#so i need to get my driver's license but since i moved countries

[simplepotatofarmer]

also sorry for not really being around! i'm studying for a test i have to take and trying to write at the same time so yeah. busy <3 <3

[am-i-the-asshole-official]

aita for telling my brother that he has to break up with his gf of 3 years

⛸️✈️ (so i can recognize this ask)

tw for obsessive behavior and slight mention of incest (nothing about actual incest just creepy shit that my brothers gf did itll make more sense if you read it)

it sounds bad i know but hear me out

my brother (28M) has been dating this girl (30F) who we will call Kate for about 3 years but recently i (16X) told him to break up with her.

my brother and i have been very close since i was little and he practically raised me. ive seen him try to find love before but never successfully so when he told me he was dating a girl online i was really happy for him. i had my doubts but i just kept it to myself because he was happy and thats all that really matters to me. they had visited before, and when i met kate she was super nice and i really enjoyed hanging out with her too. and then about a year ago they decided to move in together. however kate didnt want to move away from her family so my brother moved across the country to live with her. at this point she was 29, didnt have her drivers license, lived with her mom and worked at walmart. they had agreed that if my brother moved out there kate would get her license, they would find an apartment, and she would try and get a better job. so my brother moved out there to be with her. back then i had hoped they would break up because i didnt want him to move but again i didnt say anything because i just wanted him to be happy. a year later kate has not followed through with any of the things they agreed on. so for the past year my brother has been living with kate, her mom, her moms bf and occasionally her grandparents. kates family is all unemployed (her mom was fired her moms bf is a slacker and her grandparents retired) do the only 2 providing for the whole family are kate and my brother. as i mentioned before kate works at walmart so she doesnt make enough money. so all the financial responsibility falls to my brother who has a well paying job. about a month ago in december my brother called our mom and asked for relationship advice. eventually he said that he wasnt happy in the relationship and decided to have a talk with kate about how she hasnt done anything she promised. she got really emotional but then agreed to start working on things but that didnt last very long, she was back to her old routine in 2 days. after i heard that he was unhappy it all started to click, he never looked happy in any pictures after he moved. but when he came to visit recently i saw him actually happy and smiling. he ended up having a talk with our mom where he just spilled everything. he said that he didnt want to move in the first place but he felt like he had to for kate. after this kate started trying to keep me away from my brother. it was at this point when i told him to break up with her and move back home. the next day he went back across the country and called our mom when he got back. he had said that kate started copying all the things i do but making it kinda sexual. kate had starting being obsessive, checking his phone, not wanting him to talk to friends and family, constantly checking his location and more crazy shit. my mom and i talked about how we were going to try and help my brother because at this point it was getting out of hand and we realized that kate sees me as competition and is trying to keep me away from my brother so he wont want to move back here. i told him that he needs to break up with her and move back here for his sanity and mental health so aita for that?

tldr: kate sees me as competition for her romantic relationship with my brother so she started copying things i do but sexy even though i am a minor and her bfs little sibling so i told him to break up with her and move back home

What are these acronyms?

[umseb]

"And at some point I thought: Stop, something is wrong here" – Sebastian Vettel in his first conversation since hisdrawal from Formula 1

He is a four-time Formula 1 world champion and lives in Switzerland. Vettel explains how racing and ecological responsibility go together. And: Will he even return to the premier class?

Mr. Vettel, have you already done something good for the environment today? I was on the bike. Theoretically, I have produced electricity with it, but it is not being fed into the grid yet. However, I made more CO2 in that hour than if I had stayed in bed. But what I find exciting is what resonates with this question: always having to do something good and talk about it. That's not the central point for me. It is important that everyone has a healthy attitude towards the fact that our world is in trouble and what can do to prevent it from getting even worse. It's about attitude, not about one good deed every day.

Would you rather do good and not talk about it? In fact, you become a little more cautious when you talk with enthusiasm and conviction about how you have changed your behavior or what else is going through your head, then you often immediately get the finger wagged. I'm not even interested in the obvious things like solar systems or electric cars. What is much more important is the fact that you take a closer look at many things, become aware of something, and then question your own behavior patterns or decisions.

But you actually do good, as we know. I have trouble walking past something that others have dropped, be it a piece of trash or even just plastic. I wonder what must be going on with people who just throw things out the car window and why people don't even think a step further. It's not correct to expect that anyone will abolish it at some point.

Is this how you raise your children too? Of course that carries over. When we walk through the forest together and they see a candy wrapper lying there, they shout: Is that necessary? But I don't want the walk together to be colored negatively by only remembering this one thing that wasn't nice - and not the good air or the funny cloud. Behavioral patterns can be inspiring when I see that the little one are already dealing with packaging waste differently.

The racing drivers used to move to beautiful Thurgau because it is so close to the airport. How are you traveling? Many people have this classic image in their heads: He's a racing driver, so he always drives a car, and always always. But to be honest: I don't have that need. It was certainly different when I had just gotten my driver's license. By the way, today I prefer driving a car again than when I was active in Formula 1; I can enjoy it more. Before I get on a plane today, I tend to take the car.

Do cars even have a future in private transport? Of course, in Switzerland we are very spoiled when it comes to public transport - because it works. I really enjoy taking public transport, especially when I want to go to Zurich. You can get anywhere in Thurgau, but it just takes a little longer. Where I live there is nothing except a mailbox and a bus stop.

A four-time Formula 1 world champion can do that so easily? Of course, I have no problem with it at all. I also don't understand when other well-known people develop a paranoia that they could be recognized or harasssed. I always tell them: Yes, you too can take the bus or train. Of course I'm not Roger Federer, it's probably a little different for him. But I think people mostly travel because they want to go somewhere, not because they want to recognize anyone.

Lewis Hamilton once told the NZZ that what he appreciated about his time in Zurich was that he was able to move around in peace most of the time. For me it's the Swiss mentality, which requires more discretion. At the beginning no one knew me anyway because I was way too young. And the country is not necessarily a Formula 1 hotspot since. But even when I was traveling in Scandinavia with my VW bus and family last year, I didn't have any unpleasant encounters.

Bus, VW bus – is that your new pace of life? Yes, my pace has slowed extremely. There are already things that I miss. But that doesn't mean I miss the adrenaline rush from speed. I lived for the moment, the competition. That's what I miss most. As intense and as fast-paced as my old life was, I am sometimes surprised that I can cope with the slowness so well now. Everything adapts to the family’s pace. With children you need and learn patience. I'm more surprised that some people think: once a racing driver, always a racing driver. I never fit into many of the clichés anyway; I rather enjoyed things that were considered boring.

Are you looking for freedom on your camping trips? I not only want to gain freedom, but I also want to pass on the freedom that I had and have to my children. It's different to read about sea creatures in a book than to stand in the North Sea and see the lugworm in real life.

But the extreme tension in motorsport, this total focus, is it so easy to get away from it? It's a process, and it's probably still ongoing for me. Sometimes I miss the tension from the old world. But my days are still full. I still haven't found the time for a lot of the things I wanted to do. The result in sport is everything, and because I come from this very extrinsic world, I can say: I don't have that much to show for it after I left Formula 1.

Can you explain that in a little more detail? This constant evaluation from outside that I had since I was a child has completely disappeared; there are no longer any results lists lists. I have a lot of ideas and I'm doing a lot more things than in all the years before. I wanted exactly this idle time in which I didn't immediately dive into the next full-time job. I thought about quitting for several years. And at some point you can no longer push away the thought of ending your career. I'm busy translation this passion that I lived out in motorsport into another language and finding something new. Neverthertheless, knowing that the new thing may never trigger the same feeling as before.

There are skiers who stop and then start racing cars. When I go skiing, I so almost go. But I don't just shoot to be the fastest, I have more fun with the swings. There are many things I try my hand at. For example, I really enjoy working with wood. I would like to be more perfect at this, and of course I get annoyed when something doesn't work right away. But how can it be, the first time? But your own personality is somehow part of everything.

What is your yardstick for a happy day today? It starts with asking yourself questions: What does happiness mean? What is satisfaction? What do I want to do with my life? That is a very great good.

Do you like being a family person? It was a very conscious decision to start a family back then. At 26, I was very young by today's standards. I remember when our first daughter was born, I read in a brochure at the hospital that babies can sleep up to 20 hours a day. Great, I said to my wife, it's working. Well, we didn't have a brochure child. It took three years for her to sleep through the night.

