#to be fair i do use a personal email address for almost everything since graduating

[re-decorate]

PSA for any new college grads: do not under any circumstances continue to rely on your university email after you graduate

i am begging you to switch to a personal email address bc if not then your university could randomly deactivate your account without your knowledge and it’ll be 9 months until you realize something must be wrong because even though you can still log in you haven’t been receiving any emails

[musicprincess655]

Sometimes, Jun felt like he had to be the absolute dumbest person on the planet.

Sure, he’d mostly gotten into university on the backs of his good grades, and sure, he was generally a good student, but that didn’t erase the fact that he made some stupid ass decisions.

Namely, telling Yuuki that his next day off was Saturday without remembering why he’d had to trade shifts to make sure he had that Saturday off.

He needed a full twenty four hours to recover from a full moon.

Full moons had never been fun. It always felt like bugs were crawling under his skin and all he wanted to do was get outside and run, but there were laws about doing that around people and as a resident of Tokyo, Jun was around a lot of people.

And then he always ended up breaking something. Even though he never lost himself, despite what terrible erotic novels tried to say otherwise, it was like he had no impulse control. No matter what he told himself beforehand, he always woke up the next morning with something smashed. His family all had the same problem, and they’d had to pack away valuables every month just in case.

No one wanted a repeat of the year they’d broken Grandma’s good vase.

And, of course, Jun felt like shit the next day. Shifting from a human to a wolf was one thing, but when he couldn’t run the shift off, his muscles got all cramped up and he could barely move the next day, which was only made worse by a mostly sleepless night.

And on top of everything else, he had a cold.

But Jun had promised he’d meet Yuuki, and they’d never actually exchanged phone numbers or email addresses, so Jun had no way of cancelling. He just had to throw a medical mask on and hope he didn’t look like he was in pain the entire time.

He felt worse when he saw Yuuki on his phone in front of the coffee shop, clearly having been there for more than a few minutes. He couldn’t even take advantage of the chance to observe Yuuki without being observed.

Jun really wished he’d done literally anything other than yelling at Yuuki immediately upon meeting. Namely, politely offering to let Yuuki sit on his face.

“Hey, sorry I’m late,” Jun said, wincing at how hoarse his voice sounded. From the looks his neighbors had given him that morning, he’d done his fair share of howling last night.

“It’s fine, I wasn’t waiting long,” Yuuki replied, finishing off his text message. “Hope you’re…are you okay?”

“I’m fine.” Even Jun could tell he didn’t sound fine.

“You look sick,” Yuuki said, reaching out a hand to feel Jun’s forehead. Jun was so surprised that he let it happen. “You’re a little warm, but I don’t think you’re feverish.”

“I’m not,” Jun said. “It’s just…a cold?”

“Sounds like a nasty cold,” Yuuki said. “Sorry for making you come out.”

“Come on, you didn’t know I was gonna get sick,” Jun said, waving it off and then wincing as the motion pulled one too many sore muscles.

“Do you like soup?” Yuuki asked. Jun nodded. “I know a place close by that’ll still serve miso. Want that?”

Soup actually sounded like a pretty good idea right then.

Jun followed Yuuki into a small family restaurant tucked away from the main street. It had cozy booths, low lighting, and best of all, almost nobody around. It was quiet and peaceful, and Jun released some tension he hadn’t even realized he’d been carrying.

He let Yuuki handle the ordering of soup and some hot tea, looking around the place.

“Do you know the area?” Jun asked. He never would’ve noticed this restaurant on his own, hidden away as it was.

“I grew up around here,” Yuuki told him. “I’m not familiar with all of Tokyo, but this area I know pretty well. You?”

“I’m from Kanagawa prefecture,” Jun said. The waitress placed a cup of tea on the table, and Jun scooped it up gratefully. He wasn’t cold, especially not with summer on the brink of breaking outside, but the heat soothed his sore muscles anyway.

“So you’re just here for university?” Yuuki asked. Jun nodded.

“Seidou is one of the best schools for magic in the country,” he explained. “One of the only schools. And there are more people with magic here.”

“I always wondered why that was,” Yuuki mused.

“Probably just because it’s a big city,” Jun suggested. “More people, more jobs, more opportunities. It’s the same with Sendai up north. And it’s easier for us to be around other people like us.”

Yuuki just studied him, for long enough that Jun felt his cheeks flushing and the waitress brought soup for him and some kind of rice bowl dish for Yuuki.

“What’s it like living here and being human?” Jun asked. Even in Tokyo, after all, only about half of the residents had some kind of magic in their blood. Yuuki shrugged.

“Sometimes it feels like half the city is in some secret club I’m not invited to,” he said. “Most of the time, though, it just feels normal. I’ve always lived here. This is just how life is.”

Jun decided that was fair enough.

“So what exactly do you study at magic school?” Yuuki asked. “I’ve always wondered.”

