#my Brian sometimes feels like multitasking

[cairavende]

Worm Arc 15 thoughts without interludes (interludes need their own post):

EVERYTHING IS FIIIIIIIINE

My daughters boss didn't actually try to assassinate her, her just planned to do it and then did it in one reality but kept the reality where he didn't! So it's ok! I'm fine. Not worried at all that Coil knows Skitter was planning on double crossing him and that he found a way to screw with Tattletales powers.

It's fiiiine (eye twitches)

I want to say I'm glad she got her full team on board, but given that there is a chance someone on her team ratted on her it might not be good.

Skitter goes a little bit far at the end with Triumph. Just a tiny itty bitty bit far. Child you almost KILLED HIM! And then you let him sit there dying when the threat isn't that he'll die now, but that you will come back if needed (mayor ain't going to say what you want him to say if you kill his son, the point is if he doesn't say it you'll come back)! I'm worried about you.

Brian I understand why you like my daughter and she seems to like you and I'm glad having someone you feel safe with is helping you process your very valid trauma (important note, you could have done the same with your sister, she was trying to help you but you wouldn't open up to her, you should open up to her). But please don't get in the way of her relationships with her girlfriends. Just understand in terms of long term stuff Chatterbug and Wolfspider 100% trump . . . Darkbug? Fuck what are you guys called?

(I've been informed Shadeswarm, Nightcrawler, Night Biter, Creepy Crawlies, or Carapace. I think Creepy Crawlies might be my preference among that.)

MOAR DOLL LESBIAN CONTENT!!!!!

Parian is one of my absolute favorite characters! Flechette is pretty cool as well. Being a hero hurts her. Stabbing my daughter also didn't build good marks with me, but I understand why she did it. Cause GAAAAAAAAAAAY. I have a hard time being too mad at a lesbian stabbing someone to protect her girlfriend.

I'm glad Parian isn't joining Coil full hog at least, she's too pure to be a villain (or a "hero"). I kinda wish she could just move to New York and be a fashion designer and live her best life, but I do enjoy the idea of getting to see her more.

And to be honest, I don't think anyone on Earth Bet is really going to be living their best life in the long run. Sorry guys.

The fucking shutdown the team gives to the Nazis is AMAZING! Like ya no Hookwolf or Purity this time, that obviously would have made it harder. But still, comparing the previous fight to this just really shows how much the team has increased in power. They didn't even bring Grue.

Skitter and Tattletale being able to work together to find all the people in a few block radius and figure out which groups are Nazis, all while just standing in the middle of the street, is so fucking cool. I fucking love watching them work.

I don't love the girlfriends fighting with the whole "Skitter wasn't told about the plan to have Regent yoink a Nazi". But they seemed to make up pretty quickly.

Skitter fucking running multiple bug clones, with cameras and microphones, all across her territory, and using them to talk to people and check in on things, WHILE getting surgery on her shoulder??! FUCKING HELL. Like ok yes, please love yourself child and let yourself take it easy sometimes. But also holy shit that is so god damn amazing. I am 100% convinced (I mean, I have been since like Arc 4 TBH) that she uses her bugs to basically offload her pain. Or offloads her mind to her bugs so she can ignore the pain in her body. Same idea. Like even if it's never confirmed it is true to me. And the multitasking! Give Taylor a Thinker classification!!

Just fucking attacking the mayor's family to intimidate him into telling people in Washington to not condemn Brockton Bay huh? I mean sure it kinda worked at the end (assuming he does what he said he would) but it really seems like a terrible plan. Like, the people in Washington are gonna hear about the attack and wonder about everything the mayor says. But fine, that's the plan.

Skitter making the bug clones complex enough that Trickster and Genesis don't even notice she's a clone at first is super cool! Also it does drive home that she is always just covered with so many bugs and using swarm speech so much that when a version of her shows up that is completely covered in bugs and speaks fully with swarm speech it doesn't throw anyone off.

Coil had to know that Triumph was the mayor's kid. The fact that he's the one who pushed to have them attack during family dinner.

I'm really proud of Skitter for figuring it out though! I pegged him as a cape pretty much right away and was able to figure out it was Triumph not long after, but she was in the heat of the moment. Also she got the girlfriend pegged as a either Prism or Ursa while I was still uncertain if she was a cape.

Holy shit that fight was so fucking cinematic! Perfectly built for Triumph to look cool by exploding bug clones with his shouts. And with Prism splitting and combining constantly. Just fuck. I'd love to see an animation of that fight. It was super cool.

And again, Skitter got dark there. And sadly I'm worried she's gonna get darker.

[oceanjoker]

Charismatic anon here, I'm intrigued by your BBS F1 Au, feel free to use my ask to ramble.

I have just so much to talk about it, mainly now since the F1 2025 Season is coming soon, and there's so much i'm excited about, We got Hamilton at Ferrari making my two favorite drivers in one team that I always loved, Gabriel Bortoleto making his debut. and the list goes on! there's so much stuff to look foward! I can do so much yapping but I don't want this to be a very long post. BUT ONTO SOME DETAILS ABOUT THE AU, I'll be working on them again once the season starts cuz then i'll feel motivated again. They'll still be youtubers so nicks like "Vanoss" and "Terroriser" are still a thing since the F1 Drivers themselves often streams or record together when they're not racing, biggest example of this is Max Vertstappen WHO BY THE WAY WAS PLAYING A RACING SIM INSTEAD OF RESTING 3 HOURS BEFORE A GRAND PRIX- This man casually having his world champion trophy beside his computer

So all of them will still be having their Youtuber career, And AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAALSO also, Vanoss will be having his music career as well ill have some fun making this man multitask kinda like Charles Leclerc who often produces music based on some races by the way i recommend they are so...i dunno inspiring? its always lovely listening to them

Im often using the drivers as example cuz i kinda feel like I have to justify some stuff, and also because these examples show me that these type of things CAN HAPPEN!

Now talking about the AU itself, the main focus is going to be Vanoss and Terroriser, since they'll have a fierce rivalry. Brian's a two time world champion, but Vanoss is a rookie, and is making an insane debut, he's a fast and somewhat a calm driver, making his strategies really impressive even for his own team. While Brian is a bit more aggressive and their team struggles in making these two get along, sometimes they'll be racing wheel-to-wheel for five corners just to win a race or even crash at each other's cars. But that does not mean they'll be enemies.

Take Senna's and Prost's Rivalry, They used to fight so many times, crash into each other in deciding races. But off track? They were really good friends, to the point after Prost's retirement, Senna would always say that F1 wasn't as much fun without Prost as a rival.

other than that, I'll drop some headcanoons cuz again, If I talk too much this post will be long, and its actually getting long i am so sorry but lets go,

SPRINT ROUND FOR HEADCANNONS!:

Pre-Race interviews with these guys together are a nightmare, they can't take anything seriously

Vanoss is making his debut in F1, and F1 being a big sport, he's not used to having multiple reporters, paparazzis constantly on his face, which makes the media day one hell of a challenge for him

Everyone expect for Vanoss and Delirious, Often vlogs the behind the scenes of race weekends

Moo has been in F1 for some time now, He knows the dangers of this sport and how sometimes the race directior can be disappointing, so he is very attentive to each driver, and in cases of accidents he always makes sure that the injured driver is okay, even if it costs him a victory.

Nogla is a driver who either wins in a spectacular fashion or crashes out in the first lap. There's no in between.

Terroriser has a love hate relationship with his engineer, who has to deal with his mid race rants

Delirious is the only driver who refuses to show his face on camera of course, he's always wearing his helmet or just a regular mask

and I have SO MUCH MORE to talk about, But I do have the time to work on this idea, and of course. Draw about it, and I want to show my ideas, even if they're just nonsense. Youtubers as F1 Drivers? That sounds ridiculous

But I don't know...I just love, mixing up things I really like.

This group of youtubers and Formula 1 played such a huge role in my life, I can't even express how much. so why not do a little mix?

[fank0ne]

ONE CHICAGO FINALES

MED:

The Marchexton (yeah, I did that) triangle. I'm so sad for April, I kinda felt it coming. It seems like she doesn't even wanna find an alternative method and that's totally understandable.

I didn't like Ethan reaction at the whole "I don't know if I want to have a baby". I mean, I personally don't think you can find a compromise on that topic, but what the hell Ethan, are you with her because you love her or because you want her to give you a bunch of little Chexton? And you give her an ultimatum? Fuck you, dawg! It's difficult to rationalize and I know it's not black or white, I get that, but still... I understand him, but I didn't like how he acted.

And if I side with April on that, I totally have to disagree for what she did later. I hate cheating, physically, mentally, whatever you got, I hate when people are dishonest about their feelings. I know she was trying to process the bad news and she feels like Ethan was not being supportive, I know Dr. Marcel is charming and all that, but these were not valid reasons for her to kiss Crockett. I'm sorry. You come clean, you tell your partner how you feel, you talk to him/her about what to do next, then you get to do whatever the fuck you want.

Daniel and Cece. Damn, seeing Dr. Charles cry broke my heart. His relationship with Cece is so adorable, though I have a feeling is not gonna last any longer. Cece is really sick, unfortunately. Oh, hi Robin! I'm now used to seeing Mekia on The Rookie, didn't think she would made an appearance on Med anymore.

Maggie and Ben. Ben wasn't actually dying! I wanna see their relationship improve, but I don't wanna see Maggie acting like a dumb fool who doesn't have a functioning brain. She needs to get it together and stop being unreasonable.

Manstead is over. Is it, though? I wanna make sure we're done with this nightmare of a relationship for good, I don't don't wanna be surprised at the end of this season.

"I have been so unfair to Will" well, I'm glad you realized that, Nat! It's funny to me that she was saying those things while Elsa was next to her and, you know, Elsa has a crush on Will (though she's still the gayest character on Med to me), allegedly.

"We aren't good for one another, all we do is hurt each other. (...) I feel free" wow William, took you long enough to understand that, but I guess we made it. I'm so glad he's the one who said those words and I'm pretty sure he really means them. He looked so at peace with this realisation, it really made me happy. My cute baby!

FIRE:

Stella. She had to make an accident to admit that she needed to slow down a little bit. I swear to God, seeing her all agitated at doing multitasking almost triggered my anxiety, I'm not even kidding.

Aw, Boden apologized to her. I love that he told her that he respects her and her potential and that he himself should've done better than this. It was cute.

Dawsey. Why the fuck did Gabby come back for? I still don't get it. I don't wanna be mean or anything, but that visit was totally uncalled for and pointless. What kind of closure is that? Just say you wanted to fuck one last time, don't try to come up with fake deep excuses. I don't know, it was good to see Monica again (God, that woman is so gorgeous, it's unfair), but Gabby could've stayed in Puerto Rico.

Ouch, I saw Sylvie's bummed face and god do I know that feeling! I'm still not 100% sure about Brettsey (mostly because Matt doesn't seem to know what he really wants yet), but we'll see.

Thank you Matt for mentioning Antonio! It seems like he's the only one who hasn't forgot about him. Yes, I'm being super petty.

Gallo and Ritter. Unless they show me who tf Ritter's boyfriend is, I'm still going to believe it's/ship him with Blake.

Crotis forever! I'm so glad they're still talking about Brian and not acting like he wasn't an important part of 51. His friendship with Joe is one of the best things on the show.

Severide. That lady at OFI... sis has taste, that's all I can say. I wish Kelly would explicitly mention that he has a girlfriend so that woman (I'm sorry, I didn't get her name) would know what boundaries she shouldn't overstep.

The last scene... can you give this man a break? Just when he has a little taste of tranquility in his life, boom!, something happens. I love drama, though, so I'm digging whatever is coming, for sure.

PD:

That Buzerk convo... what tf was that? Awkward, almost cringe-worthy. Yikes.

Jay's undercover name has changed. Goodbye Ryan, say hello to Jim!

"Jay's going through a few things" when isn't he, though? Drama is his second name.

I know he wasn't thinking straight and he wanted to come clean for whatever reason, but, damn, he's so stupid sometimes. Of course Angela was gonna rat him out/want him dead if he told her he's a cop - the one who basiclly got his husband killed.

Hailey. I loved her. I absolutely adore how she's got Jay's back no matter what and, damn, the fact that he was kidnapped really got to her. She was pissed, worried, angry... we've never seen her like this, at least not to this extents! I actually liked to see Adam comfort her. I totally ship Upstead (like, I would literally die for them), but I like the fact that Adam is still somebody she can rely on.

I swear to god, when she broke that cup a shard went into her eye, I SAW IT. How come she's not blind?!

I kinda missed seeing Voight beat the shit outta people in that cage. It was nice to witness it again. LOL

Angela, I swear to god, if Voight or Hailey don't kill you, I Will (Halstead - get it? It's fun, leave me alone).

Guys, I honestly thought it was gonna be like when Kev got kidnapped and nothing extreme happened, apart from his injured leg, but that bitch really shot my son Jay! I thought he was gonna trick her somehow into giving up that gun, but it didn't happened... which is fine by me, because yeah I love my man, but I wanna see him suffer too. Sounds fucked up? Hell yeah, it does. Do I care? No, I don't. Give me my whump!Jay/Upstead content and I'll be happy.

[zootvootskidoot]

Bruce Banner is Autistic

(Note: these are just some of my personal headcanons. I might add more later, but I’m not sure.)

I personally don’t have any headcanons about how/when Bruce was diagnosed, but he probably went a long time without having a word to describe always feeling confused and out of place.

It cannot be stressed enough how much Bruce loved Star Trek when he was a kid. Seeing Mr. Spock, someone like him, being loved and accepted was like a religious experience for him. After Brian’s death, he largely left the crew of the Enterprise buried under unpleasant memories. It wasn’t until years later when he first saw The Next Generation that his enthusiasm for the franchise was reignited, specifically Data.

He stims mostly by rocking on his feet because it doesn’t tend to draw attention. Eye contact is already hard, and he hates the feeling of eyes on him.

He has a collection of different fidget pens.

No matter how warm it is, he sleeps with a weighted blanket. It’s purple.

He’ll use echolalia very sparingly and subtly. When he gets especially excited he’ll start repeating himself and gesturing with his hands.

Bruce has a number of special interests. Math is a big one, and by extension, physics. Human biology and anatomy are definitely up there. Biochemistry, electromagnetism, Disney, first aid, and more recently, Norse mythology.

Despite having a lot of sensitivities, he can’t eat anything that tastes bland. Spicy is good, so is sweet. He’ll eat sour foods but doesn’t like the way they make his tongue feel.

He sticks to his routine religiously. He’s awake at 5:30, out of bed by 5:45, and he’s finished his morning yoga by 6:15. Then it’s samefoods for breakfast, getting washed (showers on alternating days) and dressed, and going over his to-do list for the day. He’ll usually nap for two hours after lunch, then it’s back to whatever tasks he needs to complete with scheduled ten minute breaks. Dinner is at 6:40, then he washes up and puts away the dishes before changing for bed. From 7 to 8 is his evening yoga/meditation block, and the next hour is spent doing a relaxing activity before going to bed at 9:30.

Tony, or anyone else for that matter, pops in at almost any time, but Bruce’s sleeping hours are strictly off limits. Interrupting his sleep is setting the day up to be a disaster.

Of course, it can’t always be helped.

Bruce already isn’t too talkative. He’s semiverbal on Bad Days. When talking is too much, he’ll usually communicate via a tablet Tony made special for him, though he’s fluent in ASL.

Just because he can’t talk, doesn’t mean he doesn’t want to be with the people he loves. Thor will talk to him, or sit and watch movies. Tony works and processes better when he talks things through, and is more than happy to fill both sides of the conversation. He’ll do it with his AI too, but Bruce understands he likes a physical presence once and a while.

Speaking of Tony, ADHD billionaire geniuses make pretty good friends. When he moves into the tower, he has a residential floor all to himself. Of course, he doesn’t need all the space, so Tony took the liberty of building Bruce a personal multipurpose lab. There’s also a Hulk-proof containment room in case The Big Guy takes the reigns.

