Hey! So as the title suggests, I’m just at a point where I want to make new friends and talk to new people; since the existential crisis of turning 30 started last month, I’ve just generally felt a bit meh. I’ve been feeling a bit lonely and emotionally exhausted, so it would be nice to meet some new people and have some fun conversations! :) especially where I’m in the office all day today and I’ll likely be incredibly bored haha.
I know people like to know who they’re talking to, so picture of me: https://imgur.com/a/YbK3Tw5
So yeah, general stats n facts about me:

• I’m Kieran, 30, from the U.K.
• 5’8, messy dark brown hair, dark brown eyes, baby face, nose piercing, in decent shape but not totally ripped. Can trade pictures privately 😊
• I’m very much still in my emo phase and I refuse to admit it’s over 😂
• I sing and play guitar, and occasionally do cover songs so you can tell me what to cover!
• I have two beautiful cats I will constantly send you pictures of
• I go to the gym a fair bit so a fellow fitness enthusiast would be fun!
• I loooove Disney, like I’m such a Disney fanboy haha, I have all the Disney homeware!
• I don’t game a huge amount but I’m obsessed with Zelda (and TOTK is amazing!)
• I’m a huuuge Star Wars nerd, so if you like Star Wars we’ll have plenty to talk about haha
• I’m into politics (left-leaning if that matters) and current affairs, so would be up for chatting about that :)

So, that should give you a little to work with! Hopefully hear from you soon so I can have some chill company to relax with 😊

I have a bit of homework for French and if it doesnt make enough sense I have to do it again.
English: (What I want it to say)
On the first day I took a trendy old light purple boots, a big fashionable light brown shirt made of cotton, a comfortable yellow pants and a small sporty cap noir
French: (Part I need help with)
https://preview.redd.it/fjzblh9z4k4b1.png?width=599&format=png&auto=webp&s=643b024b8eab1b2cb4a03573648ecd1d9a7591cb

Cannabis is the collective term for substances produced from the cannabis sativa plant, including marijuana, hash, and hashish oil. 🇦🇺 In Australia, it's considered the most commonly consumed narcotic among others.
The majority of Australian states and territories prohibit the use, possession, cultivation, and sale of cannabis. 🙅🏻 Nevertheless, the regulations surrounding cannabis possession, growing, and consumption have altered in the ACT. ✍🏻 As it's known, Australia has already begun the process of legalizing marijuana, and somewhere, cannabis consumption is now allowed.
😮 What do you think about it? Have you ever consumed marijuana? Tell us in the comments! 👇🏻
❗️We want to spread awarness and show dangers of drugs.

I get electrocuted on a daily basis.
These shocks are comparable to building up static electricity on the way down a plastic slide, and when you touch the side to get off you hear a loud pop and you feel like you had a rubber band snap on your skin.
This has happened for years. I don't understand it neither does my husband but he witnesses and experiences it too, so he knows (and I know) I'm not making it up. I think I will keep adding to this post as a way to start documenting it.
It's mostly a nuisance because it's painful. It's crappy to get hurt a little bit everyday, and it sucks even more when it's coming from my lips.
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Occurrences

