vanessa on the roof was an apparition/ghost. Idk… it makes sense to me.

The fact that I made this ending have more impact makes it more satisfying. I know it was very indulgent but like… that was the point. I know Freddy's characterization in the game is pretty limited, outside of him being a goofball, but he had genuine moments where there was something else there (I'm looking at the true ending scene).

Listen, I headcanon Freddy as someone who's sweet and puts on his best face but has the entire company of FazEnt on his shoulders and all he can do is tolerate it because he was made to entertain. Having him not only have an existential crisis but an epiphany lets Freddy shine a little more.

I say the best part during the animatic process is looking at the lyrics and breaking them down for the story. It helps with pacing :)

I plan to do another fnaf animatic this weekend, so look forward to some wips… if I decide/remember to share

Feel free to ask me anything, I'll try to answer them!

:)

[charlieslowartsies]

the reason why my August vacation is so important...

This is a long, kinda emotional for me journal <3

As I mentioned a while ago, I was splitting my usual two weeks in June of debauchery (sleeping & laying in the sun & hiking in the woods outback lol) into one week last month and then saved the last week for the end of August.

I also wanted to explain the significance of this trip! Less about having to justify my time off and more about 'eeee excite omg!' and wanted to share with y'all!

SO a long time ago when I was a wee Charlie, from age 0 up to 21, I was incredibly close to my grandparents on my mom's side. My nana died when I was 15, and while that took a huge toll on me, I was fortunate enough to have my grandpa till 21. These two people were absolutely second parents. My parents did a good enough job raising me, but they had huge fights and my father had anger issues and it caused a lot of wounds. These were the people I could always rely on, when I couldn't rely on my folks.

They lived 2 hours away on a wonderful lake in a lil tiny trailer over looking it. I spent weeks at a time there, even the occasional month. I learned to swim in that lake, which in hindsight prolly wasn't the safest idea due to its depth, and grew up to be obsessed with swimming. Learned how to sail, ski, fish. Learned how to bake, tend a garden, how a fresh bowl of fruit in the morning should be before breakfast.

We'd swim 3x a day, sometimes just to float and cool down before bed, since there was no a/c and the summer nights were hot. Laid on our backs and counted stars like the Lion King. Fried trout on the grill after we'd caught them, had watermelon seed spittin' contests. My grandpa grew pumpkins and carved my name into one, so that the writing grew bigger and bigger over the months. I had one pumpkin live from September to April.

My handprint is on the last cement step leading down to the beach. It was eroded when we scattered my grandpa's ashes in 2014, but I remember where it was, how to place my palm to compare.

I guess I'd say I had a mixed childhood of various great, good, bad, and horrible things. Like most people, yanno? But those golden summer days on the lake were 100% a part of who I am today, and where my many of my happiest memories come from.

Due to me being in college, cost to heat the place in winter when they had no intention of living there, my family sold the property on the lake to an investor who planned to rent it out.

This was 2014. The same year he died, the same year my horse died (within 2 months of each other) and one of my father's many health issues landed him in the hospital from Oct to Dec, so that he spent xmas on an iv stand. With everything going on, we had no time or money for a big dinner, or presents that year.

I guess that was the first year I realized childhood was truly and officially over, and it was time to grow up. Many of us have that marked moment on our life.

Time passed. I finished college, went back home after turning down a few out of state jobs to spend time with my dad, who I had a feeling didn't have much time left. Turned out I was right, as I came home in 2015 and he died in 2022. There was an accident in '16 where he almost bled to death on our kitchen floor, but I was able to provide pressure/medical care and give him some more years.

Shortly after we moved in 17, I was notified that the house on the lake had been rented to someone who unfortunately had a lot of issues mental health wise, and they had eventually abandoned the property. It sat, rotting, and got so covered on the inside in black mold the county leveled the place and destroyed it.

We had left it fully furnished due to the buyer's urging. Ancient, stunning mid century and older furniture from my great-great grandparents time. My nana's organ player. The rocker my mom and I sat in. And, frankly, to quote one of those popular songs, the house that built me was just gone.

I figured that was the end of it, and cried and got angry/sad and then moved on and just tried surviving as covid hit later on in the years.

Turns out, the man who rented it decided that wasn't going to happen again. He put a new trailer on the property, and rented it out for vacationing due to it's location. We didn't know this until I stumbled across it while daydreaming about a vacation on the lake that I missed it was a relative, one I could at least go back to for a few days. My heart skipped so many beats when I saw the address and paused, thinking there had to be come mistake. It wasn't.

Not only can I spend time on that property again (in a new house which honestly might be for the best) But turns out, for whatever reason, they kept the furniture separate and placed a few pieces into the new house. There's a photo of the rocker in the layout photos. The two level lamp they had is still intact and functioning. I booked the place for a week immediately.

It's expensive for me, but my girlfriend and I will make it work. (Certainly not like we have far to travel.) We're going to be there smack dab in the middle of my Grandfather's birthday. I haven't had a true, just-for-me vacation since 2015 when we went to a camping ground. The excitement I have for this is immeasurable.

The dock my Dad and Grandpa put in themselves is fixed up. The crumbled little cement step is still there with a tiny indent, where my 4 yr old hand was pressed. I am going back to this place, and going back in time for just a short while, to heal and have fun and be a whole mess of emotions. I never got to say good bye to my Nana or Grandpa.

But I can say goodbye to them now, and say 'hello again, old friend' to the lake, and the new little house that sits before it.

That is why i am so excited about august. I know I don't share personal things on here a ton, but I wanted to share this. Thank you for reading this far if you have, I appreciate it.

