#but also. i use that thang for like 6 hours a day

[yousaytomato]

Current phone: £200, has lasted 4 years

Phone I'm considering: £800, so logically will last 16 years

[ovaruling]

@radicalearthling my pleasure!!!!

ok so. my garlic & onion beans! 🫘

INGREDIENCE

- 32oz (or more or less—you can adjust accordingly) bag of any kind of dry beans (i like black beans or red beans the best, or black-eyed peas), soaked and cooked (im lazy and use an instant pot for this part so if that’s relevant to u, then what i do is fill with enough water to cover the beans and 30 minutes on high pressure, natural release for 20 min) (or you can use canned beans that equal 32oz drained!)

- 1 large yellow onion (im talking huge)

- 2 sticks of country crock brand vegan butter (that would be about 115g per stick, so about 230g of vegan butter) (you can use way way less of this btw, 4tbsp divided evenly between the onions and the pot ought to do)

- 5-8 cloves of garlic, minced (or more!)

- smoked paprika

- Badia southern style poultry seasoning (or any southern style poultry seasoning)

- salt & pepper

- 1 carton (32oz) of vegan no-chicken-broth (i use the Imagine brand, but any broth you have will work—you can also of course use vegan no-chicken bouillon or base)

- liquid smoke, if you have any (it’s vegan!)

INSTRUCTIONS

1. put your huge chopped onion and 1 stick (or 115g) of vegan butter in a skillet (chop it with a spatula as you go so that it distributes around the pan.) turn the heat to high or medium-high. salt and pepper generously. wait for the onions to brown and then nearly blacken. i use a ceramic greenpan on medium-high and it takes me about 10-15 minutes. this isn’t an exact science, i break the rules of caramelizing a lot. stir if you need to in order to prevent the onion from blackening beyond taste. (you can add garlic here too but i find it sometimes tends to burn but if you use the whole stick of butter it usually holds up. up to you how to add the garlic!)

2. once the onion is browned and fragrant, set the skillet aside.

3. put the plain cooked beans and the chicken broth in a large stockpot. put in 1 stick (or 115g) of vegan butter. set to medium-low heat.

4. put in 4-8 huge shakes of salt, pepper, smoked paprika, and poultry seasoning. this has no measurement—i eyeball it and taste it as i go. i usually end up needing to salt it a bit more.

5. add some dashes of liquid smoke, if using. again, i eyeball this—i usually dash it like 4-5 times.

6. add the cooked onion to the beans in the stockpot.

7. add your minced garlic if you didn’t use it for the onion browning.

8. stir, taste, and reseason as desired.

9. cover, and cook on medium high for about 10 minutes. let it come to a good boil.

10. lower the heat to Low, let it simmer until it reaches desired texture and thickness. add more water if needed.

11. i usually let it simmer on low for 1 hour minimum, up to 3 or 4 hours depending on my schedule. the longer it cooks down, the better it tastes imo.

12. keep tasting throughout to make sure you’re going in the right direction! i usually need to add way more smoked paprika to get the taste i want. i’m pretty extravagant w my smoked paprika….

13. let cool and voila :) this usually feeds me 1 full large bowl for 7-8 days of dinner (sometimes less bc i like to eat seconds…). i store it all in a large tupperware thang once it’s completely cooled. keeps very nicely!

[kanonavi]

I was tagged by @radellama like a month ago! Even if I don't always keep up with these I still appreciate it <3

~

Why did you choose your URL?

It's a combination of a couple of old jokes I had from middle school, the older of which was actually kind of a mean thing that I won't get into. However, KanoNavi was the second iteration of my old url FritoNavi, and because it rolled off the tongue better I decided to just switch to that full time.

2. Any sideblogs? If so, name them and why you have them.

I've tried sideblogs a couple times in the past, but they never stuck. I prefer to keep everything in one place, even if it means bombarding my non-Genshin mutuals with Genshin all the time (Sorry guys, thanks for sticking with me lol <3)

3. How long have you been on tumblr?

My archive goes back to 2017, but I did change URLs once so I think I might have started in 2016? Sometime around there.

4. Do you have a queue tag?

Nope, I've only used the queue once or twice for particular timed posts.

5. Why did you start your blog in the first place?

Before tumblr, I was on DeviantArt to follow Splatoon fanartists, and some of them mentioned having Tumblr so I decided to join that too!

6. Why did you choose your icon/pfp?

Venti's been my personality for like 3 years now, and this is one of my favorite fanarts of him (I love his smile, he's so delightful <3)

7. Why did you choose your header?

It was a piece done by my good friend and roommate Ham! Their artstyle is like candy for the eyes, I just want to eat it I love it so much ehe (Please go check them out along with the artist who drew my pfp, both of them are linked in my bio!)

8. What's your post with the most notes?

My meta on Simulanka Day 3 actually passed 100 notes (it has 124 as of this posting), which is absolutely crazy. I'm planning to do kind of a follow-up to that once I work up the spoons because there was some contention in my replies and also Natlan acts 1 and 2 have given me some ideas, so look forward to that I guess lol

9. How many mutuals do you have?

I don't really keep track, but I think that not counting irls I have at least 10? (love you guys mwah mwah <3)

10. How many followers do you have!

105 (i love you guys too mwah)

11. How many people do you follow?

129

12. Have you ever made a shitpost?

Sometimes I've commented about life in a jokey manner, but nothing I would consider a serious shitposting attempt

13. How often do you use tumblr each day?

This thang is like the refrigerator to me (derogatory). Cumulatively tho it's probably only a little over an hour per day because my dash isn't the most active.

14. Did you have a fight/argument with another blog once?

Not that I can recall?? Maybe early on, but it's been too long for me to say.

15. How do you feel about "you need to reblog this" posts?

No.

16. Do you like tag games!

Yeah!

17. Do you like ask games!

Yeah, even though I always feel like I'm being attention-seeking when I reblog them :pensive emoji:

18. Which of your mutuals do you think is tumblr famous?

None of them, sorry guys. I know Rads probably has clout in the Chrono Trigger fandom though, so that has to count for something?? lmao

19. Do you have a crush on a mutual?

Nah, but I have platonic crushes on y'all for being so damn cool <3

20. Tags:

@rubberbandballqueen, @stardustdiiving, @tempests-bards-and-birds

[scattered-winter]

ao3 wrapped !!

I've seen a few people doing this and thought I'd jump on the train lmao

1: how many words have you written this year?

uh. um. 319,614 lmfaooo

2: how many works did you publish this year?

just 5!! it's been a slow posting year but I have a LOT of WIPs I was working on in the meantime lmao

3: what work are you most proud of, regardless of kudos/hits?

bound like quintenary stars, without a doubt. it's the largest scale project I've ever done, and it's really forced me to grow as a writer

4: what work of yours has the most hits?

hold onto me has over 15k hits which is still WILD to me lmfao. if only i could write an update to that thang. and if we're talking just this year, then it's buckley siblings and their terrible, awful, no good very bad first dates at almost 3k

5: favorite title you used?

DEFINITELY buckley siblings and their terrible, awful, no good very bad first dates. i read that book as a kid and i think i'm hilarious

6: what artist have you pulled lyrics from the most:

probably bastille. tbh

7: pairing that you wrote the most for this year:

buddie LMAO. of the 5 fics i posted this year, 3 of them are buddie. I'm not counting quintenary stars in this because as of right now it's still mostly genfic and the romance won't come in until much further down the line

8: favorite pairing you wrote for this year:

only a few people know this but I wrote a LOT of adashi. I'm working on a side piece for quintenary stars that focuses on them pre-kerberos, and there are also a handful of adashi-adjacent aus i've been working on including leverage, agents of shield, and rwby. i'm obsessed with them lowkey

9: what work was the quickest to write?

walking out into the dark, cutting out a different path, led by a beating heart was uh. well. i wrote it in a matter of hours in a haze of mental illness in between the promo for 911 s6e11 and the actual episode dropping later that night. for those of you who don't have the context, a character got struck by lightning and subsequently was lingering on the threshold of death in episode 10, and when the promo for 11 dropped we realized there was going to be a coma dream episode in which the character would experience what should have been his Perfect Life but without all the things that led him to where he was, he never would have had an impact on his friends and family, and there would have been disastrous consequences. I distinctly remember skipping out on an entire day of classes because I was writing this fic LMFAO. and to this day I'm still very proud of it. incredible things come from sheer insanity it seems

10: what work took you longest to write?

seeing as quintenary stars is still ongoing, I'll say you're such a heavenly view. i had just watched prince caspian (again) and was feeling insane (as per usual) but it still took FOREVER to get this thang finished </3

11: what's your longest fic of the year?

quintenary stars is currently sitting pretty on 221,491, making it my longest piece of writing ever. which is pretty cool and also kinda scary because bro. bro i have no idea where these words are coming from

12: what's your shortest fic of the year?

buckley siblings !! it was short and sweet. angst and whump. u guys know what i like

13: favorite character you wrote this year?

oogh...i LOVED writing peter's pov in you're such a heavenly view. i actually would love to write more narnia fic someday. and i also love writing in pidge's pov in quintenary stars she is LITERALLY just like me fr

14: what's one pairing you want to explore more next year?

HEITH. i'm not putting them in quintenary stars but BOY do i want to explore their dynamic. and i am also always down for more caspeter

15: how many kudos in total did you get this year?

579!!

16: which work has the most comments?

quintenary stars! which statistically makes sense to me because it's a multichapter and the others this year are oneshots. but the fic that has the most comments overall is hold onto me

17: did you do any collaborative works this year?

nothing posted on ao3, but there was a lot of collaboration going on behind the scenes! the voltron leverage au in particular is a pretty elaborate project @frigidboy and i are working on together, and he's also been my soundboard for a lot of quintenary stars stuff. I've also been collaborating with various members of The Groupchat (@dauntingday, @soleadita, @xandromedan, @moonlightperseus) on various ongoing projects and aus including but not limited to some rwby aus with day, red and 13 stuff with leo, COUNTLESS aus, ocs, and wips with mads, and some leverage stuff with abby. I've also made some zombie apocalypse ocs with @0xy--m0r0n. and there are probably more things I've collabed with people on but I FORGOR </3

18: what's your most common category?

gen and m/m !! I tend to lean more gen with just a touch of romance most of the time, but more often than not my oneshots will be more explicitly romance

19: what do you listen to while writing?

it varies, but most of the time it will be some kind of orchestral/instrumental music. I have a list of favorite compilations on youtube from hans zimmer and some other favorites that I rotate through, and I also have some playlists on spotify for when I'm not as picky. it also depends on what I'm writing at the time: if I'm writing quintenary stars, I will usually go straight to the voltron soundtrack (or other space sci fi like interstellar or gravity) just because I need a specific vibe. and if I'm writing a battle scene, sometimes I'll pull up another tab and put some space battle ambience over the music, too

20: favorite line/passage you wrote this year?

oh god there are SO many favorites. but probably in the coma dream buck fic (walking out into the dark) when I used imagery to draw a connection to the Shooting Scene. like of all the literary things I've pulled over the years I think that one is hands down my favorite

"Shit's crazy here, man," Danny said as he stepped up to the sink beside Evan. "Did you know there was a sniper a few months ago? Some crazy cop was shooting firefighters out in the streets." A chill ran down Evan's spine, coldness settling in the bottom of his gut. Danny turned on the faucet. Water splashed in the bottom of the sink, flung up and out.  Droplets splattered across Evan's face. "Damn," Evan murmured, raising a shaking hand to wipe it away. "Was anyone killed?" "One was," Danny said offhandedly. "He got shot right after a call, middle of the street. Nobody even saw it coming.” Evan was shaking, all over his body. Danny just kept going, like he didn’t even notice. “His team was trapped by the sniper and by the time they got him pulled out, it was too late.” Stay there! I’m coming to you! “The news said his name was Diaz. Eddie Diaz." Evan dropped the plate he was holding. Shards of ceramic flew in every direction, pinpricks of pain prickling at his legs and bare feet. Gunshot in the street. Blood splattered on his face. Asphalt against his cheek. Are you hurt? "Evan?" Danny was looking at him, brows furrowed together. "Are you okay?" Evan swallowed, took in a shaky breath, nodded. He bent and began to gently gather the broken shards in his palm, but something made him pause. "Huh." "What?" Danny was looking at him like he was crazy. "I'm not bleeding." And he wasn't. His legs and feet were untouched; smooth, unmarred skin where only seconds before, he'd been so certain he'd felt cuts. "That's weird," Danny said, before shoving a broom in Evan's hands. "Your mess, your job. You get to finish the dishes."

overall that whole fic was just. probably some of my best work I think. I'm so proud of it fr

21: biggest surprise while writing this year?

i was NOT expecting quintenary stars to get as much engagement as it's been getting!! i feel like everyone's kinda trying to forget voltron ever existed (understandable) so i didn't think there would be much of an audience for it. but there is!!! and i love you guys!!!!!