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Daily - When I kiss my husband about 75% of the time there is a shock. Sometimes we both feel it, and other times only one of us feels it (but we both still hear it). It hurts and sometimes we try to break up the strength of it by touching our arms or hands or shoulders before our lips touch and it still fucking happens. We have also been hugging, then we lean back from each other--still embracing--and when our lips touch we get shocked. We were already touching!!
Daily - After I turn off my car engine I open the door, step onto the ground and stand up, and when I close my door I get zapped.
6/6/23 - We have a volcano vaporizer. I took off my sweater, threw it on the chair behind me, and touched the plastic button to turn it on. I got zapped, so bad there was an audible POP and it hurt.
6/5/23 - My dog needed to go outside, so I opened the sliding screen door and got a painful shock from touching the metal frame.
Grocery Shopping - Sometimes I take one hand off the shopping cart and when I put it back I get zapped. Every time I go to dairy aisle I touch the handle of the glass door with my elbow, to take the brunt of the shock, and it only sometimes prevents a second shock when I grab the handle with my hand (these ones are always really loud and painful). New lows were reached in the fall of 2022, when I got a static shock from touching a banana. A few weeks later I touched an apple and got a small zap. It was really weird for it to happen with organic matter.
2019(can't recall the date) - Our front door has the traditional wooden door plus a screen door, but the kind of screen door that is completely metal. I came home and I was going to unlock the screen but when my key was 5mm away from the knob there was a flash of light like lightening; connecting my key to the keyhole.
4/13/2023 - I had ironed something in my son's room and when I went to unplug the iron there was a flash of light between the plug in my hands and the outlet. This one was actually caught on Nest camera.
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Variables Ruled Out

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1. My hair: I thought maybe my hair swinging back and forth on my back could be doing something. But it doesn't matter how I style it or how short it is.
2. My shoes: The zaps have happened in every type of shoe; sandals, sneakers, crocs, thongs, boots, socks, bare feet.
3. Time of year: I thought there might be a difference during the rainy season when we're more likely to have thunder and lightening. Maybe the static charge in the air or something? But no, the season doesn't seem to make a difference.
4. My clothes: Maybe the type of fabric I'm wearing---nope.
5. My phone: Having a device on me doesn't affect it.

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My Devices All Malfunction in Unexplainable Ways---Is This Related?

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(ran out of time)

Hey, i just done a selection for my house. It was super..... overwhelming. For someone who never got involved in these kinds of thing, there are just too many 'new' things thrown to my face at once.
So I'm hoping to get some insight from you guys. Ofc I did my own research, but I feel wanna hear from you guys too!

1. Rooftile vs colourbond. Appearance wise, i like colourbond better. It looks more neat, but I heard it will make so much noises under the rain. It is also an upgrade if I want to go with colourbond. Which one do you guys think is more durable? At this point i'm still leaning with rooftiles.
   
2. Vinyl floor vs laminate floor. Is vinly flooring worth the upgrade? This is one of my upgrades priority. I'm not really a hands-on guy, so i will need to know which one is more durable, or if some area is broken, which one is easier to replace?
   
3. Ducted heating vs heat pump. The place that i'm building is a cold area. The builder keep pushing us towards ducted heating, and they also said locals love it. Buf its a 15k upgrades if we want to take it. What do you think?
   

Thanks guys. Also if you can give me a suggestion on good colour combo of roof-brick-gutter-entrance door-garage door, please let me know! At the moment i have a darker brown brick - grey roof - grey door and garage door - black gutter.

So I’ve been playing Street Fighter 6 and having a blast, but I have a problem with the netcode. I’ve seen many people online saying it’s really good which couldn’t be farther from the truth. I was playing the game on my laptop at McDonalds and wanted to play with my friend from Australia (I’m from the U.S.) and the game keeps lagging I don’t know what to do. People really hyping the netcode need to stop.