I hope you have a wonderful day and remember how important you are <3 And as always stay hydrated! -Charlie

[frozenprocedural]

24 Elsarik :D

"Your Hair is So Soft"

Rating: K

Set in my Costs an Arm and a Leg verse. Alarik belongs to @patricia-von-arundel.

“You're joking.”

“I am not. Yes, Kristoff had reservations at first. But now, he loves it. Never asks for one, but he never turns it down either. I'm telling you, washing his hair, with a scalp massage? Alarik will be putty.”

Elsa shook her head, balling up her napkin and placing it in the aluminum takeout bowl. “I guess. It's just not something that immediately comes to mind.”

Anna swept their trash into the paper bag and stood. “Oh, it doesn't. But he'll love it. If I'm wrong, the next chocolate haul is on me. But I won't be. Which means you can pay.”

Elsa didn't think about their conversation until Alarik came home a few days later, his face tight with pain. Before the door had even fully closed behind him, he had his prosthetic and sleeve off, rubbing the burned skin of his stump. 

“Oh, Alarik. How bad?” She offered her hands, and he allowed her to work on his skin, massaging in slow, gentle circles.

“Enough. It's been building for the past few days. I probably should have rested it more.”

Elsa hummed, continuing to rub his arm. Anna's suggestion came back to her, and she smiled up at Alarik, standing on her toes to press a kiss to his cheek. 

“I'll warm up the leftovers, and then I want to try something, if you're willing.”

He turned so he could kiss her mouth, wrapping his other arm around her waist. “Of course, darling.”

…….

“I certainly could have started my own bath.”

“I know. But it's not just a bath. Now, how's the temperature?”

Alarik padded over, dipping a finger into the water. “Perfect.”

“Good! In you go.”

He settled in, looking back at her as she adjusted the chair so she was sitting by his head. 

“Are you joining me?”

“Not this time. I'm going to do your hair.”

His face scrunched in confusion. “But I-”

“I know you can wash your hair. But I want to try this. To give you a chance to relax. May I?”

Alarik rested his head against the towel she'd placed on the tub's rim, smiling. “Of course. I put myself in your capable hands.”

Elsa chuckled, leaning forward to place a kiss on his head. “I need you to lift your head so I can rinse your hair, though.”

After a thorough rinse, Elsa pulled over the pump bottle with Alarik's 3-in-1 shampoo. “I still don't understand how this works for you, while I have to use multiple products.” 

“The benefits of having luscious, curly locks, I suppose.”

Elsa rolled her eyes and laughed, splashing his neck. “Goose.”

Several pumps of shampoo onto her hand, and then she started, working it into his hair and scalp, working up a healthy lather. Elsa was surprised at how much she enjoyed it- running her hands through his hair and hearing the bubbly-scratchy noise of the shampoo was soothing in its own way. She could feel Alarik relaxing beneath her, his shoulders slumping and… shaking?

Was he crying?

“Alarik? Are you alright? Are you hurting?”

He sniffed, wiping his hand across his eyes. “No, I'm fine. I… it's… no one's ever done anything like this for me before. And… it's so nice… Oh God, why am I crying so much!?”

“Hey, hey, it's alright.” Elsa rinsed her hands in the water, then shifted the stool so he could look at her. She placed a hand on his cheek, using her thumb to wipe away the tears. “It's okay to feel. I'm here. And I love you, so, so much.”

Alarik sniffled and turned to kiss her palm, his hand coming up to cover hers. “I know. I'm so lucky to have you. And I love you so, so much.”

How long they sat there, Elsa wasn't sure. Eventually, Alarik looked back up at her with a quirked smile. “Would you… would you start washing my hair again?”

Elsa smiled back and shifted the stool. “Of course.” 

She added in some more shampoo, and soon Alarik was sighing and slumping against the tub as she massaged his scalp. Elsa kept it up for a few more minutes, before tapping his shoulder. 

“Time to rinse.”

He turned so she could see his pout. “Do you have to?”

She laughs. “Yes, Alarik. Besides, I'm sure the water is getting cold.”

“I'd survive.” Still, he sat up, letting her rinse. He took the proffered soap from her and finished washing himself, before reaching forward to pull the drain plug. He stepped out and toweled off, while Elsa grabbed his bottle of moisturizer. She followed him into their bedroom, and waited until he got dressed to sit beside him on the bed. 

“May I?”

He didn't hesitate, but immediately placed his stump into her lap. She was struck, as often was the case, by the trust he had in her. Alarik had grown more accepting about his missing hand and burn scars over the years, but he still tended to want to at least keep the skin covered while out in public. But that didn't happen with her. 

“You don't have to ask, you know. To touch…” He raised and lowered his stump.

“Would you ever stop asking me for permission to touch mine? Or work on my prosthetics? Even though I say yes every time?”

“Of course not! You might not want me to touch it at some point! I don't ever want to assume… oh.”

Elsa leaned over to press a kiss to his cheek. “Exactly. The same goes for you. Every. Time. Now, let's take care of your skin.”

Elsa squeezed a dollop of the lavender-scented lotion onto her hand. She was thorough, working the moisturizer deep into his skin, making sure to massage it well. She felt Alarik relaxing against her, and smiled, happy to see that he appeared to be feeling better. 

“You are amazing.”

She closed the bottle with a giggle, and passed him his nightshirt. After donning her own pajamas- just an old shirt of his and a pair of shorts- she settled into bed, tugging on his arm until he laid down next to her. She cuddled into his chest with a sigh, raising one hand to run it through his drying curls. 