Bruce is one of the very few people allowed in Tony’s workshop.

(I’ve been going back and forth on this one because I don’t want to perpetuate the “violent autistic” stereotype but) I really like the Hulk as a metaphor for meltdowns!!!

Hulk is 100% autistic too. He’s his own living, thinking, feeling creature.

He can’t talk a lot, and will often use the same words/phrases. He knows a lot more, but understimulation is a big barrier. A virtually nonexistent ability to multitask doesn’t help. When he can’t communicate what he needs to, Thor is one of the very few people who can understand him.

Very very very tactile stims. Lots of body stims too.

He’s incredibly protective of Bruce. Same goes for the people he feels safe with, and the people Bruce is friends with, though he does have a few reservations about some of them and doesn’t let his guard down when they’re around.

The two communicate fairly often. It’s not as much through words as impulse and emotion. The rush of happy/safe/warm Bruce gets when he sees Thor isn’t just his own.

Hulk feels when Bruce is afraid or anxious. He doesn’t like when Bruce feels that way. Bruce will tell him when he doesn’t have to take over, but sometimes scientists are stupid and don’t know when they need help.

That’s all I’ve got for now. Hope you enjoyed :)

[nth-generation-kpop]

Stupid Cupid

Chapter I 

Summary: Han Jisung introduced Eurydice to Orpheus at a lavish summer festival. He struck fire in the hearts of Odysseus and Penelope. He schemed in the study group of Marie and Pierre Curie and kept Bonnie and Clyde’s drinks flowing. He passed beautiful love letters between Oscar Wilde and Alfred Douglas. He orchestrated passionate love that lasted late into life, aged like fine wine– that “grow together” type of love. And he’d seen men more hopeless than Bang Chan and Seo Changbin. Jisung has a job to do, but he can’t resist taking on some side projects in the meantime.

Happy Valentines day!! <3 

“You’re not old enough to drink, are you?” Jisung gestured at the glass in Hyunjin’s hand as he unwrapped his scarf, sliding into the booth across from the other.

“You know very well that I am far older than that, Han Jisung.” His friend’s face was more youthful than he’d ever seen it before, with big, round eyes and a soft curve to his jaw, though the annoyed expression was the same. “But no, I’m not. I’ve gotten myself assigned to a pair of star-crossed lovers in a high school nearby. I thought the aesthetic of meeting up with an old friend after 2,000 years more important than the details. This is soda.”

“You always loved your aesthetics. Has it really been 2,000 years though?”

Hyunjin smiled. “Nearly, what was it? The 5th century? We crossed paths when you were on Guinevere and Lancelot, and I was finishing up Tristan and Isolde?”

“I did always love your work. It’s a shame humans turn love stories into tragedies.”

Hyunjin snorted, sipping from his glass. “Imagine my surprise 500 years later when I heard the story retold.” The story books never got it right.

“If I wasn’t there for it, I’d chastise you for sloppy work.”

“Trust me, you wouldn’t be the first. What are you working on at the moment?”

The waiter dropped off Jisung’s drink as well and he smiled, waiting for them to be out of earshot before he answered. “Multitasking. I’m cultivating a future Cupid, which was the main assignment, but I’m staying with two boys who are entirely helpless at love.”

“That sounds fun. Low stress, high reward.”

“It is, I’d definitely recommend it. If it wasn’t for the side project, it’d feel like a sabbatical.”

“A future cupid, so that means he’s been spurned by love then? Have you figured out why he’s jaded yet?”

Failed love was most common by far. Future Cupids were broken souls, broken hearts, who went on to be healed by truly remarkable love-- if they allowed themselves to be open to it. In Jisung’s experience they most often did not, which is where the current Cupids came in. He didn’t even remember his own colossal heartbreak, by the time he had his colossal love he probably couldn’t remember it, but he did remember his first love. He thought about it often, fondly.  Bringing that to people is why he loved his job so much, and why he couldn’t imagine doing anything else.

Jisung shook his head. “He’s complicated, but I have an idea of what it was. Failed love, not his own, and… shattered faith.” He smiled. “I’ll just have to put it back together I suppose.”

“Playing matchmaker then?”

Jisung wrinkled his nose. It was straightforward. Find a nice person, not a soulmate but a good-for-you short-lived love, work their Cupid magic and restore faith in relationships. Sometimes the best thing for a person is to date someone they’re never meant to end up with. He had a feeling that wouldn’t work with Minho.

“Not exactly. I’m just planning to point out all the beauties of love, make him see that sometimes heartbreak is necessary, and that true love is worth the risk. If that fails, I suppose ‘matchmaking’ is my backup plan. Minho… he just seems too resistant to the idea for such a direct fix.”

Hyunjin raised an eyebrow. “Minho, huh? Your charge?” Jisung made a nose of agreement. “So you’re getting attached.”

Jisung waved his hand noncommittally. “You know how I am.”

“I do, and you’re getting attached. Have the “powers that be” caught on yet?”

Reluctantly, Jisung answered. “Of course not, I wouldn’t still be here if they had. I’m good at hiding it, I haven’t been sanctioned in centuries.” He didn’t want to admit it, but Hyunjin had always known him better than he knew himself. He could hide from his bosses, but never from his friend.

“You get overly attached to them all, I wonder if this will be the one that will bite you in the ass.” It wasn’t judgmental, more teasing. In all reality Hyunjin hoped that it worked out. He could barely even remember the spectacular love that made him a Cupid in the first place, but Jisung had always been irrevocably in love with the emotion itself. Hyunjin wasn’t sure if his friend could distinguish where the love of love ended and everything else began.

“I wouldn’t be the first.”

“No, you wouldn’t. Be careful they don’t pull you off the assignment.”

Jisung grinned at that. “When have they ever figured out what I’m up to before I’ve done it, my friend?”

“Fair point, but as I said: there’s a first time for everything.”

“I’ll be safe. And you as well.”

Hyunjin scoffed, downing his drink as if he were trying to pretend it was aged whiskey instead. “How much trouble can I get into? I’m 16.”

“Take a sabbatical when you’re done! You’re probably due for one, right? Just one lifetime, spend it resting and cultivating love in your spare time. It’s freeing.”

“You might be onto something there. Anyway, I’ve got to get back. I have foster parents.” The accompanying eye roll made Jisung laugh again, standing up to hug his friend.

“Don’t be a stranger. Once every 2,000 years isn’t nearly enough.”

“I was going to say the same thing. Good luck.”

“You too.”

~~~~~

Chan and Changbin didn't usually make a point to meet up for lunch, both too busy with their class schedules and part time jobs, knowing they'd most likely see each other in the evenings anyway. But today was a special day. Today marked the 1-weekiversary of their new roommate Han Jisung.

The two boys had been best friends nearly since birth, growing up as neighbors of similar age-- they knew from living with them could be hard. Their first roommate Brian fared pretty well, but when he moved out he told them that they'd developed habits they knew didn't bother each other, but that they never stopped to consider whether it bothered him. Changbin hated dishes, so he left them for Chan to do whenever the elder got around to them. In turn he did Chan's laundry, a fair trade for everybody but Brian, who was constantly washing dirty cereal bowls and praying he didn’t knock over the towers of laundry all over the living room. They apologized and he waved it away, saying he should have just said something but they seemed to have a good thing going. On his way out, Brian suggested a two bedroom.

The second roommate…. Well, Chan and Changbin had scrambled to replace the second roommate after only a couple months. Everything seemed fine, and then a few weeks in it absolutely imploded and the two were left staring at the rubble of their roommateship (and their sanity) wondering where it all went wrong. It started with Seowoo nagging Chan to go to sleep, saying that the noise and the lights were bothering him-- nevermind the fact that Chan tried his best to be quiet and his room was at the other end of the hall, door shut, with only his desk lamp on. Then it was Chan’s cat, which was actually also Changbin’s cat but Seowoo ignored that and complained constantly to Changbin about how dirty and smelly it was. Changbin promised to clean up after her more, but Seowoo was adamant that she was disgusting and there was nothing Changbin could do to help. Chan is so dirty, Chan is so loud, Chan is so boring-- they weren’t sure what exactly it was that set him off, whether Chan and Changbin’s friendship upset him too, but he latched on to Changbin and… didn’t with Chan. Suddenly he wouldn’t speak to Chan, he simply rolled his eyes and left whenever they were in the same room, and when they finally sat him down and brought it up to him it was the explosion of the century. He told Changbin he felt betrayed and insisted he had done absolutely nothing wrong. Why should he be expected to get along with them all the time? Why shouldn’t he be able to voice his opinions? Why was he being attacked for nothing?

And he was gone the next day. Chan came home from classes seemingly just after Changbin, who he found standing in the doorway of a completely empty bedroom. Seowoo wouldn’t answer their text messages or any of the phone calls. After a couple days, it looked like he wasn’t coming back, and they contacted their landlord-- unfortunately they were required to cover the rent if he didn’t show up, but they promised to take Seowoo off the lease if he didn’t put up the money.  

Which he didn’t.

Enter Han Jisung, a friend of a friend who heard all about their roommate situation on several occasions. Jisung had called Chan directly, saying that he'd been having trouble finding a good place to live at such an odd time in the year, a couple months into when leases normally began. They agreed to meet up and maybe show him the place, and after a short introduction and confirmation from the friend that he was a good kid (read: not an ax murderer), Chan and Changbin brought him over for the very short tour and gave him a copy of the lease to look over. It was actually Jisung who brought up the trial period, though he suggested a full month and they agreed right away. After that he'd sign the lease, as long as they “worked well” as roommates. When he'd left, Chan and Changbin struck up their 1 week no discussion policy, to give him a fair chance without their reservations and past roommate failures clouding their judgment. It turned out to be a good idea, Jisung turned out to be a lot to get used to.

Changbin started it off. “...so the new guy.”

Chan nodded. "He's a bit odd"

“Yeah, just... as a person, a bit strange isn’t he?"

"But he's clean and he paid his rent and he's nice enough," Chan added quickly.

Changbin agreed immediately, and they lapsed into silence. "He bakes, did he tell you he bakes? That's definitely a plus, and he isn't disruptive or annoying."

“I say we have him sign the lease.” There was something off about the guy, Chan always felt like despite seeming completely transparent, he was hiding something. Still, he didn’t seem dangerous, and Chan had a feeling this was a good thing.

Changbin was even less confident, less willing to risk anything after the weeks of being pulled in different directions between his friends, standing on the edge and not knowing whether to take sides as he wanted to or try and keep the peace. Seowoo had left him paranoid and a bit guilty towards Chan. He felt like maybe he hadn’t done enough to mediate the situation, or he was too neutral. Jisung seemed different, though. He seemed more involved, he wanted to get to know Chan and Changbin, but he still understood boundaries and their need for space. He seemed kind-- he really, really seemed harmless. If he shook things up, and Changbin sensed that Jisung might, it may be for the better. In the end, he thought, the risk would be worth it.

“Me too.”

And so Han Jisung became the third resident of their little apartment, and thus began the most eventful year of their lives.

~~~~~

“Changbin.”

The older boy looked up from the pan, where he’d been half-heartedly nudging around bits of chicken in an attempt to ‘stir fry.’ “Yeah?”

“Are you a hopeless romantic?” Jisung’s tone was lilting, almost artificial as if straight off one of those made-for-TV movies.

“Uh, no.” Changbin squinted at his roommate as the latter huffed and pouted, wrapped around a throw pillow that Changbin hadn’t remembered seeing before. “Why, are you? Is anyone actually?”

“Of course I am! Everybody should be.”

“And why’s that?”

Jisung pouted again, gesturing to the laptop in front of him. “Because love is beautiful and wonderful. I love love.”

Changbin couldn’t help but laugh, turning back to his pan. “What are you watching?”

“A movie… you might think it’s dumb, but it’s about a couple who meet by chance in a shop in a big city, and it turns out that the shop is magic and by... the universe’s happy accident they keep meeting, over and over again, until they fall in love.”

To Jisung’s surprise, Changbin answered “That sounds nice.”

“Would you want to watch it with me? I’m only a few minutes in, but I don’t mind restarting it. I’ve seen it a million times.” Changbin wasn’t sure he’d ever heard Jisung sound… well he couldn’t tell if it was shy or nervous. Excited, curious, enthusiastic, sassy-- so much sass-- but genuine vulnerability was new. Changbin always felt like maybe Jisung knew more than anybody else in the room, somehow always a step ahead. Regardless, it sounded completely unlike the polite, bubbly boy he’d come to know over the last month. When he looked up from cooking, he met big hopeful eyes and knew he wouldn’t be able to say no.

“Sure, just let me finish cooking?” Changbin made a face at the pan-- it looked nothing like his mother's.

Amused, and maybe a touch sympathetic, Jisung said “...we could order takeout.”

“Yeah, we should do that.”

They started the movie just as Chan got home and roped him into it as well-- unlike Changbin, he admitted to being a hopeless romantic outright. They’d taken the liberty of ordering Chan’s usual as well, and their food came in the middle of the exposition.

It was a good movie, objectively. The plot was decent, the characters were really well developed, and some of the scenes were cheesy, but good cheesy. Chan loved it, and was very vocal about the fact which made Jisung incredibly happy. Changbin was a bit more non-committal, just shrugging and saying “it was fine” when Jisung asked what he thought. He said it was a feel good movie, and that he was happy to have an impromptu movie night with them. Chan threw a plastic spoon at him and said “humbug” at his answer, laughing when Changbin threw it back and smacked him directly in the forehead. Jisung just smiled at him knowingly-- he could feel how happy the movie had truly made Changbin, and how something suspiciously like hope tugged at the boy’s heart each time the couple met and fell deeper in love. And Jisung didn’t know it, but by the time they split off to get ready for bed that night, Changbin admitted to himself that yeah, he is a little bit of a hopeless romantic underneath it all.

Lying in bed that night, Jisung considered his two… projects, you could call them. His friends. He was pretty sure Chan was ready for a relationship, despite needing a little help with the logistics of getting a boy to fall in love with him. He’d be the perfect charge for a Cupid, ready to fall in love at the first sign of something. He just needed a nice boy, a slightly forward nice boy, to fall into his path. His shyness held him back more than anything.

Changbin would be a bit more difficult. Jisung would have to find someone he could spend a decently long amount of time with, and it would be a slow progression. He needed to warm up to someone before he could even start to fall in love, be friends first no doubt. He’d have to be coaxed into it, subtly because Seo Changbin was the reactionary sort-- if he realized he was falling in love, Jisung didn’t think he’d let it happen.

And he decided that they’d need a little preparation first, or at least a situation Jisung could evaluate them in. They’d been living together for nearly a month at this point, so he had a pretty good idea of how the boys functioned-- frankly, they didn’t go out much besides classes. Both were busy with school and work and the clubs they were involved in. (Jisung considered trying to set them up with people from those places, but after a bit of snooping on the potential candidates, he decided each one was for one reason or another a resounding no.)

