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wefoundloveunderthelight · 3 years

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Void of Extinction by GleefullyCaptainSwan Chapter 1/9

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Stacy's Tortured Crew: @teamhook @kmomof4 @stahlop @lfh1226-linda @ilovemesomekillianjones @itsfabianadocarmo @mariakov81 @qualitycoffeethings @zaharadessert @jrob64 @jonesfandomfanatic @natascha-ronin @tiganasummertree @xarandomdreamx @therooksshiningknight @batana54 @superchocovian @onceratheart18 @ultraluckycatnd @snowbellewells @karlyfr13s @the-darkdragonfly @xsajx @deckerstarblanche

Chapter 1: There is Nothing to Fear

Storybrooke Maine, 2052. The world is slowly dying from a plague, only known as J2, that is spreading across the realms, a disease that has no cure. A faction known as “The Rebellion” have moved underground to search for a cure while avoiding detection from “The Hive”, a dangerous group run by an unidentified man of darkness searching for power. The only thing standing in the way of either group taking power is Mayor Regina Mills, who spends her time protecting the residents of Storybrooke from criminals who might bring the plague to her small town. The most dangerous occupants, those deemed most likely to bring the plague to town, are given a new opportunity, a chance for a new life, without being a danger to society, courtesy of the Gold Collective.

The pain was tortuously blinding as he tried to open his eyes. It was a feeling of waking from an all-night bender he couldn’t even remember attending. Peering through slits, his room came into view, blue neon lit behind the monitor on his wall. “Status Report.” He spoke, a gritty tone leaving his throat.

“Good morning James, it’s 7:53 am, pollution level 63%, you have no appointments today.” The pleasant robotic voice carried throughout the room. Something felt wrong, like a small itch at the back of his brain, a light tick that was calling out to him, telling him to pay attention.

He stood from his bed, the silk sheets falling to the ground behind him as he wandered through the apartment. “Open blinds.” He spoke and the metal slats hummed as they opened fully, revealing the land in front of him, dark smoke clouds on the horizon behind the mountains. Storybrooke, the only home he had ever known. He sighed; he was going to be late. He was halfway to the bathroom before he stopped in his tracks.

What the bloody hell was he about to be late for?

“What time do I have to be at work?” he said loudly.

“You are expected at 8:30am. Shall I prepare transport?”

He groaned, “Sure, but where is my destination?”

“Granny’s Diner, Main Street, Storybrooke.”

He pinched the bridge of his nose, a headache taking form at the back of his neck. “Granny’s.” He mumbled. Short memories, like a picture show, formed in his head, an older woman barking orders at him as he cooked burgers in the back of the small diner. He was a cook. He wasn’t sure why that felt odd to him, like something was out of place. He didn’t have time to contemplate the decisions he made in his life. He was going to be late for work.

The quick shower didn’t erase the feelings, images he didn’t recognize were imprinted in his subconscious every time he closed his eyes. A woman with hair, a light pale yellow, eyes green as grass staring at him. He couldn’t place the image, some celebrity perhaps he had seen in a movie. He shut off the water, running the towel through his hair as he tried to rub the sleep from his brain.

He dressed and left his apartment, sliding the locks shut with a slam, cranking the large metal door handle to the right to ensure it was locked. He glanced down the darkened hallway at the few people meandering about, the lot of which always appeared to be lurking, watching for unsuspecting individuals who left their belongings unprotected.

“You’re late.” The woman growled as soon as he entered the back of the diner.

“I’m sorry, Granny. In my defense, I forgot I had…” He thought about his sentence. What did he forget exactly? That he had a job, that he was a cook, why he had even woken up at the time he did, dreaming about a woman he had never met, “to work this early.” He finished.

“I’ve had to tell you the same thing since you started working here, it would do you some good to have your AIM set a damn alarm before you go to bed.”

Killian had alerted his AIM or Artificial Intelligence Monitorto set a 7am alarm, yet it failed to alert him to his shift for the last few weeks. He would need to have it repaired if this continued.

“Yes Ma’am, apologizes.”

“Just get to work, we got people waiting.”

James pushed through his shift, flipping burgers, cracking eggs, and sending out plates of food he had no memory of knowing how to cook. He wondered to himself how he ended up with this life, when had he decided that this was the best job he could find? Each time he tried to imagine another career, something that he might actually enjoy doing, the migraine would hit him out of nowhere, crippling him until the inhibitor was injected into his arm and his breathing returned to normal.

Whatever plagued him, this medical condition that brought him to his knees had always been with him from what he could remember. He assumed that it had begun when he was a child, it was second nature for him to know to inject himself once the pain hit. Yet he couldn’t remember when it began.

He climbed the stairs to his apartment at the end of the day, entering his room and locking it down behind him. “Set alarm for 7am.” He said once he sat his keys on the counter.

“Alarm set. 7am.”

He went about the mundane task of preparing his dinner, watching the Holo TV, news that the plague had spread to the outer banks was on every station. Mayor Mills calmed the crowd during her press conference and on each holo announcement that played every 15 mins.

“People of Storybrooke, I give you my assurance that the plague will not breach our walls. We have taken every measure possible to protect our citizens. We continue to fight back the resistance uprising, and our law enforcement continues to arrest any faction that supports it. There is nothing to fear.”

Mayor Regina Mills stood in the center of the screen, flanked by her officers on either side. She was fierce, strong, and protected the town of Storybrooke with honor.

“Turn off Holo TV.” He announced, setting his dishes in the machine for cleaning.

He crawled into bed, pulling the covers over his hips. “What time is the alarm set for?” He asked, ensuring that everything was still working.

“Alarm is set for 7am, James. Sleep well.”

~*~

Emma woke to the sound of crying. She jumped up from her spot and reached for her son, pulling him against her chest. “Hush now Henry, mommy’s got you.” Pressing her child to her breast she felt the tug against her nipple as her son quieted. She smiled down at the infant in her arms, her heart aching as she watched him so still against her, as if nothing in the world mattered but his own nourishment.

Emma wished her view of the world were as innocent. But she knew better.

She looked around the dark shack she had been hiding in for the last few weeks. She could hear the water on the other end of the door, just on the outskirts of the town line. It would be dangerous if anyone were to find her. She had given up everything to get away from Neal Cassidy. Her safety, comfort, even her future was all gone the instant she escaped the tower that had been her home for the last five years.

Emma knew it was dangerous being outside the protective walls of Storybrooke, those who had been exiled lived on the outskirts, many would not escape the plague once they lost the protections provided behind the walls. Emma knew it all too well, five years ago when the plague first appeared, she had taken ill, she was expected to die quickly, painfully. But after a month, the symptoms subsided, and Emma survived.

Doctors could not explain why she survived, only that she had been very lucky.

And then she met Neal. She thought she had finally found someone to share her life with. She was taken in by his father, Gold, a man obsessed with finding the cure to the plague.

His company, The Gold Collective had invested in experimenting on anyone who had come down with the plague, valiantly searching for a cure, the perfect gene sample that would save humanity, but his efforts had been fruitless as most of his subjects died before he had completed his experiments.

Emma found him to be odd, even a bit intimidating at times. His obsession with the plague caused her to keep her own situation quiet. She had a feeling if he had known that she had somehow lived through the plague that his interest in her might become more than just the father of the man she lived with.

Gold took care of her, as Neal’s girlfriend, he ensured that she had everything she could ever want. And Neal provided her money, food, and a roof over her head. Something she didn’t have before she had met him, back when she was homeless, trying to find her place in Storybrooke. Neal took her in and loved her.

But all of that changed a little over a year ago. Emma wasn’t snooping, she hadn’t meant to be in the office after hours, but Neal had not returned home that evening, and Emma had been worried. So, she left the penthouse suite of Gold Laboratories and headed to Neal’s office. Before she even reached his wing, she heard arguing.

The conversation between Gold and his son was chilling. She knew she needed help. She didn’t want to cause alarm or alert either of the men to the knowledge she had overheard them, had realized who the Gold Collective really was, so instead she waited out her time. A week passed before she found her mark, a police detective whom she had followed for days. He lived a quiet life, devoted to his job, going between his apartment downtown and his job at the station, never deviating from his day. He always arrived at work at 10:02am for a 10:30 shift. He had lunch with his partner at 12:45, he picked up Chinese food at 9:00pm before returning to his apartment. She had watched him assisting his elderly neighbor up the stairs and she knew this was the man she needed to trust.

Officer Killian Jones didn’t know what to make of her when she showed up at his door at midnight one night. Begging to talk to him, asking for discretion as she tried to determine if he trusted her. When he learned of the knowledge she had, he panicked. He sent her home that evening, telling her to wait a week before she reached out to him again.

It took a month, Emma would arrive at his apartment, they would talk about their plans, share intel on what they had each learned, and suddenly, knowing he was the one person she could trust, feeling like for the first time in her life, someone understood and truly cared about her, she fell for the man.

He tried to deny her, not wanting to take advantage of her trust. But they were in love. There was no denying it. The affair was something that neither one of them had the power to stop. Emma would spend her evenings with Killian, staring at the stars talking about what the future held for them once they were able to figure out a way to stop everything that was happening around them.

But she always returned to Neal, she had no choice but to keep up the ruse in order to protect the secret she had. Too many powerful people were involved for her to alert anyone else. Killian didn’t even trust his partner David enough to share the information.

Suddenly Neal became protective of her, asking her where she was going anytime she left the apartment, so Emma had to distance herself from Killian. It had been a month since they had been in contact when Emma received devastating news. She and Neal were having a baby. It broke her heart. When she finally told Killian, he urged her to escape before the child was born. Once Neal had a child, he would never let her leave.

Emma knew he was right, unfortunately by the time she planned her escape, the child was born a prematurely. She was trapped. Killian became concerned for her safety now that a child was involved, and Emma was forced to share her secret with her childhood friend, Will Scarlett. He sprang into action, becoming the go between for Emma and Killian to set their plan in motion for Emma and Henry to escape.

That night, she met Will on the roof, and they made their daring escape, 65 flights of stairs down the back of the building. They waited for hours at the drop off point, but Killian never showed. Emma was devastated, she felt trapped. Will went in search of him, he wasn’t at his apartment, the station, or any of his usual locations. Killian was gone without a trace.

She knew that something bad had happened to him. He would never abandon her. She trusted him. The only solution she could come up with was that Gold or Neal had found out about their plan.

Killian was in danger, unless something bad had already happened to him. She was desperate to find him. Without Killian Jones, the entire town was in danger.

“Are you decent?” Will’s voice rang out from the other side of the door. She pulled her shirt over her breast, setting her sleeping son beside her.

She stood up and looked through the crack in the door. Will was standing nervously on the edge of the water. She clicked the locks, lifting the wooden latch until the door slid open. Will stepped quickly into the shack.

“You ok?”

“Did you find anything?” She asked anxiously.

“Maybe.”

Emma stared at him with pleading eyes. “What do you mean maybe?”

“Look, don’t freak out, ok?”

“You’re scaring me.” She responded nervously.

“I drove by the station again, nothing. David is there but Killian wasn’t around. I didn’t want to go in, because I figure they might start asking questions, but there was this girl sitting outside and I asked who I could talk to about a case of Killian’s, and I used me ole charm and she told me that he never came back to work a few days ago, and that they opened a missing persons case on him.”

“Oh God, Will.”

“I said don’t freak out.”

“This is terrible. They killed him, didn’t they?”

“Don’t get ahead of yourself, I haven’t told you everything yet.” He pleaded as she paced the room. “Anyway, I went by his apartment, and it was empty. The neighbor says they haven’t seen him for days.” She started to speak, and he pressed his hand to her mouth. “Emmie, I need you to be quiet, I know that’s hard for you.”

She groaned against his finger and mumbled. “Fine.”

“I got hungry as I usually do about this time and got a craving for a big greasy burger.”

“Seriously, you wanted me to be quiet so you could talk about food? I’m losing my patience, Scarlet.”

“The burger was excellent by the way, but that’s not the point.” He paused. “I went back to my car, and there was a man out back tossing out some trash.”

“Would you get to the damn point!” She yelled.

“It was Killian.”

“What?”

“The guy out back. Spitting image of him.”

“Did you talk to him, ask him what the hell is going on?”

“I talked to him, but he acted like he’d never seen me in his life. Swears his name is James Rogers. Emmie, it was the damnedest thing I’ve ever seen. But I tried, I even called him Killian Jones and he stared straight through me…” He dropped his head. “And then he thought about it, I could see the wheels turning in his head, and then he started wincing, and that’s when I saw it.”

“Saw what?” Emma asked impatiently, dreading the fact that she could already feel it in her gut, she knew what he was going to tell her, every sensor in her brain was going off that she already knew the truth.

“An inhibitor. The man injected himself with one of Gold’s inhibitors.”

Emma felt the tears forming, she knew it was the truth. It made sense, he would never have abandoned her or Henry. The only explanation was that Gold or Neal had found out what she was planning to do and got to Killian first. “They erased him.” She said sadly, feeling every last bit of hope she had draining from her being.

“Emmie, he’s one of the void. There’s no way back from that.”

“Don’t say that, we don’t know that. It’s all experimental, it’s not even legal. Gold’s been doing it for years on test subjects. Killian can fight it; I know he can. He’s too strong.”

“Emmie, he had no idea, absolutely no idea of who I was.”

“It doesn’t matter, Will. We must keep trying. Maybe the inhibitor just suppresses his memories. We have to get him not to use it.”

“For all we know, not using it could cause his brain to explode. It’s dangerous.”