“Your hair is so soft.”

She felt more than heard his chuckle. “What can I say? Luscious locks.” He kissed the top of her head. “Thank you, again. That was really nice.”

“I'm glad you enjoyed it. Just… don't tell Anna.”

“Wait, what?”

[strangecowplant]

Hello, regarding your cat, I wasn't able to read everything this is kinda rushed because I've had a long day, but do you need more money at the moment?

Also I'm a vet but like, in France, so I'm always shocked at the prices (in my area this kind of emergency would amount to like, around 300€, maybe 500€ if there's a repeat)!

Also, on a medical standpoint, were the vets able to know the origin of the blockage? Was it urinary stones, or stress? In my experience this kind of blockage has a tendency to become chronic in some cases if proper precautions are not taken! I wouldn't mind giving advice if you want, you can PM me I'll do my best to help and translate as accurately as possible.

Hi thank you so much for your concern, and I hope you're able to relax now! At the moment I have no idea if I need more money, its up in the air what the cost will be when i get there later today, I've still yet to even talk to my vet for a full update as he's been in and out of surgeries today but thank you so so much for asking!!! ❤️ I'll try and keep the main post as updated as possible once I get any news about costs or anything

But yeah the pricing is absolutely horrible here, theres no regulation and the cost of living is already debilitating enough, people who try save up funds for their pets have it wiped out from even the simplest vistis (their annual vaccinations are about $300, its hard to save much with that hit every year)

As for the cause, we aren't sure. Its unlikely to be stress related as hes an extremely chill and happy cat, nothing has changed with his lifestyle, his brother doesn't stress him out and all my animals are very close and loving to one another. The house usually is super quiet and relaxed too, him running around playing is usually the most noise the house gets! I can't think of a single time before this he was ever stressed aside from the normal wariness of being at the vet for vaccines/when he got neutered. Its also unlikely its from dehydration bc he's very good at drinking (he likes to have the tap water whenever i go into the bathroom, but he also happily drinks from any of the bowls around the house) and i feed them wet food mixed with some dry daily.

They didn't find any stones but the blockage was caused by struvite crystals, in fact they were able to pull one blockage out that was a milky mucousy stringy glob before his first catheter was put in. I also pulled 3 or 4 small ones the day before yesterday after noticing he was blocked and trying to do anything in my power to dispel them since I had no means to get him the help he needed then. His urinalysis came back positive for struvite but also mentioned the amount was 'few', he had no bacteria present and his ph was 6.5, theres maybe a chance he had a uti and dispelled the bacteria before they got a sample? Though I didnt notice any signs before that he was having issues. The lab notes mention the results fit with FLUTD/idiopathic cystitis but I really have no clue how or why, it was brought on so suddenly and he ate the exact same things as his brother who's fine (i will be swapping to a preventative food for his brother though because I'm now just petrified of it happening to him too) I suppose theres a chance its just genetic or random :/

Thank you for your help though, I'll definitely take you up on your offer and pm you! I have some questions I'd really like some advice on from a different vet

[lesbolordo]

Ominis G. X Sebastian S. | Hogwart's Legacy.

"Chocolates and happy little accidents."

Tags : Sebinis, a bit of crack (?), Smut (Beginning of a BJ), Ominis messing up, Sebastian having good ideas.

xxxxx

Ominis and Sebastian had a brilliant idea. Well, it was Sebastian's idea, but Ominis had indulged in yet another request of his best friend. The blind boy had to admit that for once; it wasn't that stupid.

With Valentine's Day approaching, a lot of students would want to offer Chocolates to their lovers or crushes... Some, would even want Amortentia in these.

Sebastian's genius idea -he said so himself- was to make Amortentia, make chocolates, mix the two, and sell them. Of course, with his pocket money cut off recently by his parents because of a not so surprising bankruptcy coming toward them, Ominis did not say no.

They both needed to buy various things for various reasons, may it be school related for Ominis, or... whatever-related for Sebastian. Ominis hoped that he didn't plan on buying anything weird or on an impulse, as he often did.

Anyway, now was not the question. The two boys were in the toilets of the second floor, having plastered a "Do not enter" sign on the door to keep students from entering. Valentine's Day was in 3 days and they had a lot of orders for their special Chocolates.

They had asked Everett to pass words to students about their Amortentia- chocolates, and much to Sebastian and Ominis' delight, it worked marvelously well : they were on their way to get rich, Sebastian said.

So after asking -stealing really- a potion book from Garreth, they had settled into the toilets to make their Amortentia, days ago. Now they were almost done, they just needed to stirr the pinkish brew, and they would be done with it.

Sebastian was in charge of stirring, whisteling as he did, ignoring Ominis' many demands for him to stop making his ears scream in horror, he said.

"-Come on, I don't whistle that badly !

-Yes you do. I feel like I'm listening to an Augurey singing, and I fear I will soon drop dead.

-Hey ! That's rude !

-You are not in my will by the way."

Sebastian rolled his eyes, the words drama queen leaving his lips before Ominis closed his book, done with his reading.

"-Alright, Sebastian. Stop the fire and put a lid on the cauldron. We'll do the chocolates now... You have all of the chocolate frogs, right ?

-Yep, let me get them."

Putting the lid on top of the cauldron as his friend as instructed him to do, Sebastian then quickly went through his rather big bag. The hundreds of chocolate frogs in it were probably the reason for it's size. Ominis was skeptical at first, because this many Chocolate frogs would cost them a little fortune... Investment and buisness, Sebastian had replied. The only reason Ominis had accepted wasn't because of his explanation but because Sebastian paid for it all.

