#the discount is available as long as this post is still up. which will be for at least till mid-april if life doesnt change

[yael-art-den]

Doing new slots for chibis so I can save some money for an improv camp this summer.

Open to anything from OC to Fanart, but feel free to DM me if you have any questions!

Payment through PayPal only, Simple Background/Backgroundless added with the price.

[kianamaiart]

can i ask what the process was like for hiring voice actors for your project was like? i have my own animated project i'm working on and that seems like a big, scary step as an indie creator

I'm lucky in that a lot of the VAs I cast are friends/mutuals of mine so I just DMd them and asked for their rates/if they'd be open to working on my pilot. When I posted the character bios initially, Shara commented on DeVoid saying "I wanna voice the baddie" and I said "bet". For everyone else, I'd just send them the character bios and script to read over to make sure they were down. I was even luckier that a lot of them were just down to help me out despite me trying to pay them (i made sure to at the very least offer my services as an artist if they ever needed prints for cons in the future)

More under the cut

Of the 7 VAs, I didn't know 2 of them personally and was planning on cold emailing their agent (they both have the same one) to ask if they'd be available for something like this. I was definitely nervous and was drafting up emails for such a long time wondering how to pitch the project and make it seem appealing without tooting my own horn too much.

During this time, I'd DMd Marieve, who's my friend and coworker on Big City Greens (voice of Tilly and our voice director), and asked if she'd be open to giving me voice directing tips since I'd be working with professional VAs on my own. She was gracious enough to just work alongside me on the project which was SO helpful, I owe her my life. I mentioned to her that I was still casting and was gonna email Atlas Talent to see if I could book the two other actors. What I didn't realize is that Marieve was also with Atlas and had the same agent and is also friends with said agent. She connected us and they got back to me right away!

That was my in, and from here on is what the booking process is actually like. This is what I feel like will be the most useful to you!

I told them who I was looking to book and they asked if they could get more info on the project. I sent them all my pitch materials so they knew this was a legitimate thing that was happening. I'd had pretty much the whole board and all the scripts done at this time. I feel like having actual, tangible work to show will really help your chances. The talent will know what they're getting into and if they're open to doing the project. Oh and also, if you have some VAs cast and are going to cast more, mentioning who you have already can also give you leverage and make you seem more legitimate. Ooh and also also, I let them know I was massively open to improv which I feel a lot of actors enjoy. A big selling point for this project.

They passed this along to the actors and I also made sure to tell them my budget. I was told by another VA friend that VO rates usually range from $200-300 an hour (you can shoot lower for indie projects). I told them I could do $200/hr but since they're pretty high profile, I was willing to negotiate.

The agent got back to me saying that the actors really liked the script and were willing to do it for free/at a discounted rate which meant the absolute world to me. Both of them are sweethearts and I also owe them my life. From there we scheduled zoom sessions and also studio times (we recorded one of them in person which was so sick). I'd say zoom's the way to go so you don't have to pay to rent a studio out and most VAs, due to the pandemic, have at home setups. There was a lot of scheduling back and forth involved with the agents and the studio but it all worked out and boom! Had em recorded in the next couple weeks.

I will say, it's ALWAYS worth asking and reaching for the stars. VAs are artists too and generally like being on fun, creatively fulfilling projects. You never know who'd be willing to be on your project if you never ask~

[steamberrystudio]

Hello!! I am a brand new fan, (only about 75% of my way through my first Changeling playthrough) but I'm enjoying your writing SO much that I want to buy your other games ASAP! I had a few questions though, which I hope you won't mind answering! I tried to find the answers myself so as not to bother you, but I kept running into spoilers posted by other fans, so I thought I'd ask you directly!

1. I want to avoid s3x scenes -- kisses are fine, but I'm uncomfortable with anything nsfw. Do I need to avoid certain games entirely or toggle certain modes on or off or perhaps skip certain parts? Can you give me any insight as to what to expect?

2a. Which is the best platform to purchase your games on? Steam? Itch.io? I would want to make sure you receive the money!!

2b. If Steam is okay, then does it deprive you of any money if I purchase on a Steam sale? (Forgive me if this is a silly question: I don't really know how this stuff works!)

I've read a few of your devlogs talking about your process and the work you put into your games and I just want you to know that even though I'm still very new to your work, I'm amazed at your work and the quality of it!! It's extremely inspirational to me, and I hope someday I can do something cool during my life like you have with your games. Thank you for sharing your storytelling with the world!!

Hello! Thanks for reaching out!

Gilded Shadows and When Stars Collide both have love scenes that can be toggled to "fade to black" in the menu. Essentially it will cut the scene after some kissing and skip to after things have concluded and the characters are snuggling.

If you look at the content guide spreadsheets (for instance, here is Ari's list) you can find an explanation of exactly when and how the "fade" is handled.

All the content guides for each route in GS has an explanation for exactly where and how the fade happens.

When Stars Collide hasn't released the chapter with the NSFW scenes yet but I intend to set up the guide in a similar way. That said, the fades are handled much the same way.

2. Feel free to purchase on Steam or Itch.io - whichever you prefer. Ultimately the two platforms have different pros and cons to them so I prefer to encourage players to make purchases where they are most comfortable.

3. You should take advantage of sales when they're available. Games only go on sale when I want them to do so and with the discount I personally decide on. That means it's something I've chosen to offer to interested players. You should not feel bad for buying the game on sale! They're there to make the games more accessible to people who cannot or don't wish to pay full price!

Finally - when it comes to hoping to do cool things. I can't give a lot of advice and you didn't ask for advice anyway. But I do want to say that if there's ever something you feel inspired to do or that you just want to try - don't sit on that idea. Just try it.

I got into making visual novels because I played one and thought 'That seems interesting. I bet I could do it. I want to try." And that was it. I published Changeling less than four years later.

That was it. That was my whole reason behind starting to make VNs. "I want to try that" followed by "I want to make a really long indie otome game!" ╰(*°▽°*)╯

So if you ever want to try something, just try it.

It's a way to explore, to create and to reach through the cosmos somehow and connect with people you'd never have interacted with otherwise - just like us in this post right now! OwO

[lavenderarts]

Revamp: Monthly Subs and Reward Art!

Hi everyone! After a long hiatus on this due to inconsistent health, I'm back and feeling better than ever, and I'd like to re-institute my monthly subscription service for art rewards. These will be active on my Ko-fi starting on August 1st! Read on to hear about the changes from my old system and details of what you'll get for subscribing, but if you don't care about any of that and just want to see the rewards page, here it is:

Please share this and consider tossing a couple bucks a month my way to help me support myself and my dog! Details below the cut!

So last time I was offering art rewards, it gradually became unsustainable for a number of reasons, chief among them the fact that I was basically offering severely discounted full commissions of all styles, and it was exhausting to fulfill in addition to regular commission work. I just couldn't keep up and got overwhelmed. So to help prevent that this time around, here are the changes I'm implementing:

I'll have a single reward type: single character busts! These are easy to crank out in an hour or less, so I can keep up with demand better. I'll reserve the right to decide between lined/lineless flats and papercrafts as I see fit to keep them interesting and fun for me, but if it's your birthday month or your yearly sub anniversary, you can choose the style and get a little something extra! For examples of what a bust looks like, please check out my recent ArtFight submissions :)

I'm going to do my level best to institute a hard 3-week turnaround rate for all regular commissions, and save the final week of each month for giving these rewards full priority along with onboarding new batches of clients for the following month's commissions.

