#silly thing while i keep cooking a bigger art piece

[elquacktism]

Sharp eyes

[strawberryspence]

Vienna

Angst | Spencer Reid x FEM! BAU! Female

Summary: Spencer meets the love of his life while Reader continues to the search for her love for life.

Word Count: 2,1k.

Warnings: angst, no happy ending, reference to having sex, lots of sentimental stuff, rossi has a part in this he was the only old OLD member

Writer’s Note: Hello! I am sad, so this happened... I wanted to clear up that I used the song Vienna in this, tho the meaning of the song is more of a “slow down, you have a whole life ahead of you.” I took the song and made it the direct opposite which for me is “find yourself and never stop until you find it. vienna (your destined destination) waits for you.” I didn’t edit this and I wrote it in one sitting so I am sorry for the mistakes. This is basically me venting out my emotions and I am not entirely sure if this made sense.

Spencer knew that you would change his life the moment you stepped foot in the BAU conference room.

You were a new agent with a fiery passion for the job. You were a Psychology Professor before quitting and took up Criminology and after that you ended up in the BAU. You were eager to learn, always on the go and was always energetic to do any job Hotch gives you. You had a heart of gold and would do absolutely anything for anyone in the team and Spencer was in no doubt completely in love with you.

It took Spencer a year and a month to finally ask you out. By this time, you were already close. It wasn’t hard to be friends with you, you radiate warmth and brightness and you were always so kind to everyone. He honestly felt embarrassed and weak. You were this amazing, strong person but Spencer... he was only Spencer.

“W-would you like to get dinner? Or... L-like coffee?” Spencer fidgets with his fingers, staring at his stained converse as it lines up to your black ankle boots. The contrast was jarring, it shows the two opposite spectrums of your personalities. When he looks up, your face was hard to read and it makes his heart beat harder against his chest.

“Like... a date?” Spencer watches as you chew on your inner cheek, something you do when you’re nervous or anxious.

“Yes... But if you don’t want to it’s okay! You can forget what I sai—“ Spencer raises his hand as a sign of goodbye, as the other grips his satchel. He turns halfway before you hold his catch his arms, stopping him from leaving.

“No! I want dinner! I mean, coffee! Whatever it is!” He looks back at you, a smile now forming in your face, and no matter how many times Spencer have seen it, it still catches he’s breathe.

“Really?” A grin starts forming in his face as he watches a shade of pink color your cheeks, “Yes. Tell me when and where. I’ll be there.”

The date was perfect. Spencer picks you up with a bouquet of daisies in his hands. You pick one of the daisies, clipping it in your hair for the rest of the night making it hard for Spencer to look away from you for the rest of the night. He reserved a table for two in a small, quaint cafe. Even with the nerves Spencer had, the date went smoothly. You talked, he talked and it was just like any other day but this time it was a date.

That date leads to another one, and another one, and another one, until you both finally made it clear that you two were dating.

It leads to numerous adventures.

To museums where Spencer becomes your own tour guide, where he teaches you everything he can teach you, where he watches you become one of the beautiful art pieces and where he realizes that he can take something so beautiful and surreal home.

To libraries where Spencer opens a book, any genre, and reads it you as you both take a journey to another world together, where you watch him read books that he probably already have memorized in the back of his head and where you realized that the world is so much bigger than you thought. More than anything it makes you itch for that world.

To movie nights which more often than so ends up with you on his lap, making out like you were both craving for something only the other can give. If it does, you both end up in bed, tangled in each other as both of you catch your breathe as you make love to one another. If it doesn’t, you both watch a movie chosen by the other and just sit in comfortable silence, cuddled into each others warm body.

To coffee shops where you both try as many different kinds of pastries, making a list of which one has the best pastries. The little corner shop down the street near the library is where Spencer learns that you liked croissants but only if they had chocolate in them. In the cafe down on 5th near the pet store, you learned that Spencer liked his blueberry muffin with cream cheese. The expensive, posh coffee shop in the high end street is where you were both kicked out for laughing way too much when you both realize that a muffin costs ten dollars each.

It leads to numerous sleepovers on Spencer’s double bed. Waking up to a new day with you was the best thing in the morning. Waking up tangled with your limbs all around him, waking up to you making him his favorite coffee and pancakes in bed, waking up to your naked body pressed unto him as you dream of him some place else.

It leads to home cooked dinners with silly dance numbers in the middle, warm hugs after hard cases and silent whispers of It’s okay’s, picnics in the park with packed sandwiches and it leads to five hundred, eighty one, forever treasured I love you’s.

One date leads you to numerous adventures and dates with Spencer.

But it was also a year and a month into the relationship when Emily video calls you both for a job offer in Interpol. She says, it would be a breathe of fresh air for the both of you. A new adventure. Together.

Spencer was set in his ways. Virginia was the closest thing he’ll ever have to a home and that’s because of the BAU. They were family. Penelope and JJ are the sisters he never had. Will, Henry and Michael was his extended family. Derek is his best friend and he loved being near him and Hank. Hotch and Rossi was the closest thing he’ll get to some kind of a father figure and he didn’t want to lose that in his life. He has long set his roots in this place, his home and he immediately shakes his head and declines.

He looks over you when the silence was to deafening to ignore and it doesn’t take a profiler to see the hesitation in your face. There was a spark in your eyes, the same one he saw when you first came to the BAU, the spark of excitement. You look at him and you see the way his eyes shines with sadness as he realizes that this was what you wanted. You shake your head at Emily and declines.

Emily smiles as she says her goodbye before reassuring both of you that there will always be a position open for the both of you in her team if ever anyone changes their mind.

That one video call leads to exactly six fights about the job opportunity. Spencer knew that you wanted to go and the selfish part of him wanted to hold unto you. So he did, he held, and he held, and he held until he couldn’t anymore.

Spencer stays late at the BAU one night. The two of you haven’t been the same since the job offer. You have left earlier to go home as he stares at the place he has called his home. Can he leave this? Was his love for you enough to leave everything he has known half his life?

“What’s keeping you here?” Spencer snaps out of the thought, looking up from his paper work to Rossi leaning over the railing right across his office.

“Nothing.” He looks back down, but he can see Rossi giving him a soft smile, “News flies fast around here.”

Spencer snaps back his head, “What?” Rossi nods, “We all know.” He continues to chew on his lip.

“I don’t know what to do.” Rossi walks down the stairs, walking closer to Spencer, “You remember Y/N’s first few weeks?” Spencer nods, the memory of your first week still vivid in his mind.

“You remember how before she was in the BAU she was a psychology professor? When she came on her first day,” Rossi smiles, reminiscing as he continues, “Remember how eager she was to do everything? There was this spark in her eyes and she was just passionate about the job and to learn?” Spencer nods again.

“Kid, in my life, I have met two kinds of people. The Mover and The Homebody. The Mover is the one who moves, they never get enough of the high that life can give, they go around looking for more adventures to learn and to help them grow,” Rossi looks down at him, a sad smile on his face, “Then there is the Homebody. Its not a bad thing to stay in one place. They are the ones who set roots in one place and grows in that place, they get comfortable and make that place in their life their home.”

“Are you saying I am a homebody? And Y/N is a mover?” Rossi forces a smile, giving his shoulder a pat.

“If you’re so smart then tell me, why are you still so afraid.” Rossi sings before giving him one last smile as he turns his back, not giving Spencer the chance to ask what he meant.

Spencer later learns from Penelope that it was a song written by Billy Joel. He asks Penelope if he can hear it by himself in her bat cave and she immediately agrees, leaving him alone with a song someone wrote in 1977 that perfectly fits and embodies you. As the final beats hit his ears, Spencer lets go of you.

The next twenty one days comes in a swift. Spencer stands in the airport as the team says their teary goodbyes to you. The team leaves to give the two of you space and privacy to say your goodbye.

“Spencer... I am sorry.” Spencer gives a smile. It wasn’t fake, there was no bad blood. He wanted to let you go, to go find the best version of yourself.

“This is what you need in your life to grow. I am happy for you.” Your eyes sparkle in tears as your heart softens.

“I’ll be back, if you are still in the same place as we are today, can we pick up were we left?” Spencer nods, as he opens his satchel and reaches in for a box.

You open it and inside is the same daisy you pinned in your hair on your first date, but it was dried and framed. You look up at him with questions in your eyes, “I stole it from you after our first date. I kept it for future purposes but it’s more suiting to give it to you right now.”

“Last call for passengers of flight 582 bound for London. Again, last call for passengers of flight 582 bound for London.” You both look at each other as the announcement rings through your ears

“I love you.” You whisper. Spencer gathers up all the courage he has and pulls you into one last kiss. His hands stays on the curve of your neck as he pulls you closer to him and as you snake your arms around his arms.

Spencer kisses you with fervour and fear. This was the last he’ll kiss you and if he had to tattoo it in the back of his mind he will. He will remember the distinct taste of your peach lip balm, the way your lips moves against him and how your hand presses hard on his back to pull him closer. Spencer pulls away when a voice in his head screams at him to not let you go. He had to let you go now before he change his mind, screams and beg you to stay with him. His heart breaks a little more as he sees tears flowing down your cheeks.

You pull him into one last hug and it sinks in, his holding you for the last time. He tries to memorize how your hands wrap around his neck and how you perfectly fit between his arms. Your body vibrates as you sob against him.

You pull away from him with tear stained cheeks and barely catching your breathe, you smile through it as you wave at him, “Goodbye Spencer.” You sobbed as you start backing away from him. You see him clench his hand as tears start filling his eyes.

“I can’t wait to meet who you’re going to be. Good luck, Y/N.” Spencer raises his hand to wave at you as the inches between the two of you grow bigger.

“Thank you. I love you.” You bid him goodbye before turning your back on him and running to your gate number. Spencer smiles through his tears as you give your ticket to the airport staff. You look back at Spencer and give him one last smile before boarding the airplane.

“Vienna waits for you, my love.”

-

taglist (if you want to be added, please message me 🥰): @all-tings-diego @shemarmooresfedora @averyhotchner @samuel-de-champagne-problems @bingereid @sweetandsunny @reidsbookclub @spencerreid-187

[heresathreebee]

A Real Date

[Ava Starr x Female!Reader] 

Summary: You and Ava trying a dinner date that goes very wrong (just kidding it's actually fine). 

Previous Masterlist Next

Word count: 1.8k words

Warning(s): 13+ | no-snap au, post-Ant Man and the Wasp, swearing, internalized homophobia(?), I think I’m working through something here this might be a little personal (sorry in advance), past relationship angst, presumed past of dating multiple genders but there is no definitive sexuality established for reader in the present, this was going to be something else but the story took over and I had to roll with it. 

Author's note: no-snap au, post-Ant Man and the Wasp. I’m sorry I do not edit anymore, it only serves to stand in my way. This is part 3 of Ava Starr series beginning with Strawberry Soda. Art by Artmilla on DeviantArt (correct me if I’m wrong please)

It's important to note that not everything you see in media is the hegemonic truth. Take sapphic dating rituals for example: in media it’s a constant joke about how fast people move in together and own pets and plants like they were soulmates and always meant to be together. Which is nice to see– it’s not meant to be a cruel joke– but it does paint a picture of perfection. It doesn’t explicitly state whether your future wife is your first or fiftieth girlfriend but it sure as shit might lead you to believe every girl might be your last. 

Real people don’t work that way. Real people have different interests, different lives, different traumas, different styles and needs. Every relationship is new and it has to be done deliberately and with care for what you and your partner want. So when you think about your relationship with Ava you can’t help but feel a little guilty. 

Ava seems to like to take things slow. Your relationship prioritizes quality time over physical touch which you're fine with, but you can’t help it if you compare the details to other people you’ve dated. You’ve known each other for three months and in every other relationship by this time, you and your previous partners had hit a ton of milestones that you and Ava had just… not. So when you bring up the prospect of a ‘real date’ to Ava one night while cooking pasta in your kitchen, Ava chuckles. 

“And what exactly constitutes as a ‘real date?’” 

The television is playing some daytime television game show and the volume’s on low. You pass her the salt and take a swig from your beer with a shrug. Already you feel silly for bringing it up. 

“Dinner. A movie. Sometimes both, I guess,” you say, flustered. 

Ava raises an eyebrow at the softening bowtie noodles in the pot. “We’re having dinner right now…? Name one time we haven’t come back to your place to watch a movie.” 

“The time the power went out and we played jenga by candlelight. But I– I mean like a date outside of the house.”

“We go to out to parks, the antique mall, lunch, the arcade–” 

“Well, yeah I guess you’re right I just don’t know I still feel like–”  

“Again, how is any of it different from a ‘real date?’” 

“I don’t know! Just… just forget it.” you’re trying not to be bitter about it but you don’t even know what you mean so how could you explain it? 

Ava calls your name softly and you already feel hot shame lick up your neck when you see her face. “I didn’t mean it like that, I– I just don’t think I understand what you mean and I want to! Honestly…” 

You sigh and lean closer to her, careful not to touch but you want her to know you’re not mad. “No, I’m sorry. I just… I’ve been stuck on it for a week but I can’t seem to figure out why. Everything you’re saying I agree with but there’s still this nagging voice in my head telling me it’s not fair or I’m doing it wrong but I don’t know what it even is and I–” 

You collapse onto the kitchen floor breathless. What the fuck were you even saying? Why was this bothering you so much? What ‘s different about this relationship than any other relationship you’ve already had? Your eyes are darting back and forth and your head is a million miles away. You keep talking as if saying it out loud will make your impulsive and intrusive thoughts and motivations clearer to you. 

“It’s out of order. No, it’s not but it’s… with Jordan and Becky and Hal, I went on three dates before it felt normal. We did the traditional getting to know you stuff. Damien and Palavi were straight physical– not traditional at all but that still felt good enough somehow. And– and it’s not that I don’t believe what we have isn’t real, I just–

“Fuck, I don’t know! It feels a little like my relationship with Kat.” You can’t believe it but then the words were out there. You had never told anybody about Kat– Ava was still learning about the rest of them– but the instant those words left your mouth you regretted them. Ava was not Kat. 

For instance, Ava slipped down to sit beside you on the floor– Kat would never lower herself to meet your eye. Ava looked at you and she saw you– Kat chose to ignore your feelings whenever it became more convenient to do so. Kat made you feel special and yet not special enough– OK maybe they shared a little bit of that. A tiny, micro piece of that. 

“What was Kat like?” She said the words softly and without an ounce of jealousy. 

You gather your mind with a deep breath. “Dating Kat was like being strapped to a rocket. It was like being a part of something bigger and stronger than me. Being with her made me feel inconsequential and sometimes I liked that, but then… then I realized I was just a dirty little secret. Kat liked me because I was convenient to her, not because she actually cared about me. 

“When we talked or hung out, it had to be on her terms. No public, no friends or family, no social media. No one was allowed to know. She passed it off as just wanting me for herself but after she dumped me for something better I realized she never saw me as her equal. And it just… I was already in a dark place and that place just kind of got a whole lot darker after that. I felt especially not special.” 