For context this was before the NC. Also sorry for the long post
Summer of 2018. No covid. No restrictions etc. We decided to host a bbq for our friends and decided to do it on a Saturday. My DH invited his friends, I invited my bestie, her family ( kids included ) and a couple of other friends. My husband knew my bestie had a young child ( girl aged 2 with severe epilepsy, and numerous other issues ) so we set up the travel cot, brought down our baby monitors and had a kid friendly area in the shade for them. Hired a bouncy castle, set up a sweet station etc.
So basically we were all having a good time, having a drink, and entertaining our friends when mil rocked up and my husband went to the gate and told her she couldn't come in as we had company.
She had previously embarrassed him in front of his friends by appearing up one night I was doing a night shift, screaming at him how he's a fat waste of space, his friends don't like him they only pity him, he's simple, he's stupid, he is ugly etc etc
Anyway she came to our gate and demanded food. My husband told her no. She got on like an imbecile. She turned on the tears, shouting he doesn't love her, screaming at the top of her voice that my husbands friends only came because I was there and they are all having sex with me behind his back. So his best friend went to the gate, said something super quiet and she shut up. Next thing she tried to come in, and our gate is coded so we changed the code and she couldn't get in. She screamed again how we are a waste of space and then she said she was ringing her daughter to come down and "sort me out"
I told her don't bother ringing her and she's coming down anyway to bring my nephew down to play on the bouncy castle. She started screaming again about how her entire family have turned on her( my fault ) how noone talks to her ( my fault ) and how her eldest son came out as gay and she blames that on us. I simply explained he told us years ago he was gay, we met his fiancé, went to lunch, had them at our house etc and if it bothers you he is finally happy then check yourself.
She told my husband that I'm cheating on him with his best friend as she saw us in the car at mcdonalds one night. My husband calmly explained to her that he had picked me up from work as my husband was working late, he took me to mcdonalds to get some food, dropped me home and told me to text him when my hubby get home and that he would call up to give him some game as he left it in his house. She then said I was clearly just with my husband until someone better came along. I walked over and told her my husband is my dream guy. He has never lifted a hand, doesn't shout, supports me through my tough times, gets on amazingly with my family etc.
SHE THEN TOLD ME MY HUSBAND IS HAVING AN AFFAIR WITH MY MOTHER. I simply said well my mum is a good looking woman for 54 so fair fucks to him. This angered her even more as she said then turned it around and said I am nothing but a slut who shows my body to anyone who asks( this wad because I was standing in a bikini top, and shorts and my slippers( my house, I'm gonna be comfy ) and that is why my husband chose me as he knew I was easy. Considering I didn't sleep with my husband until 4 months into the relationship due to abuse from a previous relationship
This went on for about 2 hours in which time she was upsetting my friends kids. She left when my SIL came down and chased her away. Next day we had the rspca at our door due to abuse, starving him, restricting his water intake, and a million other things. The rspca came out, checked our dog, checked our garden etc. Said they didn't believe he was abused etc.
We do not see her at all now and she hates it. She lives in the street across from us. She rung my husbands work stating he was a drug user ( which my husbands boss asked him to do a drug test came back obviously clear ) contacted my employer saying I care for my FIL and I leave him in the house every single day, I hit him, I abuse him, I don't look after him etc. However I go over every day, tidy his house, make him a big batch of dinners and he simply defrost what he needs, lay out his tablets.
And MILs friends still ask why we are Nc

TLDR - Really good quality Good Year Welted boot would highly recommend, especially if you are Canadian its an under $300 boot (full price from Gravity Pope).
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Boot - Canada West W.M. Moorby 2816.
Leather - Pecan Tumbled Leather (I think it's a Chromium Tanned Leather).
Lined - Leather lined (Only the vamp is lined and not the whole boot).
Insole - Leather insole
Midsole - Cork Filling and a shank.
Welt - 360 degree Good Year Welt (Leather).
Sole - Vibram 132.
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Cons.

• Only the vamp is lined and not the whole boot.
• The leather tongue is a really inferior quality. Like really bad.
• The rest are just pros.
• Can't buy them online only at select local businesses, kind of have to hunt for them (It's a choice because Canada West wants the customers to try on these boots,)