Which made objective number one convince them to go to the bars with him.

~~~~~

A soft knock on his door pulled him away from his assigned reading. “Chan?”

“Yeah, come in!” Jisung opened the door, peaking at what Chan was up to.

“Sorry for interrupting,” he said, gesturing to the book, which Chan immediately closed and put aside.

“No, it’s a welcome interruption. What’s up?”

Jisung perched on the edge of Chan’s bed, twisting one of his rings around his finger and biting his lip. “I kind of have a favor to ask you? And Changbin when he’s home.”

Chan smiled. Jisung was incredibly cute when he was nervous. “Yeah, of course. What is it?”

"Well, I'm going out with a guy Friday, not really as a date but as a ‘my friends and I are going to the bars you should come with’ type thing? Or, well he said to bring some of my friends so I thought I'd invite you? We're friends right?"

“Yeah! Yeah, we’re friends. That sounds fun.”

“Really? I know the bars aren’t really your thing but I thought you might have fun… and if you don’t we can leave, I just… I mean it’s the first time he and I are kinda hanging out.”

“And you want some backup? I’m kinda flattered.”

Jisung smiled. “I really do consider you a friend, I’m not just coming to you because…”

“Because we live together and you know I don’t have plans this weekend?”

“Right, I think it’ll be fun.”

“Me too, don’t worry! And Changbin will say yes if you tell him I’m coming. He’s kind of a baby about social situations involving people he doesn’t know,” Chan teased.

“He’s cute when he’s shy! He should use it to his advantage.”

“If he could use it to his advantage, I have a feeling he wouldn’t be as shy or as cute.”

The knowing look popped up on Jisung’s face as he stood up. “He just need a little training.”

With a loud ‘thanks!’ Jisung slipped out of the room to do god knows what, and Chan had to laugh. He couldn’t shake the feeling that there was so much more to Han Jisung than he could imagine.

Friday afternoon rolled around and found Chan laying across his bed, mindlessly scrolling on his phone when Changbin quietly opened his door without warning and slipped into his room. Before he even got a word out, Changbin blurted “he’s picking out my clothes” in a whisper.

Chan laughed, sitting up. “What are you talking about?”

“Shh, I don’t want to offend him! You’re coming right?”

“Yeah, of course,” Chan assured his friend, frowning. “Do you not want to go?”

Changbin hesitated. “I don’t know, it’s not really my... scene.”

“Me neither, but he needs friends right now. And maybe it’ll be fun!”

Yuna meowed as she walked into the room, passing through Changbin’s legs and rubbing against his ankle. Being okay with cats had been the first roommate test, and Jisung passed with flying colors. Yuna, on the other hand, wasn’t so sure about Jisung yet.

Bending over, Changbin scooped her up cradled her in his arms as she meowed at him again. “You get to stay home, Yuna. Can’t I stay with you?”

“Nope. Come on, it’ll be fun,” Chan assured him again, standing up.

“He’s picking out my clothes, Chan,” Changbin reiterated, glaring.

“I bet he’s doing a better job than you would be.”

Dressed and ready to head out the door, Changbin had to agree that Chan had been right-- he looked really good. It was still cold outside, so Jisung chose a long sleeve black t shirt under a black button down with silver buttons that must have been his, tucked in with a simple black and silver belt. Paired with dark grey skinny jeans and Changbin’s own red-lined combat boots, his thin frame looked flattering instead of scrawny, and the copious amount of black wasn’t overwhelming. Yeah, he looked really good, so much so that he was kind of excited to go out-- a strange, entirely new feeling.

Chan obviously agreed, letting out a low “damn” upon entering Changbin’s room. “Jisung said to give you these, and to convince you to let him put eyeliner on you. I promised him a 50% success rate.” He handed Changbin a set of silver glasses with circle frames.

“Thanks, and honestly… I’m inclined to let him do whatever he wants after this.” Changbin looked at himself in the mirror again. “Are you sure his major is Literature and not… fashion design or something?”

“That makes me feel better, he’s in with Yuna picking out my clothes too.”

“Yeah, don’t be too worried,” Changbin said, shoving his phone and wallet in his pocket. “Yuna’s warmed up to him?”

Chan nodded. “She’s letting him hold her now, at least. He says she’s helping him, anytime she meows he says ‘no, you’re right he’d look better in something else.’ It’s kinda weird.”

“Yeah, well it’s Jisung. I’m just glad she doesn’t swat at him every time he tries to pet her anymore. I ran out of bandaids.”

“Yeah, I think we’re in the clear with him.”

The two smiled at each other after a second. “Yeah, I think we are.”

Chan ended up dressed… not dissimilarly to Changbin. Jisung apologized, cat in arms, saying he didn’t think they’d look too matchy-matchy, but he could pick something else if Chan didn’t like it. In a long white button down, untucked, with black skinny jeans and a pair of oxfords he rarely wore, Chan waved him off saying that he liked Jisung’s choice and he looked too good to change. Plus they were going to be late if they didn’t leave soon. Jisung hummed, narrowing his eyes at Chan before setting Yuna on Chan’s bed and relenting. As he left the room to change, Chan grabbed his things and gave the kitty curled up on his pillow a goodbye kiss. Somehow, Jisung was dressed and ready to go in less than five minutes, and the three were off.

The bar was loud and crowded, even this early in the night. As he bumped into the third person in less than a minute, Changbin had a feeling that it would only get worse, and that he needed a drink. A glance at Chan told him the other was feeling similarly, if a bit less anxious; and Jisung seemed to pick up on it quickly, making a beeline for the bar. He ordered them a round, opening a tab and telling them to charge it for the night-- they could settle up later. By some miracle they found 3 empty bar stools and sat waiting for Jisung’s boy and his friends to show up, chatting as they sipped their drinks.

Changbin glanced around apprehensively, the feeling in the pit of his stomach growing a bit. He felt out of place. Beside him, his friends sat so casually, not seeming to notice his small inner turmoil. You look hot, a voice whispered inside his head. It’s okay to have fun. You’re not out of place, you certainly don’t look out of place. You’re branching out. And you’re here to have fun, loosen up. You can do this.

Changbin downed the rest of his drink and looked up to find both Jisung and Chan staring at him. “Sorry, what?”

“There’s a guy at the bar and I think he’s checking Chan out but Chan thinks I’m ‘crazy,’” Jisung said, subtly gesturing with his finger quotes. “I’m right, aren’t I?”

Changbin shrugged, casually looking over and catching a guy glancing towards Chan curiously. “Yeah, I mean I think he’s checking you out. He looks like the ‘come here often?’ type though…” Jisung snorted, agreeing. Perhaps Changbin wasn’t as clueless in the matters of love as he’d thought.

“I mean, I look hot. I wouldn’t blame him for checking me out,” Chan teased, winking at Changbin who rolled his eyes.

“It’s the eyeliner!” Jisung almost stood up with the force of that statement. “Changbin I’m telling you, if you would have let me--”

“Are you saying I don’t look hot?” Changbin cut him off, raising an eyebrow.

“Wh-- no! No, no of course not. I dressed you, didn’t I?” Changbin laughed and Jisung realized he was being teased. Fiddling with his straw in his drink and averting his eyes, Jisung mummbled, “Just saying you would have looked hotter if you’d cooperate.”

“Next time,” Chan suggested, and Jisung narrowed his eyes at Changbin.

“Next time, I promise.”

A grin spread slowly across Jisung’s face. “I’m holding you to that.”

Laughing, joking with his friends felt so comfortable that he forgot to be stressed about the bar and the noise and all the people-- yeah, Changbin could do this. Minho showed up not too long after, but he and Chan fell in with some of Minho’s friends, drinking and talking together both with and without the couple. A few drinks, and the group spilled out onto the dance floor-- the apprehension all but gone, feeling confident, Chan and Changbin went willingly and without hesitation.

Jisung, on the other hand, stayed at the bar with Minho, half-heartedly sipping their drinks as they’d both expressed the desire to keep an eye on their friends. Jisung had been put into many of the same classes as Minho on purpose, and had gotten close to him for obvious reasons. When the boy asked him out, he was surprised, but deemed it the perfect opportunity to kill two birds with one stone: learn more about Minho and give his roommates a little test run. They chatted, starting with talking about their friends and how they’d met. Chan had been doing surprisingly well, though Jisung would agree that he was the more social of the two. He wasn’t being flirted with by any of Minho’s friends, and Jisung had been preventing anybody from approaching him directly on purpose-- he wanted to ease them into the experience, so he’d pointed out people checking them out but… deterred them otherwise. It wasn’t control, just influence. Cupids worked with feelings, confidence and happiness and attraction, but the love that they sparked wasn’t the life-altering, earth-shattering variety-- unless it grew that way on it’s own. True love blossomed on it’s own.

Jisung felt Changbin’s panic from the moment they entered, but with a little help he relaxed as well. An artificial boost in confidence from Jisung’s direction even sent them both boldly out onto the dance floor, their newfound friendships with the others from the group helping a great deal.

As they spoke, Jisung gave Minho the rundown on how he’d become roommates with the two boys, and how it was currently his mission in life to get them to go out more, maybe meet some people.

“I don’t mean to make them sound like hermits, they’re just…”

“Shy?”

“Yeah.” Jisung smiled and glanced over his shoulder. “And not particularly confident, even though they’re both amazing! I have the bad habit of trying to play matchmaker with people I care about.”

“What about you? No confidence issues ever?” Minho teased.

“Nope, I’m too confident for my own good.”

Minho caught his eyes, a smile pulling at the corner of his lips. “I like that.”

Jisung felt the tips of his ears go red as he looked into his drink. “Good.”

“Good.”

When Minho excused himself to go to the bathroom, Jisung took the opportunity to skip onto the dance floor as well, surprising his two roommates but barging right in between them in the middle of a song. Scanning the dance floor, he decided it was maybe time to push the envelope, selecting a cute boy dancing near them who was clearly interested in Changbin-- one who he could sense had a good heart. He used a little bit of his mojo to encourage the boy to make a move, albeit a subtle move. He had a feeling Changbin would be a bit of a baby deer when it came to being hit on, making anything too forward out of the question.

He watched out of the corner of his eye as the boy inched his way closer and closer, eventually bumping straight into Changbin. His roommate looked up with big eyes at the stranger, who flashed him a sweet smile and began to introduce himself.

Changbin, however, cut him off with a quiet apology, moving away from him to a space on the other side of Chan. Oblivious.

Jisung’s sweet boy frowned, dejected, and moved off the dance floor back to who Jisung assumed was his group of friends, and before Chan and Changbin even came off the dance floor the boy was gone. Dejected himself, Jisung spotted Minho on his way back to the bar and wrapped his arms around both of his roommates, telling them he was having so much fun but he had to get back. They sent him off with winks and go get him’s, still under the impression that his date was the whole reason they were here.

Minho asked how his friends were doing and he let out a huff of air. “Not entirely hopeless, but they don’t inspire confidence. Yet.”

Eventually Jisung shooed Minho off to go dance with his friends for a while, saying that Chan and Changbin were probably dying for an opportunity to come over and interrogate him on how everything was going. He was right of course, and only spent a few moments alone at the bar before his roommates landed on either side of him.

“Is it going well? Do we need to bail you out of here?”

Jisung laughed and shook his head. “It’s going really well. Why, are you guys ready to leave?”

“Not really,” Changbin said as Chan ordered another round. “We’re having a good time. I’m glad we did this.”

“Hey, I saw that guy talking to you on the dance floor? Tall, light hair?”

Changbin laughed, shaking his head. “No, it was nothing. I just ran into him. He was cute though.”

“You should have made a move! I bet he would have danced with you.” Chan seconded him, but Changbin waved them both off.

“I just ran into him! Really, it was nothing.”

“I think he was checking you out earlier, but okay,” Chan added.

Jisung scanned the bar for a beat, then spotted the guy who has been checking Chan out earlier in the evening, still sipping a drink. He wasn’t drunk, and he wasn’t too sleazy-- just forward. He seemed like a good option for Chan, as good as the sweet boy he’d sent to Changbin. Just something to test the waters. A little nudge to catch his attention and a bit of encouragement, and both Jisung and Changbin caught him approaching. Jisung took the full drink in front of Chan saying “you’re not going to need this,” and smiled at a confused Chan as he sipped it, turning to talk to Changbin.

“Hey, uh… I’m Joonho.” It took Chan a second to realize that the man speaking was talking to him, actively trying to catch his attention by leaning on the bar to his left, and holding out his hand. Chan shook it and introduced himself, smiling politely.

“You look really familiar?” To his right, Jisung cringed and Changbin snorted, though Chan was too busy studying Joonho’s face to notice, trying to remember having met before.

“Oh, um… well maybe we had a class together? At the university, I’m a in the International Policy?”

“I’m going for business admin, so maybe that’s it! I just couldn’t place you, so I had to come talk to you.”

“Yeah, that must be it. Lots of business classes…” Chan looked at his friends awkwardly, not knowing how to continue the conversation. “Or… well our classes are probably in the same building.”

“Yeah, maybe I’ve just seen you around… but I feel like I would have remembered someone like you.”

He smiled shyly, wishing Jisung hadn’t stolen his drink so he’d at least have something to do with his hands. “I don’t know, there are a lot of students on campus, especially in the business program.”

“Not many as gorgeous as you.” It hit Chan like a slap in the face and he looked up at the guy wide-eyed, taking in the flirty smile.

“Oh, uh” was all he could muster, with a little laugh.

“So could I buy you a drink?”

Chan nodded, mouth opening and closing like a fish before he choked out a, “Yeah, I’m drinking-- well, I was drinking rum and coke.”

While he ordered, Chan shot a look of panic at his roommates, receiving two unhelpful sets of thumbs up in return. Chan turned back to watch the bartender make their drinks, then picked his up and awkwardly clincked his glass with Jooho’s.

And it all went downhill from their. By the time his drink was half gone, Joonho had made a lame excuse, thrown out a ‘it was nice meeting you’ and hightailed it out of there. Chan groaned as he left, leaning his head on Jisung’s shoulder.

“It wasn’t that bad.”

“No, it was worse,” Chan insisted.

“It was pretty bad,” Changbin supplied, and Jisung glared at him. “What? The guy was cheesy anyway.”

“Binnie, you’re not helping,” Chan pouted, downing a good portion of his drink.

“At least you recognized that you were being flirted with.”

They both eyed Changbin, who shouted “I just bumped into him!”

Chan made a noise of discontent and Jisung could feel his discomfort growing. He and Changbin seemed to take a turn for the worse, neither of them enjoying this quite as much anymore, and Jisung looked at his watch. “We should go.”

“We can stay,” Chan offered weakly, clearly ready to leave but not wanting to drag Jisung down with him.

“No, it’s late! I’m tired, and I gotta play a little hard to get to keep Minho interested. Come on, onto the dance floor for one more song and then we’ll head out.”

Chan left his half-finished drink, and they ended the night on a high note. On the way out, Minho promised to text Jisung for another date the following week, and he planted a kiss on the boy’s cheek in return.

Chan teased him on the way out. “Teach me your ways.”

“Trust me boys,” Jisung said, slinging his arms around both of their shoulders with a grin. “If I can’t get you boyfriends, nobody can.”

[mainexiii]

Always Be With You Forever Day6 Young K x OC

“Soo hyun came back to Korea to see her family, it's been 5 years since she went to the U.S to study, as she stepped her feet in Korea, memories came flooding back, will she be able to forget the tragedy that almost cost her life and killed her boyfriend or a miracle will happen?“ Also posted in AO3 = Mainexiii

also.. im lazy asf so i did not prood read all of this, hence, a lot of grammatical errors coz English is not my primary language. 

I’m having this strange feeling when I walk out on the arrival area at the airport, Jinnie my younger sister waving at her hands rapidly as if I can not even see her, I smile at her and waves back. “Soo hyun! Woah, I really missed you”, teary eyed she hug me tight and kiss my right cheek. “ yuck! You just smudged your lipstick on me, come on!” we laughed and went out of the airport, I was wiping my cheek when Jinnie asked a lot of things about my 5 year vacation in the U.S, well, it’s not just a vacation, I barely lived there during my college years and never came back to Korea.. I did not answer her question and just continue to walked until we reach her car, the both of us are silent the trip to my house, it’s not easy to talk about what happened years ago, it’s too hard to recall my memories that I’ve kept hidden inside my brain just to survive. “Jinnie-ya..can we please not talk about the past? I’m still not ready okay? Please..for me?” you gaze at her direction at holds her other hand and squeeze it. She heaved a sigh and squeeze back my hand. “ Okay.. you know.. after all these years without contact from us and your friends, one of these days you’ll find out about something and you have to be prepare for it”. I was confused about what she’s talking about and just shrugged it off. “ Wait.. is mom setting up a man for me to marry?, if that what it is.. then drop me off right now” I giggled but Jinnie is damn serious right now. “I hope so tho, but unfortunately that not it. I want you to stay strong, okay? She smiled and opened the radio. I panicked at her sudden action “Turn it off!” I screamed at her and she immediately turned off the radio. Jinnie apologized and stopped the car, Jinnie tries to calmed me down by caressing my back, took a deep breath and fix my hair and make up,I don’t want to let my mom see me like this, still a mess after all these years away from home. I face Jinnie and smiled, “I’m fine, Jinnie .. I’m sorry for startling you, I know all for you are worried about me and I’m sorry for everything, I hope you understand what I’ve through. Jinnie hugged me tightly and smiled and gave me an understanding nod. I'm meeting my family at the province with takes three hours of driving, I went by so familiar places and I feel that my heart’s going to burts with all these happy and sad memories with him.