You lean back and rest your head on the cabinet under the sink. “I know that’s not you. Maybe I’m just tired of feeling like I have to hide a part of myself. I did a lot of stupid things in the public eye with Palavi, maybe part of that was because I was proud of who I am and I wanted everyone to know it?” 

“I think I care too much about what other people think of me,” you said closing your eyes. 

You didn’t expect to feel Ava lean her head against your shoulder but you don’t pull away. God, you could never pull away even as you worry she may be causing herself harm just to comfort you and your rambling. Her hair tickles a bit and smells like strawberries and lavender. 

Ava lifted her head after a moment. “Let’s go on a real date then.” 

~

Why the fuck were you so nervous? This was your idea! You had trouble picking a restaurant and picking a day and picking your clothes out and picking where to sit. So many choices with so much meaning or none at all. You just need this to be perfect because you hoped maybe this is what you need to stop that nagging in your head. 

You made the call to meet each other there. You made the suggestion that it had to be somewhere nice– as in get dressed up nice. And darling, sweet, patient Ava let you have the control you so desperately needed. She offered suggestions here and there, and it helped you narrow everything down to a science. You feel a little self conscious sitting by yourself in your get up but you knew she'd be there on time. 

It's just a matter of whether or not you could sit still for five more minutes. 

You hold the cloth napkin in your palms to try and soak up the sweat. Forcing yourself to sit unnaturally still and you haven't touched your wine because you just know you'll get it everywhere somehow. Your eyes trace over the table to stop yourself from meeting the eyes of other patrons. Do nothing, wait it out. 

Ava is stunning and you don't know she's there until the wait staff places the dinner menus in front of you. So much for pulling out her chair like you wanted to– but she's here and you break out into a big smile. 

"You look amazing," you tell her. 

Ava smiles and takes a sip of the rosé you ordered. The dim lighting in the room seems to soften the contours of her face but never the sharpness of her bright eyes. Something blossoms inside you and you feel it– that thing that's been bothering you like a knot in your stomach turns into a seed and its flowering now. This is your girlfriend. Not your friend who is a girl– your significant other. She's important to you and she has decided that she feels the same way about you. 

You feel your body unwind, reaching across the table like you might touch her hand then stop an inch from her empty plate. She watches you curiously but without fear. After a beat, it's Ava who finishes the contact. She slips her hand into yours and you are delighted to discover she's not a corporeal being you've convinced yourself is real. Her skin is a little dry around the palm and she has calluses you never knew were there and she's real and this is happening. 

You resist the urge to squeeze her fingers. Let her lead. Trust her to move away if she experiences any pain. She looks away from you with a flustered face you've never seen her wear and takes another draft of her wine. 

"This is nice," she says softly. 

You eat off each others' plates and you laugh together, and if anyone's watching you wouldn't know because for once you couldn't give a rat's ass what anyone thinks. You're with your person, for now or forever doesn't matter because she's letting you hold her hand and talk about a play you want to take her to on Saturday. Your heart flutters in your chest the whole way home and it’s not until you’re standing at your front door does her hand finally slip from yours. The feeling lingers though and your face hurts from smiling. 

“This everything you wanted,” she asked. 

“Yes,” you reply, “yes it was. Thank you for indulging me, it’s exactly what I needed.” 

“I enjoyed it too.” She steps closer, seemingly reluctant to leave just yet. “We’re still going to see Rocky Horror Picture Show, right?” 

“Absolutely,” you beam, “trust me, you’re gonna love it, it’s wild.” You blow her a kiss to send her on her way and spend the next hour giggling to yourself until you finally pass out from exhaustion.

[wherearemyglassesbro]

Alternative careers for the Allies:

I see a lot of the same careers picked for them (baker, librarian, etc) so I’m gonna go out on a limb, maybe even into...OOC territory :0 we will see where this journey leads us

Alfred: A surfing instructor! Alfred is kind and adventurous and though he can be silly he is also strong. He values the saftey of his students very much!! He’s excited to show them the wonders of surfong and just how fun it is to be out on the waves! He is always so proud of them when they surf their first big wave on their own! He’s whooping and hollering and cheering them on from the beach :D He drives a bright blue jeep and when his students see him out and about they all honk at him and he thinks it’s hilarious :D He’s a guest judge at a lot of small surf competitions and he’s also a fantastic announcer too!! He just!! Loves surfing! Seeing kids love it too makes him beyond happy!

Ivan: Ivan is a tv host with his own renovation show stationed in Hawaii. He takes small, run down homes and turns them into livable spaces with a tropical feel. Ivan built up his reputation bakc home in Russia and moved to the US. From there he signed deals with tv companies and bam! He got a show. He has always wanted to live on a warm island somewhere and now he gets to share his passion for renovation with thousands of viewers! He offers tips for DIYs throughout his show and he does his best to bring Hawaiian culture into the homes he builds/fixes. He incorporates all sorts of environmentally friendly fixtures and nature inspired patterns all over! And the best part? He’s there to walk families through the space and shake their hands when they buy it! Even though Ivan is huge and intimidating, in his show he’s seen in khaki shorts, Hawaiian shirts, sandals and socks most of the time. Also, can’t forget a constant sunburn and an intense tan line from his watch on his wrist lmao

Francis: A ballet teacher! Fran is kind but he can be harsh with his words on occasion. He never wants to make his dancers feel terrible about themselves the way other instructors do but when he’s frustrated he may sling around insults “Are you in kindergarten? Because only kindergarteners would point their foot like that! It’s pathetic! I’ve taught you better in the past six years, havent I?” When he teaches, he doesn’t just stand to the side and yell, he performs the motions and stretches with his students! If they’re gonna put this much work into his class then he should too. His students are very aware of his expectations and when they meet those expectations he showers them with compliments! He’s so proud of his dancers, each and every one. They can all easily see his smiling face in the crowd when they’re on stage! And he visits his graduated students when they’re on bigger stages :’)

Yao: Interior designer :0 Yao has extravagant tastes! I can see him as an interior designer for the rich $$$ He keeps what they like in mind and he’ll carefully pick out each and every piece of furniture based on his clients personalities and favorite colors. If they have a pet he’ll add special touches like a gold bird perch or a suede dog bed ;) While he makes sure everything is nice, he’ll pick certain expensive things on purpose just cause! Its his job but sometimes, watching rich people blow their money on silly things is funny to him. His own home is furnished nicely but not too crazy. His pride and joy is his livingroom where his fish tank is :) When a client has a fish tank??? He won’t shut up about it and he’ll make extra sure to emphasize that fish tank! He’ll put good accents in there (safe for the fish of course) and bling out the walls around the fish tank to make other people look at it! He just...loves fish a lot. He incorporates fish art and imagery into a lot of the homes he works in/on

Arthur: uh oh...Artie. Art is naturally sarcastic so what could be a better job for him than a food critic? He couldn’t cook a chicken tender to save his life but he has a great palette. He’ll pick apart dishes and leave scathing reviews and people listen!! Cause he’s persuasive, he writes very well and he articulates his points perfectly. It’s also rather funny when he writes Gordon Ramsay style insults about the food if it’s bad lol. He isn’t just mean though, before he leaves any restaurant he offers genuine advice. He’ll help the owners and cooks figure out what went wrong and how they can do better in the future! He’s a jerk but he isn’t totally evil! He wants to see restraunts succeed!!! He often revisits places he hated just so he can see if they improved!

Matthew: Mattie...is a shoe maker! Not just any kind of shoes, oh no!! He makes high quality hiking boots and other kinds of work boots. He’s a working man and he sees the importance of having food footwear to keep you going throughout the day. His boots are all waterproof, thick soled, warm interior, and many have metal inserts in the toes. If you’re working with machinery, metal toed shoes may just save your toes one day and Matt gets that! He’s made a ton of money off of his boots! All of that money’s going into his big ol’ cabin where he hopes that one day he’ll get to raise a family in :’) He’s in commercials for his boots too so people recognize him...which is a little embarrassing. He’s lowkey rich but he wants to live like a normal guy yknow? He doesn’t think he’s anything special, he’s just a guy who makes affordable boots for workers. Please don’t take pictures...Look away!! He’s just getting groceries like a normal guy! Nothing to see here! Just normal guy business!!

[wolfcha1k]

As soon as I started practicing kisses I suddenly can't help adding them now lmao something fluffy and firey for you heathens. Still sfw content tho ofc. Based on the new fanart I did recently so some of it doesn't match the art in hindsight :"D I think now its just gonna be a new tradition to write something to go along with my pieces.

They were taking one of their occasional adventures away from the Betterman Farm, where they would hunker down in the wilderness for several days at a time. For a while, Guy and Eep would forget there was an entire world that they shared with other people; their family. It was just the two of them, hunting and foraging and seeing the beauty the land itself provided.

She knew her home was the Farm now but her heart would never deny she was always meant for the untamed wild where the sun stretched on forever. She wasn't sure why Guy had lead her towards the desert as an area for camp, it was hot and unspeakably dry during the day, sweltering even. Her entire life had been the dusty desert and the canyon with that awful cave as the only escape from the heat.

As dusk fell, Guy had only grinned at her. They'd set up camp not long after the daytime sun joined the many nighttime suns in the sky. The sight of how many slept above her still was awe striking. Guy skinned a boar they'd hunted together, something Eep wanted to teach Dawn about someday. She knew as much as Guy enjoyed his safer, more pampered life with the Bettermans, he was still that adventurous nomad born and raised. He lived for the thrill his skills provided him and how all his ideas saved him from many obstacles.

Eep watched the fire flicker and sway, it was still surprising how alive looked. She leaned her hands out to toast her palms, the desert chilled now the sun set. She didn’t understand that either, how such a mercilessly hot place can become so cold.

The embers glowed in her green eyes when she felt Guy touch her wrist. Eep turned to him, seeing the fire reflecting in his dark gaze. He was beautiful, one of the most wonderful things she ever saw even after everything he'd shown her.

"I got the boar skinned, just need help putting a skewer through it," Guy said, gesturing towards the beast. They had parked themselves by an oasis, giving Guy a way to wash off the blood from his hands.

Eep had offered to do it, blood never phased her but Guy insisted she just rest. In the meantime she had bathed in the spring, the sand and sweat on her uncomfortable before settling down by the fire to wait on her mate. She hadn't wanted to admit it but she felt rather tired after the long trek. Guy had his reasons for picking this place but he could be so strange and peculiar about it in a way she never understood.

Perhaps that was why she loved him so much. There was nobody else in the world like him, even if she could only count the amount of people she knew on both hands.

Eep stood up from her crouching position. "Sure, I'm starving," she exclaimed, eying the pig carcass greedily. "Are you absolutely certain we can't just - "

"No, you are not sinking your teeth into that thing without cooking it first," Guy scolded her, it was more akin to when Ugga was telling off her children for causing mischief. "You'll get sick. I need to bring you back to Grug in one piece or I'll be in pieces."

"Fineeeee," Eep compromised with a dramatic sigh, leaning her neck back before walking over to help her mate spear the pig.

Eep with Guy’s help, well, mostly Eep but she liked making him feel useful, carried the spitted animal towards the campfire and held it over it. Guy had crafted some little makeshift contraption with wood and rope he'd packed, so they could use a pulley system to rotate the roasting boar

The two took alternating shifts.

"It's funny," Eep couldn’t help but muse suddenly, taking in the view. The fire made the golden sandstone burn a brilliant red color, reminding her of amber.

"What's funny?" Guy asked from his post by the pig, rotating it with a careful eye so it cooked evenly.

"Well…" Eep leaned her elbow on her bent knee, her chin on her hand. "We met in a desert and you asked me to marry you in one too."

Guy tried hiding his smile by turning back to cooking but Eep saw it, perceptive as always. He pretended to ignore her narrow eyed look. "Funny how fate works," he quipped and heard Eep snort in a very unadulterated fashion.

"You planned this," Eep accused him and Guy finally was forced to face the music because the boar didn't need this much turning on the spit.

"Me? Plan things? You must be mistaken," Guy quipped, his tone betraying him. His grin was wide. "Okay, you got me. Happy anniversary, or have you forgotten?"

"As if I can forget the night I nearly dashed your brains out with a rock," she said with more fondness than any normal person should, jumping to her feet.

Guy held her hands, leaning forward to nuzzle his nose against hers. "Me either, you're a hard one to forget."

"Well, I did call you back."

"You did," he agreed before pouting. "Not my smoothest pick up line though."

"So you didn't tell every girl that line? 'If you survive, call me?'" Eep quoted, exposing her teeth in a teasing smirk.

"Nope, you were the first and only," Guy assured her, winking. "It worked."

"It did," she agreed back, shaking her head with a giggle. "So…" Eep began coyly, averting her eyes towards the landscape colored black in silhouette.

"So…?" Guy urged her, knowing that Eep didn't need the coaxing but somehow it had just become their thing.

"What if I did come with you that night," Eep asked him, turning back to bat her eyelashes at him. "I think this is the perfect spot to humor the thought." She gazed around the desert, the ground hard with stone, much like the one she had followed Guy's fire that night.

"Well for one, your dad would have killed me because I didn't know he was part of the equation yet," Guy replied, both joking and serious as he said it. "This little journey would have definitely been way more interesting though if I had stolen you away from him."

"Stolen me," she echoed with a laugh though her ears burned from a mixture of the fire and thought. There had been an obvious attraction and two teenagers journeying alone, well, it didn't take a Betterman to figure it out. "You make this sound scandalous, Guy."

"It's not now though so that means when you took my hand, I'd do this." He lifted her palm to his lips, gently kissing a scar that led down to the pulse point of her wrist.

"No, you wouldn't have," Eep teased him. "You were too scared of me to try it."

"I wouldn’t," he agreed. "But this is a fantasy so anything can happen."

"Okay," she amused him, letting Guy continue his little story.

Guy seemed to realize a dark implication in this what if and since it was a fantasy, he could change that. "The world isn't ending, I'm still a nomad but you're just a stir crazy teenage girl instead."

"I am a stir crazy teenage girl," Eep corrected him, leaning up on her toes to brush his cheek with her nose. "And I'll remind you everyday, babe."

"You make telling this story harder than it needs to be," Guy lamented in mock offense, drawing her closer to eye her down. Eep just grinned innocently. "Stop putting plot holes."

Eep just giggled, feeling him turn her hand over to kiss her knuckles and each finger delicately. It was like having a butterfly touch her skin.

"Fine, then what?"

"We'd run away together," he continued, looking up at her with loving eyes. "Somehow outsmart your dad because Sandy would totally have sniffed us out in the morning."

Eep smirked, fighting off a broad smile in her amusement. "Would you have fought him?"

"I mean…" Sure, it was a fantasy but he was also just stronger, bigger and scarier than Guy was. Besides, hindsight wasn't twenty twenty and this caveman was now a second father to him. As annoying and abrasive as Grug had been in all the time Guy knew him, he also had a begrudging respect and admiration for him too. "Maybe we'd just bring him along anyway, save us the trouble."