TAGGING IF U WANNA DO THIS TOO: ppl i've already tagged above, plus @scorchedhearth, @ anyone else who wants to do it !! I'm so sorry I am totally blanking on mutuals/followers/friends who are also writers so if u see this and want to, consider urself tagged !!

[fenimores-book-nook]

My Thoughts ~ 10/23/23

Gooooooood evening, well, evening for me. It is 6:55 PM where I'm at. The other day I wrote up a draft that ended up being Halloween costume themed but I decided not to post it. I don't know why you need to know that information but I feel like it's valid. This post however, is just a little writing thang that I feel like working on right now. :) Who knows what I'll write about in this one, but let's find out.

Now that I have my cozy Christmas jazz on, we're ready to get going. Yes, I said Christmas jazz. I've been feeling very much in a Christmas mood lately. Which is interesting because last year I wasn't, not even really on Christmas Day. But I'm happy about the early Christmas feels this year because I normally love, love, LOVE Christmas. I don't think I've ever not loved Christmas. I think I maybe didn't feel the feelings I thought I would feel and it made me sad. Which is just a part of growing up and getting older, I've found. My feelings and ideas about the holidays are different now than what they were when I was a kid. And that is okay. It just takes some adjusting. ;)

And now, enjoy three holiday photos from last Christmas and a Christmas that was from when I was in eighth grade.

One of my favorite things to do is put on a fireplace with Christmas music playing while decorating our tree. :)

I always love the book-coffee shop I work at during Christmastime. It's always one of the most jolly places to be.

I wanted to include an older photo and when I came across this one, it made my heart happy. :) Here's one of my best friends and I with my pet rabbit I used to have. (his name was Phil)

I think now it's time to move away from the early holiday cheer, don't worry, there'll be more. ;)

Today, I spent the day with my sister, who lives about 45 minutes away from me. I had spent the night at her and her husband's place last night when we watched the TV show, Friends, one of our all-time favorite shows. I honestly do not know how many times I've seen it. I've watched it. A lot. It's one of my favorite comfort shows! After a couple episodes, we watched 10 Things I Hate About You, which I hadn't watched all the way through until last night. I loooove it. It'll probably be one of my comfort movies when I'm in the mood to watch a good chick-flick. After that, we watched A Christmas Kiss. Also one of our favorites, although, in my opinion, the second Christmas Kiss is better. (that one, we watched a bit of today) And finally, the last film of the night waaaaaaaas, drum-roll PLEASE!!...Red, White, and Royal Blue. Which I had read before, FELL IN LOVE WITH IT, and watched it when it came out on Amazon Prime. And now, my sister loves it too. ;) It's SUCH a good rom-com. Yes, I do think the book was better BUT, they still did a fantastic job at the movie. I had forgotten how much I love it.

That was last night, where we also made some Christmas themed bracelets. (yes, my sister is a Christmas fanatic just like me, maybe even more of one)

A Christmas Kiss on in the back. ;)

Today, both my sister and brother in-law had work so I hung out at their apartment, went to a cozy coffee shop, shopped at Spirit Halloween and Dollar Tree a little bit, and then returned to their apartment. A bit later, I left again to go to my sister's work, she's a 3rd grade teacher, so I hung out with her and the kids for a bit. Normally, I am not a kid person. But 3rd graders aren't too bad. Now, I'm not saying I want to be a teacher (nononononono) but maybe I don't dislike being around kids as much as I thought. ;)

Tonight, I'm spending the night in, writing this. I did have a community choir practice going on, but bestie..when I tell you I didn't feel up for it, I didn't feel up for it. Once I came home from my sister's, I took a much needed hour long nap (went to bed at 2 AM) and woke up extremely groggy and didn't snap more awake until, maybe two or three paragraphs into writing this. What better way to spend a night than to stay in, put on soothing jazz music, and write? That sounds pretty wonderfully magical to me.

My cozy night in. ;)

And that was my many thoughts and events of my day today!

Until the next one,

Thalia <3

[darlingkara]

Nevermind the loose dirt. It's my 99 cent grocery store plant rescue that I am trying to save via better soil/re-potting and with bread ties, and my little tiny espresso. The stems were brown when I got it, but I don't think she is gonna make it. Taken a few days ago, but seemed like good photo for this post.

I woke up WAY too early. Again. I either stay awake for like 25 hours, and sleep 8, or the usual 16 hours and sleep about 4 hours. I have had 3 sleep lab tests done (albeit years and years ago) when I kept falling asleep. This was before I had this weird habit I have now. I slept normally back then. Diagnosis: Narcolepsy and non-24 hour sleep cycle (Circadian Rhythm Disorder?). I was a bit blown back, to be honest, especially by Narcolepsy. And guess what? The MD had to report it to the DMV, if I did not. If you have a driver's license, it is stated on it AND you have to be medicated while driving. The medicine was Dexedrine, or pretty much @mphetamine. Makes sense-- Can't be falling asleep while driving. I stayed awake, and my depression lifted. Any MD's reading this-- Please consider it for treatment resistant depression. I never felt hyper on it (I felt nothing, tbh) which would of course, lead me to being diagnosed with ADHD*.

So now, I am an unmedicated ADHD and sleep disorder gal of a mess, hahaha. But I am happy, or at least content. I think it has gotten better, or I have learned how to deal with it. I could not do now what I did in my unmedicated 20's-- Full time school, full time job and a kid. Nope. I have ZERO idea how I did it. The narcolepsy mostly went away. I WILL fall asleep at the theatre, so don't bother inviting me, especially in Plague Era that 99% of people refuse to admit still exists. And it is 50/50 in any dark situation, regardless of how well rested I am.

Luckily, I can now work when I want (other than 2 days a month), and do not have to drive. I do have to set an alarm for three days out of the week for class (it is used as a take a shower and get ready alert bc I keep waking up before it, lol), but luckily it isn't early. I LOVED driving, btw, and I loved cars. But as an American, what else are you supposed to do? Tangent, but... I would re-do SO much in the USA if given the chance. Like...Public transport and social housing. These are looked down upon in the US, which makes it seem SOOOOO odd to me now. Plus the whole gun thang. Sorry, but I will never change my mind. The 2nd Amendment was written for MUSKETS. We have drones now. If you feel the need to open carry a weapon of death to the grocery store, there is something wrong with you. Sorry, not sorry.

I am not exactly against hunting (if you do it for food, not sport). When I was about 12, we moved** to a mostly hillbilly area (not making fun of them-- I mostly like them dern hillbillies, and one of my BF'S was one since I was TWELVE... Though I have not been able to find her since 2021 or early 2022. Covid or went Trump, I do not know. I will continue my search. Her having the most generic name in the English speaking world does not help)). And well, my first look at hunting was not pretty. Dead deer legs, sticking out of truck beds. Like, everywhere. People told me this was normal. I literally vomited and remember thinking and saying, out loud at lunch, ''The fuck, this is NOT normal. Throw a TARP over it, for Christ's sake.''

*Btw, girls and women are SO good at hiding ADHD. We are typically not hyper or rowdy. If we are, it is within our safe spaces, with friends. If your sister/mom/gf/wife tends to forget things you have told her, seems unorganized or stressed over little things, gets bitchy before leaving the house with you, look into it first and do not get upset.

**I was not an Army Brat, but my family did move a lot (6 times, to different states), and it was not because of financial instability. Yes, my parents worked for the government, but not in any military way. So--I learned a new term-- TCK-- Third Culture Kid (also applies to adults). We are GREAT at fitting in anywhere, more empathetic, less racist (bc sometimes, even being white, people are racist if you are the minority. Trust me, I know personally, and it was horrible), tend to attend university more (not saying all should).. But of course there is a catch.

We probably have attachment disorders on all sides. I didn't get the overly attachment type, luckily. If anything, I need help attaching. And I do not have ''the itch'' to move. As an adult, I rented the perfect house for me and my minion at the time. Great school district, fenced in (by chicken wire on one side for most of the time) backyard, walkable to the downtown area in 3 mins, and I was allowed to plant a garden and paint, etc. I did have to mow the effing backyard when my weirdo neighbor went away every summer. Fucker never told me when he was leaving, but the grass length did. I lined the fences with gladiolas and ivy and had a gas BBQ and a nice table and umbrella. I would let my kitties out every now and then, but only when I was there-- they could escape if they wanted to. One was a serial killer, not even kidding. A Persian, fluffy, serial killer. I got minion*** a slip and slide, hahahaha... We threw some pretty good backyard parties. All of my neighbors were snobs. Like Harvard asshole snobbery. Anyway, I lived there the longest-- almost 11 years. My landlord wanted to sell it, and it was sold within about a month and a half. THAT SUCKED and was not expected... Thought I had about 5 or 6 months.

I had to go live with my mother, as she lived in the school district minion was in. Worst decision of my life. I love my mother, and she was really a great mother, but something went CRAZY in 2002 and again in 2014, that I am not yet capable of discussing on a public forum. Thinking of substack. Like a $4 a month thing. This is shit that horribly affected my life, and I needed therapy for-- as an adult. Shit that when I think about, even 8 years later, I still tear up. And I am NOT a cryer. As a mother, she was awesome! She told me to avoid beauty magazines, taught me how to plumb and do home repair, said chose your religion when you are an adult if you want to, and sooooo much more. My father was really great, as well. They stayed married for FAR too long. I think I was about 25 when they got divorced, but it was over my mom being selfish with her health insurance and cutting my dad off. He had a disabling heart attack when he was 42, and died in 2007. My mom cutting off his health insurance was fucking brutal.

The dude was ALWAYS on my side. So, I still say hello from time to time to my mother. Most importantly, I talk to minion, but he is busy working and crushing on some girl, his best friend's girl. They work together and he hates his job. He is waiting for her to give the okay for them to both leave and work somewhere else. I said DO NOT WAIT FOR ANYONE--- EVER!!! He sent me a pic of her and said that sometimes she drinks too much and gets sexual. I was like OMG.

She looks like me and that is what I did when I was younger. Freud, are you out there? It's me, Kara.

And I have lived here the second longest.

And I want to die and be buried here. Every year, there is a free concert, ranging from classical music to rock music, held at the cemetery.

5-30K people can come listen to music, drink a bit, dance, and have fun. That the cemetery I would like to be buried in.

If that is morbid to you, you are not invited. :)

***Minion is now an adult. I am not worried about his financial future (everyone born after The Boomers got fucked, let's be honest)because luckily, I am a Black Sheep, and he will get my inheritance. Good for him! Since I am 34-99 years old (haha), I will not tell you how old he is. Yes, I was married and he was planned. I was TOO young-- but when your spouse made $80k a year in the early 2000s, you figure, nice, I will just raise minion, and then finish school. That did not happen the way I had it planned. The ex husband is still wealthy and lucky, and it pisses me off. If you knew the full story, you would understand. Let's just say that one brutal character mentioned in today's blog had a lot to do with it, including my parent's divorce. I swear it is not some Jerry Springer shit, and they did NOT bang, and luckily, my father and I were together when we found ''the letters''. The Brutal one would end up doing MUCH worse things than having feelings for her daughter's husband, and yeah-- it is personal.