"-Just put them in the bowl I summoned and use a soft flame to make them melt.

-Alright chief !"

The blind boy listened attentively to his friends opening the Chocolate Frogs one by one, listening to him tearing off their heads one by one before snickering and putting them in the bowl. He wondered why he was even friends with that menace of a boy.

He felt the soft warmth of a controlled flame near him, and he decided to let Sebastian do the rest until the chocolate was all melted. It took a while, and to Ominis' dismay the boy began to whistle again. Who, for Merlin's sake, had taught him that ?? Oh, he was sure that it was their new friend... always coming back with new cool stuffs. Last time they came back with a wholearse unicorn. Show-off.

After some time, Sebastian stopped whisteling and spoke instead.

"-Minis, stirr this wile I pour the Amortentia !"

The blond Gaunt didn't reply to his freckled friend, instead moving his hand toward where he supposed his hand was to take the long wooden spoon. They didn't say anything when their fingers touched.

The brown haired boy carefully poured into the chocolate, while Ominis mixed carefully and quite badly. He had never cooked in his life after all, the Gaunts had houseleves after all.

"-Wow, you're so bad at this Mini.

-Shut your mouth Sebastian or I will make you swallow all of that chocolate until you're so sick you die."

Sebastian did shut his mouth, Ominis frustratedly attempted to stirr better, to no avail. He just was a natural, bad cook.

Done with pouring the Amortentia into the chocolate, Sebastian took the wooden spoon from Ominis' hands to stirr the mixture. They once again stayed silent as their hands touched.

Ominis was almost counting the seconds as his friend stirred, bored. He took the molds out of his bag, many little heart shapes on them. It was Sebastian who had picked them, because Ominis couldn't care less about the chocolate's appearances, for some reasons...

"-Alright I think it's mixed enough now ! Hold the molds, I'll pour the chocolate in them !"

Ominis simply nodded, holding tight onto the molds as his friend did what he had to. It smelled nice, in these usually foul smelling toilets -They had cleaned everything thoroughly before baking, of course. The young Gaunt thought it smelled of Old books, earth and dust. If dust even had a smell... Sebastian appreciated the burnt wood, clean scent, it was relaxing.

The first mold filled, Sebastian stopped pouring and let Ominis move it to the side, which he did, not without licking some of the chocolate that had accidentally leaked on his finger in the process.

Wait what ?

The two boys opened their eyes wide at the shared realization, and Ominis immediately spit it out somewhere while Sebastian laughed like a madman.

"-I'm usually the one who messes up !! I can't believe lt !

-Shut up Sebastian ! I'll make you drown in that damned chocolate !

-Did you swallow it ??

-...I don't know, I don't think so-

-That's hilarious !"

Sebastian really was enjoying this, while Ominis was freaking out silently. He summoned a glass and stood up to use the sink, and cleaned his mouth with it before spitting it out. His friend didn't take long to stand up and join him toward the sinks, still giggling at Ominis' mess up.

"-You think you're good ? How're you feeling ?

-I am, yes... it's fine.

-Hey, tell me how you're feeling, it's important ! You just took some love potion mate !

-I told you, I'm-"

Ominis turned toward Sebastian's voice, a frown on his face, but the words died in his mouth as he spoke when he smelled the other boy's scent. Sebastian had grown taller than him in a year, and now his nose was practically at the perfect height to be burried in his freckled friend's neck. Old books an earth.

Sebastian watched the whole scene with attention, staring at Ominis curiously as he waited for the rest of his sentence. When he felt the smaller boy's hand on his torso and saw his pinkish eyes, he realized that it'd never come.

"-Ominis-

-You smell good. I'm sure you taste just as exquisite."

And just like that Ominis stole his best friend's breath away, kissing him until his knees were weak and he had to hold onto the sinks. Sebastian knew that it was the love potion talking and acting, but oh Godrick it felt so fucking good.

The sound of their lips and tongues making out and dancing filled the room, and soon were joined by Sebastian's delicious little mewls of pleasure from having his friend caressing his waist and hips so eagerly.

No words were spoken, the freckled boy didn't dare to stop Ominis although he knew that this was wrong, that the love potion controled him- technically it was him who controled Ominis.

And he took advantage of that, their lips parting, a string of saliva connecting them and their hot breath hitting the other's face. Sebastian could taste the chocolate on his own tongue now, and that almost made him indifferent to the pain when he dropped to his knees in front of Ominis, ready to please.

Chuckles and noises of a belt being unbuckled and abandoned on the ground replaced the sounds of their making out, before the young Gaunt let out a guttural, loud moan. Sebastian knew just what to do and how to do it.

He worked his tongue perfectly all around the blond's hardening shaft, licking a pulsing vein painfully slowly before reaching the tip and sucking greedily.

It wasn't chocolate he could taste on his tongue now, it was the salty yet delicious taste of his best and oldest friend's precum. And that thought didn't even disturb him, he was too engrossed in the fact that he loved it.

Like a starved man, Sebastian began to lick and suck, first tasting the hard member of his partner before trying to take it in his mouth fully. And as expected, Ominis was big. Too big for him to take everything at once. It wasn't even that his cock was large, it just was similar to the owner : long and pale.

The freckled boy noticed a beauty mark on the hard member in front of him, and he couldn't help but kiss it with a chuckle. A soft hand soon found it's way into his messy locks, caressing them in a manner only his caring best friend knew.

Sebastian immediately stopped, looking up at his best friend, who seemed to look back with his misty blue eyes despite his lack of sight.

"-Having fun ?"

