#storing electric bike outside

[fafnir19]

Sporting Incentive

I stood outside the charming London apartment, feeling an electric thrill in my bones. Six months in this enchanting city awaited me, and I was ready to embrace every adventure it had in store.

I simply swapped apartments with another student who was also studying abroad. The other student’s name was William, and his apartment was centrally located—a perfect find for me.

As I stepped inside, the interior was as impressive as the exterior. Clean and stylish, with a touch of sophistication that made me feel right at home. A letter from William sat on the dining table, welcoming me to his apartment and assuring me that a cleaning lady would come weekly. I grinned as I read the part about making use of William's sports equipment and clothing. The apartment was a treasure trove of athletic gear. It seemed William was quite the athlete, unlike myself. From the bike leaning against the wall to rows of equipment for various sports, I couldn't help but feel a surge of admiration and a pang of guilt for not being as sporty.

The day London's public transportation went on strike, I found myself in a on a dilemma. I needed to get to the university, and without hesitation, I decided to ride William's white racing bike.

It was a new experience, and at first, I struggled to find my balance. Alas, as I pedaled through the streets of London, a newfound exhilaration filled me. I was hooked. "Whoa!" I mumbled to myself, my heart racing and laughter bubbling up as I zipped through the streets, reveling in the freedom and speed of the bike. From that day on, I ditched public transportation for my trusty two-wheeled companion.

"Hey, Aiden, why don't you join us for a game of hockey?" The invitation came from a couple of guys at the university. I was hesitant at first, not being much of a hockey player, but eventually, I gave in to their pleas. Before I knew it, I was suiting up in William's hockey gear and taking to the nearby park.

The game turned out to be a surprising success. I found joy in the friendly competition, and soon enough, hockey became a regular hobby for me. "Aiden, have you ever tried rowing? Our club could use someone like you," a fellow hockey player asked one day, sparking my interest in a sport I hadn't considered before. I thought that since I was in London, I might as well try rowing—after all, it's typically English.

I took William's rowing suit and ventured to the rowing club.

The sense of unity and purpose I found there had me hooked from the very first stroke. Before long, I was waking up at the crack of dawn to row every morning before heading to the university, relishing the tranquility of the river and the rhythm of the oars. As days went on, I noticed a change in my physique due to all the sports. My own clothes no longer fit properly, so I began wearing William's refinde attire. It felt a bit odd at first, but soon, I grew to love the posh style. "Well, well, look who's turning into quite the athlete,"

a friend remarked, and I couldn't help but smile at the transformation I had undergone.

With a deep breath, I stepped into the familiar pub, the scent of ale and chatter filled the air.

William was waiting for me, a grin spreading across his face. "Aiden! I'm back earlier than expected. How's the apartment been treating you?" "It's been fantastic, William. I can't thank you enough for letting me stay here." "I'm glad you enjoyed it. By the way, you don't have to sleep on the sofa. It's not really my apartment, and I actually haven't been abroad," William confessed with a chuckle. "Wait, what do you mean it's not your apartment? What's going on?" I asked, feeling a knot of confusion forming in my stomach. "It's all part of an experiment for my master's thesis. The apartment is designed to influence your subconscious and turn you into an athlete. And I must say, it's been quite a success!" William's eyes danced with excitement. "You did what?" My voice rose in incredulity, but I found myself unable to muster anger toward William. There was an odd sense of acceptance and understanding that came over me. Before I could protest further, William dropped another bombshell. "And it seems my experiment turned out more successful than anticipated. I also tried to make you my best friend, and it looks like it worked!" I blinked, trying to process everything, but then something remarkable happened. A warmth settled in my chest, and I couldn't help but mirror William's grin.

"A world trip, you say? I've always wanted to travel with you, William." "I thought you'd say that! I've already booked the tickets. It's the perfect way to celebrate the success of my thesis," William said, excitement lacing his words. The thought of traveling the world with William filled me with an indescribable joy, and for the first time in a long while, I felt genuinely excited about something. As the days passed and the world trip drew closer, I found myself caught in a whirlwind of preparations and excitement. The sparkle in William's eyes was infectious, and I couldn't deny the thrill of experiencing the world with him. The first light of dawn illuminated the airport, casting a golden glow over the eager faces of the travelers. An array of emotions churned within me—anticipation, excitement, and a flicker of apprehension.

"Here's to new adventures, Aiden," William said, clinking his glass against mine as we waited for our flight. "To new adventures," I echoed, a genuine smile curving my lips. The world awaited us, brimming with possibilities, and for the first time, I was eager to embrace it all. As the plane soared into the boundless sky, I couldn't help but feel a semblance of freedom that I had never experienced before. Leaning back in my seat, I closed my eyes and let the hum of the aircraft lull me into a state of contemplation. What awaited me beyond the horizon?

"Hello, Josh. Yes, it's been quite an interesting experiment, and I believe it's time to put the cherry on top," William’s professor spoke into his phone, his eyes glinting with anticipation. "Thank you for the generous financial support. Aiden has proven to be the ideal candidate for your law firm. He will change his subjects to law after returning from his world trip. I’ve influenced his subconscious so that he will become a dedicated and loyal employee." William’s professor said, his voice dripping with confidence.

"Oh, and I've taken up the suggestion of the HR department. Aiden will be pleased to contribute to the diversity charter as well. It seems he'll be a nice little addition to London’s gay community soon," William’s professor said with a mischievous glint in his eyes.

[stervrucht]

Proximity - Part 8

● Part 1 ● Previous ● Next ● AO3 ●

cw: sexual content

“They think I’m doing drugs.”

Steve's voice sounds soft and distorted by the electric sound of the telephone.

It’s late at night. Eddie should be sleeping already if he wants to get anywhere near the recommended hours of sleep. Tomorrow is another early morning; a day filled with heavy lifting. Only Steve can’t call unless his parents are asleep and he hasn’t been over in a few days because his dad wants him home for the nights. 

Now Eddie knows why.

“Drugs?” Eddie echoes.

“My neighbor, Mrs. Sanders, saw you at the house a couple of times. Guess she told my parents about some weird dude’s nightly visits.”

Eddie tightens his grip on the phone. It bothers him—bothers him a lot—but he doesn’t want to let Steve know. It’s one of the few moments they have during the week and he won’t let the words poison him. Instead, he does his best to make his voice sound light.

“You picking a fight, Harrington?” Eddie quips. On the other side of the line, Steve chuckles and Eddie feels the tension melt away.

“Depends.”

“Depends?”

“On what I get when I inevitably win.” 

Eddie is grinning into the phone. Grinning so broadly it hurts his cheeks. He thinks that maybe he kinda loves Steve. Just a little.

“You are very confident for a guy who is known to lose fights.”

On the other side, he hears Steve let out a soft gasp. “That little traitor.”

Eddie laughs. “Trust me, Dustin sings your praises like a fucking bard.” 

“He better or it will be back to biking for him.”

For a moment it’s quiet on the other line and Eddie had almost forgotten why Steve called him in the first place.

“So I guess there’s no more sleepovers, huh?”

“Eh, depends. I’ve gotten pretty good at sneaking out over the years.”

“Just gotta make sure we get you back in time, right, Cinderella?”

“Or I let down my long, long hair and sneak you in.”  

Well, that just sounds like music to his ears. The thought of breaking the rules with Steve sends a pleasant shiver down his spine.

“Surprisingly fitting for someone known as ‘the hair’.”

Steve laughs and even through the phone’s distortion, the sounds fills him with delight.

“You should get some rest. Don’t want you in zombie-mode tomorrow,” Steve says, then follows up in a far more gentle tone, “Good night, Eddie.”

“Rest well, princess .” Eddie hears Steve snort and then the beep on the other line indicates Steve has hung up. Eddie places the phone back in its socket on the wall and looks around the trailer. 

Tomorrow he’ll be tired as shit, but hearing Steve’s voice was worth it. He walks back to his room, still smiling to himself as he lets himself fall back on his bed. The objects on Steve’s shelf sit unmoved and Eddie sighs as he moves to turn the lights off. 

Just as things were looking up, Steve’s dad had to come in and ruin it.

Eddie’s bed isn’t particularly large, but all by himself it feels bigger than ever. He rolls over to his chest and pulls his pillow close.

When he buries his face in it, it still smells like Steve.

It’s Friday, nearly 11 PM when Eddie drives up to Family Video. It’s raining and the puddles outside shine red with the reflected neon light of the store sign. His guitar lies in its case in the back—coming back from another rehearsal—and he’s a little high on the excitement of the night; a little drunk on Gareth’s unyielding optimism.

The electric shrieking of a guitar dies down from his radio as Eddie kills the engine, and suddenly the van is cast into silence. When he jumps out of the van, his boots land heavily into a puddle and he feels water soak his socks.

Gross.

Eddie pushes his way through the doors and is greeted by the familiar jingle. Robin looks up from behind the counter while she’s helping a customer. It’s one of the few people still lingering in the store this close to closing time. 

She gives him a little nod and Eddie makes his way into the store. He mulls about, browsing some of the new arrivals while he waits for Robin to finish up. Once the customer has left, he wanders over to the counter and throws himself on top of it with outstretched arms.

“Robin,” he wines. “Why do they make you work on movie night.”

Robin opens the register and pulls the drawer out. The jingle of coins hitting plastic sounds loud amidst the quiet of the empty store. 

“Technically, every night here is movie night,” Robin says.

Eddie groans in response. “You know what I mean.”

“I take it you’re here for your boyfriend?” 

Eddie cringes.

“He’s not my—” the words die on Eddie’s tongue, killed by Robin’s piercing stare, “Just…don’t say that to his face…lest you wish the king’s wrath befalls you,” he finishes dramatically.

“I think the king,” Robin pauses and looks towards the backroom, “Could use some exposure therapy.”

She clicks her tongue, eying the store entrance. “Will you get the sign? I’ll go get him for you.”