“I won’t give up on him Will. I can’t lose him.”

He pulled her into his arms, rubbing her back in slow circles as she cried. “It’s gonna be ok, we’ll figure it out.”

“What are we going to do, Will? Without Killian, I’ll never get into the station to upload the information.”

“We’ll find a way. That’s what we do right?”

She smiled weakly. She wouldn’t give up on him, he risked so much to try and protect her and another man’s child. He had given her hope when she had none. She would never stop trying to get him back. Even if it killed her, she would save Killian Jones and take down the Gold empire.

#void of extinction #stacy's fics #killian jones #emma swan #captain swan #captain swan au #captain swan fics #captain swan modern au

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flyawayrachel · 3 years

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Sometimes when I'm having a particularly hard day excepting my lot I go back and read this little thing I wrote a few months after leaving my family to remind me that I made the right decision. Idk why I am choosing to post this today but I've never posted it anywhere before. I've never been quiet about who I am and what I came from and sometimes it's nice to just get the feelings put there.

My whole life I had never been allowed to make decisions for myself, so why now, was it up to me to make the biggest decision of my life?

What school I could attend, what major I could study, what clothes I could wear, what teachers I could take, what jobs I could have, who I could speak to, who I could be friends with, what bank I used, what hair style I had, what nickname I could go by, what music I could listen to...all these things were policed since I was born, and the first decision I got to make solo was the most world defining decision I'll ever make.

Since then I've made a lot of decisions about myself, some little and some huge, but each one comes with a hill to climb. Through this series of decisions I've come to discover a little more about myself and who I am, a long painful process of deciding for myself.

The first decision.

It was a Sunday. I was expected to attend three morning protests and church at 11:30am, my father would be giving the weekly sermon. This Sunday, however, was different. For the first time in my life, I had a separate obligation. I chose, or tried to choose, to skip church that week.

This was not my first decision as it was reviewed by my parents and shut down.

It was 7am that Sunday morning, and I jumped out of bed, got dressed, and headed to work. I had discussed the days events with my parents two nights prior, today we had a fundraiser. A local family had just lost their daughter to brain cancer, and for once in my life I felt I had the power to do good, instead of spread hate. This was a huge deal to everyone there, and the community surrounding us. I was excited. As a new business, this would be great for us. We'd learn how to handle big crowds of people, we'd all bond over the stress of the situation, we'd have a great time, and we'd be doing good. I got to the restaurant around 7:45, and jumped into work. We had a LOT to do. I was anxious, I knew I was doing something I shouldn't...or at least something my parents don't approve of. It wasn't until 9:21 I heard from them

"Are you planning to miss church today?" My father text me.

"I'm planning to make it back, but if we get people in at 11, I probably won't be able to." I replied

"OK this doesn't really work for me. You aren't at a spot in life where this should be getting asked of you and this was supposedly made clear when you joined. If they cannot respect your need to be in the Lords house you need to find other employment. We need to talk about this"

Fear. Fear was all I could feel. I cried. Knowing exactly what "We need to talk about this meant" it wouldn't be a conversation with just me and him. Or me him and my mother, it would be everyone. Every adult member of our church would sit me down, accuse me of all manner of wrong doing, scream, yell, and refuse to acknowledge anything I said and brush it off as if I was a liar. A decision they had made for me when I was not even a teenager yet. At 11 years old I had been pegged as a liar and forced into seclusion by the church all because my mother, forgetful as ever, had forgotten a conversation I had with her a few weeks prior to it all coming to light. "If they're too scared to talk to me(referring to my older brother as I) then they can't speak to anyone" an aunt of mine had said, and her word was regarded as law at that point. Months of silence on my part followed. I became solemn and bitter after that. My social skills had been destroyed and I would never get over what they'd done to me. The happy little girl was gone, and in their eyes, she never existed. I was ridiculed for years because of this change in demeanor.

I received several phone calls from my parents that morning. I answered none of them. So my mother chimed in...it was 9:57:

"It is not ok for you to miss Church today. We need to have a serious discussion today about what's going on with you."

Again the threat of intervention.

I had to go home. My boss rolled his eyes, dispite his knowledge of my situation he couldn't help but be annoyed that his second hand was leaving, right before open, on what would be our busiest day ever. When I left, there was already a line at the door. I later learned they filled the restaurant within seven minutes of opening the doors. It didn't stop until we closed that night.

My dad gave the sermon that day. It was long. Nearly double the normal length of our weekly meeting. I couldn't tell you if it was purposefully, knowing him it probably wasn't, but that didn't help my view of the situation. Once church was over, I spead down the highway back to work, it was nearly 2pm by the time I got back. It was chaos. People everywhere, we were running out of things, and the dishwashers they'd pulled to prep just couldn't keep up. I was put in charge of running prep and we prepped and prepped and prepped. Ticket times were awful and I don't think we ever got out of the weeds, even now I feel the effects of that day on our staff. I remember at one point I was apologizing to one of our cooks, who we affectionately refer to as "Mom".

"I don't know if I can stay there any more" I'd said. For the first time in my life, I'd admitted to someone that I didn't see a future for me in the church. I'd been toiling with the feeling for years, but it wasn't until early February that I'd realized that I couldn't stay. "Get through school" I'd tell myself. With two years of school left, and my whole life crumbling, I knew I wouldn't last.

"If you need a place to go, I have a spare bedroom. You're welcome there" she replied.

I was floored. Being told your whole like that the world is against you, you learn to accept that, but this woman, this mother of three, had just offered to open her door to me, no questions asked.

We closed at 8.

Once it died down I sat at the bar with my chef. The foh manager behind the bar, pouring them both drinks. I can't tell you the exact words that were spoken, what, if any, words of encouragement were given to me, but while sitting there, I made my first decision. It was time to go. I remember thinking that I needed permission from someone, anyone, to do this, but it never came. My chef never told me I should, our foh manager never told me I should, no one told me to do it. I had to decide, and decide I did.

Once I got home late that night I told my sister. I didn't tell her I would leave immediately. I just told her I couldn't stay and she was always welcome to join me when she got older. I remember telling her there are other ways and places that we can serve the Lord without being subjected to the cruel glares and sneers of those around us. We had discussed often the wrong doings of the "Elders" of our church. I thought she'd understand and maybe she did, but she was hesitant. She was only a child after all, 13 years old, but had already been through hell and back with these people.

The next day I packed. I used the pretence that I was cleaning out my room and giving a bunch of my clothes to Goodwill, an instruction my father had given me a few days prior. This came only months after my mom had my siblings strip my room of much of my belongings and furniture while I was in class one evening. Many garbage bags full of clothes with other items hidden within made their way to the car. It was hard. Making the decision on what to keep and what to leave behind. I had collected many things from many different fan bases I considered myself a part of, while much had been taken from me I still had decisions to make. A lot got left behind. It was now Monday. I didn't work Mondays so I had all day to work. At 8pm we all sat down for our evening reading. I remember choking back tears realizing this would be the last time I sat in a room along side all six of my siblings and my parents in an amicable manner, still, the looming threat of these "talks" overtook me with fear. Once we were done and we'd said our evening prayer I went up to my room. I cried. I cried for the hurt I would do my dad, it was a common joke in the house that I was his favorite. His first little girl. The years I'd miss watching my baby brother grow up. The betrayal my sister would feel when she woke up the next morning. Knowing that in the following weeks every inkling of my existence would be stripped from the house, I still wonder what became of my old bedroom. Did my sister take it like she'd joked about when I would tell her I was dying from a migraine or dealing with a particularly hard day at work? Would my mom take it and use it as an office or spare bedroom for when my dad snored too loud as she often did when I would sleep over at my cousin Vicky's house?

My mom left the house at 4:30am. I was awake before she left. Silently selecting the last few items I would take with me. I wrote two notes. One of apology to my sister for leaving her here in a cave full of wolves. One to my dad, asking to be left alone and explaining that there had been irreparable damage done by other members of the church and that I did not believe their doctrine. I wrap my house key, pink and bedazzled with fake diamonds because my dad picked it out and never really got who I was back then, and copy of their credit card in it and stuck it in his cubby before walking out the door, tears still wet on the paper from when I wrote it. I only had one chance, as all windows and doors on our house sent chimes throughout the 10 bedroom, 6 bathroom, three kitchen home when opened. I got in my car, contemplated my decision one last time, and I left.

I sat at my job for hours alone, drinking ginger ale and eating sourdough bread. Wishing the nausea would go away. Not long after getting there I received a message from my dad. He would not ask me to come home, but extended the invitation to talk if I thought it would solve the problem and I could continue living under their rule. Reiterating the fact that they would not be changing for me. If I left I was going to be on my own. I spent the morning crying as I went about directing prep work for the week, we had a lot to recover from and my personal turmoil couldn't distract me from my work. Hours later my mom showed up. It was on the way home from the early morning yoga class she had taught, which is why she left the house so early. I couldn't recount the exact words said because I was to distracted by the way she was speaking to me. I was a stranger now. She's a lawyer and treated me like a client, taking notes as we spoke with no regard to my emotions or well being. She'd always counted the days to my 18th birthday, the only hope she'd rid me from her life forever. This was her chance.

The months following were hard. I had a lot of decisions to make and no one to guide me. The people who swore to make it easier only made it harder, but I bonded with the least expected people, some of which continue to be my greatest friends even to today. It was a decision that I don't regret, not even on the hardest days, the days I mourn the time lost with my loved ones and the very real possibility they'll never come back to me. The nights I sit up scrounging the internet for any glimpse into their current lives, or when I read people's"hot takes" about who they think they are, often getting it wrong and seeing my family as a one dimensional group of haters. I've made the decision to me myself and it's a decision I'll stand by until the day I die, eternity be damned.

#My life #wbc #westboro baptist church #please be respectful

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elgar-somniari · 4 years

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50 Questions You Have Never Been Asked

I got tagged by @noire-pandora, thank you! I love these!

1. What is the color of your hairbrush?

Purple with a Unicorn on it

2. A food you never eat?

Mushrooms :/

3. Are you typically too warm or too cold?

I’m usually too warm!

4. What were you doing 45 minutes ago?

Finishing Dragon Age 2!

5. What is your favorite candy bar?

Picnic!

6. Have you ever been to a professional sporting event?

I have not! Although I would love to see a wrestling match!

7. What was the last thing you said out loud?

Oh wow, eggs (I was making an omelette)

8. What is your favorite ice cream?

Ooo probably mint or bubblegum!

9. What was the last thing you had to drink?

A cup of tea

10. Do you like your wallet?

It’s covered in sparkles so yesss

11. What was the last thing you ate?

An omelette

12. Did you buy any new clothes last weekend?

No I’ve been buying books like there’s no tomorrow though

13. The last sporting event you watched?

If you can class watching my four dogs try to fit into my small car as a sporting event, that haha

14. What is your favorite flavor of popcorn?

Sweet and Salted!! Best of both worlds!

15. Who was the last person you sent a text message to?

My friend.

16. Ever go camping?

Not yet, but I will be soon!

17. Do you take vitamins?

I take Siberian Ginseng to help focus on my nursing studies! And occasionally some immunity boosters

18. Do you go to church every Sunday?

I do not

19. Do you have a tan?

Hardly no! I do have a lot of freckles though which I’m learning to love

20. Do you prefer Chinese food or pizza?

Oh no, you can’t make me choose, it’s too tough!

21. Do you drink your soda with a straw?

Hahaha noooo I just drink it from the can/bottle/cup

22. What color socks do you usually wear?

Animal themed, I’m a big child

23. Ever drive above the speed limit?

Only if I am in a rush or an emergency situation, very rarely!

24. What terrifies you?

I live near Dartmoor in England, and there is a forest called Wistmans Wood, it’s incredibly old and I went there at night a couple of years ago with a friend. We went into the woods and everything was pitch black, I swear I could feel someone watching us the entire time we were there, and I’ve never felt so uneasy, it was completely silent and the trees are knotted and thick. I have never been back since, nor do I want to go back.

25. Look to your left what do you see?

My crystal altar!

26. What core do you hate?

Is a core a thing? I class core as my abdominal area? I am unsure what this means haha

27. What do you think of when you hear an Australian accent?

Sunny weather and adventures!

28. What is your favorite soda?

Pepsi

29. Do you go into a fast food place or just hit the drive through?

It depends if I am with someone, usually I’ll hit the drive through and eat all 20 of my burgers in my car so no one can see

30. Who was the last person you talked to?

My dog Luca!

31. Favorite cut of beef?

Oh I’m terrible with naming parts of beed, uhhh the best one? I don’t know

32. Last song you listened to?

I’m not calling you a liar - Florence and the Machine (DA2 Credits)

33. Last book you read?

The Stolen Throne!

34. Favorite day of the week?

Wednesday!

35. Can you say the alphabet backwards?

With concentration haha

36. How do you like your coffee?

Sugary, strong and hot!

37. Favorite pair of shoes?

Grey trainer pumps! They go with everything!

38. At what time do you usually go to bed?

Usually around 11pm, however lately it’s been more like 5am

39. At what time do you normally get up?

7am!! Although recently it’s been around 9!

40. What do you prefer - sunrises or sunsets?

Both, they’re so beautiful

41. How many blankets are on your bed?

One

42. Describe your kitchen plates?

White with silver edges!

43. Do you have a favorite alcoholic beverage?

Gin or Wine, classy huh

44. Do you play cards?

I can shuffle cards, and I read tarot cards, but playing card games nopeee

45. What color is your car?

Diablo red (I call him Diablo because why not)

46. Can you change a tire?

Yes

47. What is your favorite province?

I’m not sure?