Oh. Sebastian was in troubles.

xxxxx

Just a little Sebinis something because... oh you know... I'm starving for them boys.

Also, I don't know in details how Amortentia works it never made sense to me.

They are both in 7th year and 18 yo btw, thank you.

And yes, Ominis is covered in beauty marks. Sebastian has freckles and Ominis moles.

[ara0minthe]

Tuesday, 13th of August / Mardi 13 août

────୨ৎ────

Café "Debotte", in Nantes, France.

Sleep / Sommeil : 1am to 11:30am

I'm proud for sleeping before 2am, but I got out of bed late even though I was supposed to wake up at 9:30am.

I was so tired, I guess the day before had made me really tired so I couldn't help but push back my alarm clock 😭.

Health / Santé : Ate alright; not excessively,

(which I can feel proud of, because I do tend to eat too much or snack excessively when I stay at home too much , so I'm fighting against that, and lately it's been nice.)

Today I walked 6500 steps. That's an alright dose of activity (for me).

Study / Études : 20 minutes of revision only. And 20 minutes of reading my book "kilomètre zéro". (It's a French book)

Since I got up at almost 12 today and got out with friends, I had almost no time to work.

And my family always interrupts me so it's hard to study when they're around.

And when I got home after going out, I was tired and my mind could not work, so I forced myself to read two chapters of my book at least.

My day / Ma journée :

Woke up late. Did a few things. Managed to revise for 20 minutes before going out to meet some friends.

For the first time, I got to a café, and it was with 2 bff's on top of that. (It was in my summer to do list so I can cross that) (੭˃ᴗ˂)੭

And we ate some pâtisseries with coffee and hot chocolate.

I ate a "fraisier" with " du chocolat chaud à la chantilly"

The café was empty when we entered so it was just us, and we ate and talked a lot. Since it was just us, we were so comfortable, and the workers were lovely.

Our other friends are traveling so it was just us 3 from the friend group today. (Funny thing, the 2 friends I got out with today both have the same name) ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Then it's already 5pm, we spent an hour talking in the cafe and one of the friend has to go.

So we escorted her and got to the "Fnac" (dunno if y'all know this store, it sells electronic devices and all types of books, it's well-known in France).

We took a tour of the store, just looking around while talking. (Friends really make life experiences a hundred times better ♡♡♡)

Then she also has to go, so I also go, I look around a bookstore that resells books. There was one I'm looking for called "Beach Read", I wanted to buy a used one for cheap but didn't find it. (I could read it in French because I live in France and the book has been translated, but I sometimes like to buy books in English so my English level doesn't decrease. And I'm glad I can buy english books in France, and they also happen to cost less than the french version, which is nice.)

Anyway, I decided to command it in a library, it should be available in less than a week.

Then, I buy some cookies for my hungry brother at home.

And on the way home, I buy myself a bubble tea and a poke bowl.

Wasn't really hungry, so that was my dinner.

When I got home I was just so tired. I wanted to sleep immediately, but it was 8pm, too early.

I preferred to wait until a more adequate sleeping time so I wouldn't wake up in the middle of the night and not be able to go back to sleep for multiple hours. 😔

Anyway, I kept myself busy, read, journaled, right now it's 11:30pm and I will now sleep immediately.

My goal for tomorrow is to wake up at 9am.

(Sleep is my worst flaw right now, and it's the hardest thing for me to improve on, waking up at 9 may seem like nothing for most people, but as ridiculous as it may sound, it's a real challenge for me. And I CAN wake up early if something obligates me, like school or other social reasons. But if it's for myself, it's almost impossible.)

Anyway. I will now sleep and wish for the better.

À plus les chouchous, on se voit demain <3.

By the way, I thought about that only know, but I know right now there are lots of tourists in France because of the Olympic games, and it's even been a few weeks that I hear multiple languages when I go out, like Italian and English, which doesn't happen usually.

Nantes, the city where I live is also part of the 10 most populated cities in France, it's not far from Paris and situated in the West, so it makes sense that people also come to Nantes.

So I was just thinking about that, if some of you are in Nantes right now let me know, I could give out multiple places to visit and lots of things to do. Nantes is an incredible city, there is so much to do.

So let me know. And have an excellent time in France and its beautiful cities. <33

[missguomeiyun]

dinner @ Il Poom

Cozy dinner last month with Susan - at a (likely family-run) Korean restaurant in the south side called Il Poom.

Here, I'll give you a preview of our meal:

It has been a while since I've gone out for Korean food :') I really don't dine out much these days, which is why there has been a major shift in my posted content, esp since the pandemic. But more so now, 'post-'pandemic times, things just cost so much more! But anyway, once in a while is okay haha & I LOVE Korean food so I'd wanna try every new Korean restaurant that opens in Edm.

I believe they've been open since the last quarter of 2023. Correct me if I'm wrong! I've only heard about them/seen their posts on socials in January. Located in a small strip mall, I had high expectations!

The entrance had this chalkboard sign. .. "Dumplimg" soup haha

Got a table that was right in front of their semi-open kitchen. Definitely a diff kind of view at Korean restaurants here in Edm. However, this is a suual sight for casual family-style restaurants in Korea. So I actually enjoyed this =]

Not a lot of business fr a Friday evening but I didn't mind at all. There were a few other tables of customers that shared the space during the time we were there. Everyone was speaking Korean haha honestly, I felt like I was 'brought back' to Korea.

Now let's take a look at their menu.

Me being me, I had already browsed several times before arriving here but there were items that were no longer available.

A good selection of menu items. Korean restaurant menus aren't very extensive that usually cover a few categories. This place was no exception.

