#yeah i could just use my phone but i think my wireless headset needs to be charged first :(

[nyadversary]

screaming crying because ichunes keeps fucking crashing leaving me UNABLE!! to listen to my gay little songs. hell on earth

[mimi-cee-hq]

Laundry Days - Aran x f!reader

Summary: Three times you picked up his underwear and one time you missed doing it.

Genres, other tags: fluff, slice of life, humour, meet cute, domestic fluff, not suggestive lol, married under 25, neighbours to married lovers ;)

Words: 1.6k

Warnings: manga spoiler

This is for @neoheros & @coophi's 2021 Summer Haikyuu!! Writing contest. (Okay I'm pretty shy at first so it feels a little scary to tag you two but here's my piece.) I was going for the married under 25 prompt but ended up doing neighbours to lovers too. :D

Don't mind me spreading the underrated characters agenda as well. lol.

*****

A few articles of clothing spilled out of the dryer and onto your feet. Oops. Your neighbour must have forgotten them. You should've checked first.

Your own damp clothes sat inside the washing machine next to it, waiting for their turn to enter the dryer. It wasn't possible now.

You sighed, retrieving the phone from your pocket and scrolling until you saw the name of the neighbour who lived a floor below you.

Ojiro Aran.

You were sure this was the right person after a second look at your texting history. Who'd bring the garbage to the curb, where the lawnmower was kept, and keeping the duplex's stairway clear were some of the conversations you had with him.

You had yet to meet the guy, but he seemed amicable enough.

After shooting him a text, you thought to give him a call instead. Perhaps he'd think a phone call was strange. However, your clothes were damp and you shouldn't leave them for long. Was he even home?

You sighed. Crouched down, you returned the clothes on the floor back into the machine. A scarf, several socks, and a knit hat made their way back inside. But what was this?

Underwear. Men's underwear.

You scrunched your nose as you lifted it from the cold, tile floor. Was that a hole in it?

Click.

"Sorry I just saw your text!" a tall, dark-skinned man blurted out as soon as the door was unlocked.

"Oh! It's alright! I only texted you a few minutes ago!" you quickly explained, waving your hands in front of you.

You shouldn't have done that. The underwear was hanging from your hand.

"Ummm…" Aran scratched his cheek, eyes retreating from you.

"Oh my goodness! I'm so sorry!" you spat out, tossing the incriminating object to him. "It just fell out of the dryer when I opened it so I went to pick it up!"

Once in his hands, he recognized it as the one with the seam coming undone. "I… umm… should probably have thrown this one out."

"Umm… yeah… you probably should." Those words slipped off your tongue before you could catch them.

"I- I guess I'll go now," Aran said hastily.

He shut the door.

You let out a breath. That was awkward. Heat continued to linger in your body and you weren't sure who was more embarrassed by the encounter.

Wait. His clothes were still in the dryer. Did you dare ask him back?

The door slowly creaked open and Aran peeked his head into the room.

"I forgot something, didn't I?" Aran sheepishly asked.

"Yeah." The corners of your mouth lifted into a smile. "Yeah, you did."

"I'm Aran by the way."

"Y/n."

You never thought this would be how you'd meet your future husband.

*****

The office chair in your apartment was a comfortable spot for folding clothes. The webcam caught your face as you chatted with Aran whose image filled the monitor.

You smiled. Your husband was winding down after a long day with the team and decided to check up on you.

"I'm alright," you told Aran. "I miss you though."

"I literally just saw you yesterday!" he said. "I miss you too."

After that fateful yet awkward encounter with him in that laundry room two years ago, you had run into each other more frequently at the front doors of your duplex. Your classes ended at similar times four out of your five school days. You were surprised he even started a conversation with you. You wouldn't have been able to bear the embarrassment. Fast forward to a confession, a kiss and a rock-embedded ring, and you got a small, snowy wedding during winter break.

It was back to the books for you now, and you dreaded it. Chores seemed much better, easier. Plus doing them for your newly-wedded husband? You got giddy about that.

You quirked your brow, lifting a familiar piece of clothing from the basket.

"Hey, I thought you threw this one out," you mentioned to Aran, dangling his underwear in front of the camera.

"I did! That's, uh, probably a different one."

"Just how old are these?"

"Hey! Wait a moment! Are you folding clothes?"

You avoided the eyes on the screen. "Maybe."

"You have your paper due in a few days! I told you I was going to do it after flying back home."

"I know…"

Aran's eyes narrowed at you, a trademark expression of his. "You're procrastinating again, aren't you?" His tone implied disapproval.

"But I'm still being productive!"

"Y/n…"

"Okay, okay. I'll stop." Your foot pushed the basket away, sliding it across the floor. Maybe you could fold them after you hung up.

Aran must have read your mind. "Show me what the laundry bin looks like."

You groaned. He saw right through you. Complying, you removed the clipped webcam off the monitor and directed it at the pile of unfolded clothes.

"It better be like that when I get home."

"Alright," you said with a pout.

"Love you."

"Love you too."

Must he stop you from doing chores? They were a simple reminder you were married to him, as if the gold on your finger wasn't enough to show you.

You were his wife.

A smile snuck into your lips whenever that thought crossed your mind. The honeymoon phase was a peculiar, strange, lovely stage.

Yet it was fleeting.

*****

You groaned as you stood in the middle of the bathroom. Aran's white track pants hung off the counter, the red t-shirt he got for free from first year college laid on top, and of course his underwear, which likely went through hundreds of washes, remained on the floor.

Great.

You rubbed your temples, your headache getting worse by the minute. It was Saturday morning, and Aran, who was nowhere to be seen, had left his mess behind.

I'll clean it up later, he would tell you. You knew his mother had spoiled him, always picking up after him. You understood why he was like this, but why couldn't he just start doing it now?

"Do you have this problem?" you asked your friend through your wireless headset.

"What problem?" she asked.

"Does your husband always leave laundry around on the floor?" You pinched the bridge of your nose. "Aran never picks up after himself."

She laughed. You weren't sure if it was because you were a young, amateur wife or if she understood all too well.

Knowing her, probably a bit of both.

"Okay two things."

You listened.

"One, don't say always or never. That's lying."

"I'm not lying," you snapped back at her. You began to regret asking her.

"Are you sure he never picks it up and always leaves it on the floor?"

You left no comment.

"Exactly."

"Okay fine, but that still doesn't solve the problem. If only he just did it, it would solve everything–"

"Number two," she interrupted.

You groaned at her and she gave an amused snort in return.

"If you weren't picking up his underwear, it means he's dead."

You were aghast.

"You know I'm right."

Still aghast.

"What? No husband, no mess."

"I can't believe I asked you for advice."

"But it's true."

"Ugh," was all you could utter. She had several years more of marriage experience than you, yet you didn't want to acknowledge it.

You hung up the phone after you finished deciding today's outing with her, but you hadn't addressed the issue in front of you. Your head throbbed again.

Sighing, you picked up the underwear.

A few minutes later, the front door opened and you dipped your head into the hallway. Aran shuffled grocery bags through the door and into the kitchen. He yawned, placing the milk, eggs, and other items into the fridge.

A familiar coffee brand peeked out of a bag on the floor. Right. You didn't have your coffee yet because there wasn't any left.

You wrapped your arms around Aran and relaxed against his broad back.

"I can't put the food away like this," he said with a chuckle.

"You left your clothes in the bathroom again."

"Oh shoot!" He dropped a bag and started towards the bathroom but you tightened your grip on him.

"I put them away already," you told him. His body relaxed and he caressed your arm around his waist.

The honeymoon phase was a fleeting phase, novel tasks turned mundane, but your love for him grew deeper still.

*****

Aran was away again, this time at Tokyo in preparation for the Olympics. He eagerly called you during breaks, wishing to see his favourite person – although your hands were full as well.

"I miss you," he told you, his smile displayed on the screen.

"And I miss picking up your underwear," you told him with a smirk.

Like clockwork, he narrowed his eyes at you with a comeback. "Why don't you say you miss me like a normal person?"

"Because I'm your wife. I'm special," you told him as he rolled his eyes. "I wish I could be there though."

"You wouldn't be able to spend that much time with me anyway," he said. "Besides, one of us needs to stay home."

"I know." You smiled.

"I gotta go," he said as Atsumu yelled in the background. Aran blew a kiss at you.

You snorted. How cheesy. You returned the kiss anyway.

Hearing a mischievous squeal behind you, you told him, "I gotta go too."

"Love you."

"Love you too."

After you hung up, you turned around and sighed. A soggy wet diaper sagged on the floor and the little guy jumping in the crib giggled at you as if he did the funniest thing in the world.

You rolled your eyes and smiled before picking up the diaper.

"Alright kid. Let's put a diaper back on you and wash your sheets."

*****

I hope you liked it. This is a little different from what I usually write but I hope you still enjoyed it!

I blame Aran's current concern for giving me this idea along with the person who suggested I write Aran fluff. (As well as the seasoned wife I know who told her husband, "If I wasn't picking up your underwear, it means you're dead." lolll.)

I hope you stick around my blog to check out my other works! My current work in progress is a fake dating Suna series. I can't believe we're on chapter 10!

If anyone is interested, I have a Google form for my taglist.