8 years ago when I met Young hoon, everybody calls him brian. We went to the same high school and I was a transferee, he was the class president and he was assigned to help me everything to adjust to the new school, he took me a tour around the whole campus and introduced to different clubs, he was very helpful and nice, obviously the whole class loves him. I was bullied once when I was on my way to home on my first day of class, the kids who seemed to be rebels are ganging up on me , they took my wallet and ripped my school bag thinking they’ll find anything worth to steal, I was frozen walking the whole time and a girl from my class pat me at my back “ Hey, is this yours?” she turned over my lost items including my money, the only thing I did was hugged her and cry. She laughs and hold both of my shoulder, “It’s okay! I already took care of those bitches, they wont bother you anymore” I nod still crying. “Stop crying will you!” she offered her hand and introduced herself, “ I’m Hana, and you must be Soo hyun right?” confused, i looked up at her cause she’s quite tall “how did you know me?” I asked, “ Girl, we’re on the same class!” she replied, “ Oh, I did’nt notice you” doubting that she’s lying. “Brian gave you a tour around the campus?” she asked as we start walking outside the skirts where the bitches brought me, I didn’t even know this place, i felt my cheeks hotness and touch them, I smiled at the thought of Brian, he’s tall, handsome and I’ll figure out the rest, I was smiling the entire time when Hana confronts me, “Yah! don’t tell me you like Brian too?” she stopped facing me crossed arms, what the hell? I’m having a rival here already?! I stare at her her blankly, “ So what? You like him too don’t you? I gave her a question look, “ Bitch no! Brian’s my first cousin so don’t worry, I smiled at her reply and continues to walked when I saw my parent’s car near our apartment. “oh my parent’s already here” I glanced at her and pointed our apartment, “ I lived there!” I smiled at her took her hand, “ I’ll introduced you to my parents sometime” she smiled and shake my hand, “okay sure, but to tell you honestly, Brian has alot of admirers so good luck my friend..” she laughs and I slapped her back. She fakes a pain and laugh again seeing my red face, “ that’s not it,! I don’t like him at all! “ we we’re laughing and my parents called me to go up now, I wave at them and says thanks to my new found friend.

We arrived at the the province and my whole family welcomes me outside the house. Mom walks towards me as I opened the car door and hugs me tightly, I didn’t know I was crying until she wipes my tears, “Thank you for coming back” mom whispers while crying, seeing my mom, dad and two other siblings in front of me wont let me stop crying , I missed them so much that it hurts, everything hurts. We went inside and talk about everything excluding him. The day went by so fast I forgot I'm jet-lagged, mom prepared me a tea to help me sleep. I just want to take a rest now, I hope I’ll dream of him again, that’s the only thing that keeps me reminding of his face, I wished every single day to see him even in my dreams only, I missed him so much I think I will never moved on.

I woke up and look at the time on my phone, it’s already 9 am and I’m so freaking hungry. I climb out of my bed and I noticed a wedding invitation card at my bedside table, I open it and sees the fancy gold emboss font “Kang Hana and Park Sungjin” wow, how did she even know I’m back.”They did really end up together huh,” you smiled and recall little memories with them. I did not open the entire invitation since I don’t have the guts to see them. I took a shower, letting the water run down my body and close the clog to let the water full up the bath tub, I closed my eyes and recall the memories with him, I have to be strong, it’s been 5 years and I just cant accept the fact that he’s gone, I tried dating during my college years but none of them worked out.

After a year of being friends with Brian I decide to make the first move, it’s our last year in high school and I don’t wanna missed the opportunity, I know there’s something going on between us, but we just keep it casual, we’ve spent a lot of time together, holding hands, bus trips while holding hands, eat at cafe’s holding hands, watch busking holding hands and more holding hands, that’s it. We we’re contented about us just like that. We exchange stories about everything at our school’s rooftop. We wants to be a singer someday, play with a band, he’s good at guitars, basses, he was already a trainee at a company so most of his time are just in school, us going out and training, he rarely sees his family since he have been living in the dorm with his soon to be members. It’s fun spending our youth just like that. When I got the courage to ask him out, he already plans something, he brought me to the roof top and picnic basket, he let me sit down and runs at the back of the corner of the roof top to get his guitar, I was so excited I cant stop smiling all the time, he tuned his guitar and smiles at me widely, that the best thing that I liked about him, his smile that can lit up a dark world. He started singing one of his original songs, I listened at him looked him in the face and mouth “ I like you”, he stopped singing and walk towards me giving me a peck on the lips, I squeel covering my whole flushed cheeks. We spent the whole afternoon talking about our future and to travel around the whole world, Brian loves travelling as much as I do, we planned to go to Busan, Daegu and Jeju Island after our graduation. It’s the last day of our graduation and made our first trip to Busan, I was so excited spending my time with him, we ate and ate, went to the beaches, visit historical site. That feeling can never be replace by anyone. We’ve visit a lot of libraries around Seoul preparing for our college exam, he used to say that he loves me everyday, but I cant let out those words because I was unsure if it’s already love I am feeling for him,” it’s okay if you still don’t love me, as long as you let me love you, I’m okay with that” he smiled and hold my hand. It’s been 6 months since we had a trip outside Seoul, I was busy at school while Brian is busy preparing for their debut, Brian is amazing at multitasking, he went to school while practicing his bass skills, he’s so amazing at managing his study hours, practices and me. He always had a time for me, I mean everything, we eat breakfast together since my dorm is also close to his. Even when I’m sick, he can still take care of me, and that’s when I realized that I have loved him all this time, unsure of the feeling .. I shook the bad thoughts away and said my first I love you on his birthday, He keep on jumping and took me by his arms, hugging tightly. He kissed me passionately and I feel my hot cheeks probably flaring at this new feeling, he pulls away and widely smiled at me, “ We should go now” he says holding my hand leading me down stairs and went outside, “ oh wait, my gift for you” I hand him the box containing a couple dream bracelet. “HAPPY BIRTHDAY! You greeted him again with a hug and attached the bracelet on his right wrist. “ Thank you, really,”he hugged me tightly, he love giving tight hugs, his a hugger.

After our final exam, we had planned going to Jeju Island, just for one day since it’s expensive going there. I had pack my bag and prep up myself and called Brian, “ Bri, where are you now” I asked, looking around to see if I miss anything. “I just arrived downstairs, you coming down now?” he replied. “yeah, see you downstairs” I locked up my door went went downstairs.

We arrived at Jeju Island , the both of us feeling excited, we started to wander around , asked some locals what to ride to go to our accommodation, we took the bus that travels for 30 minutes to our place, we’re both excited as we planned the whole trip for months, we listened to some music on his ipod when I notice the sky is getting darker, I was nervous when it started raining heavily, the bus driver went on slowly to avoid accidents. The traffic light went red and the bus stopped, I hold Brians hand and lean on his shoulder, he felt the tension and my hands are shaking, “ You okay? Are you cold?” he ask with a worry look. I just nod and he brings his arms around my shoulder to pull me closer. The traffic light went green and as the bus driver starts to drive, I heard a loud bang! And I black out..

chapter2

I woke up feeling my whole body aches, mom rushes to hold my hand and asked if I was okay. She was crying while calling the doctors. I didn't know what's happening, I only remember Brian and I was on the bus and I blacked out. Brian and I was involved in an accident , fortunately... I was okay ,nothing serious happened but Brian,  he was comatose. I felt my whole world turns into darkness, i immediately went to Brians room and cried for hours.

Days gone by, weeks turns into months...

Brian still not awake, he's condition is not getting good and i blame myself for it. If it weren't for me.. He would've been laying for months in this awful room.

I was with him the entire time, i helped his family taking care of him, i rarely went to school and because of it. . . Im about to fail all my subjects due to absences .

I went to my school to inform that I will be taking a break and also informed Brian's school. I went back to the hospital and as I was about to enter Brian's room , I heard the doctor and Brian's parents talking about his condition.They decided to end Brian's life support.

My whole world shattered .

How can they do this to their own son? !

How can they take a life without taking chances!

This is not fair !

I burst into the room and beg for chances, to give Brian chance to live. I was crying while tugging his mom's coat,

" please don't do this ! I beg you ! Please .."

We we're both crying the whole time and she explained to me the consequences if we let Brian stay like that forever ..

" Soo-ya, we dont want Brian to suffer too, his condition is not getting good his body is so weak right now . I dont want my child to suffer like this .." I saw the sadness and sorrow in her eyes, the pain of watching his son getting weak.. I also can not stand watching Brian suffer, but I can not let Brian lose his life without even trying. I won't .

But the decision is not mine to make.

They're going to end his life the day after. I have to be with him on that last day , my heart aches to much there's no tears left to cry .

My heart is too numb.

D-Day

Brian's whole family is waiting for me at the hospital, while me .. Still at home, crying my heart out, " I thought there's no tears left" I mumbled.

I get up packed my clothes and documents and book the earliest ticket and went straight to the airport.

Brian's mom keep on calling me but I ignored and sent everyone a message that I'm boarding bound to America and never to contact me. I turned off my phone and cried myself to sleep.

I just lost the love of my life and im going to a unfamiliar place and tried my best to forget him.. But how can i? When I left my heart and soul in Seoul .

I finished taking a shower and went outside to grab some brunch, I found a cafe that serves American brunch sets and went inside . I keep on thinking the wedding invitation, I miss my best friend so much and she might hate me forever if I wont go to her wedding, I don't know what to do anymore .

Someone sat infront of me, I raised my head and saw Hana crossing her arms while glaring at me . Im so shock I almost spit my food,  " Hana! " I get up and hug her . She hug me back and gave me a wide smile.

"I missed youu Soo-ya!!!! " we hugged tightly and sit down. " Soo! It's been years.." She said giving me a faint smile "I know.. It's been years and I missed you too,  and I'm sorry Hana ..for everything"

"I understand you Soo, I know the pain that you went through but it's not worth it,  you made yourself a mess,  after all these years, no one knows where on America are you, you wont let us comfort you, you completely shut us down in your life.. And im telling you Soo, all those tears .. It's not worth it."

The pain that i've felt all those years.. I know, i did not help myself overcoming it. It was so overwhelming i kept myself busy working and studying, just to forget Brian .

But it did not help, because at the end of the day.. Brian is the only one who i think of. My love for Brian is irreplaceable. I blame myself everyday until my heart don't let any people inside it.

"It's not worth it Soo, it's the time for you to moved on and be happy, because it's not your fault okay?" I tried to remain calm for a few seconds, i wont let my tears be visible for this is the day that i have to let my old self go and open a new door and let people inside it. I take Hana's hand and squeeze it "Thank you Hana, i'll try my very best"

We went outside the cafe and walk towards the parking lot, she have to run some errands for her wedding tomorrow and bid goodbye as she went inside her car.

As I was going to the opposite direction, Hana's car stopped beside me she roll down her window. "Soo! I have to tell you something tomorrow, please come okay?! It's very important and you deserve to know it, please come okay?" She said and I answer her with a smile and nod and . She smiled back and drive away.

I gather my thoughts about everything, it's time for me to moved on and be happy again it's been years and there's too many people that i've pushed away. I shouldn't let myself be forever like this, it's time to say goodbye to Brian.

It's Hana's wedding day at 12pm and there's still a lot of time for me to visit Brian's grave. But.. I dont know where he was buried. I'll just ask Hana later after the wedding.

I arrive at the wedding hall and went to the bride's room. Hana was talking a picture with my high school friends and i feel so guilty losing contacts with them, Hana notices me as well as my H.S friends, their faces look shocked to see me and turns into an apologetic smile, I composed myself and greet them warmly, they hug me tightly and atleast i felt that they really miss me.

I turn my attention to Hana and praised her with compliments, the girls and we're catching up when the Host is announcing to start the wedding, we went out of the room and went to our table. As the wedding starts , I wander if im seeing familiar faces at the event and my eyes landed on Brian's mom, she was looking at me and give me a warm smile and a nod, i smile back and my heart skip a beat seeing her, it was so nerve wrecking... I always feel so attached at Brian's mother, during my stay at the hospital she also takes care of me when my mom is not around, we share stories about Brian and our trips and i felt her happiness as we talk about Brian.. I shrugged memories away. On the middle of the wedding the announcer says that there will be a surprise perfomance of a band called Day6, I looked at Hana and her face turned pale while she look at me, I'm confused at the sudden reaction and I looked at my friends , seeing their faces the same reaction as Hana while looking at me, suddenly i feel nervous and ask what is happening. They can not answer me and just keep silent when another stage appear and there i saw a familiar man with four more people each holding their instruments, the band starts singing when the man holding a bass put it down and went in the middle of the stage and hug Hana while singing, I stand up to see a clearer view and i froze .

No way this is happening, i was still frozen when the man singing averts his eyes on me, i recognized the same eyes, nose and lips, it's Brian. It's Brian! How is this possible? He's dead! Brian..is dead. My tears started to fall and notice Brian's reaction, he give me a small smile and finished singing. My kness are weak and i grip the table to lean on, my friends help me to sit down, and tries to calm me.

How can i calm when the man i grieve for years is alive?! I can not gather my thoughts my mind went blank as i was about to leave the venue .. Someone stop me by holding my arm, i face that person and my heart shatters to see him this close to me. I just let my self cry as he holds both my shoulder , the overwhelming feeling makes me unconscious and I blacked out. Again.

Chapter 3

I woke up hearing different voices , i open my eyes and saw Hana still in her wedding dress.

"GOD SOO! YOU'RE AWAKE! she hugs me tightly and cry.

It wasnt a dream..

Hana explained everything , They we're supposed to end Brian's suffering on the day that i left, but Brian's mom change her mind and give another chance for Brian to wake up, they keep on calling me to tell me the news but i already went abroad. After a month of intensive prayers a miracle happened and Brian woke up. Yet they still cant reach me. After months on theraphy, Brian decided to went after me on America but i  never told them where i live even my family didn't know. Brian eventually became busy because of training and catching up homeworks for school, and tried to move on from me too. He debut in a band two years ago and became known globally, which ofcourse I did'nt know because I shut myself from the universe...

My mind went blank,  all those pain and rejection and guilt , those feelings that ruined me..i cried and cried until i calmed down, Hana left me in the hotel room and went back to the venue. I lay down overthinking about Brian, how do i react when i see him again, that..if he still wants to see me ,but i want to see him badly my heart aches for him,  he probably hate me for leaving him. I hate my self too. All these years of heart break, i feel so pathetic. I heard  knocks on the door, i went down the bed and open the door...and Brian stands there, I took a step backwards as he went inside and lock the door. I can only hear our breathing standing face to face ,no one tries to speak.

We just stare at each other,when he took a step forward and holds my hand. The moment our skin touches all the memories with him came flashing back and all i can do is cry. He pulls me in a tight hug as i sob inside his arms. I keep on crying on his shirt as i feel the warm liquid on my head, i look up at him and saw him crying too. We cried in each others arms, we lay down the bed, he hugs me closer and stroke my hair still crying. No talking just tight hugs.

Chapter 4 Brian’s POV

After the accident i woke up in the hospital and never saw soo hyun again.. She went away unknowingly what happend to me , she thinks IM DEAD. We can not contact her phone, email we didnt even know her address in the states. She shut everyone down. Occationaly she sent letters to her family without the return address. That's the only communication that they have. She never came back.