I'm moving my subscription service over to Ko-fi, where anyone can give between $2-9 a month as a very generous tip and get access to my Discord server, or give $10+ for monthly bust rewards, early access to adoptables, and more! You can choose to give more than $10, but no other rewards exist for higher tier subs, it's up to whatever you feel is appropriate! Ko-fi has both Stripe and PayPal integration, which should be easier on the subscriber end, and it allows me to use PostyBirb to post across multiple sites at once, which makes it much easier to post early-access WIPs and finished work than it was on my old subscription service. It also automatically handles Discord onboarding and role assignment, yay!

I'm on the hunt for a simple Discord bot that can post a single repeating message on the first of every month with a link to a Google form for everyone to submit their requests, so that I don't have to ask for them manually. (If anyone knows of such a bot or is capable of making one, please get in touch!)

Previously I offered a whole suite of other rewards in addition to the monthly art -- things like subscriber-only request streams, early claims on adoptables, and even physical merch, which were not sustainable for me. Going forward, early adoptable claims for a discount will still be available as a reward, and I may occasionally do request streams, but on a less formally-scheduled basis and only as I have the free time to do so. I am not able to offer physical prints/stickers at this time; I might revisit the option in the future, but I need to know more before I try it again! I'll also be continuing to offer a subscriber discount on all commissions that will stack with other sales and discounts, along with the ability to skip the waitlist and jump directly into the work queue.

So to recap, if you subscribe to me, here's everything you get:

For $2-$9 USD: Discord server access with a special role, and my thanks for your generous support!

For $10+ USD: Discord server access with a special role, 24 hour early adoptable access with the ability to claim for a discounted price, a bust of a single character each month, first looks at finished artwork and WIPs/timelapses, commission discounts, and potentially more down the line.

My Discord is open to anyone, and all members can freely chat, post art, attend/host art streams, and answer polls regarding prompts for adoptable designs and more. You just get some nice bonuses for subscribing! While these subscription tiers are available, one-time tips and donations of any amount are still an option for commission clients or anyone else who just wants to show some love.

I hope this all makes sense and sounds enticing; I really love seeing people's OCs and getting to bring them to life and put my own little touch on them, and I'm very excited to start giving something back to all of you out there whose support means so very much to me, and without whom I could never do what I do. Thank you so much for checking out the Ko-fi! As a reminder, reward eligibility begins on August 1st! The tiers are active on Ko-fi now, but if you subscribe before August you won't be rewarded for the month of July, so keep that in mind.

[kris-tyne]

Chromebook Tech Literacy Masterpost

I've seen a lot of posts about the systemic death of tech literacy in schools with the advent of ChromeOS, and instead of responding to them one by one, I want to create a masterpost to destroy the system. First: FUCK CIPA. The Children's Internet Protection Act is a United States FCC act that standardizes internet safety across the country. Public schools are not required to comply with this act, but they will lose discounts offered for the E-rate program. In short, if you don't want to put up web filters, then you don't get government grants for technology and Internet. Fuck that. Many of these workarounds bank on my personal experiences, so some solutions may not work with your web filters, but they definitely are a step in the right direction. For talking with friends: chat rooms are your friend. Many chat rooms for professional use act just like Discord, and many are just a single text channel. Several I've used include: Google Messages, Rumbletalk, Slack, Element, ClickUp, Pumble, and... in a pinch, Google Docs can give you a shared document that's practically impossible to block. For watching videos: some chat rooms, especially Rumbletalk, allow you to directly embed a YouTube video. This is rare, however, so we found some workarounds. Canva has a video search and embed function that allows you to play YouTube videos straight from the editing page of their slideshows. For anime, a website that I don't think is maintained as well but should still work is AnimeTribes. It is a .ru site but it is perfectly safe, as long as you don't click on ads. I've never seen it redirect you otherwise, and the owner used to be commonly found on the chat page. Another piracy site is 9Anime, which doesn't work on Chromebooks but is an infinitely better source in general. A non-anime video piracy site is Arc018, which is my favorite. It does redirect you decently commonly, but just take care to avoid those redirects and follow piracy suggestions that I will lay out further down. For adblocking: the easiest method is to use uBlock Origin. Though, with all the stuff that Google has been doing, I'm not entirely sure if it works anymore. I gave up on Chrome the second I could get away from it and I suggest you all do the same. For playing games: so. I'm a nerd. I play Pokemon games. SO if you do too you're in luck. The only thing I could come up with was to download GPemu, a ChromeOS based emulator. Unfortunately it's pretty bad, but apparently there's an alternative called EmulatorJS. I never used it myself, but if someone wants to try it and let me know how it goes, that would be appreciated. HOWEVER, none of these work without the games to play them with. I'm going to detail piracy safety later, but for now: Vimm's Lair recently got axed by Nintendo's DMCA, but some ROMs may still be available. Another source (which is admittedly undergoing some major changes) is The Internet Archive. I haven't done a lot of searching on the Archive, and I don't know if it works on Chromebooks, but try it and let me know :).

Circumventing the web filter: While those solutions work for specific things you can do online, these present a general solution, capable of multitasking and providing you much more extended freedom. The first is CroxyProxy, a completely free proxy service that can be added through the Chrome Web Store. If the Web Store is blocked, it can be accessed via the direct website or through specific IP addresses. These change frequently, and I’m absolutely positive the ones that I have access to are blocked or simply go nowhere useful. The other option, assuming you have a home computer connected to the Internet at all times, is Chrome Remote Desktop. It will work as long as both computers are signed in to one shared Google account and both are connected to the Internet.

But Ty... none of this works for me: Oh boy. I guess it's time for my trump card. The pinnacle of my Chromebook workaround career has culminated in this. The ultimate destruction of ChromeOS, all without jailbreaking the computer and getting in a LOT of trouble (don't do that please). My magnum opus came from my blossoming understanding of emulation and, specifically, Windows images. During my senior year, I successfully used a trusted and necessary source (unblockable) to emulate a Windows computer entirely through a single Chrome tab. This source… Microsoft Azure. This cloud computing service allows the creation of a remote desktop that will save data when offline. The biggest hurdle with Azure is that… it costs money. However, when I did it, I got 200 hours of emulation FREE, and I would highly recommend you find the same deal, if it still works. Things to note: you can make multiple accounts, but you will need to also have separate payment cards, as multiple accounts with the same card will flag and not be usable. The frame rate is decently shit, and there is no physical graphics card, so the vast majority of games will not run. I mostly used it for Discord. However, feel free to experiment and make it your own. Use this knowledge wisely, and run free, my friends. Fuck CIPA, and fuck ChromeOS!

Please feel free to reblog or comment with more suggestions, because I would love to add them!

[myfandomrealitea]

Ohmygod I don't remember if I sent the last message on anon FUCK. I'm if I didn't, I hope you don't mind responding privately? Sorry

No worries! You sent it on anon. I'm actually going to respond to most of it on this one and post the other one separately otherwise Tumblr is going to shit itself over how long the post would ultimately be.

Mental health is definitely included under medical causes. I'm always the first to say that drinking more water and going on walks aren't miracle cures and shouldn't be treated as such (especially by the anti-pharma crowd), but you'd also be surprised how easy it is for things like poor sleep to impact your quality of life over-all. I always advise people to at least start pursuing possible medical causes as a first step because medical healthcare can take a long time, and if there is a medical cause, some can progressively get worse while left untreated, which ultimately causes more harm.

(E.g; if the reason you're tired is because of low iron, that can also lead to hair loss, anemia, ect. So what was a small problem initially is now a bigger one.)