Did you give up a lot because of motorsport? When you're in the machinery of sport, it just keeps going. I was amazed at how much I was traveling, even though I always spent as much time at home as possible and gave up a lot of things to do so. Now that I actually have more time, other relationships with the children are developing. I can tell a bedtime story every night instead of just twice a week. When we go to museums, I can see how children see the world. I find that really exciting, so because there is a lot of identity in it. On the one hand, your own influence, on the other hand, the influence from outside. It also makes me question myself.

Your identity is that of a champion. Part of the exciting part is the question of what that did to me, how my world was shaped by it. I think I lived it very intensively. And I can well understand if someone wants more and more joy and success and even becomes addicted to it. But I always had a healthy distance from it; my identity didn't depend too much on it.

What caused you to become more interested in the environment than in motorsport? There wasn't a moment when it clicked for me. As you get older, you perceive things differently and more strongly. When we talk about the future in Formula 1, we mean the next season or the season after that. Everything else was very abstract, the future was just a dictionary definition. But hey presto you have children, you want to be there for them and if possible protect them for the rest of their lives. Life happens, this is how a real future is created, the word becomes plastic. And at some point I thought: Stop, something is wrong here. What is actually going on with our world? Isn't there much more important than what has been been important to me so far? I am a very curious person and am quick to ask questions of myself and others. And suddenly a huge world opened up in front of me - with huge problems. Bigger than just the problem of making a racing car faster. I started to become really interested in politics for the first time.

That sounds like a radical change. Starting with the question: What is my life anyway? What is this footprint everyone is talking about? How do you measure it? I did some research and started writing down how I get around. And as soon as I collected data and information, I started to change my life. I stopped flying on a private jet, which used to be common practice due to time constraints and comfort. Lo and behold, it wasn't a problem to stand in line with everyone else at the airport. Twelve hours in the car to Barcelona didn't hurt my race preparation; we actually enjoyed stopping along the way and discovering Avignon, for example. The things I gave up were not freedoms, but habits.

But for many drivers, owning a car means freedom. Most cars are parked 98 percent of the time, so they are more like stationary vehicles than vehicles. But what would would our cities look like if intelligent mobility, e.g. no longer needed parking garages? There wants be radical changes in the cityscape, like when cars replaced horses. I understand that many people are afraid when something changes. But they miss the opportunity to see how much better things could be for them if cities become more livable, safer and cleaner. Don't get me wrong: I'm not one of those people who groans when a car drives past me and immediately feels sick.

Back to our problems: Is e-mobility the solution? I believe it is a solution. It makes sense, especially the efficiency of the drive speaks for it. There is still a lot of movement on the topic, including when it comes to questions about raw materials, disposal and the energy required during production. But the materials for the combustion engine also come from somewhere. The electric car makes perfect sense in cities, and it will play a central role elsewhere too. The range can be planned; very few people get up in the morning and say: Today I want to spontaneously go to Paris and back again. As far as the supposed lack of emotions when driving, I can tell you: Yes, you feel something. I actually don't want to drive anything else, it's so pleasant to drive. There are still challenges, but they can be solved. The question is: what would be the alternative?

They are working on synthetic fuels and are even demonstrating them in Formula 1 racing cars. All of us, individually and as a society, must have found a solution to all the emissions we create because of the way we move, the way we live or what we eat. There are already a lot of options, and it would just be lazy to say: That doesn't work. Synthetic fuels are a bridging technology; hydrogen, with or without combustion engines, or fuel cells can be the solution for heavy transport. We just need to redouble our efforts to move away from the old. There is no silver bullet to solving problems, which we always dreamed of in Formula 1.

You have also invested yourself in a Swiss company that stores carbon dioxide in stone. There are always many exciting approaches. I looked at what the Climeworks company is doing in Iceland; it works very well there due to the geological conditions. If you are interested in something like that, you automatically slide into other subject areas.

Have you ever thought about visiting ETH? It is represented in practically all future fields. I'm still deciding whether and if so, what I should study. After graduating from high school it would have been mechanical engineering, but that would be too dry for me today. Maybe I would rather do something creative, with my hands.

Maybe an apprenticeship instead of studying? I have already taken a few courses in agriculture. I came to the topic through nutrition, which is extremely important for professional athletes. Of course I had heard that organic is better. But what exactly is organic, why is it better, what do they do differently? During Corona I did a small internship on a farm. There is something grounding about it in the best sense of the word. Being a farmer is a great job. And I think it's a shame that he isn't sufficiently appreciated in our society.

How do you feel about Formula 1? Are you even watching anymore? Yes I do. I wanted to try withdrawal at the first Grand Prix after my last race. I actually didn't watch the training, but shortly before qualifying I had to give in and tuned in. I also watched the race. It wasn't as strange a feeling as I had previously thought, watching and no longer sitting in the car. I then saw a few races throughout the year, or at least watched the highlights. Because of course I'm still interested in the sport, even if I'm no longer that close to it. I watch with my wife and usually comment unconsciously. She says it's the first time she's really understood the sport. And if I'm right with a pit strategy, then it'll go down like oil.

Is it still appropriate to watch men driving around in circles for an hour and a half? I'm far too close to say it isn't. I love this sport, it is so multifaceted and full of depth. But I also understand that many things are too complex to be understood in an hour and a half. For me the fascination is still there. But of course I'm not neutral since.

Do you have a favorite that you're keeping your fingers crossed for? Last year belonged to Max Verstappen. Of course some people find it boring, but I think it doesn't give enough respect and recognition to his achievements. I, for one, at the full of admiration. Even for someone like the ski racer Marco Odermatt. It's not that the others are doing something wrong, they really try everything. But Max and Marco do it so much better. They give the sport its shine. That excites me. So because I still know what success feels like.

So no boredom at all? Everyone has their own view of tension. Someone from England recently asked me: “Say, skiing, can you watch it on TV?” I said: “Sure, it’s a great thing here, in Austria and Switzerland it’s the national sport.” He replied: "That's really boring, you're just racing against the clock." I said: 'Yes, but you see in which position someone is driving and this and that. . .» To which he said: “Okay, but they don’t race against each other.”

Are your children actually allowed to watch the Netflix series “Drive to Survive”? You haven't asked for it yet. But I only watched one episode when the series came out. I found it a bit strange because it was so unrealistic. But of course I understand that it has brought a lot of attention and a new audience to motorsport. This is not possible with hours of explanations about how to adjust a damper. On Netflix, viewers feel like they're learning more, partly because there's more drama. But when I feel the need to find out more about the current Formula 1, I don't reach for the remote control, I reach for the telephone.

Formula 1 cannot ignore climate change. I have very strong opinions about what Formula 1 was, what it is and what it can be. Big sports are also big platforms; they can achieve a lot of positive things because they reach so many people. That's why I believe that this brings with it a great responsibility. Formula 1 can no longer avoid the big issues of our time. I still remember what was drilled into us during the media training in the young talent series: don't take a position on the topics of sex, money and politics, don't have an opinion, and ideally don't say anything. Nobody can afford that anymore, especially not an entire sport. There are already issues that Formula 1 has to address.

That would be? The type of vehicle drive is crucial, even if cars only make up a small part of the emissions. But the engine shapes the image. I see this as a huge opportunity for Formula 1 to set a good example instead of just harping on about something old. Otherwise I see a great danger that motorsport will be threatened with extinction in the long term if it continues to involve things that are no longer accepted by society. In Germany this can already be felt to a certain extent; the hype no longer exists. Is that just because no German is winning at the moment, or is the country a little further along in this respect and is dealing with other issues?

Would you be interested in becoming the environmental ambassador for the series? Change has to come from within, skiers are the best example. When I talk to people from the ski circuit, they see how climate change is affecting the racing calendar. In Formula 1, the race in Imola had to be canceled because the soil could no longer absorb the rain and the entire region was flooded. And in Canada only the wind would have had to change and the smoke from the nearby forest fires would have made a race impossible. A lot of money is involved in motorsport. Taking care of certain things costs money, but it has to be included. Last year I carefully started raising awareness myself with a small project to protect insects. The loss of biodiversity is a very serious issue. I also have some ideas for the new season. That's why I'm talking to Formula 1 boss Stefano Domenicali about what can be done.

One last question about career orientation: With Lewis Hamilton's move to Ferrari in 2025, a lot will shift in Formula 1. How close are you to a comeback? I was surprised by this change. Mercedes team boss Toto Wolff didn't call me, but we briefly exchanged text messages. But so far it's not an issue for me, because at 36 I still have all the time in the world. So this doesn't go away. But my signs haven't changed. I think that I have learned and understood a lot in this one year without racing, including about myself. Being on the other side had a big impact on me; a lot of questions came up. So far there is no active project.