“You know Seidou has a website, right?” Jun asked. Yuuki looked surprised at the information, so maybe he hadn’t. “Well, I’m a practical magic major. Doesn’t mean much, something like three fourths of the school is practical magic. There’s a lot of ways you can specialize. The people who want to be teachers have a few extra classes, and there’s a program for people who want to specialize in combat and go into the police. I think you have to take a special exam to get into that.”

“So what are you?”

“Just general practical magic for now,” Jun said. “I can choose to specialize later, or I can just graduate with the general degree. I haven’t decided yet.”

“What do you do with a degree in practical magic?”

“Honestly, just about anything you want, but if you know a specific field you want to go into, you should probably pick a specialization.”

“So what do you want to do?”

Jun gave him an unimpressed look, because he was eighteen and fuck if he knew. Yuuki’s expression didn’t change much, but he also didn’t press the question. It was almost too easy for Jun to direct them in another direction.

“What about you, what do you study?” Jun asked, almost surprised to find he was actually interested in the answer. What did arguably the hottest man Jun had ever met with a penchant for sugary coffee study.

“Classical literature.”

“You’re shitting me.”

“No.” Yuuki gave him a confused stare. “I like classical literature.”

“Sometimes I think you picked the most unpredictable thing you could do and then did it just to mess with everyone,” Jun told him.

“Plenty of people study classical literature.”

“Not people who look like you.”

“What do I look like?”

Someday, Jun was going to learn to watch his mouth, but clearly today wasn’t that day.

“Like…a jock?” he tried, and breathed a quiet sigh of relief when Yuuki let it go.

“I wanted to go to Meiji because that’s where my high school coach went,” Yuuki explained. “He gave up a professional career because he wanted to give back to his school and coach the new baseball team. I always really looked up to him.”

“Is that what you want to do?” Jun asked. “Go back, teach classical literature, coach the baseball team?”

Yuuki shrugged.

“I haven’t decided yet,” he said. “It’s a nice idea, but maybe I also want to go pro. I’ve had offers.”

“You must be good.”

“I’m a starter for Meiji. Mostly, though, it’s just because I worked hard.”

Jun privately thought that Yuuki would be saving a lot of people a lot of grief by shelving his plan to go into teaching and going into the pro leagues. Every female student that was even remotely interested in men would have an epic crush on him, but there were probably a group of male students that would learn a thing or two about themselves from having Yuuki as a teacher.

Jun honestly had no clue how he would’ve gotten through high school if he’d had a teacher that looked as good as Yuuki did.

It was almost soothing, the way their conversation turned to baseball, Jun asking questions because he understood the game in the broad sense but didn’t understand the finer points of strategy, Yuuki telling him about their chances against other universities based on how the spring had gone and how their new first years were integrating in. Apparently the next tournament wouldn’t be until the fall, well after Jun was done with the coven battle against Inashiro in the summer. He made a mental note to mark the games in his calendar, if only because Yuuki had worked damn hard to apologize for something he hadn’t done, and if nothing else Jun could go watch him play at least once.

It was for purely selfless reasons.

Jun barely noticed the time passing, almost shocked at how easy it was to talk to Yuuki, despite how stoic he looked. He volunteered information easily enough if asked, and Jun was almost certain he had an incredibly dry, sarcastic sense of humor, but he wasn’t sure. Yuuki’s poker face was really good.

In fact, it wasn’t until the waitress left a check pointedly at Yuuki’s elbow that Jun realized they’d been there for almost three hours. He hadn’t felt his sore muscles since they’d started talking.

“Let me get part of that,” Jun said, reaching for the check. Yuuki held it out of reach, and damn him, he was tall enough that it worked.

“I’m buying you food to apologize to you,” Yuuki insisted.

“That’s the other thing,” Jun said. “You really have nothing to apologize for. I was being a dick and I had a long shift. If anything, I should be apologizing to you. And buying you dinner to thank you for not getting me fired.”

“I don’t know, my teammates said that was a pretty obnoxious drink,” Yuuki said, steadfast deadpan expression in place as he left money on the table and stood to offer Jun his hand. “Maybe I deserved to get yelled at for it, and maybe this is me apologizing for asking for a ridiculous drink.”

This time, Jun was looking for it, and he caught the barest quiver of a lip and a shaking shoulder.

“You’ve been fucking with me this entire time!” he accused. “I saw you laugh!”

“Sorry, sorry,” Yuuki said, breaking down into quiet laughter that barely counted as laughter. “You make really interesting faces, I wanted to see how long it would take you to notice.”

“But…you weren’t teasing me when you asked to buy me dinner.” It was less question and more statement.

“No.”

“So why did you feel like you had to apologize this much?”

“Maybe I just wanted to buy you dinner.”

Jun had no clue what to do with that, because now that he knew what to look for, he could see the little quirk in Yuuki’s lips. He held out his hand.

“Phone.”

“What?”

“Give me your phone.”

Yuuki didn’t even argue, just handed his phone over. Jun scrolled through to the ubiquitous LINE app, typing his own ID into the search bar.

“There,” Jun said, handing Yuuki his phone back and pulling his own out to accept the friend request he’d just sent himself. “Now you can text me instead of stalking me at my workplace.”