I tried hard to finished my studies and training and finally i debuted with my band. I still cant forget her i think i will never forget her , she took my heart with her and i never dated anyone else , my friends even think im gay . Everything reminds me of her, my dream bracelet, the rooftop, the shirts she gave me on special occations, our favorite restaurant, she's everywhere. I cried so many sleepless nights thinking about her, i miss her so damn much . And eventually i set aside my feelings and focused on my work and studies ,and i graduate finally, i think of her every single day, so many what if's, she might be happy right now, she must've moved on . Thinking about her with another man makes my heart beats faster, i should be with her, she should be with me celebrating life. But she never came back.

It's Hana's wedding day, im not supposed to be at her wedding because of conflict of schedules but it was cancelled so i went and surprised her.

But i was the one whose surprise.

Soo hyun, the love of my life, is here.

We made eye contact, i can see her eyes full confusion, hurt, mixed emotions. I smile at her and she rushed to the door. I chase her calling her name and grab her arms, she froze standing looking at me and cry. As i was gonna hug her she collapsed.

I went to her room after Hana explained everything, she cried and cried as I hug her tightly . God i missed her so much i cried along with her, we didnt talk and i just let her cry her heart out. She fell asleep still sobbing. I watch her intently, i still cant believe it's her, i never thought she's coming back into my life again, she must've felt guilty about the accident she blamed herself all these years thinking that i was dead.  

"I'm sorry you went all through that" I stroked her hair, planting small kisses, i hug her tightly and she open her eyes, looking at me without blinking ,intently fixed her gaze on me, i smile at her and touch her cheeks..

"It's not a dream right?" She kissed my hand

"No babe, i'm real and alive" I cupped her cheeks and trails small kisses on her face and gently kiss her lips.

"I think it's time for us to be happy, you should let go all the burdens, let's start a brand new chapter of our life,okay? I missed you babe, i missed you a lot" i kissed her again this time passionately to let her feel safe and that im here with her.

" I love you Bri, thank you for being alive"

" I love you more Soo, thank you for coming back"

[words-writ-in-starlight]

for the character ask meme: one member of the IPRE (your pick!)

*slams my fists down* L U C R E T I A.  This is just gonna be…it’s just gonna be rough.  I’ve made a few goofs about the Director here and there but I literally have not written a happy headcanon here.

Send me a character and I’ll write 10 headcanons!

Lucretia’s hair has been white all her life.  Her mother suffered a bit of a magical mishap halfway through her pregnancy and there was a lot of concern that Lucretia would die, or be born with three heads, or the gods only know what else, but instead she was a perfect, healthy baby girl with skin like black walnut wood and tightly crimped white curls and all the usual number of limbs.  She wore her hair long for all her childhood and all her time in the IPRE, usually tied back into a ponytail that poofed out into a snowy cloud like a halo behind her.  On the Starblaster, as the crew grew closer, she let the others come up with new ways for her to wear it, letting Lup cast spells to turn it straight as bone (and long enough to brush her knees), or teaching Magnus how to twist it into dreadlocks, or letting Merle braid it with flowers and oils that kept it soft and strong.  Sometimes Lup and Taako would team up with two Mage Hands each and she’d have eight hands turning her hair into a thousand tiny perfect plaits.  It reset after each cycle, after all–Lucretia was game for anything, as long as it didn’t require her to cut her hair.  

After Lucretia became Madame Director, after the Bureau had been founded and the moon base was under construction and all her journals were gone, the Director stood in front of her mirror and took a razor to her hair until it was a cap of curls less than half an inch long, and all the glorious clouds of white lay littered around her feet.

Lucretia’s resume might say ‘biographer’ but it would be more accurate to call her a ‘war correspondent’.  A universe where a significant majority of the population has powerful magic means that even a minor civil dispute can be some pretty impressive hijinks, and Lucretia was kind of like Angus, a wayward twelve-year-old wandering into the local dragon-vs-hero battle and writing furiously in the background while dodging fireballs without looking up.  By the time she got recruited by the IPRE as a young twenty-something, she’d ghostwritten about fifteen books and every journalist worth their salt knew that, if you needed someone to go somewhere horribly dangerous and write something about it with no concern for their own safety, you wanted Lucretia.  Lucretia’s class is Multitasker and she’s level 450 with a prestige class in Unflappable and she didn’t exclusively get that from her time on the Starblaster.

Lucretia and Magnus were an odd pair, as far as most people could tell, but they fell in together immediately and with a vengeance.  It was never an issue of romance or sex–Lucretia only occasionally remembers that those are things that people experience–but Magnus was big and jovial and seemed to fill a room with his booming voice, and Lucretia leaned toward him like gravity and was surprised to find that he could be quiet and soothing as easily as loud and boisterous.  Lucretia never had a brother, before, but she thought sometimes that Magnus was what brothers were like, affectionate and rough and protective.  So protective.  Magnus died in almost one in five cycles, more than anyone except Merle–and Merle’s many deaths were quick, painless things.  Magnus died trying to find the Light, bled out as they tried to save him or fell protecting their backs as they ran, and after his tenth death Lucretia hurled herself at him, at the start of the next cycle, and burst into tears.  He had to be more careful, she said as he hesitantly rubbed her back.  He had to remember that they were waiting for him to come back, he had to remember that the crew was waiting for him.  Sometimes Lucretia thinks about telling Magnus those exact words and she hates herself.

Lucretia couldn’t stand the idea of abandoning her crew, even after the voidfish took their memories at her behest.  Davenport, of course, she took on as an assistant–she didn’t know, she had never imagined that she would reduce him so far, her brilliant, competent, well-spoken captain.  She cried for an hour and a half, locked alone in a room, before she could stand to face him again.  She attended Merle’s wedding, took a private bet with herself that it wouldn’t last more than two years.  She attended Magnus’ wedding, too, and that one, oh, that one she thought would last–news of the destruction of Ravensroost came just months later, and Lucretia’s chest hurt with the need to go and hug Magnus and let him cry into her shoulder the way he had when worlds died.  Barry was…a problem to track, to say the least, and Lucretia was never quite sure if he was alive or dead or just a very competent illusionist.  Liches are such a pain.  Seeing Taako playing up to an audience without Lup at his shoulder was jarring, but he seemed…not happy, but like he was enjoying himself, at the very least, and then Glamour Springs happened and Taako dropped off the map and Lucretia’s heart stopped.  Lup was dead and if Taako died too, she would never forgive herself.

Lucretia hired Magic Brian for a lot of reasons, among them his competence, but his voice–his voice reminded her so much of the twins.  On her better days, she would listen to him talk and her wistfulness would be a small part of her, not enough to really distract her.  On her worse days, she would hear Brian laugh from across the room and there would be a lurch in her chest as her head snapped up and she looked for a flash of red and identical smirks, and the crashing revelation was like losing them all over again.

In theory, the Bureau of Balance uniform is blue and silver.  Lucretia chose it on purpose, because she couldn’t take the way her throat closed up every time Davenport wore a red coat.  She doesn’t enforce it, but generally speaking people don’t wear a lot of red because it makes them stick out like a sore thumb.  She should have known that Magnus and Merle and Taako wouldn’t give a damn one way or another.  Merle still dresses a little bit like a train crash in a tropical print shirt, and Taako’s sense of style remains Unique, but they both usually have at least one item of red clothing on at all times.  Magnus has a red bandana that he wears around his neck like it’s sewn in place.  When it’s pointed out to them, Carey making a joke about how “well, no one ever has to wonder who you are, you all dress in red!”, they laugh it off and make excuses about how it’s just what’s in their closet.  They just don’t feel right without some red.  Lucretia, overhearing this, has to excuse herself, because she can’t tell if she’s going to laugh or cry.

Lucretia is tired a lot of the time.  She can’t tell if it’s because her body is older, now, older than she’s ever been but also nowhere near the age she really is, or because she’s so lonely.  There are days where she’s just numb, where the only thing that gets her out of bed is Davenport standing there looking expectant, and other days where she breaks everything in her office, until she runs out of things to throw and is left staring at a room full of shards through a haze of tears she doesn’t remember crying.  It shocks her, a little bit, to wake up on the first day after she’s recruited the boys, and actually think I can’t wait to see what happens today.  It’s the first time in years that her reflection smiles at her.

Lucretia sits with Junior sometimes and just…talks to them.  Tells them about all the things that no one knows, that no one remembers, talks about the Starblaster and all the worlds they visited.  She talks about how Lup and Taako could cook an entire feast with a bunch of shitty phosphorescent mushrooms, and how Davenport banned the pair of them from piloting the ship except in a crisis because while Taako was learning the controls Lup shouted do a barrel roll and he almost killed them all.  She talks about Magnus and his huge stupid heart that he always wore on his sleeve, and how it broke every year that they failed to save a world.  She talks about Barry and the way he once accidentally became the messianic leader of a necromantic cult, and about how Merle had to swoop in and save him from being sacrificed by riding a treant into battle.  She talks about the year where she was alone because they had all died, they died and she escaped and she thought that this would be like that year, but this is worse.  Seeing them see her and not know her, knowing they’re literally inches away, it’s so much worse.  Junior presses their tentacles against the glass when Lucretia starts crying, and she presses her hands back.

Lucretia hasn’t slept for more than three hours straight in a decade.  She has nightmares, you see.  This is a known, but unspoken, thing at the Bureau.  The Director wanders the halls like a homeless ghost at odd hours, not really checking up on anything so much as just…drifting.  Sometimes she finds another person, wandering, and brings them back to her office for tea, but there’s never any discussion of it.  One night, after Refuge, she passes the Reclaimers’ dorm and hears the sound of clattering and murmured voices, a familiar ramble about who the fuck makes powdered chocolate why do people not love themselves Magnus do not FUCKING touch that pot, and she has her hand on the doorknob and is about to walk inside on weary autopilot before she remembers.

After the dust settles, Lucretia goes and sits on the floor in the mostly-dark voidfish room.  Not very Directorly, perhaps, to be sat on the floor in the light of the voidfish tank with her old jacket in her lap, but she’s finished her task and she’ll be unDirectorly if she wants to.  Besides, there are tearful reunions happening, and she feels horribly out of place.  This is their victory, this is what she worked for all these years, what she sacrificed everything for, and she just feels empty, because even after all this, her crew, her family, is still outside and she’s in here, in this base that has been more or less her self-made prison.  It is, she thinks, no more than she deserves, but the part of her that’s still a reserved twenty-something biographer newly thrust into the spotlight had wished for something else.  The sound of footsteps takes her off-guard, and she looks back over her shoulder, away from the voidfishes, to see Davenport.  He looks sharp and alert in a way she’s sorely missed, but he also looks…unsure.

“You, ah.  You cut your hair,” he says, and Lucretia raises a hand thoughtlessly, as if she’s not used to the short length.

“It was too much work to take care of it alone,” she says, the lie she always tells about why she keeps it so short, and Davenport huffs at her, cracks a faint smile.  She’s a very tall human, and sitting, they’re almost on eye level.  

His eyes fall to her jacket, in her lap, and he sighs.  “Come on,” he says.  “Everyone’s getting drunk.  You’d better join us or they’ll come get drunk here, instead.”

“I thought maybe–”

“We’re still going to have a talk,” he says sharply, interrupting her.  “But get up off that floor and come have a goddamn drink, Lucretia.”

“Yes, Captain,” she says softly, and after she stands, he takes her hand and leads her back into the light.

[thebarefootcreative-blog]

Digital heart of darkness

Some times you can't see the wood for the trees or in my case for the past month the Jungle for the leaves.

After a interesting and demanding 2019, involving a change in career position ( from being creative director at an agency to the exciting but sometimes uncertainty of a freelance creative ), the fluctuating and breakneck speed the creative playing field is evolving at ( the change from clients needs from more traditional media to a long list of digital deliverables and formats) plus the never-ending narrative of Brexit and the economic and business limbo it creates.

We decided as a family to pack our bags and throw ourselves in a Swiss family Robinson adventure around Vietnam. 

Now id like to say I was off the grid, a kind of creative Colonel Kutz surrounding myself with ex-creatives from by-gone agencies deep in the jungle formulating a new brand idea for M&S whilst receiving client feedback and repeating to myself the ’horror the horror’. But I wasn't. It seems near impossible these days to be completely off the grid, as long as there are a few fellow humans around you'll probably be only a few hundred yards away from a mobile phone tower.

That said I was detached from the constant bombardment of ads, TV, campaigns and radio scripts that you take in every day. I was also separated from the constant LinkedIn updates of all the great work that people have created, or self-affirmations of the awesome job one has worked on or how many hits the most recent social campaign has had for the new season of ’Love Island’.

There is a magical moment between the 25th and the 28th where on most digital forums the online chatter seems to drop to a post-apocalyptic level. Like Jim from 28 days later walking around London shouting ’ hello, is anybody put there’, you feel comfortable in the thought that everything has finally slowed down.

It's during the past few weeks I asked myself is all this digital overload good for the creative mind? I sometimes feel that if I'm not up to date with the next innovative technique or I haven't seen that recent campaign everyone is talking about I'm going to be left behind. 

A recent article I was reading stated that

staying in the loop becomes yet another item on our infinite to-do lists. There simply are not enough hours in the day to take in all the media that is presented to us. ’Attempting this hopeless feat often leads to a sensation of drowning in a sea of words, pictures and websites.’ This mental exhaustion should come as no surprise given the science of the brain our minds were designed to focus on one task at once. Thus, forcing them to multitask causes inefficiency and cognitive discomfort, triggering the release of stress hormones and adrenaline. The result? A catastrophic concoction of mental fog decreased productivity and creativity, and ensuing inner panic.

When I did finally log onto the creative forums what I noticed was that my mind didn't feel fogged or overloaded it wasn't craving its fix, scrolling down page after page, reading, liking, sharing, but instead focused on the purity and downright creative beauty of one idea that caught my eye ( that I’d missed ironically in my absence) and stirred that old emotion of ’damn I wish I'd have thought of that’. Something we should all feel as creatives every day.

BBC Creative - Dracula 

A tightly edited promo, a striking print campaign and an ingenious six-sheet. No event held in Highgate cemetery where you can throw stakes at Little Minx and have a selfie taken with them, No app that allows your voice to sound like a 16th Century Borat or a social campaign where you can stalk people through the streets of London, jump out screaming “ I want to taste your blood” scaring the bejesus out of them whilst your friend films it and sees how many likes you get. All of the above should be kept for season 2.

So as I sipped my third Mai Tai ( yes three), sitting on my porch planning my return to the battlefield surrounded by jungle and night frogs croaking their harmonised goodbye lament I wondered how I could keep this creative Toaist frame of mind. Does one need to constantly enter this technological heart of darkness to appear out of the other side refreshed? How can one become part Buddha part Picasso in a world full of distraction?

Brian Solis, digital anthropologist writes, "When we avert distraction and focus in order to create and achieve our goals, we feel capable and successful.

Purpose also pulls us out of our harmful self-focus and makes us feel part of something bigger, beyond ourselves. It frees us from our rumination about ourselves and the past and keeps us oriented toward the future, with a sense of what we can contribute."

If we can remove some of our daily digital consumption it may inspire us to stop, reflect, and recover a connection to the creativity and deeper purpose we need for living happy, healthy lives and succeeding as individuals, organizations, and as a society at large in the digital age. 

Of course, I'm super aware whilst writing this I'm in some part adding to the problem. Damn - ’Om’

[endenogatai]

From Twenty Minute VC to 20VC, Harry Stebbings launches a micro VC off the back of his popular podcast

Podcasts are becoming big business — in part because of how well they can attract and keep audience at a time when so many other media formats are finding it hard to pin down that elusive metric of engagement. Now a podcast host who has built out a popular series around the world of startup investing is leveraging that growth to build out an investment vehicle of his own. Harry Stebbings, the 24-year-old London-based creator and host of Twenty Minute VC, is launching a micro VC fund of $8.3 million. Called 20VC, the plan is to invest in US startups across various stages alongside “tier 1” co-investors.