Life is 50% unplannable. I do believe in luck, and I do believe in you get what you give, although I LOATHE woo woo pseudoscience bullshit.

I will NOT be camming tonight. My theatre thing begins tonight. It is only once a month. Last week, I couldn't have a schedule because I still have periods, which are very predictable, but this every 18 days shit is a bit new. Usually its every 25 days, abnormal is under 23 days in between periods. Went to the dr, had hormone levels taken. Good news-- I am NOT an alien. Bad news is that the tests prove pretty much nothing. I am having about 5 more periods a year than normal-- so about half the year. Great. Of course I now have to a dailytake high-ish dose iron supplements. I believe I have peri or pre-menopause which literally NO ONE talks about, yet it affects HALF of the population. And pre or peri-menopause is WORSE than menopause. Menopause is easy street, so I have learned. Some days I am nice and patient, other days I want to bite your face off. Sometimes I am horny, sometimes I seem asexual. When my roommate/ex bf of like 12 years (No, we do not bang and maybe once a month I fall asleep in his room watching a movie), DARES to shut MY room's window or turn off MY fan, especially if I am sleeping and wake up hot, I am literally thinking:

''I could kill you, and if half the jurors were women 35+, it would be an excusable homicide.'' I am not a violent person at all, btw, in any way or sense. I am learning as I go along. Surprise, surprise, there is not a whole lot of research on it. Reddit's Menopause has been a Godsend.

In the one racist area I lived in, I was ''jumped'' by 3 or 4 girls who basically PLAN attacked me, outta the blue. I won. All almost 5 feet of me. I learned about adrenaline and JFC, I get strong and mean if I think I am gonna die. I kicked dirt into their eyes and kicked their throats. How fucked up is that? I was maybe 11 years old. I did not and do not know how to fight. Is is something instinctual? I have no idea and too many research topics as it is. All I knew was that there were three of them, one of me, and they were larger and taller than I was.

Anyway, off to shower and go to my classes. Idk if I will cam after the theatre or not.

And you would not believe what I found when I took out the garbage, shortly after writing this (within the hour). It is not a popular name here, afaik. I will post it on Twitter @DarlingKara.

[asher-the-diaster]

the sister planets pt 5

Not little, Not green

this is part 5 of a story that was supposed to be one installment, you can find the other parts here: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1DYMuKK5CIgJgDapNbu5sBqr_b5uT1Yz4pJoJ2fuAk4w/edit?usp=sharing

“Obsered!”

“Impossible!”

“Pepeproustrous!”

“Order!”

“Doctor twee-ake, while I don't agree with the disruption of conseil proceedings, i do have to ask how such abnormal test results could be so.”

“What's so surprising?” I asked. Doctor twee-ake had asked one of us to volunteer for some sort of conseil of new species hearing, as the captain I elected to go. I was no diplomat but still the closest thing we had. It was long after they had done the tests, Richardson had been returned to us with much prompting. I had been fitted with a weirdly designed alien crutch which me being able to use drew a lot of stares. (i’m clumsy ok, this wasn’t my first broken bone).

They had also given me a hastily made breathing mask so i could leave the contact room and still breath, it also connected to a translator that english had been loaded on when they were studying humans and was surprisingly good for being made in 24 hours

“Practically all of her reports!”

“If these humans weren’t unlike the other thangs in the galaxy they wouldn’t have survived a wormhole in an unprepared ship.”

“But to suggest this!”

“What exactly about this report is so crazy?” I asked.

“Among other things It says that you are sentient pursuit predators,” I nodded, “who breathe air so saturated with oxygen that it can sustain continued combustion, have venom, have more bacterial cells than your own cells in your body. Explains the existence of overreaction scar tissue that can heal broken bones, and finally it says that your stomach can hold cide with a pH of 1.5 to 3.5.”

“Save the venom part, all of that is true.”

“Wait, my test clearly showed that you have a gland in your mouth that produces toxic emessimes that can damage mussels when combined with your teeth.”

“That’s true but, it's sliva not venom, it's the first stage in our digestion, the main reason it can be toxic is the fact that there's bacteria in it, but that's different from venom.”

“Yes!” one of the conseil members yelled, “the grand difference between venom and emsesmise filled with bacteria!”

“These people are dangerous! How can we let them join the universal conseil?”

“Would you rather have them join the united species?”

That shut everyone up. They looked at me terrified of the idea.

“The which?” I asked.

“They are the historical enemies of the ua.”

“I’m just a soldier and am in debt to you for saving my life, but the actual people incharge at nato and the south pacific treaty association, or the UN for that matter might not. Why should the humans join you instead of them?”

“I have an answer for both questions, why should the humans be let into the ua and why should they join us rather than our enemies.”

“What could possibly prove that?”

“I’m curious too.”

“I have reason to believe that the human planet, the one they call earth, which means ground, is really the planet that the zalo and calo, know as…” twee-ake paused, i didn’t know much about the zalo, but i knew when someone was about to be sick.

“Well doctor? What planet?”

“Saphis,” it was barely a whisper but it sent the conseil into chaos.

After about five minutes of the chairman trying to get the conseil to order, I slapped hard against my hand three times. That drew everyone's attention.

I noticed that it was only 2 of the maybe dozen or so species panicking, the zalo who like twee-ake, looked vaguely like humanoid fish cats and a species I suspected to be the calo’s who were strangely batlike.

All the other species looked as confused as I was.

“What’s saphis?”

“It’s a planet in our home solar system.” one of the calo’s explained.

“I’m confused.”

“In the early days of our solar system the planets were often pleated with rocks and debris, throwing macrobiotic life into the vacuum of space and from a rock exchange in between 3 of 4 of the rocky midgets, the zalos and calos evolved separately and met when fleeing as both of our planets were becoming uninhabitable. To suggest that you are from saphis, the third planet of the triad would be to suggest that you are from a planet of such unimaginable death that the vast majority of its biodiversity has been killed off 5 separate times.”

“6,” I muttered under my breath without thinking.

Why did that story sound so familiar?

Oh right because it was a theory of how life the amount of times earth got hit by meteorites in the early days.

That would make these aliens from another solar system…

“Martians.” I said in awe.

[cowboylarries]

okay okay i’ve had like 48 hours to process my concert and here are some thoughts i have

1. idk if he’s in charge of the pre-show songs but a song was cut off so that sweet thang by shuggie otis played right before the poem started and now i can’t stop listening to shuggie otis

2. for golden he sang “i’m broken, and he’s hoping one day i can be open” (i’m pretty sure but i also could be way off bc i was freaking out)

3. we got the whole “we’re in the round so you’re going to get my face or my ass” speech but he politely put it as his derrière and then asked us if we had a preference

4. he was so proud of his philadelphia facts and even pulled out dates for when the first zoo opened! he also spouted off some facts about the hospital and medical school and then for his last fact he just shouted wawa! and you could tell he had been waiting for that

5. we sang happy birthday to someone in the pit who had a sign but harry forgot to ask them if it was actually on the actual day until after we had already sang and we they said it was the day before he stomped away like a child (youngest child syndrome, am i right?)

6. he held those flags so tightly throughout a full song and the philly facts and for the start of the next song (he really said happy bi visibility week!)

i feel like i’m missing a million other things but these are the most important to me and i wanted to share

[saintlevrant]

𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐰𝐨𝐮𝐥𝐝 𝐈 𝐝𝐨 𝐢𝐟 𝐈 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐤𝐞𝐝 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐈𝐧𝐚𝐫𝐢𝐳𝐚𝐤𝐢 𝐦𝐞𝐧 𝐩𝐨𝐬𝐭 𝐭𝐢𝐦𝐞-𝐬𝐤𝐢𝐩?

𝑞'𝑠 𝑞𝑢𝑖𝑐𝑘 𝑐𝑙𝑎𝑟𝑖𝑓𝑖𝑐𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 — Use of first person. Crack! My wifi is down, and I can't do my school work. So, let's dilly dally! ♡

tw: mature language

𝐎𝐣𝐢𝐫𝐨 𝐀𝐫𝐚𝐧

♤ personal manager

♤ 10/10 employer

♤ gives random raises and bonuses like it's nothing

♤ also buys a gratuity gift for being his personal manager

♤ "I know it's not much, but it's a little something."

♤ and he just eagerly stands there while I open it

♤ if it's something stupid, on everything, Imma act like that shit is the coolest thing ever given to me just to make him happy

♤ "Gahlee, my guy! This shit cleaner than a bitch! Where'd you get it from?"

♤ his grin is so goofy afterwards

♤ such a sweet man, but ong he stinks after a game

♤ please, y'all know how those jocks in the hallway smell on a daily basis? it's that + make it ✨ sweaty ✨

♤ I'd have to wash his uniform and force him to shower 3 times to get that stench off

♤ hahaha he had me in the first half

𝐊𝐢𝐭𝐚 𝐒𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐬𝐮𝐤𝐞

♤ rice processor

♤ 17/10 employer!!!

♤ he'd probably want some help harvesting the rice, but me and outdoors don't get along

♤ mans does not ask questions after I tell him that

♤ the king of approving whack ass vacation days

♤ he'd let me stay home for a month because I asked and still pay me while I'm gone

♤ he also buys his workers breakfast and lunch without taking it out of our paychecks

♤ the best employer on the block

♤ worse part of the job is when he calls meetings

♤ only calls them when sales go down

♤ he has 5 people that work for him (the two harvesters, me, the dude that picks up the rice to deliver it, and homegirl that takes record of the amount of rice harvested)

♤ we sit at a round table and he, deadass, stares into everyone's soul

♤ "Sales... are down."

♤ scariest statement I'd ever hear ✋🏾

𝐌𝐢𝐲𝐚 𝐀𝐭𝐬𝐮𝐦𝐮

♤ idk, man. his receptionist?

♤ 6/10 employer

♤ don't get me wrong, probably the coolest employer out of all of them

♤ would probably try to drag me everywhere with the team

♤ bitch, I'm supposed to be at home managing your business calls, not out here babysitting a whole volleyball team

♤ swear, this dude forgets to pay me every other month

♤ that means I get paid once every 2-3 months

♤ how am I supposed to LIVE???

♤ really gotta learn how to ration that shit, ig. wealthy girlies could never.

♤ the pay day might be sporadic but he pays a shit ton when he remembers to

♤ I don't get to take vacation days with him, not because he won't let me, but because, I'm scared to leave him to fend for himself

♤ worst part is that he makes me clean up his house

♤ "Got anything goin after the game?"

♤ "Swear. I gotta go do some chores."

♤ "Does that mean yer cleanin my house today?"

♤ no, Atsumu. I'm not ya fookin nanny

𝐌𝐢𝐲𝐚 𝐎𝐬𝐚𝐦𝐮

♤ dish washer

♤ 13/10 employer!

♤ tried to make me a waitress at first

♤ told him that I'm not a people person, but he kept asking so politely

♤ I mean, homie is super hard to say no to

♤ so, I did it anyway. I'd pay attention to the orders, but I wouldn't talk to them

♤ other than me LOOMING over the customers silently when they needed a refill, I'd be a pretty decent waitress

♤ yeah, he automatically knew that I was right about wanting to be a dish washer

♤ I become the dishwasher (yessssir!)

♤ I literally scrub the dishes so clean that they started squeaking

♤ all the workers are thinking that the utensils and plates are going to break

♤ girl, no. them thangs have to be sterilized. there's a mf pandemic out there

♤ probably the most laid back employer

♤ he's the second most organized after Kita

♤ he pays good money too, and he does not forget to pay on time

♤ vacation days are up to a week per pay period, but he's nice about it

♤ paid leave is only when I get sick + bonuses are only for holidays and birthdays

♤ FREE LUNCH!!!

♤ pick anything off the menu and that's lunch

♤ Imma be milking the shit out of that opportunity cause I want that free lunch to keep coming

♤ "Mr. Osamu, put it on god you made this."

♤ "Ha ha, yeah, I made it."

