#poor thing simultaneously had a terrible time (very cold in the fridge)

[dramatic-dolphin]

it's really nice that i can go up to my mom with "i found someone in the bag of peas! :D" and hold up a caterpillar, and she immediately matches my energy with "wow who is that!! :O how adorable!" instead of being grossed out or something

[russian-romanova]

thankful

title: thankful

pairing: the losers club

word count: 2K

warnings: adult language, 

notes: happy thanksgiving to those of you who live in the states! let’s spend the day pretending all of the losers are alive and well and very happy and munching on some pie. :)  the spouses aren’t in this, and i apologize for that! i genuinely love both patty and audra, but it just felt more natural with just the losers. 

summary: it’s that time of year again where your friends all gather and essentially just eat a crapload of food.

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Thanksgiving was fairly late this year, and it silently annoyed all of the Losers. At least once a month, you all made a point to gather together and catch up, and your November get-together had always been on Thanksgiving. Your October meeting -- Bowling, per Ben’s request -- had been early enough in the month that it had been around a month and a half since you had seen any of your friends. You would never tell them, but you missed them on these off weeks. 

But it had finally arrived. Thanksgiving, one of your favorite get-togethers of the year, was finally today. This time around, Bill had pulled the short straw and was subject to hosting the eight adults at his house, a displeasing assignment you had been subjected to three years prior. Although you still shuddered at the stress, you knew you had nothing compared to the three years in a row poor Mike had hosted. 

At least the cooking was a potluck. Stan had made a spreadsheet that you all filled out and signed up for the classic list of your Thanksgiving favorites, as well as Richie’s additional write-in of ‘Ice Cream’. It had gone unnoticed for a few days until Eddie looked it over and sent some very strongly worded texts to the Loser’s group chat about sticking to the list, or at least asking first. Spoiler: Richie’s still bringing ice cream. 

You were on mashed potatoes and gravy duty, which sat in two separate containers next to you on the passenger’s seat of your car. The drive from your place to Bill’s house wasn’t bad, and you had gone that way enough times that you knew the backroads enough to miss the worst of the Thanksgiving traffic. You played some music softly, but it was only background noise as your mind spiraled off into different thought, from grown-up things to childhood things, keeping you company as you arrived at Bill’s. 

You rang the doorbell, your hand quickly sliding back into your pocket to keep warm. The door opened and you were greeted by Stanley Uris, who you smiled at. Greetings were passed back and forth, and once your coat was off they were replaced with hugs. Stan was dressed in a grey collared sweater and looked to be warmer than you felt coming in from the cold. The two of you made small talk before you walked to the kitchen, where Bill was rushing around doing God knows what. 

“I would hug you but I have shit all over my hands,” He held up his hands to prove his point.

You made a face. “Gross,” You set your bag down on the counter and pulled out the Tupperware containers. 

“Mashed potatoes and... gravy?” Bill turned his head to see what was inside. “Make sure you mark it off on Eddie’s checklist.”

“I know,” You opened the fridge and had to squat down to rearrange some things, pushing Stan’s stuffing and bottles of beer to the side before there was a spot for the potatoes and gravy. The checklist was a classic Eddie thanksgiving staple. “Where did he put it?”

“He has it on him. Eddie doesn’t trust anyone after last year,” Bill turned his back away from you as he began cutting something up on a cutting board. You laughed a little to yourself. Last year had been at Ben’s house, but Richie had infamously defaced Eddie’s checklist. Even defaced was a pretty light word, you had to admit. 

“Is everyone in the living room?” You stood up and closed the fridge.

“Yep,” Bill responded before you thanked him, walking through the house a little before you made it to the living room. You had heard them before you walked in, the hearty burst of laughter drifting through the house like music. It was a slight relief to see that you weren’t the last one there, rather you were simply joining the ranks of Bill and Stan, plus Eddie and Ben. 

Both Eddie and Ben stood up, and you smiled at them. Quickly and naturally, the two of them moved in to hug you, Ben first and Eddie after that. 

After you had Eddie had pulled away, you said, “I put my potatoes and gravy in the fridge,” You gestured behind you with your thumb. “Is my word enough or do you need proof of purchase?”

“I trust you,” Eddie nodded, reaching into his pocket to pull out a folded sheet of paper. 

“You know we probably don’t need a checklist anymore, right?” You added. 

Eddie shook his head. “We forgot something once, remember? Don’t tell me you forgot. We forgot the turkey AND the stuffing, and that was probably the saddest Thanksgiving I’ve ever been to.” 

Ben stifled a laugh from next to you. “We were fourteen, right? Maybe fifteen?” 

“Fourteen,” Stan said from the couch. 