48. Favorite job you ever had?

Sales! I worked in a retail store selling TVs for 3 years, now I’m on the way to becoming a mental health nurse!

49. How did you get your biggest scar?

I got attacked by a seagull, it swooped down from the skies and stabbed at my arm when I was six years old, now I have a lovely little scar on my arm - wonderful

50. What did you do today that made someone happy?

I made my mum a cup of tea!

I tag @another-rogue-trevelyan, @shadowclanmc, @alistair-theirin, @bold-house-trevelyan, @vhenas, @kittimau, and anyone else who would like to do it!!

#ask away #personal

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cabdane · 4 years

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50 questions tag game!

tagged by @ridiculousnerd, @jokershyena, & @starksclown!!! thank you guys!!!

1. What is the color of your hairbrush?

Black (lol we all have black hairbrushes, don’t we)

2. A food you never eat?

Mushrooms 🤢

3. Are you typically too warm or too cold?

Cold

4. What were you doing 45 minutes ago?

Working

5. What is your favorite candy bar?

Kit-Kats

6. Have you ever been to a professional sports event?

Nope

7. What is the last thing you said out loud?

Lol “ 🎵 Break me off a piece of that Fancy Feast 🎵 ” (see question #5)

8. What is your favorite ice cream?

Bluebell’s peppermint flavor because 1) it’s delicious, and 2) it’s pretty

9. What was the last thing you had to drink?

Water

10. Do you like your wallet?

Yes? It’s technically like a coin purse that I just stuff all my cards in so

11. What was the last thing you ate?

A sandwich

12. Did you buy any new clothes last weekend?

I cannot remember the last time I bought new clothes, and “new” for me is new from Goodwill so

13. The last sporting event you watched?

Just a few parts of the Superbowl because my coworkers brought a TV to set up in our back kitchen 😂

14. What is your favorite flavor of popcorn?

Either lightly salted or like movie theatre style popcorn

15. Who was the last person you sent a text message to?

@ridiculousnerd ☺️

16. Ever go camping?

NOT ANYMORE i was planning to a lot this semester, but, you know

17. Do you take vitamins?

Sporadically, so I don’t think they really benefit me haha

18. Do you go to church every Sunday?

I used to

19. Do you have a tan?

Um, I have olive-ish skin, so I’m not super white and I do tan pretty easily, but I feel like my natural tan looks orange and all the snl t***p jokes make me feel self-conscious haha so I don’t like to tan

20. Do you prefer Chinese food or pizza?

Both? Both. Both is good.

21. Do you drink your soda with a straw?

I don’t drink soda, but yes

22. What color socks do you usually wear?

Light gray, black, or white

23. Ever drive above the speed limit?

Haha the better question would be if I ever drive the speed limit 😎

24. What terrifies you?

Having to rely on other people - especially family (I would rather just be completely self-sufficient)

25. Look to your left what do you see?

My bedroom windows

26. What chore do you hate?

Vacuuming

27. What do you think of when you hear an Australian accent?

Heath Ledger

28. What is your favorite soda?

I don’t drink soda, but ginger ale if that counts

29. Do you go into a fast food place or just hit the drive through?

Well, just the drive-thru right now because, you know

30. Who was the last person you talked to?

Other than myself (see question #7), my friend at work

31. Favorite cut of beef?

Probably ribs, but I only eat beef maybe like once or twice a year

32. Last song you listened to?

I Wanna Hear Your Heartbeat by Bad Boys Blue

33. Last book you read?

One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest

34. Favorite day of the week?

Saturday

35. Can you say the alphabet backwards?

Haha yes, idk why but I taught myself to when I was like in middle school

36. Do you like coffee?

Hahahahahahaahhaahahah yes.

37. Favorite pair of shoes?

My black pair of vans

38. At what time do you normally go to bed?

~1:00am

39. At what time do you normally get up?

I set multiple alarms between 5 and 7am so I actually get up for work at 8

40. What do you prefer - sunrises or sunsets?

Both!

41. How many blankets are on your bed?

Two

42. Describe your kitchen plates:

A single white plate because I didn’t want a lot of dishes to have to move each year

43. Do you have a favorite alcoholic beverage?

Red wine

44. Do you play cards?

When there is someone to play with 🥺

45. What color is your car?

Red

46. Can you change a tire?

In theory, yes, but I’ve never had to

47. What is your favorite province?

Uh, my favorite state is obvs CA since it’s my home state

48. Favorite job you ever had?

I simply do not enjoy working Probably being a salesperson for a cutlery company only because I could make my own schedule, I got to keep some of the knives, and our managers took us out to dinner a few times and one of our managers was 👌🏼🥵 so that was a perk but other than that, it just taught me that I hated sales 😂

49. How did you get your biggest scar?

A curling iron accident 😬

50. What did you do today that made someone happy?

I finished answering these, and that made me happy 😅

and i will tag: @thirstforfleck @jokerownsmysoul @sophialemongrenade @anarcho-jokerism & @heroesaredumb if you guys want to/haven’t already!!

#tag games!!!

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romanceismycallingcard · 4 years

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50 questions tag!

I got tagged by @bl-crossingtheline! Hello darling! Sorry I’m so late on this. Needed a good block of time and then I just kept forgetting. 😜😂

Questions:

what color is your hairbrush? Aqua/Teal

name a food you never eat: Brussel sprouts. And fish.

are you typically too warm or too cold? Um... in winter I’m just perpetually cold. I prefer to be on the warmer side. But as I’ve gotten older that’s changed a little bit. But I don’t know if I’m like always cold or whatever.

what were you doing 45 minutes ago? lol eating fresh home made sour dough bread with my family.

what’s your favorite candy bar? 100 grand bars

have you ever been to a professional sports game? yes. a hockey game with my family and brothers’ hockey teams.

what’s the last thing you said out loud?: My brother was leaving so I yelled BYEEEEE HAVE A NICE DAY from my room and he said NO~! YOU HAVE A NICE DAY! so then I said FINE IF YOU’RE FORCING ME TO. lol. That was one of our nicer interactions 😂

what’s your favorite ice cream?: anything with caramel or maybe moosetracks. Or just plain vanilla cuz it’s classic, yummy, and underappreciated.

what was the last thing you had to drink? milk

do you like your wallet?: Yes! I do! I found it years ago at a thrift store and it was just perfect for me. It’s black with a pretty metal thing with engraved flowers on it. It zips closed AND there’s a coin pouch inside. And it’s the kind that folds in half rather than the kind that looks like a clutch purse which I’m really glad about because the clutch purse shaped ones seem to almost never be quite the right size - either too big or too small and sometimes the latch breaks so then it just flops open. :P

what’s the last thing you ate? sour dough bread

did you buy any new clothes last weekend? um.... no. But i did this last Friday cuz I had to pick up some things from Walmart and I impulse bought a $10 dress that looked comfy and light weight and casual and I can wear it on days when I don’t want to wear pants. I didn’t have a good dress for days like that before.

what’s the last sporting event you watched? uh...... i don’t. Unless my friend showing me a two minute compilation clip of the danish (i think?) sport of jumping over rivers with a pole counts. or unless watching super junior perform counts.

what is your favorite flavor of popcorn? butter + salt or white cheddar

who’s the last person you sent a text to? real texting it was a mom I babysit for. But more recently than that I was messaging blue (musicdramalove) on tumblr.

ever go camping? my family used to go camping a lot - like at least once a year. But we haven’t for several years now since all my siblings and I are adults now. I think I might’ve gone with friends a couple years ago though. idk.

do you take vitamins? nope. If I get sick, I drink a looooooot of orange juice.

do you go to church every sunday? yeah

do you have a tan? not right now. hopefully I will by the end of summer (if not June)

do you prefer chinese or pizza? chinese (but pizza’s good too)

do you drink soda through a straw? not unless I order it at a restaurant and it’s in a glass. But that’s rare. I usually order water or sometimes a cocktail.

what color socks do you usually wear? I have a set that’s cream, a couple greys, and white, and I have a set that’s cream, grey and light pink.

do you ever drive above the speed limit? heck yeah. Usually I keep it to about 5-10 above. But it also depends on what streets I’m on.

what terrifies you? Failing at working a career job or living a miserable life or being alone forever with no one to take care of me when I’m sick.

look to your left, what do you see? my purse on the floor next to my dresser

what chore do you hate the most? scrubbing my shower/bathtub.

what do you think of when you hear an australian accent? steve the animal guy or liam and chris hemsworth or KJ Apa or Rebel Wilson. Or the other day when I was talking to my nanny kiddos about accents and the girl and I could do decent-ish british accents but absolutely failed at an Aussie accent

what’s your favorite soda? root beer

do you go in fast food places or just hit the drive thru? depends on the day or sometimes the line of cars in the drive thru

what’s your favorite number? 4. idky but I’ve always thought of it as my lucky number. Plus I just like it. It’s even. It’s small. 2 + 2 = 4 and 2 x 2 = 4.

who’s the last person you talked to? my brother when I was yelling bye to him.

favorite cut of beef? yeah i really don’t know or care

last song you listened to? We by Yesung

last book you read? honestly can’t even tell you.

can you say the alphabet backwards? YES I CAN AND I’M VERY PROUD ABOUT THIS

favorite day of the week? mmm..... saturday because I usually see my friends on saturday and also refuse to do homework on saturdays.

how do you like your coffee? with a big scoop of hot chocolate powder and quite a bit of half and half. sometimes I forego the chocolate powder but my preference is to have it.

favorite pair of shoes? oooh..... I love my shoes. I have so many that I like. um... okay I’m gonna say it’s this one pair of brown heels I have. They look kinda like leather, orangey-brown, 4in tall heel, and they’re almost like ankle boots because the material goes to just below my ankle. They look amazing with skinny jeans.

time you normally get up? mm..... somewhere between 8 and 9 I guess if I wake up naturally. But I have to get up at 6:15 for work and 7am on days when I have church bc I’m head of nursery (but church is at 10am and online cuz quarantine)

sunrise or sunsets? hm.... I guess sunset bc it sets behind the mountains and it’s gorgeous.

how many blankets on your bed? rn 1 really light one cuz summer’s basically here.

describe your kitchen plates? white with a red and grey design on them with a red border on the edge

describe your kitchen at the moment? currently a mess bc things are being moved around and sorted and everything is everywhere. Other than that, it’s got a sink, fridge, oven, dishwasher, you know, the uszh.

do you have a favorite alcoholic drink? mm.... right now I guess my go to is a moscato wine. I think that’s my favorite thing right now. You can call me a wimp but hey it’s a step up from Mike’s hard mango punch. I also really like mules.

do you play cards? yes.

what color is your car? silver. and it annoys me bc it looks like every other unimpressionable unremarkable unmemorable car out there :p

can you change a tire? .............................................no.

your favorite state/province/county/etc.? MINE

favorite job you’ve had? my babysitting job for a neighborhood family. I’ve been babysitting them for about 7 years now and I have been with them for two of their kids’ births and I’ve gotten to watch them grow up and develop personalities and learn about life and it has been such a fun experience and blessing to me.

how did you get your biggest scar? okay so I don’t know about biggest, but the one that I’ve probably had the longest and is still clearly visible is one that’s on my foot. It’s about a cm long and is about an inch or so in from the base of my second toe on my right foot. I got it when I was... I think a sophomore in high school when my family visited my bro and sis-in-law out of state for Thanksgiving. I went to grab a bottle of sparkling apple cider out of the fridge but, in the process of grabbing it or moving something aside or something, the bottle of sparkling cider fell out of the fridge onto the tile floor right next to my foot and SHATTERED. I was frozen in shock. Didn’t know what to do. Felt embarrassed and felt bad about the broken bottle and mess. I didn’t even realize until my mom and sis-in-law were cleaning up the floor around me that there was a small shard of glass somewhat embedded in my foot. I don’t remember feeling any pain from it. I think I was probably still in shock. But I still have the scar.

Tagging: I don’t really know and I’m tired so ANYONE WHO WANTS TO 😊

#tag game #50 questions #fun times

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niall-is-my-dream · 6 years

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You & Me - Part Five

3450 words

Callie's POV

Your alarm rang early at 7am, you turned it off and pulled yourself out of bed before making your way to the bathroom to wash and change. You'd decided to take advantage of the gym in your hotel, before grabbing some breakfast and heading to the studio where Niall was due to perform later. He had an interview and performance with Eoghan McDermott which you had to deal with.

The mini bus was due at 9am for you, Martin and the rest of the team.

You ignored the notification for ten missed calls and countless text messages. Choosing to kick the shit out of a punch bag. You were angry with yourself for thinking that you could be anything with Niall.

Seeing Saskia with her arms around Nialls neck and his hands on her, had left you shaking. Not wanting to be seen by him, you had made a quick exit, grabbing a taxi back to the hotel.

You barely paused for breath as you kicked your right leg up high, again and again. Beads of sweat had begun to appear on your forehead and down your neck, your body heating up. After a few more punches you stopped. Catching your breath and taking in the almost empty gym.

You unwrapped the gloves from your hands and wiped your face down with the gym towel. Kicking the crap out of the punching bag always made you feel better. You left the gym feeling a little less stressed about it all.

After you'd showered and packed your small suitcase, you headed down to breakfast. The restaurant was full of crew and some of the band, you greeted them with wide smiles and hellos, before placing your bag down by Martin and heading over to the buffet.

You hadn't realised Niall had arrived until he approached you as you were placing some bread in the toaster.

