#but now i have to go take care of my grandma's dog soon. then i'll be going into town and doing the hospital and other grandma's house

[stillebesat]

You know how Tim made up an Uncle and hired an actor to play Him to prevent Bruce from adopting Tim?

Like...what if he just went to a Rest Home/Assisted Living/Home Care place instead and found a Grandparent aged adult to be his Grandma/pa? Especially if said person has Alizhmers and so doesn't realize that Tim isn't their actual family member. He just wanders around until someone calls out to him like they know who he is. Where they think he's their son or grandson and after a few test runs of them constantly thinking he's related to them, he just runs with it.

It's not like the courts will care. If he can fake an Uncle he can definitely fake a relationship to Grandma Edna, (married 6 and a half times so she tells the staff with pride) and Tim's like "Oh yes she's the first wife of Grandpa Drake but we don't talk about their explosive marriage." (Grandma Edna ran with the mob after all. Did those nasty heists) and Grandpa Drake divorced her lickety split once he found out (hence why no one remembers she was a Drake -because she never was-) because she wasn't on the up and up and Grandpa Drake married Grandma Drake soon after for the status and Grandma Drake was the mother of Jack Drake, his father. But Edna's still family you know and Tim can visit without reprecussions now since he's the last Drake. Which is great. Tim is happy. Grandma Edna is happy to see (name changes every time she sees him) and it's all going great!

.... Until Jason catches on.

Until Jason visits the facility where Grandma Edna is while Tim is there.

Until Grandma Edna is like "Oh Mitchy! Look your father is here. Preston dear. You need to bond with your son! Here's some money *pulls out a wad of cash and a switch blade from behind her oxygen tank* He's been missing you something fierce. Go to a ball game okay? Oh! And Stab the umpire for me. He still owes me for the 86th. You tell him that. He'll know what I mean. And buy a chilli dog! Alex is far too skinny! You need to feed him more Victor." And Tim just....has to go along with it.

Because he can't be exposed. He's had Grandma Edna for a year and a half year now and doesn't want to lose her too.

Now if only he can convince Jason that Tim pretending to be Edna's grandson is much better than Bruce having to adopt him out of obligation. He's not Bruce's son after all. Not family. That's for Jason. "See Jason it's fine. I'm not replacing you like this. I have my own family. It's well...it's fake. But she doesn't realize and that's fine. You don't even have to take me anywhere! She won't remember once you leave, just leave. I'll be fine. It's all fi--why in the world are you buying me a chilli dog!?"

[sockeye-run]

Up early on a Saturday (it's my Friday) again. Usually I get to work early to open the cafe for breakfast service so that our bee pick up customers have a coffee and hot food option on site; a lot of them drive for hours to pick up their nucs and packages, even from out of state. Just coming from north Texas is basically out of state by sheer distance alone lol.

But today is BuzzFest, our annual summer festival about all things bees. We have the American Honey Princess visiting from Iowa, multiple other apiaries and honey producers vending and doing demonstrations, honey tastings and trivia, educational demonstrations, food trucks and arts and crafts and games (including a bouncy castle and a water slide!)... It's expected to be a big event, hopefully nearing 1,000+ customers between 11-3 today.

I'm assigned to retail, so I'm lucky enough to get to stay in the shade and AC. I've been told that when in retail, you just stand behind the register all day, no time or space to do anything else. You have to force bathroom and food breaks for each other. I'm not too worried, I've worked many a high volume, high chaos event before. This is just my first experience with it at the farm. We've spent all week as a team prepping for it, and it should be great. I wanted to make kolaches for my coworkers for a morning treat, but I stayed at work so late yesterday and was exhausted when I got home last night and decided not to stay up late baking lol. I'll grab some from the bakery down the street and try to make everyone a latte or something at work instead.

Because of the absolute disaster that has been this years bee pick up season, everything has been pushed back at least two weeks. Usually BuzzFest, which is the same weekend every year, signals the end of the crazy bee season, but we still have orders going into June. I was kind of looking forward to the break, but it seems we're not quite there yet.

The kids have some family events planned for the beginning of June, so we're getting them a week or so later this year for summer break than usual. We want them to have fun with their free time, so we're cool with it... Plus honestly, I'm hoping it will show good faith for December when I have to ask to keep them longer for an event with my side of the family 😁 my grandma is slowly deteriorating from rheumatoid arthritis and parkinson's, and my mom wants all the generations to be able to spend another holiday with her while we can. I want the kids to be able to participate in my family too. And, it'll let me get through the late bee season with relative ease, I suppose. I'm not gonna lie, I take on a lot of the caretaking responsibility when the kids are around usually, but now my husband has to step up for once lol bc I'm busting my ass full time and won't have the mental or physical energy left over most days to do all I normally do for everyone. He's already suffering the experience of doing regular weekly chores alone and taking care of the dogs all day lolol.