As for things like a more balanced diet, you don't necessarily need to be spending 'extra' to accomplish that. Canned vegetables, for example, are often cheaper than their fresh counterparts and still as nutritious, although you do have to be mindful of added sodium and sugar in some of them. In some places legumes and protein-dense vegetables are cheaper than meat, which makes for an affordable increase in protein intake. You can also purchase supplements if actual groceries are too expensive in your area. Not a miracle cure, but if you are falling behind on certain vitamins and minerals, they can be beneficial. Everyone's circumstances and available means are different, so its largely about shopping around and figuring out what can work for you.

There are also options like food banks, 2Good2Go, Olio, and checking with your local supermarkets to see if they participate in discounted produce boxes or other discounted deals. If you have the storage space, couponing is also a pretty valuable option. You can also check local area groups on Facebook for things like freezer and cupboard clear-outs.

It is, unfortunately, more work and effort and thinking, but unfortunately a lot of self-improvement or 'getting better' is a catch 22 like that. The slightly helpful news is there's a lot of resources available for help and guidance through that sort of thing, from planning out balanced meals to lists of which stores are known to offer things like discounted produce boxes.

As for companionship while undertaking tasks, that's actually a pretty common feeling and need, and there are lots of ways to fulfil that without necessarily obliging a real person or needing to reciprocate. For example in games like Love and Deepspace, there are options to 'work' and 'study' with your companion, for designated lengths of time. There are also pre-existing videos on Youtube that people have made to emulate companionship or a working environment with other people.

If you have a favorite celebrity, you can also have their past livestreams or interviews playing in the background, which provide both stimulation and emulated company. There are also online groups and Discord servers where you can request for people to keep you company while you work at the same time. I haven't participated in those for a while so unfortunately I don't have an up to date list of what's available for you, but its definitely something I could look into. Some of the fandom servers I'm in will have things like that available also, where people host livestreams or just sit on voice calls while they write fanfic or play the game.

If you're part of any existing groups or servers, it may be worth asking if that's something that would interest anyone else in the group.

This is obviously unqualified advice, but it does sound like you're experiencing a severe burnout coupled with potentially ADD or a similarly undiagnosed divergency. The unfortunate thing about burnout is that it can be particularly stubborn. As you've mentioned; sometimes 'resting' just doesn't actually fix it, because there's that anticipation that the rest is going to end and you're just going to go right back to the grind.

If your psychiatrist is a religious pusher, I'd humbly suggest self-guidance on this and turning to online resources or trying to seek out another specialist in person if that's at all possible. I've been down the whole 'religion will solve all your problems' fight with professionals, and honestly, I think people responsible for medical care who simply use it as an avenue to push religious agendas should not be allowed to practice.

I'll answer the other half on the original ask!

[gremoria411]

Metaphor Re:Fantazio is a pretty good game. It’s a solid Persona-style JRPG and I’d recommend it.

Considering that a few people might be getting it for Christmas/might be more interested in it due to the recent Game Awards, I thought I’d do a quick post on it.

I’ve only played around the first 15 hours at present, so this’ll be more of a first impressions thing, and I’m also not going to be discussing the plot, this’ll mostly be about gameplay and mechanics (I’ve found the plot so far to be really good, and I’m liking a lot of the characters). I’m also a big Persona 5 fan (though I still haven’t finished that), so I’ll be comparing it a little as well.

Actual discussion’s under the cut, in case you want to go in completely blind.

General Tactics

Alright, so how Metaphor Re:Fantazio’s combat works is that you’ve got a standard 3rd person hack-and-slash when you’re in an area, and when you move to attack an enemy you go to traditional turn-based combat. If you wear the enemy down first then you’ll gain advantage in the turn-based fight, but if the enemy gets the drop on you then they’ll have the advantage, so you really want to ambush enemies as best you can. It’s simpler than I’ve made it sound and the game does a good job of tutorialising its elements.

You can flee from opponents if the battle is going poorly, but you seem to only be able to do this once per foe.

In combat, each of your party members (you can have four at once, but you only have three for much of the opening) channels a heroic archetype, which are this games equivalent to classes, in your typical fighter/mage/thief/etc. set-up. Each Archetype has skills associated with it, and as you level up more archetypes, you can mix-and-match these skills to improve the versatility of your archetypes (say, if you want to teach your fighter a healing spell, or teach your mage an attack buff). Any character can learn any archetype, but will naturally gravitate towards certain types (ie. some characters will have good physical attack growths, others will have good magic growths). But fundamentally, your party composition and skills will make-or-break your party, so it’s important to get your head around (you can respec your party as long as you aren’t in direct combat, but it’s still important to tweak your build to the area you’re in).

With all that said; level Healer and Mage early on.

You don’t have to get them all the way to max or anything, just get the basic healing spells and the mage’s 2-3 elemental attacks (around level 5-7), because let me tell you, they’re really useful, and they’ll save you a lot of pain in certain areas. You don’t need everyone to have them, just as long as they’re an option at your disposal.

(Did I make this entire post because of one tricky boss that I had to retry 5 five times due to bad party composition on my part? Maybe. Please learn from my mistakes).

Dealing with lingering instincts from Persona 5

Kind of a double-edged sword to be honest - some Persona instincts are right on-the-money (ie intuiting Enemy Weaknesses), some really aren’t (you really have to shepherd your resources a lot more, and it’s a lot harder to just steamroll your way through enemies).

I’d recommend talking to your followers ASAP if you have the time, they aren’t as regularly available as Persona Confidants (and they have a more direct effect on combat), and you’ve got to think on a longer term than Persona 5 from the time management perspective - some quests or locations are 3-day commitments that you need to fit in your schedule, as opposed to Persona 5 being a more day-to-day affair.

Weapons and Armour are a little bit odd - you only really need to re-spec if you’re changing a character’s archetype, but you really don’t get that much money from selling old equipment, so you have to consider new purchases a lot more. Shops do have regular weekly discounts, but sometimes you will just have to make do with only one new weapon (you will also gain new equipment from dungeons, but still).

You do have social stats to level up as well - honestly I haven’t found any particularly effective ways yet, so just do what you feel like (admittedly, Courage is tricky to level up early on, but it gets easier after the opening, so I’d say it balances out).

Honestly, I only bring up the Persona 5 comparison because a) I’m seeing a lot of other people mention it. b) I basically went from a Persona playthrough straight to a Metaphor one and c) I found it interesting which instincts were helpful and which weren’t.

Difficulty

Just a quick one here - I’d say Metaphor Re:Fantazio is challenging, but I wouldn’t say it’s hard (at least not yet) - most of the parts I struggled with were due to me not investing in the tools early on, or me forgetting I had a tool that would solve the problem. Other than that, I’ve found the difficulty to be very good, since it makes it all the sweeter when your party composition is just right for the task at hand.

Closing

So yeah, Metaphor Re:Fantazio. I’ve really enjoyed it so far and it’s a solid recommend - plot,characters and world all feel really good, and the gameplay’s the sort with some nice tactical depth (once you figure it out and get into the groove). Honestly, my only real criticism (if you can call it that) is that the Villain designs are *really cool*, so every time I come to fight them I’m always kinda reluctant.

Please feel free to mention anything I’ve missed (though keep in mind this is just on the first 15 hours)!

EDIT: I am aware that there’s a function to check other player’s party compositions at the are you’re at, but honestly I didn’t find it that useful. Early-game there’s too few options to make it worth the bother, and later on the parties are too varied in skills to give you any real sense of what’s coming up.

[isleofair]

Tiger & Bunny Week Day 5

Fan Theories and/or Predictions

I've been wanting to make this meta post for a long while, but since there was no way to reach any truly solid conclusions, I always ended up setting it aside.