Eddie turns towards the door and flips the sign from ‘open’ to ‘closed’. Behind him, he hears a ruckus stirring until Steve’s voice transitions from muffled complaints to perfectly clear objections. 

Eddie turns around just in time to see the door close behind Steve’s back. 

“For fuck’s sake, Rob, I was working on that.” Steve sighs before looking up and when his eyes meet Eddie’s a shy smile appears on his face.

“Hey, stranger.” Eddie smiles at him. 

The last few days have been hard. He didn’t know it was possible to miss someone so quickly—to have the feeling be so immediate. And yet, he finds Steve’s absence in every corner of his house — the untouched shelf, the extra toothbrush in his bathroom.

The single mug of coffee he makes in the mornings these days.

Eddie hadn’t realized how gradually their lives had intertwined over the past few months. It happened so seamlessly that Steve’s presence had become the default and his absence a deviation.

Steve smiles back but doesn’t say anything. Instead, Eddie watches as Steve disappears behind the counter, only to pop back up with an arm full of VHS cases. 

“Here,” he says as he shoves a pile in Eddie’s direction, “Help me put them away.”

Eddie takes it, almost drops it in the process, and stares at Steve. “I have a feeling you’re abusing your powers here.”

“I know nothing of these powers you speak of.” Steve shoots him a cheeky smile and walks to one of the shelves. 

They stock the shelves in silence and Eddie thinks it may be the highlight of his day, as stupid as that sounds. 

He is working for free after all. 

Behind him, Eddie hears Steve’s soft breathing over the hum of TL light, backed by the quiet patter of rain against glass, and the sound of plastic cases being put back into place. Squatted between the shelves they’re hidden from the street and Eddie thinks he might risk it, with the store being closed and Robin tallying the register in the back. His heart is beating fast with anticipation, and it feels forbidden, part of it, because this isn’t the privacy of their homes.

Eddie lets himself fall back onto the floor, making a soft thud as he shoves himself into the shelf, beside Steve. He’s close enough that his thigh is touching the rubber of Steve’s sole.

Eddie leans his head back against the shelf as he watches Steve work. “You’re doing that wrong.” Steve looks over and gives Eddie a questioning look. And that’s when Eddie moves. He tugs Steve gently by the back of his neck, pulling him closer until he can kiss him. Pulls until he feels Steve transition from rigid surprise into soft acceptance as his lips move in response. 

It’s gentle and unhurried, and in this moment Eddie thinks Steve may love him too. 

“Oh my god.” 

Eddie pulls away as if burned, only to see Robin towering over them at the side of the shelves. Steve’s cheeks are flushed as he focuses on restocking once again, pretending that nothing happened.

She smiles, a little bit too happy—a little bit too cheeky. “Hurry up, yeah? I want to go home.” And then, before she turns around to leave. “I’m watching you, Munson.”

Eddie can feel the glee radiate off her and when he catches her gaze from behind the counter. 

She looks almost proud.

It feels like the stuff of movies, Eddie thinks as he stands beneath Steve’s window.

Eddie parked his van a couple of streets away, just outside the fancy part of the neighborhood to avoid having the cops called on him. It took him a good five minutes to reach the Harrington Residence by foot, but when he got there, Steve’s window was open, just as they discussed on the phone. 

It’s late. The light of day is only an indigo echo against the blackness of the night sky. Steve worked late and Eddie started early. And that seems to be the way things are these days.

He hates how their schedules conflict now. It makes him ache for the days when free time seemed abundant; when he could hang out at Family Video during the day while Robin and Steve worked.

The urge to run away is increasingly hard to suppress and he wonders what Steve would say. If he’d join him in his madness.

Eddie looks at the gentle pouring of light from Steve’s room.

It feels kinda thrilling — a little dumb too — to be sneaking into someone’s room at twenty-one. On the bright side, that’s one high school cliché he can cross off the list, even if it’s a little late. 

Eddie grabs the drainpipe and gives it an experimental shake. It seems sturdy enough. And it’s one thing that Eddie is actually good at—climbing. 

He may not be the best at basketball, but he can run just fine and he can climb, and roll, and jump. Back in high school, whenever he was dealing at the occasional house party, he had his fair share of close calls when running from the cops. Some of which definitely included a little climbing every now and then. 

Eddie hoists himself up on the drainpipe and is pleasantly surprised by the ease with which he does so. Seems like construction work, despite being generally horrible, has some perks after all. It doesn’t hurt that Steve seems to like the added definition Eddie has gained.

Once he pulls himself onto the roof, he can walk the last part to Steve’s window. He takes care, walking slowly and placing his feet thoughtfully so as not to create a sound. He cringes when he hears the room creak under his boot, waits a second to gauge a reaction, and when none comes, continues.

When he reaches the window he finds Steve lounging on his bed, messing around with a sketchbook in his lap. He’s wearing sweatpants and a simple T-shirt and seems deeply focused as he draws illuminated in the warm hue of a lamp on his desk. 

Eddie stares a moment, watching the tranquility on Steve’s face, and feels a fondness settle in his heart. 

“I’m kinda missing that hair you promised,” Eddie says as he rests his head on crossed arms on the window sill. Steve jumps up, visibly surprised, and quickly makes his way over to the window.  

“Tone down on the volume. My parents are at the end of the hall,” Steve whispers as he shoves the window open a little further. 

“Yeah, yeah.” Eddie slips his legs through and quietly — as quietly as he can manage — lands with his heavy boots on the carpeted floor of Steve’s room. 

Steve cringes at the sound and looks towards his bedroom door. Eddie follows his gaze.

“I don’t suppose you can lock that?”

“My parents don’t believe in privacy. It comes with some trauma, believe me.”

Eddie raises an amused eyebrow. “Daddy caught you choking the chicken, slapping the ol’ salami, stroking the one-eyed sn—”

Steve slaps a hand over Eddie’s mouth, his eyes wide. “Oh my god, will you stop it,” he hisses.

Eddie just laughs and licks a wet stripe over the inside of Steve’s hand. Steve pulls his hand away, grimacing.

“Dude.” Steve rubs his hand on his sweatpants. “But no, it was my mom. More than once, unfortunately. I’m pretty sure she’s equally traumatized.”

“But not enough to get you a lock.”

“Apparently not.”

Eddie feels something brewing in his gut. An irrepressible need for some mischief; to tease Steve a little.

“It’s kinda exciting too right? The possibility of being caught?” Eddie takes a step towards Steve, walking him back until the back of his calves hits the bed.

Steve’s eyes widen slightly, a flush creeping up his neck. “Really? That’s your takeaway?”

“What? Like this isn’t a booty call?” Eddie pushes Steve back until he’s sitting on the edge of the bed, then moves the straddle him, placing himself heavy on Steve’s thighs. His hand finds the curve of Steve’s neck, thumbing at his jawbone and ghosting his lips there. 

Steve rests his hands on Eddie’s hips, fingers playing absent-mindedly with the hem of his shirt. He looks back to the door again, brows furrowed as he seems to think. 

“We have to be quiet,” he whispers finally, turning his head back to Eddie. His lips are so close that Eddie can almost taste the words; feels them prickle on his skin with heat and intention.

“Then you better be quiet.” Steve opens his mouth to protest, but it’s reduced to a quiet groan as Eddie softly moves his lips over Steve’s.

He pulls back abruptly and Steve whines in response. “Hold on, I got you something.”

Steve eyes him curiously while Eddie digs through his pocket. When he feels his fingers hit soft plastic, he wraps his hand around it and pulls it out. He holds it out in front of Steve’s face and smiles broadly.

“A joint?” Steve looks at the baggy with a frown.

“I can’t stand having you falsely accused.” 

“And your solution is to have me rightly accused?”

“Exactly!”

Steve slaps a hand over Eddie’s mouth, making a shushing sound. This time, Eddie pulls it away gently and holds the hand, intertwining their fingers. He leans in, speaking his words against Steve’s lips. 

“What do you say?”

“I say,” Steve breathes, “You’re every bit the bad influence Mrs. Sanders thinks you are.”

Eddie leans forward, briefly capturing Steve’s lip before pulling back. Steve chases them and Eddie feels a flutter in his chest at the movement. “Let’s get on the roof. This stuff kinda reeks.”

Eddie steps away from Steve, pulling him up to his feet by their intertwined hands, and guides him to the window. Eddie climbs through first, followed by Steve whose exit is smooth and quick, painted by experience, and Eddie wonders how often Steve has sneaked out and why. It’s probably girls, and it stirs something ugly in his gut.

Jealousy , he thinks. 

Eddie isn’t stupid, he’s heard the rumors. He knows Steve has been around and it makes him a little insecure. He doesn’t mind it, not really. He’s hardly set on that purity bullshit. It’s just that Eddie hasn’t had much experience.

Eddie sits down on the roof and waits for Steve to join him. He puts the joint between his lips and strikes his zippo — one, two, three times — to light it. He takes a few short drags to let it truly catch and when it does finally inhales fully before handing the joint to Steve.

The scent drifts around them, up into the cloudless sky. Before them the pool glows blue and the trees outside the garden are little more than black smudges against the midnight sky. 

“It’s been some time since I’ve done this,” Steve says as he shifts a little closer to Eddie’s side. They’re as close as they can get, side to side, and Eddie slides his arm behind Steve to try and keep him a little warmer in the night’s chill.  

Steve takes a tentative pull, and breathes it in, not too deep, before releasing the smoke from his lips with his head tilted towards the sky. 

They sit in silence and smoke until the joint is halfway gone. Eddie stubs it, saves it for later, as he leans back as well. It’s a clear night and stars dot the sky more brightly than he’s ever appreciated in Hawkins. 

“When did you know you liked me?” Steve asks from his side. His voice sounds a little slow.

“Bold of you to assume I do.” Eddie stares straight ahead, keeping his face as neutral as he can manage. 

“Oh, shut up.” 

Steve playfully slaps at his arm and Eddie breaks, a grin growing on his face. “Fine, guess I will—shut up that is.”