Is that a clear no now? No. I already said back then that there wouldn't be clear no in that sense, because I already said back then that there wouldn't't be clear no in that sense, because I believe that everything is a process. And maybe there will come a point at which I say: Yes, I would like to go back. When I sort it out mentally so that it suddenly makes sense again. But at the moment I'm doing very well without driving in Formula 1. There is no firm no, but also no firm yes.

Are you doing something good for yourself today? I'm going for a medical check-up now. This is mandatory if you want to keep your racing license.

[melanieph321]

Pedri x Black Reader - Our Secret Part 3/10

*Pedri's POV

⚠️Warning ⚠️

*mentioning of needles

The story of Marcella and Pedri. As students of the most prestigious high schools in the country, the two are very focused on developimg their indvidual talents. Marcella has music whilst Pedri has football. However, worlds collide when Pedri's secret is revealed, he has diabetes.

Enjoy!

A  day in the life of Pedri. He woke up to the sunlight invading his bedroom. He yawned and turned over, reaching for his phone to confirm that "Jupp" he had indeed slept through his alarm.

After taking a few minutes to say goodbye to his bed, Pedri stood and made his way towards the bathroom. He brushed his teeth in front of the mirror in the same way he always did, from the bottom left to the bottom right. Followed by the top right, to the top left. This routine has never changed in his eighteen years of life. One thing had changed however, and Pedri hated this part of his morning routine. He back up in front of the bathroom mirror, viewing his full body. Alot of people like what they saw, outlined abs, tanned skin and a hairless chest. Pedri however, hated it, because only he knew that his body was broken.

He sighed clipping the lid if his insulin pen. The nurses in the hospital showed him how to do it correctly, but it never managed to feel right. He pinched the skin on his belly and pierced the needle through it. It hurt and would never seize to hurt. The doctors recommend that he brought at least three or four needles with him to school, Pedri however, only brought one.

Good morning cariño, did you sleep well?"

"Yes Mami."

She put a plate of scrambled eggs on the table, pulling out a chair for him to take a seat. Since his diganos of type 1 diabetes last year, his mother made it clear that eating breakfast was not negotiable. She kissed him on the cheek once he sat down. "Don't forget to help your father at the restaurant after school. He's gonna need all hands on deck to prepare for Martina's quinceanera this weekend."

"Isn't Martina a little too old to be having a quinceanera?"

She was about Pablo's age and Pedri only knew that because his friend had a huge crush on her and wouldn't stop talking about her during training.

"Yes, but Martina and her family moved from Mexico when she was fifteen and did not have time to throw her one then, so your father and I are helping them throw one now."

"Why can't Fernando help? I have training this afternoon."

His mother left the sink and returned to him, kissing the top of Pedri's head. I know you do cariño. But you know how your father is, he wants you and your brother to get along again."

"Making us decorate the whole restaurant in pink won't bring us closer together, trust me."

To Pedri his older brother was dead to him. He died when he got put in jail for drinking and driving, and stayed dead upon his release three months ago. No. Pedri only had one brother and that was Pablo Gavi.

"Pedrito!"

The little bastard had yet gotten his driver's license so every morning Pedri took the liberty to pick him up and drive him to school.

"It's a beautiful day, no?" Pablo walked down his driveway, hair still dripping from his shower as he got into the passenger seat.

"You're in a surprisingly good mood, why?"

"Love, Pedrito. I'm in love."

"Of course you are."

"Guess who invited me to a party this weekend."

"Martina?"

Pablo frowned. "How did you know?"

"Her family is throwing her quinceanera at the restaurant. I'm suppose to go down there this afternoon and help decorate."

"Can I come?"

"She won't be there Pablo."

"She might." He said, draping the seat belt over himself. "And what have I told you about calling me by my first name. I'm known as Gavi now."

It was an honor for any player to make it into the Estudios Filántropos football squad. Being formally adressed by once last name came along with that honor, that's how people in the streets knew that you could play.

"How about you stop calling me Pedrito, then we can talk."

Pablo chuckled. "Don't make me get rid of Pedrito. It sounds so cute."

"Cute, eh?"

"Yes. Isn't that what Rosie shouts when you make her..."

Pedri's hand left the steering, smacking his friend upside the head.

"Puta!" Pablo rubbed a hand where it hurt the most.

"Don't talk about her like that."

"It was a joke. A joke man."

"Yeah, but we don't joke about stuff like that."

Locker room talk. Pedri had worked hard to get rid of the misogyny within his football squad. As the captain he worked to install the players to focus only on what was important during training. What they did and how they behaved outside of the pitch he couldn't careless. Although he cared how Pablo spoke about women outside of training. To him Pablo was his successor and needed the right values handed to him as soon as possible, even if it meant handing out a slap or two now and then.

"Why are we just standing here." His friend complained. "We'll be late for school, drive!"

Pablo was right, however Pedri's car remained parked alongside the sidewalk. His attention was drawn to the house next door to Pablo's. The house where she lived.

"What is it, what are you waiting for?"

Just as his friend asked the question she emerged out of her house, grabbing the bike parked in her driveway.

"You've got to be kidding me." Pablo sighed. "Not this again."

Pedri rolled down the window. "Hey Marcella!"

Passing his car she looked to him with furrowed brows. "What do you want?"

"You need a ride?"

"No." She snorted and waited until she got on the road to mount her bike, disapearing with it down the street.

"Everyday." His friend shook his head. "Everyday since, what, Tuesday? Everyday day since Tuesday you've been waiting for Marcella to come out of her house, asking her if she wants to ride with us to school. Why? Is it because I hit her with the ball? Is that it, do you feel bad for her? Because I told you that she was crazy, didn't I?"

Pedri smirked as he reached for the button to push the car to a start. The two of them left Pablo's driveway on their way to school.

"Like what's your deal, you're into crazy chicas now?"

Pedri found it funny, letting Pablo's words slide without a slap.

"I mean she not ugly." He said. "But did I tell you about the time she glued my hand to a wall."

There were many stories like that, of Pablo and Marcella. Apperently the two had been neighbors all their lives, thier parents even throwing cookouts together in the summer. Pedri had asked alot about Marcella lately. If Pablo could tell him about what she was like. Her personality and such. "Crazy." Was his friends answer.

"If you're dumping Rosie for Marcella can I have a shot with her incase Martina rejects me this weekend?"

Pedri smiled, "What makes you think you have a shot with a girl like Rosie?"

"She's into footballers, no? I'm ten times better player than you are."

"You wish."

"Watch me play a full ninety minutes on Friday. At least coach won't sub me off after halftime like he does you. Shouldn't that be illegal, subbing off the team captain? They should make Rodriguez captain, he's a goalkeeper, he never gets subbed off."

Pedri let Pablo go on with his rambling, not knowing that his words had struck him right where it hurts. Yes, Pedri's diabetes was discovered after one of his coaches suggested he got checked out for his worsened stamina. It had all come up on his first visit,  the reasons for suddenly feeling drowsy and unable to perform during training. The doctor told him that his body had stopped producing a hormone called insulin, causing his glucose levels to drop, resulting in his severe health problems. The day Pedri found out that his body was broken was the day he started fearing for his dreams of becoming a football player.

"Hola clase, today's lessons is...."

School went by in a flash. Pedri didn't share any lessons with Pablo since the two weren't in the same grade. However, he did share most of his lessons with Rosie. Apart from the occasional hook up, she was also a good friend.

"Guess what?" She said, stopping him in the hallway to peck his lips with her own.

"What?" He smiled, as she was quick to wipe away the excess lipstick that had rubbed off on him.

"Angie and I made a bet."

"A bet? Sounds fun."

"It is. I bet that I will make out with whichever player scores the winning goal on Friday."

Pedri raised a brow.

She nipped a few hairstrands off his t-shirt. "Make sure it's you."

With that she strutted down the hallway, looking back to make sure that Pedri was checking her out.

He was.

"Man, did you hear?"

There was commotion as Pedri joined his teammates. Most of them sat gathered around one table during lunch hour.

"What?" He asked Pablo, who looked to want to fill him in on what was going on.

"Coach is gonna make us run windsprints for today's warm up. WARM UP."

"Windsprints." Pedri frowned. "In April?"

"Yeah, and we have a game on Friday,  I can't be sore for that."

"Strange, must be something up."