Stebbings spends a lot of his time talking to investors and about investments, and this is his second foray into actually putting money where his mouth is. He’s also a partner at Stride.vc, a firm he co-founded with Fred Destin in 2018 (joined later by a third partner, Pia d’Iribarne). He says that 20VC is scratching a different itch. The older fund focuses on investing in the UK and France, has an inclination (but not exclusivity) towards e-commerce disruptors and earlier stages of investment.

Stebbings’ newer effort, on the other hand, focuses on the US, and is positioned within what seems to be shaping up to a typical micro fund profile. Micro funds, as the name implies, are usually not huge, but they aim to pack a punch by offering other skills in the mix with their smaller investments. The concept has been growing in popularity over the last several years. (“I don’t know anyone who isn’t involved in at least one $5 million micro fund,” one former VC said to me.)

In the case of 20VC, it hopes to get its foot into the door on deals other VCs by offering Stebbings’ own set of skills in building and scaling companies as the selling point in exchange.

Typical deal sizes will range from $100,000 to $300,000 ($250,000 is the typical check size), and although Stebbings is announcing the fund today, some 12 investments have already been made out of it (Nex Health and Spiketrap are the only two that are public so far), investing alongside Sequoia, Index, Founders Fund, a16z.

20VC’s tie to the name of the podcast is intentional. The podcast has developed a brand of its own in the world of tech, with some 200,000 subscribers and 80 million downloads to date of the twice-weekly program. And 20VC isn’t just trading on Stebbings’ own experience as an entrepreneur: it has tapped the network of people that have been on the show, or know him because of the show, to assemble LPs.

There are some 64 of them in all, including founders and current and former execs from Atlassian, Yammer (David Sacks), Plaid (William Hockney), Superhuman, Airtable, Calm, Cazoo, Zenly, Alan, Spotify (Shakil Khan) and Tray.io; GPs from Kleiner (Mamoon Hamid), Social Capital (Chamath) Thrive (Josh Kushner & Miles Grimshaw), Atomic, Founders Fund (Brian Singerman), Coatue, Index (Danny Rimer), True Ventures (Phil Black), and Beezer Clarkson, among many others. Having a popular podcast that highlights interesting investors and startups turns out to be a good way of networking to build a fund. Stebbings said that the call out was oversubscribed three times over within four weeks.

Boy VC

Stebbings’ entry into the world of investing in startups is something of a typical startup story of its own.

He came up with the idea for his podcast at a time when he was already intrigued by the world of venture capital, but was actually on the road to something else, with a place as a law scholar at Kings College in London (in the US you start law school as an undergraduate).

He says started the podcast with the idea of working on something that interested him, but more specifically to make some money. His mother has multiple sclerosis and she was having issues paying for her healthcare. Stebbings decided to start the podcast use the money it made off advertising around it to help cover his mother’s medical bills.

He was a nobody in tech, but he had a very specific plan, and a lot of smiley and positive enthusiasm, for how to get from zero to hero.

It started with finding just the right first guest, someone who had a high profile and respect but also appeared to be nice enough that if you got the approach right, you might get an agreement to be interviewed, or as Stebbings described it, “low hanging fruit.”

For Stebbings, that person, it turned out, was Guy Kawasaki. In addition to getting the interview, Stebbings also asked Kawasaki for three recommendations of people he should have on the show next, and what he should ask them. Stebbings followed that up with asking those three for their recommendations, and so on. Pyramid scheme with purpose, I guess you could say.

“I view distribution quite scientifically,” said Stebbings — who I interviewed sitting in a bedroom, although I think he normally podcasts these days sitting in a studio as pictured, above. “I’m bringing as many people as possible to help in the content creation process.”

The whole format of “20 minutes” also stemmed from a calculation Stebbings made. He told me he used to struggle with his weight and finally managed to lose some pounds using Tim Ferriss’ 4-hour Body. It got him thinking about how timing is important, and on top of that he knew that the typical commute in London was around 30 minutes, and decided that 20 minutes was a reasonable amount of time to expect someone to listen regularly. (Spoiler: most of the podcasts these days are not 20 minutes, but longer.)

Things started to shift from interesting side hustle to main hustle after he featured Arielle Zuckerberg, Mark’s sister and a tech persona in her own right (she’s currently a partner at investment firm Coatue). That podcast saw 100,000 downloads, and all signs pointed to 20 Minute VC taking off. So he quit university to focus on the podcast full time. It was four weeks into his first term.

“I decided I love VC and all of this,” he said about his choice to drop out of school. “I decided that I’d rather have my shot at this than trying to live the life I didn’t want to live. It was a big decision. I was 18 and very unemployable at the time.”

As for his mother’s medical bills, they are still being paid for by the show, he said.

“There’s advertising at the beginning and end of the show. It’s fine, not lights out, but it pays for my mother’s healthcare and that’s all I need it to do.”

The show, and Stebbings himself, have benefitted from a perfect storm of circumstances to grow.

Podcasts have been around for years, but it’s only been in recent times that they have properly taken off in popularity. Leveraging mobile phones and apps for listening, they fit naturally into our multitasking, information-hungry routines; there is a huge variety out there, a podcast for every taste; and they’ve bettered the talk radio format by being there right when you need them. Having a very predictable program in that format — Stebbings’ show has been running twice a week, every week, for five years now — is not to be underestimated.

There is also the subject matter to consider. There has been a huge explosion in the role that technology is playing in our modern society and economy, and that has meant an audience that consists not just of those already working in the world of tech, but those with ambitions to be a part of it (like Stebbings himself), and simply a lot of enthusiasts.

Within that, venture capital has seen a veritable explosion of money, and while some believe that it’s the technical talent that fuels the startup engine, others would make a strong case for the funding that enables them to work holding that role. In any case, money has always held a lot of allure.

“VC is becoming more popular, and cool, and I think that had a lot to do with us getting to this size,” he said.

Stebbings himself is also a part of the formula. He’s not a journalist, and at a time when we seem to be seeing a lot of wariness and tension in the relationship between media and the tech industry, his position as an informal reporter and conduit of information and messaging, who remains friendly and non-combative with his guests, may see him getting a lot warmer of a reception from his target audience of guests and listeners.

Harry doesn’t seem to remember this, but I first met him several years ago, at a tech event in London, where he was working the room very smoothly, smiling and chatting and knowing enough people already that he was able to continue the momentum introducing himself and presuming familiarity with those he was just meeting for the first time. I remember being struck at the time by how young he was mingling amongst quite a lot of middle aged types.

When I recalled this and asked Stebbings if he ever felt like he’s found a place in this scene precisely for this reason — being around younger and flattering people sometimes makes older people feel less old, and possibly more important — he said he thought it was more that it’s about himself feeling natural in that environment.

“For me, it’s always about building relationships,” he said. “I was always like the 50 year old in the room when I was younger and I didn’t have many friends. I’ve made by best friends through the shows.”

Ironically, he says that these days he does get pinged by his older — that is, young and past — acquaintances who are hoping for connections to his powerful network to push whatever tech enterprise they are pursuing these days.

That’s not the only bit of irony in 20VC and Stebbings’ latest venture: the whole of his podcast was built from the ground up, funded by ads and not a penny of outside investment. It means that the lesson from Stebbings is not just how to grow and scale, but how to do so with no VC involvement at all.

That’s not the norm, however, and so this will be about bringing more along that proverbial check.

“Everyone in the valley has money, but very few have been part of an enterprise that has scaled to include contact machines and brands. I’ll have thousands of tips and lessons on scaling and customer acquisition costs. It’s about the cadence and distribution, and how ton build a brand.”

from RSSMix.com Mix ID 8204425 https://ift.tt/2WvdqYR via IFTTT

[survivormarmoreal]

Episode #4: "I made James quit accidentally because I rigged a random.org" - Brian

So.... BC quit. Don't know why (and I am not gonna enquire, I just know he is hella busy). But ya I don't know what this means going forward but im gonna roll with it. If i'm not flexible, then that is not a good winner. so ya looking forward toi see whatever happens, and if Madigan go to tribal again, all i know is that i will still be safe cause james and I will just get Keaton involved

I’m SHOCKED BC quit because I thought I was going home lmao so now I have no idea what the hell is gonna happen I’m praying we swap tbh so I can meet up with Brian or Bryce who I know sbsbsbs.

Okay I'm super sad BC quit. They seemed like such a sweetheart. And I always hate to see anybody quit. I'm usually kind of annoyed about quitters but I hope BC is all good and it was just because they were busy... :(

This game has been really good to our tribe. We havent gone to tribal. I have a majority alliance of 4. Everyone is active and does 100% on the challenges. Its been good. Havent had much luck in idol hunt tho so probably someone already found it. Still nervous for the challenge. I want to keep winning but the bad thing in the eyes for the other tribe.

The game is always changing... and someone quitting just shows how quickly everything can change in the game. Plans set forward destroyed... alliances ruined just due to what the game might throw at you at any given time. It’s always scary but you know what... sometimes you gotta look at something bad and say hey let’s test my gameplay a little bit... that is what I’m good at and that is what I plan to do!

So we have swapped. and im not with james. This is hateful huh. first bc quitting today and now this. fuck this. and im with marie and keaton as well. ffs. oh well. time to get socialising and do this shit!

I KNEW A SWAP WAS COMING!!! I felt it deep in my bones. Do sharks have bones? I actually don't think they do. Oh well. I KNEW IT WAS HAPPENING. Obviously I'm super nervous now because I was in a great spot before. But luckily I still have my #1 Brian. And Charlie who is a part of my Four of a Kind alliance and he has an idol. Plus Anna and I hopefully can work together like we have in other games. I just hope she trusts me. Ugh and I freaking hope we win this challenge. Because OG Dinah members definitely have a target as the last intact tribe. SO much is going on in my little gay brain.

Okay my brain is going a mile a minute with this swap. I'm reconnecting with Anna. She seems excited to see me and she told me she isn't super close with Jayden or Nick so that's amazing. I told Brian about Charlie's idol. So this is good. We're surviving.

omg so we swapped and im so sad nathan isnt here but thats about it. happy to be away from jayden since he IGNORES me. when i read these after the game im gonna seem so obsessed huh KJDFSHFAKSJD. but anyway. dennis is here and hes one of my fave ppl ever! hes just so nice. we shared idol guesses and i really wanna go to the end with him. matt is pretty cool and we both stan the good place and naomi smalls so i feel like we'll be good allies. marie is a queen and super nice but maybe not super active but we both love ari so yay. naptime maynor isnt really liking my humor JKASDHF but thats ok. and kirby guy is alright too!! nicole seems nice enough if not a little standoffish but hoping for the best :s love this tribe overrall tho and really hoping to avoid tribal

I got ZType for the duels! Blessed. I can do well in this game and I can't be the reason our tribe loses in the RARE chance we do. So i'm feeling okay.

Too annoyed to write too much right now. But yet another org, and yet another swap fuck! Honestly, this is ridiculous. We have three members on either 7 person tribe, and even if we do manage to succeed in surviving another non-dinah is going to replace the voted out member... you can't make this shit up.

I knew the swap was coming. But im with Dennis which is good. He has some connections with Bryce and Nicole so hopefully they work with us. Keaton is also here like oh Boi. 👀 going to see if he wants to work with me this time. Having him around could help me in this game.

James quits by leaving the server and ignoring everyone.

https://gph.is/1neigCU my mood at my initial alliance members both qutiing time to die?

Ok so Klick quit which is kinda upsetting cuz I was grinding tf outta that challenge and I lowkey played a game with him about a year and a half ago and kinda wanted to reconnect. BUT Nathan is now on the tribe which is like the nest possible scenario. Also we have Anna so hopefully we have an easy majority. Also I assume Dennis has began running the game over on the other tribe because he is great and will probably end up voting me out at f9 or something. But YAY F14 IM NOT OUT YET ANSNSKDKLZLXKC

MY IMPACT?  I made James quit accidentally because I rigged a random.org to save Charlie from doing Multitask and then James had a fit because he got it and was sleeping so he couldn't pick... I... can't believe how I'm WINNING this game?  Anna, I hope you get my winner's crown READY because I'm doing the damn thing!  I am sorry I made him quit because I didn't think he would kjHDAJK... but wow...

Although I am in the minority right now based on tribal lines, Nathan is someone I've wanted to work with for like eons, and I feel so much more comfortable with him on my tribe than James and letting Annabelle hold my fate in her hands.  I think I have an upward battle, but I know Charlie has the idol and will warn Sharky in the case I need Charlie to use it on himself.  The two from my OG tribe I got stuck with is by far the only two from Dinah that I would go out of my way to protect in this game and knowing Charlie has the idol... ugh... I don't even have to DO anything and tea gets served to me.  Love Sharky.. love Charlie.. love Nathan... can't wait to thrive in this game now!

So the swap, i thought would have been really bad for us original dinah people but so far it looks like we might pull through. Nicole told by Dennis to me that she is willing to work with us but im a little sketch because she hasnt really responds to me exept like one message and then it stops. Im trying to get info from keaton and see if he wants to work with me. I have to keep an eye on him cuz he’s messy af. 👀 I think we could be a strong tribe so hopefully we win the next immunity. I rather have my no going to tribal streak going. I need to start talking to our new tribe members as well.

well james left so we got nathan i'm not upset about it i love nathan he's my person this game i think and we swapped with sharky on the tribe and i just played with sharky and we're in majority so things are really looking up here for me tbvh i feel like sharky might want to get rid of one of my OG tribe people but we'll see how it goes.

This game is weird man. I was so ready to play 2048, but Kirby Boi #2 was a quitter, so now I'm not playing 2048, both people I trusted QUIT, and Dennis is on my tribe. I am going to lose really soon. But hopefully I can find an in on my tribe and survive.

i just want an advantage. but oh so now 4/5 of my tribe is together and im just here.. love that! not sarcastic!! miss nathan tho! so far clicking with dennis still and naptime. hes a true carly rae jepsen fan i asked his fave and he said sour candy which is like (bad) but not well known so he must actually like her!! nicole left me on read.. love that! sarcastic!! and yaa wooh loving the new tribe that guy who quit bc of multitask kind of a flop but go off now im closer to merge!

This morning finding out that James was removed was suprising. It sucks cuz i was enjoying doing the ztype. I got to 7,100 which i think its good but idk if it actually was. But im ready for this challenge and hopefully we could win in it. Definately dont want to go to tribal.

Okay Nathan is AMAZING. I love him. And I'm totally going to work with him for sure. i'm so glad he didn't flop. And Honestly I'm glad James quit so that I could work with Nathan. This lip sync challenge is going to be silly. I offered to do the editing which honestly is a big undertaking but I like to be in control and It's definitely going to paint a target on my back but if we win it'll be so great.

OMG SO FUN CHALLENGE THAT I HATE WOOH. i love this but i hate it. idk. i REALLY dont want to do a queen song so i pretended to not know who they are NNN but all that caused was my tribemates shading me... and its like... matt says beyonce is just "ok" and i need to listen to real music.??? just say u hate women and go. JK. maybe. but ANYWAYS. love dennis still and naptime is so funny love his pins! nicole left me on read some more so i sent her demi lovatos GET BACK music video and she finally responded with two 5 word msgs and ghosted again so um really loving that! kirby guy also doesnt reply a lot but thats ok totally loving only talking to 4 ppl!

edit: quitters are shitters

Our song is Dont stop me now by queen which is awesome. I just need to find the time to work on it later today or tomorrow morning but have an idea what imma do so thats good. Still talking to keaton but no game talk it. Hopefully soon because im still feeling sketch on this tribe. I dont wanna get voted out pre-merge. *knocks on wood* ✊🌳

Making the video was really fun. Had more fun and felt more comfortable after making the ones before were i wasnt as comfortable. This is one of my fav comps now. Cant wait to see how it turns out.