[melonlord-ramblings]

✨Yowu Cardcaptor Sakura Limited Edition Headphones Review✨

✨Yowu Cardcaptor Sakura Limited Edition Headphones Review✨

Service and Shipping Rating: 4/10

Product Rating: 8.5/10

Service and Shipping Rating: 4/10

I rated their service 4 because of something that happened after I ordered my headphones. I ordered their headphones on a Wednesday and I emailed them (twice) on Saturday after getting no shipping updates - I went to check on my order status, it said it was closed (I got nervous, I don’t shop online a lot, let alone internationally). I got my answers on the following Tuesday - with the first one saying that nothing was wrong and that it was still waiting for delivery. The second response was the answer that I had needed. They answered saying that my package couldn’t ship out because it was stuck at customs because my package needed an “Unified Identity Authentication”. I didn’t even know what this was, and Google was no help. Miraculously, I was able to find out what they were needing by looking up customs regulations for my country and was able to quickly sign up for a personal customs code. I quickly sent them a reply and they answered back saying they’ll send it to the company.  I wasn’t as angry as my sister, but I do agree with what she said. Were they ever planning on telling me that I was needing such a thing? There wasn’t a box asking for such information when I was inputting my address so I was unaware that was required. Five business days had passed, and I only found out they needed an important piece of information because I emailed them. Thus, the reason for a low service rating. I will give them credit that within the time frame of Tuesday and Wednesday, they did answer back rather quickly. But the late initial reply and the fact that I had to reach out to them to find out why my package wasn’t shipping, is why I gave them this rating. After sending them my code, I finally got a confirmation email on Friday. 

Another reason for a low shipping rating is that they gave me the wrong shipping service, so it took me a while to even figure out which shipping service my tracking number was valid for. At that point, I only figured out what shipping service it was once my package arrived in my country.

After that, I received an email from the Korean branch of the shipping company confirming my address and all that. Later, they too, provided a tracking number, but again without a specific courier service. Thankfully, Naver has some sort of feature where you can input all available courier services and the tracking number to see which one it belongs to. Overall, I’d say it was a surprisingly slow delivery. Maybe I’m a little spoiled from fast shipping in Korea. After it passed through customs, it did get here somewhat quickly. They said minimum it would arrive Thursday, it came around Friday at lunchtime. 

Thinking back on it, I guess it was pretty fast shipping - around a week and a half to two weeks, but the lack of information needed from the company really lowered the rating. 

Product Initial Rating: 9/10

Oh my gosh, it’s so pretty!!! From the pictures, I was a little worried about how the gold would look with the pink, but there was no need to worry, the color scheme is so pretty. The earcups are also nice and squishy which is nice. It’s a little on the cheap feeling side because it’s made of plastic - which unfortunately, makes it creaky and a little stiff. I’m worried about potentially breaking the adjustable area because it’s so hard to pull out and push in. Other than that though, everything is so pretty and nice. I will say, it smells very strongly of paint when you first open it. I don’t know why, but especially the earpads smell so strongly of paint I gagged a little. 

I love the details that let you know it’s Cardcaptor Sakura! The fact that they even gave three Clow cards?? I love it! The wired audio cable is based off of her star wand handle and the headphones themselves have aspects of CCS!

My package also came mainly in good condition, only a few minor bumps here and there - very minimal; which is surprising because it wasn’t that well protected. Maybe one layer of bubble wrap and then plain plastic packaging.

The headset case is absolutely beautiful! I thought it would be hard, knockable leather, but it’s actually a little squishy! I think it’s based off of her uniform, and it’s so cute! I think you can use it as an actual bag, but taking out the mold and stuff was a little hard, so I gave up because I didn’t want to risk it.

Product Final Rating: 8.5/10

I am in no way an audiophile or an expert on headphones, but I really like them! The sounds are nice and clear and crisp. I’m not sure if they’re for gamers because I’m not one, but when I used them playing Genshin, it was even more fun than usual! I could hear the fire crackling, the winds howling, and even what I think were wolves howling in Dragonspine! I could hear the little details and I think that was pretty impressive. I haven’t tested them with various genres of music, but I did like what I already heard. 

I wore these for around an hour to an hour and a half and I didn’t even realize that much time passed! The earcups are really comfy and not bothersome, even with glasses. I will say, it’s a little on the heavier side and it weighs down from the top because of the cat ears and I did notice that a little near the hour mark. They also are a little tight to put on and that makes it a little hard to take them off, but hopefully they’ll stretch out over time.

The fact that it can be wired and wireless is also nice in case you run out of battery or just don’t feel like using bluetooth. The USB-C type means it’ll charge faster! Using the volume and function buttons really did make me realize how plasticky it was because it would make a plastic echo-y sound every time I pressed it. 

I don’t think the mic is that good. On the few times I used it to talk with, the person on the other side said I sounded too quiet and I guess it doesn’t pick up on my voice that well. But I have also read other people say it’s good enough for calls, so it’s up to you.

You can manually change the lights and colors or you can do it through the app - which by using the Clow cards, can also unlock new colors. I don’t know if I’ll use the app because you need to input your phone number and I generally avoid inputting such information. 

As for the battery life, it is not that good. It definitely is much shorter than the advertised 20 hours with lighting wirelessly. I can’t say exactly how long because I don’t and can’t wear headphones for that long, consecutively. But I do wear them for around 2 hours a day or so, and I only use them for around 2 or 3 days before I have to charge them. So I’d say around 6 hours total? So yeah, way less than advertised and “guaranteed”.

The headphones are definitely on the pricey side, which makes sense because of intellectual property and licensing - plus the cards and the leather bag headset case. I love this headphones and hopefully I’ll wear them a lot! I recommend these if you aren’t an avid gamer (because I don’t know if they’re good enough for that), love CCs, and have the money to spare! 

extra note: I will say, if you have the money to spare, it is pretty worth it! Especially if you compare it to the airpods pro! These headphones, including shipping, turned out to be slightly cheaper, and it comes with more!

Ramblings:

I don’t know if it had to do with me, but it seemed like I could hear better from the left earphone - it was clearer and louder than the right - I actually had to move the left away to see if the right was even working lol. My sister also said the same thing, so it’s possible that this pair of headphones isn’t in the best shape? It’s not so obvious that it’s jarring, but it’s a little obvious in that it makes it uncomfortable. 

I am wondering if Yowu will eventually offer extra accessories like earpads in case we need to replace the ones we have, or if they’ll give instructions on how to wash them? 

I also would have liked it if Yowu had more details on their shipping and refund policies (mainly shipping) and clearer details and information on the shipping service. 

I was watching Genshin Impact’s 1.5 livestream, and I don’t know if it was cause it was a livestream, but near the end, the audio started to occasionally short out, so there’s that.

Overall, I’d give this pair of limited edition Cardcaptor Sakura headphones a solid 9/10!

[let-me-love-you-loki]

Hounds of Justice--Ch. 69

A/N: For Ro--welcome back Big Dog!

Chapter 69

           “It’s hard to believe it’s been a year since you debuted,” Dean said, barely understandable around a mouth full of burger. We were at a hole in the wall place in Ohio, near the same arena where I debuted almost exactly one year before.

           I pushed my fries around my plate, trying to find one of the mushy ones that were my favorite. “Yeah. Six months of action and six months of this,” I replied, gesturing to the chair beneath me. Shrugging, I popped a fry through my mouth.

           “But it was a hell of a six months, wasn’t it, dollface?” I could tell he was trying to keep things light and playful. I was glad for it.

           “Damn right it was.” I grinned at him, picked up the burger that he’d ordered for me. It was huge—overflowing with sautéed onions and mushrooms, cheddar cheese, grilled pineapple, and barbeque sauce—and I didn’t know how I was going to finish even half of it.

           We were quiet for a few minutes as we both dug in to our food. It had been a long time since Dean and I had been able to just sit down, the two of us together. He was so much like Georgie and Bran, but there was something else about him—something that made him a missing piece of my soul. I loved him in a way that I couldn’t explain. It was like he knew the depths of the thoughts in my mind—how dark and frightening they could be. He was a balm to all that pain, because he understood it. He knew what it was like to feel out of place, like everything could be taken from you in an instant with no warning.

           Dean Ambrose was the rock beneath my feet, the calm in the storm of life. And I’d be forever grateful to him for it.

           “Nervous for your first night on the job?” He wiped his mouth, leaned his elbow on the table. His eyes twinkled playfully.

           “Not really.” I shrugged. Having him close by made it easier to think about sitting backstage in gorilla, headset on, tapped in to the referees as I produced my first match. “Especially since it’s your match. You’re a boss at what you do, Dean. Everyone who gets in the ring with you looks fantastic.”

           He grinned, pleased with the ego stroking. “That might be true—hell, it is true. But other than Seth and Ro, you are the one who knows me the best inside that ring. It doesn’t matter that we only worked together for six months in there. You’re like Seth—between those ropes, you know me inside and out.”

           I blushed and reached over, squeezing his hand. “Love you, Dean.”