You're sure to find something for everybody.

Their drinks. We wanted to try the Mae Hwa Su but they sold out. The lady recommended the Bokbunja instead (the black raspberry wine).

Bokbunja with banchans: potato salad, radish kimchi, cabbage kimchi & stir-fried soy sauce fish cakes.

Their kimchi was so good! It's not very fermented so it's not sour. It was more savoury than spicy or sweet. Reminded me of the kimchis I had in Busan, where their kimchis were more salty.

As for the wine, I liked it! It was very sweet!

Doganitang: ox knee soup.

I've never had ox knee before.. . Personally, I am not a fan of tendon, cartilage. .. that kind of stuff. The texture is unattractive to me. Ox knee though. .. it's not a common item on menus here in Edm so Susan & I decided to give it a try. Broth was a creamy off-white colour & comes with a side of noodles. (1 small bowl of noodles with the soup; not per person at the table)

To my surprise, I did not think there would be too many pieces of whatever ox knee looks like in the soup lol there were about 8-10 pieces. I had 3 pieces - & you know what, it was tolerable! I wouldn't have gone for a 2nd & a 3rd piece if I didn't like it. Texture was soft; wasn't gooey, wasn't crunchy. It means they've boiled the heck out of it. The broth was quite bland though; however, that's what these broths are like. You have to add your own seasonings. I like the radish kimchi :P

Next up was the yookgaejang, spicy beef brisket soup. Guess what, it had intestines in it o_O I've never had yookgaejang with meat pieces other than beef brisket lol it was diff. Not only that, it also contained scant amounts of tripe. Although I didn't mind the extra stuff (I don't eat intestine but had 2 pieces bcos again, I thought it was okay), I do prefer the 'original' version of yookgaejang. I just want the beef brisket! Flavour & everything else was good though!

Last item: seafood pancake. YUMMMM! The size was large; plenty of seafood; exterior was crispy. .. delicious!

Would 100% go back!

[am-i-the-asshole-official]

For context I'm (20) living with my dad and brother (16). I've just finished my first year of college so I have a lot of free time (been looking for temp/part time jobs to fill the time but its slow going). Dad is, functionally, living with his gf elsewhere. He still pays the bills and he'll be back home 2-3 days a week but he mostly spends it at his desk so he's there but he's not really there.

I do just about everything around the house, taking out the trash, cleaning, shopping (dad sends money to cover most of the cost), laundry etc. And sure, I have time, I can do that, but no one else does anything, other than my brother doing his own washing up and occasionally laundry if repeatedly prompted.

I get it, this sounds petty, and maybe it is, but the real problem here is my dad. He will occasionally grace us with his presence for a few hours, but somehow, somehow he leaves a ridiculous amount of mess in his wake. He doesn't do the dishes, letting it pile up in the bowl, won't take his laundry upstairs, leaves chip packets lying around and he doesn't put the milk back in the fridge, sometimes he doesn't even put the lid back on it!

I got sick of it and told the pair of them that I was done cleaning messes I didn't contribute to, and I stopped clearing the sides and washing other people's dishes.

Unsurprisingly, the end result was the washing up bowl and half eaten cereal began to develop mold and I was once again left to deal with it.

I addressed my grievances with dad and he got really annoyed at me, talking about how hard it was for him when his gf doesn't want to come over (which 1. wasn't relevant and 2. it's not her fault if he, a grown adult man, chooses to stay with her instead of us) and how we must think it's so funny to leave his mess for him to clean up when he wants to come home from work and not have to deal with that. Anything I said about equal chore distribution and the fact that most adults manage to go to work, come home and still do the dishes was not taken in, as business continues as usual.

I know this isnt a dramatic or interesting read but I'm kind of losing my mind here, I know everyone else is being an ass but I dont know if I am as well. AITA for not wanting to do the housework for 3 people even though I have the time to do it?

What are these acronyms?

[siristaci]

I need to tell y'all about this Mongolian barbeque place in my city that was... something special.

But first, a little about me. I hate trying new things, had a really bad immune system (I promise that's relevant), have a hard time processing accents that makes talking to people with heavy accents anxiety-inducing, and another thing I was going to point out but can't remember right now. Hopefully I'll remember before posting this and amend it.

It's been closed for a few years, so you also need to keep in mind that my memories of this place are, at most recent, about 8 years old.

Y'all. Once I was finally convinced to try this place (about 17 years ago), I fucking loved it. Went as often as I could afford.

There were always only two people running the place- an Asian woman, who acted as the host/waitress/cashier and spoke just enough heavily-accented english to get by, and an Asian man, who was the cook and spoke even less english.

The place was dark and dirty. There's not a chance in hell it ever passed health inspections. The back corner of the dining area was difficult to see from the front (impossible when you first walked in and were day-blind) and no dining customers were ever sat there. There were, however, usually at least a couple of businessmen looking guys sat there who, if they spoke to each other at all, were too quiet to be heard from just a few tables away. They were rarely eating; just sitting there doing idk what. I didn't look often nor long because I just had this overwhelming feeling that it was best not to pay too much attention to them.

When you arrived, the woman would chat with you about what's been going on in your life since she last saw you (she had an excellent memory, even remembering me a few years since the last time I'd been there) as you were seated at booths whose seats no longer had functional springs and asked what you want to drink. You had to ask what drinks they had, since there was no menu. And no sign saying how much anything cost at all.

The food was set out in a buffet style. You'd load up a bowl with meat, veggies, and sauce, and hand it off to the guy, who would cook it and give it back to you. How long had the food been sitting out? Who knows? I went at various times of the day and never saw anything get refilled.