♤ "On my mama, this hoe bussin! Keep doing what you doing."

♤ the worst thing is having to touch other people's messes. ong that's gross.

𝐒𝐮𝐧𝐚 𝐑𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐚𝐫𝐨̄

♤ personal assistant

♤ 4.5/10 employer

♤ the absolute worst one to work for

♤ does not care about anything except what he wants done

♤ you think that he can't be that bad, but I'm telling the truth

♤ calls in the middle of the night for stupid ass errand runs with no reason at all

♤ he has shawties

♤ and he has a bunch of them, like he's trying to be gen z's flavor flav

♤ he orders me to go pick one of them up and take them back to his house OUTSIDE OF WORKING HOURS

♤ uh, I don't know if he forgot, but I ain't his fucking chauffeuse. I'm the assistant

♤ but I let it slide because his shawties are really nice and deserve to be driven instead of walking alone at night

♤ he just ruins it though cause he proceeds to tell me to go pick up some condoms and lube

♤ chile, I knew that they were gonna have a lil seggs, but I ain't wanna hear it from homie himself

♤ deadass, I just bought some of that shit about a couple of weeks ago

♤ I'd go anyway though, ya know? for the coin

♤ cause he pays decently, not as much as Atsumu, but then again, he pays weekly (that's where 2.5 of his rating comes from)

♤ don't expect any vacation days, raises, or bonuses. you're setting yourself up for failure if you do

♤ all I get is a day off each week and a 10 minute lunch break during working hours

♤ the shawty fiasco isn't even the worse part

♤ when he has his old team over his place or just any company, he shits on everything I'd do

♤ most of Inarizaki are foodies, so if he tells me to go pick up some din dins for them and HE doesn't like it, he's gonna throw it all away and tell me to go get something else

♤ "Try again. This time you better not fuck up."

♤ and he be saying that shit in front of everyone

♤ whatever, g. I should've gone to Shiratorizawa.

© gyecm 2021. do not repost or modify.

[cytarabi]

Hey! I've become a huge fan of your fics on ao3. I wanted to know how do you push out so many beautiful chapters so quickly? What's your writing process like? I'm working on a big JB fic, which I'm trying to finish timely, but high quality. Always like to see how other writers do their thang! Thank you!

Hi! I remember your name!! <3 Thank YOU for the question and praise, that’s so sweet!!

I love seeing how other writers do their thang, too! And I’ve found it can be very, very different for each author.

TLDR I write a lot of my fic ahead of time. I outline the entire fic, chapter by chapter before I start writing. I use several tools to speed the process and/or to make it more artsy fartsy.

I’ve found that I’m a “plotter” and not a “pantser” (two main ways of writing, unless you hate being labeled lol.)

Plotter means that I prefer plotting out most of the story before I write the details. Here’s been my process for my multichapter fics:

1) I come up with an idea and let it brew! I think about key scenes or dialogue I love and I jot them down in my phone on Google notes. Write down your ideas, you’ll probably forget them.

2) During this brewing time, (for As Black As Thunder and my next fic) I take the time to read, read, read. I read works and jot more notes! I have an entire Google doc for Rebecca by Daphne de Maurier where I wrote down her tone usage, figurative language and summary of each chapter. I can’t tell you how much this has helped get me in the write TONE for the work. Tone is SO important. Readers reading a thriller will expect thriller beats! Deep Fried Drinks was a rom com, so the verbs, adjectives etc are very different from creepy Gothic. When I started As Black As Thunder (ABAT), wow, it was hard to nail the tone at first. But by the second half of the fic, I’m fully immersed in it and it’s much easier to create the tone naturally. Without using inspiration, I don’t think it would have turned out as well. For ABAT, I think I took two weeks of no writing, when I’m used to writing every day. It was hard not to write, but wow, was I ready when I started!

3) When I’m ready to outline, I do! I open a google doc for the fic and start throwing everything I can think of in there. My ABAT doc was only like three lines for 6 months... lol! I’ve only just started looking into story structure, so my older fics are all wonky. BUT for ABAT and Deep Fried Drinks, I tried to follow story structure for plots. First act, second act, third act, character arcs, etc. My longest fic, Time Stops, dropped a bunch of readers in the middle and I think it’s because my middle SAGGED majorly. I didn’t try to follow a structure, just sort of plotted it out how I wanted to, and it was probably very repetitive and boring. For ABAT, I plotted a mid point turn to spice things up, chose things to make the character more proactive, etc. I highly recommend Ellen Brock on Youtube for any plotting advice. She’s an editor, and I’ve learned so much!

4) Organize plot into chapters, write key notes for chapters and fill out background info. The first two are self explanatory, but the third is my favorite! One thing that speeds my writing (I have no idea if people do this or not) but I have lists. So many lists! For ABAT, I have lists of common outfits for characters (I usually hate writing about outfits but I’m glad I wrote more for this work). I also write the character arc for each main character. For ABAT, I have the following for Brienne:

Brienne 

Symbols: white crocus flower (purity, youthfulness, sensitive to rain), White begonia, Small birch saplings struggling for light

Goal: serve public, be idealistic, honorable

Lie: (hidden for spoilers)

Truth: (hidden for spoilers)

Flaw: stubborn, idealistic, watched her father get fame and respect for his engineering, wants to do the same thing and do it perfectly, doesn’t understand systemic racism 

Motivation: serve people, be accepted by the public, belonging, abandonment

Stakes: public rejection, Tarth name on the line, mockery, insanity, failure

So when I think about a curve ball for Brienne at any point of the story, this character section helps me stay true to character. I have a section for Brienne, Jaime, Cersei and Missandei. Cersei has a larger section because she’s a villain... ;)

In addition to this section, I also write down their personalities and strengths. You know, like if they went to an interview lol. For example, I have Missandei have the following strengths: 

Missandei

Adaptability: able to adapt

Intellection: introspective and appreciate intellectual discussions

Consistency: all people should be treated the same

Futuristic: fascinated by future

Learner: loves to learn

I ALSO have an emotion worksheet and this is SO USEFUL. They say in writing: show that the character is angry, not tell the reader. WELL, IDK about you but I can’t keep track of all the little quirks characters do and yet, I want them to be consistent. If while writing a scene, I sometimes think, “Hmm what is Jaime doing if he’s in awe right now?” I search for “awe” at the top of my fic, and bam, I have options, more or less. For a lot of emotions, I brainstormed ideas based on character traits, arcs, Gothic tone etc. I fill all of this out before I write the first chapter. 

Here’s an example of some emotions I have for ABAT:

Emotion List (remember to have introspection, unique perspective) 

Awe:

B: wrinkle deepened between brows, parted lips, fixed gaze, stands still

J: arched brow, open mouth, stare, goes closer

C: lowering chin or raising chin, goes closer

M: adaptable, quick to react

Deceptive:

B: looking away, walking away

J: scratching ear

C: smiling, neatly placed hands

M: long blink

Thoughtfulness:

B: staring off, quiet, daydreaming

J: staring at object important to him, twisting pencil or object in his hand, squeezing his hand

C: squeezing hand, staring at object she wants to get rid of or improve

M: daydreaming, staring off at her own outfit—it’s foreign

5) Now the fun part: writing! I used to write with scene structure outline, but I think I’ve grown off the training wheels. But it really helped me in Deep Fried Drinks to plot out the chapter scenes ahead of time, and I used Ellen Brock’s proactive and reactive videos to help me out with that. I throw on some music to get me in the mood of the story and I write during my kid’s nap, about two hours every day. Sometimes I’ll write at night, but lately I’ve been too tired to do that. My tip for this part is to try and figure out what you want to improve. What are you good at, and what could you improve as a writer? My first fics had like zero figurative language. Awkward. This takes a level of awareness that’s hard to reach but watching or researching creative writing technique really helps me. For example, I used to NEED to write all five senses out for each chapter ahead of time. Now it comes naturally to me! I would say now my main issue is phrasing? Pacing? And I need to tone down the melodrama for my next work....... lol! I write, write, write--and usually, I write 60-90% of the fic before I start editing!

6) Editing. Fun fun fun. I don’t mind editing, I just don’t think I’m that GOOD at it. I try to read through my chapter twice and edit as I go. I look for things I want to take out or add, look for show vs tell, formatting, etc--do things make sense? Did I miss anything? In ABAT, I’ll write something in chap 20 that I need to start in chap 18, so I’ll go back and make a quick note to “add part about document somewhere in this chapter” so I don’t confuse readers. When I edit chap 18, I’ll add that line or paragraph in. It’s all an intricate web! I also have a list of vague words I try to eliminate or replace with stronger words (I have more words if you want them). I found that I have certain words or phrases that echo a lot, like “while”, “turned around”, “turned” or “did not”--now I search for these phrases/words and try to change them:

Get rid of vague words, fix by explaining more:

Some 

While

Thing

Stuff

Very

Really

Big/small

Good/bad

Simple verbs: had, was, went

Got/get

Few

Several

What

Do/Did

It

Like with all writing “rules”, they can be broken, but it helps to know why they are rules. I steered away from adverbs, and I think it improves my writing. Other writers have different prose and adverbs work so well--it all depends on your style! If I find these vague words in dialogue, for example, I almost never change them because dialogue is usually freaking vague lol!

7) Beta reader(s)! I honestly think this work is better than my other stuff because I have a newer beta reader, theunpaidcritic!!! *I bow* She’s literally an expert so it’s SO helpful for me in every way--I can’t fangirl about her enough. If you’re struggling to get a beta reader, I recommend joining a JB discord (transformative werk is my favorite discord, and there is a beta read request thread) or post a request on reddit!

8) Post! Once you’ve edited and gone over beta reader notes, it’s time to post! Congrats!!!!!!!!!!

For time reference, I started this process around mid-May for ABAT, and I will be done by early September. Maybe I’m just a fast writer? Compared to angel-deux, ha, I look slow. Everyone is different! Please let me know if you have any other questions, I am ALL about helping out! :) <3 <3 <3

[paging-dr-bowen]

Tips for Interview Season

Congratulations on your invitation to interview at the residency programs of your dreams! The time period between submitting your ERAS and awaiting your first invitation to interview is nerve wrecking.  You might get bombarded with a couple rejection letters in the first few days (some programs even make errors by sending their rejection letters 3-4 times…like okay okay I get it it’s not you…it’s me…haha but don’t get discouraged your perfect match is still out there).  But what do you do before this time period? Here are some tips below:

1. ERAS photo – This is most likely your first business headshot ever. Or at least it was for me. Go to a photo studio like J.C. Penny (they have affordable Group On deals for $20 and under for a couple headshots) or grab a friend with a decent camera and some good lighting. Photo should show a welcoming smile (this is not a mugshot or a passport photo).  Attire should be simple, no distracting patterns or jewelry.  Think grays, blues, blacks, and calm pastels.  For men I’ve noticed a tie is a must. For women a blouse or a button up is fine, no cleavage.  Wear your hair how you will wear it during interviews because they will use the photo to reference you. Hair up or down is fine just keep it neat. I wore my hair in braids/twists and wore it loose and to the side.  Background of the photo should be a neutral color, try to avoid white. 2. Interview attire – Focusing on the ladies for this one, fellas interview attire is pretty standard across the board (business suit and business shoes). Aim to get about 3 outfits to cycle between especially for those weeks you have multiple interviews.  Pants suits and skirt suits or a dress and a blazer are the go-to outfits.  If opting for a dress or skirt length should at least be to the knees when sitting and wear nude/black stockings. Colors you should aim for a navy blue, gray, black and I even saw a candidate in a really nice forest green pant suit.  The idea is to get neutral colors and offset it with a nice pop of color that isn’t too distracting.  Limit the jewelry to simple pieces (stud earring and a simple necklace is fine, avoid bangles and bracelets that make noise).  Comfortable shoes are a must, I bought a 1.5inch closed toed-pumps and half way through interview season I resorted to just wearing my business everyday flats I wear on my clinical rotations from Clarks (got a lot of compliments too…I’m just like this old thang?). Just like your ERAS photo, wear your hair up or down is fine, just keep it neat.  Nice companies to buy clothing from are Ann Taylor Loft, Express, Banana Republic, Macy’s, Gap etc. You can bring a leather portfolio or a simple black leather tote (small to medium) to store a note pad, pen and a bottle of water and any other essentials like your wallet. For outerwear, a nice pea coat or trench coat pairs well with business attire.  Don’t over think it, most of the program directors I encountered have said they don’t really care about your attire so don’t break the bank on your medical school income (non-existent) but just put yourself together nicely.