But since today's prompt is fan theories... I figure I might as well give this the best go I can!

Today on "Aria fixates on scraps of collateral canon in an attempt to better figure out the Tiger & Bunny timeline, since the authors just will not give us the info straight up, dammit": when did each of the characters debut as a hero?

(under a cut for length and screenshots of actual excel spreadsheets lol)

So, we know the answer to that question for sure for about half of the heroes: Wild Tiger debuted in NC1967, Barnaby in NC1977, and the three new kids in NC1980 (at least in Stern Bild; Subaru worked for a little while as a hero in Panjourney before joining Hero TV).

(Yeah, the hero card of himself Kotetsu picks up in the pilot is technically for the '76-'77 season of Hero TV, so maybe it saying he's got 10 years of experience means his debut was actually in NC1966... but nothing says the cards don't get updated as the season goes on, and this isn't too relevant to my number crunching, anyway.)

As for the rest of them, we can make at least an attempt at (vaguely) guessing by analyzing the experience data on the Hero Cards, which you can see for Season 1 and The Rising here on the amazing Merch Wiki (shoutout to @tnbscans 😘), and for Season 2 here in an older post of mine, or here on Twitter (both courtesy of @Kazuko_01 over there).

This is a chart of the experience values in all the available hero cards:

The reason Barnaby's values are in yellow is that they really, REALLY tried to throw off all of my math 😅

See, the experience values seem to only take into account how many seasons of Hero TV (or an equivalent of it) you've appeared in, however briefly. (At some point I thought maybe becoming the King of Heroes would grant you bonus exp, but Karina doesn't seem to get a boost from the '79-'80 season, when the CD dramas tell us she tied with Keith and became the Queen of Heroes.)

Barnaby took essentially all of NC1979 off, spent a quarter of NC1980 in the Second League, and his score during the Rising is still an absurd 3/5. The only possible way that can even remotely work is that the time off is discounted entirely AND that the exp values aren't strictly proportional to your years of experience, but more along the lines of a curve (stretched every time to accomodate the longest career, Kotetsu's) where having been a hero for at least a season before, as opposed to being a rookie, gives you an additional point on the scale, and each subsequent point requires more years of extra experience.

(This would make a certain amount of sense: there's a lot of difference between being a total rookie and someone who's been on another season, or two, but not that much difference between having worked 9 or 10 seasons before.)

The crucial facts to make this work, and the reasons I had to discard a lot of other possible ways map the years to the exp values, are:

The cards, in spite of having 5 possible scores in S1 and The Rising and 6 possible scores in S2, really only ever have a baseline plus four extra values above it, since the 1/6 or 0.5/3 score in the S2 cards is unused (hence me counting the scores as "out of 3"). I initially thought maybe it was because all the S2 kids had some prior experience, since Subaru used to be a hero before coming to Stern Bild, but the manga tells us Thomas for sure did not, so it's not that (RIP Subaru for them ignoring your days as Hello Goodbye);

Bunny skips ahead two notches between his debut in the 1977-78 season and the 1979-80 season in The Rising;

Antonio goes from having max 5/5 experience along with Kotetsu in S1 to having a score of 2.5/3 (or 5/6), along with Nathan, Keith, and Ryan, in S2. This means he definitely debuted after Kotetsu, but before Nathan and Keith (and almost certainly Ryan).

With all of that in mind, this is the best possible thing I could personally come up with:

I marked down the two most likely ways to map the years to the exp values for each set of cards that still somehow work at the bottom (with blue being min experience if you debuted that year, and red being max). The fully grayed-out years are downright impossibilities (again, not counting Subaru's time as Hello Goodbye, since the cards don't); the softer gray is "very unlikely", the mid blue is "possible", and the deeper blue is "most likely" (thin border) or "sure" (thick border).

I didn't really try to come up with an arrangement that would let any of Ivan, Karina or Pao-Lin debut any earlier than NC1976, because a) both Ivan and Karina have conversations with their bosses in the pilot episode that really make it seem like the just-concluded season was their first, and b) as it is Pao-Lin already became a hero at TWELVE YEARS OLD and that's enough of a headache for me, thank you very much.

The riveting conclusions, assuming this makes any sort of sense at all (and that I didn't put way more thought into this than the people who made the cards did):

Antonio almost certainly debuted in NC1969 or NC 1970, two or three years after Kotetsu;

Ryan (whose experience outside of Stern Bild seems to be fully counted, sorry again, Subaru) doesn't appear in the S1 cards, so it's a little harder to narrow his debut down, but since he's apparently younger than Barnaby, which would make him a teenager for most (if not all) of his possible range of debut years, I'd very personally tend to put him more around NC1973 than anywhere else;

Nathan and Keith most likely debuted in either NC1971 or NC1972... but I would strongly argue that the only really viable year out of these two is NC1972. That is the year Tomoe died, and Nathan and Keith, before episode 1x09, had no idea at all that Kotetsu was ever even married, let alone a widower with a daughter. I simply cannot imagine Nathan, especially, witnessing a colleague she sees pretty much every day go through the loss of his wife, and not prying enough, either with Kotetsu himself or with Antonio (who is not terribly good at keeping Kotetsu's secrets, see ep 1x09 again), to eventually find out what was going on. If Tomoe died before October, when the 1972 season of hero TV started, Nathan and Keith, debuting that year, would have met Kotetsu only after the fact, which seems a lot more plausible.

(Yes, that last thing does support my cute headcanon of FireSky being almost polar-opposite rookies together, but to be fair, the headcanon itself came directly from this math, and not the other way around.)

If you read all of this, we are true siblings in T&B nerdery and ILU forever. Especially if you have any ideas on how to make the data make more sense, lol. 💚

[sonocomics]

THESE SLOTS ARE NOW CLOSED!!

It's March! As you can see in the image above there's a special deal!

If your commission has a character that has green HAIR, SHIRT, or PANTS you'll get 10% off that character's price! Regular coupons DO STACK with this deal! So you could get up to 20% off! :D

Speaking of which, I have introduced a new Regulars Perk called "Charity Coupons"! If a Regular has a 10% coupon that is coming up on its expiry date, they can offer it up to the public and still reap the referral discount! Currently 2 of these coupons are available, first come first serve! If you'd like a chance at one of these Charity coupons, put "Charity" in the coupon section of any form!

(if you are a Regular and would like to opt into this perk, please check your email for the full details)

IMPORTANT!! You must read my information / Terms & Conditions document before filling out a form! Please make sure you’re filling out the right form linked at the bottom of this post.

All commission examples I’ve done can be found HERE!

The current work list / open slots can be found HERE!

All mandatory and extra/often forgotten data is covered in the forms, so this will streamline the process! And don’t worry, they’re not very long at all!

I’ll be using P P invoices. Work will not begin until payment is received!

THESE ARE NOW CLOSED!!

Click here for the REGULAR commission form link!

Click here for the COMIC commission form link!

Click here for the CHARACTER PORTRAIT form link!

Click here for the EMOTES commission form link!

[the-fluffiest-trainer]

[A livestream is embedded. At the time of posting to rotomblr, the broadcast has just concluded and a replay is available.]

[The video begins with Lysandre in a well-lit lab room somewhere, holding a pokeball in one hand. He tosses it gently and catches it again, and then speaks to the camera.]

Welcome back to breaking news from Lysandre Labs! I thank all of you who have signed up for regular updates; intellectual curiosity is a beautiful thing, one we need more of in this sad world. Today I bring you a most intriguing discovery, certain to be of interest to pokemon researchers and historians alike.