"It doesn't matter. The team wants you to talk to him, tell him to cancel the warm up, or at least change it."

"Why me?"

"You're the captain, aren't you?

And it came with his perks. All eyes were on him, his teammates nodding their heads, agreeing with Pablo.

"Alright, I'll see what I can do?"

He left lunch early, although his mother would curse him out for that. However it was best to get his rest now incase coach wouldn't change his mind about the windsprints this afternoon. He made it to the far ends of the building, where the school had its auditorium. There was a classroom near by, the door unlocked. Pedri plotted down on the old sofa behind a dusty keyboard. There he could hear señor Garcia tinkering away on his piano, and Marcella, warming up her throat as she was getting ready to sing. There were others singing along with her,  but Pedri preferred to focus on Marcella's voice. It brought him comfort as he removed the lid off his insulin pen with his teeth, pinching the skin of his belly. Pedri squinted his eyes as the needle went into him, followed by the pain of inserting the insulin. He fell back against the warn out pillows, relaxing his muscles after tensing up during his shot. He drifted off to sleep to the sound of her voice, Marcella, with a voice like no other.

[fuckblast]

I hate cars and car culture but I need to get a driver's license this year so I can operate in this society. When I was afraid of spiders and 12 I researched the fuck out of them to understand them better. I was moving to the south where there were more spiders. I learned there are only two ones you need to really worry about (brown recluse and black widow). Brown recluses can be confused for wolf spiders so I spent a while on that and came out extremely passionate about wolf spiders! Did you know the mothers will often carry the thousands of young on their back? I'm such a spider guy now inspired because of the curiosity from the fear. I tried to get curious about the automobile in the same way. Bad results. There are way more than two types of automobile that you need to really worry about, in fact, any of them could kill you at any time. You can die as a passenger going as low as 15 mph, but that doesn't particularly matter as you can also be hit by another car at any time. Massive death machines that are in an arms race to only be bigger and brighter than the opponent. So I tried to look into car culture and boy howdy the deeper you go into that the more revulsive it becomes. It's very American, y'know, expounding the idea of freedom, when it's within the lines of the scars you'd crisscrossed into the country, made so that soldiers had an easier time moving about. There is of course the legacy of Henry Ford, who should be given so much more discredit than he receives. I'll save the American history textbook but maybe I should've read Cormac McCarthy instead and bought into the idealized version. I'll still think about my friends working in the car factories and those conditions. And I'm only going to glance on how much fucking constant money a car is; cost, gas, upkeep, repairs, since I hardly know the half of it from others complaints. I think freedom is too often used as a synonym for convenience, and I try to be aware about what is lost for convenience. I like my long walks and bike rides.

That said, in preparing myself to drive this year I am desperately searching for anything that motivates me or that I find likeable about the American automobile. And it's van art. It's the van as well, if you're going to be a vehicle, have purpose, let me use you as a second space, let me be able to lie down or carry a couch. Does this make me no better than the jacked up truck guys? Maybe no, I'd love a little smart car Hugo looking vehicle. I'd love an old short truck, if I can find one secondhand. Really it's about the art. I can try to think up something poetic to say but if you're going to guzzle around the road in a dangerous machine, fuck me, at least put a sick ass wizard on the side. I love a hyper detailed dragon being fought by a muscular man. Is that it? Is it almost a parody of car culture? Who cares, I'm getting through my driving lessons by thinking of a sick ass painted van.

[everysongineverykey]

it's odd sometimes for me hearing people reference their "gender journey" like coming out as trans and being like "this is just the start of my journey! i still have so far to go!"

because like. good for them! not dragging that at all! it's just a bit jarring since gender has always been less of a journey for me and more of a, like. a twenty minute car ride. i've hardly moved and yet now something has changed and i'm done, i'm there, i figured it out <3 gender is the car ride to the dmv to get a driver's license. it had to happen, but it only needed to happen once, and now i have many more options. you guys have fun on your cross-country hikes, submarine ventures to the bottom of the ocean, and flights around the world! i'm happy here :)

[the-starlight-papers]

What to expect when buying a car (from someone who bought a car recently and had no idea what the process was supposed to be):

Looking for a car:

1. Decide what type of car you want, as well as your price range. I needed some sort of smaller SUV that got good gas mileage.

2. Decide whether you want a new or used car. If you’re going used, figure out what range of years and mileage you are willing to buy. For example, Honda CR-Vs from 2017 are known for having engine issues, so if you’re looking at Honda CR-Vs you may want to exclude those from your search.

3. Look online for cars of that type in your area. AutoTempest is really good for getting an idea of what the prices are in your area because it aggregates from a bunch of different sites.

4. I ended up going to a Carmax that had a bunch of the types of cars I was interested in so I could test drive them. Not all of them were in my price range, but it was good to help narrow down my search (ie I was able to determine that I did not want a Mazda CX-5 because I hated the way that it drove).

5. If the car is at a dealer a lot of the time they will have CarFax or something similar for you to view for free. This will tell you whether the car was in an accident, and how many owners it has had. If you see a car that’s super cheap, check the CarFax because a lot of the time it has been in an accident.

Visiting the dealer:

1. Before you go to a dealer to check out a car, you can make an appointment with a salesperson. This person will be able to answer your questions and show you to specific cars on the lot that you are interested in.

2. Also before you go to the dealer, look at their website and find the specific car or cars you are interested in. Some dealers have a vehicle id number for each car, so you can write that down. Or just have the webpage for each car pulled up on your phone.

3. If there is a car you are interested in, you can ask to test drive it. Usually they’ll have you sign something saying that you won’t crash the car, and if the salesperson won’t be riding with you, they will usually take a scan of your drivers license and insurance card.

4. You can also ask the salesperson if they have any other similar cars that they expect you might be interested in.

Buying a car:

Note: this process might differ from dealership to dealership. Some dealerships (ie carmax) don’t bargain.

1. The salesperson will sit down and say “here’s what we’re offering for the car.”

2. You can try to bargain if the dealership allows that. If they’re offering $16,000 for the car, you can counteroffer and say that you can do $15,000 or something like that. If there’s some sort of damage on the car or on the CarFax, you can use that as leverage.

3. The salesperson will go back to talk to their manager or something, and then come back with their offer. You can try to keep talking them down, or act conflicted about whether or not you can afford it. I managed to get them to throw in tinting the front two windows of my car, since they weren’t already tinted and I was going to be in the south.

4. Eventually when you decide on a price, you get to fill out a ton of paperwork. They’ll need some form of ID, your SSN (if you’re in the US, idk about other countries). Then you fill out a bunch of paperwork.

5. After that (and this was the part that confused me the most), you have to wait for the person in the back that does the paperwork to enter your paperwork. For me there was 2 people there before me, so I had to wait for about an hour. While I waited, I made small talk with the salesman about where I was going to be interning and my college and stuff.

6. After the person doing the paperwork approves the deal, you get more paperwork, and then after that you get the car.

7. The place I went to is going to take about 45 days to mail me my registration. I don’t know if that’s standard, but keep that in mind if you’re going to be moving to another state soon and are buying a car.

Disclaimer: I am not an expert on this.

[aonoexpat]

🇳🇱NL to NZ🇳🇿

15-12-2022

Soooooo, here we are. The very first post of AoNoExpat with some background information is ready for consumption! It's been a long time coming, and a lot has happened since I first started entertaining the idea of traveling to Aotearoa, also (colonialism-ally) known as New Zealand. The option was offered to me by a couple of great friends, who have emigrated there a while ago. I have been unhappily searching for my place in the Dutch job market for a while now, and haven't been able to find it. Combine that with an increasingly unstable and unpleasant political climate, and you'll surely see why I haven't been able to stop thinking about it ever since that conversation.

The deciding moment happened on June 21st, when I declined a job offer in The Netherlands in favour of taking the leap. I'd wanted to travel again ever since my gap years after high school, and would have done so again after getting my bachelor's degree in AI, had it not been for Covid-19 making it virtually impossible. Now I'm getting a new opportunity, and I couldn't be more grateful for it.

As soon as I'd cast the proverbial die, my friend gave me a to-do list:

Get your driver's license; public transport in Aotearoa is not the same as in Europe;

Get your Working Holiday visa.

The driver's license would be a challenge, but luckily the application process for a WHV was quick and painless. I applied July 6th, and got approval on July 13th. A WHV allows me to stay in the country for up to 12 months from my arrival date onward, and while I'm there I'll be legally allowed to work to support myself. I've traveled with a WHV before in Australia (lmk if anyone knows a non-colonial name), and my reviews are tremendously positive. I'm very happy Aotearoa offers the same opportunities.