           “You, too, dollface.”

~~~~~~~~~~~

           Hunter made sure I had a place that was comfortable for me—enough space to move if I needed to, a wireless headset to talk to the refs, even a mobile monitor if I needed to go somewhere. It wouldn’t have surprised me if he came out with a custom rig for my chair with all my production gear.

           I was set up near Vince which made me more than a little nervous. Especially since Dean was the Universal Champion. Even if the match wasn’t for his title, no one wanted the Universal Champion to lose on a Monday night to a mid-card player. As much as I liked Elias, Dean was more important.

           Dean bounced nearby, his title around his waist, wrists taped up, a grin spread on his face. He smiled over at me, winking playfully as his music hit. Elias was already in the ring, trying his best to get out a song before he got interrupted. Unfortunately, he wouldn’t get very far.

           I watched on the monitor as Dean sauntered down the ramp, cracking his neck side to side as he went. A grin settled on my face as I watched him, having missed the way he moved, the kind of confidence he had when he was in the zone. He was a thing of beauty—lithe, graceful, powerful, enticing. I loved watching him wrestle. It was one of the things that made me the happiest.

           The match kicked off. The two of them locked up in the center of the ring, trading holds and blows. The pace picked up quickly—one corner to the other, flinging each other against the ropes, bouncing back. Clotheslines. Shoulder tackles. Chin locks. Elbows. Boots. Elias was a little bigger, but Dean was fast and smooth.

           They hit every point of the match we’d planned. A fight over the guitar outside the ring. Elias getting suplexed from the second rope. Dean getting caught up in a sleeper hold near the center of the ring. He hit his knees, Elias putting his body weight on his neck. Dean started to fade, and the crowd started stomping, clapping, chanting his name.

           Let’s Go Dean thundered through the arena. I grinned as he started fighting his way to his feet. He ran Elias back into the turnbuckle, shook him loose.

           The match ended with Dean hitting Elias with a Hook-and-Ladder. A count of two and a half. Elias tried to roll Dean into Drift Away, but got caught in Dirty Deeds instead. The three count was easy after that.

           Dean strutted back up the ramp holding his title over his head. He dripped sweat, his hair matted on his forehead. I watched as he winked at Renee at commentary before he slipped into the backstage area. He crossed gorilla and dropped a kiss on the top of my head.

           “You did good, dollface.”

           He disappeared back into the locker room area—hopefully to take a shower. I slipped off the headset and put it beside the monitor. Vince gave me a barely noticeable nod of approval before I rolled off in search of Seth and Roman.

           I found Roman first. He was sitting on top of a road crate, headphones on, phone in his hand. I tapped his boot to get his attention. He grinned, lighting up his black eyes. His damp hair was drawn back in a knot, his gloves lying on the crate beside him.

           “How’d it go, itiiti?” His voice was rich and deep, a sound that I’d missed hearing so much.

           I smiled back at him, trying not to cry. “Fantastic, but it was Dean’s match. You know he wasn’t going to let me look bad on my first night.”

           Roman chuckled. “They wouldn’t have trusted you with a UC match if they didn’t know you could make it look great.”

           My heart swelled with love for the Hounds who had taken me in—for Dean who had become my other half, for Roman who would always be the anchor in my life, and for Seth who had swept my heart into the whirlwind. My vision blurred. I wiped furiously at my lashes.

           “Hey,” Roman murmured, fingers against my cheek. He tucked hair behind my ear. “Don’t do that. You’re back and there’s no cause for crying. Ia fiafia, tuafafine laititti.”

           I sniffled, giggling. “All I got out of that was little sister.”

           He laughed. It was that musical chuckle of his that always enhanced the warmth that radiated off him. “We’ve really got to work on your Samoan, Llane.”

           “You can teach me in the car,” I said, finding my smile again. “I’m going back on the road with you guys.”

           “Good. It’s about time.” He hopped off the crate, his smile still radiating brightness and joy. “It’s good to have you back, itiiti.”

           He brushed a kiss on my forehead before grabbing his gloves and stalking toward gorilla. Shaking my head blissfully, I took off in search of Seth.

Tag List

@sammyfireheartashryver @lakamaa12 @bethany99stuff-blog @easyobsession @xbutterflius-effectusx @cburdine @vebner37 @echrai @0paint-the-stars0 @themumbler @bigdunneenergy @queenofthearchitect @reigns-rollins-ambrose @mother-forker

[freespiritdani]

Twist Of Fate, Part 13

Kaitlyn x MC (Venus)

-------------------------------------------------------

The crowd was filling the auditorium to capacity as KARA began doing their sound checks. Seated front row center were five of the suitemates -- Chris, Zack, Venus, Abbie, and Tyler -- plus their close friends -- Becca, Chelsea, James, Reyna, Darren, Zig, Grant, and Gabriella Vasquez.

Zack leaned over to Venus and said, "Loving you girls' outfits tonight. Haven't seen anything this bold on either of you since the surgery and the pregnancy."

Venus replied, "Kait and I talked this afternoon and decided, considering the events and meaning behind them, that we should embrace them instead of being self-conscious about them. She said she'd wear that if I'd wear this....soooooo....."

They all sat around exchanging small talk until five minutes before showtime, when Venus arose and said, "Excuse me, guys, but I need to tend to a personal matter."

"Hurry back! You don't want to miss this!" Abbie said.

Venus smiled and said, "Don't worry, I won't!" and headed for the auditorium"s side door. When she went out the side door, she turned right and ran to the stage door. As she arrived all the stage lights and the lights in the auditorium went out. Anissa came out and handed Venus a wireless headset mic.

"Here," Anissa said. "Knock 'em dead!

"I'll try," Venus said as she put on the mic. "Know where the seat is?"

*A51, between Zack and Abbie."

"Right. Go!"

--------------------------------------------

A lone spotlight shown on the stage, showing a lone figure.

🎶

Kaitlyn:

I had a dream late last night

My water was running low

And my fields were on fire, burning my sky

My body was moving slow

And when I woke, I tasted the sweat

Of desire on my mouth

Zack leaned over and said, "I love this song," to which Anissa, sitting in Venus's seat, replied, "Me too!"

Zack and Abbie shot Anissa a wide eyed look, then looked back at the stage just as another spotlight illuminated a second lone figure.

🎶

Venus:

And I realized my heart had abducted my mind

And they were last seen headed south

Now I can't sleep, I'm so wired

And I find myself screaming out

Kaitlyn:

Don't you need, don't you want

Can't you taste it when you're alone

Venus:

Don't you cry, don't you feel

Sometimes I wonder if you are real

Both, in unison:

Don't you bleed

Don't you need

Abbie exclaimed, "Wow, Venus has got a set of pipes!!! I knew she could sing from doing karaoke, but damn!!! She's good!!!"

Chris leaned around Zack and asked Anissa, "Why doesn't Kaitlyn ask Venus to join you guys?"

"She has," Anissa answered. "Shoot, man, we all have. More than once. But she keeps saying no, she's a writer not a rocker......she agreed to do this because this is the twentieth anniversary of you guys meeting for the first time."

Chelsea leaned over and growled, 'Can you guys please shut the hell up? I can't hear over your ramblings and I missed the entire second verse!"

Everybody refocused their attention to what was going on onstage. Venus and Kaitlyn were standing close to each other, facing each other.

🎶

Venus:

Don't you want to lay it down and feel your skin against the ground

Kaitlyn:

Don't you want to ride the storm,then sleep inside the calm

Venus:

Don't you want to get that high

Kaitlyn:

Don't you want to be satisfied

Both, in unison:

Well if you don't want it from me,Don't you need

They turned and faced the audience, standing shoulder-to-shoulder.

🎶

Kaitlyn:

I had a dream late last night, My water was running low

Venus:

And my fields were on fire, How was I to know

Both:

That I burn every night in my dreams, and only morning can set me free

Kaitlyn pulled Venus in tight and they shared a passionate kiss as the band finished the song.

The crowd thundered in applause, giving the band plus Venus a standing ovation.

As Anissa rejoined the band onstage, Kaitlyn looked at Venus. "I know you only promised one song, babe, and I'm not gonna push," Kaitlyn said, "but you know everything in the setlist by heart. Wanna stay and finish the show?"

Venus said, "Babe, I don't think...." She paused, looking at the girls in the band. Kaitlyn was looking at her expectantly, Rackel gave her a thumbs up, Amara and Anissa we're smiling and nodding.

"Oh, what the hell! Let's rock!"

-------------------------------------------------

After the show was over, the girls were carrying the equipment back to the van with the help of the rest of the gang. Chelsea looked over at Venus and said, "Woman, don't let anyone kid you, you can flat-out SING! You should join the band and tour with them!"

Venus smiled and replied, "Thanks, but no thanks! I--"

Kaitlyn, Amara, Anissa, and Rachel interrupted and said in unison, "I'm a writer not a rocker!"

Everybody laughed.

Once the van was loaded, Kaitlyn said to everyone, "Look, guys, I'm sorry to break this party up, but six of us have a date with a dorm suite to celebrate an anniversary. What say we reconvene tomorrow and make a day of it?"

Becca said, "Way ahead of you, Liao. I've got the entire VIP section of Bobby Flay's new place in town booked for 11. Work for everybody?"

Everybody said yes, then said their good nights.

----------------------------------------

Chris, Zack, Tyler, Abbie, Kaitlyn, and Venus walked into the suite where they spent their freshman year at Hartfeld.

"Man, this place brings back memories," Abbie said.

Chris agreed. "Yeah, it does. I miss those days..."

They went up on the roof, reminiscing for hours about that first night, the parties, the good times and the bad times, the game of Truth Or Truth....."Which reminds me...." Zack said, "Kaitlyn. Has your ultimate fantasy come true yet?"

Venus blushed, her face turning almost as red as her hair.

Kaityn smiled and replied, "Let's just say that on our wedding night I found out that my bride is a chocolate fiend....*

The other four looked at Venus and went "oooooooooohhhh".

Venus shot back, "Let's just say that when I licked the chocolate off.....a certain area...my bride couldn't get up or form coherent senences for over an hour........"

"Oh, really??" It was Kaitlyn's turn to blush.

When they went back downstairs, Chris said, "I'm hungry. Anybody else want something to eat?"

Tyler, Abbie, and Zack said they were. Kaitlyn shot Venus a knowing look and said, "We've had a long day. I think we'll just go to bed."

Abbie said, "Good night, ladies."

Venus called over her shoulder, "Good night," then she and Kaitlyn went into Venus's old room.

Zack called down the hall, "Hey, Kaitlyn! Your room is down the hall!"

"Shut up, Zack!" Venus called back and shut the door.

As the four were in the common room, they heard moans, then screams of ecstasy coming from Venus's room. Abbie laughed and said, "Wonder if they forgot how thin the walls are......."

----------------------------------------------

Early the next morning, Venus heard her phone vibrating. She picked it up and answered it. "Hello?" she said softly.

"Venus, is that you?" the voice on the other end said.

"Grandma???"

[azmanruns]

What do you bring during your runs?

There are running gears such as those utility belt where we can store those small bottles and small belongings such as keys and etc right? Then there are also outfits suitable for running. 

As someone who just recently started running, all these things intrigues and fascinates me. Yet, also because me being broke me, I usually would not experience using these items.

You know what they say about people not understanding something unless they have experienced it.

Honestly, my first reactions for most of these so called running ‘gears’ would be to scoff and brush them as ‘extras’ but from my previous post about shoes, I do understand the need for some of them. They help with the overall experience of running, especially distance running such as the small bottle we could easily carry during our runs. It is a common knowledge that we should not consume anything heavy before or during our runs and thus, a small bottle would suffice to keep ourselves hydrated during long runs, especially on a hot day.

And let us face it, in Brunei.. that’s almost every day.

Broke *** Azman.

As you might know by now, I got most of my running/sport shoes from a close friend of mine, and the only pair I bought for running was a cheap pair in Waznah that did not last very long..

So yeah, I do not really spend much on myself in regards to my running needs. 

But amongst the many gears out there, I have only tried two of them. 

1. A small utility bag/belt to store my keys and phone. 2. A sports watch that is capable of measuring my heartbeat. 

So what do I have to say about these two? 

Running bag

For the small bag, to put it simply. I hate it. 

There are nothing wrong the design or anything. It is all just preference. And it turns out due to my weak mental strength, I cannot have anything ‘weighing’ me down during my runs or it would severely affect my performance.

The constant jostling against my body really puts me off. Then, just the need to fasten it tightly/securely around my waist really affects me. It somehow affects my breathing. I know it is just me but I just feel like the bag is squeezing my stomach and hindering my breathing efficiency. As someone with asthma, I am hyper aware of my breathing. 

So yeah, I do not like wearing those utility belts/bags. I would prefer just holding on to my keys and phone on each hand. I plan to buy the phone holder that we could strap on our arms, so maybe that would help. 

Running watch

The sports watch. Or band. It was listed as a band. HONOR band 5-3D0  for those of you that is interested. 

(I have no idea what the difference is and please do not tell me it is just the circular shape and otherwise. That’s just petty in my opinion)

This band/watch is my favorite investment for running to date! I really am grateful for the heart rate monitoring capability it has.

Without delving too much on the details, it helped me to switch on to another type of running program. After consulting with a fellow runner that is running a consistent sub5 without even trying, and consistent sub4 with mild effort, he advised me to switch my running program. I am glad for his help.

As usual, I will update what the program is and how it would help soon.

My plans for future investments?

After trying out these two items, three if we include the proper running shoes. I would agree that they would help to ease and improve us during our runs.

After running for just around close to half a year, I have noticed several things that I think I could do to improve. 

1. A better way to carry my belongings.

I know I said I prefer holding them BUT that is only if I have to choose between that and wearing a running bag. I plan to try other options and as stated, the next thing I would like to try is the arm band phone holder.

2. Proper running shirt/pants (outfit).

“What?! out of all things.. why this?!”

Is that what you are thinking? The Azman 3 months ago would. But the current Azman is tired of having his shirt stuck to his body during his runs. I am insecure about my tummy okay? get off my case.

Though that’s not the only reason . I have experienced chafing around my thighs near the groin area. One of the fix for this is to wear snug shorts that would prevent skin to skin rubbing. A proper fabric would also help. 

To be honest, I never liked seeing other male runners wearing skin tight ‘yoga pants’ as I call them but I could understand the need. But you would not see me wearing ONLY that during my runs, the family jewel stays hidden if you know what I mean. 

But I am planning to invest on a pair of those snug running shorts and wear loose pants over it. 

3. A new wireless headphones or earpieces.

Most runners would agree that holding on to the earpiece cable during running to prevent them from swinging back and forth and disrupting the music in your ears is an extra pain and a half, in terms of annoyance mostly.

Then the other half would suggest running without them. Yes, yes that is true and that is what I am planning to do once I improve more. For now, my mental strength is not strong enough for me to run far distances while listening to my heavy breathing. So I need the music to distract me.

I have bought myself a pair of bluetooth earpieces but they broke. They would not charge properly when put into their case. Probably inserted them while it was still wet from my sweat. A mistake I would not repeat if I were to buy a new one. 

But I think I would invest on a bluetooth headset instead. I have tried running with wired headset and it was so much better than earpiece. It was more comfortable and needed less ‘adjusting’ during my runs. 

Do you have a recommendation because I do not want to spend a hefty amount for a set that would easily break because of rain and sweat. 

Overall, I think running utilities depends heavily on preferences. But I do believe that after we find the right items for us, we would enjoy our runs even more than before.

Azman out!

[selbenstales]

Reboot the Router: A $SodaCorp Tale

Do you like to read in Chronological order? Here is the Index: timeline.selben.net

Our Cast

$Selben: Previous Tier 1 tech support now an IT contractor - a bit more into his career.

$Soda: Entrepreneur and IT Consultant, and in a way $Selben's boss - Extremely knowledgeable IT guru. Previously worked with $Selben at $SmallerCompany until they decided to move on. Also had a never-ending supplies of 48oz sodas constantly on his desk, in his car, literally everywhere!

$ITLead: IT lead from current company.

$Tech: Random technician working at the company.

$CEO: CEO of the company. An older gentleman, knows how to run a company.