“No, tell me,” Steve whines. 

And Eddie feels like he can’t refuse Steve anything. He’d probably set the world on fire for this guy if only to keep him warm.

“Alright, alright,” he relents, “It was probably somewhere after you started dating that girl.”

Eddie doesn’t know why but he feels himself grow nervous. His hands are itching for something to do and he briefly considers lighting the joint again. It’s too soon. Instead, he twists at his rings — the skull one on his ring finger — with his thumb as he waits for Steve’s response.

“What? Jennifer?” Steve frowns.

“Right. That’s the one.”

For a moment, Steve is silent. Eddie can hear his lips move as if he’s silently speaking to himself, and then he does. 

“Can I tell you something? Promise not to laugh.”

“Cross my heart.” Eddie lays a hand over his chest.

“I think I only started dating her because I was confused.”

Steve’s voice sounds fragile and from the corner of his eyes, Eddie can see Steve looking at him—gauging his reaction. But that can’t be right, because Steve always seems so confident. So unapologetically affectionate and intimate that it makes Eddie’s head spin. Now Steve looks vulnerable.

“Confused?” Eddie echoes.

Steve is playing with the hem of his shirt. Folding it over and back again between his fingers. 

“About my feelings….for you.” Steve looks away. He’s blushing. Eddie is making him blush . 

It’s the first time it really hits him, that maybe he affects Steve just as much as Steve does him. That maybe all that time he anguished over Steve’s confusing behavior, Steve actually was confused himself.

That maybe there was little to rationalize. 

“Pray the gay away, huh?” Eddie feels the words slip his mouth, and they feel more mean than he intended them to.

“I’m not—” Steve cuts himself off, “Anyway, yeah, that’s why it didn’t work out. She caught on pretty quickly that something wasn’t right.”

It stings because he knows what Steve was going to say. And perhaps he just needs more time, who can say? Eddie tries not to show the hurt on his face. Instead, he focuses on whatever Steve is willing to give him. And it’s a lot, isn’t it? More than he ever expected. More than he dared to dream.

“You tried to get her back anyway?”

“I don’t know. I was a mess. I just wanted to get out; wanted you there with me I guess.” Steve still isn’t looking at him; still fidgeting with his shirt.

“You know, that night I thought you were going to kiss me.” Eddie lets out a nervous chuckle.

Steve is silent for a moment.

“I thought so too,” he admits. It surprises Eddie—Steve’s frankness. Back then, he figured he had gotten it all wrong. That it only looked that way. Never did he dream it might actually be—

“You’re a confusing guy, you know that?” he tells Steve.

“Like you aren’t.” Steve sends him a little smile to soften his words and Eddie can’t help but smile back. 

They really are a bunch of idiots.

“Look, since we’re on the honesty train here, I’ll tell you something too.” Eddie starts. He fidgets with his ring, fixing his gaze back on the pool. He imagines its depths and from up here on the roof, it looks nearly bottomless — a blue void, or a portal to another realm. 

“In the beginning, I was just— fucking around with you I guess? Testing your limits, pushing your buttons. Trying to get a rise out of the great King Steve. You were a total buzz kill by the way.”

Steve frowns. “What do you mean?”

“What I mean is,” Eddie turns to face Steve—really face him as he shifts his arm from behind Steve, moving it lower to steady himself. Steve looks back, brown eyes searching his face. “I was getting close to you, like, physically close, only to push you away. But you, Mr. Harrington, are impossible to spook. And at some point, I began to like it. The way you would stand so close to me; touch me so casually. I guess I’ve never really had that. Never allowed anyone to. You totally broke me.”

“In a good way?” Steve eyes him questioningly, his gaze a little troubled.

“Definitely a good way. Like a piñata. Cracked me open and I’m full of candy.” Eddie lets himself fall back on the roof with spread arms behind his head.

“You are so weird,” Steve chuckles, then continues, “I bet you taste like candy too.”

Steve leans over then, capturing Eddie’s lips without hesitation. A small, more sensible part of his brain tells him that it’s kinda fucking dangerous to get frisky on a roof, even if it isn’t that sloped. But Steve’s tongue is like a dagger and Eddie’s sensibilities susceptible to piercing damage.

He allows himself to be pushed back; to have Steve press his weight into Eddie while he works his mouth. Steve cradles his jaw and wills his lips to part. Steve’s tongue slides hot against his own and Eddie lets out a small desperate sound as Steve’s other hand makes its way down until he finds the hem of his shirt. He moves over his skin, fingers leaving behind a trail of electricity as they feel and explore. 

It’s overwhelming, maybe more so than before. 

Eddie digs his hands in the back of Steve’s shirt, pulling the fabric taut until there is no more give. He aches for Steve, aches for his touch—everywhere. 

Steve breaks the kiss, moving his lips down until they find the crook of Eddie’s neck, and kisses him there. Sucks and bites in a way that gives him goosebumps all over.

“Do you think Mrs. Sanders is watching?” Eddie breathes in Steve’s ear. 

“So what if she is?” Steve rolls his hips and it sends a shockwave through Eddie. Makes him tingle all the way from his head to his toes.

“Then we better give her a sho—” Eddie’s words are interrupted by another roll of Steve’s hips and he feels himself gasp, fingers digging harder into Steve’s back, pulling at the fabric until Steve’s back is exposed to the world. 

He needs to feel Steve. Needs to be skin to skin as he pulls at Steve’s shirt—pulls it over his head until it comes off and Steve is looking down on him. But Eddie’s clothes aren’t that easy. He swears at himself. At his stupid choice of wardrobe—shirt and jacket over jacket.

“Let’s go inside, yeah?” Eddie feels slightly out of breath. Steve nods. 

Eddie removes his jacket and shirt with a haste he has never known in his life. Removes his pants for good measure, just like Steve, until they’re both naked.

When Steve pushes him back on his bed, it feels familiar against his back. He is reminded of the first time he slept here, lying on his back and staring up at the ceiling. Only now the ceiling is concealed by Steve’s hovering form. And instead of nervous awkwardness, he feels a sense of giddy anticipation when Steve’s lips find his. 

He doesn’t try to think of the lockless door. Doesn’t try to, but somehow finds a renewed sense of danger and excitement in the idea.

He moves with Steve, parts his legs, and allows Steve to settle between them. To set a rhythm as he moves above him. And it feels good—so good—the slide of Steve’s dick against his own. Steve moves from his lips, down to the column of his throat, and then keeps moving, placing small kisses and sucking at the skin of Eddie’s chest without losing his rhythm.

Down—down.

Eddie’s heart is hammering in his chest with every kiss, every lick, and he doesn’t expect it when he feels a hand wrap itself around his dick. 

When he moves his head to look down, he sees Steve’s mouth ghosting over his cock. The sight alone nearly tips him over and that’s all the warning he gets before Steve runs his tongue, base to lip over the length of it. 

It’s so intense, so overwhelming that Eddie throws his head back into Steve’s pillow and he bite his knuckle to still the sounds begging to escape him. 

Steve takes it as encouragement, taking him in as far as he can, guided by his hand, and Eddie loses all sensible thought. It’s just him and Steve and the overwhelming sensation of Steve working him, sucking him in like he’s made for it. He whispers Steve’s name like a chant. Tries to keep his voice down as he moans softly in tune with Steve’s movements. His hands grip uselessly at the bedding as he moves with it, feels his hips dying to buck under the sensation, only to be kept down by Steve’s insistent hand. 

He’s good at it, so good. And it doesn’t take long for Eddie to feel that familiar heat bubble in his gut. 

“Steve,” he whispers uselessly, his hand moving towards Steve’s hair, burying it there. “Steve I’m close,” he crooks out.

Steve pulls back then, lips pink and plump from the abuse. He moves his thighs underneath Eddie’s until their cocks line up and then grabs hold of them together, leaning forwards on one hand next to Eddie’s head and kisses him again. 

And it’s too much—too much when Steve’s hand starts moving. When Eddie can taste himself on Steve’s tongue that licks itself into his mouth. It’s all it takes. Eddie drags his nails over Steve’s back, and Steve groans into his mouth as Eddie feels his hot release fall between them on his stomach. Pleasure is ripping through him—ripping him apart as Steve works him through it — swallowing every sob, every whimper. It doesn’t take long for Steve to get there too and he buries his sounds in Eddie’s neck as he adds to the mess on his stomach. 

Steve lets himself fall next to Eddie, catching his breath for a moment before leaning over again, placing a gentle kiss on his cheek, then below his eye, and finally, his lips, lingering there for a sweet moment before getting up and fetching some tissues. 

Steve makes a show of cleaning him up. Does so gently and quietly, before moving back into the bed next to Eddie, one leg draped over his body as he buries his face into his pillow.

They lie there for a moment, and Eddie feels exhaustion overcome him.

“Steve,” Eddie whispers. Steve lets out a soft groan in return. Eddie turns to his side and tries again. “Steve.”

This time Steve turns his head with eyes still closed. “Hm?”

“I think I should go,” he whispers into Steve’s hair. Steve groans again, and it sounds like objection.

“Stay,” Steve whines softly. And Eddie wishes he could as he pries himself away. As much as he would love to, it wouldn’t be wise. Nothing about tonight was wise—as much as it was fun.

They shouldn’t tempt fate. 

Steve remains unmoved on the bed, opening a lazy eye as he watches Eddie dress. Once Eddie is fully dressed, he leans over to Steve, placing another kiss into his hair.

“I’ll call you tomorrow,” he says before climbing his way out of the window. Steve doesn’t respond, and Eddie smiles to himself as he softly closes it behind him.

---

● Part 1 ● Previous ● Next ● AO3 ●

[bellygunnr]

Trueno Twitterpation

A commission piece for @lyndexv of their OC Geoff reviving a sentient AE86! It was an absolute blast to write.