Recently, a member of my research team captured a most unique floette. It is known that they prefer a small selection of flowers and shun others – five types have been documented – yet here we see a sixth.

[Lysandre clicks open the pokeball, revealing an off-color floette whose flower bears three long, purple-black petals, with three much shorter red petals in between. The pokemon flutters toward the camera and makes some noises, but not anything that sounds like human speech.]

Magnificent, isn't she? The blue of a classical shiny, but that red! Unheard of! At least, unheard of in modern floette populations.

[Lysandre smiles, then steps to the side. With a wave of one hand, he welcomes the purple-haired scientist Celosia in front of the camera.]

Many pokemon have undergone gradual shifts in their appearance, and even their typing, over the millennia of human history. This is most visible in Sinnoh, with multiple documented examples of significant change happening in just the past two to three hundred years. Shinies, as most know them, are thought to be expressions of long-dormant genes that were selected out of the general population.

Floette, here, is an even more unique case, because in addition to her unusual appearance, she bears a flower thought to be extinct. This flower is documented in portraits from the time of the Kalosi kings, but none have been seen in centuries. And to a shiny researcher like myself, this suggests one thing: though double-recessive matches still likely account for most shinies, the long sidelined Enclave Hypothesis cannot be discounted fully, for what else would explain this specimen?

It must be possible for populations of pokemon with less-favored phenotypes to survive in isolated groups, far away from contact with humanity – and furthermore, they can maintain an ancient environment around them! Somewhere deep in the mountains, there could be a grove of flowers that exist nowhere else, and floettes like this one in abundance.

Thank you, Celosia. Fascinating, isn't it? Obviously, I would never condone searching for such an enclave, and surely trampling pristine wilderness in the attempt, but it is enough to know that such wonderful creatures exist in our world. And to know that at any time, something unknown could wander from its hidden home and cross our paths. That such beauty and such purity still persists, which craven humanity has not yet touched – that gives me hope.

[Lysandre recalls the floette to the pokeball in his hand, and gives a nod to the camera as he lowers it to his side.]

That is all for this broadcast. Once again, I thank all of you for tuning in, whether you are professional scientists or students or simply curious to learn. May we see a brighter tomorrow, where pokemon like this one can flourish in a land unbothered by human hands.

[Video ends.]

[d3zydration]

Digital Sketchbook (06.20.2024)

I'm about to make a big update post for my main website, but I didn't feel like using up storage on some preview shots. At the top, we've got progress on my 2d model for my YouTube channel, along with the many outfits I've made for her. Once I'm done with all the shading, I can break down the pieces and start the rigging process. I've probably got more outfits than I need, and there are some side characters I may make that I've had bouncing around in my head and on my channel for a long time that I'll probably also make, but once the bulk of it is done, I can focus on rigging while that happens.

On the bottom left, we've got a new Hesiodos (Hesiod) piece I'm working on. I wasn't happy with how the first one turned out, and honestly, I need to get back into the flow of more realistic works. Painting pieces directly from photo reference is easy enough, but it's a bit more difficult using a marble statue, as I did with my first piece, and more difficult still drawing from the mind while trying to translate those references as accurately as possible. I'm also using a more gouache-inspired brush set for this one. I've been super fascinated with acrylic gouache lately and am planning to start doing traditional pieces again in marker, watercolor, and acrylic gouache. I've been really into the work of Amina Illustration and I'm A Wonder.

My YCH (Your Character Here) commission piece "Little Witch" still has 5 available slots left on my Etsy shop (which is discounted from what you would pay for a custom commission with those specifications) - but I had also started on a number of other ones back in autumn of last year: A little graveyard chibi pin-up, a chibi girl holding a pumpkin spice latte, a woman kissing the cheek of a scarecrow, and a vampiric take on Klimt's The Kiss. I also started on a few general ones: one inspired by the style of Bratz, one inspired by the style of Monster High, and one inspired by the lo-fi girl. I'll still be wrapping them up and making them available whenever they're complete, but they aren't at the forefront of my workload at the moment - especially since I'm planning on moving away from Etsy.

Along that line, I also have plans to work on a couple of emote, clip art, and marketing packs, some stickers (including sticker sheets for my planners), a magickally-accurate Sailor Moon chibi series, and a couple of fan oracle decks. First on my to-do list, however, is a ton of website graphics for my new websites, the next batch of designs and styles for the Luxe Gothique Boutique, and a rework of my Khthonic Wiccan art series, as it's something else I just wasn't satisfied with.

And that's just artwork! I have a lot of writing in the works now, as well. I've got two books, my Mythos Reimagined series, and my webcomic, A Little Town Called Lorauvial, in the works, as well. This is a lot, I know, but I'm making progress each day. I just want to make so many things. I can't possibly keep it all locked away forever. 👻💚

Anyway, stay tuned for my update article. I'm going to be getting on that shortly with info on my other goings-on. Be there or be square.

[denniswilsonzine]

Made a thing - anyone want a sampler/test print preview copy of the zine?

Sent some stuff off to mixam (UK) to see how they looked like in print versus just being on my screen, mostly came out really good. One of only three copies to exist - ordered one test zine & they sent me two extra copies. Got one copy plus some promo merch on ebay right now ... * eta: somebody incredibly cool actually bought it omg squee

[and an almost identical copy is on ko-fi or available to trade. *** message me if you're interested in trading **** ]

*(sorry this took a ridiculously long time for me to finish writing and uploading all the images thanks to exhaustion & shitty internet - the ebay copy'll probably have sold by the time you see this post / it escapes being stuck in drafts, and I still haven't added image descriptions.)

...with not quite world wide postage via ebay's Global Shipping Programme, I'm keeping the best quality one & was thinking of doing a giveaway of the other* when I finally write the review of mixam's print quality I promised months ago, unless anyone wants to trade? - fake edit: *scratch that, copy #2 of #3 is now up in my ko-fi shop & I'll probably stick it on etsy, now I've seen people are actually interested in the ebay copy.(eta: somebody incredibly cool actually bought it omg squee)

https://ko-fi.com/s/483109b440 *** message me if you want to trade **** copy #2 has the same content as #3 shown below, just slightly different margin/bleed printing & Copy #2 of #3 written on the front cover. - it's 44 pages of a couple of articles and extracts of bits of issues 1 & two plus spreads from possible future issues (mostly graphics) inc. rough drafts etc.

Thoughts Of You a Dennis Wilson fanzine Mixam Zine test print no #1 Sept Nov 2023 Stapled, bleed recycled silk 130 GSM 44 pages #1 of 1 #3 of 3 by Jenna Appleseed (me)

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/226162925472 includes coverage of virtual zine fests, inc KC Zine Con; earlier issue's cover art; collages by Valarie Simadis; zine promo; being featured on De_ziners instagram; Dennis performing Angel Come Home on The Midnight Special; a Dennis t-shirt, a Dennis song recommendation from The Horrors & tributes and art by Gino Dal Cin. Some of this is reprinted from pdf issues 1 & 2 and/or going to reappear in a proper print issue/future digital zine, revised/updated or with a better layout.

Colours are richer in print than they look in the photos. (it's impossible to get decent photos without glare or off colours) Promo stuff:

sticker is a 10cm x 3.3cm vinyl sticker showing the fanzine logo/header with a white border. (done with a stickermule discount before I realised they were as dodgy as fuck, sorry.)

Business cards are printed by Moo on card made from recycled cotton t-shirts & have three different designs on the front & fanzine info on the back.

Designs are: the zine logo, issue one's front cover, and a photo of a silver heart trinket engraved with Forever.