“Maybe I had fun doing that.”

“Maybe it’ll be easier on both of us if you just text me next time you want to hang out.”

“Is that an open invitation?”

“Yes,” Jun said without thinking. “Well, no. Exams start for us soon, and I have to study. But after that. Yes.”

“I’ll text you.”

And the thing was, Jun really did need to study, but he was the most relaxed he’d ever felt the day after a full moon, and he was going to enjoy it for as long as it lasted.

[backtxearth]

Tips for Applying to College Undecided

When you first start applying for college, everyone says to look for super specific programs for your major. Aim for the biggest and best. Only apply to schools that specialize only in your exact field. 

You don’t have to know all that. I mean, don’t get me wrong, if you know exactly what you want to do for the rest of your life right now, go for it! Aim for that specialized school, make it into that prestigious program!! More power to you! But don’t make yourself feel bad if you have no idea what you want to do.

Personally, I knew what I wanted to do as a career. My path, however, was very very specific, and I only found four schools that even offered it as a major, so I broadened my horizons. You don’t need to know your exact career. If you have an inkling of an idea of what you want to do, roll with it. But we’ll get back to this.

Say you’re completely undecided. No idea. Here’s how you start.

Open a Common App account. It sounds self-explanatory, but it’s extremely important. Get the general stuff filled out and finished. 

Skip the essay for now. Start looking at and thinking about prompts, but don’t write it until later. Just get an idea. 90% of the time people spend on their essays is proofreading. It took my half an hour- tops- to write mine. It’ll come to you.

For the last two years colleges across the country have been sending you promotional emails and things in the mail. Stop just deleting them and throwing them away. Start skimming them. I’m serious. Skim. Look through the list of majors, and if a single one sounds interesting read the rest of the pamphlet. If not, toss it. If it’s an email, go to their site and do it. It doesn't matter how great a college sounds if theres nothing they can offer you academically. 

Most of these pamphlets sound exactly the same. They’re gonna get old and annoying pretty fast. You don’t have to read all of them. If you have a certain area or region you’re aiming for, look at addresses first. (So if you wanna go to school in North Carolina and the address says Delaware you can probably just toss it. That being said, if it says South Carolina, you should still consider it unless you want the original state for in-state tuition. Otherwise, keep your mind open.) 

A lot of the things they’re sending you have vouchers to put in your application for free. Those are a blessing. Use them. 

Almost all colleges use Common App, so make sure you check the site so that you don’t end up filling out ten unnecessary applications. 

You don’t have to apply for a certain number of colleges. Some people apply for three. Some apply for eleven. I know a girl who applied for thirty. Just remember that even if you don’t have to pay for application fees, you have to pay to send test scores. They don’t give you vouchers for those. It adds up. 

Eventually you’ll pick some sort of field to focus. You may not be sure about it, but it’s a start. Start looking at colleges with good programs in this area. 

It doesn’t matter that you’re undecided. I’m serious. Everyone is secretly undecided. Almost no one knows what they want to do at seventeen. People change their major all the time. Even adults with established careers change their mind. Just breathe. 

Make sure you talk to the people you want to write your rec letters early on. This really goes for anyone, but it’s really important that you ask them sooner rather than later. Chances are you aren’t the only person they’re writing a letter for. 

Visit colleges. Visit as many as you want. Visit more than you have to. You can go to visit campus on the college you swear you’re gonna go to and not even end up applying (like I did) or you can visit a college you swear you’re going to hate and by the end of the day be ready to put in your deposit (again, like I did). 

You don’t have to say undecided on your application. If you chose a maybe field, use that. This doesn’t commit you to that major unless they offer you a specific scholarship. 

There is no disadvantage to applying undecided. 

Apply earlier. Finish everything before the deadline. Finish before the early action deadlines are even due, just to be done with it. That way you aren’t rushing and half-assing it the night before. If you want to apply for another college later, go for it! 

Know all your deadlines. Make sure you know the difference between early action and early decisions. At most colleges these are different, and early action just gives you acceptance earlier, while early decision commits you to the college at acceptance. Some colleges do not differentiate and if you do early action you’re committed. Do your research on this.

There’s no significant advantage in doing early action/decision. It shows the college you’re serious about attending, but even if it does raise your chances it’s not going to make or break you if you don’t. 

Once you started getting accepted places, visit. Visit again. Do an over-night. You’ll know if you want to go.

There’s going to be campuses that you go to and find no problem with. Those same campuses you may leave knowing you don’t want to go there. You know where you belong, don’t let anyone else choose for you.

Go where the money takes you. If you can’t pay for the big-name college, but the small liberal arts college gave you a huge scholarship, unless the first school is going to filter feed you directly into the exact program you want by the end guaranteed (like Mercy Hearst and the CIA) go to the latter school. You’re paying for the name. You’re education is going to be just as good anywhere else. 

Before you even apply, and even after, go to college fairs. Colleges are gonna send representatives to your school. Go talk to them. You’ll not only learn a lot, but you could open up some opportunities by making a good first impression. Some school in other states may even pay for you to fly out and visit campus. 