"Is the log ride magic now?" Eep asked him with a wicked grin. "Does it fly us to Tomorrow? I'm sure it could if dad kicked it hard enough for us."

Guy scoffed, "This is my fantasy so there is no log."

"Aw, you're no fun," she sniggered, lifting his hand to press his palm into her nose fondly. "The log brought us together."

"Yeah but in this story you already came with me," Guy reminded her with a gentle tug, taking her hand back to stroke his thumbs fondly over her knuckles.

Eep tried hard not to laugh again, blushing as well under the soft look he gave her. He smiled at her and she melted like ice. It was intimate and vulnerable, more so than anything they'd done in all the time proceeding to this moment.

"Alright," she murmured, stroking his chest after laying her palm flat against his heart. She fiddled with the seashells dangling around his neck, idly stroking his throat and felt him swallow. "Then what?"

"I'd show you the world and since there's no The End… we wouldn't rush through it. You know, actually do some sight seeing. Fall slowly in love with each beautiful thing I show you but never seems to compare to you." Eep couldn’t help the giddy giggle as he called her beautiful, beaming bright like a sun ray at his compliment. Guy's eyes almost glazed over as he gave the silly romantic escapade story more thought, he chuckled. "Your dad would ruin all our little moments though, so it's kinda hard."

"So even in this little I went with you story, dad still keeps us apart?" Eep pouted.

"Every story needs conflict," Guy teased her. "Dad was going to catch up eventually, family in tow. We were taking the scenic route, it was bound to happen, Eep."

Eep rolled her eyes at him, tugging Guy down so they could sit with their backs to the fire. She leaned her weight against his side, feeling Guy rest his arm behind her back. "I hope things start getting more romantic for us, Guy."

Guy pressed a kiss to her temple, grinning. "It does. After hauling our crazy family cross country, we find the sun hidden on a mountain."

Eep remembered Guy's mountain, two tall twin peaks that extended high above the sky, swathed in clouds and extending out to a meadow after climbing the outcrop. They were supposed to ride it to Tomorrow, joining it among the many sleeping suns above. "How are we going to ride it to Tomorrow if I'm your Tomorrow?"

"I'm retconning stuff, stop spoiling the story," Guy scolded her, just resting his head on hers, taking in her smokey wild scent. "I realize this sooner, because the sun isn't really attainable. We go after it but it just gets farther and farther away." He extended his hand out in a reaching gesture. This meant Guy was really getting into the story.

"Are you sad for awhile?" Eep inquired, absently hugging his bicep now that Guy no longer held her hands.

"For a bit," he admitted. "I mean, my parents said to follow the sun but you really can't but…" Guy paused and gazed fondly at his wife tucked into his side, body warm, familiar and supple.

"But…?"

"I found you, light led me to you. I realize this and tell you I love you after this little journey." Guy nuzzled her cheek with a blissful little sigh. "Also then we find the Bettermans and live happily ever after in their treehouse with the punch monkeys."

Eep poked him in the chest, not really the reaction he was expecting after that happy ending. "You can't just skip an entire chapter like that and tack 'the end!'"

Guy took her hand in both of his, cupping it tender in-between his palms. "It works when your dad tells stories," he joked.

"Well, that was before you started telling better stories," Eep exclaimed with a childish huff that was so her it made Guy muffle a laugh into her shoulder.

"Did you tell Grug that?"

"You know how dad is," she replied a bit more sheepishly this time. "Least everybody doesn't die at the end anymore."

"They don't," he agreed, gazing at her fondly once again. "He's getting better though, I like happy endings."

"I like happy endings. I like you," Eep added, cuddling herself cozy as a cat under his arm and against his chest. She listened to his heartbeat, soothed by the gentle thump.

Guy stroked her back, gentle as he rested his chin above her head. "Only like?" He murmured.

"Maybe if you don't rush your endings then I'll say something else," she told him, Guy feeling her lips as she spoke against his heart.

Guy hugged her, adjusting his position so he could tug his wife onto his lap. She immediately curled up there, warm and safe as he draped his arms around her like a cocoon. "What if there is no ending yet? I like leaving our story open ended, Eep."

He suddenly found himself on his back and he gave a soft oof in surprise. Eep leaned over him, hands braced above his head as she looked down at him. The firelight made her already bright red hair even more so, blazing like the sun with the dark shadows making her eyes and face seem more intense.

"Then… I guess I can accept that," she relented after several moments, a smile crossing her face. She pressed her forehead against his, nose touching his.

Guy's eyes fluttered closed, knowing the intimate implications of the gesture amongst her people. He felt her breath fan his face before something soft touched his lips.

Immediately he wrapped his arms around her, letting his palms gently stroke the strong muscles of her back as they flexed beneath them. He'd never tired of her, beautiful and feral as she was. There was a soft gasp against his lips and he gave a quiet little growl, pressing up to mold his body with hers.

He found his words despite wanting to just keep kissing her. The moment was too right to neglect however. It took a few long moments of trading kiss after kiss that Guy had an idea to put his lips to good use in a way he wouldn't need to stop. Trailing a few heated kisses down the soft slope of her neck, he mumbled, "Eep?"

She hummed, "Mhm?" It was hardly the most direct of words but he took it.

"You lit a fire in me when we met," Guy confessed though he knew it was obvious at this point. It was no secret despite the circumstances of their relationship's beginning, he'd been infatuated and found her cute. Scary habits despite that, of course. "And you were in my every thought since then, I really was hoping you'd call me, Eep."

"I really wanted to go with you," she said, pushing him away to graze a palm down his bicep, tracing a stripe fondly before finding his hand to lace their fingers together. Her touch singed him more than the embers behind him did from where he lay. "I just…"

"You came with me eventually though," he reminded her though found he needed to remind himself to focus when she lifted his hand to her lips to kiss his longer fingers. He closed his eyes, sighing. "You gave me something even better than any Tomorrow I thought I'd find out there."

"Even if you were a stupid boy?" She teased him through the haze, bracing her weight against his again. She still sometimes made fun of him for that but in the moment he hardly cared, caging her in his arms.

"Yes," he grunted, Guy would agree to anything she said right now so long as she kept touching him like this.

Their lips met again but she suddenly paused, her roaming hands no longer roaming. He huffed against her lips, confused and a bit frustrated that she stopped.

"Guy?" Eep murmured against his lips breathily.

"Mhm?" It wasn't an intelligible response but having Eep so close to him like this always rendered him a useless fool.

"Do you smell something burning?" Eep drew away, ignoring Guy's protesting whine as their lips no longer brushed.

"Just my love for you," he told her, sitting up with what he hoped was a winning smile.

Eep flared her nostrils at the smell and eyes widening looked past Guy towards their camp fire, having completely forgotten about the cooking boar during their recent activities.

"Guy, the boar is on fire," she exclaimed.

Guy in an instant scrambled to his feet to try salvaging their dinner. "Oh crap!" He ran for a waterskin and a blanket but to Eep it was probably a fruitless endeavor.

She was never much of a picky eater anyway. Sometimes some burning did a meal good, she thought, touching her lips with a grin.

[nahimjustfeelingit-writes]

Imagine:

The reader is nervous to bring Erik to meet her family because she takes care of her mom and a sibling with special needs.

“Erik, baby, um...I know we’ve talked about this before, plenty of times...but my mom is...she’s not really in the best of spirits. And my brother...he’s...”

“Autistic.” Erik finishes for her.

“Yes.” She looked away from Erik while seated in the passenger side of Erik’s car. She looked out of the rainy window at the home decorated with Christmas lights and many other antic festivities that her mom couldn’t get rid of when her grandmother died.

“Baby, you know you don’t have to be nervous about this, right?” Erik’s voice lulled her into a comforting state. Y/N had avoided this opportunity on Thanksgiving, Halloween, Labor Day, Fourth of July, and just any other occasion. It was like a second job helping to take care of her mom and autistic little brother since their Dad left them. Y/N was a nurse taking care of patients in a facility and her family. It was a lot of stress and it took a toll.

“I know you love me, and I know you don’t care about these things and you think it’s silly.”

“I don’t think it’s silly, Y/N. It’s human nature to be nervous about shit like this.”

Erik finally turns off his car, exiting the driver's side while pulling his hood up over his head. Y/N watched her man come around to her, opening her door to step out. Y/N grabs her umbrella, opening it before exiting the car with Erik shutting the door behind her. They both walked the cobblestone trail to the home, Y/N squeezing Erik’s hand. She didn’t need to knock, this was her home too. Y/N unlocks the door with shaky hands, opening it slowly before peeking inside.

“Hello? Mama? Jay?”

Erik looked around with a newfound wonder. The first thing he spots when entering is a nice piece of wall art made for autistic children. Her brother was around 17 years old now but it still held a beautiful message.

[ Autism doesn’t come with a manual, it comes with a parent who never gives up. ]

That’s what it said, and it made Erik smile.

“Y/N?”

In walks the woman of the house. She looked a lot healthier than the last time Y/N told Erik about her mother. She suffered from Lupus and she’s been a kindergarten teacher for over 20 years.

“Mama, look at you,” Y/N walks up to her mom, squeezing her tight before stepping back to admire her.

“You look...better. Everything okay? I’m sorry I haven’t been here the last few days I had 12-hour shifts in the ER.”

“Baby, why are you explaining that to me?!”

“Because I know you worry, mama.”

“Girl,” Her mother shooed her away, “Erik, is it?”

Erik smiles, stepping forward with his hand outstretched and a wide grin on his face. He couldn’t hide his excitement for meeting Y/N’s mom.

“Hello, Mama in law.” Y/N’s mom gave Erik a peculiar look before smiling, Y/N covering her face with a blush.

“Hey now, did y’all go and get married without me knowing?!”

“Nah,” Erik wraps his arm around Y/N’s shoulder, placing a kiss to her forehead, “You’ll be the first to know about that. But I figured since I know she’s gonna be my wife might as well get acquainted.”

“Oh, I like this one,” All three of them laugh. Y/N figured her mother would like Erik. It was Jay she was worried about.

“Where’s Jay?” Y/N asked her mother in a soft tone.

“In his room, toying around with those models you bought him for his birthday since he practically hounds you about them.”

Erik was curious to know exactly what models they were referring to. He looked at Y/N for her to elaborate but her mother did the honors.

“He’s into architecture. Just like his father.”

“That’s a good career path,” Erik says, “I bet he’s good. Can I go up?”

Y/N gave her mother a look, a look her mother knew well.

“Yes, why don’t you give me your hoodie and take off your shoes by the door. I’m making a big dinner since it’s Christmas Eve.”

“Mom can feed the whole damn neighborhood with her cooking,” Y/N teases.

“Shut it up, girl. You won’t be saying that later with my pecan pie.”

“Shit, we forgot the ice cream.” Y/N loved her pecan pie with ice cream.

“Already have it covered. Figured you would forget like last time.”

“Haha, thanks mom,” She gave her mother one last kiss followed by Erik before they both ascended the stairs to her brother's room. Y/N was really nervous now. Her brother had good days and bad days. There were good days with building his models and then there were days where he became so frustrated with himself when he isn’t able to accomplish something.

His door was ajar, Jay’s gaming chair in view.

“Jay?”

Before she could open the door, a tall slender teenager who looked exactly like her except with a head full of short coils and light brown eyes, was Jay himself.

“Hey baby Bro,” She gave him a warm hug that he returned one-armed, his eyes on Erik. Erik gave Jay a lazy grin, before turning his attention to Y/N.

“Remember how I told you I had a boyfriend?”

“The one you said was finally the one?” He questions.

“Yes...” She knew to expect him to disclose that, after all, she wasn’t afraid.

“Hm,” Jay walks back into his room, returning to his building. Y/N and Erik share a look before entering his room. This was Jay’s world, a world that he could escape to when others didn’t understand him. A world Y/N and her mother built for him.

“I think I have a girlfriend, Y/N.”

Jay says while building with intense concentration.

“Oh? Is it that girl Celeste? She’s really pretty.”

“I think all girls are pretty in their own way.”

“Yeah, I agree,” Y/N smiled at her brother.

“Most people I meet Don’t even try to get me. But Celeste does.”

Erik rested his body on a bean bag next to Jay’s desk to watch the boy build. It was fascinating how good he was.

“You’re really good at that homie.”

“Thanks,” Jay gave Erik an awkward smile.

“What’s it supposed to be? A satellite?”

Y/N picks up a Rubiks Cube on Jay’s desk to toy with while They both talked.

“Close...you know, you’re the only person whose gotten close to seeing it from my perspective.”

“Well, since I got so close would you let me in on the secret behind it?”

Jay glances over at Y/N, followed by Erik.

“It’s cool, man, you ain’t gotta tell me. I just...figured a cool kid like you, I’d be honored to know.”

“You think I’m cool?” Jay liked that.

“Yeah, who said you can’t be cool? You’re cooler than the kids at your school I bet.”

“Nah,” Jay scrunched his face, “They call me weird. The strange apple in the see of normal apples.”

“That just makes you valuable and rare,” Erik says.

“And Incredibly strong.” Y/N adds.

Y/N always hated when people said her brother “didn’t look autistic.” None of it doesn’t have to make sense to them, just respect that it makes sense to him. Her brother is a lot better than he was a few years back. His autism therapist was doing a really good job.

“It’s okay to be a little different,” Erik reaches out, grabbing Jay’s shoulder. Jay didn’t flinch or back Erik off, he just looked at him like he was seeing him for the first time. That moment made Y/N’s heart swell.

“It’s an outer space communicator for Autistic kids around the world.”

“Really?!” Erik was really intrigued now, “How will they communicate?”

“Through telephone booths planted all over the world. You dial a number, and it allows you to communicate with other Autistic kids or just express how you’re feeling. Keeps us interconnected so we can boost each other up.”

“Jay, you never told me about this.” Y/N loved that Idea. She knew her brother had a broad imagination but this was amazing.

“I hope you plan on keeping this idea,” Erik says, “I bet it will make you bigger than Tony Stark.”

“Eh, I don’t know about all that, but at least he’ll recognize me instead of ignoring my fan letters.”

“His loss.” Says Y/N wrapping her arms tightly around her brother.

“Ouch! You’re crushing me!” He tried to wiggle out of her grip.

“Gotta be stronger than that, bro”

“Dinner!!”

The voice of her mother called up to all three of them. Jay got up quickly, practically sprinting for the door.

Erik stood staring at her brother's creation, his eyes watering but he quickly blinked it away. He just loved the support Y/N and her mom gave Jay.

“He didn’t bring his headphones.”

Erik spotted the headphones on the desk.

“He’s really trying to interact with us now.”

Erik pulls Y/N in for a hug, pressing his chin into her forehead.

“Why so surprised? The support y’all give him is phenomenal.”

“Thanks for this,” she looked up at Erik through her warm brown eyes, “thank you for being so understanding,”

“Hey,” Erik takes his fingers to move a single curl from her eyes, “Enough of that, I’m just so damn happy I finally got to meet them.”

Erik felt like the luckiest guy in the world.

“Now, let's go so I can taste this food you always talking about.”