"Hey, where were you last night?" He whispered.

"Was tired." You replied not bothering to look at him.

"Is everything ok? I tried to call you and I sent a bunch of messages."

"Everything's fine." You replied keeping your voice neutral.

There was a few seconds of silence before you heard Saskia approach you both.

"Ni, it's far too early to come down for breakfast. We should've had breakfast in your room, in bed." She smiled smugly, looking directly at you.

You reached Niall eyes and they were wide with realisation.

"Breakfast?" You queried.

"Yes, we had a late night."

You could've punched that fucking smirk right off her face, but you didnt. You took your toast from the machine and then smiled sweetly before replying.

"Oh I'm sure you did, but what I meant was, I didn't realise you ate like actual proper food. Don't you stick thin models survive on diet coke and thin air?!"

Niall stayed quiet, but his face showed he was shocked by you're outburst.

"Jealous are we?! Bet you'd never be able to get a body like mine?!"

"Not really, I prefer to not look anorexic. And I do love toast!"

And with that you wafted the plate with your toast on in front of her shocked face and walked off. You could hear her having a go at Niall about what you'd said, but to be honest you didn't give a shit. Serves him right.

Niall didn't try approach you again, instead he took Saskia by the arm and practically dragged her out of the restaurant. Taking your seat at the table, you slathered your toast in butter and jam before enjoying every moment of your morning carbs.

No one mentioned your altercation with Niall and Saskia. When you got to the venue you got to work on the set up. Niall was busy doing interviews but you'd seen him trying to make eye contact with you as he walked past you on his way to one of them.

When it came to sound check you made sure that he had no opportunity to talk to you alone. He had messaged you numerous times again but you'd ignored him, not even bothering to read them.

If you were honest, as the day went on you weren't 100% sure anything had happened between them or not. You knew Saskia didn't like you and would do anything to annoy you. However you were still hurt when you saw them together last night. Why hadn't he told you she was coming?

Over the course of the day you went from thinking they'd had raging sex all night to thinking that Saskia was boasting about nothing.

Still, you weren't ready to hear Niall's explanations or excuses.

When the performance was over, Niall went off for another interview and you packed everything up ready for it to head to London. You didn't see him again as he had back to back interviews and you and the crew headed to the airport.

The flight to Stansted was short and within a few hours you were home. Seeing a note from Bex on the kitchen table about how she was working late but would be back by 9:30pm. You unpacked your suitcase, throwing some washing in the machine and running yourself a bubble bath.

Almost 45 minutes had gone by and with your body truly wrinkly from the water, you decided to get out. Wrapping your towel around you, you paused at the sound of someone knocking at your door. You didn't like opening the door this late, even though it was still light out. You weren't expecting anyone so you quietly made your way over to the door and sneaked a look through the peep hole.

It was Niall.

He knocked again and you jumped back at the noise, hoping he didn't hear you gasp with shock.

"Callie, I know you're in there. I saw your balcony door open."

Crap.

Slowly moving away from the door you retreated to the safety of your room. You could hear him asking you to open the door so he could explain everything. You ignored him as you dried yourself off, throwing on some cotton shorts and a top. Taking a seat on the edge of your bed, your mind was running a million miles an hour. Should you let him in? Did you want to hear all the sordid details of last night? Did he deserve the chance to give you an explanation?

Your phone began to ring from your night stand. Nialls name flashing across the screen.

The call ended and you heard him knock again.

"Please Cal, I'm going out of my mind here."

You scoffed at hearing those words. If only he knew how you had been going out of your mind playing over all the scenarios of him and her.

"I'll wait all night if I have to."

You didn't believe him.

Being this pathetic about a guy wasn't something you were use to. You refused to cry about it, however you could feel the tears lingering behind your eyes that you were holding back.

Even though it was a warm evening you climbed under the covers and snuggled up in your safe place. Putting your headphones on and taking your sketch book out, propping it up on your knees.

You didn't know how long you'd been sketching until you saw Bex out of the corner of your eye. Smiling a hello and taking off your headphones you asked her what she had said.

"I said Niall's here."

Your heart sank. She had let him in. He hadn't gone away like you'd thought he would.

You could see the confusion on her face as in to why he was here. And that only got worse when you whispered to her that you didn't want to see him. She looked shocked, you hadn't told her about him yet. She still thought you were just friends and work colleagues.

You shook your head at her expression and held up your hand mouthing the words no.

She knew then that something had happened. You'd been friends long enough to be able to read each other. Her mouth made an oh shape before closing your door and retreating to the living room where you presumed Niall was.

You heard her say that you were sleeping and him saying that was bullshit.

"Please Bex? I really need to see her."

If he did those puppy dog eyes at her she would cave and you knew it. Taking off your head phones completely you laid on your side with your back to the door.

When you heard it open, you just knew it wasn't Bex. God she was such a pushover.

"Cal, please talk to me and let me explain." He pleaded, as he closed the door behind him.

You felt the bed dip as he sat down behind you.

"I didn't know she was going to be there....... She just appeared at the after party........ Nothing happened between us and I don't want it to. I want you Cal ........ I need you. What she said to you this morning about having breakfast in bed, that was just to piss you off. She didn't stay in my room with me."

You stayed silent, listening to his words. Trying to process what he was saying.

"Callie, please." He pleaded. "I don't want to lose you."

You felt him shift and climb under the covers, his chest was flush with your back, his arm crept over your hip and rested on your stomach. Burying his face in your neck, you heard him breathe you in. You didn't respond or acknowledge him at first, a few minutes went by and he remained cuddled up to you, gently kissing your hair, neck and shoulders.

"Callie, please." His voice was getting more pained.

"I saw her all over you at the party." You whispered. "Saw her arms around your neck, so I left."

He let out a massive sigh, almost that he was relieved that you'd finally decided to talk to him.

"If you'd stayed you would've seen me trying to pry her off of me."

You sighed and he pulled you closer to him. You could smell his aftershave, feel his breath on your neck as he snuggled into you.

"She did it deliberately, she posted sneaky hints about where she was. It's all over twitter, tumblr and Instagram. But nothing happened I promise, I'm so sorry that you think it did. Apart from when she turned up at rehearsal that time, I've not seen or spoken to her since I ended things in June. She's text me but I've ignored her."

You really didn't want to forgive him that easily, but if what he was saying was the truth then you needed to. Knowing what a nasty person Saskia was, what he was saying sounded like the truth. But deep down you were hurt by what you'd seen. This was new to you, stuff like this would be never have effected you so much. If this had been Jack, you would've argued with him, had it out with him and somehow resolved it. But your feelings for Niall ran deeper than they had for anyone else before. And right now the fear of that was stopping you from thinking rationally.

"I'm not sure what to think, I need to sleep."

"We can talk when you're ready. Can I stay with you while you fall asleep?" He whispered.

He was still holding you close, his lips close to your ear. Moving your hand down to your stomach to find his, you linked your fingers together, holding his hand close to your chest. You felt him relax and and try and get closer, but he was already holding you as close as he could.

"Don't want anyone else Callie, just want it to be You & Me."

When your alarm woke you the next morning, you realised you were not alone. You had turned around in the night but Niall's grip on you hadn't faltered. Your legs were entangled together and his hand was resting on your bare hip where your top had ridden up.

You slowly reached behind you to turn off your alarm, you knew he would probably wake up and you weren't sure what to say to him. With the alarm turned off, you began to try and gently ease yourself out of his grip. But he pulled you closer, once again burying his face in your neck and hair.

"Not ready to move yet Cal." He mumbled against your neck. "Just five more minutes, maybe ten."

He let out a contented moan.

There were a lot of things to talk about still, but right now lying here with him was the only thing you wanted to do. He was warm and cuddly and you couldn't get enough of him. His lips were placing gentle kiss along your neck and jaw and you let out a long and happy sigh. Reaching your hands up from his waist you ran your fingers through his unruly bed hair.

"Ni........ I have to get up." You whined rather unconvincingly.

"Just a few more minutes, Petal."

"I haven't forgiven you." You said bluntly.

"I know."

His hands had moved around your back and his finger lingered at the top of your shorts, but he didn't move his hand any further.

"Why did you stay?" You whispered, as his mouth still left kisses along your neck.

"Couldn't bare to leave you. You're so cute when you sleep, you snore to."

"I do not snore!"

He paused his kisses and brought his face up to yours.

"Yeah you do! Kind of a low rumble noise."

Your mouth was wide open in shock and massive smile on your face.

"Don't be embarrassed babe, as I said, it's cute."

"It's not cute, because it's not true."

"Whatever you say." He smiled.

He really was adorable in the mornings. His thick wavy hair was a mess, his hooded sleepy eyes barely open. His plump pink lips ............

Before you knew what you were doing, you were tracing your finger across them. He brought them into a pout and kissed your finger.

The smiles were gone from your faces, instead you were both just staring at each other, the connection you had overwhelmed you. Before you could stop yourself, you pressed your lips to his. His body instantly reacted, his hand on your lower back moved you closer to him, before moving it down to hitch your leg across his hip.

Your hands were on his face, in his hair, the desperate need to feel him, taste him. The kiss was intense and you could feel yourself getting dizzy, your senses coming alive. When you paused for breath he looked at you, his eyes searching yours for regret.

"I'm so sorry I hurt you, it's only you..... I promise. I've been going crazy without you. It's always been you, always."

And he kissed you again, this time rolling you onto your back, settling himself between your legs. He was hard beneath his shorts, you moaned when he made contact with your centre. You were both becoming frantic, kissing everywhere you could, feeling what skin was exposed. The heat of the quilt that was over you both was stifling, and you moved it down his back as much you could, feeling the slight breeze from your open window.

"Ni?" You moaned as he kissed across your neck and down your chest. "Ni?"

He stopped his kisses and looked up at you.

"Sorry.......I um........sorry." He mumbled nervously as he moved from between your legs and laid next to you.

"I don't want to you to stop, but I have to leave for work in just over an hour. Bex has the car so I have to navigate the tube this morning across the city."

"So, if I were to drive you then we could probably have an extra half hour?!" He replied, smiling.

"Ni." You said laughing and giving his shoulder a gentle shove.

"What? I'm just saying I have my car so can give you a lift and y'know we both need showers."

You looked at him, a cheeky smirk across his face.

"As amazing as that sounds, I doubt Bex would appreciate us hogging the bathroom together! Plus I can't be seen arriving with you."

"Yeah....ok." He sighed sticking his lips out in a pathetic babyish pout. "Just one more kiss before I go though, yeah?"

When you emerged from your bedroom ten minutes later you found Bex sitting at the kitchen table with a coffee in her hand.

"Good Morning! Did you both sleep well?!" She asked with her eyebrows raised.

"Morning Bex, and yes we did thank you." You replied.

"Good good! Kettles just boiled if either of you want a coffee."

"I'm good, I'm going to head off and get showered and changed. Willie will probably wonder where I got to."

"Nah, I told him you were here!"

"Of course you did!" You replied, shaking your head.

She just smiled sweetly.

"I'll walk you out." You said to Niall.

"See you later Bex."

"That you will, Willie is bringing me to your gig tonight. Am looking forward to it."

When you reached the door, he pulled you to him. Your arms instantly wrapped themselves around his neck.

"I'll see you in a bit." He whispered, before kissing you gently.

"Yeah, see you in a bit." You replied before opening the door for him.

With another quick kiss, he was gone.

"Soooo........?" Bex said. "Just friends hey?!"

"I have zero idea what we are if I'm honest." You replied shrugging your shoulders.

"Care to explain what the hell has been happening then? And I want the whole story! With details!"

You really didn't have time for this, you'd got to leave for work. But with Bex telling you she wasn't at work today, and that she could drive you to work. At Willies request she had taken a couple of days off as he had wanted to spend the day with her and head to Niall's gig later. That meant you had time to tell her what had been going on and be in work on time.

You started from the beginning, from when you had walked in on him and Saskia arguing to kissing him at his apartment almost three weeks ago.

"I knew something had happened, you sounded so jittery and flustered on the phone." She said.

Then you told her about him confronting you about that night and how you'd admitted your feelings to him.

"Why didn't you tell me any of this?" She asked.

"I don't know, just embarrassed to. Was worried he might turn around and go back to her."

"And did he? Is that what you argued about, why I found him sitting on our doorstep last night?"

"I went to the after party in Dublin and she was all over him, so I left."

"And what was his explanation?"

"Said he had no idea she was coming and that he'd struggled to get her off of him. She's posted sneaky shit about it all over social media to."

Bex responded by shaking her head in disgust.

You carried on with the story, including yesterday morning at breakfast. Bex had laughed at how sarcastic you'd been to Saskia. "Thin air and diet coke! That's a good one!"

You took your coffee cup to the sink before turning to Bex with a worried look on your face. "Was I wrong to forgive him?"

"No, from what I gather from Willie, since you started working for him he's been smitten with you. Saskia just won't get the hint. He officially ended things with her months ago. Willie had no clue why he was with her especially when she was so rude to you that time and others close to him. I got the impression from Willie that Niall had told her numerous times he didn't want to see her anymore but that she just kept turning up at the same events as him. She likes the association."

"He said it's always been me. That I'm the one he wants."

"I don't doubt it. He was really upset last night."

"I know he was. Look, don't say anything to anyone please?"

She moved closer and wrapped you up in a hug.

"Of course, you don't even need to ask."