Talk to people! My mom is a college professor, so she was a huge help to me. Talk to graduated seniors from your school. They all have knowledge and advice. They may know of a school that you never thought of that ends up being perfect for you. They may go to the college that’s currently your top choice, and what they tell you you may not like. Talk to your teachers. The people around you want to best for you, take advantage of that. 

Once accepted, make a chart. Chart out what they offered you in money, chart where they are, chart the total tuition, chart what they specialize in/what major you requested if you did loosely choose one. That chart is so helpful, since you’ll have everything laid out in front of you.

This kinda turned into general application stuff, and in kind of a weird order, but trust me it’s good to know. 

Just remember that being undecided is ok! Everyone goes at their own pace, you’ll figure it out eventually!

If I forgot anything or anyone has anything to add, please do!!!!

[litlelotte]

Adventure Time

It is almost exactly a year ago, something really extraordinary happened. I had been working in a bar for nearly two years, after I graduated from University. At this point I’d been living in London for over 5 years, and I had always been incredibly in love with this city. However, last year, I hit the cold and familiar brick wall; the honeymoon period was over. So I quit my job, lived on my savings and was thinking long and hard of what to do next. I needed an adventure. Fast-forwarding 5 months, I left my keys with a cute guy I’d found on the Internet. I was to sublet my room, because I was sure I was going to come back. I just didn’t know when. My plan? Vague and barely a plan at all. First step was to go to Norway. This is where I was born and grew up, and I wanted to connect with old friends. I picked up my old Toyota at my parents’ house, put the camera in the bag, and drove around for a month. There were uncontrollable laughter, the birth of my niece and good old Viking-drunkenness. It also consisted of sunrise-jams, hiking in the mountains, and bathing in far too cold fjord-water. After nearly three weeks of constant rain, I was glad to leave for England again. Second step: Avoid London. One thing I find about London, is that once you live here, you rarely leave this place. Everything is so conveniently happening here. I decided that I would travel to places I hadn’t been before, and that involved going to places like Kent and Oxford. I ventured into some fields in the middle of nowhere, to a family festival, even if I don’t like children. But it was okay, at least it wasn’t raining. And people were happy. I like photographing people who are happy. On the opposite side of London, I ended up walking the streets of Oxford, with a personal guide. She speaks impeccable English, by the way. We had picnic by the “river”, cheered with wine glasses to passer-byers in boats, and watched guided tours led by deprived students. We also had a pint of ale in the historic ‘Turf Tavern’, although I didn’t down mine very quick, and neither did I see a ghost. I took inspiration from Lewis Carroll’s ‘Alice in Wonderland’ and decided to fall into a whole new world too. Although mine involved a long plane journey across the pond, to the big and scary America. Third step: California and Burning Man. I spent the next three months, travelling on my own around California. I didn’t know anyone and I had as little as £1,200 in my bank account. The part of me that wanted an adventure, wanted it unambiguously to be a challenging one. In fact, I wanted it to be such a difficult and nearly impossible journey, that I would set myself up for failure. I wanted to cry, to feel hopeless, frustrated and push myself to the brink of giving up. Typically, none of it happened. For three months I never slept in a hotel or a hostel – I didn’t even couch surf. I also never went hungry, I never felt scared and I never called desperately home to my parents, asking to be saved. To sum up these three months in one paragraph, is nearly impossible. It wouldn’t give it justice. So I will try to make this short, and maybe cheat a little. 3.1: Burning Man I slept 8 nights in a tent, in the middle of the desert in Nevada. I shared this experience with about 70.000 other people, but specifically I also shared it with a camp consisting of around 60 people. I’d only met one person there twice before. I was the only Norwegian, in fact, the only European person in the San Francisco/Los Angeles crew, called the “Janky Barge”. For over a week, I photographed complete strangers, and captured a sense of happiness I never before thought existed. Burning Man does something to you. It does something to people. Being a photographer at this place, is like some sort of heaven. Best described: Christmas Day + birth of a child + winning at life = Burning Man. It’s an ocean of creativity, freedom, beauty and pure joy.  And the dust makes everyone look incredibly sexy too. I left this place with new discoveries about myself and the world, inspiration, new set of friends and a half-shaved head. And fortunately, a bunch of incredibly, awesome pictures.