After some summer holiday activities, it was time to start with driving lessons. Turns out I have both a fear of driving and a fear of failure, and my verbally violent right-wing self-opinionated neurotypical cis-het male driving instructor didn't seem too bothered by that. After a gruelling total of 58 lessons and many an afternoon spent crying out of pure stress, I took the final exam on December 6th and PASSED. December 14th saw me picking up my license and driving home all by myself for the first time! I just need to convert it to an international license and then I'll be good to go.

Apart from the driving lessons, I haven't been sitting still these past few months. I consider myself an avid climate activist, so the thought of taking a plane to travel to Aotearoa didn't sit well with me. So, I promised myself I would try anything and everything in my power to get there some other way. Let me take you on the journey that was figuring this out:

My first thought was: FINALLY, a great excuse to take the trans-Siberian express! I'd heard about this 6-day train journey from Moscow to Beijing for the first time in 2014, and had been dying to take it ever since. However, then it hit me: the vast majority of this journey takes place in Russia. Russia, a country that The Netherlands currently aren't the best of friends with. But, who knows, perhaps it's still fine to travel there? I consulted the website of the Dutch ministry of foreign affairs, which quickly and aptly crushed that dream for me: "Are you currently in Russia? Leave. Are you living in Russia? Move out. Still want to go there? You're on your own, pal. We can't help you."

OKAY, so, not the trans-Siberian express, I suppose. Maybe I can duck underneath Russia, then? Take some trains, buses, hitchhike for a bit? I'd always prided myself on having a good sense of geography, but had not realised this would force me to travel through a selection of Iran, Pakistan, Afghanistan and Syria. Seeing as I'm a solo female traveler, my friends and family weren't too thrilled about this.

Very well, traveling over land didn't seem like it was going to work out, and I hadn't even gotten into the mess of getting tourist visas for all of the countries I would have to pass through.

If land wasn't an option, how about sea? Traveling by boat? For example, maybe I could travel to the Americas, travel across to the other side, and try to get another boat to Aotearoa. Right? Sounded pretty easy at first, but that too turned out to be a lot harder. For traveling by sea, I had three options:

Sailing: I signed myself up at findacrew.net, a place where people who want to work on a boat and people who have a boat that need people to work on said boat can connect. Seemed like a great opportunity at first, but I quickly lost hope this would help me get there. Most people who have a boat do not casually travel from Europe to Oceania, and the website has some unfortunate restrictions that make it difficult to find the right people. For example, a lot of boat owners only want to be messaged by verified members. Very understandable, but to become a verified member you need to pay a monthly fee (not the biggest problem) and upload a scan of your ID (YES A BIG PROBLEM). I appreciate what they want to do, but I'm very big on (online) privacy and my ID is way too sensitive a document to share with some website that says nothing about how they will protect it. Besides all of that, these trips are long, and many boat owners are retired men that are looking for 1 person to help. I like to think I see the best in people but the thought of being alone at sea for 60 days with Philip the middle aged stranger didn't strike me as super safe. I've had my share of bad experiences with travel companions that turned out to be a lot different than they seemed at first glance. So, unfortunately, I chose to abandon this option.

Cargo ships: I heard that these huge sea monsters often make some extra cash by transporting a handful of passengers. I didn't think this option would be pleasant, but after watching some videos from people who have done it I was HOOKED. This seemed like a dream, the views from the ship looked fantastic and the rooms were very decent. Yes, cargo ships are also big polluters, but they don't make significant money off of passengers, like planes and cruise ships. The argument 'it'll go without me anyway' actually works for these. Sure, it's expensive (about €100-���150 per day), but it would be worth it, right? Right, but here's the catch: ever since Covid happened, cargo ships no longer take passengers. Because these trips can take a long time, there's too much risk that the destination country changes its Covid regulations while the ship is at sea. This can leave these ships stuck with passengers that are no longer allowed to disembark. I've emailed with Hamish from freightertravel.co.nz, and he told me cargo ship companies might start taking passengers again around 2024. Not an option at the current time, unfortunately.

Cruise ships: my last resort was trying to get a job on one of these. I didn't want to pay for a cruise because pollution-wise they're not much better than flying, but how cool would it be to be a lounge singer B99's Doug Judy style and earn my way across an ocean that way? I talked to a former Holland-America cruise ship musician, who put me in touch with two USA-based talent agents. I contacted both of them, but neither got back to me. After that I sent emails to 14 different cruise ship companies, offering my services as a musician or cleaning staff. I was willing to do any menial job, I told them I was not interesting in getting paid or gaining access to any facilities other than some food, a bed and a bathroom every now and again. Only 6 responded, out of which 1 was interested in having me audition. However, their first ship would go on its maiden journey from Belgium to Norway in July-August. Not the right journey for me, and any later ones would be too late. Sadly I had to write this off too.

As a final attempt, I made a post on LinkedIn asking my network for tips on how to get there, but this too yielded no results. Since I had officially run out of options and I knew that planes would get more and more expensive closer to departure, I finally admitted defeat and booked a plane ticket. It hurt my soul, but I have to draw the unfortunate conclusion that at this point in time, my destination does not lend itself well for any other modes of travel. I'm hopeful that by the time I will head back, some of the above options will be available again!

The plan is now as follows: early February 2023, I will fly from Paris and arrive in Te Whanga-nui-a-Tara (Wellington) 29 hours and 35 minutes later, which is relatively short for this journey. The flights cost me a total of €1.287,90. I'll still have to get to Paris so the price and duration will both increase a little in the end.

WELL, that's about all I can share right now! I'm hoping to update this blog whenever I can, so feel free to follow me to keep track of my journey :) Just a fair warning: I'm not making any promises that I'll keep this up as time goes on, if I no longer enjoy this I won't hesitate to stop.

I'd love to answer any asks you might have, I'll be honest and open about my experiences, but I will strictly not share any personal information.

I'm very open to feedback, please tell me if anything on this blog strikes you as offensive in any way, I'm continuously learning and my ego is not easily bruised.

I'll also be using this blog as a place for people from home and people I meet along the way to leave little messages or pictures for me. I look forward to building a lovely collection of wonderful memories! <3

[ifiwereawriter]

a day's story :)

Today, I was in this op-shop and the typical old-lady volunteers are standing around the counter talking quite loudly. I start browsing and hear bits of their conversation, which seems to be about parking and bad drivers. From what I gather, one of the louder ladies is telling a story about someone who blocked her way while she was parking, filling in details to explain that the driver was wearing cultural clothing and had to back in and out of a park multiple times before leaving the car poorly parked. She then says how thst after the woman left the vehicle Loud Lady stood up to her saying, "Where did you get your license?" "Are you going to leave the car like that?" "I just had to wait for you to…" etc. After telling this story she then went on and on about certain people simply not being able to drive properly. The other two ladies there seemed to want to move the discussion to the size of parking lots and the difficulties that can produce, but Loud Lady wanted to continue pointing out specific people who she didn't like. The next demographic she started berating was four-wheel drive owners. She didn't like the size of 4x4s and then emphatically said there should be a law in place which required country people to leave their large 4x4 vehicles at the city limits. As she loudly defended this statement several times, one of the other ladies (and my absolute personal hero) spoke up saying this. "You know what I was just thinking? I was thinking, if this is the worst of your life's problems, you don't have any problems." Mic drop. There was the most blessed silence from Loud Lady after that. My hero went on to explain. "You should try having my health problems. I have so much to deal with. And I'm not being rude. I have just gotten to a point where I can't be bothered and I will say things now. If those things are the worst of your life's problems, you don't have anything to worry about." She then described some of the difficult health needs she was having to deal with but I didn't hear much else of that conversation since I had moved away, but oh my goodness do I love her. <3

[kiss-my-freckle]

– Bennet Burial Grounds –

Bonnie Bennet: Wow, this is wacky! Two shows in a row opening with a weird witchy dream! I really need to lay off the tacos!

Klaus: I think you need to lay off the living! Fangs!

– Bennet Burial Grounds – Six Feet Under –

Bonnie Bennet: This is less than ideal! But at least I can use my magic to get out of this fix! “Though success is mostly a stranger, magic get me out of danger!”

The Magic Coffin of Not Opening: Doesn’t open.

Bonnie Bennet: Poop.

Abby Bennet Wilson: Hi Bonnie! For some reason the spirits of a hundred dead witches are sending you on a useless quest that will put you in danger and give Klaus exactly what he wants! If I didn’t know better, I’d say they were trying to get rid of you!