3. Work on your elevator pitch. School?  Hometown? What is your passion within medicine? Why do you want the field you’re applying to? What are you looking for in a residency program (all the curriculums look generally the same due to AAMC requirements but what additional factors are important to you – is it location? Close to home? On-call hours? Specific elective opportunities? Why would they want you? Having a concise statement to answer all of these questions in a minute or less in a way that doesn’t sound scripted will prepare you for interviews as well as networking opportunities outside of your interviews. 4. Homework to do before your interview: Know the resident profiles of the residency – read about their values, experiences and interests to see how you’d fit in.  Re-read your personal statement if it might have been a while since you read it.  Re-read your CV you submitted on ERAS to make sure you remember every activity or research you inclluded in case it is a conversation piece. Do some research on the faculty and the program director that will be interviewing you (think of it as the equivalence to some light facebook stalking…you wouldn’t reiterate all their accolades but it’s nice to know to causally drop in a conversation when you have nothing to talk about so you can get them talking about theirselves) 5. What do they ask you on interviews? Anything …really. The most common questions I was asked in every interview were: Tell me about yourself. Why do you want to be a ____doctor? Why our program? What are your strengths and weaknesses? What are your career plans for after residency?  Beyond these questions it was really casual conversation.  The number one question you are guaranteed to be asked a million times are: Do YoU hAvE aNy QuEsTiOnS fOr Me? …you might want to say no but please don’t.  Before your interview you should review the program’s website and make note of things you’d like to ask questions about.  If you think you know there is everything to know about this program you can restate facts about the program you love and ask them to elaborate further or just simply try your best to form a question…it shows interest (they say it’s okay if you don’t have any but please try to have 1 or 2).  You are interviewing them just as much as they are interviewing you. 6. How will your interview day be structured? Most programs send you an itinerary the week or a few days before the interview telling you how long each portion is and with whom.  If they don’t, you can request it politely but you still might not get it until the day of the interview (which sucks because you can’t do your research on your interviewers but it’s okay). On average interviews can range from 15minutes-30 minutes per interview and you can get anywhere from 3-5 or more of those per day.  Interview day is long but you will get used to it. At some point there will be a tour of the hospital given by a resident (this is where comfy shoes come in handy).  After a while you’ll be over seeing another hospital because let’s be honest every ICU looks the same for the most part but your job is to stay tuned in and again…ask questions because the hospital tour is an interview just like everything else during the day.  Be friendly and get to know the other candidates, you might make friendships that last beyond interview day and who knows you might end up at the same program.  The programs are also taking note of how you interact with people and whether or not you’re a good fit for their program. 7. So its October/November and I still haven’t heard from the program of my dreams rejecting me or inviting me to an interview. Or maybe I haven’t heard from any programs at all? Here’s where a polite letter of intent comes in handy. Some programs use filters to help them sift through the thousands of applications they get. You might have been lost by the filter. Send a letter of intent and make it as personalized as possible to the programs you haven’t heard from stating why you think you’d be a great fit for their program and what you love about their program and if they would review your application for an interview.  Late November, I haven’t heard back from one of the programs I desired and I sent them an email and was offered an interview a few days later. So I can say it definitely is worth doing. 8. Expenses.  Interview season is expensive. You may need to take out extra in your student loans than you do usually. Things that will cost you extra money are the ERAS application fee which increases the more programs you apply to, gas for your car for interviews you drive to,  Uber/Lyft or other rideshare, air fare for interviews you may have to fly to, hotels for overnight stays that aren’t covered by the residency program (I lucked out because Family Medicine programs on average love to wine and dine us and reserved nice hotels for me to stay in free of charge ).  My entire interview season costed me about $6,000.  The AAMC estimates that for students the range is anywhere from $3,000-$7,000.  It varies depending on how many interviews are local or how many programs you applied to.  Sooo much money I know…but if it makes you feel better you get free lunch on interview day and even a three course dinner if you opt to go to the “optional” pre-interview social the night before (Take advantage). You might also be visiting a new town or city, if you can explore the area a bit before going home it’s a nice mini trip and way to see if you could imagine yourself living there for the next 3+ years. 9. Pre-interview dinner – is it optional? It is but if you can go, I’d say go.  It’s a nice chance to get to know some of the residents outside of work without the faculty around. You also get to eat like a king on someone else’s dime. They won’t scrutinize you for not going but it does look nice if you went. If you do go, don’t just sit there and eat, please be social because although the residents say its casual…your impressions do matter. 10. Cancelling interviews. If you have been blessed with a decent amount of interviews and you can confidently say you are at a comfortable amount with all the programs you desire going to scheduled then by all means cancel.  Cancel as early as you can so it leaves room for other applicants who may have wanted to interview there to accept the offer.  Generally, 1 week to a month in advance is preferred.  Be polite when doing so because it does reflect on your school. 10 interviews scheduled is the average comfort zone (so they say).  I was paranoid and went on way more interviews beyond that because I wanted to be sure of my choice in the end.  I’m happy I did that because if I were to cancel interviews without going to see the program in person I’m sure I’d miss out.  On that same note, don’t be afraid to reject interview offers from places you know you absolutely would not want to end up (this may happen if you applied broadly just to have some options) – only do this if you have a decent amount of interviews scheduled. 11. What do I do after interview day? Most programs will say do not reach out with a thank you note. If they don’t say this you are free to send a thank you note if you wish. I did not send any thank you notes and I don’t believe it negatively affected me.  Interview season is very busy for the program coordinators scheduling interviews…they don’t need to read my generic thank you note/email that I will be sending to every program.  However, if I did have a question that wasn’t answered on interview day I would go ahead and reach out. 12. How do I make my Rank Order List? Only rank programs you interviewed at because only those programs have a chance at ranking you.  Only rank programs you would like to end up at. Rank them in the order of YOUR preference not how you think they might like you.  Go with your gut. I advise you send  a letter of intent as you make your Rank List to the program directors of perhaps your top 5 programs.  I sent a letter to my number one program telling them I will be ranking them number 1.  To programs #2-5 I told them I was ranking them highly.  You might not get any response (that’s okay), Match rules say programs can’t tell you they’re ranking you and they can’t ask you if you’re ranking them but there aren’t any rules against you volunteering the information.  Be careful of wording, I would NOT tell my number 2 program that I am ranking them number 2 (no one wants to hear that).  Make sure to tell them what you love about their program as well and why you’d be a great fit. 13. How will I know if I will match? You don’t. You may have feelings. Programs might tell you they think you’d be a great fit. You might get a post card or a letter from programs or a phone call follow up. They might hint and nudge and wink at you. With all this being said…you still don’t know for sure what the outcome of Match Day will be.  All you can do is hope, pray and have faith that the feelings you got from those interactions are genuine.

[bugsnchats]

Theory time: Feast

So, I've been thinking all this time that Gabe and Emilie, were a hero duo before Emilie “fainted” (in my head I call her Mr. Freeze wife lolz). When you think about it and also what Gabe said in Feast, I think she was doing her own “thang” and Gabe was just supportive of her. Looking back at origins part 1, Nooroo is explaining everything to Gabriel in the intro. His only debut was as Hawk Moth; he picked up the miraculous after Emilie's demise.

I wonder what was Gabe's role in Adrien's life before Emilie’s demise. Adrien said that he wasn't like how he is now. I still think that old Gabe was still distant to him but was just more approachable. The show makes it seem like Emilie was taking care of Adrien's education. I'm thinking this is why she had time to use the peacock miraculous. You only home school for 6 hours a day, at most.

This is still the man who told his son "Agresté are soloist". He's an American with a capitalism mindset. Work is the best thing you can do for your family. He said to himself one day, ‘Em is out battling Hollywood assholes and #MeToo offenders! Damn, I got to bring home the bacon.” This is his justification for not fighting crime with her. He may have been family first, but I think that he wasn't using this time to nurture Adrien.

[boymeetsweevil]

bts as boyfriends

a/n: tbh this was basically a list of things i just had swirling around in my head and its basically a continuation of my moments w/ bts and sleepovers w/ bts

Kim Seokjin

Squishes your cheeks together in his big ol’ hands because he can and because he thinks you look cute that way

Is highkey a fan of having matching stuff, but not full-blown couple outfits

thats where he draws the line >:|

Created a separate instagram account just to document the meals you guys have together on your date nights

Dumb (but cute) snapchats of him doing that fast yelling thing he does but he just tells you how much he misses you rly aggressively

also spams you with selfies and videos from other members’ accounts

Pets names hmmm

prefers to call you Doll 

yeobo seems too serious (its what his parents call each other)

Sweetie/Honey makes him feel like an old woman

On your one year anniversary he gave you a 5000 dollar watch but presented it in a box wrapped in printer paper that had his face printed all over it that he made in Microsoft word with some of the editing crew’s help

all of his gifts get wrapped this way 

Jin Is scary serious when you take a selfie together

“Babe, this isn’t the angle--quick lets move over here so we can still catch the light” ***proceeds to sprint ahead of you to some random spot where the lighting is optimal and hurry u over like “ >:( cmon the sun is setting” ***

Is not your typical PDA type, will do weird things just to embarrass you

puts his hand in your back pocket while you’re in the starbucks line and smiles when you give him incredulous side eye

rests his phone on your head to mock you for being shorter than him

Links arms with you like old lady gal pals while you’re walking because he knows you HATE IT

fake moans when you swat his arm for being weird and embarrassing

you shushing him and ending up just glaring because he has no shame and there’s an old man glaring at u on the subway

You can bet he tests out recipes on you!

some of ur most romantic nights have been when you come over just casually but the whole house smells like food he’s been tweaking

you sit at a stool by the kitchen island and he comes by with like 8 different sauces you need to try and noodles to test for texture

He is the type of boyfriend that thinks its funny to gross you out

he eats food the fell on the floor just to piss you off

will kiss u while he’s chewing gum :(

touches u with his bare feet  :((((((

Min Yoongi

Is less bold but NEVER lacking with his affection

Likes to take walks in any weather

E.g. Loves when its rainy because then you have to huddle close because he INSIsts on sharing an umbrella

E.g. Will even walk in the winter/end of fall because he likes to share mittens and scarves - this is the closest thing to cheesy you will ever get with him

Isn’t the type to send selfies

if he does, its just of his shoes of the day with an ironic caption like “rate my fit and i’ll follow back” 

Readily accepts all of your selfies, though

Upgraded his phone 2x just so he could have the extra storage to save all your photos

a lot of them are blackmail worthy, which is the reason for saving them half the time

Yoongi Is a champ when you get drunk

will hold your hair back

lets you spit your gum out into his bare fucking hand before u hurl and will not flinch 

rejects all of your lewd propositions, but may record you and play back your whiny drunk voice the next morning to make you reconsider taking shots next time (PS u dont ever reconsider)

he likes home dates too, obvi

usually you schedule naps at his place because everything about his bedroom is better than yours

mattress is huge and the perfect firmness

sheets are higher thread-count 

can sleep with his hand up your shirt all he wants because he doesn’t have any roommates at his own place

pillows are always cool to the touch BUT

he might schedule dates at your place if he’s been away and just wants to bury himself in your smell. Speaking of...