Erik grabs Y/N’s hand, both of them leaving her brother's room behind to share a Christmas Eve meal and exchange gifts.

@tgigoldie @soufcakmistress @chefjessypooh @chaneajoyyy@pananegra@theblulife @becincere @blaqwidow91 @fish-outta-watah@moonlight-night-sky @eyeknowmywrites  @crowngold @njadakillthiscookie@blktinkerbell@luvanxi @sheisexcellent1 @chocolatedippedinhoney @brandithecrystalgem@dababydababydababydababy @soulfulbeauty19@btitannaaa@sunkissedebony97 @youngblackndgifted @harleycativy @rbhp@thee-germanpeach @thadelightfulone @bugngiz@palmstreesallday@skylahb @bakaris-shorty @nizzle-mo​ 

[artdjgblog]

​Innerview: Effie Lin / ​DPI Magazine (Taiwan)  

November 2009 - January 2010

Photo: DJG (2009) by Cayla Kennedy (Age 5)​

Note: Interview for a magazine feature.

0​1) What is your philosophy in your art world? I have to be a human first and a maker of things second. Sometimes the two court together really well. Sometimes they pick fights and choose sides. I sort of have a get up and go method and plan to always be working on my life and work, and to my best ability, given the resources at hand. It’s not that I have a complete lack of care, responsibility or feel disenfranchised or on the outskirts. Though, I do have my moments. Even in bad moments, when it’s probably not a good idea for me to be around me, I try to eventually spin a positive from that experience. They can be the most crucial moments as I learn a great deal once I get beyond their borders. I think that’s part of the process. Process is a big deal and we’re all a part of it. And there is such a thing as bad process equaling a positive in life and work. All I know is that I need to be honest and pure with how I speak inside and outside of the work I am putting on and off the table. Anyway, I’m not really a grouch or a slouch in both areas of life and art, but it is a constant work in progress. I think that thinking too much about it, or the idea of it in the larger spectrum, can become damaging, unhealthy and grow bean stocks further from the truth. Though, I might add that I understand how hard it can be to keep from big ideas and big thinking, it is. I like where it is that I’m at right now and it all stacks up to here. I just need to be making things until I move on to something else. And that something else will probably involve making things too. I love what I do. There is a bigger component to the little pictures that I’m here presenting. I just need to keep up and in the know of the tip toes and perhaps leave some behind in the only way I can try, that means being something like me. ​0​2) What is your favorite medium and why? I feel that maintaining and manhandling a single medium would be quite overwhelming. I admire those that can do it, and do it skillfully. Not that I’m a special breed, but I don’t understand how some people can milk the same cow every day, for years. Every day is a little different inside and out and that fuels my mood of operation. I think that I suppose there is a definition when one looks at the work I’m doing, and the way I go about it, to easily pin me to a favorite medium. I like to use my hands and things around me to tell my stories. But, I don’t know much other than the day-to-day as my mind and energy wanders much on the map. I wake up and see what weather we’ve got. I believe much of it comes from growing up on a farm and spending a lot of time alone. A lot of people think that time is at a stand-still on the country clock. It wasn’t for me as there wasn’t really a cap on the kind of external culture and entertainment I could in-take and fuse with country living inside and out. Everything was a big pot of soup for me and it still is. I was always doing something and I still am. I also watched my Grandma make a lot of things by hand, and although not really an “artist”, she’s been a big influence on the work I’m doing. Another thing, I can’t be as involved with my work when there is a computer screen barrier involved. I can use a computer, but it is only like a nail gun to me. In my college studies while struggling with the introductory marriage of technology and design, I almost quit completely. Funny, before even getting on a computer I naively claimed to tech-savvy peers, “I am going to take the route that doesn’t employ computers.” Anyway, computers are cool and all but it is not how I like to really play. It didn’t help that around this time in my early 20s, I also had doubts about my artistic talent and identity. I also never felt comfortable visiting the design firms of my possible “future”. Some people find a home in them, but I couldn’t and wanted to be in a sense, a stay at home mother to my art. So, these factors led me to re-learn and go back to being a kid locked up inside and/or getting that kid to come back out…becoming an adult can be crippling. I started putting my identity back in the work at this time by leaving my human elements and story behind. I was also exposed to new kinds of external stimulus with art and culture and that helped me see things better too. I eventually had a calling to do my own thing completely, dropped out of school, moved to a big city and mixed it all together. Cities are big cooking pots anyway. But, on a personal level, I’m not done cooking yet. I’m kind of “mild” right now compared to most. I’m just one more guy carving a name on the cinder block and trying to pay the bills. ​0​3) Could you talk about the exhibition post of “Showing My Sheep”? Could you talk about your creating concept? I was born and raised on a farm. We raised sheep and showed sheep at county fairs. I used to have a basketball court shared with the sheep lot. As a youngster I spent some time wanting to be a farmer and in many ways now I kind of am. I’d like to live on a farm again someday, mostly for quiet space, to have more animals and to have a big barn I can work in. I did my first retrospective art exhibition called “Showing My Sheep” after five years of working on my art odyssey. Yeah, that’s not a long time for a life or career overview, but it was important for me to show my whole flock of work together like that and up to that point. And in truth, a 5 year old sheep is middle age. The image on the exhibition poster is a quick scribble of me (or something like me) in sheep’s carcass/dress. I’ve always wondered silly about sheep walking upright and maybe a bit of my love of Gary Larson ���The Far Side” comics is shining through just a bit too? But, there is more to this one as it is a tribute to my upbringing as it represents my sheepish nature and approach mixed with the “wolf in dress” image that I think we all catch and can’t catch up with, at least every now and again (notice the front legs and how they are also a wolf snout?). Another idea in this sheep image is how zombie-like an artist, anyone for that matter, slaves to their nature. I rummage a lot of thrift shops for unique papers and board game “play cards” to print on. Paper can add another dimension to something like a poster, in this case adding to the idea of the game of life and art I play. The board game this paper came from is called “Facts in Five: The Game of Knowledge”, thus adding to all the pieces of art and life that added up to the making of my 5 year retrospective. There is also the handwriting element of an anonymous other’s involvement that I find fascinating. Plus, there is the “grid” pattern that reflects a panel fence to keep the sheep in and out…breaking fences, doing my own thing, so to speak. If you squint you might even see sheep pellets, or what I used to refer to as M&M’s, as they would make for an interesting game of basketball. Did you get all that? There are lots going on in this one. Almost another 5 years after that exhibition and I wonder if I’m nearing the end…hmmm. You never know. ​0​4) Which one of your work is your favorite? Or which one made you spend the most time and effort? What’s message you would like to convey through this work?? Favorite Work: My favorite piece of personal art was stolen at an exhibition in late 2004. It is the only thing of mine that wasn’t/isn’t documented (scanned, photographed) and I can’t recreate it. It is a simple little broken pen scribble drawing of a mentally handicapped water bison. His name is Mortimer. I made him in a couple minutes while on hold on the phone with the phone company. I busted a pen and let the ink spill. I’ve tried other drawings like it, but they turn out different. I have a lot of favorite works, but that one is the winner and loser. Time & Effort: I don’t think you really need “time” or “effort” to make something stick or feel, or even get something done. In fact, once I’m in the creative moment there is no such thing as “time” and “effort”. If you do something enough and love it, then it becomes another extension and you’re a paint brush for something bigger. Though, the words do become tangible when “life” stuff is thrown into the mix. This can’t be denied. Due to my so far 8 year schedule of day jobs, night jobs, marriage and the general day-to-day, I’ve always worked fairly fast and in small slots of time and many things at once, lots of things. It’s as much mental and military discipline as it is anything else and I just go for it. If it ever starts to feel like a chore, I try to take a short break or study up in other areas. If it ever becomes a chore out of my grasp, I’ll find something else to do completely. It can be struggling at times, but there is something good about the “life” stuff that I feed from. It can add fuel to the fire and makes me realize that I’m not always first in line. Sometimes it can be rough sitting on my hands while at the day job, but I’ll make up for it. In truth, there are never enough resources for the things I’d like to leave behind before I’m called quits. But, I sure try to make the best of “time” and “effort” while I’m here. I’ve made many posters and I love the fact that the poster has a shorter shelf live than something like the CD. I like experimenting with posters because if it gets swatted down, it only lived for a couple weeks and another will come along. They are kind of like flies. At three to five sessions, I try to court CD packages a lot longer. There are instances when an image instantly clicks in my mind when I’m told of an upcoming CD and that’s the final product, but most of the time I have to make them incubate and mature. I’ve always been fascinated with productivity and the human mind and mood, at least in my path. I often look at my timeline of work, wondering how different some of the things would have turned out had I did them on another day or even a minute later than I did them. The past few years, my music design output has shrunk some. I reached a certain point after 2006 to where I realized I needed to step back. I still do a few music projects here and there, but mostly just make a lot of visual art for myself. Which, I’ve always teetered on visual art. Maybe I’m trying to make up for Mortimer? I did start something different for me and in a medium that I’d love to pursue more. It wasn’t until this year (2009) that something really consumed me and that was a music video. It has been a great thing for me to be more patient with a project. Now, that’s a whole different extra innings of “time” and “effort”. ​0​5) Which one of CD cover/album artwork is your favorite or make you really proud of? What is the concept? Could you talk about your creating process? Did you listening to the music when you working? I’ve been asked this question a lot. I always answer with: “Whatever Makes You Happy” by The Elevator Division. It’s something to feel proud when you accomplish anything, but even more when it is all done and duplicated by hand in one night. 250 CD packages were made out of hand-cut cardboard, spray paint, stencils, rubber stamps and glued inserts. The concept is a hand shooting off a missile finger. The music themes revolve around relationships on and off the battlefields of life and war and the cover image relays the idea of shooting off one’s options, as in, “Whatever Makes You Happy”. Conceptually (design-wise), it might be the best thing I’ve got in me and inspiration came at the last minute before production and during a great Midwest thunderstorm. Upon the last spray of paint in my basement (yes, I was stupid enough then to spray paint in an unventilated basement), there was a crack of lightning and I flew upstairs and out the door of my home and slid down the well-watered front lawn and into the gutter of the street with red spray paint all over me. The squatters on the porch at the supposed drug house across the street got a kick out it. It was a massive affair and I swore I wouldn’t do it again and then I did a near repeat 4 years later for another band, but not all in one night. I swore I wouldn’t do that again-again and then I kind of did it again two years later. So, I must be due up for another one soon. In the case of The Elevator Division, the band lived with me and practiced nearly every day directly outside my basement studio door at our home. There were several bands that this happened with. I usually don’t listen to albums that I’m designing very much and I rarely listen to them after they are a finished product. This is especially so when it is blasted in the flesh right next to me. ​0​6) Why is sound/music important to our life? What is the most important for designing the album/CD cover? I’m not a fan of a lot of “noise”, but I like sound and I love music and I like some noise music. I love the idea and image of the album cover and making an album “feel” on the outside and giving it an identity. I find I have a detachment from the music and the memories when it is fused in our current in-between stage right now of technology and mp3 land. Even if they have a digital image shroud, they lack a hard identity to me as they float out in space and it makes me a little sad. I prefer a physical collection/body of music, with identity. I don’t want to get too far into this topic and I’ll add that both formats have their good and bad. And I love walking to and from work with a pocket overflowing with Bruce Springsteen songs (I have the records at home too). Along the same lines, I think that the idea of “cover art” or something physical isn’t going to die 100%, at least not in my lifetime. I do hope it doesn’t get even more eclectic-expensive like it kind of is looking. I love album art and I can’t really afford it. I just remember one of my earliest memories being the apple on records by The Beatles. That was/is important to me. I bit that apple and it has been good to me for 30 years now. ​0​7) What had been the most challenging thing to you in art world, and how did you overcome it? I think I have challenges and things to overcome and then I tune into the news or watch certain documentary films. I realize there is nothing for me to complain about after that. Of course there are some personal issues that challenge me and my little world. A major one of is overcoming some of my social phobia. It’s made me who I am and probably factors to why I make the way I make, but it has kept me from getting in the ball game as much as I probably should have. Though, what is “probably should have”? Technology makes great networking devices, and is “the now”, but at the same time I always feel so exhausted and behind with it. I also don’t have resources to keep up with it (money, time and mind) but I’m trying bit by bit. Another thing I’ve always carried a heavy lump with is a day job. But, it’s the only way for me to stay afloat. Every year I spend more money than I make with art (currently, I have 24 cents in my DJG Pay Pal account). One way to overcome this is to stop entering high-cost art and design competitions, which was one way of being social with a lot of people. Well, from a global publishing stand point. Competition fees are rising so much these days. Another challenge is the business end of the art. I stink at business. Though, a lot of that has to do with not having enough time and not being the best at problem solving and math, plus always being broke. And I would rather just make more art. I’m a happy camper though and constantly doing my thing. ​0​8) What are your future goals in the art world? Naturally, anyone who feels they’re sitting on something at home is going to set their sights on doing their own thing full-time and for full-time income. But, even if I never get there, I will be punching my own time card in some form or another. I’ll find peace. I’ll always be working on something and working on myself. I could easily keep my head down all day, dragging my wagon (and I kind of do), but I love the idea of sharing my work on a larger, global scale too. It is global on the internet, yet I easily butt heads with technology as it can get quite beastly. But, I appreciate it greatly as even a decade ago you probably wouldn’t have found out about me to get an interview like this. Thank you! I’ve met a lot of my initial goals and it’s easy to sit here and think about tomorrow but I need to work out today to make it there. I’d love to eventually put out an officially published book or lots of them (any bidders?). I plan to start with some handmade ones very soon. I’ll also finally be selling things on my web site soon. I’m currently working towards a 10 year retrospective show of my time in Kansas City, MO USA. I plan to show everything. Also, I will be working on more and more visual art in the coming year. I’d love to exhibit my physical work in more nooks and crannies of the world. I’ve been fortunate to do this a little bit, but nothing on a massive scale. I love the idea of ideas and imagery inspiring people. I also love the idea of relaying an interpretation of the world, while we’re all down here in this together. It’s kind of neat to think I’m leaving a little trail behind in this way and sharing that. Though, I’m not so confident art can change the world on a large platform, I do think it can help a little bit. Even if that means muscling up a smile that you can say was honestly spent. -djg

[masonmccheers]

Mastin - Woking and Rolling

Who: Mason McCarthy & Austin Pillsbury-Shuester @psitsaustin

When: Sunday July 28th

Where: Wok and Roll

What: Mason and Austin have their first date and it’s stupidly cute

Mason had gone through his closet about ten times. It was probably silly of him to be so nervous, but this was his first college date and he wanted it to go well. He didn't really know if it would go anywhere, but Austin was so sweet and adorable. He certainly didn't want to scare him off this quickly. Finally deciding on an outfit, Mason gave his hair one last poof before he left to meet Austin. Thankfully the dorms weren't too far apart. He stepped into the Schuester dorms and spotted Austin waiting for him in the common room. "Hi!" he greeted with his usual cheerful bounce. "I gotta ask. Does it ever feel weird living in a building with your name on it?"