Three million photos showing all pages incoming, click keep reading to see them: One or two pics are NSFW for swearing

10 page feature from issue 2 about virtual zine fests inc. KC Zine Con & zine merch. (lots of trash pandas reading zines).

Two variations of a layout with a song recommendation from The Horrors, one'll end up in a zine when I work out which looks best. (background taken from the cover art for their album Skying)

A couple of Dennis image edits/layer blends & layout I designed. (these'll probably eventually appear in a proper finished zine)

Collages by Valarie Simadis from pdf issue 2. (background added by me from a stock illustration).

Zine links page & call for submissions /promo art - also from digital issue 2.

Two page feature on being featured on De_ziners instagram (from pdf issue 2)

Preview of a double page spread layout/graphic design/digital art/image editing for a future zine feature / themed issue on Dennis singing Angel Come Home on The Midnight Special.

Another couple of pages with added swearing - just need to make the text make sense and write the bloody rest of it.

Another double page spread layout design with a pull quote and a digital collage/image manipulation of Dennis singing Angel Come Home.

Page layout design experiments for Pacific Ocean Blue & Bambu that may eventually appear in a zine.

Double page spread of my photo of Dennis & Venice Surf (Dennis tee's from Bathroom Wall & Venice Surf tee was from Pep & Co at Poundland) - extract from an unofficial t-shirts feature in pdf issue 1.

Two different heart themed page designs from two different features in pdf issue 1.

A couple of digital collages/image manipulations based around Dennis' performance of Angel Come Home on The Midnight Special + lyrics from the Manic Street Preachers song You're Tender & Your Tired, that just seemed to fit so fucking well.) Probably need to rework/improve one of them if/before including in an actual issue.

Double page spread with a quote on the song + a screenshot of Dennis from youtube. (needs a little bit of tweaking before it's ready for a finished zine)

Sample credits page from issue one about Forever inspired art by Gino Dal Cin, & a sarcastic fanzine promo graphic I made.

Two versions of the same page so I could see how much of a difference the image resolution actually makes (remade the second one from the original photo - the higher res really does make it look better quality when printed) - the dpi notes won't be on the finished version (fucked up and had to replace a page in the files I'm sending to mixam to print a real physical issue one of the zine cos I got so used to having the dpi note over a lower res graphic I accidentally forgot it wasn't permanently meant to be there).

So i'm goin' away but not forever"

Back cover art by Gino Dal Cin, blue & silver (& pink) star background from a scrapbooking site.

[impressivesolarelectrical]

Affordable and Reliable Solar Panels in Wollongong

In recent years, more and more homeowners and business owners in Wollongong have turned their attention to solar energy—and for good reason. With rising electricity costs and growing environmental concerns, solar power offers a sustainable, cost-effective alternative. The Illawarra region, blessed with abundant sunshine, is perfectly suited for solar installations. But while the demand is high, many are left wondering: how can you find solar panels that are both affordable and reliable?

Let’s take a closer look at what makes a solar panel system worth the investment, the benefits specific to Wollongong residents, and what you should look for when choosing a solar provider.

Why Solar Power Makes Sense in Wollongong

Wollongong enjoys an average of 4.5 to 5.5 peak sunlight hours per day, making it an ideal place to harness solar energy. That means residents here can generate a significant portion—or even all—of their electricity needs through solar power, dramatically reducing their monthly utility bills.

Additionally, NSW offers several rebates and incentives for solar system installation, which can substantially lower upfront costs. These include the federal Small-scale Renewable Energy Scheme (SRES), which provides Small-scale Technology Certificates (STCs) that can be traded for discounts on installation.

When combined, the generous sunlight and available rebates make the shift to solar not just environmentally smart but financially attractive as well.

The Real Meaning of “Affordable”

The word “affordable” is often used in marketing, but it’s important to dig deeper when it comes to solar energy. A cheap upfront cost might sound great, but if the system underperforms, breaks down early, or lacks proper support, you could end up paying more in the long run.

True affordability comes from a balance of factors:

High energy output over time

Low maintenance requirements

A long product and performance warranty

Efficient installation by qualified technicians

Strong post-installation support

An affordable system should not compromise on quality. You want a solar solution that delivers consistent performance for 20 to 25 years or more.

What Makes a Solar Panel System Reliable?

Reliability in solar panels goes beyond just the brand name. Here are key aspects that make a system dependable:

1. Panel Efficiency

High-efficiency panels convert more sunlight into electricity, which is crucial if your roof space is limited. It also means quicker returns on investment.

2. Durability and Warranty

Look for panels that come with a 25-year performance warranty and at least a 10-year product warranty. This shows the manufacturer’s confidence in their product.

3. Quality Inverter

Often overlooked, the inverter is the heart of the system. A quality inverter ensures the electricity your panels generate is efficiently converted for use in your home or fed back into the grid.

4. Professional Installation

Even the best panels won’t perform well if installed incorrectly. Experienced, certified installers ensure your system is set up to maximize sun exposure and comply with all local safety standards.

Common Myths About Solar Panels

When talking to locals in Wollongong considering solar, a few common misconceptions tend to pop up:

❌ Myth 1: Solar is only for the wealthy

With government incentives and flexible financing options, solar is now more accessible than ever. Monthly savings often outweigh the cost of repayments.

❌ Myth 2: Solar doesn’t work on cloudy days

While production does drop slightly, modern solar systems still generate electricity in overcast conditions.

❌ Myth 3: It takes decades to break even

Most households in Wollongong see a return on investment within 3–6 years, depending on system size and usage habits.

Choosing the Right Installer in Wollongong

A successful solar experience begins with choosing the right provider. Here are a few questions to ask when evaluating a solar company:

Are they Clean Energy Council (CEC) accredited?

Do they offer a free consultation and quote?

Can they provide recent testimonials or references?

Do they offer end-to-end service from design to installation to aftercare?

One local provider, Impressive Electrical & Solar, has built a reputation for offering high-quality systems at reasonable prices. Their team ensures customers receive tailored advice and full transparency from the first consultation to the final switch-on. They also offer ongoing support and maintenance, which gives peace of mind long after the panels are installed.

Long-Term Benefits You Can Count On

Installing solar panels isn’t just about the present; it’s about securing your future. Here’s how solar can benefit you long-term:

✅ Lower Electricity Bills

As power prices continue to rise, a solar system allows you to take control. Your daytime electricity comes from the sun, and you can even store or feed excess energy back into the grid.

✅ Energy Independence

Say goodbye to complete reliance on traditional energy providers. With solar and battery storage, many Wollongong homes are moving toward energy self-sufficiency.

✅ Environmental Impact

Solar energy is clean and renewable. By switching, you're helping reduce Australia’s carbon footprint and protecting the environment for future generations.

✅ Property Value Increase

Homes with solar installations are often more attractive to buyers. It’s a smart investment that adds real value to your property.

Making the Switch Today

Whether you’re building a new home, upgrading an existing one, or looking to lower your business’s energy bills, the time to go solar is now. Solar Panels Wollongong is uniquely positioned to benefit from clean energy, and reliable, affordable systems are more available than ever.

A trusted local name like Impressive Electrical & Solar can help you make the transition smoothly, ensuring that you receive the best advice, products, and service in the region.

Final Thoughts

Solar power in Wollongong isn’t just a trend—it’s a movement toward a more sustainable and affordable future. With the right system and a trustworthy provider, you can enjoy lower energy bills, greater independence, and the satisfaction of reducing your environmental impact.

[mirrorballwhoistrying]

Endless February (09.03.25)

I can't believe it took me this long to finally sit down and write about February. The shortest month ever, but it always held a special place to lovers somehow.