----

The AE86 was a cowering, sorry mess when he first discovered her, wheels stuck fast in dry-wet-dry again mud ruts and strapped down by voracious forest overgrowth. How she got there evades Geoff still, as her previous handler had long since passed and the one before him just wanted her gone. He'd all too eagerly dragged her out of her mire and onto a tow truck. The sunlight'd been good for her on that trip, though. Under the muck, her paint had taken on a faint glow, which he kept an eye on until she was practically a fireball trailing him home.

Now she's clean. Physically, at least. Her tires are new and so is her paint. And she stares at him plaintively from his driveway, headlights popped up, drawing his full attention repeatedly until he can do nothing but give in to her call. It's nice outside, at least. A pleasant day with a breeze. His skin itches, like he imagines the Trueno's does, a restless buzzing that urges him to unlock her driver's door and drop inside, stretching out to fill the cabin with all the languidness of a cat in a sunbeam.

He runs his hands along the hard edge of her utilitarian dashboard, key pinned against his palm with his thumb. Dust floats up in fits and bursts as he does so, becoming a thin veneer that the low outside sun diffuses in. The restlessness becomes electric, then, and he hurries to turn the key in the ignition over.

The dashboard lights gradually warm to life. The engine, not so much. The AE86 trembles under his hands, her anxiety as acute as a storm's ozone, her shame a pulsing heat between his eyes, like tears. 

"Hey, hey," he says gently. "Don't be upset. I know it's hard. It's not your fault."

The Trueno's frame judders hard with the force of the engine cranking. Fuel sparks, but it's both too much and not enough, and he sees smoke filter pitifully from her backend through the rear view mirror while the engine sputters back out. He pats the top of her dash consolingly.

It's terrible. She's willing, he can feel it, but there's-- problems. Barriers. Age. Disuse. Abuse. And it's killing her.

"I'll be right back. Alright? I've got a couple ideas."

He runs his hand across her dash one more time. Heat bleeds between them, lingering all the way to the hardware store, which he bikes to. When he comes back, he's significantly poorer and weighed down by car parts.

But it's a nice day. They've got time to burn. He has the tools.

And she's willing.

--

Geoff pulls out spark plugs that are black and burnt. He swaps them out for new iridium-tipped ones. Then he pulls the air filter and the carburetor and that's a new round of problems-- running is to survival as driving is to living, can't have one if you're the other, so he's glad he bought a rebuild kit for the carb. 

"Guess we'll have to go for that drive tomorrow. Sorry, girl," he sighs. "But this won't take long. I'll get you put back together."

The wind blows. One of the headlights abruptly droops, as if the '86 is winking in acknowledgement. Geoff carefully lowers the hood down and clamps it shut.

"Just sit tight."

He ducks into his garage.

---

The carb body has to soak and dry, and be brushed through. He sits at his workshop bench with the flood light on and goes through the floater, the jet screws, all of it, until it is whole and hale. His back burns with the full attention of the AE86 (or maybe he's just imagining it). (It's getting hard to tell).

It's dark out by the time he's done and that's okay. He drags his light source out with him, making multiple runs for the tools, until the AE86 is open and waiting. She's cool to the touch now that the sun's gone. She patiently abides Geoff's fumbling around in her engine bay.

"That should help with some of it. New air filter. Rebuilt carburetor-- I changed the settings, too, just to keep up with things. That'll feel good in the morning."

He's numb with cold by the time he's done. She bounces on her suspension when he closes her hood one more time, finished for the night. His hands linger on the panel of her closed headlamp.

"Good night," Geoff says.

---

He ends up sleeping in too late the next day. The shrill beep of a horn-- not French, he thinks bizarrely-- wakes him up with a shout. He's halfway out the door in just a t-shirt and boxers before his brain catches up with his body and he stares hard at his driveway, confused.

Clouds skate across the sky. A bird lingers atop his mailbox.

The AE86 has not moved an inch. But--

"I'm gonna go get dressed," he tells her. 

And he does, in record time. The Trueno's key bites into his palm with a sort of nervous energy. He's still not fully awake, but he's jittery in a suppressed adrenaline, pre-interview, post-accident kind of way. It's usually not a good start to a day. But this feels alright.

The driver's door is ajar before he even pulls the handle. He pauses, but shrugs and slides into the seat, letting muscle memory guide him until the engine is cranking.

It hangs.

"Come on, girl," he urges quietly. 

He twists the key again.

With a pop, the four cylinders start to go, and everything buzzes to life.

"Brilliant!" Geoff cries. "I knew it! I hope that feels good!"

His face twinges from smiling so broadly. Experimentally, he revs the engine, watching the needle smoothly sail from idle to 2000, 3000, and drop back down. There's some rough bubbling-- but she's not quitting. Good. Fantastic, even.

He drops into first gear. Very gently, they work together, easing out of the driveway and onto the gravel road beyond. She snarls a little passing into second into third, but stays true.

Excitement suffuses him. He can't tell if it's all his emotions or something else. But it doesn't matter. Geoff cranks the windows down, waves at a passing motorist. They don't understand.

That's okay.

They end up driving to the coast. After some time, he feels the urge to pull off onto the side of the road, where a breeze has picked up and drags in the scent of the sea, mixing in with the tang of grass. It's picturesque. His heart is still beating fast.

The Trueno idles along. Geoff tenses suddenly.

Thank you, he hears.

"What?" He blurts out.

Thank you, is repeated. For saving me as you did.

The voice is entirely in his head. Yet he can hear it. Hear her. And he knows in his bones that he's hearing Her, the '86, her chassis trembling with the raucous motion of her engine. This adrenaline. This joy. His, but not his alone. Hers, too.

"I'd do it again," he says stiltedly. "And I'll keep fixing you up until there's nothing wrong with you."

He hears her wheels crunch in the gravel. The blunt curve of a fender presses up against his legs.

Of course. I have full faith in you.

Geoff scrubs at his face, trying to hide a rapidly rising blush. She can't just SAY that! He turns around, only to find the Trueno shaking on her rear-suspension, in a rather identifiable pattern. Of course. 

"The feeling's mutual," he gets out.

They're both glad it's such a nice day out.

[puddingpong]

🌈CSP Assets MasterList🌈

I use Clip Studio Paint a lot… and i am always checking the assets store

This is a big list of assets i find interesting/useful that are ✨free✨

🖌️Brushes

Belt Buckle

Scattering Papers

Bullet Band

Simple Rope

Wisteria Flowers

Rubble/Debris

Vertical Rocks

Pointy Rocks

Chains

Simple Chains

Floor Pattern

Wizard Bookshelf

Cartoon Leaf Brush

Large Foliage

Bushes

🛋️3d Furniture:

Modern Bookshelf

Antique Books

Chesterfield Antique Chair

Bookcase

Simple Computer Chair

2 seats Sofa

Armrest Chair

Office Chair

Fancy Chair

Celestial Globe Set

Simple Queen Bed

Bird Cage Chair

Toilet Set

Bunk Bed

Hospital Bed

⚙️3d Misc:

Angel Wings

Cogs

Helm

Wires

Cowboy Hat

Camera

Dog Muzzle

Valves

🏠3d Buildings / Structures / etc

Back Alley Wall

Cartoonish Back Alley

Mobile/Ice Cream Stand

Outside Asian Insp. Lantern

Tall Upscale building with 4 entrances

Medieval Market Stand

Fantasy city street

Mansion

Wooden School Hall

Boxing Ring

Multitenant Building

Sci-fi Door

City

Medieval Ruins

Throne Room

Big House

Iron Gate

Torii Gate

Japanese Style Room

Cliff Covered With Concrete Blocks

Medieval Shop Stand

Bus Seats

Boxing Hall

Simple Building Apartments

Sci-fi Medical Pod

Basic Ruins

Tiny Cafe Table Set

Tall Shopping Street Building

Shopping Street Building

Inside Castle Throne Room

Inside Castle Hall

Inside Castle Corridor

Skyscraper

Fantasy Castle/Church

🚲3d Vehicles

Racing Bike

Bicycle

⚔️3d Weapons

Nodachi Sword

Medieval Sword

Dart Gun

Pistol Parts

Automatic rifle

Futuristic Weapon Set

🎸3d Instruments:

Drum Set

Guitar

Electric Guitar

Electric Guitar (Mustang Type)

🌈Hope it helps? idk... bye bye🌈

[magnoliamyrrh]

i want to go home

i dont even know what that means anymore. where is home. the apartment i grew up in had to be renovated. it is no longer my home. not my home with the persian carpets with the old wooden floors with the soviet style kitchen with white flowered tiles stained yellow from years of cooking and smoking the little window i would climb up on to smoke. the apartment where the heating and electricity and water would always go out, the one with the old furniture brought over from before the communist period, with the balcony with the glass edges cracked and broken. there is a school outside of the window where a park used to be, a park where i learned how to bike, where wed jump the fence to sneak into. but now theres no park, and the old trees have been cut to make room for the school, and my childhood friends are married and i havent seen them in years. that apartment is not my home anymore, but the streets still smell the same, have the same graffiti everchanging, all the same gangs of street cats. but its not my home anymore is it? its not my home

and maybe dobrogea isnt either, maybe ive become too foreign and strange for its streets. or maybe not. maybe not, maybe thats where i want to return, to my grandparents little apartment, to the black sea, to the tatar women with their sweets and foods and little stores teaching me how to make jewerly, to my grand grandmothers house and to the graves of my grand grandparents, to dry grass fields. even if now the houses have changed, even if now the fruits and vegetables dont taste the same

but perhaps ive become too foreign and strange. perhaps i dont belong anywhere anymore. perhaps nowhere is home anymore. here its not. perhaps its in the mojave, in the dry desert heat, with the tumbleweed down in the plato under the mountains gaze, with clouds like pantings and the smell of sweet hot sand. maybe thats where i long for, a foreigner in a pitstop to nowhere, maybe thats where my heart has been most settled. but i dont belong there either

home is not here, not in this house and not in this bed, and its not there, and its not there, and its not there

i want to go home. i want to go home all the time. i dont understand what that means anymore

its like im looking for some place which only exists in the hazy eyes of a childhood which didnt exist

i just. want to go home

[snapthistiger]

exercise 01232024

bike ride to the gym

3 x 10 lat pull

3 x 5 dips

3 x 10 tricep press

2 x 10 row

2 x 10 tricep extension

45 minute spin class

3 x 10 cable row

3 x 10 cable press

bike ride to home

the gym workers received Hershey kisses

i woke up about 4:50a and stayed awake because i thought if i went back to sleep i would wake up late for spin class. i started the coffee maker and Peanut was walking around like she wanted to go outside so i opened the front door to let her out and then she didn't go out. oops.. i set off the house alarm

top right = a great bike ride to the gym despite damp conditions. i wore my reflective jacket and felt super

during spin class i received a text message from my Mom's sitter that my Mom woke up and immediately wanted to go outside to do something with the swimming pool pump / those manic dementia thoughts she has sometimes. i told the sitter to let her go and i would check on it when i came over. after spin class i rode my bike to my Mom's and Mom was sitting inside and seemed a little out of it. we talked for awhile and i asked her about the heavy rain last night and she didn't know it had rained. i turned off the electrical breaker to the pool filter pump so she couldn't turn it on and damage it. texted my sister to let her know what's up.