But the food was good, and I never got sick, despite the aforementioned terrible immune system. It was a tad pricey, but definitely a worthwhile treat.

After it closed, I was heartbroken and needed to find a replacement. I went to reddit to see if anyone had any recommendations. Or any idea why it had closed. Sure, it never had many customers at any given time. I think the most tables filled (by dining customers anyway) at once was 3 out of the maybe 12 available. But that had been the case for the 15 years I'd been going. Declining patronage couldn't be the answer.

I couldn't find a ton of references to the place; just a handful of posts asking the same questions I was. Any good replacements? And what happened?

But the responses were many. A few comments recommending the same three places. A lot of people sad to learn that it was closed or reminiscing about how good it was and how long it had been there- while most experiences had the same negative things to say as I did (health code concerns and a wariness of the men in the back), nearly everyone agreed that it had been a great place.

And there was a universally agreed-on theory that it had been a money-laundering scheme that was no longer needed.

Ah. Yeah, that makes sense, actually.

But here's the funny part. Recently, another post reminded me of this place. And I wanted to read those reviews again, but I didn't want to use reddit because, well.

So I just googled it. It's hard to find any reference to it at all since it's closed, never had a website, and it's name was similar to a national (maybe global? I don't care enough to look it up) fast food chain. All I could really find were old Yelp reviews.

Nobody on Yelp liked this place.

There were only two good reviews. One was just the same "LOVE this place! GREAT food and great atmosphere! Other things in all caps and lots of exclamation marks!" you see everywhere, and the other was this.

Y'all

Anyway, I just find it funny that everyone- myself, the people I introduced it to, the people I know who already knew of it, reddit, and yelp- all had pretty much the same experience, but reddit (and the people I know)- who all agreed it was sketchy all around- loved it and yelp- who only had health code concerns- hated it.

[leoinjapan]

A week in Colombia

Day 1

i arrived at El Dorado Airport at 4am, having slept not that great on a six-hour overnight flight from Toronto. my friend had booked me a taxi straight from the airport to her apartment; taxis here are really cheap, around 4 pounds to get across the entire city. Uber is also widely used here, although you should sit in the front seat as they are not actually allowed in Bogotá. apartments in Bogotá are really well protected, with different security measures to keep you safe. first i napped for a few hours and then had a delicious vegan bowl made by my friend's lovely mom. then my friend showed me around her neighbourhood, Chapinero, a historically queer district in north Bogotá. i learned how Colombia is a really queer and trans-friendly country, where gay marriage is legal and trans people have complete right of self-determination to change their documents, even with non-binary options, as well as gender-affirming healthcare!

for lunch my friend treated me to patacones, a mashed plantain baked to a crisp and topped with delicious toppings. she also showed me some awesome bookstores, such as Nada and Tornamesa. i tried delicious local chocolate from Fruto de Cacao. the weather was amazing at around 23 degrees celcius, not too sunny but pleasantly warm with no wind. luckily i did not suffer immediately from the altitude sickness that many tourists get when they arrive, as Bogotá is the highest capital city above sea level in the world.

we went back to watch a documentary about Lemebel, a queer icon in latin america (my friend was scandalized i had not heard of him). then i napped a bit more, which was a mistake; i woke up feeling so sick that i couldn't eat!

then we went to Theatron, latin america's biggest queer club. the streets that were empty before came alive with music and thousands of people. we had hotdogs from Nomáda Bogotá which were lovely, but sadly i was too sick to eat. Theatron has over 15 rooms with different types of music and live shows, and a capacity of over 6000. entry is less than £10 on saturdays (cheaper on other days) and includes a drink (gatorade for me)! my friend tells me more and more straight people come to the club now, but it was still very queer-friendly and one of the coolest club experiences i have ever had.

Day 2

for lunch my friend took me to a delicious vegan restaurant that does all traditional Colombian food, called Maria Candela. i tried ajiaco, a Bogotán dish of a herbal soup made with different kinds of local potatoes and chicken. it was so yummy, cheap and super filling!

i then went on a general tour of Bogotá hosted by Beyond Colombia. the guide was super enthusiastic and taught me so many things i didn't know about Colombia. we walked around important sights in its history, tasted the local traditional alcohol called chicha (fermented corn and sugar), and walked around the iconic La Candelária district. it was so colourful, full of street art and intricate crafts.

we then went to see Past Lives (again) at the cinema. the cinema quality was amazing, and the popcorn tasted really good! during Oscars season, you can get a pass to all the Oscars movies in february.

Day 3

in the morning i took an Uber to the bottom of the Monserrate, a mountain in Bogotá. it costs about £6 for a return journey on the cable car up the mountain to its peak, where you will find a church, a tourist market, and some restaurants. you can hike up the mountain yourself, but it takes around 2 hours. on the holy week, people walk up barefoot or on their knees on a sacrificial pilgrimage up the mountain to the church. in the church is the Black Madonna, based on the same iconic statue on the Montserrat mountain in Catalonia.