Bonnie Bennet: Mommy!

– Mystic Falls Home for Immolated Wiccans –

Bonnie Bennet: Hi Elena! Stefan swore me to secrecy and made me promise to never ever tell you where the coffins were, but I’ve been having really bad dreams and last week I learned that bad dreams get better when you don’t ignore them so I figured the best way to get a solid night’s sleep would be to tell you all of our plans!

Elena Gilbert: Great! Hold on, just let me check in to FourSquare!

Elena Gilbert’s FourSquare: Elena Gilbert checked in to The Super Secret Hiding Spot for Klaus’ Daggered Siblings, 123 Fourth Street, Mystic Falls, VA.

Stefan Salvatore: Facepalm.

– The Gilbert House – Research and Revelations –

Elena Gilbert: Hi Bonnie! I asked the Sheriff to hunt down every single Abby Bennet in the country! And since everyone in this town does exactly what I tell them to, she said yes!

Bonnie Bennet: Thanks Elena! Your talent for manipulation came in really useful this week!

Damon Salvatore: You want to talk about manipulation? All I have to do is loook in to someones eeeeys and they’re all like “sure Damon anything you want Damon here’s Abby’s address Damon and her social security number and her driver’s license and her finger prints and her bank accounts and please bite me you’re so handsome and dashing and cool!” So let’s go on a road trip!

Elena Gilbert: Damon, no! Bonnie is going to meet her mother for the first time in fifteen years, and this situation is delicate and gentle and fluffy and you’re rash and sarcastic and cut oh yeah baby your abs are so cut let me see you abs no I mean I’m a good girl and you’re a bad boy and we can’t kiss again that would be wrong!

Bonnie Bennet: o_0

The Lady of the Manor: Wait, Bonnie has a mother? Is Bonnie getting a plot line?

– Chateau Forbes – Painful Plans –

Tyler Lockwood: Hi Caroline! Sorry about almost murdering you last week! But I have a great plan to fix this whole Sire-bond thing!

Caroline Forbes: Great! What are you-

Tyler Lockwood: I invited your vampire-hating, werewolf loathing, torture-obsessed father over for diner! And bondage!

Caroline Forbes: Why does my life always suck?

Neville the Corgi: Something about that boy intrigues me!

– Mystic Grill – Murder Mystery –

Alaric Saltzman: Thanks for having lunch with me Meredith! But I’m really worried about falling into the friend zone, and my penis is really worried about never meeting your lady bits, so maybe next time we could do dinner instead!

Meredith Fell: Okay!

Damon Salvatore: Hi Alaric! Who’s the hot girl?

Alaric Saltzman: That’s Doctor Fell! Her ex says she’s a complete psycho, and you know what that means … she’s gonna be a tiger in the sack!

Damon Salvatore: Speaking of psycho, do you think she might be the kind of girl who would drive a stake into a guy’s chest and leave him laying in the woods?

Alaric Saltzman: Why do you say that?

Damon Salvatore: Oh, no reason.

– Castle Salvatore – Dangerous Games –

Klaus: Hi Stefan! My hybrids have all left town, so I want to know what I have to do to get my family back!

Stefan Salvatore: Well, you could try pissing off and calling again in a few years! And if you make one move, I’ll-

Klaus: Okay, son, this whole “crazy Stefan with nothing to lose” thing has been cute, but let’s be real. You’ve had six months to practice your whole man on fire routine, but I’ve had a thousand years to get really good at causing chaos, mayhem, and pain in extraordinarily creative, terrifying ways. So if you really think you can out bad-guy me? Let’s go.

Stefan Salvatore: …Crap.

– Highway to Hell –

Elena Gilbert: Let’s talk about your mama!

Bonnie Bennet: Let’s talk about your Damon!

Elena Gilbert: Let’s talk about literally anything else ever!

Bonnie Bennet: Was it good?

Elena Gilbert: That doesn’t matter!

Bonnie Bennet: That means it was! He kissed you and you loved it! You want more! You want to hug him! You want to kiss him! You want to have his babies!

Elena Gilbert: Doesn’t this car have some product placement features we could discuss?

The Lady of the Manor: He’s Damon, of courseit was good. Seriously, that girl is dumber than a rock. An especially dumb rock.

Stefan Salvatore (on the phone): Hi guys! Just wanted to make sure you aren’t on your way to do anything stupid!

Elena Gilbert (on the phone): Nope! We’re heading up to the lake house to take a break from all of the crazy!

Bonnie Bennet: Hey, you didn’t leave my mom’s picture and address and social security number laying on your kitchen table by any chance, did you?

Elena Gilbert: Probably not!

– Mystic Grill – Profitable Public Relations –

Klaus (on the phone): Hi Wally! You know what’s great about having the entire Mystic Falls government playing for my team? Whenever Elena comes by and asks for very odd pieces of information, they give me a call! And on a totally unrelated note, I have a little job for you …

Wally the Werepire: Woof!

Neville the Corgi: He also intrigues me!

– Abby’s Home for Retired Wiccans –

Wally the Werepire: Hi Abby! I need you to look into my eyes …

Neville the Corgi: I wanna be a werepire! I’d compel you to give me endless cookies!

Jamie: Hi guys! What can I do for you?

Bonnie Bennet: Nothing nothing at all we were just leaving sorry to bother you got to go goodbye!

Elena Gilbert: Super Elena disappointed face powers activate!

Bonnie Bennet: Abby’s my mom.

Jamie: Another one? Well, you might as well come inside.

Bonnie Bennet: So Jamie, are we related?

Jamie: Nah, I just crash on your mother’s house. She’s really hot, and I’m kind of a cougar hunter.

lmfao! I'm currently working on these episodes now.

[dorefasolsido]

38. Should've done this at the beginning of the year, but anyway...

What Happened In the Past Year???

How many relationships were you in?

None. I don't think I'm a relationship person at all.

What did you do for Valentine's day?

I don't really remember nor do I celebrate it. I think that was a day after I came back from Germany, so probably just adjusting to life back here.

Did you recieve your driver's license?

Lol no, I actually renewed it. It's been 10 years since I got it.

Did you graduate high school?

Nope. Did that in 2014.

Did you graduate college?

Not that either. Done with college in 2020.

Did you move out on your own?

I'm already more or less moved out on my own.

Did you get arrested?

Nope.

Did you get a speeding ticket?

Nope.

What was the best thing you got for Christmas?

I don't actually remember what I got. Tbh, we don't really exchange gifts on Christmas here, we do it for New Year's sometimes and sometimes not even then.

Did you fall in love?

Nah.

Did you become an aunt or an uncle?

Kind of, just not directly. Two of my cousins had babies in 2023.

Did you have a baby?

Absolutely not.

Did you get engaged?

Nope.

Did you get married?

Nope.

Did someone close to you die?

Luckily, no.

How many funerals did you go to?

None.

How many weddings?

No weddings either.

Did you turn 18?

Nope. I turned 28 ;-;

Did you turn 21?

Nope.

Did you turn 30?

Thankfully no, but it's coming.

Did you have a car accident?

Nope.

Were you old enough to vote this year?

Yes, and I did.

How many jobs did you have throughout the year?

Hmm, I switched from my old job to a better one and had 2-3 extra gigs on top. Ugh, but I seriously need a break from all the work.

Did you get a new pet?

No new ones.

Did you get cheated on?

Nope.

Did you cheat on someone?

Nooooo.

Did you start at a new school?

No.

Did you make any new friends?

Not friends, but I met quite a few new people.

Did you get a new car?

Yes, actually. Well, it's not new, but I finally got my parents' old car so now I can drive instead of always using public transport which largely sucks. I got it at the very end of the year, in December, so it's still all pretty fresh.

Did you drastically change your hairstyle?

Yes, I cut my very long hair very short. And at the beginning of the year I accidentally dyed it black so had to bleach it again to dye it purple. Quite a few changes lol

Did you go out of the country?

Yup, a few times.

Did you keep your last New Year's resolution?

I never make those.

What was the best movie you saw in theaters?

Hmm, I think I only saw Barbie and Oppenheimer, so in that case I pick Barbie. I really enjoyed it, and I really loved how it was basically this huge event we all participated in.

What was the best book you read?

I'm not sure when I read Sayaka Murata's Earthlings and Convenience Store Woman, but those two books changed my outlook on everything.

What was your greatest accomplishment?