We're also anxiously and concernedly waiting for word on the debt ceiling crisis. They've extended the decision date to June 5, but we won't know if my husband will stop receiving paychecks soon or not, and it's crushing everything with stress pressure. He makes more than me in his military retirement and we depend on his income for survival; I can't support us alone. If they cut military support and punish the average voter for no goddamn reason, per usual, we'll suffer significantly. He's even warned his ex wife that if things go south, we may not be able to afford having the kids visit for summer. We won't be able to feed them. We've already unsubscribed from any extra services like entertainment and delivery and such which we deemed not absolutely necessary, just in preparation. We've re-budgeted and cut out any possible extra spending and reduced allowances for gas and food. I'm hoping it's all a stupid pissing contest like it was about a decade ago, and things will somehow turn out okay. Hope beyond hope.

Time to go work for those pennies baby lol

[aerikaye]

maybe life transitions aren't bad at all

it's been 8 months already since we moved out from my grandma's house.

a lot has changed. like a LOT.

from having the chance to go out every night to buy whatever food i'm craving (convenience stores are just steps away), waking up super early to do my morning walk, buying french vanilla coffee whenever i feel the need to stay awake, having random kwentuhan with lola - these are just few things i'm really missing from the life i had back then at maragondon.

it was then november last year when things got extremely messy and the disrespect thrown towards me, mommy, and my partner was unbearable. as much as we love taking care of lola and the house, we had no choice but to go.

i lived there for a decade and (?) years so staying here emptied my heart for a while. december supposed to be my favorite month - beside the fact that it is my birth month, i get to spend my first christmas with micoh. photo of first time arranging my desk and my bf and mommy preparing bfast <3

here's how my birthday went last year. bf and i went to paskomiket to see talented artists and buy stuff to support them. it was my dream to finally attend an art con! also finally got to see ayala christmas lights! i've always wondered how it looked like when i was a kid :D

now my days are filled with so much love and peace. the smell of fried rice in the early morning, micoh cooking for me at every chance he gets, watching feel-good movies, doing groceries - well some days can feel mundane but honestly i'm grateful of where i am today. i can now finally take mommy on random mall dates and eat a nice lunch or dinner! i almost forgot - i took her to la union! my very first out of town trip. i'm so happy and i can't wait to travel the world with her and micoh. anyways here's a photo of my dog being excited over his lunch!

this life transition shaped me to be who i am today. back then i was a people pleaser with 0 boundaries (idk how to say "no" to people), i realized how bad it was to always adjust myself to other people. simply putting my feelings aside, being agreeable, and not being able to speak for myself drained the hell out of me.

this doesn't mean i'll stop being soft. i'm still soft and a cheerful giver but with healthy boundaries. i only wish nothing but a peaceful and comfortable life for me, micoh, mommy, ice, and my soon to be little one. i can't wait to meet him.

2023 is at its half and there's still so many things to look forward on. i enjoy this slow living environment. i'm grateful for everything i have right now and for what's coming my way in the future. i treasure my friends and supprt system who checks up on me and make time to talk. i am proud of who i am becoming. i feel blessed and at peace with myself.

that's all. talk to u in my next life transition! :)

love,

aeri

[theonlythingimfuckingisstupid]

fukn. tired

[taysanimaladventures]

I need to give some context for my next post(s) because I had some changes recently. Kind of long and personal rant-ish I'll do a TL;DR at the bottom.

So I am never going to sugarcoat this: zookeeper pay is bad. I used to think "whatever I don't need a Mercedes or a large house" but it's closer to "struggling to pay for bills" bad, especially if you're part time. I only have a roof over my head because I'm married but that doesn't mean I'm set up. I still have struggled with personal bills like my car and insurance to the point of going to my dad for help (Side note: being a keeper requires so much privilege in that you need extra assistance since you are working so much for free/low pay. I know my privileged background helped me get here.) I also really want to help my husband and contribute to our expenses and eventually get to owning our own home (not even a house, just something small) some day.

However I was really struggling to figure something out because I wanted to keep a good work/life balance. Honestly I don't know if I will ever consider being a full time keeper again. I found that the amount of stress and work a full time keeper has is significantly more than what a part timer has. As a full timer I had crashed and burned and felt like I was a shell of a person coming home each day. It's been a few years and I'm still trying to break through this issue with depression/chronic fatigue. I'd really rather not go back to square one. Plus, my grandma is slowly deteriorating and I need time to visit with her as often as I can.