(this is also when i found out i got into the university of tokyo starting in april!)

it was super foggy on the 3000 metre high mountain and we could barely see the city. it started to pour with rain and my umbrella was not enough. unfortunately i got cold and wet without a coat, and was also exposed to high levels of UV up on the mountain, which led me to develop a fever later that evening...

i tried a bit of coca tea on the mountain. in Colombia and other countries in the Andes mountain range, people have been consuming coca leaves for centuries. coca tea contains a small amount of cocaine with mild stimulant effects, much like caffeine in coffee, and is completely harmless. Colombians use it to cure altitude sickness, nausea, and other stomach upsets.

i took my friends i made on the tour to Maria Candela again and i tried frijolada, which is a wholesome bean soup that i really loved. after that, i went to the Botero Museum/MAMU which has some really unique art from international artists, paintings by the iconic Colombian painter Botero, and a current exhibition highlighting indigenous culture and art (all in Spanish). it's free to visit so i definitely recommend going!

when my friend heard i felt sick, she took me to get aguapanela. panela is unrefined sugar, which you put in hot water for a nice soothing beverage. the Bogotá tradition is to put pieces of cheese in it, let them melt and then eat them! since i'm vegan i had it with bread. it was very delicious

Day 4

i had a restless night with my fever and decided to stay at home for the day. my tour guide even cancelled, so it felt like a sign not to go anywhere.

my friend's mom was an absolute angel and made me delicious vegan food and hot drinks and before long i felt a lot better

Day 5

in the morning i went on a war and peace-themed walking tour, also operated by Beyond Colombia. our guide was super knowledgeable, condensing centuries' worth of history into three hours. i learned so much about Colombia's recent history and controversies and i highly recommend this tour.

after that, i went to the Gold Museum (or Museo del Oro), which houses pre-Hispanic golden artefacts. in the indigenous culture, gold represented the sun and did not have monetary value; it was used in crafting and often offered back to nature. El Dorado is not a place, but an ancient ritual in which gold is thrown into the water, particularly a large lake near Bogotá; the Spanish dug up a lot of it and melted it into gold bars, but this museum still holds a large collection of 35,000, which is still only about 1% of the original artifacts that have been sacrificed in the ritual over the millennia.

at the end of the day my friend invited me to a collage-making workshop, which was really fun and therapeutic!

Day 6

at 8am in the morning, i took an Uber to the Paloquemao fruit market, where i was to have an AirBnB Experiences tour with my friend's brother, Victor. i was stunned by the amount of fruit i had never seen before. i tried different avocados, guavas, berries, cactus fruit, melons, and more. my favourite was the guanabana, or custard apple, which tastes exactly like custard!

the market is also full of beautiful flowers, vegetables, souvenirs and all sorts. i recommend visiting, though take an Uber as apparently it is not in the safest of neighborhoods.

in the evening i went to the National Museum, which houses an impressive amount of information about Colombian history. there are currently a few exhibitions about indigenous cultural revival. i was most excited to see a small exhibition about Las Traviesas, a collective of displaced indigenous trans women in Colombia, which was a beautiful and inspiring display of art.

towards the end of my visit, i developed a migraine. i got a tasty dinner at Wok and then went home to recover. thank you again to my friend and her mom for taking care of me!

on the day there was a big protest in the city centre in support of the current president. it's better to try and avoid the city centre when there are big protests.

Day 7

me and my friend went on a day trip to Villa de Leyva, a town north of Bogotá in the beautiful Boyacá region, famous for its emeralds. the bus trip took between 4 and 5 hours each way.

the town is absolutely gorgeous, full of cobbled streets and old colonial architecture. it was more touristy than Bogotá, with lots of tourist shops and some tasty food options. i got gelato made with tamarind and tajín (chilli flakes). for lunch, we went to La Maria Bistro which had an incredible brocolli dish that was the best thing i've eaten in a long while.

we went to Casa Terracota, the world's largest ceramic structure. it took 15 years for the architect to bake the house, during which it fell down three times. the construction was incredible and it was a very unique experience. usually the tour is only in spanish, but the guide did a great job translating it to english for me. the crazy thing was that he did his study abroad in Paignton, which is the town next to my hometown!

Day 8

on the last day, my friend and i went into the city to buy souvenirs for my family. there are tons of tourist shops and stalls in La Candelária, and we did our best research to find out which crafts were authentic. for lunch we want to Maria Candela again as the whole city was having a vegan burger festival with several restaurants participating.

in the afternoon we went to see Perfect Days, a really beautiful japanese movie. the cinema in Bogotá was really nice, with great quality screens and tasty snacks.

in the evening we went to my friend's favourite taco place, Insurgentes. the vibe was great and the tacos were delicious (mostly meat but some vegan).

for our final stop, we went to Chiquita. much smaller than Theatron but with a majority queer crowd, the music was on point and the atmosphere was great. there were even a couple of drag performances which apparently happen every night. i really loved this bar, which had a mixture of 90s/2000s pop and latin pop. i could have stayed there much longer but i had to get home to sleep before my flight at 9am.

i am the first to admit i knew nothing about Colombia (or even South America in general) before coming to Bogotá. i was eager to learn, and yet i learned far more than i ever imagined. Colombia exceeded my expectations 100 times over.

the internet is full of scary stories about Colombia, yet i felt safer here than i ever have in the US, for example. the city is so vibrant, colourful, and creative, full of life and soul. it is also the most queer-friendly capital i have been to, with the most amazing clubs you could imagine.

i learned so much about the history of the country, the language, the food, the art, and the gorgeous nature that's around every corner.

but what makes Colombia so, so great is the people. everybody here was so friendly and made such an effort to make me feel welcome, even though i know barely any Spanish. the city feels so alive with passion, hope, and resistance. i am so, so grateful to my friend Estefanía for taking care of me while i was there, looking after me and showing me the real Bogotá, making sure i knew where to go and what to do. she really is the best of us, and i will never forget her kindness 💕

i am so grateful to her incredible mother as well for nursing me back to health when i was sick!

i would come back to Colombia in a heartbeat, but until then, i have to get on the language apps!