mild weather today with breeze from the southeast

bought some milk and ice cream and tea from Kroger. had another issue with the price on the tea being higher at the register than what is indicated on the shelf. provided feedback to their customer service in the store

top left = spin class getting situated. not sure why we had so many folks on my left

middle = knife i found on the road

bottom = my couch squad

supposed to have heavy rain tonight

hope you have a peaceful afternoon and evening..

[shinsengumi-archives]

Shimabara (part 1)

I looked for Kyoto's red light district several times. First on a map. Shimabara is not marked on modern maps. And for a while I seriously thought that there was nothing left of it, just like Tokyo's Yoshiwara. Then I found out that Shimabara is a real place. And it's not that far from our house. Well, it's about half an hour by bike.

The next stage was several attempts to find Shimabara by car. After riding back and forth a couple of times on highways that are supposed to pass near Shimabara and from which we saw no sign of this Shimabara, my husband said he was bored with this entertainment.

Eventually I got on my bike and decided: Even if die, I'll find it. I made it to the bus stop at the back of the Nishi-Hongan-ji temple, which is called "Shimabara-guchi" (Shimabara's Gate, sort of). Having parked my bike to make sure that I wouldn't miss it on foot, I went for a spin around the surrounding streets. I found a Shimabara Hospital, Shimabara Police Station, and even the Shimabara post office (pictured below). Everything said it was around here somewhere. But where?!!

I passed a small flower store on the corner of a narrow, crooked street a few times. The owners were busy outside setting up their merchandise, and clearly noticed the gaijin girl walking around. I was about to give up and ask them where the hell Shimabara was, but the crooked, narrow street leading away from the store suddenly winked at me from lurking around the corner...

That's it! That's it!!! This is the main gate of Shimabara, Shimabara Daimon (or Omon). The eastern, front gate, one of only two that were, and the only one that survived. The entire perimeter of the block was surrounded by a wall, a couple pieces of which remain on either side of the gate. The gate itself is a copy of the gate of Shimabara Castle (located on the territory of current Nagasaki prefecture), which was captured during the suppression of the uprising of Japanese Christians by Tokugawa Iemitsu's troops in 1638. Actually, according to the most common version, the "Shimabara" neighborhood, which moved to this location in 1641, got its name from the castle. Apparently, there was a funny saying: "The brave visitors of the entertainment quarters were invited to bravely take the beauties by storm. And there is no fortress that will not be conquered".

Remains of a stone water basin. Rinse your hands. 

And outside the gate. It's nothing special. Just a regular residential urban neighborhood. Modern houses and cars. A tangle of wires overhead. And only the gray tiles underfoot mark the former Shimabara hanamachi.

You see that? The asphalt changes to tile in the place where there was once a wall enclosing the neighborhood.

The first thing we found in the former entertainment quarters was a hotel with an onsen called Makoto no yu (Makoto bathhouse). Shinsengumi fans, enjoy. Hopefully, customer autopsies are not on the menu.

A stone's throw from the bathhouse is the former Wachigaiya 輪違屋 tea house. It was founded in 1688. It's now closed to the general public, although periodically events are held there with the last incumbent tayu of Shimabara. And Wachigaiya has served as the setting for several feature films of Shimabara life. Including a romance about the Shinsengumi, who were frequent visitors to the entertainment district.

The door was ajar, see? I stuck my nose in there and blew loudly. But no one came out. Judging by the complete absence of any clear signs describing a brief history of the institution, the house is private. And according to the presence of all the proper stickers above the door (gas, electricity, television, etc.) - the house is residential and random outsiders are not allowed to look inside. However, there is nothing particularly valuable in this institution. It's a standard tea house of an entertainment district: on the first floor they walk in and get drinks, on the second floor there are "rooms" where you can be alone with the girl of your choice.

A little farther down the street from Wachigaiya was a tiny cemetery wedged between the houses. These tombstones (darker in the center) were placed during the Edo period. Perhaps one of Shimabara's brothel dwellers was also buried here. I haven't found any confirmation of this theory (nor any refutation, for that matter), but I like to think so. Where have the residents of the neighborhood been buried for the last four hundred years?

Adjacent to the cemetery is an equally tiny Buddhist temple called Hokke-ji 法華寺. It has very interesting tiles on the edge of the roof, I haven't seen such a thing until now. The temple is said to belong to the Nichiren Buddhist sect. But it has nothing to do with Shimabara proper as a licensed entertainment district: the temple was built on this site eight hundred years before Shimabara so it has its own agenda.

It's an old house. From the architecture, it looks like it used to be some kind of food establishment. But now it looks like just a residential building.

And this is the corner of the biggest and most famous structure in Shimabara: an ageya called Sumiya. Ageya 揚屋 is a type of establishment. It's not a tea house, a restaurant, or a brothel. It's a kind of closed elite club where only certain members of the public are allowed in and only on recommendation. It's where they gather to discuss important business or to talk about elegant things, where beautiful and educated women are invited to enhance the conversation with their brilliance. Sumiya 角屋 is the name of this ageya.

The front, guest entrance to Sumiya. It's closed to regular visitors. Tourists can enter through the back entrance, which leads to the kitchen and "office".

The street along which Sumiya stretched. It's about the width of one car.

I reached the other side of Shimabara.

There was once a second, western, gate in the wall around the block, smaller, not preserved. Only a black granite plaque reminds us that it was here.

Shimabara Sumiyoshi jinja Shrine. One of the many Sumiyoshi temples under the Osaka Sumiyoshi-taisha. The temple is quite tiny, but it is well-maintained and appears to be open to visitors.

On the curb surrounding the tree on the temple's territory, someone had placed either toys or some kind of memorial sign. It was completely unclear why, and there was no one to ask.

Everything is like in big temples, only smaller.

The temple is surrounded by a low granite fence. Each pillar is a donation from someone whose name is carved on the stone.

After going around all the surrounding gardens, which turned out to be fewer than I thought, I went back to Sumiya. I had to see the inside, right? It's a unique structure, by the way, there aren't many of them left. An ageya was a combination of a strict and spacious samurai dwelling and a richly decorated merchant's house combined with an office.

Interior courtyard. View of the front entrance from inside. The entrance itself is behind a curtain with Sumiya's coat of arms on it. Behind me is the door to the kitchen and other utility rooms, which take up almost a third of the entire area. And to the left is the passageway to the guest rooms.

Stone carving at the entrance, a place for travelers to wash. Also with the coat of arms of the institution.

The kitchen area. The kitchen itself, where cooking is done, is on the left. At the center is the entrance to the working and business area. This is where they dealt with vendors and conducted other business that kept the place alive.

Above the entrance there is a "pocket" where they insert plaques with the names of the ladies who are entertaining the guests today. Tayu and geisha. Shimabara had its own geiko and maiko who delighted guests with singing and dancing.

There's a palanquin parked out front. Doesn't look so worn, so probably no one's ever ridden in it.

The entrance to the kitchen and a bench for visitors. The beautiful carvings represent again the Sumiya coat of arms.

Cooking stove. From the size of this place, it could feed an army.

The dishwashing area. There was a well from the old times, and the water supply system was installed in the 20th century.

"Ceiling" in the kitchen and "pipe". There were no chimneys in the literal sense in the local houses. Smoke rose freely from the stove and spread throughout the available space. Therefore, in machiya houses, kitchens were very separate from living spaces.

[continued]

[emilythedog661-tf2]

Introducing Heavy's GF, Sylvia and her Little Sister, Jody

Info on the pair under the cut

First is Sylvia

Name - Sylvia

Age - 33

Birth Place - Canada

Favourite Colour - Pink and Purple

Personality - Kind, Motherly, Generous, Thoughtful of others, Loyal, Very Feminine, A Extrovert, Big Sister Energy, Very Intellagent, Creative, A Woman you shouldn't mess with and a Funny

Job - A Waitress at a American Diner

Hobbies - Sewing, Knitting, Cooking, Artist, Cross Stitching and Reading

Story - Sylvia was born in Canada and lived there for 6 years until her mom died in a incident, she then moved to america with her dad where he finds her Stepmom and Jody's Mom, Margret, Margret wasn't a nice lady but Sylvia put up with her for her dad's sake as she could tell he loved her and she's a daddy's girl, when Sylvia was 10, her sister, Jody was born and she took on the role as big sister for Jody even when she is a pain in the neck at times, she also ended up being a co-mother to Jody as Margret ends up just throwing Jody onto her so she can hang out more with her friends but luckily, her dad took Jody on as well as he love both his daughters, when she was 18, she moved out so she could go to college to learn different things and she also had different jobs too from a fast food worker, a store worker, a barista and then she ended up with the job she has now as a waitress at a diner, she still went back home to visit Jody and her dad but she always ends up leaving her childhood home furious of her stepmother, when she was 28, Jody calls out out of the blue telling her that her mom was kicking her out the house for no reason so she decided to take Jody in where the pair have been living together since only having weekly calls with their dad as well as see him monthly as they still love him while Margret has gone missing after the divorce.