...Yoongo is a smeller

he is always smelling you, loves how you smell

He smells your hair while zoning out waiting for his americano to come out when ur at a cafe

He’ll wrap himself around you from behind and sniff your neck idly while he plays candy crush on your belly while u try to cook dinner

Nicknames vary on his mood/your behavior

brat - for when you’re being a brat duh

kid - default, all purpose and a little mocking

your last name when he’s feeling rowdy

your first name when he’s emotional

Jung Hoseok

Hobi always runs full force at u when he sees you even if you’ve been in each other’s faces all week

Whenever he’s bored and you’re nearby he’ll moonwalk around you

You love to watch him practice but you also hate it because if you make eye contact he’ll come over and try to pull you in to teach you

He’s tried to teach you to dance dozens of times and you never get any of his choreo

usually it ends in him maneuvering you into a slow 2 step

which then always becomes a tiny makeout session

but honestly so many other random activities you do together turn into makeout sessions because tbh hob is a bit of a greaseball

this means that half the time you’re ignoring him pawing at u and making cheesy jokes during inopportune times 

the other half of the time ur dragging him by the collar and looking for an empty room to take him into because u dig him and his cheesy horndog antics

He’s also lowkey highkey a dudebro

crowds you because he wants to chest bump and ur like “-.- again?”

kept trying to get your secret couple greeting to be that little surfer hand thingie he does with tae sometimes and u said no because neither of u are 8 anymore

likes spontaneous dates, so usually you’ll text him wyd and if he’s free he’ll just answer ‘coming to get u now’ and then you sigh and slip on your shoes and wonder when you’ll be able to have a date where its not 10:30 at night and you’re not wearing sweats and ur not going out just to go eat some chicken by the Han

You utilize all your privileges that you have dating him to visit Mickey

any time there is a break in the guys’ scheduling you say you want to visit mickey

He lowkey hates those days because you just lie on the floor next to mickey and eat the snacks his mom puts out and COMPLETELY ignore him

u and his sister take turns petting mickey and telling embarrassing stories about hob while he sulks in the corner

he gets revenge by taking 20 pics of ur back and doodling horns on ur head and spamming u with them

Probably would call you a bunch of weird things as a pet name

ducky, peaches, cutie, hotpot, captain etc.

sometimes calls you sweet thang but only when its after dark and he’s trying to make moves

Hobi is the type to always want idle touch but its not exclusively sexy u kno?

if you’re watching tv together he’ll have an arm slung over you

if you’re out to dinner, he gravitates towards booths so he can press his shoulder against yours

if you’re chilling in bed you HAVE to be rubbing his arm or else he’ll give you the most ridiculous pout [its so cute tho :’C ]

Thinks you’re the funniest person alive, is always laughing at stuff you said whether if was supposed to be a joke or not

which means he does that deep hiccuping giggle all the time and you just :’))))))

He’s so patient and let’s you test out all your new skin care products on him because he likes having your hands on his face and the way you talk softly half to him, half to yourself while you talk about what you’re doing

maybe its ASMR lmao

Kim Namjoon

The first thought you had after you started dating was that you could touch his dimples any time you wanted

so naturally you do

he has long since gotten used to you just touching them while he’s driving, reading, listening to music, just existing

the first time you did it he was just talking to you about something and when he felt your finger nudge his dimple 

Joon: “I feel like if we visited in the spring we could go frog catching and maybe then we could-----*you jam your finger into his dimple*

You: and? what were you saying?

Joon: uhhhh I forgot :0

a fan of couple outfits but not in the same sense Jin. its more like he likes to plan your outfits

he gets really excited when he thinks of something you would look good in and always gets really bashful right before he shows it to you because he wants you to like it

he has great taste and is very observant of u and ur style so there has never been a time where he has planned an outfit for u and u looked less than amazing

same for photos, he takes really good artsy photos of you all the time

thats what 80% of dates with him are

walking through the city at night so he can take a picture of you with the city scape behind you

or going to those instagram-able cafes in the city during their slow hours so he can pictures of your coffees and you sitting next to a pastel neon sign that says like Love Hurts or something edgy like that

taking photos like that one girl and her bf who travel alot on ig, u know the one

but u never actually manage to get a good shot like that because ur always like ‘joon my arm hurts why dont u be the girl’

He’s in general big on googling popular activities and getaways and making a big deal of documenting it 

as a result: he’s been working on a scrapbook and he thinks you don’t know but you and all 6 other members and even Bang PD know about the scrapbook

he gives it to you on your anniversary and even though youre expecting it, you cry

he takes photos of that too and it goes in the one for next yr lol

He calls you baby of course

but not in an exaggerated/pronounced way

it comes out super naturally and he says it more than he says your actual name

u better Get used to just turning around and catching him giving you that one soft smile he does with his whole face 

“is there something on my face?” 

“no, just enjoying the view <3”

Always wants to make your plate when u visit his home, and always ALWAYS gives you too much food

going there and realizing that maybe its a family thing as you watch his mom heftily scoop vegetables onto his dad’s plate while his dad looks on in worry about where he’s going to fit it

Using Joon’s lap as a pillow!!!

he can read and stroke your head while you snooze

him humming off key because he thinks it helps you sleep

Park Jimin

Before you started dating, Jimin seemed like the guy that everyone loves because he’s effortlessly cool and charming

And he is even after you start dating BUT

He is also a little praise monster and lives for your compliments

Jimin takes advantage of the fact that you are obviously enamored with him and will do things to fluster you on purpose

runs his hands through his hair because he knows you can’t look away

gets unnecessarily close to tell you things because he knows you get goosebumps when he whispers in your ear

plays chicken with you all the time

slow looks at u until u squirm

HE’s a menace

but also reminds you of a bumblebee

Jimin loves to go to see the latest comedy movies and those are always fun

Not because the movies are actually that funny (lowkey he has really bad taste in comedy movies), but because he will LOSE IT in the middle of the theatre and end up slumped over the armrest just laughing his head off

Cue the high squeaky laugh where he can’t even see the movie screen anymore because his eyes are squeezed shut :3

After the movie he always tries to retell funny scenes like

“And then *laughs* did you see the part where the guy *laughs* *laughs more* and then he *dolphin noises*

“Yeah, Minnie it was funny”

He always wants you to come to the gym with him because he gets an unnecessary amount of motivation from those gym couple accounts on instagram

You go in your big t-shirt and shorts and he goes in a similar outfit 

It always ends up with u watching him because again he looks good when he lifts weights and does squats

he likes the attention too 

Calls u cutie

but thinks its funny to sometimes address u as his favorite anime villian’s name ur always like hmm time to go now

He’s a feeder kinda like joon

YOu can’t ever eat anything by yourself, he always wants to cut things for you, spoon feed you 

he’s very caring

This means he also is super attentive when ur sick and will bring u soup and play cards in bed and always refresh ur water and bother u about taking medicine

Kim Taehyung

Everything with Taehyung is beautiful and u feel beautiful with him which is so amazing and crazy at the same time

He is a big cheerleader for u he loves everything u do

You made a badly folded origami and he shouted cute and was so genuine and got it laminated somehow and keeps it as a keychain accessory

He’s always showing you things

like some of his favorite classical art pieces that he’s saved pictures of on his phone

sometimes he tells you about how he can’t wait to plan the perfect trip to europe with u so u can visit some of his favorite pieces face to face

Always showing u his new (and old) favorite songs and movies

some of ur dates are going to see old films or foreign films at this one really hip theatre in the city

he bought a gramophone a little while back before u started dating and he loves to play records for you and lie with you on the floor and show u  the best parts of the song with his hands in the air

He has a fancy camera too that he uses to document “special moments”

when u asked him how come he always uses it to take picture of u then he was like everything with u is special and u had to tackle him and cover his whole face in kisses because he cant just say things like that without facing the consequences

He keeps a journal where he doodles in the margins and writes songs and poems that only some people have seen like yoongi or jimin

he tried to draw you once and it came out looking a little strange but he’s still learning and u love him for it

He also gets soo sooo excited when you show him your favorite things

u dont do it as much because they dont seem as cultured or pretty but u show him a movie from ur childhood that u still watch once or twice a year and his eyes were huge the whole time and he was so glad to watch it with you

Calls u Jagi because he likes what it means and its truly accurate

U guys are just on the same wavelength and he really appreciates that u dont find him weird or quirky or overly pretentious even

u finish each others sentences and can predict moods pretty well its a little scary for the guys to watch u talk to each other in half sentences and know what the other means

When u first met, it was through Joon because he thought u guys would click and he was super nervous and worried because a lot of ppl don’t really GET him

Maybe at ur blind date a song came on in the restuarant u were in and it was a song he really liked

and then u were really shyly like “it feels like when you find a really special spot in the woods that nobody knows about” and hes like

“yeah, it really does” and then goes home and writes ur name 20 times in his notebook before getting the courage to call u about a 2nd date

Jeon Jungkook

You already know what it is with this kid: MEME CENTRAL

seriously ur texts are like 80% reaction pictures you downloaded off the internet that just get cycled over and over again because they’ve started to replace certain common phrases and emotions

Yoongi tried to jack JKs phone once and read the messages out loud to the members to try and embarrass him and he actually couldn’t read the last 24 hours of messages because it was literally all pictures/emojis

JK thinks ur laugh is the best sound he’s ever heard and is always trying to bring it out

he makes so many weird faces

those also become memes in the chat

he does so many exaggerated moves from choreo just to get u to crack up

does random weird things with his voice at inappropriate times to get u to choke

Like Jimin he is a praise monster

he wants u to think he’s impressive because he thinks ur very accomplished and cool and he’s still very much the young shy boy he was before joining the band.

Does flips because he knows u love it and won’t leave u alone until u confirm that u are in fact watching

JK: “Hey, hey, watch this LOOK are u looking?”

YOU: “Yes oh my god what?”

JK:*Does a backflip*

YOU:.........DUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUDEEE WTF ITS LIT IN HERE

JK: *internally* i can die now

Get ready for some next level cuteness OMG

the little nose scrunch will become the most frequent thing

u will be ruffling his hair and it’ll tickle so he’ll scrunch his nose and u’ll just explode its amazing

The BABY SMILE every time its been a while since you’ve seen each other

You’ll practically tackle him and he loves it and spins u around a little too fast

Those big sparkly eyes that he has?????

prepare for those when its his night to cook but he doesn’t feel like it and says he wants to order pizza for the billionth time

You can’t say no to him ever

gaming is not your thing but he will rope you into a 3 hour Fortnight tutorial because u love him

Not really big on pet names, or like any names for that matter

but he will use your actual name for when he wants ur undivided attention

Is scared that you think he’s immature so sometimes he’ll try to go a day without making a joke and then its ur job to try your hardest to crack him up

this is good because ultimately u also love his high pitched loud laugh 

[lenin-it-to-win-it]

rabbit tour!

i just made a “shelf” so all my stuffed animals weren’t crowded on the windowsill and i used this as an opportunity to take pictures of all the ones i have with me so here we go!

this is artemis, a majestic and powerful silver rabbit with a very dramatic backstory

basically i was 5 hours away from home on a work trip and i saw her in the window of a shop BUT it hadn’t opened yet so i had to walk away not knowing if I would have time to get back to the shop before it closed, if someone else would buy the rabbit, or if i even had enough money to buy the rabbit in the first place 

the most I was willing to spend was $20, not because I don’t think this rabbit is a priceless artifact of beauty, but bc im a peasant and my job was technically volunteer work and paid less than minimum wage but ANYWAY i go on and on about this fucking rabbit to anyone who will listen, my coworkers are plotting ways to murder me that will look like an accident, but we get back to the store and the rabbits still there AND ITS ExACTLY $20 SO I IMMEDIATELY BUY IT WITH NO REGRETS BEST PURCHASE OF MY LIFE 

here are some little baby babies i have clipped to my backpack (can you tell i like rabbits???), the yellow one on top is bun might for obvious reasons

 the one in the middle is technically unnamed but i call him sergeant pez bc hes a pez dispenser and he was in one of my dads old military trunks for like a million years until he was cleaning them out and gave him to me 

the light green one is the newest addition, her name is mochi and shes so fucking soft you guys its like petting a delicate cloud 

these arent rabbits but theyre still valid so shut up, the black cat is named agugu (short for akutagawa) bc i was into bung/ou s/tray d/ogs at the time 

the panda in the middle was a gift from my roommate and her name is monochrome because i have another panda back home thats purple and her name is. purple. so i wanted to stick with the theme here

the white tiger is named at2shi after atsushi (from b/ungou st/ray d/ogs again) who can turn into a white tiger but also i already had ANOTHER non-white tiger that was named atsushi so this one is at2shi 

more wild thangs that arent rabbits!