~~~

This tale takes place while $Selben and $Soda were running rogue, switching from company to company as temps doing contract work. At this location, the company was decently sized, but only had two locations, about a 30 minute drive apart. $Selben was placed on the helpdesk alongside $Soda. The other two techs they were filling in for were getting married (*yes to each-other*) so it was a short two week deal during the honeymoon. Unfortunately, due to their short contract, not much time was spent getting them up to speed on all the processes. Anything outside of general SOP (*Standard Operating Procedure*) was pretty vague.

$Selben and $Soda had been assigned their desks, a double cubicle. Each side was distinctively decorated for the his and her's which the previous lovebirds had been sitting in. $Selben drew the short straw and got the ‘Her's’ side, complete with the excessive pink--pens, paper and other stationary were so pink that they had a slight glow to them. $Soda had a pretty standard desk with only a few pictures of the couple. $Selben poked at a pink stuffed bear that leaned against his monitor as $ITLead walked up.

> $ITLead: I’ll send a link to our rough process flow, but basically, if you think you can fix it, go for it. If it's our proprietary software, just transfer the call to $Tech. Otherwise, if it's $CEO, just do what he wants. You’ll be taking calls, most are pretty basic. Thanks again for taking this on such short notice, $Soda! > $Soda: No problem, sounds good!

$ITLead made his leave, and $Selben and $Soda started taking calls. Things were pretty simple--How to use this, why won't this save, and why is this slow. After a few calls, $Selben got a more interesting call.

> $Selben: Hello, this is $Selben. How can I help you? > $CEO: This is $CEO, my mouse isn't working. I need a new one! > $Selben: Sure! But just before we do that, what kind of mouse is it? > $CEO: Let me check…

Through the headset, $Selben could hear papers being pushed around, and the unforgiving sound of plastic banging against a desk, before the out of breath voice of $CEO returned.

> $CEO: I don’t know! I’m going to bring it in so you can check! > $Selben: I was just checking to see if… Hello?

The line had gone dead. $Soda slurped on his drink (which had appeared out of nowhere). His eyebrow was raised, $Selben simply shrugged. $Soda turned his attention back to his call, which naturally seemed to have nothing to do with tech support.

> $Soda: I love Pomeranian puppies! Click next. Oh, you have to keep up on their grooming, though!

$Selben resumed taking calls for the next 30 minutes or so until he heard the now familiar voice of $CEO. $Soda continued with his call as $CEO walked into the cubicle, and plopped his laptop and wireless mouse on the desk.

> $CEO: Mouse won't work!

> $Selben: Let’s take a look!

After several attempts, a bit of nervousness was setting in. $Selben almost started to sweat--this was the CEO of the company! And he was standing over his shoulder, going on about getting a replacement ASAP if this one wasn’t fixable! $Selben was trying to sync the mouse, but it just wasn’t working…

> $CEO: Do you think you can fix it, or should I ask $ITLead?

> $Selben: Well… I, uh…

$Soda spun around, and started chatting with $CEO.

> $Soda: What kind of car do you have?

> $CEO: Oh, I have a $2002Kyoto!

> $Soda: Oh nice! How often do you replace the batteries in those?

$CEO started rambling on about the savings and warranty, but $Selben realized what $Soda was telling him. He dug into the pink filled drawers until he produced a set of AA batteries. After putting them into the mouse, the cursor instantly popped up on the screen.

> $Selben: Good to go!