3.2: Los Angeles One of my neighbours at Burning Man was a lovely woman, that went by the name of Cinthia. She invited me to come to stay with her in Los Angeles for a bit. Little did I know that I ended up staying there for a month. I always thought I would be more of a San Francisco gal than a LA-chick, but I guess I was terribly wrong. Cinthia owns a hair salon up in the Valley, and has this cute little 1-bedroom apartment 10 minutes away. It was here I ended up falling in love again. Not with a guy, or with Los Angeles, but with people, music, art and life itself. All of a sudden, I was photographing actors and models surrounded by hair-stylists, make-up artists and assistants. Professionally I gained invaluable experience, and personally I learned to really appreciate, listen and love more. 3.3: Californian “Rednecks” James was another neighbour from my camp at Burning Man. He has this little cabin up in the woods by a creek, a 45-minute drive from everything, north of Los Angeles. I got to spend 2 weeks in this cabin, together with his dog, Roxy. He was travelling back and forth to Europe at this point, so it was a sweet deal. He got a dog-sitter, I got free food and lots of time to myself. This place consists of maybe 30 cabins, and mostly the people there are above the age of fifty, with the exception of a few unfortunate teenagers. Not surprisingly though, they had a little bar up there, open 4 days a week. I found myself sitting there a fair amount, not because of my thirst for beer, but because mostly I was just talking to the people there. The dogs were running around freely, and Roxy was enjoying herself. I was too. The people here were of a peculiar kind, with so many different backgrounds, and truthfully, I never thought I would sit in a place where everyone agrees with Trump. It was an experience. One of the guys, was an old, quiet man, with red cheeks and a caps on. His name was Walle, and he would drink his 6 beers, none less and no more than that, and go home. One day, a woman’s voice came on, singing this beautiful song from the jukebox. “Oh!” Walle muffled. “I haven’t seen that girl since she was 10 years old!” Curiously, I asked him who the girl was. “Oh, it’s Rosanne Cash, naturally! Johnny Cash’s daughter.” I replied with a big question mark on my face. “Hum-hum. I used to live next door to them many, many years ago. It was during all that bad shit. Some days we would just sit on the porch and play guitar together. We were neighbours for three years, before he moved. I thought it was for the best though, because that new girl he’d met, she was pretty good for him. Tried helping him with all that drug-abuse and stuff. He was a good guy though, in spite of everything.” I recently discovered that Cash was nearly killed in a fire in 1965, that he later was sued for by the government. He claimed it was his camper that caught fire, although it is more likely he started a fire to stay warm and in his drugged condition failed to notice the fire getting out of control. It destroyed 508 acres.” Guess which forest it was? The very same I spent two weeks in – Los Padres National Forest. I do wonder, if Walle knows. 3.4: The mountains and the end If I haven’t lost you yet, I promise you, I am nearly finished with my story. Burning Man seems to have been the best thing I could have done, in more ways than one. The best reason, was that I got a whole bunch of phone numbers and email-addresses. I met Luke one day out on my first day of exploration alone in the desert, and we exchanged exactly that. When I was still in Los Angeles, I received an email from him. He said that he and a bunch of friends were going up north in the mountains. He followed with a simple “Want to join?” So it was there I found myself, on a bus, leaving LA for three weeks out in the free. With the exception of Luke, that I’d talked to for about an hour, I was to meet 16 people that I’d never met before, and spend almost 24/7 with them out in the wilderness, camping in tents. In all honesty, this it was the most perfect ending to my trip, and I couldn’t have asked for a better one. I heard some unbelievable, extraordinary stories from these wonderful human-beings. One of the guys, had come up from Peru, where he normally works as a tour-guide in Machu Picchu. Hearing his stories, about nearly dying in the jungle, about being drugged by a tribe-leader and freaking out, and about the interesting journey from how he got there in the first place, was some of the highlights. They were all outdoorsy people, and some of them are now doing these incredible and dangerous trips, climbing mountains in the states. I learned a lot of things on this journey. But I also realised a great deal, including this: that I really love nature. And that I in fact love sleeping in a sleeping-bag, surrounded by simple things in a tent. Things that I only need for survival. That I love waking up early to the sounds of rain trickling above my head, the wind howling, and a grasshopper as a roommate. And that it’s something incredibly rewarding of spending that amount of time away from civilisation. Away from the sounds of cars, noise and busyness. Away from schedules, sweaty armpits that comes with overfilled underground trains and the stench of chicken take-away shops. Away from mirrors, make-up and Tinder dates. Nevertheless, it had to end. And it was good timing. Trump had just won the presidential election, and in all honesty – I was not surprised. With the Brexit happening earlier the Summer, I was almost expecting something like this. I spent the following month in London, trying to adjust back to normal. I got the keys back to my room, and filled my shelves again with all the stuff I owned. Only this time, with less things. I have been trying to write down everything I have experienced, everything I have learned, and everything I feel. I still haven’t been able to adjust back to “normal”. But maybe that’s the whole point. It’s now like London is an ex-boyfriend I am not entirely sure how to get rid of, but still love. I’ve had a Summer-fling with adventures, that left me with inspiration, motivation and the feeling of being alive.

And I think that is exactly what I needed.

So here I am.

[mayhembliss]

“Dad! Dad! Dad!” Morgan bounced on top of her father’s bed on top of his sleeping form, feeling a small bit of weight against his resting frame. After an entire night in the lab creating a new weapon for Billy, who was adamant in receiving the weapon within the next two weeks, Tony had barely gotten three hours of sleep…if he was even lucky to do so. Working by his lonesome was far from easy, but he never required assistance.

Well…most of the time.