the elephant is слон or “sloane”, слон means elephant in russian and it’s kind of pronounced like the name sloane so it’s a very deep complex and intellectual name, clearly. слон is a puppet that shrieks like the souls of the damned when you squeeze him and he was a gift from my high school russian teacher because i would be Blessed with the duty of making слон scream at students who were speaking english in class, he’s a good comrade 

the tiger is atsushi, im sure you can figure out his deal based on at2shi, i got him at the zoo and hes lovely

the red panda with the minnie ears might have had another name at some point but during my regrettable b/s/d phase i started calling him chuuya and it stuck, also now i put my minnie ears on him bc his head’s the perfect size so im more or less using him as a hat rack which is very on brand for chuuya actually

the purple sloth staring into the camera (and your soul) is gasloth leroux and i won him at dave and busters after re-reading phantom of the opera

(last batch of non-rabbits)

the bear in the snazzy tunic is radar, he was originally my mom’s as a baby and she gave him to me as a baby and since i dont intend on spawning im hoarding him forever #life hack 

yall better know who fucking kermit is 

aannnd we already went over слон in the last picture so! back to the rabbits!

welcome to the purple corner, friends!

the little all purple one in the back is sukie, and she is just baby, only little creacher, nothing can change that, she was a gift for easter i think two years ago now 

the purple and white rabbit with the pink nose laying next to the cardboard shapes is named violet and her fur is very soft and lovely but she has some kind of hard panel inside (she moves, maybe? idk) so not exactly optimized for cuddling, still shes a good girl

the hulking googly eyed purple yarn monstrosity is roundy blumbo and he was handmade by my terrible but talented sister @rattypants​

most of these are new arrivals because walgreens has easter rabbits out and some of them were literally only three dollars so yeah but anyway

the grey one with the pink bow is named toshi after all might (i got him about the same time as bun might so b/nha heavily owned my ass at the time) and hes absolutely perfect for cuddling, very soft and long

the blue one is named bluebell the second or “twobell”, when I was younger I had a really tiny blue stuffed rabbit named bluebell that i would take everywhere but one day i dropped it somewhere in or around a ymca and lost it forever and i literally did not stop crying for two whole days because of it, bluebell the second is a spiritual successor who hopefully wont get lost 

the one that looks just like bluebell the second but not blue is marshmallow, bluebell the seconds identical twin brother who was also 3 dollars because literally, THREE DOLLARS

the one with light brown fur and orange ears is named gingersnap carrot cake because I liked both names and couldnt decide and since i bought him around the same time as bluebell the second and marshmallow, he’s their mischievous older brother and together i guess that makes them the rabbit mcelroys 

now the round rabbit next to toshi with the floppy ears and a smaller rabbit with a green dress on its back is rose and bunnia, the larger one is rose, the mother, and bunnia is her daughter, they have a very close relationship as you can see

the small white and brown rabbit next to rose and bunnia is spenser, named after edmund spenser, creator of the spenserian sonnet, bc i bought her at a renn faire and thought she should have an old timey name, shes a literary icon 

now we’re getting into the old guard! all the rabbits in this picture (aside from carrot cake gingersnap whomst is a SLUT FOR ATTENTION) are all ones i got between the ages of 6-10, so theyre my day ones uwu

the brown rabbit with floppy ears is mocha, she was a christmas present when i was 9 years old and shes probably the most rabbit-shaped rabbit i have 

the rabbit with the bright pink scarf is beatrice (i dont have favorites except actually i do and its beatrice), I got her when i was 7 years old from goodwill and one of her arms was kind of loosely connected and started falling off which Horrified me and i tried to “take care of her” by using a bit of ribbon as a sling, eventually my grandma sewed her arm back on so then i used the ribbon as a scarf and ever since then beatrice has had a scarf of some kind  

the rabbit next to beatrice with the black button eye is wrinkly pinkly, who lost her eye in the warTM (it fell off years later but she claims to have lost it in the war anyway and shes old so everyone just goes along with it), shes very loose and as the name implies, VERY wrinkly which makes her fun to wiggle around 

the bright pink rabbit with the wide head is anna, beatrice’s mom and wrinkly pinkly’s sister, her husband griffy is back home so i dont have a picture of him but their story is very enemies-to-lovers (they were on opposite sides of The War) and shes a very ambitious and powerful figure in rabbitopia despite having hundreds of kids to raise #feminist icon 

the light pink rabbit with the yarn dress is madison, ironically named long before i even remotely knew that madison, wisconsin was a place that exists, and shes beatrice’s younger sister and shes very active and athletic but she also likes being pretty which is why i made her the yarn dress

cottontail (he doesnt actually have a tail) is the town drunk and a constant nuisance, his wife left him so now he’s always hoeing around and causing trouble for everyone (which is also what he did Before his wife left him), one of his legs is more filled than the other so he walks with a limp. his wife took most of the children except

darnell (the long pink rabbit lying down), who inherited her dad’s troublemaking tendencies and loves playing pranks and talking shit 

(last one, for all the zero people who are still reading at this point)

next to cottontail we have aminta in the green dress, i bought her at the airport and shes a very beautiful and distinguished young rabbit who madison is ABSOLUTELY gay for, she’s very proper and is being brought up by

hera nova (the white rabbit with the pink nose and floppy ears in the back) who is the oldest rabbit i have (Ive had her since i was at least 5, though she didn’t get a name until i was in my greek mythology phase a few years later), shes sort of a grandma to all the other rabbits and could absolutely destroy them all if she wanted to 

karoline (yes with a k, i didnt know the kardashians were a Thing back then) is the yellow rabbit with the basket, she works at rabbitopia’s most popular restaurant, the spinning carrot, and she is one of the three main chefs along with her sister 

bonnie, the pink rabbit with only one ear, she got torn up pretty badly over the years but shes still alive and still spinning those carrots!! (there was a third rabbit that worked with them named fritz who was white and holding an easter egg but i don’t remember what happened to her) 

so there we go! rabbits! lots of them! 

[consulting-celiac-in-the-tardis]

57 Easy Gluten Free Recipes for Summer Picnics and Potlucks

New blog post! Now that the weather is finally (sloooowly) warming up and holidays like Memorial Day and Fourth of July are right around the corner, I know that summer picnics and potlucks are just as close. But when you have celiac disease or dietary restrictions, summer entertaining can feel a little more complicated.

That's why this year, I thought I'd scope out some of the best gluten free recipes for summer picnics and potlucks. Whether you're looking for healthy appetizers, gluten free lunches fit for a picnic or easy paleo desserts, this round up should give you some delicious ideas. Not to mention, it should make bringing a yummy and gluten free dish to every summer get-together a whole lot easier!

Gluten Free Sides

1. Bacon Cheddar Jalapeno Cornbread (Nut Free, Refined Sugar Free) - Raia's Recipes  

Trust me. If you show up with gluten free bread at a summer potluck, you're gonna be the life (or at least the taste buds) of the party.

2. Easy Potato Salad with Egg - Bubba Pie

Give your potato salad an extra boost of protein with hardboiled eggs.

3. Hawaiian Macaroni Salad (Vegan, Soy Free) - Spabettie

Pineapple, vegan mayo, sweet pickles and pickled carrots give this macaroni salad a unique, Hawaiian twist.

4. Broccoli Apple Slaw - Noshtastic

Change up the traditional cabbage slaw recipe by using broccoli and apple instead!

5. Creamy Pea Salad - Recipes From a Pantry

If you're looking for a seriously easy low carb side dish that is still sure to peas (ahem...please) a crowd...this is it! All you need to make it are fresh (or frozen!) peas, bacon, cheese and a few other ingredients for the sour cream dressing.

6. Black Bean and Corn Salad with Balsamic Vinegar (Dairy Free) - The Welcoming Table

Add grilled chicken or pork to make this gluten free salad a meal, or serve it as a side dish or dip!

7. German Cucumber Salad - Casserole Crissy

For any gardeners out there, this is the perfect recipe to use up any leftover cucumbers.

8. Asian-Inspired Sesame Cilantro Carrot Salad (Paleo and Vegetarian) - Natasha, The Artisan Life

Even carrot haters will be won over by the Asian flavors in this gluten free salad dressing.

9. Bone Broth Pesto (Nut Free) - Casey the College Celiac

Enjoy the creamy, tanginess of pesto with the added protein and nutritional benefits of bone broth. Serve with veggies, gluten free crackers or roasted sweet potato rounds (which are also included in the linked recipe above)! 

10. Watermelon Mint Salad with/out Feta (Dairy Free Option) - Finding Zest

Who knew that watermelon and balsamic vinegar made such a tasty pair?

11. White Bean Salad (Vegan, Soy-Free, Nut-Free) - Happy Healthy Mama

Fresh basil, cherry tomatoes, avocado and lemon juice turn plain white beans into a side salad everyone will be digging into.

12. Zucchini Roll-Ups (Vegan, Paleo) - Claudia Canu 

These roll-ups are super simple to make but that doesn't make this combo of veggies and gluten free hummus any less delicious!

13. Goat Cheese Cucumber Bites (Keto, Low Carb) - The Keto Option

Gluten free Everything But the Bagel Seasoning dresses up these mini goat cheese and cucumber sandwiches.

14. Creamy Sweet Potato Salad (Paleo) - Cathy's Gluten Free

Is there any occasions sweet potatoes aren't perfect for?!? I don't think so...

15. Focaccia with Olives, Sundried Tomato & Rosemary (Grain Free, Paleo, Refined Sugar Free) - Emma Eats and Explores

Like I said before...you seriously can't go wrong with bringing homemade gluten free bread.

16. 5-Minute Guacamole (Vegan, Keto, Paleo, Oil-free, Whole 30) - Veg Annie

Homemade salsa gives this homemade guac an extra kick of freshness and flavor.

17. Mexican Street Corn - Confessions of a Fit Foodie

Like corn on the cob, only a lot tastier and less messy to eat!

18. Spicy Mango Dip (Vegan) - Fun Food Frolic

Serve this gluten free and vegan dip with some gf bread or pita, and it'll disappear in no time. You can whip it up in 15, minutes, too!

19. Easy Tuna Spread - Goodnesst 

This gluten free spread only requires three ingredients, five minutes to make and is delicious when served with crackers, veggies or tossed in a salad.

20. Red Potato Salad with Avocado and Egg - Attainable Sustainable

Typical potato salad gets an upgrade with some healthy fats from avocado in this gluten free side dish.

21. Curried Cauliflower Mac and Cheese (Vegan) - Casey the College Celiac

If you want to add some hidden veggies to a family classic, you'll love my curried cauliflower mac and cheese, which only takes five ingredients to make.

Gluten Free Mains

22. Avocado, Asparagus and Chicken Salad (Paleo, Mayo Free) - Tasting Page

If mayo ain't your thang, you'll love this paleo chicken salad, which gets its creaminess from avocado and a homemade dressing.

23. Corn and Zucchini Pie - A Simple Pantry

If a quiche and a frittata had a baby, this would be it. Plus, this cheesy pie only takes an hour - including 45 minutes of it doing its thang in the oven - to make.

24. Melon Mozzarella Prosciutto Salad with Arugula - Taste and See

Combine classic Italian ingredients with a traditional Caprese salad, and you end up with an ideal summer entertaining dish.

25. Grilled Balsamic Lamb Kabobs - Foodal

I'll admit, I've never tried lamb before, but these kabobs would definitely have me digging in.