Austin had been ready for just a bit longer since his own nerves had taken over plenty of times and made him stop in the middle of whatever he was doing while getting ready. First date jitters were such a pain, but they were worth it because he remained eagle-eyed and was very careful when it came to making the best possible first impressions. All the same, it didn't exactly stop him from succumbing to stress eating and he was finishing up a carrot cake cupcake when Mason's voice got his attention. "Hey Mase," Austin greeted with a soft smile. He pretended to think over his answer for a bit then shrugged as he headed for the kitchen to put his plate in the sink. "Not really. If anything, it keeps me from getting homesick. Before we go though, would you like a cupcake? They're carrot cake flavored."

Mason eyed the plate curiously, his eyes widening a little with excitement at the offer. "Dessert before dinner? College just keeps getting better," he laughed. "By which I mean, yes, I would love one." He nodded along at Austin's explanation. "That makes sense though. The homesick thing. And it's gotta give you some oomph around here if your neighbors get on your nerves."

Austin gave a light chuckle as he grabbed another plate then placed a cupcake on it before he held it out to Mason and closed the container with his free hand. "Sometimes, you just gotta treat yourself," he responded. He shrugged once again followed by the so-so gesture as he added, "Depends on the person really. The upperclassmen are more likely to just stare at me blankly while fellow underclassmen are apologetic until they put the puzzle pieces together that my parents are big time donors and have a couple buildings named after them."

"That's what I always tell people! My sister mostly," Mason admitted before biting into the cupcake. "Mmm, that's so good! Did you make these? And, yeah, that makes sense. Sometimes I wanna make a stage name for myself just because casting directors will sometimes know my parents, which could be a good or a bad thing. But either way I'd rather make it on my own talent, you know?"

"Thank you very much and yes, I did," Austin rattled off in an easygoing tone. It was honestly amazing how at ease he felt right off the bat with Mason, just like he felt around family and close friends. But he nodded in understanding as he listened. "I totally get that. Basically making a name for yourself, but in a more literal sense. But something tells me that you'll definitely be able to make it on your own talent when the time comes."

"I'll add these to the list of reasons I'm very happy I met you," Mason giggled as he finished off his cupcake. He smiled sweetly at Austin, a soft pink blush on his cheeks. "Thanks. No matter what happens, I refuse to say I didn't put the effort in and try my hardest." He rinsed his plate off and set it in the sink with Austin's. "Shall we head out then?"

"And I'll add your sweetness to my list of reasons I'm very happy I met you," the Culinary Arts major answered as hints of pink spread across his own cheeks. "You're welcome and that's the spirit." Austin gave a nod of approval then held his hand out to Mason while he removed his car keys from a pocket with the other. "Your transportation awaits."

"That cupcake probably just made me even sweeter," Mason teased, his eyes sparkling as he smiled. He slid his hand into Austin's and followed along with him. It already felt so nice, just being together. Easy and comfortable. It was a really great feeling for Mason when he was usually thinking about ten different things at once. "Shucks, you're gonna make me feel like Cinderella."

Austin chuckled as he led the way out to his car then unlocked it and opened the passenger side door for Mason. "Just doing what I do best," he responded. "My family, friends, and dates get the best of the best from me. And you get a double whammy of that since you're both a friend and date." He found himself reluctantly letting go of Mason's hand so he could walk over to the driver's side and get in.

"That's a pretty great quality to have," Mason told him once Austin had gotten into the car as well. "Most everyone's so busy giving themselves the best nowadays. Not that I don't love a good day of self pampering once in awhile. But it's nice to find someone who cares so much about the other people in their lives."

"Of course self care is very important," Austin agreed as he started the drive toward Wok and Roll Japan. "But it's one of my favorite qualities about myself, wanting to do right by everybody. Feels like a rare find of a personality trait, like you said." There were honestly so many questions that he wanted to ask, some more outside the box first date ones, but he feared they would sound rehearsed unless he figured out the perfect segue. "Do you want to do a mini q and a session of sorts? Get to know each other a bit better?"

Mason's smile widened and he gave a couple little excited claps in front of himself. "Ooh, yes, please. I love games and I love getting to know people, especially you. So this sounds perfect for me," he laughed.

Austin honestly loved Mason's energy and gave a bright smile of his own, right before his cheeks painted themselves pink. "Me too. Alright, my first question for you is in your opinion, what is something everyone in the world should try at least once?"

"Ooh, deep." Mason's index fingers touched together at the tip and he pressed them to his lips as he considered an answer.  "I mean, the easy answer is chocolate chip cookies because they are a gift. But I guess my bigger answer is something that they're afraid of. Even something little. It gives you such a good feeling when you push past a fear. Okay, question. Who would you say has been the biggest influence in your life?"

"I agree wholeheartedly with both of those answers," Austin replied before he took a moment to think over his own answer. "That would honestly have to go to three people. My parents because they taught me the general life things that everybody should know before going off on their own. Then Jeff also gets that honor because without him, I probably wouldn't be getting out very much and even then, it goes beyond that." He lightly tapped his fingers against the steering wheel when he stopped at a red light then questioned, "Okay, are you a morning person or night owl?"

Even the little he knew about Austin's parents sounded so nice to him. It was more than he could say about his own, after all. "Jeff's a great guy. And an awesome dancer! It's always nice to have a friend like that." He looked over at Austin and blinked, "Yes?" he answered with a laugh. "I don't know how long it's gonna last, but there's just a lotta energy in my brain and it just seems to be on anytime I'm not asleep. What was your first kiss like?"

Austin nodded in agreement then gave a few chuckles at the first part of Mason's answer. "Honestly? That's totally understandable and relatable. Almost always something going on during the waking hours. But Jeff is both of those things, without a doubt. He's been my partner in crime since elementary school which is apparently pretty rare. Since friends tend to come and go during those years." When the next question hit his ears, he responded, "Believe it or not, it was also with Jeff. We were hanging out at this school dance and then next thing we know, we had a moment and smooched." As he finally pulled in the parking lot of Wok and Roll Japan, he inquired as he killed the engine and started to get out, "What's the strangest conversation you've ever had? Both phone and in person conversations count."

"Sounds like me and Madi. The partners in crime part, I mean. Not the... other part," Mason quickly added, not wanting to relive any of his high school bullying. "School dances are prime smooching spots though. I had a couple there myself." He shook his head as he stepped out of the car. "That's a tough one. I'm pretty weird, I have a lotta strange conversations. And Mads and I would talk about the most random things when we couldn't sleep at night. Aliens, why geese are such assholes, 100 duck sized elephants vs one elephant sized duck."

Austin's bright smile turned soft as he listened to Mason while locking the car once the doors were closed. He walked around in order to take the other's hand again as he replied, "You're right on the money about prime smooching spots. Think another popular one is behind the bleachers at football games, although I only heard stories." He chucked again at the weird conversation descriptions and added, "Think it's because small animals, like geese, only have so much space to store their anger. But late nights are the best time for wild conversations."

"See, I missed that 'cause I was always cheering during the football games. And I took my job very seriously. I still do," he told Austin, leaning into him ever so slightly. He waited until they got seated to continue the conversation. "That makes so much sense though! It's just like Tinkerbell! Okay, so what's one skill you've always wanted to master? Besides cooking and baking 'cause you've clearly already done that."

"And that's very admirable," Austin complimented before he took a quick glance at the menu then nodded in agreement at the comparison to Tinkerbell. "Wonder if any of the other Disney fairies share her temper. As for that skill, it will have to be confident public speaking. Like it is unbelievably easy to talk to family and friends, but it takes me forever to have that same level of calm with a group of people. I used to spend hours rehearsing presentations in high school and usually have to plan out phone calls in order to make appointments. How about you? Got any skills you'd like to get under your belt?"(edited)

"Most of her fairy friends seem pretty chill. Except maybe Vidia. But Tinkerbell chilled out in her movie too," Mason recalled. "I get that. Though I have to admit, I kinda like the attention. I'd really like to learn to play piano. I've always been more into the singing and dancing aspects of performing, but I'd like to get into the playing too." He looked at his menu curiously. "What do you recommend here?"

"Vidia is definitely a top contestant when it comes tempers," Austin agreed. He closed his menu once he'd made up his mind and carefully set it to the side while he listened to Mason. "Some people thrive off of attention and others don't, both of which are totally understandable. But learning to play the piano sounds really cool." He glanced over at Mason's menu then responded, "Crab rangoon for the appetizer then yakisoba with a side of gyōza for the entree."

Mason smiled at Austin's response, glad that did he didn't sound completely childish talking about Disney fairies. "Right. The whole introvert/extrovert thing. I've heard they can work very well together though. Just if you were wondering." He smirked as he took a sip of his water. "I don't know what those last two things are, but I'm very excited to find out."

Austin's cheeks lit up pink yet again and he mentally cursed himself for being so quick to blush as he took a swig of his own water. "I've heard the same thing. Fits right in with the opposites attract dynamic," he commented then brightened his smile as he filed through miscellaneous info. "Okay, so gyōza is the Japanese version of a Chinese dumpling. Wonton wrappers stuffed with pork and cabbage. Then yakisoba is a noodle stir-fry dish that incorporates ramen style wheat noodles with bite-sized pork and various finely chopped vegetables."

Mason giggled, finding that he really enjoyed making Austin blush like that. "Guess that could work out well for us." He listened intently as Austin explained the food to him, thoroughly impressed with the other boy's knowledge. "That all sounds delicious to me. I love me some noodles. What would you say is your favorite dish to make? Besides desserts."

"Indeed and happy to hear that." Austin took a moment to think about the various dishes he'd made over the years. "That would have to be baked breakfast nachos with a side of air fryer chicken wings. Made it for a relative's birthday one year and people couldn't get enough of it. Then it basically morphed into a sleepover staple with my friend group back home. Okay, describe your perfect day of relaxation. No classes, no prior plans, nothing of that sort to go off to."(edited)

Mason rested his elbows on the table and covered his cheeks with spread hands, his mouth hanging open as he started at Austin. He was about ready to drool and he wasn't entirely sure if it was because of the food description or the boy sitting across from him. Probably a combination. "Wow," he finally managed to get out. Dropping his hands, he considered the question. "I wish I was better at relaxation. If I go too long without something to do, my brain gets all buzzy.  But I used to hang out at the skate park a lot in high school, just board for awhile without anywhere to go. I guess that helps me zone out."

Austin hummed as he listened to Mason's answer then gave a light nod of understanding. "That's honestly a really cool answer though. Always wanted to try skateboarding. And I totally get the whole buzzy brain thing, but more for a different reason slash a different type of buzzing." The waitress soon approached and cut him off before he started to reveal just a tad too much information. "I'll have whatever my handsome date is having," he answered when she asked what he would like to order.

Mason smiled shyly before looking up at the waitress and ordered everything Austin had recommended. He handed the menus over to her and turned back to his date. "The brain's pretty mean sometimes, isn't it? Like people think ADHD's just about not being able to focuse and... well, that's definitely part of  it, but it does so much other dumb stuff and I just wish it would go away sometimes."

"You can say that again. My thing is more related to anxiety in the interest of being honest," Austin started and picked up one of the empty straw wrappers in order to fiddle with it. "Like most people think ADHD is one hundred percent not being able to focus, they think anxiety is fear. And like you said, while that's part of it, it doesn't encompass the whole deal. Your brain basically makes you second guess everything and you're constantly checking over your shoulder even though there's no danger present. It's basically the equivalent of having the Jaws theme song playing on repeat in your head."

Mason offered Austin an empathetic pout. "That doesn't sound fun at all. And it's like anyone who hasn't experienced it themselves-- they just don't get it. I get so frustrated with myself when I can't get something right and people are always telling me to quit overreacting, but I can't help it. My brain won't let me, you know?"

Austin gave a soft smile of gratitude as he nodded then paid attention to what Mason had to say. "Thank you and you're right on the money with the experience again. Don't get me wrong, it's great when people do their best to understand, but there are things that come up where you don't truly know until you go through it yourself. But I totally get what you're saying with that. Your brain kinda goes on the fritz while to an outsider, everything seems normal or like an overreaction or whatever at any given moment because all the trouble is in your mind."(edited)

Mason reached across the table and laid his hand over Austin's comfortably. "Well, our brain's may be unique in different ways, but I understand it as much as I can. And I can promise you won't be getting judgement from me."

"And I promise that you won't be getting any from me," Austin returned the sentiment as he lightly placed his other hand on top of Mason's. "I'll do my best to see things from your point of view whenever moments that call for it come up." Then he added, "On a more positive note, you really are an angel, Mason McCarthy."

"You have got to stop that or I'm gonna get a bigger head than I already have," Mason laughed. "Though that might help it grow into my hair." He flipped his head back dramatically so his hair bounced a little. "I'm gonna be honest, I was really nervous starting college. It's my first time away from home, even if it's only a couple hours. First time not having my sister right beside me. And I've been really fortunate to meet such great people, including you."

"In that case, maybe I should keep it up," Austin returned the joke with ease then nodded in an understanding manner once again. "Yet another relatable thing. College can take some time to get used to, especially the being away from loved ones factor. But there does seem to be a rather large influx of great people around here which hopefully helps make the switch easier. And you're on my list too." The waitress returned at that moment with their food and complimented, "You guys make such a handsome couple."(edited)

Mason stuck the tip of his tongue between his teeth playfully. "It seems I picked the right school to go to!" He reluctantly let go of Austin's hand just there was room for their plates as the waitress appeared. "Why thank you! I think so too."

Austin hummed in agreement then gave the waitress a thankful smile. "Thank you very much and I just so happen to agree with both of you," he answered. She parted with an 'Enjoy your food' before she went to go check on the other patrons while Austin got ready to dig in. "Here's a funny story. My grandma always says that if someone stops talking while eating, it must mean the food is so good, it stunned someone into silence. Shall we test that hypothesis?"

"It's gonna have to be pretty good. I don't stop talking often," Mason laughed. He'd learned to make a joke out of his hyper tendencies awhile ago in an attempt to cut other people off from making fun of him. He just did it first. "Here goes though." He took one of the rangoons and dipped it in sauce before taking a bite. His eyes widened slightly, but he kept quiet and just nodded.

Austin had to hold back a light chuckle, which only got easier when he followed Mason's lead. The crab rangoon was absolutely delicious and the sauce added a whole new flavor experience. He gave a thumbs up of approval as he finished his then joked, "Is it possible for people to ask food on a date? Because if so, we may need to talk about showing these crab rangoons a good time."

"Can't believe you're leaving me for a crab already," Mason teased, shaking his head dramatically. "I can't really say I blame you though. This is delicious. I would dump me for this."

"I honestly don't think I'd have it in me," Austin answered with a tiny laugh. "While these are delicious, they're not exactly the best conversationalists. Rather be able to talk to someone and get their take on an experience. Plus, there would be no hand holding or kissing or anything with a crab rangoon. Just staring at a piece of food which probably gets weird after awhile. Best to get lost in someone's eyes if you ask me."