You all sat around and talked for around fifteen minutes before the doorbell rang, and your hands silently went up to your nose to see who would get it. Eddie, who was the slowest, gave a half-hearted “Fuck you,” Before standing up to get the door, which made the remaining three of you giggle. 

Eddie opened the door, and a cold, red-cheeked Richie greeted him. “Appetizers!” He shouted, holding a plastic bag full of what you assumed was pure calories. 

Eddie looked genuinely stunned. “Asshole! I was on appetizers. You signed up for your stuff.”

Richie held up a second plastic bag. “Yeah, butter and ice cream. Your appetizers are shit so I thought we should have options. Look, Bill agrees. Right, Big Bill?” 

“Leave me out of it,” Bill responded as he hurried by. 

Eddie spun back around to look a Richie, choosing to take Bill’s lack of agreement as a win, but his friend was already pushing past him to bring the dairy products to the fridge. Rather, he’d bring them into the kitchen and put them on the counter for someone else to notice and frantically put away. 

Mike was next to arrive. His hands were full, two pies carefully stacked in one hand and a third in his other. You had opened the door for him and tried to resist the urge to drool.

“One is pecan, one is blueberry, and one is lemon meringue,” He explained, passing them to you after you shared the best hug you could manage with his hands as full as they were. “And two pumpkins in the car.” Mike Hanlon, you decided, was the God of pies. 

Beverly was the last to arrive, rolls and cranberries in a reusable bag that dangled from her arm. Ben had recognized her car through the window and attempted to casually race to open up the door for her. The two spent an awfully long time catching up by themselves at the door, although you could only smile to yourself. It had been that way since they were kids, and it had always been sweet enough. 

Ben then walked Bev into the kitchen, where the two managed to bring Bill out of whatever cooking trance he was in 

“What are you even doing in there, Bill?” Richie asked as Ben, Bill, and Beverly walked in. 

Bill pushed down the sleeves of his shirt. “A last-minute casserole thing.” You could tell Eddie had to bite his tongue to keep from commenting on the addition. “My mom used to make it a lot and she sent me the recipe. I figured I should at least try it.”

“Well, it looked good when I was in there,” Mike commented, and a number of you hummed in agreement. 

“Thanks, guys,” Bill said, before half-joking, “At least if it’s terrible, you guys’ll be honest.” 

You chuckled. “Some more than others.” You shot a goofy side glance at Beverly, who turned bright red.

“What? You can’t still be mad about the cornbread.” She said. You raised an eyebrow. “That was like, eleven years ago.” 

Laughing, you replied, “You spit it out. You actually spit out the cornbread!” The other losers laughed for a moment as you all remembered the visual, with Beverly taking the first bite of the cornbread you had made that year and spitting it onto her plate. You had thought she was choking at first, but when she began laughing you realized it had been the cornbread itself. When you took a bite of your own moments later, you could hardly blame her. It was safe to say that cornbread would not be returning to the Loser’s thanksgiving menu for a very long time. 

When you were all talking, the time seemed to fly by viciously. Before you knew it, the clocks already read 6:00, which Ben had suggested you all plan on eating by. Eddie had insisted everyone wash their hands, so there was some delay as everyone washed up or at least lied about doing so. Soon enough, however, you were all sitting at the mismatched tables that had been pulled together to hold the eight of you. Mike was on one side of you with the other currently empty, but Mike seemed to have his mind elsewhere. Instead, you chose to make goofy faces at Richie across the table, and then struggle to read each other’s lips in a silent conversation. 

“You could actually talk,” Stan suggested, knowing neither of you would listen. Both Richie and you simultaneously mouthed ‘No,’ turning back to your challenge.

Soon everyone else had arrived at the table. Bill had settled in next to you, the last to arrive before Richie decided all the food was fair game and made a dive for either the cranberries or the turkey -- you weren’t sure as you had already turned to bug Beverly to pass you the rolls from the other end of the table. Talk dwindled at first as everyone began eating, but it sprang up more as food consumption slowed. 

“I’m thankful for you guys.” Ben addressed all of you, smiling shyly as he admitted the thought. 

Richie spoke up first. “Cheesy,” He said. “Very cheesy, but very Haystack.” 

“Aw, thanks, Ben.” Beverly ignored Richie’s comment and smiled up at Ben. He blushed and sat back down. 

Bill raised up his bottle of beer. “Hey, let’s cheer to Losers.” He looked around the table.“May they have much to be grateful for this coming year.” You all complied, bringing your assorted drinks up to meet in the middle, the loud noise making you all laugh. 