Now for Jody

Name - Jody

Age - 23

Birth Place - America (She also Half Canadian)

Favourite Colour - Blue, Pink and Orange

Personality - Weird, Funny, Goofy, Sassy, A Big Extrovert, Cheeky, Little Sister Energy, Lazy, Kind, Not very Intellagent and a Tomboy

Hobbies - Biking, Cooking, Dancing, Singing, Woodwork, Plays Electric Guitar, Drums and Bass, Carving and Knows French

Story - Jody is the weird little sister to Sylvia, she's weird because she never wears shoes when she's outside making her feet very dirty and always getting cuts from broken glass and sharp stones, she's a sassy extrovert who loves hanging out with her friends which are both girls and boys and she she also likes to break rules sometimes, Sylvia always has to because her a lot for her rebellious behaviour but at the end of the day, they are sisters and they need to look out for each other, Jody loves her sister to bits so it's why she likes to tease her a lot with bad behaviour, she also loves her dad as he was the best dad she could ask for but she has some rough patches with her mom as she knew all the stories that Sylvia told her about growing up also witnessing it happening of her mom being a narcissist, always trying to control Sylvia like she was her daughter when she wasn't, choosing the friends the pair had, choosing the relationships the pair had, emotional and verbally abusing the pair and even trapping the pair in their rooms during then being 'grounded', luckily, their dad was a saint and saved the pair from the woman, Sylvia and her dad has since divorced Margert when she was 20 and Sylvia was 30 and now, he's living happily in his retirement home while Margert hasn't been heard of in years, her and Sylvia are happy together living in their Apartment and Jody has been thinking about her sexuality as she thinks she's a lesbian (Possible Love interest for Miss.Pauling?)

That's all for now and i will add more if i think of anything, i hope you like the pair as they will appear more often if they are popular enough 😊

[pbandjesse]

I realized early today that this is my last Monday off until the end of the summer. I think I did a pretty good job enjoying it.

I slept pretty well last night. Getting up was a little hard but I would wake up around 9 and slowly got myself out of bed.

I could smell that James was making crepes downstairs. I was very excited about that. I got dressed in my new linen house dress that I love. And went downstairs to spend the day with my husband.

I was correct about the crepes. They were so nice. Sadly the jam did not set up correctly. So instead we have some lovely strawberry syrup. But it's still very good and was great for the crepes.

James would try bruleeing their crepes. And they smelled very nice. We would hang out on the couch and I would knit a little and I was really happy.

I would be in a silly mood today. It felt so nice to just not feel burdened. We decided we would go out to take James's bike to the bike store. Just to get out of the house for a bit. So I put my flip flops on and off we went.

But as soon as we went outside I saw that the man delivering our new trashcan was outside!!! No one has ever been so excited to see this man. He had excellent gold grills and was laughing at me when I was going "oh my gawd. Is it the day??? Is it here?? The greatest day!!" And then he had to take a picture of me with the van to prove we got it. I made James also take my picture because I thought it was very funny. Jess says I should use that as my professional headshot for my resume.

We drove over to fells point to go drop off James's bike. And after they checked that in we would walk over to the goodwill.

I was riffing and telling jokes about all of the things we saw. My favorite joke though was when we say a "del fest" (Delaware festival) sweatshirt and I said James should wear that when Del works at the museum and when they come in they rip off their shirt and are wearing the del fest sweatshirt under it and I think that would be hilarious.

I would get one shirt I think will be so cute for the renfair. And then two shelves. I had $4 in coupons so that was exciting.

We passed a subway and they have sides now. That are a foot long. A pretzel, a cookie, and a churro. Which I think they should sell as a pack call a "yard stick". I am hilarious.

We went home and I spent a lot of time just chilling in the couch being sleepy. I was also feeling really dehydrated today. I am trying very hard to be more hydrated in general. I think I did a good job today but I will continue to make that a goal.

James would install two of our new hardware lamps. One of them sadly would not work but that's okay. We will keep trying. I was very proud of James for doing a hard thing! Electrical is scary!

I would rest for a lot of the day. I would move to our bedroom and take a long rest. James came and laid with me. But eventually I would take a daytime bath. I laid in the cool bathtub for a long time. I washed my hair. I scrubbed my legs. It was nice.

I laid in bed while my hair dried. But then I got an email that our garden beds were delivered!! Amazing. We would gather ourselves and went to pick those up.

There was a weird amount of traffic but we got out to Glen Burnie and it was all good. There was some confusion in the pickup area but we got our things with only a little waiting. James went to get a cart to carry the boxes and we loaded up the car.

We drove over to mod pizza. We got there right before it got very busy so that was good. I got a salad but I didn't like the dressing. So me and James split that. And I got cheesey garlic bread and James got a pizza with tomatoes and basil. It was nice just being together.

I got very tired again. We are going to stop at the grocery store. But James said if I wasn't feeling right we should go home, that it wasn't a waste of a drive like I was worrying. They were being very sweet.

When we got home I got cozy on the couch. And was out. I spelt for such a long time. I was having very strong belly pain and the sleep helps but when I woke up at 730 I was feeling very unwell. Drinking water helped. But I was feeling weird.

Eventually James would get me a Popsicle and came upstairs with me to chill. We are hanging out in the AC now. I put some outfits together for the week. And I'm feeling. Tired. Ready to sleep again. Hopefully in the morning I will feel all normal again. I felt so good this morning so it is a little frustrating that I fell apart on the second half. I needed the rest apparently.

I hope you all sleep well tonight. Take care of eachother. Until tomorrow!

[zacharyja]

Sunday, June 2, 2024

Daishogun Hachi Shrine, Taishogun Shopping Street, and Onsen

Today began late again at around 11am followed by getting ready for the day and then going to my friends house to meetup for lunch. We decided on a Shabu Shabu place called “Washoku Sato”, Shabu Shabu is a popular Japanese form of dining, which is similar to hotpot. You choose your raw meat from options such as japanese beef, ribs, chicken, beef tongue, and much more. You then can pick from different types of broth and you then dip your food into the broth for about a minute until it is fully cooked and ready to eat. This usually makes it very juicy and adds the flavor of the broth to the meat. This particular place had an option for all you can eat which I was pretty excited about. They had an ipad at the table where you could order whatever you wanted, ranging from all sorts of types of thinly sliced meat, to yakitori, to dumplings, to vegetables, and even a few types of desserts. We had 80 minutes to eat as much as we wanted with no limits. I feel like I gained about 10 pounds from this meal alone as we continually ordered meat and other various ingredients until i could not longer physically stuff food down my gullet. The dessert was good as well, as we ordered mango gelato, churros, and sesame dumpling with red bean paste inside to conclude the delicious meal.

After this delectable meal, we rode our bikes over to Taishogun shopping street, which is a famous street known for having statues and other depictions of Japanese folklore monsters, unfortunately the weather was subpar and rainy so we didn’t see much. However, we stumbled upon a random aquarium store which I was pretty stoked to see.

I had been hoping to find myself at a fish store in Japan, and today was my lucky day. They had a massive assortment of goldfish and koi, in all different shapes sizes and colors. Ranging from telescope, oranda, pearlscale, ranchu, shubunkin, and everything in between. They also had a massive amount of Japanese Medaka Rice fish, which I am a massive fan of. Naturally, they are also very popular here in Japan and you can often find them in large bowls outside of houses along with aquatic plants and moss. They also had quite the selection of tropical fish including angelfish, danios, convict-parrot hybrids, corydoras, and many others that i’m too lazy to list.

After having my fair share of aquarium store time, we happened upon a random shrine nearby, called the Daishogun Hachi Shrine. Which was originally built in 794, and commissioned by Emperor Kanmu at the north-west corner of the Imperial Palace, to break evil of what was considered an unlucky direction. This shrine was pretty cool and I enjoyed ringing the many bells they had which are meant to get the attention of the gods similar to clapping before prayer, as well as to bring the gods down for protection.

After this, we decided to hit up an Sento to relax our muscles and recharge. If you don’t know, Sento/Onsen is the traditional Japanese public bathing facility, which has multiple different heated baths, showers, outdoor baths, and even low current electric baths which contain live metal electrodes that induce a slight shock through your body giving a minor tingling sensation. The onsen was an interesting experience, but it is so uniquely Japanese that I felt like I would miss out by not doing it. I did not expect to see tons of old naked Japanese men when I woke up today, but nonetheless here I am. The bath was actually pretty relaxing after I got over the whole being nude around other people part of it. I chilled out in multiple of the baths for a while, though my favorite was the outdoor one as the dichotomy between the cool rainy air and the warm sento water was pretty nice.

After the onsen, I went back to my hotel to do laundry as I was fresh out of clean clothes. Once my laundry was all done, I went to get Boba tea with my friend, as I love boba and have not had any since i’ve been in Japan. We went to a Boba place nearby called “Ben Gongs Tea”, I ordered a brown sugar milk tea with tapioca, and finished as fast as it came out.

Once the boba was all gone we headed back to hangout for a bit and have some honeycomb toast. This reminded me of the scene from a Charlie Brown Thanksgiving, where Snoopy and the gang are going crazy making tons of toast beast mode style. https://youtu.be/Jgcib3g5Zgg?feature=shared

That pretty much concluded my night and we will see what hijinks i get up to tomorrow 😎

[candm-brittany-2023]

Whilst we ate an unremarkable lunch we discussed our options for the rest of the trip. Earlier we had looked at the weather forecasts, the tide times and currents. The forecast isn’t bad this week but it changes at the weekend.