Between the two of them, Mason was pretty sure they'd both spend the entire night a bright shade of red. "So... since we've already done all but of those things you listed, does that mean I can hope to experience the last one before the night's over?"

Austin gave a nod of confirmation before he remarked, "Let's eat first so we have some energy for that at least. Then we can continue getting to know each other and marking things off the list of first date experiences." With that, he started in on his plate of yakisoba, but not before he gave Mason a lighthearted smile while the brightness of the restaurant was nothing compared to the excited glint in his eyes.

"Energy is key," Mason agreed, managing to keep a straight face for abut ten seconds before he broke out into laughter again. He dove into his own dish, working carefully to eat in a semi-graceful manner. "So since Jeff's from Colorado and you've known each other for so long, I'm guessing you are too?"

"You would be correct on both notes," Austin replied with a soft laugh. "Lovely place to be and live, although sometimes the snow has a tendency to be obnoxious," he responded in between bites of food as well as sips of water. "How about you? Cool with telling me more about where you're from?"(edited)

"I know everybody goes there to ski. I've never been skiing myself, but I always thought it looked fun," Mason mused. "Oh, yeah. There's nothing too exciting about it. I grew up in Columbus. It's your pretty standard city. Mads and I went to a lot of camps all over the state though. Ohio's always been home, so I guess that's why I ended up still going to school here."

"Pretty much. Among other things, if you know what I mean," Austin chuckled as he picked up another crab rangoon. "But you're not alone when it comes to never going skiing. Maybe we could it out together sometime when winter rolls around." He listened politely while Mason talked about Columbus then remarked, "Still sounds pretty cool though and the attachment is understandable. Home state pride or however that should be phrased."

Mason's eyes widened a little, but his smile was just as bright as ever. He brought his fingers up to his lips to make sure none of his sip of water tried to escape. "I'd love to... try all sorts of new things with you," he replied as smoothly as he could manage. "I'd still like to travel more someday though. See more of the country, even other ones. And I dream of New York, of course. College just felt like such a big change on it's own, I thought I'd take smaller steps."

Austin gave his patented innocent as an angel smile, as soft and demure as possible when Mason caught the joke. "Then it sounds like we've got some fun times ahead. But that sounds like a really cool aspiration. College is definitely a major step, yet it can also be a stepping stone when it comes to achieving that dream. Some people travel thousands of miles in order to go to school and they see all new parts of the world along the one," he answered as his smile morphed back into a light, carefree one.(edited)

"You know, I'm starting to think as sweet as you are, you might just be a little naughty too. And I am more than okay with it." Mason took another bite and nodded along. "I think everyone expected me to go to school in New York what with my deep need to be on a stage. But Joie has an awesome theatre program too. And I know I'll get there someday. Do you have any ideas on where you wanna end up after school?"

Austin had to do everything in his power to keep himself from blushing at the new round of remarks then tipped an imaginary cowboy hat. "Nothing wrong with swerving away from expectations and indeed they do from what I've heard so far. And you've already got a major fan in me. Always happy to cheer you on at anytime. Then my hopes are along the lines of opening up my own restaurant and maybe a bakery as well. It'd be cool to be on a Food Network show like Chopped, but that's more of a bonus side dream."

"Oh, you should totally be on Chopped!" Mason replied with excitement. "I love that show. You'd be so awesome on it. But thank you," he added with a little more reserve. "Usually I'm the one who does all the cheering."

"You're quite welcome and thank you very much," Austin answered. He was grateful for the encouragement that came up, although Mason's seemed to hit in a different way. The words felt like they wrapped his heart in a warm hug, akin to the feeling he got when his family and other friends bolstered his confidence. "Always happy to return the favor. Plus I have no doubt in my mind that you'll get to New York. Got the makings of a great actor."

"You've never even seen me act," Mason pointed out with a laugh. "But I suppose I do have a natural drama about me." He sighed dramatically, but it quickly turned into another smile. He went back to his food and silently reminded himself that not every moment had to be filled with words. He didn't want to overwhelm Austin on their first night out after all.

"True, but you do have that natural dramatic air about you. And honestly, I can't possibly imagine any casting directors turning you down," Austin fired back and lightly pushed his plate to the side since he was somehow done already. "Then correct me if I'm wrong, but we might be in drama club together too?" He phrased it like a question just in case he was completely off. "If we are, that means I'll be seeing you in action sooner rather than later."

"I just hope you think that's a good thing," Mason laughed. He set his fork down and wiped his hands on the napkin in his lap. "Oh, yeah, I guess we are. I'm in a lotta clubs. It gets confusing." He shrugged innocently. "And I heard rumors we might be putting on a show sometime soon too."

"You're in luck because I do," Austin responded then hummed in an understanding way. "Imagine it's a bit like juggling in a way. Except instead of juggling fruit, you're juggling different clubs. But I've heard the same rumors and I'm honestly looking forward to hearing what the show might be. Kind hope it's something outside the box and not too mainstream, but still relevant in some way. If any of that makes sense."

"Oh! I can juggle!" Mason exclaimed with excitement. "Like actually. With fruit or balls or... whatever. And clubs apparently. There's so many great options to choose from show wise though. I don't know how big of a part I can get being a freshman, but I'll try my darnedest just like everything else I do."

"Wait, really?" Austin questioned while green eyes brightened with an equal amount of excitement once more. "I would love to see that sometime as long as it's not much trouble. But gotta agree with you once again on the great shows note. There are endless possibilities to consider. And either way, I look forward to seeing you work the stage."(edited)

Mason nodded with a proud smile. "Of course it's no trouble. It's pretty easy once you get the hang of it, for me at least. It might have something to do with the good coordination though. But I'm happy to show off my skills anytime," he assured him. "Do you sing at all?"

Austin's mouth dropped into a perfect 'O' shape for a split second before he commented, "Yeah, I've heard good hand-eye coordination is key when it comes to juggling. But that sounds cool and I'm looking forward to seeing that too." At the question, he gave a small shrug as part of his answer. "A little bit. Not too much though. Mostly while in the kitchen and either as quietly as possible or at a normal volume while hoping it gets drowned out by the cacophony of kitchen utensils."

Mason giggled again and shook his head. "Why do I get the feeling you're just being modest? I guess I might get to find out when that show rolls around though." He sat back and took a deep breath. "Well, that was all super delicious, but I don't think I could eat another bite."

Austin gave a tiny shrug as he responded, "Guess you'll just have to stick around till the show and solve the mystery thing." Next up was a light hum of agreement before he joked, "You honestly might have to roll me back out to my car. If human beings could teleport then this honestly wouldn't be a problem."

"I don't plan on going anywhere," Mason assured him. "Now I'm picturing you as Violet from Willy Wonka and it's really amusing." He took care of the bill and got to his feet, holding his hand out for Austin. "Come on. We'll walk it off, handsome."

Austin happily accepted Mason's hand and started to lead the way to his car. "Honestly though, I imagine it's a pretty funny picture. I mean, it's not everyday someone eats the wrong thing then turns into a human blueberry. But you're in luck because guess who also doesn't plan on going anywhere, Mr. Handsome?"

Mason wrapped his arm around Austin's as he walked beside him. "Right? And they just rolled her right out of there. I love that movie. Although that tunnel scene scared the crap out of me when I was a kid," he recalled. He turned and smiled at Austin. "Hmm? Is it you?"

"You'd be correct and honestly, right there with you with that tunnel scene," Austin continued with a soft smile. "But no joke, I bet that if circumstances were different, then Violet would have ended up becoming the heiress to the factory. She has knowledge about candy, an incredible work ethic, and at least a couple other things going for her. But I can understand why Charlie got it in the end since the story does focus on him after all."

Mason rested his head gently against Austin's shoulder as he considered that possibility. "That... makes a lot of sense actually. The problem is she has zero impulse control, which is a problem I'm familiar with. It can make it difficult to run giant candy companies."

"Exactly, plus much like all the other kids aside from Charlie, she had an ulterior motive," Austin rattled off as he unlocked his car and moved to open the passenger door open for Mason again. "Gotta give the reward to the purest of heart. Otherwise there might have been a riot and to tell the truth, I would have joined it. He deserved that payoff in the end."

Mason was sort of reluctant to let go of Austin, but they weren't going to get anywhere without the car. He slid in and waited for Austin to join him on the other side. "If only it worked that way in the real world, right? It'd probably be a very different place."

Austin made quick work of sliding into the driver's seat because goodness gracious, his heart had already started aching whenever he was away from Mason. Just like it did when he was away from family and friends, but also in a different way. "Couldn't have said it better myself. Things would be so much better off if that were the case. Pure of heart with a good head on their shoulders."

"I could rule the world!" Mason declared dramatically, holding his hands out. "Although when I say it that way it doesn't sound very pure of heart." He laughed as he leaned his head back against the seat of the car.  "This night's been really awesome. And exactly what I needed."

"I believe that you'd be a very benevolent ruler though," Austin chuckled lightly as he held out a hand to Mason while the other one remained glued to the steering wheel in order to start the drive back to campus. "It definitely has been awesome to the max. A well-earned breath of fresh air and thank you very much for reaching out."

"I would share my cheer with everyone." Mason slid his fingers easily between Austin's as he watched him drive. "Thank you for not thinking I was a totally awkward weirdo and running for the hills."

"And that's just one of many reasons I think you're an angel," Austin responded as he carefully aimed to lift Mason's hand to his lips. "Hey, I should be thanking you for not doing that with me. I had an awesome time with you at the BBQ and was honestly hoping to either see you again sometime soon or hear from you again."

Mason felt his heartbeat quicken and he sighed in delight. "You know when cartoon characters see someone dreamy and their hearts beat all the way out of their chests? I think I'm turning into one of those," he declared. "Well, then I'm glad I managed to get your number outta Jeff."

Austin nodded because he was definitely experiencing the same potential transformation into a cartoon character. "I'm having a full 'Groovy' dream sequence moment like in one of those old Scooby Doo movies to be quite honest. Alien Invaders if my memory serves me correctly," he joked. "And thank goodness for Jeff in that case."

Mason let his head drop forward as he laughed. "We clearly need to have a cartoon movie night soon. And Jeff said he was going to talk me up, so if he says anything too embarrassing, you are required to tell me."

"I can get on board with that and I will be sure to keep you posted. If he says anything too embarrassing about me to you then please let me know," Austin responded. "He's a gem of a best friend, but at the same time, his mind works in mysterious ways that even I don't understand after years of friendship."

Mason chuckled, very familiar with that problem. "Well, I'm glad that I was cool enough to pass his test and achieve approved best friend dater status." They pulled back into the parking lots for the dorms and he sighed again. He really didn't want the night to be over yet.

"You are more than cool enough," Austin stated. He didn't want the night to be over either in all honesty. He ran through a list of options in the back of his mind before he inquired, "Do you want to come back to Schuester with me? We can watch Netflix together or something, keep getting to know each other?"

Mason perked up again at the offer, sitting up a little straighter in the car. "Yeah? I mean, of course. I'd love to. I would've invited you, but my roommate's probably there, so. Yes, I'd very much like to spend more time with you."

Austin's smile brightened which then morphed into an understanding one. "Sounds like a plan then and hey, I get that. Roommates can be interesting to say the very least, especially as you're trying to figure out one another's boundaries," he answered as he started to open his door. "But off we go?"

"Tell me about it. He's a little quiet, which is only a problem because I tend to ramble during awkward silences," Mason admitted, laughing as he undid his seatbelt and stepped out of the car. "But I wasn't quite ready to stay in a room by myself anyway."

"Hey, nothing wrong with that because I honestly do the same with awkward silence rambling," Austin chucked once he got the car locked again then walked over in order to hold his hand out to Mason. "Totally understandable. I had a roommate last year for the same reason," he added yet purposefully left out the part about all the arguments that had occurred in order to avoid dragging down the mood.

Mason hurried back to Austin's side and slid their hands together happily. "Well, I guess there won't be a lotta silence between us," he chuckled. "Except... maybe if our mouths are busy with other things." He gave Austin a playful smile before ducking down to hide against his shoulder.

That got both a laugh as well as a tomato red blush out of Austin and he just shook his head affectionately. "I do believe that we will continue to get along swimmingly," he remarked while he lead the way back to his dorm. "Shall we resume the getting to know each other game as well?"

When Mason giggled this time, it was a little more purposeful. He was definitely getting his kiss before the night was over. "Sure. We can do that. I don't remember whose turn it is."

Austin came to a halt in front of the door to his dorm room then responded, "Real quick though, there is something I want do to." He aimed to press a light kiss to Mason's cheek followed by another one to his lips. "I know that's technically done at the end of a date, but nothing wrong with rewriting the rules a little."

Mason's eyes slipped closed when Austin's lips met his own. As cheesy as it sounded, the kiss totally felt like one of those dream ones where your foot pops up and everything. His smile spread wise when Austin pulled back. "Rules are definitely made to be broken," he agreed.

"Glad we're in agreement," Austin replied then opened the door to his dorm room. "Welcome to Casa de Pillsbury-Schuester. Even though casa is Spanish for house instead of room, but there's a reason I took French instead of Spanish," he laughed before he picked up his laptop in order to pull up Netflix.

"Sala," Mason recalled. "Room is sala. But don't ask me to speak in Spanish cause I only remember random vocabulary words." He looked around and decided to take a seat on the edge of Austin's bed. He rested his hands on his knees and looked up at him with a dreamy smile.

Austin gave an appreciative smile before he shifted closer and aimed to lightly his head on Mason's shoulder while he scrolled through the Netflix options. "Same here with French. Could rattle off that vocab like there's no tomorrow, but mental conjugation is a nightmare. Now, what shall we watch?"

Mason let himself relax a little once Austin cuddled beside him. He leaned his own head over to rest against Austin. "Your hair is very soft. And... I'm sorry if that sounded creepy," he added with a scrunched up nose. "Friends is always a safe bet."

"Maybe just a little bit," Austin joked as he pulled up the first episode of Friends. "Couldn't agree more. That's honestly a major go-to. Breaking the Magician's Code is another one, Stranger Things, then Rules of Engagement. Which reminds me of my next question for you. What TV series do you keep going back to and rewatching?"

Mason brought a hand up to his face and hid behind it for a moment. "Someday I'm gonna get my mouth to stop saying things before my brain has a chance to figure them out." He shook his head slightly at himself. "I've never seen the Magician one, but I love the others. Parks and Rec is definitely a big one. The Office. All the classics."

"Well, until then and even after, I'm more than happy to listen to whatever you have to say." Austin nodded as he listened to Mason list off shows then switched to Breaking the Magician's Code. "I'll go back to Friends in a bit, but basically this magician is revealing the secrets behind well known magic tricks. Thing is though, he uses a mask to hide his identity so a narrator has to do all the walking through tricks. Although I'm pretty sure the magician does reveal who he is at some point in the series. All wise choices though in terms of other shows."

Mason smiled, letting out a little breath of relief. He really didn't wanna mess this up on the first date, not when he was having such a great time. "Wow. That's very brave of him. I can't imagine too many magicians are happy about that. I also, admittedly, spend a lotta time watching old musicals."