> $CEO: Perfect. Thanks! I’m asking for you next time!

Over the next week, $CEO brought $Selben his laptop several more times for small issues similar to the first encounter.

Early into their last week, $Selben and $Soda were taking calls from people reporting slow network traffic at the second office. $ITLead stopped by with $Tech and let $Selben and $Soda know they were heading over to the other office to investigate the slowness. The office only being 30 minutes away had some advantages for situations like this. Almost immediately after they were out the door, a feverish number of calls came flooding in reporting the network was now completely down.

> $Soda: I’ll try to reach out to $Tech and $ITLead to give them a heads up. Just stay on the calls and try to calm people down.

> $Selben: Got it!

$Selben answered more calls. It appeared none of the office workers communicated with each other, and ALL decided to call in on their own. $Soda finally got through to $ITLead. $Selben only heard $Soda’s side of the conversation.

> $Soda: Yeah, we're letting people know… > $Soda: Right… You what? > $Soda: It's gone? > $Soda: What should we do then?

$Selben heard the familiar out of breath throat clearing as someone came up behind him. He turned slowly to see $CEO standing there, holding a rackmount router. $Selben pulled on $Soda’s sleeve.

> $Soda: Ah, excellent. We found it. Want us to reboot it here?

$CEO stood looking perplexed.

Apparently when the network slowed down and $CEO wasn’t able to reach the helpdesk due to the congested phone lines, he decided to take action, the only way he knew how! He went into the network room, unplugged the router, and drove it over so that his favorite helpdesk employee, $Selben, could fix it. He was a nice enough guy, but just really didn’t understand how computers, or electronics of any kind, worked.

[joanofsnarrrk]

Charted: Domesticity Stateside - Part 2

It’s been nearly a year since I posted the first part of this series, Charted: Domesticity Stateside, which documented my need for a happy, domestic ending for the Adventure Family even before I played Uncharted 4. Since then, I’ve played U4, let it change me as a person fundamentally, and almost immediately started on a sequel, which after close to a year, I’ve finally completed. So please enjoy Charted: Louisiana, Libertalia, and Lemurs! (Or, the running tally for life after Libertalia goes as follows: one marriage salvaged, two family members gained, and three attempts at trying to convince your wife that a lemur is a suitable house pet.) 

It can also be found here: AO3 - Fanfiction

The move to Louisiana is an exciting and somewhat stressful affair.

The offer for their current house comes in on a Tuesday at the close of the business day in early June. It comes in at a decent amount over their asking price, so even though they haven’t finalized anything on the new home—let alone put in an actual offer yet—Elena assures the realtor on the other end of the phone (through the smile that’s threatening to split her face in two) that she and Nate accept. When Nate hears the news, he spins Elena around, his smile mirroring hers.

“We’ve never had a plan before,” he says in response to her concerns about the timetable for the move. “Why should we start now?”

So Elena hands in her two-weeks to WFTV ABC 9 that Wednesday, much to the disappointment of Gary, who works in editing (“Viewership is gonna go down without you providing a weekly dose of explosions overseas.”), while Nate focuses all of his energy on packing up the inordinate amount of books and artifacts they’ve come to accumulate within the last three years (“How do we have seven copies of The Science of Adventure?”). They try to goad Sully into helping by offering a box of Cubans and a bottle of really good scotch. Eventually, he caves, but only in helping them load the packed boxes into the moving truck (“There’s not enough treasure in the world that could convince me to get in there; Nate’s a damn hoarder.”). They try the same thing for Charlie and Chloe, but they’re both in Berlin, no further details given (“Keep us updated though, will you?”)

Before they know it, Elena takes one last video of the old place—including reactions from Nate and Sully (which she promptly uploads to Instagram, Chloe and Charlie her first two likes)—and they’re traveling down I-12, everything packed and ready for Louisiana.

About an hour into the drive, Elena receives a call with a ‘225’ area code. Over speakerphone, the realtor tells she and Nate that their offer has been accepted, and they’ve barely hung up before Nate comments, “Guess this means we can cancel the hotel arrangements, huh?”

It’s nearly dusk by the time they finally arrive at the new place, legs and arms stiff from the close to ten-hour drive. Once they’ve done the walkthrough of the new place, they make a pact to start tackling the unpacking tomorrow. In the meantime, they both collapse on the front porch, grinning lazily into the setting sun. Nate procures a small bottle of champagne, that’s regrettably lukewarm since the ice in the cooler melted about two hours ago. He pours it into their empty Popeye’s soda cups, and they toast to their luck and their new home.

“You know what would make this place even better?” Nate eventually asks. Elena’s at his side, her head on his shoulder. He kisses the top of it.

“Hmm?” she asks as she snuggles up against him, her eyes closed against the deep orange glow from the horizon.

“If we got a pet lemur.”

ii.

Admittedly, leaving the life and moving to Louisiana ends up affecting Elena more than she thought it would. She still writes, of course, and everyone in the neighborhood is pleasant enough, but it doesn’t take long for a desire for the familiar to set in, which is how she ends up buying a pre-owned PlayStation 4 after she runs out of excuses to give to Chloe and Charlie for not getting one in the first place.

Apparently, Chloe and Charlie play shooters online

“I’m telling you,” Chloe says over Bluetooth. Elena’s still trying to work out how to turn the system on, not quite able to wrap her head around how the machine has changed in a few generations. “You’re going to love it.”

After randomly pressing buttons, Elena hears the faint beep and sees the blue light turn on when she presses the right one. She smiles at the PlayStation logo that appears on the screen and the low hum of the console. “But I don’t play competitively.”

“Yet,” Chloe assures, her voice tinny over the earpiece. “You don’t play competitively yet.”

“I don’t know, Chloe,” Elena counters. The screen is asking for her login information and a bunch of different setting preferences, and since when did a game need to be connected to the wireless? Apparently, video games became a lot more involved than the last time she played. “I think I might just be a bandicoot and fruit collecting kind of girl.”

Chloe sighs. “You’re only saying that because you’ve yet to experience the utter satisfaction of completely destroying insecure men at virtual combat and then trash talking them afterward.”

It had felt pretty great schooling Nate with Crash Bandicoot. Maybe Chloe has a point.

“Fine.” Elena’s shoulders sag as she lets out a sigh, her eyes on the screen. It’s asking for some kind of username? She wracks her brain for a moment before settling on Sunshine. The screen informs her that the name has already been taken when she hits enter, so she amends it to Sunshine07, adding the year she met Nate and Sully. That works. “But you can’t make fun of me when it turns out that I am terrible at this.”

Chloe laughs on her end. “I can make no such promise!” she protests, as if the mere thought goes against who she is fundamentally as a person. “But if it makes you feel better, Charlie is absolute rubbish at it, and I keep him around anyway.”

Another line emits static as it comes to life. “Oi, watch it!” Charlie’s voice comes in over the mic. “I hold my own well enough, thank you very much.”

“Oh, is that what we’re calling it?” Chloe asks, her smirk audible.

Charlie shrugs, or at least, that’s what Elena imagines he does. “Absolutely we are,” he assures her. “And it’s no worse than bullying children online, which I believe is your claim to fame.”

“That is absolutely not fair; it was one time!” Chloe protests, immediately on the defensive, despite Charlie’s laughter in the background. “How was I supposed to know? The foul nature of his username suggested someone nearly twice his age. All the more reason, I say, to keep young children from playing games made for adults.”

“Oh, sure,” Charlie says, still laughing, “blame the parents.”

Elena lets their back and forth play out, before focus naturally swings back to the game they’re trying to play. Turns out, she has to friend both of them before they can start playing. Within moments, she receives friend confirmations from brighteyezz and Charles_of_Arabia, and after a minimal amount of coaching, she manages to get the game inserted and loaded.

“Okay,” she says, Bluetooth mic in place, her legs pulled up and under her on the couch, and the game’s home screen illuminating the TV, “let’s take these knuckleheads down.”

There’s only a minimal amount of snickering that comes through her mic in response.

iii.

“Tango on my six. Someone take this douchebag down.”

“Say no more,” Chloe responds. Like clockwork, the guy behind Elena takes a head shot. She watches the screen as his skull explodes in a truly gratuitous display of violence and guts.

“Oh, beautiful,” Charlie chimes in. “That guy’s been a right arsehole since we started, camping at all our spawn points and mowing us down, no mercy whatsoever. Humiliate him, Bright Eyes.”

“With pleasure,” she coos, changing her mic from their private party chat to the general lobby. When she finishes, they’re down one player in the lobby, and Elena beams.

As it turns out, Elena’s really good at shooters. To the point where Chloe and Charlie actually begged her to join their clan after a few months and play with them regularly. And even though it’s only ever been about having fun and relieving stress for her, Elena can’t help feeling a sense of pride that the three of them have developed a bit of a reputation in the online community for being pretty unstoppable. Her personal stats alone are enough to keep most trolls off her back, so she generally doesn’t have to verbally retaliate. But even if she has to, she can hold her own, thanks to Chloe’s tutelage. Charlie, on the other hand, is embarrassingly bad at trash talk, much to Chloe and Elena’s amusement.

Her attention is momentarily torn from the game when she hears the front door open. Nate’s not normally home this early, and Elena’s never been fully upfront about her new gaming hobby, so it takes him a moment to adjust to the sight before him, after he toes his shoes off and dumps his bag on the floor next to them. Elena’s sitting on the edge of the couch, her body leaning forward, her headset (a minor upgrade) on as she issues commands to Charlie and Chloe. She smiles widely when he sinks into the couch next to her.