Translating a book. I'm really glad that happened, but I guess it's a testament to my deteriorating mental health that I didn't feel nearly as proud and happy about it as I thought I would when I saw it published. Mila from 2/3 years ago would be so thrilled. And I am, just, I don't know, 2023 wasn't my year.

What was the best cd released this year?

CD? Well if you mean album, personally, Jimin's Face was my favourite, along with Agust D's D-Day.

Did you get a new tattoo?

No, but I am seriously considering it.

A new piercing?

Yup, in September.

Are you still dating the same person you dated at the start of the year?

Yes, which is no one.

The Lasts of the Past

How old were you on your last birthday?

28.

Who was the last person to tell you "I love you"?

I don't even know. I don't hear that very often.

Who was the last person you spoke to in person?

My mum.

Who was your last missed call?

Idk, some unknown number.

Who was your last phone call to?

My mum a few days ago before I came to visit.

What was the last movie you watched?

I honestly don't know.

The last song you heard?

Parabola by Tool in the car. That's the one I remember, though I might have heard others in the meantime.

The last book you read?

Battle Royal by Koushun Takami.

The last place you went?

For a walk and to a cafe.

The last time you cut your hair?

I think it was in November?

The color of the last shirt your wore?

Red.

The last person you hugged?

My mum's friend as a greeting.

The last thing you bought?

Uhh, I honestly can't remember now. But this reminds me I have to buy those absolutely delicious noodles soon.

The last time you went to the doctor?

A super long time ago. Like, years ago.

The last time you went swimming?

I believe last summer.

The last game you played?

Witcher 2, probably.

The last person's house you went to?

Hmm, I can't remember last time I visited someone's home tbh.

The last un-related guy you hung out with?

Probably my friend's boyfriend. We all hung out together.

The last un-related girl you hung out with?

My classmates from my German classes.

The last family member you hung out with?

Mum.

The last movie you saw in theaters?

I genuinely can't remember now, but I should see Dune soon.

The last time you went to Walmart?

No Walmarts here.

The last time you went to Burger King?

Also no Burger Kings... I think.

The last time you went on vacation?

In November, and I desperately need another one.

The last restaurant you went to?

Moon sushi.

The last thing you ate?

Chocolate.

The last thing you drank?

Water.

The Firsts of the New Year

Who was the first person you kissed?

No one.

Who was the first person you told "I love you" to?

Also no one.

Who was the first person you spoke to?

Idk, I was with my friends and sister, so one of them.

Who was your first phone call to/from?

I'm not sure, maybe my parents.

Where was the first place you went?

Home from the club I was celebrating in.

What was the first thing you bought?

No clue.

Who was the first person to wish you "Happy New Year!"?

My sister.

What was the first thing you ate?

Chicken from this one place near my flat next morning.

The first thing you drank?

Cola, cause I was drinking Cola whole night. Designated driver lol

What color was the first shirt you wore?

Grey.

What were the first shoes you wore?

My black boots.

What was the first electronic (not computer or cell) device you used?

I really don't know.

What was the first movie you watched?

No clue.

What was the first song you heard?

Whichever song the band we went to see was playing next.

Who was the first girl you hung out with?

My friends and my sister.

Who was the first guy?

My friend's boyfriend. 

The first relative?

My sister.

What was the first thing you did when it became the new year?

Yelled "Happy New Year!" and hugged my sister.

What the Future Year Has In Store

What are you most looking forward to in the New Year?

Concerts, mostly. Hopefully I will plan a good trip or two as well. And idk, tbh I don't look forward to all that much, 2023 left me feeling pretty meh and 2024 didn't have a promising start at all.

But I am making some necessary changes, so we'll see how that goes.

Are you getting married this year?

Lol.

Are you expecting a child?

Definitely not.

Will you be getting a new job?

I don't have such plans, but who knows what the future holds.

Will you be starting a new school?

I'm thinking of finding a language school that offers Japanese once I'm done with German.

Will you be moving to a new place?

Nah.

Will you get your driver's license this year?

No, I have it already.

Will you turn 18?

Way past that sadly.

Will you turn 21?

And that.

Will you turn 25?

And that.

Will you turn 30?

Not yet.

Will you turn 40?

Nope.

Are you going on a vacation this year?

I am planning to, yes. I already feel that I'm going to lose my mind if I don't go anywhere soon.

What movie are you most looking forward to coming out this year?

I'm not sure, maybe Dune?

What book?

None specific, I just want to finally get through more of my list.

What music album?

Hobi's Hope on the Street and whatever Jin releases!

Do you expect to find love this year?

Definitely not.

Did you make a New Year's resolution?

Not really, but there are things I want to do. I just don't want to call them New Year's resolutions because I know for a fact I wouldn't be able to stick to them then.

Have you kept it so far?

Refer to above.

Will you be going to a wedding this year?

Maybe? I have no idea yet.

Will you get a new car?

Not anytime soon, I think.

Will you buy a house this year?

Lol no.

Do you expect to be with the same person at the end of the year?

Not exactly the same, no. Even if changes are small, I don't think I'm exactly the same at the end of each year.

Are you starting the year off single?

As always.

What do you most want to happen this year?

I want my mental health to improve, that's probably number one thing.

What are you most excited about this year?

Concerts I'm going to.

[silver-la-pixels]

I literally need to see if I can graduate with the minimum bachelors degree in my college so I can get a job and move out. I cannot live here anymore. I still have at least 2 full semesters left with all the classes I failed or didnt qualify for and wont be able to do it over the summer bc my dad might be moving the family (myself included) across the country by then. The shit this man's pulled is 100% abusive and I have no means of escape. I dont have even a car or a driver's license either. If I fail this semester I'm faking my death and running away. If I pass I'm running away and finishing it in a different state. I'm not the only one of my siblings with this mindset and my little brother has dreamed of cutting himself off from the family since he was 8.

[polwarth]

Week 4/Month 1 Summary

Below the cut is a summary of week 4 in Aotearoa.

One month completed! I very nearly feel moved into this space, but not quite settled within the country. This week marks me getting both a bank account and a library card!

Now I can work. I neglected to put a copy of my resume on this laptop before I left the states, so that's what i've been recreating today.

Now I can read. The first book I checked out is The Late Americans by Brandon Taylor and am only one chapter in. It was in the ~new~ section and it might be about poetry.

Like last week i'm feeling the need for speed and have read up on road laws, the vehicle buying process, and scoured trade.me for motorcycles in the area. Thus far the only model to catch my eye are late 90's BMW K95's. Would it be a smart idea to buy a old, well maintained, and super reliable bike? I don't know. Would it be a better idea to try for a like new, or even new, bike that could handle the trips i'm planning? Also do not know. What if I bought a bike just to tour the north island for a month or two, sold it then bought a bike more suited to the south island? Seems a bit extravagant to me, initially. Freedom camping is pretty huge here, perhaps a more flexible option is a bike suited to moto camping?

This past week I had two big outings. 1: attending the Big Gay Out 2: kayaking to Rangitoto Island.

Big Gay Out was a free event held in a very nice park and was only 20mins away by bus, so I went. I got to hear four of the political parties answer questions regarding a HIV+ scheme the previous government put into place. The current party got booed throughout their answers and the other three were received much better by the crowd. I didn't really like most of the music performances, with the exception of the first act they were all too quiet and poorly mixed.

The kayak trip to Rangitoto Island was exhausting and a lot of fun. It was the first time I used a sea kayak and the first time I used a tandem kayak. Since I was in the back I got a crash course in steering, but got the hang of it on the return trip. It was 5km between the beach and the island! Shortly followed by a hike right up to the top of the caldera on the Summit Track trail. Looking it up now says that hike is 7km long and goes up over 200m. I needed a rest day afterwards lol All along the hike were fields of scoria and moss. moss, lichen, and ferns were everywhere!

Maybe by this time next week i'll have a NZ drivers license, some kinda job, and maybe even a vehicle.

More next week!

[work-and-life-in-shizuoka]

INTERVIEW_18

JU YEONGJUN

Countries & Regions / South Korea

1. JOB DESCRIPTION

I have lived in Shizuoka Prefecture for 10 years. When I moved to Japan, I only knew a few Japanese words. So I found my first job as a construction worker through Hello Work, the Japanese employment security office. After that, I worked for a town development organization for 6 years with a local connection. Since then, I have been running my own private business, including supporting tourism to South Korea inbound and outbound, and marketing for online shopping.