Austin gave a hum of agreement before he took a moment to think about the reactions he'd heard over the years. "Imagine that was the case, but I'll be sure to keep you posted. Since secrecy is one of the names of the game after all. Then musicals sound cool and old ones do too. Cool with listing a few?"

"Exactly. Unless it's actual magic which is... both cool and terrifying to think about," Mason chuckled. He ran his fingers lazily along Austin's palm and wrist. "Singing in the Rain is one of my faves. West Side Story, Music Man."

"You can say that again," Austin replied before he turned slightly in order to press a kiss to Mason's temple. "All of those sound really cool. I also think I saw a production of West Side Story one year with my drama class back in high school. Maybe we could save that as a date idea? Watching old and maybe some new musicals together?"

The kiss just made Mason lean in even more. He was sure he couldn't stop smiling no matter how hard he tried at this point. "Oh, it's so good. Something's Coming? Mind blowing. The forbidden romance. I'd love to watch some together. New or old. If it's a musical, I probably either already love it or will."

Austin made a quick note of the musicals date idea on his laptop before he went back to the page that displayed Friends. "Then that's what we shall do sometime in the near future. And West Side Story will be first on the list because it'd be cool to see that take on Something's Coming. Now, on to these hilarious misadventures." With that, he started the show and carefully perched his laptop on his nightstand before he moved to wrap an arm around Mason's shoulders.

[darlingsteps]

Things to do with kids in any part of the world

Things to do with your kids in any part of the world: USA, Europe & Beyond

No matter where you are in the world, you don’t need a lot of money or extravagant things to make children happy and have fun. I’m a pure example of this. Here are some ideas to get your juices flowing:

Build a tent

Seriously, who buys those pop-up store tents anymore? (I’m not judging, I used to own them lol) When you have a small living space or live out of a suitcase like us, you have the luxury of having All. The. Things. amiright?

So, trust me, kids will much rather build their own tent with extra bedsheets, pillowcases, fabrics and chairs of all sorts.

Have bunk beds? Ohhh those are the best and bring back so many memories! #hello

Make cookies

(at least in my household) kids want IN on whatever you’re doing. Haha, My youngest child will harass my life to ‘help cook’ until I say yes. Obviously, I should be sterner and not give in (what the heck am I teaching her by giving in right? I know. moving on) but in this case, I adore the cuteness of a teeny tiny human with a cupcake for a face, trouting along to beg me to cook. How can I resist? So I now schedule time for the girls to cook. And what’s more fun than mixing, tasting and squishing!

Arts and crafts

This is my inner creative alter ego wanting to pry itself out. I LOVE arts and crafts (don’t be fooled, I’m by no means crafty or good haha) I enjoy it, and I promise if you let go of perfectionism you will too. Honestly, you don’t even need ‘a plan.’ Go to your craft store, i.e., any dollar store, and stock up on anything even remotely crafty, even if you think you won’t use it. Head straight to the stationary section, then head to the home/garden isle, after the tool and auto isle (you need something reasonable to hold all this crap, food aisle (for cheap dry goods. think beans, rice, and oats) and finally the kitchen isle for plastic cups, foil, etc. and those paper plates you’ll need for those maracas.

Make playdough

Why on Gods green earth is playdough SO DAMN EXPENSIVE???!!! Okay, I’m sorry for yelling. #Imdone. I’ve never purchased playdough for the girls because we afford it and when we could, why the heck would I pay that much anyway? And for the bargain shopper mamas reading this before you go on to tell me I can buy them in bulk, on sale, from said dollar store…I wrote above- here are my thoughts: my kids must be one a kind because these boogers go on to ‘make’ me food creations of all types and mix the playdough in all kinds of ways to make colors I didn’t even know existed. (and I’ve tried those cheaper ones and my goodness- NO THANKS) Kids enjoy cooking (see note above) and making messes, it’s a win-win. Plus it’s super easy, all types of recipes available online. So no excuses. (and no it doesn’t take that long. #aintnobodygottimeforthat

Have a Treasure Hunt

This is sooo fun. Honestly, it doesn’t need to be, and it gives you time to just sit down. Ah. You can hide anything from candy, new pencils, notes, etc. (Think the birthday section at a said dollar store) Play dress up we only have girls, and it goes without saying that they enjoy dressing up. (see toy section of any dollar store. do you see a pattern here lol) But I can only guess that boys would enjoy dressing up as well as it is a great pretend/imaginative play. Make pizza Let me start off by saying that if you don’t like pizza, I don’t know we can be friends. Ok just kidding maybe lol I don’t think I’ve ever met a kid but doesn’t like pizza and this is indeed such a versatile and cheap thing to make that there isn’t any excuse for you not to make it and it’s a lot of fun. I grew up pretty poor, and pizza for us consisted of a slice of white wonder bread cheap no-frills pasta sauce and a slice of what was supposed to be cheese. Then we popped it in the oven for a few minutes watching it until the cheese got ever so slightly burned and dug in. Do everyone in your family a favor and make the dough from scratch is pretty simple or you can just buy it one from the store it’s still a lot of fun!

Fly a kite (create a kite)

So self-explanatory and kids love it so go get one and get to your local park already if you don’t have a kite , crafts to the rescue! It is super easy to make, and they work!

Stargaze

This is one of my favorite pastimes, so I feel kind of selfish writing it but our kids loved it, and I think it’s because we are both from big cities in you don’t see stars are often and when you think it’s the one you realize that it’s just a helicopter. Enjoy the little things

Listen to books

Another guilty pleasure here but I’ve posted this love answer my children, and it’s always a good time. There are a few ways you can do this if you’re looking for free options the best way is to download the Overdrive or Libby app and entering your details and library card details, and you get to listen to audiobooks for free. If finances are no burden for you then audible is such an excellent option, and they have pretty much anything you could look for. Except The gruffalo…they don’t have that anymore because Julia Donaldson wants to do stick to print books…ok I digress. Haha. Another more affordable option is the Scribd app. it’s pretty amazing because you pay a small fee of about 5 to 8 books of month, and you get to listen to an unlimited amount books the downside is that you don’t keep it, so it’s kind of like a music subscription you get all the music you want while you’re paying subscriber otherwise you lose all your stuff.

  Read books

Same advice as above^

Make a play

Piggybacking off of the dress up here….our girls could do this all day long. Like seriously. They have. They do.

Keep all and any extra boxes you can get your hands on… The bigger, the better. (Invest in a good x-acto knife) < you’ll need this for the never-ending requests to make doors, windows and “secret exits.”

Build a snowman

If you’re in a climate where it permits this, don’t let the beauty of snow pass by because it’s bitterly cold. Trust me. I understand the struggle. But at the end of the day, it doesn’t last and the memories will.

Park

Does this really need a caption?

Train or bus ride

So, it doesn’t matter if you’re in NYC, London, Paris, or your tiny small town that’s barely making Google maps…if there are buses or trains, use em. Kids love this stuff.

Free workshops

Don’t underestimate your local library. They always have fantastic free workshops going on where all the is required is a simple registration.

Farmers market

This is such a great way to immerse yourself where you are. If you’re traveling like us, this allows you to see and meet new people. Engage in the culture and get fresh produce, food, and knick-knacks.

Make musical instruments

Here I am with the craft stuff again! If you’re like us and travel like it’s your second job, then this is a good one. Music is good for the spirit, and you wouldn’t believe how easy it is to use common household things to make instruments out of.

Have a parade

When you’re done making said instruments^ Be super silly and have a parade! Storm and stomp around the house and have fun. (Be mindful of the hour of course if you live above anyone)

Bubble bath

I can’t quite remember, but there was a time/age where our girls didn’t always get along so well. And the only time where there was a sense of peace was when they were taking baths. Seriously, don’t underestimate the power of simple water, soap and “toys” (I wrote that in quotes because I despise bath toys and much prefer temporary toys like plastic water bottles, used up lemon juice containers, etc)

Birdwatch

Children do mimic what they see. Obviously, this can be a good and bad thing. In this case, it’s alright. Many times throughout the day you can find me lost in thought #heyfellowinfj and wait for it: bird or human watching

The girls love seeing birds up close and analyzing their attributes. Have your kiddos try this!

Make confetti

Kids love to make messes so let them! Grab any old magazines, newspapers, leaflets, flyers, and pieces of scrap paper you no longer need and cut them up. You can simply put them through the shredder (this adds to the fun, but obviously watch out for those little fingers and blades) or cut shapes snowflakes, etc. Then toss them in the air and roll around in it and have a confetti party!

Outdoor sport

One of the joys of many sports is that you can travel with said instruments. Any game that involves a ball can fit in your luggage once deflated. Cricket is super lightweight, and the ball is small. Frisbee is a fantastic choice. It can get tricky with tennis as rackets tend to be heavy and bulky. (But relatively cheap to purchase)

Sidewalk drawing

Chalk is typically cheap anywhere you go and works on almost any sidewalk/balcony! If you have a private area you’re using, bring out the hose, a bucket or a bowl of water to wash away the drawings and begin fresh the next day.

Garden

Nature freedom!

Go to a museum, café, library or bookstore.

To find free museums, type “free museum, city” into your browser of choice….Same with the others.

Fire station

This may differ wherever you go, but in the US, most firefighters are happy to speak to children when they drop by to have a look but do call first to verify! (To avoid disappointment) We’ve never had an issue, but you never know.

Sing & dance

So I almost felt a bit hypocritical writing this one because I loathe doing both in public. Yes, even in front of my own family haha! But, I assure you, if you’re the same way, take it slow and do it scared! You’ll be glad you did. The easiest thing to do is go to YouTube and find some kid dance channels (maybe search for kid choreography) and let the magic happen. We also use a Toca Boca dance app!

Learn a language

After a certain amount of time traveling (it’s been years for us) your kiddos will grow to love languages. Naturally, as humans, especially little humans, we love communicating. And there’s no better way than completely immersing yourself into another one’s culture: language and all.

I realize this specifies toddlers in the heading. However, these activities can be easily adapted and enjoyed by older children as well. My kiddos are in the 10 and under range (as an example.)

What do you do for family fun? Tell me below!

The post Things to do with kids in any part of the world appeared first on Darling Steps.

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[redroses79]

17 Ways to beat depression and anxiety immediately

Suffering from anxiety and/or depression is actually quite common, regardless of what age you are. There can be so many causes of this dis-ease, but when you really look at it, it is mostly due to fear - which is a part of us that creates a plethora of self-sabotaging behaviours (such as worry, doubt, low self-esteem or confidence, etc).

Being a sufferer of this dis-ease myself, I’ve learned to accept certain things in my life and also letting go of some. I understand that we are all vulnerable in so many ways, and by accepting our vulnerability is a strength in itself and something that can allow us to open up to a new level of understanding of how life should work which can be an antidote to both anxiety and depression. At first, I thought that being vulnerable is a sign of weakness and that I have to do everything that I can to overcome it. But I was wrong. Instead we should accept it, welcome it, and learn from it. Look deeper into it and you can find the solutions.

Over the years, I’ve done certain things to make myself feel a lot better whenever I’m “down in the dumps”. They do work, some to a bigger extent as life-changing (if you are open to it, that is). So, here I offer you the 17 ways (as far as I have done) to beat depression and anxiety immediately.

1) Reading 

I find that reading books that are uplifting, inspiring, and motivating can change your life and make you feel better instantly. It can give you plenty of ideas and be more creative in your life. Make an effort to read a book or two a month, or a chapter a day to help you through. I can’t emphasise hard enough how powerful reading a good book can be. 

Here are some book titles (to name a few) which I find so inspiring and life-changing:

“The Alchemist” by Paulo Coelho

“The Courage to be Creative” by Doreen Virtue

“The Autobiography of a Yogi” by Paramahansa Yogananda

“You can heal your life” by Louise L Hay

2) Listening to an audiobook

This is a great alternative to those who don’t like to read. I like to do both from time to time, and listening to an audio book is just as powerful. Some books do come in an audio version that you can buy or download online. Sometimes when you’re out for a long drive in the car, or a ride in the bus or train, you can just pop on your ipod/iphone and listen to an inspiring audiobook to pass the time.

3) Do something fun (and silly, once in a while)

You can’t simply rule this one out. It can be difficult at most times to get yourself out there and do something that’s wildly fun (okay, it doesn’t have to be wild) but it does take the mind off of things that are stressing you out. It can be as simple as going to the movies or hanging out with family or friends, setting up a barbecue, going parasailing or diving, and so on..whatever you can think of that would be fun. I know I like doing makeup from time to time, and sometimes I’d just play with makeup, do my nails, and watch youtube tutorials just for fun, if I wanted to do something different that is. I like to switch things up. It could also be fun dressing up at home too! Don’t be afraid to do something like this once in a while. And don’t forget to take up fun cooking or arts and crafts classes.

4) Connecting with nature

I find this to be one of the most powerful ways to uplift your energy. It is one of the most refreshing things. It is so important to connect with nature at least once a week, like going to the beach, or out for a walk, listening to the sound of birds chirping, the wind blowing, or even breathing fresh air! It will lift your energies up instantly. Connecting with nature will also remind us to connect with ourselves. 

5) Exercise

Exercising lifts your mood and energy up instantly. Take a walk or get on a treadmill (at home or at the gym) at least for 20 to 30 minutes a day. Or perhaps even doing some yoga stretches at home for 15 minutes will definitely do the trick. I find that doing a yoga headstand once in a while gets you into a good mood as you’re allowing the blood and oxygen to flow to your brain. Whatever it is, you just need to get up and get your body moving.

6) Sleep

Getting enough sleep is key to a healthy and balanced lifestyle. It allows your body to heal and repair itself. Therefore giving your body enough time to sleep and rest is important. Get at least 6 to 8 hours of sleep each day, and if you’re feeling tired during the day especially in the afternoon it wouldn’t hurt to take a 15 to 20 minute power nap. Taking power naps can be refreshing and will give you a boost of inspiration and new ideas.

7) Music

I have a secret to feeling better every day. I remember crying in the shower when I was feeling depressed. In all honesty, the bathroom is a place that can either suck your energy out or it can bring you pleasure, the choice is yours. It can deplete your energy because when you are in the bathroom alone, all you can think about is your pain! So, my secret to making bathrooms (or showers) a place of pleasure is listening to music every time you’re in there! Trust me, it works. I listen to lovely soothing music while I’m taking my morning and evening showers, and it gives a boost of lovely and uplifting energy. However, listen to only soft instrumental music. It will put a smile on your face and will encourage you to love yourself even more. Your body will also love it. Just try it for yourself.

Generally, listening to soft and gentle music everyday, wherever you are, is good for your body, mind and soul.