“You miss me that much that you’re talking to yourself?” he asks as he wraps his arm around her shoulders, planting a kiss on the top of her head. It’s distracting enough that she misses her next shot, giving her opponent the chance to shoot her, which he does. Chloe has a stream of expletives in response, which Elena pointedly ignores.

“Hey, you. You’re home early,” she says, covertly muting the mic and snuggling into Nate’s side. He tightens his grasp in response,

“Yeah, pretty light day for salvaging,” he explains, idly tracing random lines on her shoulder. It’s super distracting, which is how she misses another shot. On cue, Chloe and Charlie have some choice words for her. Nate’s gaze is trained on the screen, which is how his next statement comes to pass. “Did that fox with pants join the army in the sequel?”

Elena snorts. “It’s a bandicoot,” she says reflexively. “And, no. This is a completely different game.”

“It looks violent,” he concludes, which she can’t help noticing the irony after everything they’ve been through. After a beat, he adds, “Can I try it?”

She hands the controller over to him willingly (recognizing this match as a rare failure at this stage, anyway) and watches in awe as Nate somehow outdoes himself by playing abysmally. Amazingly, his hand-eye coordination is pretty terrible for someone who used to require precise dexterity to swing across buildings and caverns. Hiding her laughter becomes an impossibility when, after five deaths in a row (two of which happened as a result of pushing the left joystick too far, so his character just kept running in circles), Chloe and Charlie go ballistic.

“Elena. Sweetheart,” Chloe says slowly, trying in vain to restrain her fury and failing. “Have you hit your head and become concussed? Because that’s the only explanation I can conjure for the shit show that is your current performance.”

“Absolute bollocks! Get your head out of your arse and play like you know what a video game is,” Charlie demands, decidedly more forthcoming with his frustration.

“Guys,” she finally chimes in, switching the mic from mute. She’s giggling too hard for anything to be very coherent, but she presses on. “It’s not me, it’s Nate.”

The sound of their collective outrage (“Bloody hell,” barks Charlie) is so loud that Nate can hear it, even over Elena’s laughter. When he asks who she’s talking to, she wordlessly switches her mic to external audio, the sound of Chloe and Charlie making fun of him now projected into the living room. Nate’s ears go slightly pink, and Elena only feels a little guilty for being unable to stop laughing.

“Ha, ha, laugh it up, guys,” he shoots off sarcastically, tossing the controller back in Elena’s lap. “I may not be able to play video games, but I did discover Shambhala, you know.”

Charlie groans, and Elena pokes Nate in the side, booing at him. Chloe actually blows a raspberry in response.

“Oh, come off it, Nate. That excuse lost its appeal the first thousand times you used it.”

“Yeah,” Charlie adds, “don’t make us dislike you anymore than we already do for you being a shit player.”

iv.

When Jamison’s wife, Carla, invites Elena to join her for her yoga class late one Thursday afternoon, Elena can’t say anything but yes. Jamison and Carla were the first ones to make Elena and Nate feel welcome when they moved to Louisiana, and they consistently invite the two of them over for dinner every month. Elena can’t ignore the small amount of guilt that may or may not be playing a factor in her decision.

She can, however, ask a friend to come with her. A friend who arrived from Berlin two days ago and is currently sleeping on their couch. A friend like Chloe.

“I simply don’t understand suburbia,” Chloe says, saying the last word as though it’s the most repulsive concept she’s ever heard.

“First of all,” Elena counters through laughter, “where we live hardly classifies as ‘suburbia,’ and second”—she gestures to her stomach—“you go surprisingly soft when you’re not running for your life from some mythical, collapsing city.”

“Yes, but why must I suffer because of your choice to leave the life?” Chloe demands as she holds the studio door open.

Elena thinks for a moment. “Because you’re working on being a really good friend?”

Chloe’s head falls back as she barks with laughter. “And you are apparently working on being a really bad liar?”

“Oh, come on,” Elena coaxes. She goes so far as to link her arm with Chloe’s before they enter the studio. “It’s gonna be great!”

v.

It’s not great, for the record.

Carla neglects to mention that the yoga class she attends is hot yoga, which Elena can only compare to doing yoga smack dab in the middle of the Rub’ al Khali. Just when her body adjusted to the temperature inside the studio, the ventilation system would pump even more hot air into the confined space. She doesn’t even bother with the showers afterward, just pushes her way out through the front entrance, where she braces her hands on her thighs and gulps in the clean and comparatively cool air.

“It’s…gonna be…great, huh?” Chloe gasps, following suit as she slides down the side of the building, her legs sprawled out on the ground. Much like Elena, she’s drenched in sweat, droplets of it dripping from her hair into the red, water wicking material of her tank top. “Please be sure to engrave ‘it’s gonna be great’ on my… tombstone once they scrape my body off this sidewalk and…bury me in a shallow grave.”

“I’m so sorry,” she apologizes, unable to laugh like she normally would due to exhaustion. Unlike Chloe, Elena has on an old, baggy t-shirt, which is now plastered to her body, almost obscenely. “Remind me to—” She has to stop momentarily, her lungs stubbornly not cooperating with her desire to breathe. She collapses next to Chloe. “—Remind me to…forget it. I’m so exhausted, I forgot what I was going to say.”

“I won’t…hold it against you,” Chloe promises, trying in vain to keep her breathing even, “if you promise to never do this again.”

That makes Elena laugh. Then, it makes her cough violently. “Deal,” she wheezes.

Carla, freshly showered and rejuvenated, exits the studio, glimpses the two of them and chuckles, not unkindly, before going to get the car started.

vi.

Not even a week after arriving back stateside from Libertalia, and Nate refuses to drop the subject. Madagascar did nothing to change his mind.

“Elena—” he begins, still engrossed in whatever National Geographic article he has pulled up on the computer in her office. His furrowed brow and overall determination make her shake her head.

“No way,” Elena interrupts. One glance at the computer screen, and she knows. She just knows what her well-meaning, but beating-a-dead-horse husband is about to say. “We are absolutely not—”

“But they eat mostly plants, they’re mostly solitary, and,” Nate continues, as if Elena wasn’t speaking, “it says here…that many of them exhibit female dominance, so…y’know,” he explains by way of not explaining when Elena stares at him blankly, “they’re obviously feminists.”

Elena snorts so loudly, it covers her laughter. Mostly. “Sure, obviously feminists.”

“Yeah,” Nate says in response, grinning infectiously, “girl power and all that.”

“Nate, you are actually exceeding the levels of crazy I expect from you,” she admits. When it looks like he’s about to protest, she places her hand over his mouth. “I love you, but we are absolutely not getting a pet lemur.”

vii.

“Not it!”

Nate looks at his wife, exasperated, once they both realize they said it at the same time. Elena, mouth contorted into an ‘o’ of surprise and finger pointed accusatorily, tries to stop the grin that breaks out onto her face, but she fails.

Miserably.

“I totally said it first,” Elena claims, though it doesn’t help that she is laughing.

Nate scoffs. “You totally did not.”

“Oh, come on,” she tries again, nudging him with her shoulder. “I meant it when I said we would have to share doing paperwork.” She sighs. “If only you would carry your half of the weight.”

This time, Nate starts laughing. “Elena, you are so full of crap. I just finished a week’s worth of phone calls and permit applications for our dig in Malaysia yesterday, so don’t you start.” He scrubs a hand over his face before he catches sight of something behind her, and his eyes light up. “Okay, how about I play you for it?”

Elena’s eyebrows rise. “You sure that’s the smartest move there, cowboy?”

“Nuh-nuh-no, I learned my lesson last time,” Nate replies, leaning back in the desk chair. He gestures to the bookcase behind Elena. “No, I’m talking about those.”

She follows his line of sight to the off-brand Nerf pistols that had somehow migrated from the attic to their living room. Her smile grows larger.

“I guess if we’re completely overlooking the fact that I’m the better shot, then sure,” Elena concedes. She walks over to grab the guns and once she has, she tosses one over to Nate. He catches it singlehandedly. “Let’s get your humiliation over with quickly.”

Nate gets up from his chair and vaults over the couch, proceeding to load ammo into his gun. “You’re going to live to choke on those words, you know,” he informs her.

Elena just rolls her eyes. “Three hits,” she says. “The first one to shoot the other three times wins, and doesn’t have to do paperwork.”

viii.

Nate gives her a head start, but when he goes to search for her, he finds her almost immediately in their shared bathroom. Using some impressive gymnastics, Elena rolls past him, but he’s hot on her trail as they take their shenanigans throughout the entire house. Eventually, Elena ends up behind the couch, her gun trained squarely on Nate, who’s standing behind the island counter, his gun aimed at her.

“Well!” Nate booms, a cocky grin stretched wide across his face. “Look what we have here! Ruggedly charming adventurer, Nathan Drake, appears to be up by two, while his lovely, but losing wife, Elena, is preparing to fill out paperwork for the rest of the week.”

Without another word, Elena fires a round at him. Nate ducks, but the shot goes wide. When he comes back up, the annoyingly smug grin on his face is enough to give Elena an idea.

“Any last words?” Nate prods, spinning the toy pistol around like he’s some kind of outlaw. He has the nerve to come out from behind the counter. “Besides groveling for mercy?”

It’s Elena’s turn to grin smugly, as she watches her husband still in his tracks, the expression on his face fearful for a split second. Only when she undoes the second button on her blouse does he say something.

“What are you doing?” he asks evenly.