26. Quinoa Tabbouleh Salad - Spice Cravings

Traditionally, tabbouleh salad is a Middle Eastern vegetarian salad featuring ingredients like parsley, mint, Bulgar wheat, tomatoes, onion, cucumber and a lemon dressing. This gluten free version replaces the bulgar wheat with quinoa, which not only makes it allergy friendly but also packed with extra protein!

27. Zesty Smashed Chickpea Salad Sandwich (Vegan) - Moon and Spoon and Yum

The best kind of sandwiches have a mix of different textures and flavors...and this smashed chickpea salad has ALL the flavor punches you're looking for.

28. Southwest Quinoa Salad (Dairy-Free Option) - Mama Knows Gluten Free

You can't go wrong with a bowl of quinoa dressed up with avocados, black bean, corn, grape tomatoes, mozzarella and a cilantro honey lime dressing.

29. Shrimp Pasta Salad - Hot Pan Kitchen

Olives and sun-dried tomatoes give this cold gluten free salad an extra boost of flavor.

30. Spanish Waldorf Salad - Zestful Kitchen

This Spanish twist on a classic Waldorf salad complements a variety of different meals, and you can prepare all of the different ingredients ahead of the time.

31. Easy Cheesy Loaded Cauliflower Casserole (Low Carb) - Wholesome Yum

This gluten free casserole has all the flavors of a baked potato, minus the carbs. And you can't go wrong with bacon!

32. Tuscan Pasta Salad (Nut Free, Egg Free) - Meaningful Eats

Just 'cause you're gluten free doesn't mean you can't enjoy a very delicious pasta salad on a pretty summer day.

33. Cauliflower Salad (Vegan, Low Carb, Keto) - Cooking Journey

Cauliflower just got a very tasty upgrade with this easy, raw salad recipe.

34. Easy Cucumber Tomato Feta Salad (Vegetarian) - Mom Foodie

You can't go wrong with a classic...

35. Kale Quinoa Salad + Cider Vinegarette - Pass Me Some Tasty

Make sure you use gluten free cranberries and walnuts, and the sweet and savory mix of flavors will be a major winner in this salad.

36. Chickpea Thai Quinoa Salad with Peanut Dressing - V Nutrition and Wellness

Add a creamy peanut sauce to a salad with quinoa, chickpeas, carrots, cabbage and cilantro and you have a Thai feast tastier than any take-out.

37. Prawn & Avocado Salad (Whole 30, Paleo) - Recipe This

If you know Whole 30 or paleo diners will be at your summer picnic, this salad is sure to be a hit.

38. Broccoli Salad with Bacon (Keto, Low Carb) - Whole Lotta Yum

Broccoli has never looked so good...

39. Sweet Potato Black Bean Burger (Vegan) - Evolving Table

This black bean quinoa burger only takes an hour to make and is easy to personalize for whatever beans, sweet potatoes or spices you have on hand. 

40. The Best Homemade Chicken Salad (Paleo, Keto, Whole 30) - The Organic Chicken

Serve this salad on greens, gluten free bread or even half an avocado.

41. Loaded Potato Wedge Nachos (Paleo, Vegan Options) - Casey the College Celiac

'Cause who wouldn't want to dive into a plate of nachos on a beautiful summer day...especially when the base is fluffy roasted potato wedges?!?

Gluten Free Desserts

42. Paleo Strawberry Rhubarb Pie (Low Carb) - The Banana Diaries

I don't know about you, but I will always say yes to a slice of gluten free pie!

43. No Bake Peach Cheesecake Bites (Vegan) - Delightful Adventures

Make sure you use gluten free oats and almonds, and you'll have one heck of a tasty gluten free dessert.

44. Chewy Pumpkin Popcorn Balls (Vegan) - Casey the College Celiac

There's something crazy addictive about that sweet and salty combo. 

45. Pink Lemonade Cupcakes - Fearless Dining

Because is there anything more summer-y than pink lemonade anything?!?

46. Red, White & Blueberry Shortcake Parfaits (Paleo) - Living Loving Paleo

No one will believe that you whipped up these paleo shortcakes from almond flour and a handful of other ingredients you threw in your food processor!

47. Avocado Brownies (Vegan) - Vibrant Guide

Even avocado haters won't be able to get over how thick and fudgy these brownies are...

48. Cream Cheese Pound Cake (Low Carb, Keto) - Fit to Serve Group

Who says you can't eat a keto or low carb diet and eat cake too?!? 

49. Scotcharoos - My Gluten-Free Kitchen

Gluten free puffed rice cereal, peanut butter, chocolate and butterscotch combine into one heck of a tasty no-bake bar.

50. Oatmeal Creme Pies - Hunny I'm Home

Chewy gluten free oatmeal cookies + delicious buttercream icing = dessert heaven.

51. Orange Cake with Almond Meal (Dairy Free) - The Foodie Journey

This cake is only made with a few ingredients and can be prepped to bake in just 10 minutes!

52. Blueberry Muffins (Vegan) - Rhian's Recipes

You can't go wrong with a fluffy blueberry muffin, especially when it's gluten free, vegan and only takes 35 minutes to bake! Plus, there are tons of ingredient options and swaps, so you can probably whip up these muffins with whatever is already in your pantry.

53. S'mores Ice Cream Cake (Vegan) - Pink Fortitude

Ummm...a gluten free and vegan ice cream cake?!? I don't think I need to say anymore...

54. Chocolate, Beetroot & Raspberry Cupcakes - Attachment Mummy 

In case you want to sneak a few veggies into your gluten free dessert.

55. No Bake Cheesecake (Keto, Low Carb) - Low Carb Yum

You can't beat a no-bake cheesecake base topped with fresh summer berries.  

56. Chocolate Chip Coffee Cookies - Think About Such Things

Chocolate chip cookies just got a caffeinated twist! 

57. Blueberry Lemon Bundt Cake (Dairy Free) - Allergy Free Alaska 

I was sold at blueberries...

What I Hope You Remember During This Summer's Potlucks, Picnics and Parties

I know that when you have celiac disease or food allergies, the words "picnic" or "potluck" can cause more fear than excitement. But rest assured - as long as you use one of these gluten free recipes for guidance, you know you'll have at least one delicious meal you can happily enjoy. What are your favorite summer meals or recipes? Tell me in the comments! via Blogger http://bit.ly/2E6xmYR

[journeywithmo]

Obedience

For me I’m a little bit of a private person. I don’t like a lot of people in my business. I tell what I want to tell to who I want to know it. For one I don’t like being judged so my business is mine. Secondly, I don’t want anybody feeling like they have one up. Thirdly, I don’t want anybody using my words against me or have any ammunition to hurt me. But with saying yes to God I must become open; I must put my reservations to the side. So here I am letting yall in on my life. Being as open and forthcoming with yall that I can be. I knew it would get to a point where we would get deep and I would have to tell some of my secrets, but I didn’t think it would be this soon. Shoot we just met each other a week ago. I was thinking we would take baby steps first, but the thing about God is everything is on his time. The only thing we can do is prepare ourselves for that time and most importantly Obey his word when the time does come. Look at me, ready and willing to share my story with ya’ll so that you can obey when he calls and not be like me and learn the hard way. Now before we get into me telling my story I want yall to know the meaning of obedience.  

 Obedience- Compliance with an order; request, or law or SUBMISSION to another’s authority.

 So now you have a clear understanding of what that word means let’s get into me telling yall all my business. So, we all know that this blogging thang was given to me by God. I also told yall that before he gave me this vision, he gave me another one. We’ll call that one SCS for now. He gave me this idea mid-February. I began doing my research on it for the next week or so just ready to dive into this thing God had called me to do. Slowly but surely, I started to get distracted. I started hanging more, partying my life away and drinking like a fish! In result the idea altogether got neglected.  One day at work I started drinking with one of my homeboys, which was nothing out of the ordinary. One pint turned into two pints and two pints turned into a fifth. After the second pint I knew I was drunk, but I couldn’t stop I wasn’t done “having fun” right. So, on lunch I went to the store and got a fifth of Hennessy.  I went back to work and drank the bottle with my homeboys in what I’m told less than 10 minutes. You’d think I had enough right? Wrong! We got off work early on this day and went over to the bar across the street and drank some more.  Fast forward to a couple hours later, because I was blacked out and couldn’t remember anything. I’m standing outside of my car talking to a police officer and doing a sobriety test, which I failed miserably. After failing that I was put in the back of a police car and taken to jail where I had to sleep it off for 8 hours. Now while all of this is happening to me. Both of my sisters are calling my phone, which is dead, now they are at house waiting for me to walk in at any moment but of course I never make it. Six o’clock in the morning rolls around and my brother comes to my house to drop off my niece before he goes to work and there is still no sign of me. At this point everybody is worried, concerned and just scared because imagine not hearing from you loved one for 12 plus hours.  Not knowing if they are okay, not knowing where to look, not knowing if they are dead or alive. Just the feeling of being helpless.  I believe I was released from jail at 10:00am and that’s when I finally called my sisters to come get me. Some would ask the question “Why didn’t you call anybody?” I was pilt okay. Talking about through. I blew a .19 which in legal terms is super drunk. After being released from jail I had to go get my car out of the impound. My brand-new car that I prayed for and worked hard to get out of an impound. I get my car and I barely recognize it, the  front bumper is hanging off on one side and completely missing on the other side. My trunk was smashed in and the inside of my car was full of throw up. I literally broke down right then and there. I was filled with embarrassment, hurt, disappointment and shame. I was like how the heck did I get here how did I do this? Remember I told you I was blacked out so I couldn’t remember much? Well after going to court and reading the police report.  I was driving and a car saw me weaving in and out of traffic hitting different things. The car followed me from Bloomfield to Novi never leaving me until I decided to pull into an empty CVS parking lot and sleep. She then called the police on me and that’s how they found me. Now just to let you all know. I work in Warren, MI I live in Southfield, MI and on a normal day that ride is about 15-20 minutes.  Bloomfield and Novi are about another 15-20 minutes away from my home. Therefore, I was drunk driving for about a good 30-40 minutes before realizing I couldn’t do it anymore. I was sentenced to a year of probation, I must randomly do drug and alcohol testing once a week, I have an intermission interlock on my car. For those who don’t know that’s the device in which you have to blow into before starting your car so it can detect if any alcohol is present. I must complete 6 weeks of substance abuse counseling (which I finished), go to 20 AA meetings, do 25 hours of community service and some weekend program, in which I can’t remember the name of. I cried when I got sentenced, I was embarrassed and just feeling like why me? People do it all the time I see It on Instagram every day! So why me?  It wasn’t until the other day that it dawned on me why. God gave me a vision, he told me to do something and I disregarded everything that he said and started doing my own thing, so he had to get me in alignment one way or another. The words “obedience is better than sacrifice” played in my head and it all made sense. When God tells you to do something you have to do it there’s no other way around it. You can either do it his way or your way, but it has to be done. Had he not sat me down I would not have been doing this, I would have not started school, I would not be getting baptized tomorrow. I feel like in this last quarter of the year God is having his way he is doing everything he wants to do. Rather you like it or not it’s going to be done. Take it from me sister it’s so much better if you go ahead and do it his way.  In this month the word Gratitude is the only thing I can use to describe how I feel. I’m grateful that God shook me up just enough and still spared my life. I’m grateful that even when I threw in the towel, he never stopped fighting, I’m grateful that his will over my life is greater than any force in this world. I’m grateful that he loves me enough to discipline me, I’m grateful that when I gave up on myself, he still believed in me, I’m grateful that he handcrafted me in my mother’s belly and handpicked me to carry out his works. I’m grateful that he is who he says he is and that he never switched up on me.�� 

 Luke 11:28 But he said, Yea rather, Blessed are they that hear the word of God, and keep it.  

Now that I have been walking in obedience and according to the word of the Lord my life is at peace, I’m lighter, free, and less fearful. Sister do what God has called you to do because if he called you, he has equipped you. No matter what distractions come your way stay focus on the promise stay focus on the vision. If he called, you to it he can get you through it. Stay obedient, stay inspired and stay focus.

 I believe in you; I support you and I love you!