The other option is getting a second job. All other part timers at work have second jobs. They are vet techs, horseback riding instructors, retail workers etc. I wanted to go back to the reptile shop I worked at but they were wanting me to work more days than I preferred. I did dog walking for a bit but it was not consistent enough. The job search was a long process because I was extremely picky. I didn't want to be bored, would prefer to work with animals, did not want to work for small business/roadside zoos, didn't want to work too many hours/days lest I deep fry myself.

I finally found that job! It is animal care for a program that takes kids on field trips to local parks and nature centers. The program is with the local school district. I did a little bit of the education part back in May and only recently moved on to animal care. The collection is small and it's mostly herps and inverts. The last few weeks of doing this job I have been very happy with how it's fairly easy, very nice team, cute animals, and supplementing my zoo job without making me permanently exhausted (especially with the summer heat which tires me out faster than usual). If I need more hours I told them I was happy to help in education too.

So like yay I am content! I will be sharing my new animal friends soon.

TL;DR: Zoo job not making enough $$$, scrutinized over finding second job that won't burn me out, found that job and happy with how things are going right now.

[mbrainspaz]

okay so... my Texan feudal lords just told me out of the blue that they're selling their ranch. No telling how fast it will sell but I've heard the market is hot right now. My contract (which I wrote) says they have to give me 2 months warning before kicking me out but I'm sure that won't matter. Not sure what I'm gonna do. I really needed more time to save up to buy a van if I was ever going to get to try that. It's going to destroy me emotionally if I already missed the chance to use my landlords' ultra kitted out tool shed to build out a van or even finish the repairs on my RV.

Nothing ever lasts.

Part of me still misses the daily walks on the abandoned golf course I lived on last year, the weekly hangouts with my mom and grandma, and living over a garage. I'm so used to leaving things behind but it was easier on my terms and nothing ever is anymore.

I guess... I need to figure out where else I can move my RV.

I've been wanting to move to a different state for a while. I could look at Arizona and North Carolina where I've got a few friends. I'm not going back to Oklahoma and Colorado also isn't really my speed, which rules out most of the other places my friends are. Something in the back of my mind keeps whispering Oregon, but I hate winter. I have a bunch of friends in the LA and San Fransisco areas too but I could never afford to live out there. I'd love to move to Europe or New Zealand but that's so far out of my budget I might as well plan to live on the moon.

I've been wondering lately where the least discriminatory place for LGBTQ+ in the US is. Probably nowhere if you meet the wrong people. Probably most places are better than South Texas.

It would be wise for me to move somewhere that values artists more than in the Midwest/bible belt. Not that I really want back into the art industry. But since I'm still an artist it pays to live in an area with more people who actually value art and will pay fairly for it instead of in some grungy southern two horse town where the art scene is run by a racist granny illuminati.

I've gained so much knowledge about farm animals in the past 3 years I could probably swing a job at another ranch somewhere. If I can stand to spend another year or two getting paid and treated like peasant hobo trash while unimaginably wealthy ladies ride past on their European import horses not giving a rat's ass that I speak 3 languages or have mad creative skills and oodles of unresolved emotional trauma. I can train horses for basic ground rules (could probably do more than that if anybody would let me try)('really should've thought of that before I became a peasant' huh), identify and treat all kinds of health issues, manage aggressive/dangerous animals, and even raise baby sheep. Hey, I've always wanted to be a trail ride guide at a touristy place. Just for a while.

I can go back to driving for Lyft anywhere as soon as I save up the money to change out my brake pads and tires and do some other maintenance. That's what I was working on before this blew up today so that at least is mostly sorted. Probably.

More than anything I still want to find a way to keep working on my comic. That never gets any easier. If anyone wanted to pledge $1 to my patreon now is a great time. Current support covers software license subscriptions but any day now I might not have a place to park my 'office.' Or like, live or whatever. Minor details.

I'm gonna miss watching the sheep graze outside my window while I work. I'll probably never see all the horses and farm dogs I've been taking care of for the last three years again. Damn. I already miss Herb. He's a big sweet Friesian horse who's owner apparently hasn't been out to see him in 4 years. He's always been my pal out here. Nothing lasts.

I'm already running a bare-bones crew as far as finances go, mostly thanks to this modern day serf gig I've had here for a few months. I don't have entertainment media subscriptions and I rarely go out. I already buy cheap food. I ignore all my health problems like a Real American™. The only thing I could feasibly cut is pet insurance for my two older dogs. Probably not a good idea, longer term, but if it's that or two weeks of food...