She responds with a full on smile, undoing another button in the process. “Let’s just say that in a war of sticks and carrots, I’m going with the latter.”

Nate’s Adam’s apple bobs once, his growing discomfort obvious. Elena takes advantage of his frozen state to approach him. “Hey!” he blanches when she undoes another button. His mouth suddenly feels dry. “We never agreed to partial nudity!”

“We never not agreed to partial nudity,” Elena corrects him, undoing the final button. She’s close enough to him that she can touch him, which she does, placing a hand on his chest. His heart pounds erratically. “I’m just playing up my strengths,” she explains with a wink.

He punctuates rolling his eyes by grasping her wrist, but he can’t seem to bring himself to actually remove her hand. “Yeah, your strength of cheating, you mean” he admonishes half-heartedly, his voice faltering as his gaze inadvertently lowers.

Sighing dramatically, Elena pulls away, and slowly starts to button her blouse. “Well, alright. I guess I can do the paperwork this week since you won. It’s only fair.”

Ignoring his pride, Nate tugs Elena back toward him and hoists her up onto the counter. “You’ll be the death of me, you know that?” he admonishes before situating himself between her legs with his hands resting dangerously high up on her thighs.

“I’m just willing to sleep with the co-owner of D&F Fortunes if it means I get out of doing paperwork for the week,” Elena admits, her smile wide.

Nate breaks into a matching grin despite all the extra forms he’ll have to fill out. It’s hard for him to think of paperwork as a loss, though, when his wife is kissing him as thoroughly as she is, their toy pistols in the foreground, completely forgotten.

ix.

“Hey—whoa, sorry!…Nathan, have you always had that birthmark on your ass?”

“SAM!”

“Elena, good to see you again. Although, admittedly, last time it was with more clothing—”

“GET OUT!”

When the door slams in his face, Sam takes his pitiful dish of green bean casserole down to the kitchen. He finds Sully’s down there among various pies and side dishes, filling a tumbler with liquor he’d helped himself to from the cabinet in the dining room.

“Can you believe all that, Victor?”

At his questioning glance, Sam tells him about his run in with his brother and Elena.

Sully slams his glass down in disgust. “The hell? What, do they have a yearly standing appointment?”

And that’s the story of how Sam accidentally walks in on Nate and Elena in a physically compromising situation the day before Thanksgiving.

x.

“So in conclusion—” Sam begins, hands held behind his back as he rocks back and forth on his heels. He and Sully had just finished up a job and gotten back from Argentina last night, but his niece had been texting him back and forth about this presentation since before then. Sure, he was exhausted, but who was he to turn her down? Especially when her preparation work had been so impressive?

“What Sam’s trying to say,” Cassie interjects, looking over at her uncle for some guidance. He imperceptibly nods, and she finds the courage to press on, “is that a lemur would actually make a really great pet, given their herbivorous diets and our house’s close proximity to exotic flora, among other things.”

From her spot on the couch, Elena narrows her gaze, first at her brother-in-law, then at her daughter. It's hard to respond with much of anything when Cassie even included a visual aid in the form of a bar graph, which is propped up in front of the TV in the living room where they all are presently. Out of her line of sight, Nate gives two thumbs up, and Cassie uses all her self-control to stop herself from beaming proudly.

“Did your father put you up to this?” Elena finally asks, fixing her gaze at Cassie, then Sam. “Or your uncle?”

“Of course not,” Cassie blurts a little too quickly. Sensing her discomfort, Sam wraps an arm around her shoulders, squeezing.

“Look, Elena,” he says, giving her his most endearing smile. Nate clearly rolls his eyes in his periphery, but he still doesn’t have a pet lemur, does he? “I think if there’s one person who has really been advocating for this all along, it’s Victor.”

“Oh, no you don’t!” Sully pops his head out from the freezer, ice cube trays in hand. He pops a couple into his tumbler on the counter, and puts the trays back where they belong. It’s not until he’s pouring liquor into the tumbler that he adds, “There’s a reason I have no horse in this race, and it’s because, I’m staying far the hell away from this. For what it’s worth though, Cassie, your mother is smart enough to see through your father’s harebrained schemes.”

Immediately, Sam deflates, and Elena turns on Nate, poking an accusatory finger into his chest. “You are the worst liar,” she accuses him at the same time Sam says to Sully, “Way to not get involved, Victor. Truly inspiring.”

Sully goes on about how Sam started all of this, but it’s Nate that addresses his wife’s accusation by saying, “I couldn’t stand by and let Cassie’s dream of having a pet lemur be broken.”

Elena doesn’t budge. “You mean your dream?”

“Technically,” he amends, lacing his hands behind his head, stretching his legs out on the ottoman in front of him, and grinning, “she’s our daughter, so really it’s our dream.”

She snorts. “You are impossible. And you,” she directs at Cassie, “despite your solid argument and blatant treachery, my answer still stands. No lemurs.”

Sam whistles, long and low. “Tough break, kid.”

Cassie crosses her arms over her chest and huffs. “Well, can we at least get some kind of pet?”

xi.

Later, when Elena finally relents and says—after speaking with Sully, who used to have one—they can get a dog, Cassie fist bumps her dad and her uncle, her smile threatening to split her face. She tells Sully they’re going to name it after him for his central involvement. He offers her a cigar to celebrate, which Nate promptly and emphatically puts a stop to.

Eventually, curiosity gets the better of him, and Nate asks Cassie how she knew she could get her mom on board with a pet.

“Well, Dad, you always say that the best way to run a con is to get the other person to believe it was their idea in the first place,” she admits.

Nate pulls her into a hug, practically beaming.

[psvrsales-com]

Is PlayStation VR Worth It?

Hey guys, this is Austin. And today, I'm here with one very important question. Is PlayStation VR worth it? You guys may have caught a video I did a few months ago where I compared a developer kit version of PSVR against the Oculus Rift and the HTC Vive and I was pretty impressed then. So I have some high expectations here. Okay, so this looks like the fun stuff, so we'll wait one second on that. And we've got what looks like the accessories. Okay, first of all, we have PlayStation VR Worlds. So we get The London Heist, Scavenger's Odyssey, Ocean Descent, VR Luge, and Danger Ball. On top of that, we also get the PSVR Demo Disc. So this has a bunch of demos for things like Eve, DriveClub, Rigs. A lot of the games you're probably going to want to try anyway. Next, we have a controller which has actually been around for a while. This is the PlayStation Move. So these were originally made for the PlayStation 3, and they were essentially Sony's answer to the Wii Remote from Nintendo. Now, they were not massively popular. A few games took advantage of them. However, it looks like there's gonna be a much better use for them with PSVR. We also get the PlayStation Camera. Now it's important to note that there are actually two different PSVR bundles. So this is the full launch bundle, which has all of the accessories in addition to PlayStation VR. However, some of these things you're just going to need. So for example, you need a PlayStation Camera to make PSVR work. You don't necessarily have to have Move. However, a lot of games will require it. So it's probably something you're gonna want to pick up one way or another. So, speaking of the camera, this is a slightly redesigned version. Now, as far as I know, there's no real major difference between this and the original camera. So it's not like if you already have one of those, you need to go out and pick this one up. Essentially what this is going to do is track your actual VR headset. So essentially as you kind of move around the space, the camera will be able to tell exactly where you are. Oh, s**t. That is cool. The little things, you know? The little things in life. Oh, what? (laughing) I thought this was a box. This is your quickstart guide. You know what? Sony, I would never normally read something like this, but you went through the extra trouble. Let's see what's inside your quickstart guide. Oh yeah, it's a quickstart guide. Never mind. Okay, so another instruction manual. And this is the actual breakout box. So what looks, actually like sort of a mini PS4. So this is the processor unit. So everything is still going on on the PS4 itself. However, this is going to give you a couple extra features, so it kind of enhances the audio for a full 360 VR effect. And it also gives you an HDMI out to your TV. So for example, if you're playing a VR game, and your friend wants to watch, you can still see what's going on on the TV through this box. And we have a headset. So PSVR doesn't actually have built-in headphones like Oculus, so you can plug in pretty much anything. This is a standard 3.5 millimeter headphone jack. So if you like, you can use these low-profile options or bring your own cans. Alright, it's time for the fun stuff. So, what? Oh. Nope. Psych. Not fun stuff. More cables. The future--I thought the future was wireless! This is not wireless. We have... wow, that's light. The PSVR headset itself. Wow, that is super light. And even though it looks big and bulky, it's really lightweight. This actually seems like something that I could be wearing for quite a while without getting uncomfortable. Whoa, look. I'm in the future! The future's really dark. So with this kind of rubber on the sides, it really kind of helps to block light out. And even though I wear glasses, I feel like this is totally comfortable. Ugh, the real world. I didn't sign up for this. I wanna go back to PSVR. (laughs) Oh, you know what? This is the VR game I wanna play. "Feel the exhilaration of an illegal street race." An illegal luge, alright, let's do this. You know something interesting. I didn't need to adjust the screen at all for my glasses. I literally put it on and it immediately was nice and sharp. There's a little button on the bottom where you can pull it in and out to kinda adjust it, but super-simple set up. Alright, immediately not digging the motion here. This is like motion sickness 101. Yikes. And sort of more of the static sort of things, the screen resolution's not bad. Here, everything is very blurry. It's cool, I can get the idea, but, it's... Yeah, it's noticeably less sharp than something like the Vive or Oculus. Let's do The London Heist. That sounds like fun. One thing I'll say about using the Move controllers, it's pretty obvious that they really weren't designed for VR, because while you have your X and Square and all your normal PlayStation buttons, without being able to look at them, it's a little unclear as far as which one you're actually pressing. The actual presence is not bad. It seems like it's able to track in 3D space reasonably well. It's not anywhere near as accurate as something like the Vive controller, but this seems fine. Like, this is easy. Okay. Shake hands? Oh, no. - You'll need these. - Will I? Okay. - A mobile phone. - Of course, hope it's Sony. - It's clean. - That's actually a Sony. Can I light the money on fire? I wanna light the money on fire. Ah. Open this up. This--oh, okay. Oh, wow. I should probably grab my gun. (laughs) This is cool. So I am noticing a few limits to the tracking. So if I try to lean too far out, the PlayStation Camera can't see me or if I actually hit like the, well, you know, the actual couch I'm sitting on. (alarm sounds) Oh, I got him! (gunshots) Alright, next, let's try DriveClub VR. So this is one place where I can see the PS4 is a little less powerful, well, a lot less powerful than a gaming computer. So for example, when I look at the BMW, I can see a lot of aliasing with the sharp edges. There's actually a lot of detail in here, I gotta say. Looks like I'm sitting in an actual car. You know, I've been playing for about 45 minutes or so right now, and PSVR is still staying very, very comfortable. So my face isn't sweaty. Everything feels nice and smooth. Oh, I'm on the wrong side of the road. Perfect. Oh, burnout! What? (laughs) Oh, that's cool. Let's do it. (laughs) Alright. This is solid. I gotta say I'm not disappointed right now. So EVE: Valkyrie is an interesting game because it's also available on the Oculus, so it's a really easy comparison to make. I mean, there are definitely some differences. I think the lower resolution screen on the PSVR is a bit noticeable. Graphics-wise, it's hard. I mean, a good experience is sorta seamless. You really don't think about it. You really get immersed in the game. And I think the PSVR is absolutely up to the point where I can totally do that. Frame rate is dead solid. Like, out of all the games I've tried today, I have not seen one dropped frame. Nothing torn, nothing. It's been a very, very smooth experience. Valkyrie is not the, my first choice of a game to try in virtual reality. But it really kind of gives you an idea of the scale and the scope of what you can do here. Get it, get it, get it! While PlayStation VR is less expensive than something like Vive or Oculus, it's also still 500 dollars, and that's still not even including the price of a PS4. Now something like the PS4 Pro might make a bigger difference to quality. However, the main thing you need to keep in mind is that VR is still very new. There's a lot of potential here. However, it's still very much an early adopter thing. If you really want to try VR, this is a great way to go. However, it's not a must-have. So I only had time to play a few games today. However, if you want a full run-down of the best of the best games for PlayStation VR, definitely check out my buddy Kevin Kenson, who did a full rundown of all the latest. And I'm curious, what do you guys think about PlayStation VR? Let me know in the comments below and I will catch you in the next one.