Next part

https://niall-is-my-dream.tumblr.com/post/182819967228/you-me-part-six

#Niall #Niall horan #Niall fan fic #Niall fan fiction #Niall horan fan fiction #Niall horan fan fic #solo Niall #1dff #one direction #Emily writes #flicker sessions #tour life #You & Me #Niall fluff #Niall smut #Niall angst

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ahnsael · 6 years

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Last night was a little rough, but not as rough as the night before.

I mean, it WAS rough. It was just me and a bartender in the casino. So for the first 3½ hours, it was me trying to do my administrative stuff (required) while catching up on pulling empty glasses and full ashtrays from the floor (also required). After that it slowed down a bit.

But I still had to teach my bartender how to clean the machines that he’s responsible for cleaning, and the day shift manager was late for the second day in a row (fortunately he showed up at about :20 after 7am, not at 9:45 like yesterday -- he was scheduled both days at 7am). This is the guy who we’re ALL sick of picking up the slack for -- because he spends his days doing nothing. And then, when he gets us home late on top of it because he can’t drag his butt out of bed, it’s frustrating.

I also had to have him call the Sheriff’s Department as soon as he got there. Because I was ready to sign out, but stayed later to deal with a guest (whom we had not served a single drink) who passed out at the bar.

I tried to call him a cab. He refused. I told him that if money was a factor, he could give me the phone number of a friend or family member to call and pick him up. He again refused.

I had already been told by one of our regular early-morning people that he had been asking for money. In a casino, panhandling is a no-go. It’s instant removal.

Then he passed out at the bar.

I know I have my own alcohol-related incident with the local deputies. And I felt bad doing this, but...I had the morning manager call them. Our rule, as a company, is that we ask someone to leave once. If they refuse, we call the Sheriff’s office.

When I left, they were talking to him.

Since I had to stay late, my stepdad went to pick me up. He had said he was going to wait until 8:00am to come, but he came at 7:35. I clocked out at 7:30 (a half an hour late), but since he’d said he wouldn’t come unless he didn’t see me by 8am, I was gone when he got there.

And he saw the guy get arrested.

Again, I feel bad about it -- but I’ve dealt with this guy before, and know that he has two drunk modes: belligerent or crying. And I didn’t know what mood he would be in today.

My stepdad saw him get arrested after I had left.

Tonight it’s just me and a bartender again...and I have to do my month-end inventory in the bar. That usually takes me an hour or two. So I hope it’s slow for a Saturday night.

I’d put it off until the next night, which I could likely get away with, but...that night the bartender is off, and it’s just me and another manager. Plus it’s drop night (when the money gets emptied from the machines). And that’s a BIG operation.

So it’s gotta be done tonight.

I hope it’s a slow night. If not, I could be screwed.

But, hey, at least I’m not still on swing shift. It’s been falling apart lately (I won’t be so braggadocios to say it’s because I’m no longer on swing shift...I’ll just be glad I’m not dealing with the drama that’s going on).

Oh, and that person I had to suspend pending investigation (I think I mentioned them here?): they still have a job. They’re just back to their original department (where they were good before)...but also once again working under a department manager (the guy who has been late the past couple of days) with which she’s had major disagreements -- though in that case, I think the manager is probably the instigator, not her).

It’s interesting times at the casino. As always. But I sure hope I can get a good graveyard person or two in the near future. Otherwise graveyard is gonna be screwed.

#work things

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rylredrants · 4 years

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Early COVID Life (another from the vaults: 04/26/2020)

Excerpt from a personal history about 2020

March 15th was my last time in a restaurant as of April 26th. (ETA- as of November 15th, I’ve still not been to a restaurant in the US.)

The pandemic had been a conversation topic with both of the dates I’d been on the previous week. The screenings in some airports had begun in January and the first confirmed case in the US had been noted on January 21st. Back then it was still being called the “Wuhan Virus” because of its origins in the Wuhan province of China. Italy had gone on full lock-down back on February 23rd.

The ‘national emergency’ in the US was announced on March 13th- the same day as my first “first date” with a border patrol agent.

The panic buying, specifically toilet paper hoarding, began that week as well. My brunch date told me that he had hired someone to do some work for him that morning. He had offered $300 and the guy said he would take $250 and a pack of toilet paper.

Basketball was the first sport to be cancelled on March 11th.. the Utah Jazz had 2 positive cases. Baseball, hockey, soccer, and the Olympic Games followed. For me, it was learning that the WWE had shut down that made it feel real. Not because I’m an avid fan these days but because they were the first to hold a major event after 9-11 when other people were still afraid to gather in crowds for fear of more attacks.

Utah was hit with a series of earthquakes in the midst of it all with the biggest one on March 18th.Oh, and there were 2 meteors that came, in relative terms, closer to hitting the earth than any others in decades. Can we say, end of the world feeling much?

The first ‘stay at home’ order was in California on March 19th. Blue states were still scoffing at it as ‘liberal fake news’ in the wake of tweets like this from 45:

By March 23rd several other states issued similar orders.

Here in AZ it wasn’t official until March 31st.

On April 3rd CDC guidelines were released recommending cloth face coverings when in public in addition to the ‘social distance’ recommendation of staying 6’ or more from other people. An old friend in CA was making masks so I ordered 2 from her.

Monday, April 13th was the first trip into the grocery store since the pandemic began. My best friend picked me up at 6:45am and I gave her one of the two masks that arrived from California a couple days before. We pulled up to Walmart and saw a line of people outside waiting for the 7am opening. By this point, stores had begun limiting hours in order to properly sanitize things each night and some places started giving senior citizens an extra hour before general opening 1-2 times each week.

Our face masks were made of cotton on the inside and denim on the outside. I made the mistake of not taking my gum out of my mouth before putting mine on which only added to the difficulty breathing. On top of that, my glasses fogged up over and over again. It was awful.

The store itself didn’t seem too bad. The toilet paper aisle was about 10% stocked. The usual brands weren’t there and signs hung on empty shelves that said it was limited to one package per household. I got myself a pack of the Great Value brand, even though I had several rolls still at home. I also bought 2 two-packs of my dish gloves because they were another item that had become hard to come by.

My basket was filled with frozen tater tots, steak fries and jalapeno poppers... junk food that I normally wouldn’t keep in the house, along with 2 packs of my favorite cookies, tuna, shampoo (2 big bottles) and deodorant even though I wasn’t out of either, command strips for hanging the 2 puzzles I’d recently completed, Kleenex because they had them in stock and had been hard to come by, mini loaf pans because I was baking banana bread before it was trendy, and instant coffee because I wanted to try the whipped coffee thing I kept seeing online.

I spent $100 and got $40 in cash that I would later turn into quarters for laundry and water bottle refills.

It has felt like Groundhog’s Day… work, dinner, couch, bed, stare at the darkness, and eventually fall asleep and do it again.

I’ve had even more trouble than usual concentrating at work and instead find myself scrolling Facebook incessantly. Earlier this month, my department fired 3 people and transferred another out to her previous position which has made me that much more nervous about my job. Despite that, I’ve still struggled to get motivated to do the work I’ve just been assigned including a new course to create and an article talking about what my company is doing for our customers “during this time.”

I began watching the daily ‘Coronavirus Briefings’ from the White House as often as possible just because I’ve found that words really can’t capture just how awful the scene is. One day they showed a video that was all about the administration’s “terrific” response to the virus. Reporters described the video as a campaign video and when questioned about a missing chunk of time in it between the end of January when the Commander-in-Tweet said he had ‘bought time’ for the country and early March when they officially announced a national emergency 45 had his now-standard tantrum including, calling reporters “fake news” and attacking their credibility rather than giving any kind of answer.

Another day last week 45 started rambling on about possible cures including injecting UV light or disinfectants into patients. I immediately messaged the co-worker who has been posting about this kind of thing daily and told her that the next big episode would be about people injecting household disinfectants.

Within 24 hours Lysol, Clorox and other household cleaning companies released statements telling people NOT to consume or inject their products. This is the world we live in.

Also last week, the governor of Nevada broke CNN’s Anderson Cooper with her lack of reasoning about how and why Las Vegas should re-open. There have been protests in several states as people who have been unemployed for weeks with only a single $1200 check from the government to help are demanding the economy re-open now. These protests have included masked (white) men holding guns and people with signs such as the one that read “My body, my choice” with an image of a face mask. All the while, other states have used the pandemic as a way of further restricting abortion access calling them ‘non-emergency medical procedures.’

People have applied for unemployment en masse while 2 trillion dollars in federal funds, grants, and loans “designed to help small businesses” (The CARES Act) were snatched up almost immediately. Some funds were granted to large publicly traded companies including as Ruth’s Chris Steakhouse ($20M) and Potbellies’ ($10M). They are among a handful of these companies who are returning the money only after public outcry.

I’m scared.

Not of the virus necessarily, my county has just passed 30 cases which pales in comparison to a lot of other places, but I’m scared for how this is changing “normal” in terms of social interactions that would have typically lead to deeper bonds and eventually, hopefully, a new relationship for me.

A couple weeks ago, I loaned my sewing machine to a friend. She’s been notoriously anti-social and when I came by she invited me to hang out at a “social distance” for a bit. We ended up sitting on the concrete outside her front door about 5’ apart for about an hour just chatting. For her to feel the need for socializing is big. It’s on par with me having the urge to exercise (which hasn’t happened… yet).

I’m scared for my friend in Baltimore whose partner is a nurse in New York where the bodies have been piling up for weeks. He works for the Smithsonian and has been able to work from home for all but one day/week. Coping with the isolation for him has included turning meals into art that he posts along with the daily videos of his strongman feats and the occasional live shows with other performers who are struggling financially.

I’m scared for the New Jersey firefighter who told me about the increase in kitchen fires because people who never cooked are having to do so for the first time. He then told me about a friend that lost both her parents to COVID. She was unable to be with them in their final hours and their bodies were put into refrigerated trucks because there isn’t enough room in the morgues now.

If something happens to him, I’ll never know. He’s not on social media and we don’t have any friends in common who could tell me about it. He could just disappear one day. Or he could just appear. He’s talked about running away from his life for the last 5 years and I think this is really showing him that it’s time to make a change.

I’m scared for the friend in WA working 80+ hours a week between his two jobs. His health was shaky before his daughter’s murder in November 2018 and he lived in his car for months during the trial. He is finally working and has a roof over his head but is in contact with people daily who could potentially get him sick. Again. Because he was one of the people whose blood was being tested for antibodies, assuming he had already had COVID and survived.

I’m scared for my ex-husband who retired from the Army and moved to DC for his dream job right before the lock-downs started. The start date for his dream job was pushed back, and his last Army paycheck was getting closer and closer. Fortunately his resume is one that allowed him to start another job rather quickly and he just got an official start date at the dream job. But he is alone with the dogs, trying to rebuild himself and his life much in the way I am right now.

We had friends in the area from the 3 years we lived there, but the virus means that all of the parties he wanted to go to that I wasn’t comfortable with… those parties may never return. They don’t have the grocery pick up options I have here, and his health has been an issue of concern for a long time.

His girlfriend in the quad was a nurse who said that he had the ‘trifecta for a heart attack’ with diabetes, high blood pressure and high cholesterol. We are still legally married on paper so I have health insurance and am the primary beneficiary on his life insurance, but money can’t replace him.

We may be separated but he is my family… and the only family I’ve really got. And money wouldn’t make it any easier for me to have to re-arrange my life again and somehow go get the dogs if, Gods forbid, something were to happen to him.

It’s all a mess. It shouldn’t be such a big decision to go grocery shopping.

Seeing people in movies and TV just casually touching one another and hugging shouldn’t seem so foreign already… but it is and it does. I know that we will never got back to the way it was. Masks are going to be part of my wardrobe for the foreseeable future.

Just meeting a new person for coffee will feel riskier than unprotected sex, which makes dating a completely different experience… assuming I bite the bullet and reactivate my OkCupid account at all. And rather than calling my best friend and going out for lunch right now, I’m going to go stare at my stocked pantry with ‘nothing to eat’ and end up having leftover biscuits and gravy before putting on something resembling clothes, even if it’s just so I can take the trash out.

This is my life right now. This is the world we live in.

#covidー19 #lockdown #early days of the plague

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beaniegara · 7 years

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I was tagged by @demonsandthebois & @demonproofboi! thank you, beautiful people!! <3

Rules: answer these 85 statements about yourself, then tag 20 people.

Last

1. drink- water.

2. phone call- something work-related, I think? like, I answered the phone at work.

3. text message- a friend answering my “why are you online at 6″ message to her lol (it was too hot to sleep, she said.)

4. song you listened to- currently listening to summertime sadness by lana del rey (totally on a lana del rey high these days).

5. time you cried- I don’t.. remember? it must’ve been a few weeks ago, maybe a couple of months? but I did get teary-eyed watching some episodes of hannibal these days.

Ever

6. dated someone twice? nope.

7. kissed someone and regretted it? nope.

8. been cheated on? nope.

9. lost someone special? I mean, I lost my grandma when I was 4 and she was raising me? but I don’t really remember anything, my brain deleted everything from that time, so I’m gonna say no.

10. been depressed? clinically, 9 years ago. on and off since then.

11. gotten drunk and thrown up? nope.

Fave colours

12. orange.

13. lime green.

14. purple? pink? I can’t pick one kmgfkdjgfks

In the last year have you…

15. made new friends? yup!

16. fallen out of love? technically, yes.

17. laughed until you cried? many times.

18. found out someone was talking about you? not that I can remember?

19. met someone who changed you? not to sound like an ass but I think every person changes me in their own way!!

20. found out who your friends are? I kinda already knew. didn’t change much.