Since my road trip plans already fell through when the dogs got sick last week (not sick enough to need the insurance though, naturally) I was really hoping to take a break at the end of the month to do some RV maintenance, get some much needed rest, and do some comic work. Now I guess I'd better call up all my gig bosses and talk about picking up some extra work. Ugh. I was actually thinking about quitting the other ranch job if they still couldn't give me a raise after two years and all the extra responsibilities I took on (and the horrible abuse from their guy who they knew was horrible and abusive) during the pandemic. Now I have to watch my step because that ranch is probably the cheapest other place I might park locally at short notice.

*sigh* happy early birthday to meeeee

[youdidwelltoday]

I Need To Change The Sheets

220225

Today everything that happened was not planned.

Our dog was suppose to stay at our room because he's still in quarantine. But he looks like he didn't even got sick in the first place. He slept all night and woke us up when he had enough of sleeping.

I applied for a job today. This. I don't know if this was planned. I wasn't planning on doing this the past few days. But I decided I'd update my CV last night. Prayed for it. And sent it. They haven't replied yet. I don't know. They voted for a manager only just when I was about to send it. I still sent it. I'm okay which way, because I asked God that if it was his plan it would push through. I told my friends. I wish I didn't, but I wasn't sure with what I was doing. Either way, I'm sure he'll be with me.

There's a war going on. Russia has sent its troops to invade Ukraine. Some people will be needing to sleep on the subway. Some areas had been bombed. Petrol prices keeps rising. Goods might start rising up soon.

Our helper had dysmenorrhoea. I asked her to rest and she ended up going home early. So, I had to do all the cooking and washing of dishes. And taking care of mom. And the dogs. Well my cousin's here, we can manage.

I asked my friends if I could still come join them. I thought it was tomorrow. It was today. It's okay. I told her in advance I won't be joining on Friday. I really am not free today. I'll just see them on Sunday.

All day long I was planning things I haven't thought of yesterday. I had a lot of what ifs in my mind. I'm planning on what resort to book for my aunts birthday. Planning to apply on a job. Did it. And now wondering what will happen if I leave this house. I have to stay near the office. Who will buy my mom's and grandma's medicines? Who'll watch over them in the morning? Who'll take care of the dogs? Who will feed them? What if our helper isn't free for the day? Should I get another one? What will I pay? What shoes would I wear? Who will drive for them? Am I really fit for the job? Will the pay be enough for me to support my family? I need a parking space.

O, right I have to send my cousin back to her place tomorrow. She scrubbed the bed, she's been planning for it for days. She did it today. And I applied for a job. The dog's out of the room. I hope our helper comes back tomorrow. I need to change the sheets, but I'll just do it tomorrow.

[restlessmaknae]

Hello again Beth!

They said I would forget about the old songs once I heard the new ones, but I still long for official versions of them D:

I'm glad it went well! The test sounds very interesting. 🤔

I'm so happy you had a good time with your sisters, it sounds lovely. 🥰 I don't know what I'll get either! We do a surprise gifts per family to each person, so I'll get three gifts from my grandma, my aunt (and her children) and my uncle, I always get very excited no matter what the gifts are :3

It doesn't really snow where I live, it's cold but not enough for snow 😔 I hope to see snow IRL someday. What has snow been like for you?

The recovery is going well, 🥳 although I can't really chew on anything yet.

I'm always hoping for any interaction! They look so happy together so it makes me feel happy too, we finally got a performance and just as expected it was great. 😭 Niki warms my heart with his excitement for his Yeonjun Hyung, such a cutie. 🥺

Are you ready for Christmas? I hope you have a great one!

-Your secret MOA

Hello dear secret MOA,

I agree with that! If something's good, you can't forget about it easily.

Thank you! I've actually received my results, I got an A, so I'm really happy because I've really tried my best for this class and the exam as well. *-*

Oh, your present tradition sounds fun! I hope you'll like your gifts, and enjoy spending time with your family. I believe it's really important, especially these days, to cherish the moments we can spend together in good health. I hope your Christmas will be wonderful, now that we're at the topic, and soon, I can get to know who you are. 🥰

When I was younger, I used to see so much snow. We used to build snowmen and have snowball fights with my sisters, it was so much fun. Our dog didn't like the snow though, it was really funny how she tried to avoid stepping on snow. 😅 These days though, there's really not much snow, and it's a bit of a shame because I love snowy sceneries.

I'm glad to hear that your recovery is going well. It's a shame that you can't chew on anything, especially with Christmas around and so many festive foods being prepared. Is there a festive food you especially like?