8) Retail therapy

Okay, I know you’re probably thinking “YES!”. Who doesn’t love shopping, right? I know I do. However, it is only a temporary solution, but it does help to lift your mood and energy while it lasts. Having said this, I don’t recommend to go overboard on your spending as you do not want to feel regret having to spend too much and end up feeling depressed about it! That certainly beats the purpose. Make sure that you only spend WITHIN your budget, and DO NOT use a credit card! Decide how much you want to spend and what you want to spend on that can only make you feel better, such as going for a spa massage, or buying a good book or a calming incense kit for your home or an ipod to play music wherever you go, or something that you can keep your mind occupied on and make you feel better.

9) Children

Having kids has been a pleasure to me and up until now I can’t begin to express my gratitude how lucky I am to be able to have children. Spending time with my own kids has given me so much inspiration and they are simply one of the reasons why I must keep moving on with my life and becoming a better person every day. If you don’t have kids, find a way to surround yourself with children once in a while. Perhaps volunteering to look after your nieces or nephews or babysitting your friend’s children. Being with them will give you a sense of joy and happiness and wonder. Children are full of love and happiness. They just have so much of it and they’ll gladly share it with you too.

10) Detox

Detoxing your body is also one of the most powerful ways to clear your mind and body of negativity and toxicity, which thereby can lift your energy higher and your body feeling very light. Once in a while, you need to detox your body in order to feel realigned with yourself again. Eating heavy meals and meats every day throughout the day can be so acidic and take a toll on your digestive system, which can take up too much energy to digest rather than spreading that energy throughout your body and mind. 

Going on a juice cleansing detox for 2 or 3 days a month or a week (whichever makes you feel good) can be powerful, and so is fasting. On this note, taking up a healthy alkaline-rich diet by eating clean food or even eating the right foods the right way can help with balancing your hormones and keeping your mind clear of negativity. I highly recommend reading good books on how to keep your body healthy through detoxing and have a balanced lifestyle. My recommended title for now is the “Beauty Detox” by Kimberly Snyder.

11) Calming incense

This is also one of the great ways to feel relaxed and calmed immediately. Lighting up an incense stick, made from essential oils such as Lavender, Ylang ylang, or eucalyptus to name a few, is very effective in calming the nerves. It brightens up your mood and helps to clear the negative energy away. You can do this in your bathroom while you’re taking a nice bath, or anywhere in your home where you spend your quiet times the most.

12) Create goals

Have a goal or some goals in your life. Creating goals for yourself can get your mind activated and encourage you to think of new refreshing ideas about what you can do to go out and about. It can be a short- or long-term goal, whatever it is, have some. Without goals, life is meaningless. Having goals mean having a sense of purpose in life, and it gives you reason to move on and serve for the greater good.

13) Art

People usually think that you need to be born to be creative and create art pieces instantly without learning. Well, I think that’s bull****. I believe that everyone can be creative in so many ways, we just need to make an effort to learn some things. In this instance, art is a beautiful way of connecting with yourself in a much higher level. It is so meditative and gives you a heightened sense of peace and joy from within because you’re in touch with yourself on a deeper level. Being a self-taught artist myself, I know this to be the truth. Even if drawing or painting circles or a straight line is all you know, that can be a great start to channeling your artistic-self and getting to know yourself better. Take on an artistic endeavour, and you won’t regret it. It just means that you’re giving yourself a chance to shine. Most of the great minds, thinkers, and inventors who have ever lived before were artists too.

14) Positive affirmations

Make an effort to remove all negative self-talk that simply is nothing but a self-sabotaging act on yourself. Speak to yourself every day in the most positive way that you can come up with. Your body wants you to love it, and that begins with speaking in a loving and positive tone. Say “I love you” to yourself and give yourself either a pat on the back or a big hug. Affirm to yourself that “I deserve to be happy and wealthy in every way” or anything that you wish to say to yourself. Do this every day in front of the mirror and watch how your life will change. Positive affirmations can change your life as it alters every cell in your body and lifts your energy for good.

15) Energy Healing

There are several healing methods out there that you can do to realign and rejuvenate yourself, and increase your energy levels. The Chinese often call this energy “Chi”. It is so important to keep this “Chi” energy flowing smoothly in our bodies to keep us balanced and healthy. Sometimes when your body goes through some kind of trauma or even an illness, it also means that you may have blocked energy somewhere in your body.  The simplest solution to this is of course finding the right healing method for you to unblock that energy. Some of them that I know are such as Reiki, Crystal and Chakra healings. There are possibly more types of healing methods out there that can shift and unblock your energy. I have never personally tried Reiki before, but I have done some classes on how to do both crystal and chakra healing on myself previously and they do work. 

Energy clearing is so important for the health of your body, mind and soul, because wherever we go and who we are with, we are always absorbing the energies of our surroundings and of the people that we hang out with, thereby affecting our own energy levels too. If no clearing has been done before, the accumulated energy within your body can be blocked and remain stagnant over time, which can also in turn affect the health of your physical body. So, find ways to clear your energy once or twice daily or once a week, or however much you feel you need to do so.

16) Praying

I know that sometimes we may feel that praying doesn’t work no matter how much we pray, but it gives us all the more reason to keep praying. Praying does work, providing that we pray entirely from our hearts and souls. The emotion and energy that we give to praying is so important as God listens more to how we feel. If we feel that we aren’t being given enough, then we would always feel insufficient in life. But if we feel that joy is naturally inherent within us and that we are always taken care of, then that is what we will always attract, joy and abundance. Pray from your heart and your prayers will eventually be answered. Don’t underestimate the power of prayers. 

17) Meditation

Alongside praying, I also believe in the power of being in silence. It gives us a chance to reconnect with the power that we have within us, and getting to know ourselves better. Spending some time in quiet solitude every single day will give you a sense of power and self-discovery each time you do this. You will see how capable you are of focusing on the task that you do, and how much fresh new ideas and inspiration that you can gain by being in silence. Do this at least 10 to 20 minutes (or more) twice a day, and watch how your life will change from the way you think to the way you behave. On a bigger scale and over time, everything about you will change for the better. Your mood and energy levels will be higher as you keep yourself aligned with your higher purpose everyday. You will find yourself doing things that you have never done before or were once afraid of doing. Being in silence does take practice and patience, but you are worth the time to do this. 

So there you have it! The 17 ways to healing yourself from anxiety and depression. By doing at least a combination of a few of the ways I just described above can certainly help you to overcome your struggles and uplift your energy levels. In most cases, and certainly the most important thing is, having a sense of gratitude for life itself can overcome all challenges in your life. Always be grateful for what you have now and continue to harness that gratitude so you can attract all the good things and people into your life. 

Live and love life!

[darlingsteps]

Things to do with kids in any part of the world

Things to do with your kids in any part of the world: USA, Europe & Beyond

No matter where you are in the world, you don’t need a lot of money or extravagant things to make children happy and have fun. I’m a pure example of this. Here are some ideas to get your juices flowing:

Build a tent

Seriously, who buys those pop-up store tents anymore? (I’m not judging, I used to own them lol) When you have a small living space or live out of a suitcase like us, you have the luxury of having All. The. Things. amiright?

So, trust me, kids will much rather build their own tent with extra bedsheets, pillowcases, fabrics and chairs of all sorts.

Have bunk beds? Ohhh those are the best and bring back so many memories! #hello

Make cookies

(at least in my household) kids want IN on whatever you’re doing. Haha, My youngest child will harass my life to ‘help cook’ until I say yes. Obviously, I should be sterner and not give in (what the heck am I teaching her by giving in right? I know. moving on) but in this case, I adore the cuteness of a teeny tiny human with a cupcake for a face, trouting along to beg me to cook. How can I resist? So I now schedule time for the girls to cook. And what’s more fun than mixing, tasting and squishing!

Arts and crafts

This is my inner creative alter ego wanting to pry itself out. I LOVE arts and crafts (don’t be fooled, I’m by no means crafty or good haha) I enjoy it, and I promise if you let go of perfectionism you will too. Honestly, you don’t even need ‘a plan.’ Go to your craft store, i.e., any dollar store, and stock up on anything even remotely crafty, even if you think you won’t use it. Head straight to the stationary section, then head to the home/garden isle, after the tool and auto isle (you need something reasonable to hold all this crap, food aisle (for cheap dry goods. think beans, rice, and oats) and finally the kitchen isle for plastic cups, foil, etc. and those paper plates you’ll need for those maracas.

Make playdough

Why on Gods green earth is playdough SO DAMN EXPENSIVE???!!! Okay, I’m sorry for yelling. #Imdone. I’ve never purchased playdough for the girls because we afford it and when we could, why the heck would I pay that much anyway? And for the bargain shopper mamas reading this before you go on to tell me I can buy them in bulk, on sale, from said dollar store…I wrote above- here are my thoughts: my kids must be one a kind because these boogers go on to ‘make’ me food creations of all types and mix the playdough in all kinds of ways to make colors I didn’t even know existed. (and I’ve tried those cheaper ones and my goodness- NO THANKS) Kids enjoy cooking (see note above) and making messes, it’s a win-win. Plus it’s super easy, all types of recipes available online. So no excuses. (and no it doesn’t take that long. #aintnobodygottimeforthat

Have a Treasure Hunt

This is sooo fun. Honestly, it doesn’t need to be, and it gives you time to just sit down. Ah. You can hide anything from candy, new pencils, notes, etc. (Think the birthday section at a said dollar store) Play dress up we only have girls, and it goes without saying that they enjoy dressing up. (see toy section of any dollar store. do you see a pattern here lol) But I can only guess that boys would enjoy dressing up as well as it is a great pretend/imaginative play. Make pizza Let me start off by saying that if you don’t like pizza, I don’t know we can be friends. Ok just kidding maybe lol I don’t think I’ve ever met a kid but doesn’t like pizza and this is indeed such a versatile and cheap thing to make that there isn’t any excuse for you not to make it and it’s a lot of fun. I grew up pretty poor, and pizza for us consisted of a slice of white wonder bread cheap no-frills pasta sauce and a slice of what was supposed to be cheese. Then we popped it in the oven for a few minutes watching it until the cheese got ever so slightly burned and dug in. Do everyone in your family a favor and make the dough from scratch is pretty simple or you can just buy it one from the store it’s still a lot of fun!

Fly a kite (create a kite)

So self-explanatory and kids love it so go get one and get to your local park already if you don’t have a kite , crafts to the rescue! It is super easy to make, and they work!

Stargaze

This is one of my favorite pastimes, so I feel kind of selfish writing it but our kids loved it, and I think it’s because we are both from big cities in you don’t see stars are often and when you think it’s the one you realize that it’s just a helicopter. Enjoy the little things

Listen to books

Another guilty pleasure here but I’ve posted this love answer my children, and it’s always a good time. There are a few ways you can do this if you’re looking for free options the best way is to download the Overdrive or Libby app and entering your details and library card details, and you get to listen to audiobooks for free. If finances are no burden for you then audible is such an excellent option, and they have pretty much anything you could look for. Except The gruffalo…they don’t have that anymore because Julia Donaldson wants to do stick to print books…ok I digress. Haha. Another more affordable option is the Scribd app. it’s pretty amazing because you pay a small fee of about 5 to 8 books of month, and you get to listen to an unlimited amount books the downside is that you don’t keep it, so it’s kind of like a music subscription you get all the music you want while you’re paying subscriber otherwise you lose all your stuff.

  Read books

Same advice as above^

Make a play

Piggybacking off of the dress up here….our girls could do this all day long. Like seriously. They have. They do.

Keep all and any extra boxes you can get your hands on… The bigger, the better. (Invest in a good x-acto knife) < you’ll need this for the never-ending requests to make doors, windows and “secret exits.”

Build a snowman

If you’re in a climate where it permits this, don’t let the beauty of snow pass by because it’s bitterly cold. Trust me. I understand the struggle. But at the end of the day, it doesn’t last and the memories will.

Park

Does this really need a caption?

Train or bus ride

So, it doesn’t matter if you’re in NYC, London, Paris, or your tiny small town that’s barely making Google maps…if there are buses or trains, use em. Kids love this stuff.

Free workshops

Don’t underestimate your local library. They always have fantastic free workshops going on where all the is required is a simple registration.

Farmers market

This is such a great way to immerse yourself where you are. If you’re traveling like us, this allows you to see and meet new people. Engage in the culture and get fresh produce, food, and knick-knacks.

Make musical instruments

Here I am with the craft stuff again! If you’re like us and travel like it’s your second job, then this is a good one. Music is good for the spirit, and you wouldn’t believe how easy it is to use common household things to make instruments out of.

Have a parade

When you’re done making said instruments^ Be super silly and have a parade! Storm and stomp around the house and have fun. (Be mindful of the hour of course if you live above anyone)

Bubble bath

I can’t quite remember, but there was a time/age where our girls didn’t always get along so well. And the only time where there was a sense of peace was when they were taking baths. Seriously, don’t underestimate the power of simple water, soap and “toys” (I wrote that in quotes because I despise bath toys and much prefer temporary toys like plastic water bottles, used up lemon juice containers, etc)

Birdwatch

Children do mimic what they see. Obviously, this can be a good and bad thing. In this case, it’s alright. Many times throughout the day you can find me lost in thought #heyfellowinfj and wait for it: bird or human watching

The girls love seeing birds up close and analyzing their attributes. Have your kiddos try this!

Make confetti

Kids love to make messes so let them! Grab any old magazines, newspapers, leaflets, flyers, and pieces of scrap paper you no longer need and cut them up. You can simply put them through the shredder (this adds to the fun, but obviously watch out for those little fingers and blades) or cut shapes snowflakes, etc. Then toss them in the air and roll around in it and have a confetti party!

Outdoor sport

One of the joys of many sports is that you can travel with said instruments. Any game that involves a ball can fit in your luggage once deflated. Cricket is super lightweight, and the ball is small. Frisbee is a fantastic choice. It can get tricky with tennis as rackets tend to be heavy and bulky. (But relatively cheap to purchase)

Sidewalk drawing

Chalk is typically cheap anywhere you go and works on almost any sidewalk/balcony! If you have a private area you’re using, bring out the hose, a bucket or a bowl of water to wash away the drawings and begin fresh the next day.

Garden

Nature freedom!

Go to a museum, café, library or bookstore.

To find free museums, type “free museum, city” into your browser of choice….Same with the others.

Fire station

This may differ wherever you go, but in the US, most firefighters are happy to speak to children when they drop by to have a look but do call first to verify! (To avoid disappointment) We’ve never had an issue, but you never know.

Sing & dance

So I almost felt a bit hypocritical writing this one because I loathe doing both in public. Yes, even in front of my own family haha! But, I assure you, if you’re the same way, take it slow and do it scared! You’ll be glad you did. The easiest thing to do is go to YouTube and find some kid dance channels (maybe search for kid choreography) and let the magic happen. We also use a Toca Boca dance app!

Learn a language

After a certain amount of time traveling (it’s been years for us) your kiddos will grow to love languages. Naturally, as humans, especially little humans, we love communicating. And there’s no better way than completely immersing yourself into another one’s culture: language and all.

I realize this specifies toddlers in the heading. However, these activities can be easily adapted and enjoyed by older children as well. My kiddos are in the 10 and under range (as an example.)

What do you do for family fun? Tell me below!

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