“Alright, alright – I’m up, I’m up” he croaked out, the exhaustion as pure as day with the bags under his eyes heavier than usual. Being a billionaire, managing a company as the CEO, having to be a father to not one but two kids who were still underage, and manage his own lifestyle was beyond simple. But it was the rush of adrenaline that reminded him of one thing

He was still alive.

Lifting his head up, his upper half was exposed, covered by the sheets that adorned his masculine frame. He barely remembered taking a shower the night before and plopping right to bed with a book called ‘Blood of Eden’ by his side. It was the only thing that seemed to help him sleep lately, aside from the CBD diffuser that he had purchased just a couple of days ago. Reading made his eyes heavy but sleep never came easy for him.

“I want pancakes.”

A family tradition every morning, regardless if there was school or not. Tony had momentarily forgotten that Morgan was a bit of an early bird when she was hungry. With a near deadpan expression, a hand wiped down his face as to kick his energy into high gear, beaming a crooked grin for his daughter. The only woman in his life that could ever get him out of bed voluntarily. Patting the empty spot in bed next to him, Morgan almost seemed confused, following her dad’s silent instructions and settled herself next to him in her Princess Elsa onesie.

Placing a broad hand on her petite shoulders, Tony remained quiet for a moment. It was almost as if he was mentally rehearsing the words he wanted to tell his daughter.

“Remember that daddy daughter date we were gonna have? The one with us going to the zoo to see the penguins?”

Morgan simply nodded her head, fiddling with her fingers as they idly poked at the folds. It was a tick that she had developed from her father, as sometimes, it was hard to sit in one spot for an extended period.

“Do y’like the idea of Oliver comin’ with us? Y’know, to the zoo?”

Her eyes immediately widened with a joy that could only be brought out by the two most important men in her life, nodding her head repeatedly as she jolted up on her feet. It was rare that the three of them actually hanged out together, especially in public setting as Tony was, mostly, one too many drinks deep and partying it up as if it were the end of the world.

Those were the times she wanted to bop her father with her tiny fists.

“Ollie looked really sad when he thought he wasn’t gonna come! I don’t want Ollie to be sad, daddy.”

For some reason, he almost felt…uncomfortable, almost as if there was something blocking his airways.

“All work and no play makes Ollie a dull boy!”

Blink. Blink.

She’s not even old enough to watch that movie.

“Not another pop culture reference out of you, got it?” he pointed his finger playfully at Morgan, similar words being deployed to Oliver. Since he unofficially took in Oliver under his care after his Aunt moved away, Morgan and Oliver have gotten along with each other fairly well, Morgan no longer referring to him as just a stranger in the house. The word ‘brother’ was always repeated day in and day out.

But it was a breath of fresh air, having another innocent source of light under the Stark home-base. Morgan’s innocence was still in-tact, still experiencing the dangers and threats that life had to offer. Oliver, on the other hand, was aging and walking through different stairways to reach different plateaus. He knew that despite his age, he had already seen more than enough at his age, and the emotional turbulence that he was suffering from on a day by day basis.

But he masked it so well, a master of disguise in the making.

A title that Tony wore proudly like a shield.

“Do you like having Oliver around, kiddo?” An honest question by the billionaire. His daughter’s comfort was always a priority. But then again, so was Oliver’s, even if he never voiced it out loud.

Morgan silently nodded her head in absolute childish bopping motions, laying her legs out in front of her and wiggling her toes from inside her onesie. “Ollie likes to play with me, and he likes to help me with my homework and play games with me. He’s my big brother!” As if it were the most obvious thing in the world. The mere reaction sparked a chuckle from Tony.

He did take note of them almost being inseparable, Morgan always inquiring about Oliver if he wasn’t home at the time he said he was going to be or if he was hanging out with his friends. Of course, Tony always took the opportunity to spend time with her or hang around in his lab by his lonesome or have Morgan nearby in a little play area that he set up…but his absence was always felt, even if he never cared to admit it.

When he didn’t answer his text message yesterday about his whereabouts, he felt something that only sprung to life by his daughter’s doing: concern. As rumors say, Tony was a very selfish man, his own personal needs and life of more importance. Of course, the rumor mill had their fair share of words regarding the way he lived his life with two kids involved in the picture, but behind closed doors, they didn’t know the truth of how much of a family man he could potentially grow to be.

Staring at his daughter, he placed a hand on her cheek with his thumb smoothing over fair skin.

“…You smell.” A brief statement from Tony, wrinkling his face in joking fashion as Morgan released a small squeal. She flailed her arms around as her father started to tickle her sides, a serene wave of laughter heard from his room from even down the hall. Her melodic tone was always enough to keep him at bay…or rather, one of the things that kept him at bay.

The other laid in his own separate room that Tony himself had built for him.

“You better jump in the shower quick or else, no penguins for you--”

He didn’t even have time to finish his statement ; Morgan was quick to pry herself off of her father’s grasp, immediately making a bee line towards his doorway and dashing straight towards the bathroom down the hallway. A chuckle later, Tony peeled the sheets off of him, only in his black briefs, taking advantage of the too much of a warm summer heat. Scratching at his side idly, he started to make his way towards the master bathroom – he’d take advantage of taking a quick little navy shower to at least get the morning scent off himself.