UM?? I'm CACKLING?? So Sharky showed me the clips he got from Nick and Jayden, and I'm just so confused how straight men get any sort of action when they're as stiff as them?  I mean I guess they're not ugly so that probably helps, but neither of them are good at using a camera... So I'm just SO ...

I have nothing else to talk about other than how fucking STIFF the straight men are in their lip sync videos, so whew... love visibility…

worst comp for me ever like i was fine doing 2048 i could have probably helped with that but like a music video? YIKES that's not my thing at all i didn't know what to do or what to help especially since i'm so not gonna get on camera >.< i hate being useless if we lose like ugh lmfao

Okay so this challenge was...a disaster. I asked everyone to just do the song and then I'd make it look good with editing. That didn't work out. And I had more trouble editing than i thought. I feel like I dropped the ball and I'm not sued to being someone holding my tribe back. I tried to hide our bad lipsyncers. Charlie got sick. And something happened in the rush of uploading it that gave me a weird crop and a couple of cuts that I screwed up but I ran out of time. I'm feeling really disappointed in myself.

Okay we lost. This sucks. two of the judges called out the edit/effort specifically so that doesn't feel great. But I'm going to look at this as a positive. Maynor and Dennis stay safe on the other tribe. And Now I can use this to make some real connections and alliances on this tribe. Like Chad Michaels I will rise from the ashes and be the gayest winningest phoenix you have ever seen.

Ok so me Nathan and Nick should really stick with Annabelle. Easy majority makes easy game which makes happy Jayden

So we lost the challenge, but I don't feel too... bad about that.  I mean if I go home, clearly I fucked the fuck up and felt too confident... but I think that I feel... good?

Firstly, thank you to the judges for recognizing my SNAP in the lip sync.  I wasn't sure they were going to do my rap in the challenge, so I'm glad it was in there hehe... Now... going to tribal is a part of the game and the strategy has been lacking up till now, so I'm excited to jump in and finally explore that part of the game.  It'll be a nice start to my resume, following accidentally make James quit LMFAO.

Right now, I think I'm in a solid spot.  Nick said he wouldn't vote for me and I mean.. we haven't talked much, but I expect him to not lie for no reason... and I'm going to make sure to increase our conversation and expand on what HE wants to happen to just have that tea under my belt.  I think Jayden is who I would like gone, and I think I'd be able to gather the votes to get that to happen.  It's not like I have anything against him personally, but I just feel it's hardest to talk to him because him and I are not alike from what I've gathered.  I'm the uber gay and for the uber gay and the Travis Scott fanboy to get along?  Would be shocking.

I like Annabelle and Nathan a lot and I don't think they'd throw votes for me.  I have my little final 2 deal going on with Nathan, but highkey I don't think I'd keep him as my #1 over Marie, if I get to the point where I meet with her, so I have no problem cutting him or Annabelle in the future.  I do think it'd be better to work WITH them, especially for now, and I think they feel similar sentiments, but I don't know for sure!

But now we come to the real people I would like to protect going into this vote, Charlie and Sharky.  I love my OG Dinah babies so much, and I will make sure their names aren't the targets of this vote.  I think Sharky has set himself up well, and since he told me Charlie has the idol, I think we should especially be OK.  I also think Annabelle and Nathan seemingly want to work with us, so .... whew...

ALSO, this is a mid-confessional update, but 2 alliances were formed.  We have the "Tea Party" alliance with Sharky, me, and Nathan (the gays) and then the "Dinah Dudes" alliance with Charlie, Sharky, and me (OG Dinah's) and then I think another sub-alliance with the "Tea Party" and Annabelle is coming to fruition, so kjHDKAS... ya... I think I'm SET.  I can't wait to wreck shit!

So we swapped tribes and here I am with 3 from my original tribe, 3 from the other tribe and Bryce from the third tribe. Bryce and I know each other, and by that I mean I just blindsided him another org... oops! Hopefully he doesn’t come after me but who knows because I literally did not participate in this challenge at all! We still won though so hopefully I’ll get to redeem myself in the next one

My arms are SORE from pulling all my best Freddie Mercury moves out for this lip sync, I am SO tired. But I honestly am so glad i gave my 100% effort because I truly needed to pull through for this tribe and show them I’m not just a sitting duck. (Is that the term? Idk.)

Either way I’m glad we all got to bond through this and here’s to being safe ANOTHER round (I’ve never gone to tribal so wooooo!)

i want an IDOL or sth. but um dennis is so fun love that man. always asks daily to work with me. like idk how many times i have to tell him that he is literally the only person on this tribe to pm me first without me having to (NOT EXAGGERATION). marie and matt? no reply from marie in like 30 hours and matt hasnt been talking to me since i said idk queen. kirby guy? replies with 1 word answers and taste in music offends me NNN. nicole? who. all she does is ignore me and like somtimes she replies and ill reply in the SAME LIKE 10 SECONDS, and she'll just leave me on read JKADSFHAKSJ. comes back like 9 hours later with no reasoning on why she stopped talking and with just a "hi", and thats if im lucky! idk i hope we swap soon or merge. like the whole preswap i was praying for a swap to find some good allies bc all i had was nathan really, and now i just have dennis. maybe by merge ill have a whole 3 allies??? oh wait theres um maynor hes cool i always have to pm him first but hes at least responsive and can hold a conversation! black bear diner goes off and i WILL be eating there the next time in houston

We lost, which was hardly surprising when I saw the other tribe's video lol. So now it's not looking good for us dinahs... but luckily I have the idol up my sleeve hehe. Gonna tell Brian and Sharky so that we can use it to save us…

I was so happy that we won immunity. Stil feeling a little sketch on this tribe. Injust hope that the vote isnt charlie, brian, or sharky. And especially sharky cuz he’s my duo. Now dennis, nicole, and i are the only 3 to not go to tribal yet. Its pretty awesome amd kinda scary.

https://youtu.be/BfzG9xjtCRw

Down with the straights!  I still think Jayden is going, but if Charlie ends up going I'm JUMPING because that means I've been lied to by people that want to claim to be my final 2... I do trust in Jayden going but we shall SEE!

So the tribe lost and I’m a bit nervous because I’ve only heard one name... I would have loved to saved my idol until I needed it but I think it’s very likely my name could be the second one going around... we shall see what happens though.

Ugh okay so I was hoping for a simple easy vote. But as usual there is just a little bit of drama. Nick told Anna/Nathan that he has a legacy advantage to be used at F13/F6 which is trash because that means if we lose next time he'll use that and be safe. But if we vote him out he'll gift it to Jayden and we have the same problem. Plus Charlie is wigging out because he has a bad feeling about the vote, which is totally fair because he isn't talking very much. And Nick told Anna her name got thrown out which is just untrue. This is just kind of messy and not in a cute way.

Jayden is voted out 5-2.

[radlybatesvaluations-blog]

Adam Radly Bob Bates: 3 Ways To Focus On Your Work Without Interruption

https://www.forbes.com/sites/bryancollinseurope/2018/07/10/3-ways-to-focus-on-your-work-without-interruption-backed-by-science/#1265dd6a6690 Adam Radly Bob Bates have studied ways to focus on work without interruption, given there are always competing priorities. This is an interesting article on that:

3 Ways To Focus On Your Work Without Interruption -- Backed By Science

focus via Shutterstock An ability to focus and work deeply for an extended period is the holy grail for productivity nerds like me. It's a gauntlet Cal Newport threw down for us in his enjoyable book, Deep Work. He defines deep work as: Professional activities performed in a state of distraction-free concentration that push your cognitive capabilities to their limit. In case we're not convinced, Newport added, "These efforts create new value, improve your skill and are hard to replicate.” I want that! But it's difficult to enter this state without getting distracted by the lure of social media, the distracting dings from mobile devices and our own tendencies to procrastinate. The good news is you can take three different approaches and cultivate this state faster. And apps available right now can help, and I've road-tested them.

Meditate

Meditation is a useful practice for clearing your mind, learning how to deal with stress and practising the art of focus. First, the good news: It doesn't take a lot of skills to learn meditation. Meditation has many variations, but the most simple practice, known as vipassana, involves focusing on inhaling and exhaling for five, 10 or 20 minutes. Now the bad news: Meditation demands extended practice to get results. And many teachers will tell you not to expect results! If that sounds like a perplexing conundrum, consider Headspace, which offers guided meditations aimed at encouraging focus and conquering feelings of overwhelm. The developers claim to have published 16 studies in the leading mindfulness peer-reviewed journals that show the impact of Headspace on health outcomes such as stress, focus and compassion. More than one million people subscribe to this service. I joined three years ago, and I find Andy Puddicombe's voice oddly reassuring.

Listen To Instrumental Music

Rain falling. The sound of thunderstorms. Anything by Brian Eno. There's something soothing about a repetitive sound drawn out over time. If you're feeling anxious about a troublesome project, find an album on Spotify (or elsewhere) of instrumental or ambient music, don your headphones and turn up the volume. (I recommend "Rain for Sleeping and Relaxation" by Joe Baker.) If you still need help, consider Brain.fm. Brain.FM plays melodies for the brain carefully crafted to encourage focus, relaxation and even sleep. I use it when I want to write early drafts of book chapters or block a noisy coffee shop or office. According to scientific papers available on the Brain.FM website, "Brain.fm uses algorithmically generated music to modulate cognitive states." I've no idea what a modulated cognitive state should feel like, but the first time I tried this service, I forgot where I was because I became so engrossed in my work.

Single Task

Have you ever started working on a difficult project like preparing a report or drafting a big presentation? Then 15 minutes into this project you decide you need to research a new Excel trick, and while you're at it, who really died in the last Avengers movie? Before you know it, you disappear down a rabbit hole of YouTube videos, Twitter moments and Reddit threads. English academic and economist Richard Whatelyis turning is his grave. He knew a thing or two about the cost of lost time and once said, "Lose an hour in the morning, and you will spend all day looking for it." Enter Freedom. According to the Freedom.com website, multitasking is "40% less productive" than single tasking. Use this app to shut off internet access for predetermined periods like 30 or 60 minutes and work on one thing, without (gulp) internet access. Alternatively if going offline feels too hardcore, Freedom can block access to certain sites like Twitter or Facebook.

Remember, Apps Will Take You Only So Far!

Although technology is sometimes a hindrance to productivity, it can also help you enter a state of flow. These top productivity apps will help find that coveted state of deep work Newport described in his book, but YOU still need to actually do the work. There's little point sitting on your cushion and listening to rain albums on repeat if you still don't meet that deadline. In other words, consider apps like these as tools you can use to solve a particular problem, but don't rely on them solely to get the results you're after. Remember, only you can push yourself to the limit. Radly Bates affiliates: S7 Group Radly Bates Index Radly Bates Consulting Radly Bates Capital Radly Bates Associates Radly Bates Digital Radly Bates Valuations Follow us on social: Facebook Twitter Linkedin Read the full article

[radlybatesconsulting-blog]

Adam Radly Bob Bates: 3 Ways To Focus On Your Work Without Interruption

https://www.forbes.com/sites/bryancollinseurope/2018/07/10/3-ways-to-focus-on-your-work-without-interruption-backed-by-science/#1265dd6a6690 Adam Radly Bob Bates have studied ways to focus on work without interruption, given there are always competing priorities. This is an interesting article on that:

3 Ways To Focus On Your Work Without Interruption -- Backed By Science

focus via Shutterstock An ability to focus and work deeply for an extended period is the holy grail for productivity nerds like me. It's a gauntlet Cal Newport threw down for us in his enjoyable book, Deep Work. He defines deep work as: Professional activities performed in a state of distraction-free concentration that push your cognitive capabilities to their limit. In case we're not convinced, Newport added, "These efforts create new value, improve your skill and are hard to replicate.” I want that! But it's difficult to enter this state without getting distracted by the lure of social media, the distracting dings from mobile devices and our own tendencies to procrastinate. The good news is you can take three different approaches and cultivate this state faster. And apps available right now can help, and I've road-tested them.

Meditate

Meditation is a useful practice for clearing your mind, learning how to deal with stress and practising the art of focus. First, the good news: It doesn't take a lot of skills to learn meditation. Meditation has many variations, but the most simple practice, known as vipassana, involves focusing on inhaling and exhaling for five, 10 or 20 minutes. Now the bad news: Meditation demands extended practice to get results. And many teachers will tell you not to expect results! If that sounds like a perplexing conundrum, consider Headspace, which offers guided meditations aimed at encouraging focus and conquering feelings of overwhelm. The developers claim to have published 16 studies in the leading mindfulness peer-reviewed journals that show the impact of Headspace on health outcomes such as stress, focus and compassion. More than one million people subscribe to this service. I joined three years ago, and I find Andy Puddicombe's voice oddly reassuring.

Listen To Instrumental Music

Rain falling. The sound of thunderstorms. Anything by Brian Eno. There's something soothing about a repetitive sound drawn out over time. If you're feeling anxious about a troublesome project, find an album on Spotify (or elsewhere) of instrumental or ambient music, don your headphones and turn up the volume. (I recommend "Rain for Sleeping and Relaxation" by Joe Baker.) If you still need help, consider Brain.fm. Brain.FM plays melodies for the brain carefully crafted to encourage focus, relaxation and even sleep. I use it when I want to write early drafts of book chapters or block a noisy coffee shop or office. According to scientific papers available on the Brain.FM website, "Brain.fm uses algorithmically generated music to modulate cognitive states." I've no idea what a modulated cognitive state should feel like, but the first time I tried this service, I forgot where I was because I became so engrossed in my work.

Single Task

Have you ever started working on a difficult project like preparing a report or drafting a big presentation? Then 15 minutes into this project you decide you need to research a new Excel trick, and while you're at it, who really died in the last Avengers movie? Before you know it, you disappear down a rabbit hole of YouTube videos, Twitter moments and Reddit threads. English academic and economist Richard Whatelyis turning is his grave. He knew a thing or two about the cost of lost time and once said, "Lose an hour in the morning, and you will spend all day looking for it." Enter Freedom. According to the Freedom.com website, multitasking is "40% less productive" than single tasking. Use this app to shut off internet access for predetermined periods like 30 or 60 minutes and work on one thing, without (gulp) internet access. Alternatively if going offline feels too hardcore, Freedom can block access to certain sites like Twitter or Facebook.

Remember, Apps Will Take You Only So Far!

Although technology is sometimes a hindrance to productivity, it can also help you enter a state of flow. These top productivity apps will help find that coveted state of deep work Newport described in his book, but YOU still need to actually do the work. There's little point sitting on your cushion and listening to rain albums on repeat if you still don't meet that deadline. In other words, consider apps like these as tools you can use to solve a particular problem, but don't rely on them solely to get the results you're after. Remember, only you can push yourself to the limit. Radly Bates affiliates: S7 Group Radly Bates Index Radly Bates Consulting Radly Bates Capital Radly Bates Associates Radly Bates Digital Radly Bates Valuations Follow us on social: Facebook Twitter Linkedin Read the full article

[s7groupinc-blog]

Adam Radly Bob Bates: 3 Ways To Focus On Your Work Without Interruption

https://www.forbes.com/sites/bryancollinseurope/2018/07/10/3-ways-to-focus-on-your-work-without-interruption-backed-by-science/#1265dd6a6690 Adam Radly Bob Bates have studied ways to focus on work without interruption, given there are always competing priorities. This is an interesting article on that:

3 Ways To Focus On Your Work Without Interruption -- Backed By Science

focus via Shutterstock An ability to focus and work deeply for an extended period is the holy grail for productivity nerds like me. It's a gauntlet Cal Newport threw down for us in his enjoyable book, Deep Work. He defines deep work as: Professional activities performed in a state of distraction-free concentration that push your cognitive capabilities to their limit. In case we're not convinced, Newport added, "These efforts create new value, improve your skill and are hard to replicate.” I want that! But it's difficult to enter this state without getting distracted by the lure of social media, the distracting dings from mobile devices and our own tendencies to procrastinate. The good news is you can take three different approaches and cultivate this state faster. And apps available right now can help, and I've road-tested them.

Meditate