Yes, they are adorable! The way Enhypen respects the TXT members so much is lovely, and it's heartwarming how the TXT members are trying to break the ice and get closer to them. It warms my heart to see such interactions. 🥰

Now that I'm home, and we've just decorated our Christmas tree, I can finally say that I'm ready for Christmas. How about you? 🥰

Thank you so much! Hope you have a lovely one, too! Can't wait to get to know who you are. Take care! 🥰

[isaspsp]

Dream Log:

This dream is wild. I'll try to tell you most of it, but the details are fading by now.

Sorry, as I finished writing this it seems I forgot a LOT of stuff, so it doesn't sound as cool as it was in my dream u-u

.

So the dream starts with me just being in the kitchen of my house, suddenly this huge thunder starts and a white lote enholfes everything. My parents were in the bathroom, so I check in on them. Theyvare gone. Just no trace of them whatsoever.

I start to cry.

I then see a scene from a câmera perspective. We are in a fairly large living room, but it is all wood, and there is barely any furniture around. There are many people there but they are all low to the ground. A child is still up though. Her mother is trying to get her to lay low. I as the camera know they are all going to die. There are men outside who will fire arms soon. The little girl doesn't know that. Her mom tried to calm her by saying that she'll hear loud noises outside and that the windows might shatter, but everyone will be alright. The little girl doesn't believe I'm her mother's words.

Then basically, the room gets rained on with bullets, and everyone but the little girl dies. She then just appears in my house, and I'm back to being myself. I have to just, take care of this child. I prepare food for her and try to plant food in the back yard (for some reason I know most people are gone after the white light). This little girl is very bitter, and won't really talk to me. But she insists she knows when people will die.

Then ee go on this "quest" to find how people disappeared and hoe to bring them back? There are people who don't know the world is fucked up, so they just kind of tag along with me and the girl.

(Then I don't remember much what happened, but pretty much no one believes the little girl can actually predict death (and there is some side shenanigans with me finding out my phone wasn't from the brand I thought it was lol))

The I forget a lot of stuff, sorry.

We get to this cavernous place. It's well lit because it's channels "carver under a mountain so there is light comming from most of the sides. At this point we low We find a woman putting in boots (they are thigh high boots with cord laced on the outside of it to keep it tight on the leg) we ask what is she doing and she says she's preparing to take candy for her grandma? She then pulls a string from her waits and it unfruls into a long skirt. She looks at her boots (now very thight on her, and says: "Now my little sponge bob won't go anywhere". She then starts morphing. Her skin goes blue and she suddenly has 3 eye, they are 3 little dots in a lone in her face, her nose and mouth are gone. The middle eye then morphs into a nose (she looks like squidart now) but she keeping going until her whole head is gone into her torso. Her torso then widens and gets a denim like texture. She gets bigger and stops morphing. She is now a big pair of legs wearing Jean pants up to the hips and wearing an ankle length skits that starts at the thighs. She then prances away. We are all VERY confused, but then again we are holding a child that knows when people will die so.

We return home and we find a dog that we decide to keep and name Mister M. Because his face markings remind me of this guy here:

Then we kind of just, start living normals lives? We weren't able to fix whatever it was that took most people away. I turn into basically the mom of the house and I'm gratefull that I know how the basic of cooking and that I know how to iron clothes lol. It took me a long while to actually try to enter the bathroom my parent disappeared in. When I do, I am like a hair away from crying. For se reason I think that maybe if I turn off the lights they'd come back, so I do that... and they do appear again. Doing the same things they were doing when the flash came (my mom was brushing her teeth and my dad was brushing his hair) and I just flat out start crying in front of them. They are confused and stuff. I tell them what happened and they tell me it was all a dream, and I start to realize taht yes, it was all a dream! I saw someone turn intoa pair of legs and run off, of course it was a dream! I then start to tell them about the dream (in full detail mind you. Which is what I'm trying and failing to do here, EVEN THOUGH I LIVED IT TWICE IN THE SMAE DREAM) For some reason we still have Mister M, despite the fact that we don't ahve a second dog irl. I keep telling them about ny dream and such until we get to my grandma's house. We are going to have lunch there. I am sitting on the living room when this man approaches me (he is my "doctor" even though I do not know this man irl, but in the dream I knew him) he then points to the kitchen and says: I know it's because of this place that you eat healthy (despite the fact that I eat the most unhealthy when I go to my grandma's (aka, I eat the elsst amount of salad)) but U need you to slow it down to lose weight. The I wake up because fuck that, I ain't going on no diet.

This dream was much cooler. Sorry I forgot most of it u_u