https://youtu.be/tXqQs7oMwmg

[defiantscribe]

The Achilles Heel of my Mindset

So, this is the third blog I have yet to post, however after watching about a good hour and a half of videos, felt the compelling need to write something about what I was watching.

I've been watching a lot of videos about Overwatch lately.  I got the game not that long ago, however I haven't gotten really good with any single player (or a Main). I do sorta well with some, but others I don't and there are some that I just don't feel like playing because even though I might be good with them, if I am, then everyone will expect me to play that class and I don't like getting pigeon held into being a support class (like a medic). Suffice it to say, I'm not super great.  Reason for this?  Well, first I'm getting older.  I'm a lot older than the majority of these players. I have a full time job, kids, responsibilities and finding time to just sit and binge game is a very rare event for me.  Not really, but it plays well into my second reason.  My broke ass internet.  I try to stay on top of my finances and in doing so, one of the things I do is pay for DSL.  That's right, I said DSL.   I get my internet over a telephone line.  Not cable, no...... t-e-l-e-p-h-o-n-e.  Now, when I don't have anything else in my household using up that connection (I have a smart tv, cell phones, a laptop and a Xbox One that all connect to my wireless), I get an OK connection. But if my son is playing Overwatch on Xbox, my daughter on Roblox and my wife watching Netflix?  I'm probably looking at like a 300+ ping on any game I play.  So, what do I do?  I just don't play and usually take a nap, which screws up my sleeping schedule, hence why my dirty ass is up at 1:39 a.m. writing about video games and shitty internet. Now, by and large, it's not terrible internet, it's not.  It's never given me a slew of problems, it's pretty reliable and for the most part I can watch movies off xbox live, stream shows on Netflix and Hulu, it gets the job done.  But to be top notch while gaming?  Nah.... it's definitely something that hasn't mattered to me in some time.  And to be perfectly frank, it still doesn't.  Doesn't mean I still don't want a better ping to show some of these fools that think I'm trash that it's simply a matter of latency that separates our skill set more than anything else, but it's not something so dire that I need to re-work my finances to make happen. But, that being said, I still envy all these little shitbags out there that make a living off playing a game.  I was a wiz back in the day when it came to QWTF (QuakeWorld Team Fortress).  I used to own college kids on T1 connections in California on my dinky 36.6 modem in Montana.  I would wipe them all over the floor.  Now this was back before voice chatting was even a thing in the world of FPS gaming.  We had to type everything.  So I would type, kill, type some more and be effective as a player.   Then I fell of the face of the gaming world.  I got a girlfriend, moved across the country and had more important things in my life take up my finances than buying a new rig and keeping up with the rest of my "friends".  I honestly think that was the nail in the coffin. For one, I hate voice chat.  I really do.  I don't like talking to strangers.  It's fucking weird.  I don't know you, I don't want to talk to you through voice, even if it's easier, and I don’t want to key my mic just to say something.  I had about a 10 year span where I didn't game or have a PC that could handle gaming.  Then the announcement for TF2 came out.  The sequel to the FPS I was godlike at.  I worked it out with my wife that we could purchase a computer through her employer at the time (they were Dell partners) and they would stipend it out of her check.  I put like a $1,700 dollar rig together, making sure it met the recommend (not minimum) requirements for TF2. I got the computer, I had fast internet (at the time) and they released the game.  And you know what I found out?  I fucking suck at FPS games. I'm just not on the same level as these guys anymore.   That decade of time off did not help matters, nor did the next thing that happened.  The same year I got the rig, same year I got the game was also the same year my son was born.  I'm a dad first.  I wanted to game, so bad, but my son was priority one and that usually meant being up late, losing sleep and doing what I needed to do. I don't hold it against him and never will, but I came to slowly realize I'm just not who I was back when I was 17. And it stinks.  I want to be good again, but still.... kids, responsibilities and shit internet. The wife is thinking of working with me to maybe get good internet (at least so we can all use the internet at the same time without there being such a huge bottleneck in our internal setup), but that's still a ways off.   I have a plan starting next year if we can't make it happen sooner, but I can only tell you, I watch some of these players and I just think, "Shit, I could do that, that fool looks like he's standing still."  And I can only think that's how I must look to a lot of players because on my end, it's a frenzy.  On their end, it's like watching well timed choreography. I guess the point of all this was to simply whine because I have to go to my job in about 6 hours and I could honestly care less about going.  I would much rather put on my music, put on my noise cancelling headset, log into a game and hyperfocus for like 3 hours. No distractions from kids, work, any of that. But that's not the way the world works anymore. And it bums me out.  I play the lottery and never knew why I always have this soul burning desire to win it big, but it finally dawned on me this weekend: I don't want to be responsible anymore.  Not saying I want to drop the ball on things that need to be done, but I don't want to be in charge of all that bullshit that comes with life.  I want someone to cook shit for me, I want someone to do my laundry, I want someone to clean up my house, take my kids/wife places they need/want to go and just let me be a teenager again.  No worries, no real responsibilities, do something because I want to, not because I have to. And that's ultimately what I want.   Yeah, big house, fancy cars, blah blah blah.  Nah, if I had just that one wish, it would be to shuck responsibility for the opportunity to get some individuality back.  To be who I used to be, to try and re-spark my imagination without the nagging fear of "how are we going to pay this?" or "Will we have time to do this?" or "how much will that cost?" I want the freedom to make choices in matters that won't blow back on me and cause a great bit of heartache because we can't afford it or we will lose our way of life because of my choices.  That is why I want to win big money.  I could very easily live in my house the rest of my days, I like my house. I'd fix all the broken shit, but I'd pay it off and not owe anyone anymore so if I wanted to take a trip to a con or go to a concert overseas, I could and wouldn't have to worry about scheduling time off, finding someone to watch my kids, worry about how we'd cover the costs. That's what I want. I want options, I want choices.  I want to experience life because I only get the one and I don't want to suffer through 40 years of labor to MAYBE get to a place where I can retire and, even then, I have to money manage hard because I'm not going to get social security and the like, so my ass only has what I've saved (which is damn near jack shit). I don't want to go to Europe when I'm 65+, I'd like to go now when I can still enjoy it and remember it, cement it in my memory before the ravages of time and old age attempt to rob it from me. It's 2:00 a.m. now, still don't want to go to work. I don't hate work, I just don't want to have to obligate my life to that responsibility because I don't have the means to say "No". To all those who may be teenagers, reading this, (though I doubt there are any): Being a grownup is fun, but it sucks a fat one on a daily basis. Sure, there are things that'll make you happy, but unless you're lucky enough to be financially set enough to do all those extra things in life, you're bound to be a slave to the system much like myself.