2. CHARMS OF SHIZUOKA

Shizuoka Prefecture has both mountains and the sea, and offers a variety of foods such   as vegetables, meat, and seafood, but in my case, rice is the best. The prefecture is also famous for Japanese green tea, and Kawanehoncho town, where I live, is especially famous for its tea, so I always miss Shizuoka green tea when I visit other prefectures.

Kawanehoncho Town has a stunningly wonderful nature where recently lots of travelers from other prefectures come.  One of my favorite destination is Oku-oi Kojo Station (a station on a dam lake).  There is nothing but mountains, the lake, red railway bridges and hikers.  By facing the great nature, you are sure to forget unpleasant things, escape from your busy life, and rediscover yourself. The rich nature and the many hot springs also heal me. Each area in Shizuoka Prefecture has a variety of hot springs. Since Shizuoka is located between Tokyo and Osaka, it is easy to travel by Shinkansen (bullet trains) or expressways. It takes about one hour from Shizuoka Station to Tokyo and two hours to Osaka by Shinkansen.

3. LIVING ENVIRONMENT IN SHIZUOKA : HOUSING

I came to Japan after marrying a Japanese woman, so I had no trouble finding a house. However, most of the immigrants from abroad that I know live in dormitories or apartments provided by their companies, so it is best to consult with the company instead of trying to find one on your own. If you are a foreign national, it would be difficult to sign a contract, so I recommend that you ask the company or agency for assistance.  It happens not only in Shizuoka but all over Japan. I hope you find a good assistance when you start your life in Japan!!

Sometimes, I dare say, local regions like Shizuoka is difficult to find information about jobs and daily lives. However, with the recent increase in information for foreigners, such as this article, and real information of experiences of foreign residents, such as blogs and SNS, if you continue your efforts to find information, your efforts will be rewarded and all will be well!

4. LIVING ENVIRONMENT IN SHIZUOKA : NO INCONVENIENCE?

I live in a countryside, so a car is essential. Compared to other countries, driving schools in Japan are quite expensive and you will be required to study hard to learn Japanese traffic rules for safety drive.  My advice is that if you are young and do not have a driver's license, it is one of the ways to get it in your home country and practice driving before coming to Japan to get your license. Not to mention, please drive safely in Japan. Incidentally, some companies may provide transportation or a dormitory near the office. In that case, there is no need to rush to get it.

As for shopping, I am glad that QR payment Apps such as PayPay have been increased and made it more convenient. For foreigners, it is difficult to open a bank account or credit card and before those technologies became popular, I had to ask my wife whenever I wanted to buy something online.  We can buy anything online, so even if living in the countryside, I don't have much trouble with shopping.

5. MESSAGES

It depends on what kind of lifestyle you desire, but in genrral, Shizuoka is the most livable region in Japan. Though Kawanehoncho, where I live, is in the countryside, I honestly say that I have found my life here and am fully content with my wife and a child. Life here is not so inconvenient in terms of work, shopping, schools, doctors, etc., but is always embraced by beautiful nature, the ocean with fresh seafood, and needless to say, Mt.Fuji!　My dream for the future is to make my business bigger and to revitalize this area so that it is crowded with many tourists!

[rowanthehumannottheplant]

04/10/2023

Hi there!

My name’s Rowan and I’m incredibly passionate about plants and greenery and all that good stuff. I’m attempting to get into a career within horticulture but I’m having a bit of trouble.

I didn’t go to university for Horticulture. In fact I think I got a D in GCSE Biology. When I started this journey, the only experience that I had was from owning and taking care of my houseplants, visiting botanical gardens with my family, and that my family garden was beautifully maintained by my Mum.

Since then, I have gotten experience. I moved into a house with my boyfriend and for the first time in a good couple of years, I had the space and permanency to experiment with growing things. We have a greenhouse! Over a couple of years, we’ve been able to grow vegetables from saplings, grow sunflowers to decorate our dinner table, and plant permanent structures which will come back season after season. I’ve was also able to work in a Garden Centre for a time, which boosted my enthusiasm, and I met some really great people.

I’m also pursuing further education so that I can learn more and gain qualifications. I’m currently taking part in the RHS Level 2 Certificate in the Principles of Plant Growth and Development. I’m having so much fucking fun! It’s so interesting and I’m learning how to answer my own questions about horticulture, and I’m surrounded by people who are equally as enthusiastic. This course could really change things for me! I also know that I want to maybe do an apprenticeship in a relevant course, if possible.

And then there’s the problem that I didn’t consider might be a problem when I started. Sure, when I began on this journey, my main goals were “Plants and Greenery” and “Makes me happy”, so I didn’t have the best knowledge of this career sector at the time. I didn��t know what I was missing.

I don’t have a driving license. Most people by the time they’re in their early 20s do, but I don’t. When I was a teenager, the time that people in my country typically learn, the people around my told me that it would be pointless learning because by the time I had somewhere to drive to (i.e. a job), it would be years later, and I would have forgotten. I did buy a motorbike at the age of 19 but that was because I was a teenage rebel, not because of any sense of a need for freedom (I think).  

The COVID-19 Pandemic was what many people considered ‘a shitshow’. Facets of society had to be shut down for long periods of time. By the time things started opening up again, the waitlists for certain things were incredibly long, including the wait for Driving Tests in the UK. For my first test, the wait was 5 months. My second test, which I’m preparing for now, is 6 months.

I probably should have known that a car and a drivers license would be very much needed but eh, hindsight’s 20/20. You might need a car or a driving license because sometimes the work that you’re doing might require you to move location or to transport resources and tools. You might need a car because opportunities in your town come up infrequently and the commute to an exciting job can take 4 hours a day via public transport.

I cannot tell you how many times within the past week that a potential employer has called me up saying “You’ve got a great CV, but we really need you to have a driver’s license.”,

Every 5 or 6 months, I get one shot to gain the qualification which will astronomically better my career. It makes me so angry.

This blog will be used to document my experiments and learning journey so that I can evidence my experience and knowledge to potential employers, and also because it might be a fun place to put my work.

Well, thanks for reading. Here's a photo of the pumpkins I harvested yesterday. See you next time!

[ghostsandbunnies]

whenever I'm sad, I think about my Great Grandpa Jones.

My grandpa Jones was a good man. up until the day he died, he made sure to tell you that he had all of his original teeth. He was very proud of that fact. He also liked to tell you that in 1912, that the only thing you needed to get a drivers license was that you knew how to read, and you had clean teeth- so at the age of 5, he knew how to drive, and would frequently go to the grocery store for his mom to get a carton of eggs, a block of cheese, and a box of cigarettes. (He never needed to worry about the milk- they still delivered it) He spent more times talking about how he met the love of his life, Ruth; how he brought her to America from Sweden than I could count every bone in my body.

Everyday my Grandpa Jones ate fried eggs over easy, with white toast and orange juice, and a shot of vodka. He lived until 102. His death certificate says 99, but we all know better- because he made it clear to remind us that they didn't give out birth certificates until they were sure the baby was alive for more than 2 years. Charles Jones was a chief of the fire brigade in Miami Florida for 20 years. Then he retired and became a baker. He finally retired baking at the age of 85, after breaking his hip for the third time.

My grandpa was known by everyone in his small town, and his kindness was infectious. He gave my step-dad his inheritance early to help pay for court fees. He listened to my secrets, and swore he would take them to his grave. He would give a winning smile, even on his worst day and say that things were always okay- because he's breathing. He stood up for what was right, no matter what. Even if it meant telling his children and grandchildren to knock it off at 97. He encompassed the vibe of "Here for a good time".

After he died, he visited me in my dreams twice. It's only ever been when I needed it most. The first time was a few weeks after he died- I was at the lowest in my life. I was just starting my sophomore year of highschool and nothing felt... right. He came to me in my dream and said to me: "You're thinking too much, just remember that you're not as trapped as you think you are. Remember that you're loved, even when you don't think you feel it. I'm always with you. Tell your father I'm okay, I'm with Ruth."

the second time he came to me was many years later- I had long since graduated high school, hell- I even moved across the country. He said to me "You didn't tell him that I'm safe in heaven with Ruth- so you better tell him this time. I see you, I love you."

I won't lie to you that I feel a bang of guilt admitting this- it's been three years since that dream.. I still haven't told my step-dad like i'm supposed too. Mostly because I can't tell if it'd hurt my dad, or give him the closure he needs.

Great Grandpa Jones died over ten years ago, and it took me leaving my abusive home, finding therapy, getting diagnosed with C-PTSD and DID (as well as many others), to make me realize when he was telling me that he loves me- he really meant it.