You were happy to be spending this Thanksgiving with this crew, although you weren’t brave enough to voice it as Ben had. No, you would keep quiet about it but they all knew. Looking from face to face, you understood silently and mutually that this was the biggest thing to be thankful for, no matter how cheesy it sounded. 

“Happy Thanksgiving, guys.” You smiled at them once the noise of cheers had faded. They chimed back in unison, the individual wishes lost in the general noise. You were thankful, alright. Thankful that they were all here, that you had this chance to talk and eat and joke. You were thankful that Bill’s casserole had turned out to be good, and that you had Mike’s pies to look forward to when you thought you couldn’t eat anymore. You were thankful for Bill and for Beverly, for Eddie, Stan, Mike, and somehow even Richie. You were even thankful that you were all Losers because what else would have brought you together? Fate, you cheesily decided. Well, then you were thankful for fate too.

[lizzylightning]

Overdue Update. AKA - The Hospital Post

Damn Tumblr, it has been a minute. I've intended to make a post several times and actually began a few of them but have found myself too mentally drained to put forth the effort to finish them. It's your lucky day though, work is slow and I need something to do to maintain sanity whilst I sit in the floor waiting for my next run so you win Tumblr, YOU WIN. Life has been simultaneously wonderful and mega stressful, it's beginning to seem as though that's just its nature although I really wish it weren't. Since I was too foolish to see when I last made a post before this one, I can't exactly remember what has gone on since then but I'll do my best to hit a few of the high points. About a month ago both my girlfriend and I experienced a terrible weekend that began with her fainting on me three times due to dehydration that was caused by some mild food poisoning (pro tip: don't eat meat that's been left open in the fridge for two weeks) and ending with me in the hospital for dehydration myself. Drew had been feeling a little off prior to us starting to cook dinner that Friday evening but she figured it was just because she was hungry, during making spaghetti she felt like she needed to sit down so I took over cooking duties for her. She sat there for a few moments and then had to run to the bathroom, upon her return she didn't look well, she was pale, very clammy and cool to the touch. The first time she fainted it was your stereotypical fainting event, she felt like she was on the way out and then slowly collapsed in the floor, I rushed over to her and she quickly came to. I gave her some water and our roommate, after hearing all the commotion of me trying to wake her came out and gave her a granola bar to eat. She appeared to be feeling somewhat better so she sat while I finished dinner and then we ate. Shortly after eating dinner she began to throw up, we both attributed this to her having eaten some long out of date pepperoni left over from the pizza she had made me on Valentines Day (did I mention she's the best?) she had eaten for lunch that day. She clearly wasn't feeling well post vomiting but not really much worse than one would expect, so neither of us worried too much. That didn't last long though, a few minutes later she went to the bathroom again and less than a minute after she went in I heard a thud all the way from our room. I burst into the bathroom to find her on the toilet slumped over against the wall, completely unconscious with both her eyes and mouth wide open. This time it took me a solid 30 seconds to wake her back up, she was cold, clammy and completely out of it. She slowly regained function over the next few minutes but just barely. As I sat there with her telling her that I was going to take her to the hospital, her eyes rolled back, her head fell back, started gritting her teeth and something I've still decided if it was gasping for breath or snoring. It was around this time I went into full freak out mode, I desperately tried to wake her up but it took a full minute and when I finally got her to respond she was so woozy she could hardly sit up. I cleaned her up the best I could, sort of carried her to the car and rushed her to the hospital. It was around 1pm on Saturday at this point. I would be thankful that we currently live within minutes of the hospital if it weren't for the fact that we sat in the waiting room for nearly 4 hours before she was taken back to be seen by a doctor. 4 hours of sitting in an uncomfortable chair, in a cold room, watching my severely dehydrated and as I felt at the time, potentially dying girlfriend sitting in a wheelchair across from me. I've been thru so many tough times and traumatic experiences in my life but even by this point this was by far the scariest thing I've ever experienced. I was so scared to lose her and felt so helpless... here I am a month later and still find myself welling up with tears here at work just thinking about it. Every time I walk into the bathroom at home I can't help but to remember the sight as I came thru the door and found her against the wall. I truly hope this was the last time we have to go thru anything like this for a long time. Anyway, after a mere eternity in the waiting room we were taken back to a room in the ER, from here things improved a lot... for a while at least. Once back in the room, the doctors and nurses unlike the nurses in reception, were reasonably respectful of my girlfriends pronouns. I think we both cut them a little slack because as of that time she had yet to get her name change completed or her gender marker on her ID changed, it sure was a motivator to get working on that, which she has since done. I am thankful that they did take her medical issues seriously, Drew has had hypertension for a long time and has been on two different