We were going to be meeting Laura, Alex, and Flynn in Guernsey or Jersey next weekend, but the cost of travel and accommodation for a weekend break were so enormous it made it prohibitive.

There’s no real reason to hang about. Our passports are being stamped tomorrow, we’ll steal a night in Trébeurden, then go to St Peter Port in Guernsey on Wednesday, probably crossing the Channel on Thursday. There are also tide and current issues this end.

If we do this it’ll mean we’ll be back for the Bishopsteignton village festival at the weekend!!😃

After we’d eaten we explored further. We went to the sea wall facing north towards the Île de Batz. Here is the panoramic view.

Slight panic! If we’re going home, we need to buy stuff to take home with us. Stuff as presents, stuff you can only get in France. We’d picked up a few bits on our travels but now there was some urgency getting the rest. Most of it involved bottles and supermarkets.

On the way back to the marina we popped into the small Carrefour supermarket and picked up some of the lighter things we wanted.

The marina has bikes to use for free. They are electric and they have panniers! Perfect. I borrowed one whilst Carol went back on board. You get an hour for free so I set my timer and headed off to the big Casino supermarket on the edge of the town. It was useless. Very poorly stocked.

Next stop was the Wine Store, previously known as the Red Bus as there was a double decker outside. The bus is no longer there. They deliver to the marina, so we could stock up on boxed rosé to last us a few weeks at home in the summer.

Still some stuff missing, it was necessary to go back to the Carrefour. These electric bikes are fantastic. I’ve never ridden one before. I might have to give this some consideration for the future 🤔

We’d got all our stuff.

Back on board I adjusted the passage plans and we were pretty much prepared.

When we arrived yesterday we noticed that Mike and Hilary, with the Sealine 35, who we had met in Port-Le-Fôret and Camaret, were on the next pontoon. We invited them round for a drink in the evening. They were good company.

They are going on to St. Quay-Portrieux on Wednesday.

We had a snacky dinner as we’d had quite a few nibbles. Afterwards we walked up to the marina bar.

It was a still evening.

Walking back along the pontoon we passed the massive granite rock which is almost iconic to this marina.

On top and behind it are the lovely botanical gardens which we visited in 2017. I wonder if we’ll get the time to go again in the morning.

[hecomesfromthesun]

31 October 2023.

I didn't know what to write here. . Today, I woke up at 09:00 am. It was supposed to be a very productive day. I was so tired and filled at the same time with so much energy. I took a public bike in front of my building and just rode at the national mall. The weather was not so good, and I felt the cold in my legs (I was wearing tiny sports shorts and a black hoodie), but I didn't care about it, I rode till I arrived at the Georgetown main campus.

Georgetown's main campus is in the most beautiful area of Washington, D.C. The zone is full of excellent coffees, stores of used books, and gay hipsters: the promised paradise. I bought falafel as my lunch and entered the main campus. There, I wasted some money on two beautiful and warm hoodies. Then, at the Barnes and Noble bookstore, I discovered a fascinating book: "Health Communism." In the beginning, I was not convinced about buying it. I'll be here for just 10 months and want to avoid carrying those books back to my country. But I read the first page, and it was absolutely amazing. After all this time, one book makes great questions on health issues from a philosophical view. So I found it on a strange webpage in "pub" format. I would probably write more about this book and its ideas. Then I returned to my area, on the electric bike this time. It took me about 30 minutes, and I paid about 3 dollars for that ride.

My friend from India, Udbhav, invited me to go to the theatre. I'll meet him outside of McDounagh Hall. The weather was freezing. On our way to the theatre, we stopped at his apartment because he forgot to feed his cat, Cindy. We realize that Cindy is probably sick because she threw up all the food. We watched a French movie named "Anatomy of a Fall," it was terrific, the premise is the murder (?) of the main character's husband. The film shows the complexity of marriages in the writer's life, complex relationships, and power between men and women (in this case, the emphasis was on the side of the woman, in my view). We had the opportunity to watch a complete criminal trial of murder. The lawyer and the prosecutor were fascinating. They connected a lot of isolated facts and made the three hours of the movie interesting. Both of us liked the movie so much. There was a promise about going together to other news movies. I like that guy, who also is a writer.

[norwayblogging]

Week 28/08 - 03/09 28th august:

A refreshing new week has begun again! Today was merely a theoretical day since we’ve had some lessons throughout the hours. I’ve worked on my blog today and went to the gym with some others. Tomorrow will hopefully be filled with more adventure!

29th august:

Mushroom time! In the morning I’ve had theoretical talk about mushrooms; the ones that are safe to eat and the ones that can kill you (Yes, kill you… I’m not joking). My class was divided into 2 groups, My group had to search for different kinds of mushrooms in the school area whilst the other group had more time to learn about the ways of kayaking. Since my group didn’t have much luck in finding a lot of mushrooms, we asked if we could drive a little further towards the woods a few kilometers away from the school to find more. We got green light ofcourse! And we found so many mushrooms!!! (Many edible ones and a few toxic ones.) In the afternoon, my group went snorkling. It was a little nerve racking for me since we were in the water again… But I enjoyed it a lot, I was so fascinated by the schools of fish that I observed. Sadly the day was a little cloudy and windy so we couldn’t admire all of the beauty of the fjords today.

30th august:

What a lovely morning! I helped the others with making some waffledough. Why waffledough? You probably think to yourself. Well… Today is International day, everyone represents their country with their lovely national dishes. Us as Belgians decided to bring homemade fries and waffles to the table! I enjoyed this day so much! My social meter was filled up to the brim and I talked more to everyone. I tasted every dish from every country that was represented; Danish applecake, Catalonian pudding and tortilla de patatas, Dutch homemade kruidnoten and Swiss grittibänz. Lastly we also got some free pizza, presented by the school itself. You could pretty much say that I ate myself round today. In the afternoon I rented an electrical bike from the school and I went to the store by bike with a dormmate. The sun was out so it was a really beautiful day to go biking!

31st august:

I started my day with some morning classes. We got some information from a guy to prepare ourselves for the glazier trip in two weeks. I’m feeling nervous for the next upcoming weeks. Next week we will be going on a canoetrip. The week after will be the glaziertrip. Lastly, there will be one week of Leirschole (Some sort of forestclasses like we have in Belgium but slightly different). Everything is so close to each other which can make the next few weeks very exhausting. But… I’m really excited to learn all these new things! It was beautiful weather outside and nicely warm. I took my book, some drinks and snacks and went all the way to a nearby small island near school to chill. I took some time to relax before all of the trips. The sounds and the view were amazing! In the evening I played some cards with a few of my dormmates which was very fun.

1st september:

Let’s go biking! I WAS SO TIRED OMG. You can say that biking isn’t one of my best qualities 🤣 The goal of our bike tour was to go to the kindergarten, primary and secondary school in the area. On Sunday we have to go to an event that’s near one of the schools, so it’s nice to know the way to it. During our trip we encountered a beautiful pathway were different kinds of fairy tales were displayed through self made puppets. The puppets were made by the community of the area. If you went further down the pathway, you could search for the hidden trolls in the forest. Also witches were hanging from the branches and on sticks along the path. It really felt as if we were biking through a dream. On the way back to campus, I ate lunch with some other dormmates on a picknick bench since the weather turned really sunny. After lunch, we biked back home and enjoyed the view of the island.

2nd september:

Finally I got myself to Heiane and I expected it a little different really. It felt like an industrialised small town. I was mainly here to go shopping for a micro-SD-Card since I want to use my gopro-camera on the next few trips. But I also got some clothing hangers and other stuff for my room, to make it more liveable and cosy. I made some pancakes for dinner and went to the gym.

3rd september:

Rainy, rainy, rainy!! Today we had to bike to a nearby event, organised for the families and children of the area. It was raining sadly… But the small adventurous hike was nice. Along the path, they displayed some questions that you had to answer. You could play games, canoe and more. At some point we arrived at a Gapahuk (Some type of wooden shelter) where they served hotdogs and juice. I ate two hotdogs 🤭 After that, we went back to the studenthousing to dry. It was a lovely day today. From now on, the weeks will become more intense!! I’m nervous and excited at the same time! ☺️

Week 28/08 - 03/09 28 augustus:

Een verfrissende nieuwe week is weer begonnen! Vandaag was slechts een theoretische dag omdat we de hele dag les hadden. Ik heb vandaag aan mijn blog gewerkt en ben met een paar anderen naar de sportschool geweest. Morgen zal hopelijk gevuld zijn met meer avontuur!

29 augustus:

Paddenstoelentijd! In de ochtend heb ik een theoretisch gesprek gehad over paddenstoelen; de paddenstoelen die je veilig kunt eten en de paddenstoelen die je kunnen doden (Ja, doden… ik maak geen grapje). Mijn klas werd verdeeld in 2 groepen. Mijn groep moest op zoek naar verschillende soorten paddenstoelen in de buurt van de school, terwijl de andere groep meer tijd had om te leren over de manieren van kajakken. Omdat mijn groep niet veel geluk had met het vinden van paddenstoelen, vroegen we of we een stukje verder konden rijden naar het bos een paar kilometer van de school om er meer te vinden. We kregen natuurlijk groen licht! En we vonden zo veel paddenstoelen!!! (Veel eetbare en een paar giftige). In de middag ging mijn groep snorkelen. Het was een beetje zenuwslopend voor mij omdat we weer in het water waren… Maar ik vond het erg leuk, ik was zo gefascineerd door de scholen vis die ik zag. Helaas was het vandaag een beetje bewolkt en winderig, dus we konden niet alle schoonheid van de fjorden bewonderen.