21. kissed someone on your facebook friends list? nope.

General

22. how many of your facebook friends do you know irl? probably not even 1/3, I keep unfriending people from school kkkkdjskgfdjk and I’ve been talking to people online for the better part of my life so there’s a lot of internet friends there!

23. do you have any pets? nope :(

24. do you want to change your name? I wish I could take out one of my last names (I have two). hate that part of the family.

25. what did you do for your last birthday? uhh, spent some time with my mom and aunt? I don’t really celebrate my birthdays but they do so ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

26. what time did you wake up today? 6-ish, almost 7am.

27. what were you doing at midnight last night? I think I went to bed around that time, after lots of reblogging gifs of the bfu episode kjfdsfdkkg

28. what is something you can’t wait for? can’t wait until I’m well off and don’t need to study/work doing stuff that makes me so uncomfortable (ie, dealing with people).

30. what are you listening to right now? 1cm pride (live) - mamamoo.

31. have you ever talked to a person named tom? uhm, don’t think so. we don’t get those here.

32. something that’s getting on your nerves – politics. can’t stand the state of things right now.

33. most visited website- tumblr but twitter is a close second.

34. hair color- brown, auburn-ish.

35. long or short hair- mine is currently short but that’s ‘cause I don’t have the patience for long hair, because I’d rather have mine long.

36. do you have a crush on someone? starting to. big time. (you know who you are!!)

37. what do you like about yourself? almost nothing but uhhh... I guess I could say I try to be as polite/kind as possible to people? D:

38. want any piercings? yesss, I miss my industrial piercing :c

39. blood type- O+. I think. it may be negative.

40. nicknames- naluh! most of my friends call me that. but two of them call me kagami, forgot to mention it last time I did this :D

41. relationship status- single.

42. zodiac- gemini! the best sign!!

43. pronouns- she/her.

44. fave tv shows- sherlock (quickly dropping, but for now..), dollhouse, the lizzie borden chronicles, the librarians. <3

45. tattoos- none, but I already have two in mind. I just need to hate my body a bit less lol

46. right or left handed- right.

47. ever had surgery? nope.

49. sport- I used to dance, and I still want to go back to it, but for now... none. I do like watching football (US soccer) though!

50, vacation- wish I could go overseas, maybe visit the UK? scotland, ireland, england?

51. trainers- I have (1) and that’s more than enough.

More general

52. eating- just had bread and cream cheese since we skipped lunch today lol

53. drinking- water.

54. i’m about to watch- trying to decide if I should catch up on a show or continue watching thelma.

55. waiting for- inspiration/muse. writer’s block sucks ass.

56. want- self-esteem and/or money, I’m not picky.

57. get married- maybe? I mean, it’d be kinda nice, but I’m not fixated on it. if my s.o. wants it too, then sure!

58. career- I’m a translator but I’m having my midlife crisis at 23 and I’d love to be something else like idk, a film director? a screenwriter? dana scully? can I be dana scully please.

Which is better

59. hugs or kisses- hugs.

60. lips or eyes- hmmm, eyes? maybe? [both_is_good.gif]

62. younger or older- you mean which one I prefer? makes no difference to me, I think? [both is good intensifies]

63. nice arms or stomach- uhhh, idk kkfdkdgjdkk stomach I guess?

64. hookup or relationship- relationship. but hey, whatever rocks your boat.

65. troublemaker or hesitant- these are so widly different, I can’t pick one ???

Have you ever

66. kissed a stranger- nope.

67. drank hard liquor- nope.

68. lost glasses- nope. I mean, I may have lost sunglasses? but it was one time, iirc.

69. turned someone down- yep. but I mean, drunk people at parties doesn’t count, I don’t think?

70. sex on first date- nope.

71. broken someones heart- I think I did, sort of.. I was in such a bad place that I walked away but she may have been way more into me than I thought at first.

72. had your heart broken- lil bit but nothing I couldn’t survive after months of moping around.

73. been arrested- nope.

74. cried when someone died- yup.

75. fallen for a friend- I mean, who hasn’t lol I had the biggest and gayest crush on a friend from school and to this day I haven’t told her (but I think she knew, I was pretty obvious - and dumb).

Do you believe in

76. yourself- nope. working on it, tho!

77. miracles- kinda? I mean, I do believe unexplainable things can happen, I just don’t think it’s thanks to a higher power.

78. love at first sight- nope. attraction at first sight, however... I’ve been there.

79. santa claus- kfsdgkfnfh lol no.

80. kiss on a first date- if both are willing, why not?

81. angels- nope. but I like the idea.

other

82. best friends name- jenny! bruna and dani would probably skin me alive if I didn’t mention them so yeah, them too.

83. eye colour- light brown/honey.

84. fave movie- chicago!!!!!!!!!!! and the babadook, and captain fantastic, and le fabuleux destin d’amélie poulain.

85. fave actor- I’m going with gillian anderson these days but I really like viggo mortensen, christina ricci, and amanda abbington too! <3

tagging @i-am-ghost-proof-baby, @thatmademadej, @ghoulboi, @heytheredemyons, @yaboibergara, and whoever wants to do it! (it’s fine if you don’t, tho.)

#txt #i love answering these #thanks for tagging me guise!!!

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littledonkeyburrito · 7 years

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I will wear jeans in hell

1. Do you think it’s rude when people speak slowly when talking to people that don’t know English well? No, it’s helpful, especially if the english speaking person has an accent the other person isn’t used to. I wish people would speak slower to me in spanish. The worst is when you ask them to speak slower and they repeat the exact same thing at the exact same speed. Speak slower but don’t be condescending.

2. What’s irritating you right now? My heater isn’t warm enough and my feet are cold.

3. Do you feel comfortable with answering personal questions? Depends on the question. I like telling stories about myself and my life but I don’t enjoy getting into emotions and stuff.

4. Would you ever sleep with someone to get a job? Depends on the job and who I have to sleep with.

5. Would you ever travel by yourself? I have, several times. And I will again at the end of the month when I go to Paris, although I’m hoping to be able to meet up with someone to go to Disneyland with.

6. When was the last time you consumed alcohol? I had a beer yesterday I think. Or maybe it was the day before, idk

7. When will you see your best friend next? January at the absolute earliest

8. Have you ever broken a bone? No

9. Would you introduce the last person you kissed to your parents? Sure, but not as my partner

10. Are any of your friends virgins? Yeah

11. Was your last kiss, standing up, sitting down, or laying down? Standing up

12. If you could seek revenge on someone would you? There was one person I was pretty cranky at for a while but I don’t care anymore.

13. What plans do you have for tomorrow? No plans. I would go grocery shopping but tomorrow is sunday so everything will be closed.

14. What time did you wake up? I woke up to construction sounds and got annoyed because it was way too early for that kind of noise but I looked at my phone and it was 11:30. Still went back to sleep for another hour though.

15. Have you ever found a bug in your food? I have this one memory as a kid I had had a sleepover at my friend’s house and in the morning we were having breakfast in his dad’s cafe next door and I got pancakes and there was a wasp in it. I didn’t actually care, I ate around it.

16. What is most of your junk email from? Currently mostly from Dick Smith and a job search website

17. Do you have any upcoming appointments? what for? Flight at the end of the month. Does that count?

18. Would you be content to turn out just like your mom? Very much so, my mother is an amazing woman.

19. What is one skill you would like to have, but don’t want to work towards? Probably something super boring like knowing how to be an accountant or something. It would be useful to have for jobs and stuff but so boring to actually achieve.

20. Do you have letters of the alphabet that you like? Which ones? Not in english, but in spanish I like ñ because I like drawing the squiggle and also x because it’s pronounced differently depending which country you’re in.

21. If you could pick one topic for everyone in your country to learn more about, what would you pick? For australia, human rights and ethics so that they can start treating aboriginals and asylum seekers with a bit more respect.

22. How do you feel about people your age having children? I just don’t understand why

23. When was the last time you were at a park? Probably sometime when I was in panama. I don’t think I’ve been in a park since I’ve been back

24. Could you fall asleep right now if you tried? Wish I could, but no. Otherwise I’d be in bed.

25. Do you feel like going to funerals helps you in the grieving process? I have never been to one so I don’t know.

26. Who was the last person you heard snore? Panama guy

27. Do you think it’s possible for an 18 year old to be ready to get married? I think you should experience the real world before you commit to something like marriage. But hey, to each their own.

28. Have you ever had a dream about someone on tv, or a show? What happened? Yeah many times but the dream that comes to mind I had while I was in Colombia. I dreamt that I was on a yacht making out with Henry Cavill.

29. Have you ever taken a nap in an unusual or especially uncomfortable place, i.e. on top of your keyboard, under a table, etc? When I was at uni I would curl up in the bay window at the end of the aisle in the library and nap in the sunbeam. I have slept in trains and buses on terribly bumpy roads. I can even sleep on planes now. I’ve definitely napped on some floors, maybe head down on some tables too. Look, I just really like sleep okay and I can always do with a nap when I travel.

30. What was the scent of the last lotion you used? It was just one from the grocery store. It has argon oil in it which I assume gives it a certain smell.

31. Do you have any strange co-workers? I don’t currently work but there were a few weirdos at my old job.

32. When was the last time you had a headache? No idea, I don’t get headaches very often and if I do they’re minor so I wouldn’t remember anyway

33. Is anyone jealous of you? I hope so. Half the reason I use instagram is to make everyone I went to highschool with jealous of my current life.

34. What was the last thing you had to mentally prepare yourself for? that would have been for quitting that telemarketing job.

35. What’s something you’re currently dreading? Not finding a job and having to organise a move back to australia

36. If your living space could smell like anything in the world, but it would ALWAYS smell that way and you could never change it, what would you choose for it to smell like? I don’t know. Maybe citrus, or baked goods?

37. What’s something you wish were taught when you were in school? Actual life skills.

38. How would you describe your sense of humor? Varied. But mostly I like goofy, wholesome humour where nobody is the butt of the joke and nobody gets hurt.

39. Do you ever notice other people’s body language when you’re speaking with them? Sometimes

40. Is there a meal you simply cannot eat if it’s missing something (a salad without croutons, a sandwich without cheese, etc)? No..? I’ll eat just about anything

41. Is there something that other people see/hear and automatically think of you? You would have to ask those other people

42. Do you ever just feel like you need to be alone for some reason? Yeah, I often prefer to be alone when I’m at home. It stresses me out to have someone in my space for too long.

43. If you got paid $5 per survey you made, could you make a living just doing that? I probably could but it would old really quick

44. When was the last time you wore something totally inappropriate for the weather? Does this happen often? Every day in central america because I always wear jeans.

45. The last time you went out of the house, where were you going and what did you do? I was going to the corner store probably.

46. Do you have a friend that has a tendency to “dump” you whenever they get a new partner? One friend did that for a while. He would stop hanging out with me whenever he started dating someone. But then he got a long term boyfriend and got better about managing his time between his partner and his friends.

47. Would you ever want to go on vacation with just one of your parents? I have travelled a few times with my mum. I get a little frustrated travelling with dad though.

48. In summer, do you prefer to wear dresses or shorts and tops? Or maybe something else? I will wear jeans in hell

49. Have you ever had an unusual type of milk (eg. oat, rice, almond)? I just want milk that tastes like real milk

50. How many cans of soda would you say you drink in a week, if any at all? When I lived in australia I had a can of pepsi max a day bc it was my caffeine hit for work. Now I buy a 2L bottle of coke zero maybe once a week. Probably works out about the same tbh

51. When you’re at home, do you spend most of your time in your room? I live alone so I get the whole place to myself. I only spend time in my bed/bedroom for sleep

52. If you like to sleep in late, have your parents ever told you off for doing so? Ugh my dad was so annoying about that. I was a nigthshift worker and yet he still found it weird that I preferred to sleep in to any time after 10am. Like, dude, I only go to bed at 7am. There’s no way in hell I’m getting up any time before 2pm. Now my brother works those hours and I’m sure he gets the same crap from dad.

53. How much stuff do you take with you when you go on vacation for a week? If it’s warm weather, I can pack for a week in my backpack and won’t have to do laundry. Cooler weather is harder because I have to pack layers and a jacket. But I still plan on only taking my backpack for my 4 night stay in Paris.

54. How old is your oldest living relative? My grandad is 88 in a couple of months

55. Could you willingly live on a vegan diet? I wouldn’t want to.

56. If you’re a fan of Harry Potter, are you sad that there’ll never be another book or movie? There will definitely be remakes in my lifetime.

57. If you’re an only child, do you wish you had siblings? If you have siblings, do you get along? My brother and I don’t get along. We’re better now that we’re both adults but we’re definitely not friends.

58. How long have you had the shirt you’re wearing? About a year and a half. I actually bought it to take on my trip to india. I wanted loose long sleeve shirts to keep the sun off me but not overheat me too much.