He peeled off the only shred of clothing he had on, stepping into the shower and engulfing himself in the steaming hot particles of water that cascaded from the showerhead above himself. Yesterday’s events in having Oliver assist him in putting the machine gun together was still taunting him unconsciously, having time to welcome these thoughts and address them accordingly.

It wasn’t rocket science – everyone knew that Tony was a very smart guy, having graduated from MIT and being the successor of Howard Stark, his late father. There were very few things that he couldn’t do, having a lot of tools at his arsenal…but there was a key factor that somehow made him second guess everything. Much to his surprise, it wasn’t Morgan.

I just needed the kid’s help. My hands are too freakin’ big to put a tripod on the freaking machine gun.

Or so he had been telling himself since last night. As he engulfed his entire body with men’s bodywash, his mind began to wander to the almost eighteen-year-old that was still sleeping, finding himself wrapped up in a sheet of tranquility. A sense of peace came over that was still something hard to digest.

Ollie’s got small hands. He’s still a kid. ‘could easily just piece that together, that’s all.

Smaller hands in comparison to his own, dented with age and experience. Blood.  

Something he hoped that Oliver would never have to experience.

Something he tried so desperately to avoid and save him from.

Could he keep him safe? Could he keep him safe the same way he keeps Morgan safe?

Opening his eyes, he immediately turned off the shower and let himself dry up inside the glass, breathing like a regular entity almost a chore. Why was it so hard to even take a simple inhale at the thought of Oliver?

“…Get it together, Stark.”

Grabbing the black bathrobe that he had set up on the towel hanger the night before, Tony made sure to dry himself up and get dressed for the day, deciding on a pair of black slacks, a black button up collared shirt with a black tank top underneath—incase it got too hot during their trip to the zoo after breakfast—and black and white sneakers. His hair was well brushed as it was most days, tripping up the goatee he bore just a tad bit to make sure it was properly proportioned. Neatly groomed and well presented, as a billionaire should be.

Although he didn’t mind the cameras and the paparazzi doing their job, he could go without the media’s attention spending time with Oliver and Morgan. Having the cameras in their face always bothered him, not wanting the media to have the kids exposed to the world, even if they were affiliated to him. That was something he always tried to steer them away from.

Stepping out into the hallway after collecting his signature shades and his cellphone, he started to address the business emails that had flooded his inbox in the middle of the night, up until he came face to face with Oliver’s door that was still closed.

Probably still sleepin’.

Most days, he’d let him sleep in and save him a plate for later…but plans were altered ever since their interaction from last night. Having Oliver around was almost like a sedative, making you feel as if you were floating into another universe. Tony never felt that way, something he was still bringing to the drawing board to further assess.  

Goddamnit.

Sliding his phone in his pocket, Tony’s knuckles met with the door that separated him from Oliver, making sure to give an adequate knock – not too hard, but loud enough to, hopefully, awaken the man from his blissful slumber.

“C’mon, kid! Up and at ‘em! You’re comin’ to the zoo with us and no, I’m not takin’ no for an answer. So tell your buddies you can roll a joint with them later and be downstairs in fifteen minutes!”

He neglected to tell him that breakfast would be eaten together and not separate like most days.

Tony was convincing himself that he was doing this because Morgan whole heartedly loved Oliver’s company. That was a valid excuse to bring him around, right? Not because it was Tony who warranted his presence. Not at all. Besides, Oliver was always home couped up – a change of scenery was needed every now and then, right?  

Believing someone else’s lie was one thing, but believing your own lie was a whole different ball game.

“C’mon – Morgan wants to have breakfast with you, so get yourself showered up and meet in the dinner table. Last one downstairs is a sore loser!”

Morgan never made that statement.

But Tony liked to believe she did to keep his own emotions at bay.

FIN.

[topinforma]

New Post has been published on Mortgage News

New Post has been published on http://bit.ly/2mJpp46

Is the stock market too hot?

(Washington Post illustration; iStock)

I’ve been checking my 401(k) almost every day.

I should not be looking so often, but I can’t help myself. The high just keeps getting higher.

But my rejoice is tempered by the fact that I know with the stock market what goes up must and does come down. And sure enough my portfolio dipped a bit. (The climb down might have been related to the uncertainty about the cost of the GOP’s healthcare plan.)

With market roaring so high, makes me think of the song “Spinning Wheels” by Blood, Sweat & Tears. (Watch the YouTube video and you’ll have that song in your head every time you look at your investment portfolio. Go ahead try not to.)

“What goes up must come down Spinning wheel got to go ’round Talkin’ ’bout your troubles it’s a cryin’ sin Ride a painted pony let the spinning wheel spin”

Despite the fantastic growth in my retirement account, I’m a bit nervous and I bet many of you are, too. You have to be wondering when will this ride be over? Or maybe you’re worried it’s been too high for too long and any day now it’s going to crash.