blood pressure medications for years, so they were sure to give her an EKG and keep a steady eye on her BP and pulse. As soon as they got her started on an IV she seemed to regain some skin color and feel a little better despite being exhausted. We were both exhausted at that point, I had been up for 23 hours straight, so I pulled two chairs together enough to at least stretch my legs out and managed catch two half hour long naps while Drew got a good two hours worth of sleep. Her health thankfully continued to improve and she was released around 1pm Saturday. When we left the hospital she was not yet at a 100% but I would say she was at 75% at least, I could tell this because during the last few hours before her discharge, as we sat and watched tv she was practically drooling at every commercial that featured food. That's the Drew I know! I was so glad to finally be headed home to sleep but more importantly I was stoked to be headed to Subway, it had been nearly 15 hours since I had eaten by then. When we got home we both ate our subs and promptly went to sleep. Things get sort of hazy for me after that though. I do remember we woke up at some point and ate dinner, some time shortly after that my stomach became very upset and I began to have diarrhea and started vomiting. Drew thankfully was doing a lot better but my gastric distress continued throughout that evening and into the night. Initially I wasn't too worried about the situation with my stomach. I have both gastroparesis and bile salts malabsorption, if I eat too much too frequently, I vomit because of slow digestion due to my stomach muscle being paralyzed. If I eat too little or too infrequent, I'll have to deal with diarrhea, low blood sugar and some vomiting due to a complication from my gallbladder removal in 2003. We had spent so long in the hospital and the only snack machine I could find was broken so I just wasn't able to eat, this in turn completely destroyed my stomach... as soon as food hit it, my body rejected it. By the next morning I still wasn't feeling fantastic but anything was an improvement over the night before, so we started the day with breakfast and hoped for a quiet day of recovery. Within an hour I found myself in the bathroom and was very ill. I vomited until it hurt, until the undigested spaghetti from Friday night came back up (it was lunchtime Sunday at this point). I tried to eat crackers, I tried to rest, I tried to drink water but I couldn't even keep that down. Finally I reached a point where I could barely stand, I couldn't maintain conversation... I was so exhausted I found I had to choose between physical movement or talking as I no longer had the capability to do both at the same time. So yet again, roughly 48 hours after I had taken Drew to the hospital, she was driving me there. When we arrived I was a mess but I had very low expectation for treatment as I felt Drew had been much worse off than I and it took nearly 4 hours for her to be seen, so we began our wait. I was so thirsty and physically uncomfortable, it was only about 30 minutes in before I became so uncomfortable I couldn't take sitting in the chair any longer and decided to lay on the floor of the emergency room. In hindsight this was a poor decision, I can't fathom how gross that floor actually was, but in my fevered mind it was all I could do to survive. It took about an hour and a half before I was taken back to a room, the nurses and doctors poured in as they had done before, asking a million questions, including the ever frustrating "when was your last period? Never? Why is that? <insert confusion>" I got stabbed in the arm by a lovely gentleman who confided in me that a good friend of his had recently transitioned from FTM, and while I still have a bruise on my arm from the whiff he took finding my vein the first time, I enjoyed his friendliness. It used to be I would find myself annoyed with that sort of interaction, the whole "Hey! Your're trans! There's the other trans person I know too!" but amid the current political climate, it makes me feel good to know that there are CIS people who know at least one trans person. I don't think that can ever be a bad thing and hopefully they'll speak well of and stuck up for us during the ever present transphobic workplace conversations that crop up. Anywho, my treatment was fairly routine. I was severely dehydrated so the started an IV and gave me ice chips, which I have to say, when you're that dehydrated... ice chips are fucking heaven sent. I got two bags of fluid, about half way during the second bag they decided to start checking my vitals. I was so uncomfortable and in such a bad mood it only took a few minutes before I freaked out and removed the blood pressure cuff and pulse/blood oxygen sensor thingy, much to the displeasure of the in room monitors alarm. Thankfully the doctor could tell I was feeling better and didn't press the issue which was a relief, without pain meds I would rather die than have those contraptions on my arm. I got discharged around 9am and we both went home and slept all day long. It was glorious. I missed that day of work and the next which was a total bummer, but since my work is so physical there was no way I could've managed, upon my return on Wednesday I could hardly function, earlier than that would've been an impossibility. It took about two weeks before either of us made a full recovery and life, as always has been up and down. We've had some great days though, this weekend was particularly wonderful even though Drew has been dealing with allergies along with playing a show Saturday night, so now her voice makes her sound like she's about to do some rad skateboard tricks or something. Minor car troubles have been a thing too and there's some interesting news on that front, but I'll save that for my next entry. Until next time Tumblr... until next time....