59. Are you a slut? Idk, maybe sometimes.

60. What happened last time you got drunk? I drank at home and watched Star Wars. That was it.

61. What do you want right this second? Kinda need to go to the bathroom tbh

62. How are you sitting? Sprawled out on my sofa

63. Did you sleep alone last night? Yeah

64. Do you plan on sleeping in tomorrow? Yeah

65. What were you doing last night at midnight? I think I was playing the sims

66. Will you have sexual intercourse within the next two weeks? Probably not

67. How many cigarettes have you smoked today? None, I don’t smoke

68. Do you like potato chips? Yeah

69. Do you think you are pregnant? I definitely am not

70. You’ve had sex within these past 10 days haven’t you? Ha! I wish

71. Do you have a good relationship with your parents? I do

72. What were you doing this morning at 5:30? Sleeping

73. What were you doing 2 hours ago? Watching netflix

74. Do you like the ocean? Yes

75. How many windows are open on your computer? One window, 5 tabs.

76. Do you know anyone named Matt? I have 2 Matts on facebook.

77. When was the last time you talked to a sibling? Was emailing with my brother a few days ago

78. How late did you stay up last night and why? Went to bed around 1am. Didn’t get to sleep until ~5

79. Would you rather go to Greece or Hawaii? Ooh tough choice. I think maybe greece but I’d also like to visit hawaii at some point. Although tbh neither of them are super high on my list. Top trip I want to do is all of latin america from Mexico to Argentina. Also want to hit up Madagascar.

80. What color is your underwear right now? Navy blue

81. How is the weather right now? Cold.

82. Are you too shy to ask someone out? Yes but there’s nobody I want to ask out

83. Have you ever fired a gun? No.

84. Do you like to travel by plane as opposed to car? Depends where/how far I’m going and how much it’ll cost.

85. Do you like to cuddle? Sometimes

86. Do you need to get anything from the store right now? If so, what, and why? I need groceries. But it’ll have to wait until monday.

87. Have you ever had to take a stool or urine test? Why did you have to do this? Urine test a few times. 1) drug tests for work, 2) while I was doing a medical trial a few years ago, 4) routine std check 3) got a UTI :/

88. Is there a food you eat that others find weird or gross? Some people think vegemite is weird and gross but those people are wrong. Also some people don’t understand how I can eat so much chilli.

89. The last video game you played - did you play alone or with someone else? I played Mass Effect 2 earlier today, alone.

90. . If there is a disc in your computer, what disc is it? Sims 3 Supernatural.

91. Do you shut down your computer every time after you use it, or do you leave it on? I just put it to sleep.

92. Do people ever drive down your street really slowly? Does it creep you out? Anyone who decides to drive down my street has already made a mistake. There is no possible way to do it quickly. It takes time and a person guiding you so that you don’t scrape down the sides of your car. This is a pedestrian street.

93. Do you live in a very diverse community? Yes, this is a pretty multicultural city

94. Did you waste your first kiss, or did it mean something to you? Do you think that people should save their first kisses just like their virginity? It meant something to me at the time, I don’t care now. People can do whatever they want with regards to their first kiss or their virginity.

95. Do you know anyone who has had salmonella? Did you ever have it yourself? What about e coli? One of my work friends got salmonella and it hit while she was on shift. I was at the other end of the site and could hear the conversation between her and the then-supervisor over the radio. It actually messed up her immune system and she kept getting colds and flu more often for about a year after that.

96. How many weeks of summer do you have left before you have to go back to school? 1) I don’t go to school, 2) It’s not summer

97. Who was the last member of your extended family to visit? Where were they visiting from? My Dad visited me back in May. That was the last family member I saw.

98. When was the last time you went on a train? Where were you going? Whenever I last went grocery shopping I’d have gotten the metro there and back. Last long distance train would have been to Castellón to get my yellow fever shot before I went to Colombia.

#Other potential titles:#ñ because I like drawing the squiggle #on a yacht making out with Henry Cavill #Some people think vegemite is weird and gross but those people are wrong

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soysaucevictim · 5 years

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The interview came and went. Won’t know how I did until a later date.

July 8

I got up a bit after 10AM, today.

Decided to spend some time messing with my Twitter and fandom blogs for awhile, before getting in all my exercise for the day.

First, today’s DD. 2 minutes side-to-side chops with EC. A bit antsy today, but this helped somewhat. I counted 138 reps by the end of the 2', very fun and doable! :D

Second, Day 3 of the T10C. 10′ non-stop punching. I swapped stances every minute (except one time where it was 2′ for both sides.) I also counted 1101 punches thrown, although I may’ve made a counting error at some point... I think this sounds right. (Noting a bit over 100/min.)

Last, Day 3 of CCC. 40 torso twists. This was basically a very similar action to the DD! Pffft. But it was still breezy work! :,D

(Ooof, perhaps it’s all the squats or yesterday’s DD... but my quads have been quite sore today!)

I then took a shower and tried to assemble some notes for that job interview... despite constantly distracting myself out of anxiety. orz

July 9

I got up a bit before 8AM.

One of the first things I did while at the facility was ask other people about their local dentist experiences. I think I may have a solid pick to revise what happened to my molar... so I’m happy I have a bit of direction there.

Then, went to Seeking Safety Group, which went well enough.

I spent the rest of my time there doing a second pass over that stream footage and doing the DD. 30 leg raises with EC. Did this one while I was out at the facility, again. Manageable but certainly a bit tough. :P

One of the first things I had to do once back home was make the family dinner, even though on the inside I was tired and didn’t want to. It was stuffed green bell peppers and tasty, though. Bro also doing the dishes from yesterday’s dinner was nice, too.

Spent a few hours playing games and watching YouTube before finishing up my exercise.

First, Day 4 of the T10C. 7 sets of 40″ squats + 20″ shoulder taps, with a finisher of 3′ of squats. I found this very manageable... had to get going later than intended because I was still digesting my food. :P

Last, Day 4 of the CCC. 70 side leg raises, done in one go. This time I opted to do 50%/50%, which was more challenging than alternating sides. Might try to do the rest of this commitment like that or continue mixing things up. We’ll see. :Ic

July 10

I got up around 9:30AM. Spent much of my day leading up to the interview prepping some notes and getting ready... and getting aggravated with my browser hanging. :/

Got to my interview. Was nervy for awhile out of my own concerns abt my transportation arrangements (Though now I have a few potential plans to get to the facility) & feeling like I didn't prepare myself enough. But I don't think I did COMPLETELY abysmally.

When I got home and got some food in me, I spent some time drafting my thank you notes/letters. Despite still being nervous and attempting to process what occurred. I hope I can get them finished and delivered before tomorrow’s end, once I’ve smoothed some details out.

Remains to be seen whether I got the position or not (going to take a couple weeks or so).

I then worked on some HW my psychiatrist handed me to do, which on some level I didn’t really want to do, because my brain was getting kinda hazy at that point. But did something to that end. (Kinda frustrated with myself for thoughtlessly scheduling my next appointment tomorrow at an awkward time for the county transport... nnng.)

Getting in my exercise helped a bit though.

First, today’s DD. 1′ reverse plank with EC. Took some willpower to get through, but steady breathing is key. Ooof. :P

Second, Day 5 of the T10C. 10 sets of 2x20″ high knees + 20″ climbers, with 1′ march steps as a warmup. Because i didn’t feel like negotiating a HIIT timer situation - I went for 30 climbers for each set. As I went, it was a couple seconds short - but close enough in my book. It was NOT a cakewalk. Had to pace a bit to get the HR down.

Last, Day 5 of the CCC. 40 torso twists. I do appreciate this was the easier of the two days after T10C’s stuff.

July 11

Been up since a bit before 7AM, needed to be up earlier for an appointment.

The psych appointment went well enough. Did ask the clinic about the para-transit application. I won’t submit it unless I get this job - because I don’t have the income to support getting [standard OR para] bus tickets, etc..

Then I did some socializing, played some Risk with others, got to WRAP Group, and did the DD. Also asked about something in regard to the interview - when I get the info I need, I’ll finish up and send those thank you letters.

The DD was 3′ balance stand with EC. Did this one while I was out at the facility today. Was not up for doing the EEC though, takes a lot of emotional energy I do not have, today. But I did EC twice, 3'/3' in one go. That was fun and meditative. :D

After all that, got home and mostly tried to get situated. But I did do the rest of my exercise.

First, Day 6 of the T10C. 5 sets of 1′ sit-ups + 1′ flutter kicks. Had to do the sit-ups a bit more slowly and took several pauses for recovery during the flutter kicks. I also did tht latter mostly wwith my head down... too tired to deal with neck strain.

Last, Day 6 of the CCC. 80 side leg raises, in one go. I think I’ll do all of this challenge 50%/50%. Especially given that the other one’s instance of them are side-to-sides.

I’m... was not happy about having to make dinner today. Or doing the dishes. But I had to, even though I running on fumes. orz

July 12

I got up at around 10 AM, today.

Spent a few hours on the usual, before getting in my DD, today. 200 squat hold punches with EC. Oof, that took some willpower to get through. But I'm happy I managed it, trying to throw faster punches helps. :D

I also wrote my thank you letters, did dishes, and made the family dinner.

Bleh... let’s just say I found myself in a spiral about the letter, but a friend helped me deal with the anxiety spike. I’m grateful for the reality check.

July 13

I got up after noon, today.

I spent much of my time on the usual. But I did get in some exercise.

First, today’s DD. 40 side-to-side lunges with EC. This was pretty challenging, especially in the last 10 or so reps. But this was still pretty manageable. :P

Second, Day 7 of the T10C. 10′ non-stop side-to-side leg raises. Ooof. That was tough. I counted 524 reps in the duration, lifting my left leg got to be harder than the right.

Last, Day 7 of the CCC. 40 torso twists in one go.

One of the last things I did today was prepping for tomorrow’s dinner. Intend to make some vegetarian chili.

July 14

I got up before 10AM, today.

Similar thing as yesterday. Did a bit more meal prep and some exercise, though.

First, today’s DD. 60 knee-to-elbow twists with EC. This was pretty fun, first few was a bit awkward because I wasn't super focused. But quickly got in the rhythm and enjoyed myself. :D

I guess making that vegetarian chili today and opting to do some mass repairs on the gloves I use... took too much of my time/energy to get around to doing my main exercise stuff. But hey, knocked out a fairly big To Do, there. :P

July 15

I got up around 10AM, today.

I don’t have much to show for myself other than exercise. And eating FAR too many damn cookies today. orz

First, today’s DD. 2′ O-pose with EC. A personal favorite, because of the ab work and the balance focus. But still not a cakewalk, didn't take a whole lot of time before I got to trembling! Steady breathing is key. :D

Second, Day 8 of the T10C. 7 sets of 30″ jumping Jacks + 30″ plank jacks; with a finisher of 3′ jumping jacks. Had to go at a deliberately slow pace with the jumping jacks to get through this, but I managed. My calves really felt it. :,D

Last, Day 8 of the CCC. 90 side leg raises. 45/45 in one go. That got mildly tough shortly after all the jacks.

With that, I should get to bed in a bit, now.

Okay... I really need to hit publish... this post is getting too damn long.

#adventures with fitness #long post... woops

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evangelene · 7 years

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92 statements tag

I was tagged by the ever lovely @ebullientbun !! Thank you sweetie for thinkin of me!! <3 <3

RULES: you must answer these 92 statements and tag 20 people

Me: gonna answer them and break dem fuckin rules cos I don’t know 20 people who’d I think would be comfortable wit dis

THE LAST: 1. drink: Archer farms sparkling water that I have consistently knocked over six times in the last ten minutes. 2. phone call: My dad asking if I wanted cheese on my subway sandwich 3. text message: “show me the bling damnit!” to my friend who’s boyfriend finally fuckin proposed. 4. song you listened to: Soldier by Fleurie 5. time you cried: Literally yesterday, I had a weird pmsing breakdown at work in the bathroom for whatever idiotic reason. Weeeeee~

HAVE YOU EVER: 6. dated someone twice: Since I’ve only ever dated one person and I am still dating them....no. 7. kissed someone and regretted it: that one time I kissed a sunfish I caught just so I could chase my partner around and shout “WHY WON’T YOU KISS ME?!” as he runs screaming from me. (he hates fish) 8. been cheated on: Don’t think so? No. 9. lost someone special: Yes. 10. been depressed: Chronically. 11. gotten drunk and thrown up: Never been drunk and never want to be drunk--so no.

LIST 3 FAVORITE COLORS: 12-14. - dark purple, dark teal, and like a salmony pinkie color. IN THE LAST YEAR HAVE YOU: 15. made new friends: Duh. 16. fallen out of love: Nah, once I love something I generally continue to love it for the rest of my life. Unless you’re a backstabbing bitch of a friend, then yes I will fall out of friendship love with you. 17. laughed until you cried: Yes, we were in the car and my dad was screaming Naf Naf in about seventy different voices for whatever reason. 18. found out someone was talking about you: Positively usually, yes. But I’m also oblivious AF. 19. met someone who changed you: I like to think that every person I meet changes me in some way. Some for the better, others just make me hate a certain breed of old person more. 20. found out who your friends are: Pfahhaha, oh hell yes. 21. kissed someone on your Facebook list: Yea, and I’m labeled as “in a relationship” with him.