February started with a trip with Kimhoung, her boyfriend, and SM. It was great! The furthest I've been is in Melbourne. Went to Mornington Penisulla. The view was breathtaking. It was a fulfilling day. My regret was spending 100 AUD and couldn't get a good photo!

Then, I came to IAP. I don't know why I have to stress out so much about a summer course which is not related to my major at all! The work wasn't that hard, but dealing with people was the most difficult part! Shooting a video with the team made the whole thing messy. There was disagreement. Then, something similar happened to the research team. Some people were self-centered and wanted to do things their way and didn't listen to anyone. Why am I caught up in this mess? Or maybe I am the problem?

Then we also went to a Candlelight concert and then a visit to the zoo. Finally I got to see the Kangaroo, emu, koala!

I also finally got the nerve to shoot the first AAS video! It's about damn time! I really wanted these videos to be better quality since the IELTS videos were so low in quality and got reposted on the AAS page! It was nerve-racking!

I finally attended the Lunar New Year festival. It was okay, but at least I got free food! I went on a date with the Japanese guy again. We had coffee and then hooked up at his apartment. This time, I actually ejaculated. Maybe because I didn't Bttm this time.

Then I just walked in to buy a new iPhone! Crazy that it took me 5.5 years to buy a new phone! I should have got some discount but I just let it slide. Maybe this wouldn't be a big regret in the greater bigger picture.

I got to hang out with people outside of my cohort. They are still Cambodians, but I'm glad to connect with others.

On February 13th, I remember how I felt. I was anxious. I was suffocating, thinking that he had already moved on with someone new. I feared I'd been forgotten. I posted a note on that day, and I was desperate to connect to some men online. The next day, I actually received a message from him. I don't know why I still felt very anxious thinking he sent that to every ex he ever had. The next day, he posted another note saying he was thinking about me. What was the point? I felt happy, but at the same time, was I limiting myself to these crumbs? Do I lack something inside my heart so deep that I constantly need validation? Do I like him, or do I just like the idea of being liked by him?

Then I attended the orchestra concert. Time moved so fast. Then, it was time to submit the research proposal and present it. I was so nervous. I then met Mei for dinner. Damn it's 10 years since we last met. Hearing her story, I still admire her hard work and resilience so much. The thing I couldn't get over was when she asked me about my dating life. I still don't know how to come out to people about my sexuality. I'm so glad to get so much information from her about The last day of IAP came. I didn't feel anything.

I went to the Welcome to Melbourne experience. Too bad my host wasn't available. I made the effort to connect to some other hosts, though. It was fun!

I posted my first AAS video! damn! It received so much attention. It went kind of viral. My page finally reached 10K! Oh my god! It felt like a dream.

We hosted a dinner party that weekend. I did well in preparation, I think! it was fun! I always had a hard time letting people come into my space.

That weekend after IAP, I tried to check off the list of things to do in Melbourne. I checked out that festival in Lonsdale, then took a circle train around Melbourne. I visited the Parliament House, Fitzroy market, Fitzroy garden, the museum at fed square... I took a walk around the Yarra River and had a Lune croissant. The view was so stunning! Then I took a train to Brighton Beach for dinner! damn! Where did I get all this energy?

Then, it was O-week! I went for graduate breakfast and made a couple of friends from Egypt & Indonesia! Good job! Then I went to watch a movie with Planning. It was 3 hours long, and by the time it ended, the activities at university also ended.

Then I went to meet my uncle and my cousin. We had a great dinner. Maybe because he's the youngest uncle and most educated, I had a better chance of connecting with him. I also met my cousin. I did a great job!

The next day, I went to a gathering with Orygen! I felt so glad. I also felt a sense of imposter syndrome in that space. I really liked the welcoming atmosphere there. Although I failed both works I applied for there, I'm still so grateful. We had a great conversation. Craig also asked me to send my CV to him, and he'd try to find work I can do. I felt so anxious that I hadn't heard from him until now!

Wednesday was the day I had an orientation at MBS! It felt real now! We did a scavenger hunt and got some merchandise! In the evening, there was an orientation for my major. It was great! I felt a great sense of support but also nervous at the same time!

The next day, I went to explore the campus. Damn! a lot of student clubs but at the same time I felt so old around these bachelor's degree students! I made some friends aged 18-20. Damn!

On Friday, I went to school again for free merchandise. I also got to join the GSA buddy program. It was more my program! meeting people in postgraduate study like me!

On Saturday, I went to have lunch with my cousin and uncle again before departing to meet a senior. It was so great to connect and hear about her story. She worked so hard to get PR here.

I posted the 2nd & 3rd videos and received positive comments and engagement. It was draining,g too to reply to all messages.

Then the semester officially started! It felt intimidating to be surrounded by those startup bros! I walked my ass off to arrive at te campus. The difficult part was forming groups. I felt so out of place. I had to be very proactive to be included in a group.

On Tuesday, I was so drained that I just left without having lunch with them. On Wednesday, I attended the Melbourne Connect event. It was great to be in another space. Somehow, I felt more connected in the development space than in the entrepreneurship space.

On Friday, I attended the Women's Day lunch. It was a great experience, and at least I got to talk to 3 Australians!

Then, something ruined my mood. I saw him attend a wedding reception, sitting with a bunch of rich university kids. My conclusion was that he was dating a rich twink on this table. I felt so hurt and insecure. Did he move on with a rich twink? Something am not? Is his new twink my clone? Then why did he still reply to my story and say I was adorable?

I hooked up with an Indonesian guy, and honestly, it wasn't great.

Journaling is really funny, though. I realized that after all that I had done and achieved, one incident crumbled all my self-worth. Maybe deep down there was nothing I could do, though. At the end of the day, it was me who set a boundary and was willing to leave when it was not respected. One thing I need to remind myself is if I break all my boundaries just for him to stay, would I still be happy? Would I be fulfilled if I let go of all the things that defined me and chase after superficial things that I think make me "worthy"? Would I be really happy?

I know I'm very anxious, and it is something I need to constantly work on. One thing for sure is I can't rely on all my self-worth on anyone or anything. if he really moved on, there's anything I can do. It doesn't crumble the work I've been putting into. I'm still me, I've got myself, and it is enough.

I went on another date with an Australian-born Chinese. He was okay as a friend, but I don't connect romantically, though. I finally checked Immagination Museum. One thing I'm proud of is that I'm willing to do things alone even if no one accompanies me. I had a great time! I had another BBQ with Mei and her friends. They are great and not as bad as I thought!

I got so caught up with one person that I almost forgot who I was. I almost forgot why I was here. I had to feel this feeling and accept that it was okay.

It's the 3rd month now. I should focus on finding a job, establishing connections & building something that lasts, something that matters for my future!

This March I should focus on working on AAS vox-pop videos and then applying for marketing jobs! I should also consult with Wade and finalize the project I want to do!

In April, maybe I can start doing lifestyle content!

In May, I should be applying for labor jobs to do during winter!

[directtocaret]

The Smart Shopper's Guide: How to Save Big While Shopping Online in 2025

Introduction

Online shopping has evolved tremendously in recent years, and savvy shoppers are always looking for ways to get the best deals. With inflation affecting prices and competition among e-commerce sites increasing, knowing how and where to shop smartly can save you hundreds of dollars every year.

At DirectToCart, we believe in offering quality products at the best prices, but we also want to help you maximize your savings. In this guide, we’ll reveal insider tips on how to save money, find hidden discounts, and shop smarter in 2025.