30 augustus:

Wat een heerlijke ochtend! Ik heb de anderen geholpen met het maken van wafeldeeg. Waarom wafeldeeg? Je denkt waarschijnlijk bij jezelf. Nou… Vandaag is het internationale dag, iedereen vertegenwoordigt zijn land met zijn mooie nationale gerechten. Wij als Belgen besloten om zelfgemaakte frietjes en wafels op tafel te zetten! Ik heb zo genoten van deze dag! Mijn sociale meter was tot de rand gevuld en ik heb met iedereen meer gepraat. Ik proefde van elk gerecht uit elk land dat vertegenwoordigd was; Deense appeltaart, Catalaanse pudding en tortilla de patatas, Nederlandse zelfgemaakte kruidnoten en Zwitserse grittibänz. Tot slot kregen we ook nog gratis pizza, aangeboden door de school zelf. Je zou bijna kunnen zeggen dat ik me vandaag helemaal volgegeten heb. In de middag huurde ik een elektrische fiets van de school en ging ik op de fiets naar de winkel met een huisgenoot. De zon scheen, dus het was echt een prachtige dag om te fietsen!

31 augustus:

Ik begon mijn dag met wat ochtendlessen. We kregen wat informatie van een jongen om ons voor te bereiden op de glaszettersreis over twee weken. Ik ben zenuwachtig voor de komende weken. Volgende week gaan we op kanotocht. De week daarna is de glaszettersreis. Tot slot is er nog een week Leirschole (een soort bosklassen zoals we die in België hebben, maar dan net iets anders). Alles ligt zo dicht bij elkaar wat de komende weken erg vermoeiend kan maken. Maar… ik heb er echt zin in om al die nieuwe dingen te leren! Het was prachtig weer buiten en lekker warm. Ik nam mijn boek, wat drinken en snacks mee en ging helemaal naar een klein eilandje vlakbij school om te chillen. Ik nam even de tijd om te ontspannen voor alle uitstapjes. De geluiden en het uitzicht waren geweldig! s Avonds heb ik met een paar klasgenoten gekaart, wat erg leuk was.

1 september:

Laten we gaan fietsen! IK WAS ZO MOE OMG. Je kunt wel zeggen dat fietsen niet een van mijn beste kwaliteiten is 🤣 Het doel van onze fietstocht was om naar de kleuterschool, basisschool en middelbare school in de omgeving te gaan. Zondag moeten we naar een evenement in de buurt van een van de scholen, dus het is leuk om de weg ernaartoe te weten. Tijdens onze reis kwamen we een prachtig pad tegen waar verschillende sprookjes werden getoond door middel van zelfgemaakte poppen. De poppen waren gemaakt door de gemeenschap van het gebied. Als je verder het pad afliep, kon je op zoek gaan naar de verborgen trollen in het bos. Ook hingen er heksen aan de takken en aan stokken langs het pad. Het voelde echt alsof we door een droom fietsten. Op de terugweg naar de campus at ik lunch met een paar andere klasgenoten op een picknickbank omdat het weer erg zonnig werd. Na de lunch fietsten we terug naar huis en genoten we van het uitzicht op het eiland.

2 september:

Eindelijk was ik in Heiane en ik had het eigenlijk een beetje anders verwacht. Het voelde als een geïndustrialiseerd stadje. Ik was hier vooral om te winkelen voor een micro-SD-kaart, omdat ik mijn gopro-camera wil gebruiken op de volgende reizen. Maar ik heb ook wat kledinghangers en andere spullen voor mijn kamer gekocht, om het wat leefbaarder en gezelliger te maken. Ik maakte pannenkoeken voor het avondeten en ging naar de sportschool.

3 september:

Regen, regen, regen!!! Vandaag moesten we op de fiets naar een evenement in de buurt, georganiseerd voor de families en kinderen uit de buurt. Het regende helaas… Maar de kleine avontuurlijke wandeling was leuk. Langs het pad stonden vragen die je moest beantwoorden. Je kon spelletjes doen, kanoën en nog veel meer. Op een gegeven moment kwamen we aan bij een Gapahuk (een soort houten schuilplaats) waar ze hotdogs en sap serveerden. Ik heb twee hotdogs gegeten 🤭 Daarna gingen we terug naar het studentenhuis om te drogen. Het was een heerlijke dag vandaag. Vanaf nu worden de weken intenser!!! Ik ben zenuwachtig en opgewonden tegelijk! ☺️

[scleroticstatue]

So, I actually worked a job in a city that relied very heavily on public transportation and let me tell you a few things:

Despite the fact that the main town and the village were only twenty minutes away by car, I would spend 45 minutes to 1½ hours when going by bus

The bus schedule often meant that I walked from the bus station to home after dark in negative Fahrenheit weather. -20 to -30C. In the mornings, I would do that same walk and then wait at the station for it to show up when it was -30F/-34C. Don't ask me why it was colder at night than in the day, it was just Like That.

The bus schedule ran Normal Person hours, meaning that when I worked service industry hours and was at work until 1am (as is typical for restaurant workers), I had no way to leave the village unless a coworker had driven or I had a friend willing to pick me up. People who worked full time as service workers often lived in the village instead of town, despite the fact that they didn't have enough housing and would often have to rent expensive hotel rooms.

The bus service often meant I was late because it was always running behind.

My bus stop was also not very populated due to me being in a neighborhood instead of an apartment complex and bus drivers would frequently skip it to stay on schedule, meaning I often had to call the bus administrators and request they reroute a bus to pick me up or drive me up to work because there wasn't a bus within 20 minutes of me.

Getting groceries meant I could only purchase three days worth in a single trip because it had to be small enough to fit on my lap. Sometimes, it meant all I could get was a jug of milk and a few boxes of cereal for breakfasts.

People who lived closer to the main strip (in the apartment complex area) were frequently harassed by drunk bar patrons and made frequent noise complaints for the bars open late at night.

They still weren't close enough to the main grocery store to walk from the store to their apartment, meaning they could only carry three days of groceries at a time

They also usually had minimal apartments consisting of a bed and a bathroom, with the kitchen and living spaces being communal, so they often couldn't fit much by way of food anyway.

Biking became the go-to method of transportation within town in summer, which was not feasible during winter.

By the way, the busses were electric, so they couldn't match the cold and frequently the temperature inside the bus was as cold as outside.

Anyway, biking was very popular, but often restricted to people wealthy enough to have a large apartment that could store their bikes

It still was too long a route to properly go from the village to town in a reasonable manner on a bike.

People planned their entire lives around public transportation, from what days they could work to when their schedule was to which days to pick up groceries to what parts of town they could visit.

The only people with pets owned cars as pets weren't allowed on the busses and they wouldn't be able to attend vet visits or grooming.

Cars and Independence

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[ceayabikes]

How to Store Your Ebike Battery in Winter: A Comprehensive Guide

As winter approaches, many electric bike (ebike) owners face the challenge of storing their ebike batteries properly. This is crucial not only for extending battery life but also for ensuring optimal performance when spring arrives. This article offers essential tips on how to store your ebike battery during the winter months. 1. Clean Your Battery Before storing your ebike battery, it’s important to clean it thoroughly. Dust and grime can accumulate over time, potentially causing damage. Use a damp cloth to wipe down the exterior of the battery. Avoid submerging it in water or using harsh chemicals, as this could harm the internal components. 2. Charge to the Right Level Batteries should be stored at a partial charge rather than fully charged or completely drained. The ideal storage level is around 40-60% of capacity. This helps prevent the battery from freezing and maintains its health. Use your ebike until it reaches this charge level before disconnecting it for winter. 3. Choose the Right Environment Temperature plays a significant role in battery preservation. Store your ebike battery in a cool, dry place away from direct sunlight and extreme temperatures. The ideal storage temperature is between 32°F to 68°F (0°C to 20°C). Avoid places like attics or basements that may experience temperature fluctuations. 4. Monitor Regularly Even in storage, it’s important to check your ebike battery periodically. Every month, inspect the battery for any signs of swelling, leakage, or corrosion. Additionally, recharge the battery to maintain the optimal charge level. This regular maintenance will help you catch any potential issues early. 5. Avoid Cold Temperatures Extreme cold can greatly affect lithium-ion batteries, which are commonly used in ebikes. If possible, bring your battery indoors during especially cold days or nights. If your ebike is stored outside, consider insulating the battery to protect it from low temperatures. 6. Keep It Away from Flammable Materials Safety should always be a priority. Ensure that your ebike battery is stored away from flammable materials and sources of heat. Using a dedicated battery storage container can add an extra layer of safety. 7. Consult the Manufacturer’s Guidelines Always refer to the manufacturer’s instructions regarding battery care and storage. Each battery type may have specific guidelines that can aid in prolonging its lifespan. Following these recommendations will ensure you maintain your ebike’s efficiency. Conclusion Properly storing your ebike battery during winter is essential for maintaining its longevity and performance. By following these guidelines—cleaning the battery, charging it correctly, choosing an appropriate storage environment, monitoring it regularly, avoiding cold temperatures, ensuring safety, and consulting the manufacturer—you’ll be well-prepared for the cycling season ahead. Taking these steps not only protects your investment but also allows you to enjoy your ebike with peace of mind when spring returns.

[brandonshaffer9933]

Is it Great to Own an Electric Folding Bike? (DYU Brand)

I recently became the proud owner of an electric folding bike from DYU, and I couldn't be happier with my choice! This bike has transformed my daily commute and outdoor adventures in the most positive way.

The design is sleek and modern, making it not only functional but also stylish. It's incredibly lightweight, which makes it easy to carry and store, especially in tight spaces. The electric feature is a game-changer; I can effortlessly tackle hills and longer distances without breaking a sweat.

What I love most about my DYU electric folding bike is the versatility it offers. Whether I’m riding through the city or enjoying a scenic route, this bike performs exceptionally well. Plus, the battery life is impressive, allowing me to travel farther without worrying about recharging frequently.

I’ve noticed that my overall mood has improved since I started using my e-bike. It's a fantastic way to get outside, enjoy the fresh air, and stay active. I encourage anyone considering an electric folding bike to look into DYU; it's a decision you won't regret!

Have you ever thought about getting an electric folding bike? I’d love to hear your thoughts and experiences!

~Happy Riding~