GENERAL: 22. how many of your Facebook friends do you know in real life: IDK like I used to know some of them--maybe like 90% I have a bad habbit of accepting everyone who sends me a friend request because I can’t remember anyone for shit. Turns out at least ten of my friends I have no fucking clue who they are but I hope they like the shit nothing I post. 23. do you have any pets: A rabbit, two gerbils, three golfish, four bettas and a whole fuckin forest of plants. 24. do you want to change your name: Nah, I’d forget to respond to anything else. 25. what did you do for your last birthday: Sat alone on my computer at my partner’s house hoping anyone on tumblr or facebook or just in general would remember my birthday. Surprise, not really. And then we went out to eat and I got ravioli and pet dogs and got happy. 26. what time did you wake up: 3am, 4am, 6am, 7am, 8am and then finally 9am. It’s rare that I sleep through the night entirely. 27. what were you doing at midnight last night: passed out having a dream that I couldn’t breathe--turns out I couldn’t because I was fucking accidentally suffocating myself in my bed of pillows. 28. name something you can’t wait for: moving out of this damn house and not telling my mother where I’m going. 29. when was the last time you saw your mom: yesterday but I hope that soon it will be never again. 30. what is one thing you wish you could change in your life: my flabby fatness but my meds are making it nearly impossible for me to lose it currently. 31. what are you listening to right now: The pleasant background noise of a horrible mother on Say Yes to the Dress. 32. have you ever talked to a person named Tom: Yeah, he’s my boss and I always feel like I’m incredibly nervous talking to him because like yo--what if he fires me for yawning? 33. something that is getting on your nerves: my mother but that’s nothing new. 34. most visited website: Youtube 38. hair color: auburn/red 39. long or short hair: long AF 40. do you have a crush on someone: yes, my partner--though he’s aware that my heart belongs to every single animal I see before it belongs to him. 41. what do you like about yourself: I’m secretly a badass but no one believes me because apparently I come off innocent and incapable of protecting myself. 42. piercings: 11 ear piercings. 43. blood type: A positive I think? Idk, the red cross vampires keep calling for more of it. 44. nickname: Sam? Hey you? Sami? 45. relationship status: in one? 46. zodiac: Gemini 47. pronouns: She/Her 48. favorite tv show: Wynonna Earp 49. tattoos: Two and counting. 50. right or left handed: Leftie in writing but ambidextrous in everything else 51. surgery: Yeah that one time they though I had cancer and operated on my mouth. Also wisdom tooth surgery in which I sobbed because I thought that they took my lips from me. 52. piercing: I want an industrial bar real bad. 53. sport: fencing, sometimes walk/run if my asthma allows for it. 55. vacation: Not till august but I’m hoping that my partner will make good on his promise to take me to Disneyworld. 56. pair of trainers: ???the fuck this mean????

MORE GENERAL 57. eating: I had a piece of cake. It was delicious 58. drinking: that same sparkling water I keep knocking over 59. i’m about to: write, clean, or nap. I haven’t decided yet. 61. waiting for: My anxiety and depression to magically be cured. 62. want: to just sleep forever. 63. get married: I want to literally just so I can wear the dress. I don’t give a fuck otherwise but damnit I want an excuse to doll myself up to the high heavens. 64. career: I’d like to be an art teacher but if that doesn’t pan out then I’ll just become a professional dog hugger.

WHICH IS BETTER 65. hugs or kisses: Hugs, but I like kisses too. 66. lips or eyes: Eyeballs, but I have a hard time making eyecontact in person so probably actually lips. 67. shorter or taller: It doesn’t matter? Like rude? I like em in all shapes in sizes. 68. older or younger: Older, but not like grandparent aged. 70. nice arms or nice stomach: I don’t give a fuck. Where’s the option for personality? 71. sensitive or loud: Sensitive because I’m shy and if the person is too loud or insensitive then I feel like I would start crying because yo like being in the spotlight gives me hardcore anxiety. 72. hook up or relationship: Relationship. 73. troublemaker or hesitant: Hesitant; I’m not about to fuckin babysit who I’m dating.

HAVE YOU EVER: 74. kissed a stranger: No 75. drank hard liquor: Yes, and then I punched my dad’s sunburn because he tricked me. 76. lost glasses/contact lenses: All the time. 77. turned someone down: Yes,, but the best way to turn people down is to show them pictures of Kim Seokjin. 78. sex on the first date: Hell nah boi. Unless you’re female, then I’d be down for it. 79. broken someone’s heart: Probably? By accident? 80. had your heart broken: Hell yes. 81. been arrested: Fuck no, I haven’t even been pulled over. 82. cried when someone died: Um, duh? 83. fallen for a friend: No?

DO YOU BELIEVE IN: 84. yourself: Maybe like 10%. Okay, I have an irrational fear of mall railings because I don’t trust myself to not trip and accidentally fall over it. 85. miracles: Sure, some bullshit miracles tho? Nah. 86. love at first sight: I believe that is called attraction. For me, love comes with knowing a person not just being like--oh they cute I bet they have a great personality too. 87. santa claus: Nah, I deadass watched my mom write Santa on one of my presents as a child. 88. kiss on the first date: Sure? IDK, my partner kissed me before we even had our first date because motherfucker was antsy. hahah. 89. angels: Yesh.

OTHER: 90. current best friend’s name: I have so many of them--but like Kylee, Maria, Ashleen, Serena, Laura...... 91. eye color: Hazel AF. 92. favorite movie: Bitch I have so many. Split, terminator, Get Out, the purge movies, Brave, Moana, etc.

Tagging:

@g-d0818 @daegu-dreamin @seokjinaf @arisuna @anyoneelsethatwantstodothis

Also, feel free to not do it if I tagged ya. I’m just spacey and forgetful!

#tagged #dis is me

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lauren-nabors · 7 years

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it’s been a long time, tumblr. how’s it going everyone?

in the spirit of transparency and honesty, (and because really, if you can’t be honest on your own blog that you’re pretty sure no one reads anymore anyway in your own private corner of the internet, then where can you be honest?) this spring has sucked. like a lot. every couple of weeks I think, surely life can’t get any harder, but then it does and i’m always left reeling a little with anger and frustration and exhaustion. but also it has started to make me think that this is just the new normal. comparing life to new york city three years ago doesn’t work anymore. so anyway, here i am in the mid-west (missouri, misery) just trying to take it one day at a time, often wondering why I’m here and what does God have up his sleeve that’s taking us down this frustrating road in the first place?

anyway! other than that, we’ve had some visitors come to stay with us, which was fantastic and such a breath of fresh air to have our nyc friends here. two of the visits were plagued with a bit of hardship, which i’ll share below.

sarah jo & peterson were our first visitors, back in mid-april. they came during the middle of the week as they did a road-trip all the way from nyc and back. if i didn’t hate being in the car so much i would totally want to recreate their roadtrip adventure! we were pretty crazy at the restaurant those days, with big catering orders and wholesale deliveries, but we still managed to squeeze in some fun things. we grilled out, got in the hot tub, made margaritas, took them to Bass Pro and Sam’s Club (ha!) and got Pineapple Whip AND Andy’s Frozen Custard in the same day. i feel like we got to know Peterson really well this visit and they are just so funny and easy to be with, it was great!

a week and a half later, our dear friends Alice and Kyle flew in. they used to live in our old neighborhood in harlem but have recently moved to Connecticut, though they’re both still commuting into the city for work. unfortunately heavy rains and storms delayed their flight and they missed their connection in Chicago. they were lucky to get re-booked on another airline and made it in the same night, just much later than expected. the next day they came to the mill and we got to show them around and have breakfast and lunch there with them. that afternoon we visited Bass Pro (truly, this is the only place we have to take people) and that night we hung out at Brew Co. the next morning I woke up with the worst back-ache I have ever, ever experienced. it had been bothering me off and on all that week and i just kept thinking it would go away but when i bent down to feed our cats that morning something just spasm’ed (sp?) throughout my whole body and i fell over and couldn’t get back up. i yelled at clif and he had to jump out of bed and carry me back to the couch. it was the most excruciating pain i have ever felt in my life, no joke. i was probably at a 9 or 10 on the pain scale throughout the day. i could not walk and could barely put any weight on it. of course, Alice and Kyle were here which made me feel even worse because I didn’t think I could muster up the strength to walk or even get out of the house. they were so sweet and patient and offered help and advice. clif and kyle got out to get lunch and icy hot and pain killers and all that good stuff while alice and i just sat in the living room and talked pretty much all afternoon. later that day we grilled out and they set me up on the patio with a chair so i could be part of the group. i kept thinking i had slipped a disc or something more serious but was relieved to find out i didn’t have any of the symptoms of a slipped or torn disc. Alice and Kyle left early the next morning and, as much as i hated that i was pretty much out of commission their entire last day here, we got to spend a ton of time just chatting and catching up and that’s what their visit was all about anyway. they are such dear friends to us and we were also so thrilled to find out at the beginning of their visit that they’re pregnant!

the next day my back felt a lot better but i still had this plaguing pain in my lower left side of my back. our friend Shelby who is a family practitioner suggested some acupuncture (Alice also recommended it when she was here and said she’d had great results) and some light stretching. I made an appointment for acupuncture the next day and I am delighted to report that after two sessions my back felt 100% better. I don’t know that I would go all the time, but I can definitely get on board with some of the benefits of it. I felt significantly less stressed (this helped a lot for what was to come the following weekend) and even noticed my cramps were almost non-existent during my next period, as my acupuncturist mentioned that was a possible added benefit from the treatments.

the previous week our friend Adrian (clif’s first roommate in NYC and the person responsible for introducing me to Clif) emailed to say he had a client meeting for work in Jefferson City, MO and would like to come a few days early and stay with us before his meetings. of course we were like “YES! COME ON!” he came the following weekend after alice and kyle were here, resulting in three visits back to back to back. Adrian arrived Saturday afternoon amidst torrential downpours and lightening storms. how his flight actually landed I am amazed! it had been raining nonstop all week and my mom sent me a text saying that the local news station was reporting on all the flooding around town, some in our neighborhood. we stayed for dinner at the restaurant with Adrian and then headed home. we checked our basement immediately and everything was fine, so we settled into the living room with some drinks and began visiting with Adrian. it had been almost two years since we’d last seen him! about 45 minutes later our cat FDR wandered into Clif’s lap and Clif noticed his paws were wet. we bolted back down to the basement and sure enough, water was pouring in from every crack and crevice imaginable. the guys took off for Home Depot to try and find a sump pump (every place in town was sold out) and eventually came back home with a shop vac, which helped out a little but couldn’t keep up with the rapid rate the water was coming in. we went to bed feeling extremely on-edge and worried, but knowing the reality was that there was nothing we could do about it. we woke at 3:30am and our hearts broke when we saw 8″ of standing water in our basement. our basement was partially finished with a wood-laminate flooring throughout. we had a lot of storage stuff down there, as well as clif’s guitars and a couch and desk and ALL of the Christmas decorations we had put up at the mill this past year. there was nothing that could be done, we just had to wait for it to recede. i got back in bed and literally prayed for a miracle - i didn’t know if it would recede on it’s own and since we knew the sump pumps were currently sold out around town i wasn’t sure how we would get all the water out on our own. i also was afraid it would keep rising and start to come up the staircase to our main floor, as it was still raining and rain was forecasted to continue for the next day and a half. at 7am I woke up and checked the basement - in nothing short of a miracle, the water was all completely gone. completely. we knew there was a ton of work to be had in our future, but luckily we didn’t have to tend to it right then and were able to spend our last day with Adrian by not dealing with standing water in our basement. thank you, Lord.

we headed to Hotel Vandivort for brunch and then I had to run off to prepare for a managers meeting at our restaurant that afternoon. the rain continued, so we ended up lounging on the couch watching a marathon on HGTV and Clif cooked us all dinner. Adrian is just the best, he is such an interesting and caring guy and we were both so thrilled he was actually able to come to our home for a few days and see our restaurant, too. he and his wife Audrey will soon be re-locating to Toronto full-time, so who knows when and how we will coordinate seeing them again.

everything has been a bit of a whirlwind since then. we spent a few days stripping the flooring out of our basement and getting it dried with fans and a dehumidifier. we still aren’t sure what to do next, but now that we know the house is capable of flooding again we certainly aren’t going to spend a lot of money to fix it back up. we’ll probably just leave the floor as exposed concrete and invest in getting a sump pump permanently installed.

as soon as my back felt 100% again, my allergies kicked in. i’ve spent the last two weeks with a stuffy nose and sore throat and haven’t had a day off for a week and half. we’ve had some work-related fires to put out and have both been so exhausted we haven’t felt up to doing much. i finally got some planters around our house planted with flowers but i doubt we’ll get anything planted in our garden this season. we just ran out of time and now it’s summer-time-hot already. where did this year go?!

we are *fingers crossed* planning some sort of getaway in June, most likely to Chicago. we need some time away again - Puerto Rico feels like it was just yesterday but that was more than three months ago already!

Here are just a few pictures from the last few months to remember what we’ve been up to that’s been good. sometimes you have to force yourself to think about the good things, so that you don’t just dwell on the negative things, am i right? until next time...

beautiful peony in our backyard

GIVE OZARKS DAY where we helped raise funds to support Ozarks Food Harvest and then took a picture with this giant fork, because duh.

my MUG DAY at Brew Co was last Sunday!

went to see our friends’ kids Grant and Mason in their school talent show, where they did a totally improvised hip hop dance and it was fantastic

just me and Fred

Hotel Vandivort bathroom selfie with Adrian

i’ve read some great novels this spring, including this one below that i devoured in just a few days

we made a new tv commercial with KY3, then I went in to help edit it and took this screenshot where i look like a true moron.

Parker and his parents came up to Springfield, where we had lunch together and Parker hung off our furniture like a little monkey :)

Alice and Kyle and this big bear at Bass Pro

when you ask your breakfast grill employee to make you a special breakfast and they spell “hi” with the bacon

playing corn hole with Sarah Jo and Peterson

...but Sarah Jo mostly just watches and laughs and drinks her wine

just the four of us, outside of Brew Co on a beautiful April afternoon

an election day beer, Clif was so thrilled when Dogfish Head finally got distribution here in MO!

had a hold on this Harry Potter for almost a month so I was thrilled when it came in and I could go check it out from the library!

at the beginning of April we took our staff out for bowling and pizza and had a great time!

#real life #spring 2017 #springfield mo #flooding

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