1. Take Advantage of AI-Powered Price Comparisons

Many online shoppers still rely on traditional methods like searching multiple websites to find the best price. But in 2025, AI-powered tools and browser extensions can do the heavy lifting for you.

💡 Pro Tip: Use AI-powered price comparison tools to scan different e-commerce platforms, including DirectToCart, and get real-time notifications about price drops.

2. Look for Time-Limited Flash Sales & Seasonal Deals

Retailers are shifting towards limited-time flash sales, offering deep discounts for a short period. These sales often happen during:

Early mornings and late nights

End-of-month clearance periods

Special occasions like Valentine’s Day, Back-to-School, or Cyber Monday

💡 Pro Tip: Sign up for DirectToCart's newsletter to receive early notifications about these limited-time deals before they go public.

3. Subscribe & Save: The New Way to Shop Smart

Many e-commerce platforms now offer subscription-based discounts. At DirectToCart, you can subscribe to certain essential products (like home supplies, pet food, or beauty items) and get automatic discounts while ensuring you never run out of what you need.

💡 Pro Tip: Subscribe to products you frequently use and enjoy long-term savings without having to reorder every time.

4. Buy in Bundles & Save More

Purchasing in bulk or as part of a bundle deal can significantly reduce the per-unit cost. Many sellers now offer bundle pricing, which helps consumers save more when buying multiple related products.

💡 Pro Tip: When shopping at DirectToCart, look for bundled deals on electronics, skincare kits, and home essentials to get more for less.

5. Use DirectToCart’s Reward Points & Cashback Offers

Loyalty programs and cashback deals have become game-changers in online shopping. DirectToCart offers exclusive reward points on every purchase, which can be redeemed for discounts on future orders.

💡 Pro Tip: Always check if your DirectToCart purchases qualify for cashback or loyalty points, and make sure to redeem them before they expire!

6. Shop Smart with Buy Now, Pay Later (BNPL) Options

If you're eyeing a high-ticket item but don’t want to pay the full amount upfront, BNPL (Buy Now, Pay Later) options can be a great solution. DirectToCart partners with BNPL services that allow you to split payments into easy installments.

💡 Pro Tip: Before opting for BNPL, check for any zero-interest offers or special discounts available with installment plans.

7. Follow DirectToCart on Social Media for Exclusive Discounts

Brands often release exclusive discount codes via their social media channels. Following DirectToCart on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter can give you access to special promotions and flash sales before anyone else.

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[aidanbutler72]

Less Expensive Dental Implants with Easy Financing

Dental implants have revolutionized the world of oral healthcare by offering a permanent solution to missing teeth. Unlike dentures or bridges, implants provide unmatched stability, longevity, and functionality. However, the one significant drawback of dental implants for many is their cost. Fortunately, there are ways to make dental implants less expensive, especially with the availability of easy financing options. In this blog, we'll explore how you can achieve a confident smile without breaking the bank.

Understanding Dental Implants

Before diving into affordability, it's essential to understand what makes dental implants such a superior choice. A dental implant consists of three main components:

The Implant: A titanium screw that is surgically inserted into the jawbone to act as a tooth root.

The Abutment: A connector that supports the crown.

The Crown: The visible part of the tooth, custom-made to match the shape and color of your natural teeth.

Dental implants offer numerous benefits, including improved appearance, better oral health, easier eating, and enhanced confidence. However, the process involves surgical precision, advanced technology, and high-quality materials, which contribute to their cost.

Why Are Dental Implants Expensive?

Several factors influence the cost of dental implants:

Materials: Titanium and ceramic used in implants are biocompatible, durable, and safe for long-term use.

Expertise: Implant placement requires skilled professionals and specialized training.

Diagnostics: Advanced imaging techniques like X-rays and 3D scans add to the overall expense.

Customization: Each implant is tailored to fit the patient's unique dental structure.

Multi-Step Process: The procedure typically involves multiple visits, from initial consultation to post-surgery check-ups.

While these factors contribute to the high price, it's possible to find less expensive dental implants without compromising on quality.

How to Find Less Expensive Dental Implants

1. Shop Around

Prices for dental implants can vary widely between dental clinics. Take the time to research and compare costs in your area. Look for clinics offering promotions or discounts for new patients. Additionally, consider traveling to regions or countries known for affordable dental care, such as Mexico or Hungary, if it's a viable option for you.

2. Dental Schools

Dental schools often provide implants at a lower cost as part of their training programs. Procedures are performed by dental students under the close supervision of experienced professionals. While the process may take longer, it can significantly reduce expenses.

3. Discount Dental Plans

Joining a discount dental plan can help lower the cost of implants. These plans involve paying an annual fee to access reduced rates for dental services from participating providers. Although not insurance, they offer substantial savings on various treatments, including implants.

4. Consider Alternative Materials

Traditional titanium implants are the gold standard, but zirconia implants can be a slightly less expensive option. Discuss these alternatives with your dentist to determine the best choice for your needs and budget.

5. Single-Tooth vs. All-on-4 Implants

If you need multiple teeth replaced, ask your dentist about cost-effective solutions like All-on-4 implants. This approach uses just four implants to support an entire arch of teeth, reducing the overall cost compared to replacing each tooth individually.

Easy Financing Options for Dental Implants

Even with cost-saving strategies, dental implants may still seem out of reach for many people. Thankfully, easy financing options can help you spread the cost over time.

1. In-House Payment Plans

Many dental clinics offer in-house financing with flexible payment plans. These plans allow you to divide the cost into manageable monthly payments. Be sure to inquire about interest rates and repayment terms.

2. Dental Loans

Some financial institutions provide loans specifically for medical and dental expenses. These loans often have lower interest rates and flexible repayment options, making them a practical choice for dental implants.

3. Healthcare Credit Cards

Credit cards like CareCredit are designed for healthcare expenses, including dental treatments. These cards typically offer promotional periods with zero or low-interest rates, allowing you to pay off the cost without additional financial strain.

4. Insurance Coverage

Although most dental insurance plans don’t fully cover implants, some may cover part of the procedure, such as extractions or crowns. Check your policy to see what’s included, and ask your dentist to help maximize your benefits.

5. Medical Savings Accounts

If you have a Health Savings Account (HSA) or a Flexible Spending Account (FSA), you can use these tax-advantaged funds to pay for dental implants. This can reduce your out-of-pocket expenses.

Tips for Choosing the Right Provider

When searching for affordable dental implants, don’t compromise on quality. Here are some tips to help you make an informed decision:

Check Credentials: Ensure the dentist is experienced and certified in implantology.

Read Reviews: Look for testimonials and reviews from previous patients.

Ask Questions: Don’t hesitate to ask about the procedure, materials used, and costs.

Visit the Clinic: Schedule a consultation to evaluate the facility’s cleanliness, technology, and staff professionalism.

Seek Second Opinions: If unsure, get a second opinion to compare recommendations and costs.

Benefits of Affordable Dental Implants

Investing in less expensive dental implants can transform your quality of life. Here are some benefits:

Improved Confidence: A complete smile boosts self-esteem and social interactions.

Better Oral Health: Implants prevent bone loss and maintain facial structure.

Enhanced Functionality: Enjoy eating your favorite foods without discomfort.

Longevity: With proper care, implants can last a lifetime, offering excellent value for money.

Final Thoughts

Dental implants are an excellent solution for missing teeth, but their cost can be a barrier for many people. By exploring less expensive options and taking advantage of easy financing plans, you can achieve the smile you deserve without straining your budget. Remember, a healthy and confident smile is an investment in your overall well-being. Start by researching your options and consulting a trusted dental professional to begin your journey to affordable dental implants.