Meditation is a useful practice for clearing your mind, learning how to deal with stress and practising the art of focus. First, the good news: It doesn't take a lot of skills to learn meditation. Meditation has many variations, but the most simple practice, known as vipassana, involves focusing on inhaling and exhaling for five, 10 or 20 minutes. Now the bad news: Meditation demands extended practice to get results. And many teachers will tell you not to expect results! If that sounds like a perplexing conundrum, consider Headspace, which offers guided meditations aimed at encouraging focus and conquering feelings of overwhelm. The developers claim to have published 16 studies in the leading mindfulness peer-reviewed journals that show the impact of Headspace on health outcomes such as stress, focus and compassion. More than one million people subscribe to this service. I joined three years ago, and I find Andy Puddicombe's voice oddly reassuring.

Listen To Instrumental Music

Rain falling. The sound of thunderstorms. Anything by Brian Eno. There's something soothing about a repetitive sound drawn out over time. If you're feeling anxious about a troublesome project, find an album on Spotify (or elsewhere) of instrumental or ambient music, don your headphones and turn up the volume. (I recommend "Rain for Sleeping and Relaxation" by Joe Baker.) If you still need help, consider Brain.fm. Brain.FM plays melodies for the brain carefully crafted to encourage focus, relaxation and even sleep. I use it when I want to write early drafts of book chapters or block a noisy coffee shop or office. According to scientific papers available on the Brain.FM website, "Brain.fm uses algorithmically generated music to modulate cognitive states." I've no idea what a modulated cognitive state should feel like, but the first time I tried this service, I forgot where I was because I became so engrossed in my work.

Single Task

Have you ever started working on a difficult project like preparing a report or drafting a big presentation? Then 15 minutes into this project you decide you need to research a new Excel trick, and while you're at it, who really died in the last Avengers movie? Before you know it, you disappear down a rabbit hole of YouTube videos, Twitter moments and Reddit threads. English academic and economist Richard Whatelyis turning is his grave. He knew a thing or two about the cost of lost time and once said, "Lose an hour in the morning, and you will spend all day looking for it." Enter Freedom. According to the Freedom.com website, multitasking is "40% less productive" than single tasking. Use this app to shut off internet access for predetermined periods like 30 or 60 minutes and work on one thing, without (gulp) internet access. Alternatively if going offline feels too hardcore, Freedom can block access to certain sites like Twitter or Facebook.

Remember, Apps Will Take You Only So Far!

Although technology is sometimes a hindrance to productivity, it can also help you enter a state of flow. These top productivity apps will help find that coveted state of deep work Newport described in his book, but YOU still need to actually do the work. There's little point sitting on your cushion and listening to rain albums on repeat if you still don't meet that deadline. In other words, consider apps like these as tools you can use to solve a particular problem, but don't rely on them solely to get the results you're after. Remember, only you can push yourself to the limit. Radly Bates affiliates: S7 Group Radly Bates Index Radly Bates Consulting Radly Bates Capital Radly Bates Associates Radly Bates Digital Radly Bates Valuations Follow us on social: Facebook Twitter Linkedin Read the full article

[radlybatesassociates-blog]

Adam Radly Bob Bates: 3 Ways To Focus On Your Work Without Interruption

https://www.forbes.com/sites/bryancollinseurope/2018/07/10/3-ways-to-focus-on-your-work-without-interruption-backed-by-science/#1265dd6a6690 Adam Radly Bob Bates have studied ways to focus on work without interruption, given there are always competing priorities. This is an interesting article on that:

3 Ways To Focus On Your Work Without Interruption -- Backed By Science

focus via Shutterstock An ability to focus and work deeply for an extended period is the holy grail for productivity nerds like me. It's a gauntlet Cal Newport threw down for us in his enjoyable book, Deep Work. He defines deep work as: Professional activities performed in a state of distraction-free concentration that push your cognitive capabilities to their limit. In case we're not convinced, Newport added, "These efforts create new value, improve your skill and are hard to replicate.” I want that! But it's difficult to enter this state without getting distracted by the lure of social media, the distracting dings from mobile devices and our own tendencies to procrastinate. The good news is you can take three different approaches and cultivate this state faster. And apps available right now can help, and I've road-tested them.

Meditate

Meditation is a useful practice for clearing your mind, learning how to deal with stress and practising the art of focus. First, the good news: It doesn't take a lot of skills to learn meditation. Meditation has many variations, but the most simple practice, known as vipassana, involves focusing on inhaling and exhaling for five, 10 or 20 minutes. Now the bad news: Meditation demands extended practice to get results. And many teachers will tell you not to expect results! If that sounds like a perplexing conundrum, consider Headspace, which offers guided meditations aimed at encouraging focus and conquering feelings of overwhelm. The developers claim to have published 16 studies in the leading mindfulness peer-reviewed journals that show the impact of Headspace on health outcomes such as stress, focus and compassion. More than one million people subscribe to this service. I joined three years ago, and I find Andy Puddicombe's voice oddly reassuring.

Listen To Instrumental Music

Rain falling. The sound of thunderstorms. Anything by Brian Eno. There's something soothing about a repetitive sound drawn out over time. If you're feeling anxious about a troublesome project, find an album on Spotify (or elsewhere) of instrumental or ambient music, don your headphones and turn up the volume. (I recommend "Rain for Sleeping and Relaxation" by Joe Baker.) If you still need help, consider Brain.fm. Brain.FM plays melodies for the brain carefully crafted to encourage focus, relaxation and even sleep. I use it when I want to write early drafts of book chapters or block a noisy coffee shop or office. According to scientific papers available on the Brain.FM website, "Brain.fm uses algorithmically generated music to modulate cognitive states." I've no idea what a modulated cognitive state should feel like, but the first time I tried this service, I forgot where I was because I became so engrossed in my work.

Single Task

Have you ever started working on a difficult project like preparing a report or drafting a big presentation? Then 15 minutes into this project you decide you need to research a new Excel trick, and while you're at it, who really died in the last Avengers movie? Before you know it, you disappear down a rabbit hole of YouTube videos, Twitter moments and Reddit threads. English academic and economist Richard Whatelyis turning is his grave. He knew a thing or two about the cost of lost time and once said, "Lose an hour in the morning, and you will spend all day looking for it." Enter Freedom. According to the Freedom.com website, multitasking is "40% less productive" than single tasking. Use this app to shut off internet access for predetermined periods like 30 or 60 minutes and work on one thing, without (gulp) internet access. Alternatively if going offline feels too hardcore, Freedom can block access to certain sites like Twitter or Facebook.

Remember, Apps Will Take You Only So Far!

Although technology is sometimes a hindrance to productivity, it can also help you enter a state of flow. These top productivity apps will help find that coveted state of deep work Newport described in his book, but YOU still need to actually do the work. There's little point sitting on your cushion and listening to rain albums on repeat if you still don't meet that deadline. In other words, consider apps like these as tools you can use to solve a particular problem, but don't rely on them solely to get the results you're after. Remember, only you can push yourself to the limit. Radly Bates affiliates: S7 Group Radly Bates Index Radly Bates Consulting Radly Bates Capital Radly Bates Associates Radly Bates Digital Radly Bates Valuations Follow us on social: Facebook Twitter Linkedin Read the full article

[radleybatesdigital-blog]

Adam Radly Bob Bates: 3 Ways To Focus On Your Work Without Interruption

https://www.forbes.com/sites/bryancollinseurope/2018/07/10/3-ways-to-focus-on-your-work-without-interruption-backed-by-science/#1265dd6a6690 Adam Radly Bob Bates have studied ways to focus on work without interruption, given there are always competing priorities. This is an interesting article on that:

3 Ways To Focus On Your Work Without Interruption -- Backed By Science

focus via Shutterstock An ability to focus and work deeply for an extended period is the holy grail for productivity nerds like me. It's a gauntlet Cal Newport threw down for us in his enjoyable book, Deep Work. He defines deep work as: Professional activities performed in a state of distraction-free concentration that push your cognitive capabilities to their limit. In case we're not convinced, Newport added, "These efforts create new value, improve your skill and are hard to replicate.” I want that! But it's difficult to enter this state without getting distracted by the lure of social media, the distracting dings from mobile devices and our own tendencies to procrastinate. The good news is you can take three different approaches and cultivate this state faster. And apps available right now can help, and I've road-tested them.

Meditate

Meditation is a useful practice for clearing your mind, learning how to deal with stress and practising the art of focus. First, the good news: It doesn't take a lot of skills to learn meditation. Meditation has many variations, but the most simple practice, known as vipassana, involves focusing on inhaling and exhaling for five, 10 or 20 minutes. Now the bad news: Meditation demands extended practice to get results. And many teachers will tell you not to expect results! If that sounds like a perplexing conundrum, consider Headspace, which offers guided meditations aimed at encouraging focus and conquering feelings of overwhelm. The developers claim to have published 16 studies in the leading mindfulness peer-reviewed journals that show the impact of Headspace on health outcomes such as stress, focus and compassion. More than one million people subscribe to this service. I joined three years ago, and I find Andy Puddicombe's voice oddly reassuring.

Listen To Instrumental Music

Rain falling. The sound of thunderstorms. Anything by Brian Eno. There's something soothing about a repetitive sound drawn out over time. If you're feeling anxious about a troublesome project, find an album on Spotify (or elsewhere) of instrumental or ambient music, don your headphones and turn up the volume. (I recommend "Rain for Sleeping and Relaxation" by Joe Baker.) If you still need help, consider Brain.fm. Brain.FM plays melodies for the brain carefully crafted to encourage focus, relaxation and even sleep. I use it when I want to write early drafts of book chapters or block a noisy coffee shop or office. According to scientific papers available on the Brain.FM website, "Brain.fm uses algorithmically generated music to modulate cognitive states." I've no idea what a modulated cognitive state should feel like, but the first time I tried this service, I forgot where I was because I became so engrossed in my work.

Single Task

Have you ever started working on a difficult project like preparing a report or drafting a big presentation? Then 15 minutes into this project you decide you need to research a new Excel trick, and while you're at it, who really died in the last Avengers movie? Before you know it, you disappear down a rabbit hole of YouTube videos, Twitter moments and Reddit threads. English academic and economist Richard Whatelyis turning is his grave. He knew a thing or two about the cost of lost time and once said, "Lose an hour in the morning, and you will spend all day looking for it." Enter Freedom. According to the Freedom.com website, multitasking is "40% less productive" than single tasking. Use this app to shut off internet access for predetermined periods like 30 or 60 minutes and work on one thing, without (gulp) internet access. Alternatively if going offline feels too hardcore, Freedom can block access to certain sites like Twitter or Facebook.

Remember, Apps Will Take You Only So Far!

Although technology is sometimes a hindrance to productivity, it can also help you enter a state of flow. These top productivity apps will help find that coveted state of deep work Newport described in his book, but YOU still need to actually do the work. There's little point sitting on your cushion and listening to rain albums on repeat if you still don't meet that deadline. In other words, consider apps like these as tools you can use to solve a particular problem, but don't rely on them solely to get the results you're after. Remember, only you can push yourself to the limit. Radly Bates affiliates: S7 Group Radly Bates Index Radly Bates Consulting Radly Bates Capital Radly Bates Associates Radly Bates Digital Radly Bates Valuations Follow us on social: Facebook Twitter Linkedin Read the full article

[kitchentipsforyou-blog]

4 Healthy Secret Kitchen Tips

The kitchen may be any home's heart. It’s where people gather, the place where nourishment, the expectancy of delightful meals, and the sharing of the news that is day’s come together. Odors that are good that are It’s, family customs, and also the bustle of everyday life. There’s reasons why attendees tend to result in your kitchen at parties. Folks used to collect around a fire—now, your kitchen is the spot to collect, consume, and relationship. For those benefits, your kitchen also can affect your quality of life in an adverse way. Here’s what to be aware of, along with a few simple improvements you can make in order to avoid falling into these traps.

1. Healthy Kitchen Barrier: Your counter is similar to a junk food buffet.

I never realized how some individuals might have cookie jars—especially glass ones—and chocolate dishes on the displays. The fact remains that almost all folks may get immediately for those issues if they’re laying around on view. This moves beyond typical sense—research backs it up, too. Released in Health Education and Conduct and in accordance with a 2015 study from Cornell University’s Food and Manufacturer Research, your environment represents an important purpose inside your eating habits. Analysts found that when individuals only held fruit on their countertops, they'd than if they held snacks like candy in plain view BMIs. “If you were feeling hungry and simply came back from function, could you steal a chip or 2 or 3 from a bag of chips resting in your home table? Most of the people possibly often would or they'd spend lots of willpower resisting the desire to consume the chips,” says research co author Brian Wansink, Ph.D., representative of Cornell University’s Food and Manufacturer Research and writer of Lean By Design: Mindless Eating Options For Everyday Life. I’m while investing a considerable amount of energy trying to avoid diving to the carrier a second and third time, fully that person who'll consume the chips. You may be exactly the same, and while that’s normal, it’s certainly not a good thing for the wellness. Getting 2 or 3 chips or perhaps a few pieces of candy below or there doesn’t heck yes, although seem like alot, that stuff accumulates overtime! Healthy Kitchen Tip: the energy of idea is authentic. Place treats and treats out of view in a case. Sometimes retain your displays free from food, or put a bowl of fruit out. If you learn yourself going again and back again wherever you fit it for the same bad food , time for you to consider how frequently you ought to be acquiring it.

2. Healthy Home Barrier: without imagining it through, You share your home.

Being a dietitian, I've lots of customers who buy a variety of bad food “because my husband prefers it.” Yes, right or “for the kids”. They know along with I really do that a lot of that food is currently going to end up in their stomachs, not anybody else’s. Since I do the exact same thing with peppermint fudge ice cream each and every Christmas I feel their discomfort, though. Healthy Home Suggestion: if you would like to keep unhealthy food inside your home, keep an eye on exactly obtaining it, then consider if it makes sense to have it around constantly. Are you actually not oneself and acquiring it for other people? Could you really have pleasure in moderation—a good thing of devouring the whole carrier of chips, pack of biscuits, or whatever it could be in my own book—instead? Would it not make more sense to approach it as the form of address you've togo purchase when it being definitely craved by you’re rather than keeping it in the home? When you’re checking the food store shelves—you’ll thank me later, think of these issues.

3. Healthy Kitchen Obstacle: Your discs are providing you with portion distortion.

Bigger isn’t usually better: A 2015 paper inside the British Medical Newspaper stories that people’s fat can be specifically impacted by the dimension of tableware by nudging them to eat less or more. The scientists suppose that utilizing smaller tableware, and also other portion-consciousness techniques, could cause a decrease in daily energy intake of between 22 to 29 percent in American people. To put it differently, this could mean the difference between you consuming 2000 calories a day and 1. Wow. Healthy Home Hint: If you choose smaller discs, can, bowls, and cups to consume and drink out of, then do so until you’re pleased. Even though you’re at it, load half your platter with vibrant vegetables—that’s what it must look like twice per day.

4. Healthy Kitchen Obstacle: Your home is disruption main.

Yes, we are now living in a chaotic globe, however you shouldn’t have to watch Television, continue your personal computer, use your phone, or search during your iPad while you consume every dinner. Essentially, your kitchen will be a disruption- free-zone, whether you’re eating there or merely portioning out your food there . Performing either of those when you’re not paying attention may cause you to take in more calories without knowing it, and it’s not even as if you enjoy them! Healthy Home Hint: When was the past moment you lay and simply ate without multitasking? If your reply is, “Uh, never?” attempt being informed while viewing your preferred display in place of gulping down your food when you eat. Turn down the engineering and chew slowly, enjoying every bite. You’re not planning to miss anything in the 20 minutes it takes you to eat. Rather, you’ll get a sense when you eat a quiet, wholesome dinner when using your senses to focus on the food in front of you all of happiness, peace, and fulfillment—things that occur.

Related :  Kithcen Decor Tips