“If you’ve been in the market for a while, you are likely to be perching on a mountain of profits,” writes the New York Times’ Jeff Sommer. “Should you stay where you are and hope for further gains, or is it time to declare victory and move your money to safer ground? That’s an eternal question, one that returns whenever the market rises spectacularly. The answer depends, of course, on your analysis of two very different issues: the current situation in the markets, and the one in your own life.”

Overall, Sommer says ignore the market’s roller coaster and stay a “consistent investor for a horizon that lasts decades.”

But if you need your money soon, here’s what he says to do: liquidate what you need and be glad you’ve gotten some gains.

Stay alert he says, “it is surely wise to make sure, after a remarkable run in the stock market, that you will be able to handle a sharp downturn when it eventually comes.”

And not to scare you, but MarketWatch.com pointed out an anniversary some of you may have forgotten or want to forget.

“This week represents the 17th birthday of the longest equity bear market in U.S. history,” columnist Mark Hulbert points out. It’s when the Internet bubble burst.

Remember a bear market is generally viewed as bad (unless you are bargain shopping) and a bull market is good (unless you’re late to the game).

We’re in a bull market now.

But as Hulbert writes, quoting the great investor Warren Buffett: “Be fearful when others are greedy and greedy when others are fearful.”

Here are some stories that make the case that the market still has room to grow.

— Warren Buffett: Red-hot market not in a bubble, still looks ‘cheap’ In late February Buffett told CNBC: “We are not in bubble territory or anything of the sort.” CNBC’s Matt Egan wrote: “The key, Buffett said, is that interest rates remain extremely low. That makes stocks look like a good deal by comparison.”

— David Tepper has a clear reason the stock market’s ‘Trump rally’ has room to run

— Elliott Wave suggests the stock market isn’t anywhere near a top

Here are some stories that make the case that what goes up must come down.

— What worries investing guru Jack Bogle right now Bogle, found of Vanguard, told CNNMoney: “I don’t feel super confident in the stock market. By any historical standards, it’s pretty fully valued.”

— Economists: Stocks too hot “Watch out, investors, because the rampaging stock market has gotten too hot, say a group of leading economists in a new Bankrate survey,” Mark Hamrick writes. “More than three-quarters of the experts say stocks are priced too high, thanks to the stunning rally underway since the election.”

Color Money question of the week Are you concerned that the market is too high? Send your comments to colorofmoney@washpost.com. In the subject line put “Is the stock market too high?” Please include your name, city and state.

If you’re reading this online, you can get this newsletter delivered right to your email address. Stay informed about money matters. Subscribe here.

Live chat today Join me for a live discussion at noon (ET). It’s just you and me this week. So what’s on your mind about your money?

To participate in the discussion click this link.

Color of Money columns this week This newsletter is a roundup of personal finance issues or stories I think you’ll find interesting. But below are my columns for this week. Read them as well. I don’t think you can ever read too much about money!

— Five ways to increase your risk of the IRS auditing your taxes

— The alarming consequences of co-signing your child’s student loans

If you flunk this test you could be paying too much in taxes On behalf of the personal finance site NerdWallet, Harris Poll conducted an online survey just before tax season started. The results were very good. Most people got the questions wrong.

I encouraged you to take NerdWallet’s tax test. Here’s how some of you did on the test:

Alfreda Jones of Crofton, Md., wrote: “I didn’t do too bad on the test. I got five out of eight correct. I didn’t feel too bad about how I did because I got more than half right.”

Darren from Ohio got seven of eight correct: “I missed the question about IRA contributions. In fairness, I have a undergrad and graduate accounting education although I have never been a practicing accountant.”

Carol in West Hartford, Conn., got a perfect score writing, “I think it’s because, at 65, I’ve experienced all or nearly all of these (except the gambling losses). I have completed a W-4, contributed to a 529 plan, taken a filing extension, contributed to a traditional IRA, and done volunteer mileage. I filed my own tax returns until I had my own business and then I needed a CPA to assist me on the complex details.”

“I got everything correct, plus I knew the reasoning behind it,” wrote Andrea of Lynchburg, Va. “What scares me is that I think I know nothing at all about taxes. I’m a single parent and have two children in college and another on his way soon. Doing my taxes and filling out financial aid forms (the devil!) are the worst things I do all year.”

Al Andersen of Plymouth, Mass. wrote: “I had seven of the eight questions answered correctly. Which I should have since I teach a class in personal finances at my church.”

Maureen Connolly of Lakemont, Ga., wrote: “Interesting little quiz. I probably got all correct because I have done my own taxes every year since 1965 and I try to stay informed about taxes and investing.”

Have a question about your finances? Michelle Singletary has a weekly live chat every Thursday at noon where she discusses financial dilemmas with readers. You can also write to Michelle directly by sending an email to colorofmoney@washpost.com. Personal responses may not be possible, and comments or questions may be used in a future column, with the writer’s name, unless otherwise requested. To read more Color of Money columns, go here.