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Forgive me if I make mistakes this is my first ever Leather boot so I am still learning.
Ok, I wore these boots regularly (4 to 5 days a week) from September 2022 to February 2023 and now because of summer occasionally. I got these from Gravity Pope for $275 and as soon as I got it, I thoroughly applied Atsko Sno-Seal on it as I was gonna wear them in Raincouver during the Monsoon and Winter. And boy these were good.
I wish I had taken more pictures of these when I got them but I didn't, anyways, here are some. This boot comes in two different colours Black and Brown. But the brown has two shades, one lighter brown and mine is the darker brown. It's just because of the variation in the leather itself that what I was told.
There was almost no break in period because these only come in EE width so plenty of room for pinky fingers and just were really comfortable (get correct size though as they ruin according to the Brannock device). I had no sore spots or anything, just felt nice and now they fit like a glove.
There was not a single drop of water in the boots even when it was soaked from the outside, although I would say I took care of them. I would just wipe the dirt, salt, water etc,. as soon as I got home or basically inside. Although my feet got cold, like really cold, make sure to wear thick socks with these.
But yeah I used them thoroughly as you can see from the pictures, this is the first time I was going to do anything to the boot or than the Sno-Seal when I got them. Here is the boot before doing anything, I started with wiping and brushing the dirt off then, I used some Fiebing saddle soap, here is after soaping. Then I used some of this from Reddhart workwear and it replenished quite a bit of colour back then some Venetian Shoe Cream and it is pretty much brand new. Here is the boot after everything.
I could not decide between the Cotton laces that came with or the leather ones let me which one you like.
Here is the full photo album.
Thank you all and drop some suggestions if you have any.

My dad was once a beach bum, playing guitar by a bonfire after a good motorcycle ride. He married my mom on Gleneden beach and asked me to scatter his ashes there when he dies. He really, really loves the coast.
But he's 68 now and is missing a leg. He is fresh out of an abusive marriage that kept him home-bound for nearly a decade, and for a solid 5 years of that, I kept my distance because of his wife. Now it's like I have my dad back, and I can finally start doing things with him again. There's a whole list of stuff I wanna take him out to do, like go see the Southern Pacific Daylight at the museum in Portland or go fishing just one more time at Minto Brown Island Park where I caught my first fish when I was around 6 or so. But a big thing I wanna do is take my dad out to the beach, not just to go thrifting or to stop at Depoe Bay, but actually to a spot where we can enjoy watching the waves wash over the sand. My dad has pretty bad health, so I'm never really sure just how much time I have left with him, so I wanna make it happen while I've got a chance. I don't think I could ever forgive myself if I didn't give him the opportunity to see the coast that he desperately misses. I doubt there's anywhere on sand that we can go because of his wheelchair, but anything close will be a good recommendation. Moe's over in Lincoln City is on my list of places to stop for food that also has a good view of the ocean from a flat, sturdy surface.

The Old Ways can rub some people wrong — especially those coming into the supernatural world fresh from this modern era of excess, privilege, and internet anonymity. Don’t get me wrong, I’ve seen societal changes and cultural shifts in every direction you could plot an axis for; live for nearly 3500 years as I have, and you too will come to understand that Change is the one and only constant in this world. But what our more, shall I say, exuberant (indignant, entitled, take your pick) newcomers tend to misunderstand is that Old Ways — and those of us who uphold them — don’t stand in opposition to change; we’ve just already seen all their ‘new’ ideas brought forward before, been accepted, gone stale, and get discarded for the next.
The Old Ways aren’t rules, they’re just how you come to behave once you’ve lived through a few revolutions of the cycle. They’re also not written or codified in any way, but if I had to articulate the particular tenet that seems most abhorrent to our most recent newcomers, it would be this: Respect is owed to your elders, because they’ve already damn-well earned it in the past.
The recent upheaval in the supernatural underworld wasn’t particularly upsetting, or even that surprising: some newly-minted vamp shaking things up, gathering a following, killing off a few of the established vampire lords. I don’t overlap much with the neck-biter scene, so it wasn’t very concerning to me. But as ill-luck would have it, he kept growing more famous, and thus harder to avoid hearing about.
He was turned fairly late for a vampire, in his 40s, having already led a deeply troubling life steeped in conspiracy theory, hoax, and rabbit holes into the occult. So rather than take the traditional path toward amassing strength for a vamp — which is basically just to feed regularly and get older — he instead continued his dive into the occult. To his credit, this did score him the power he needed to oppose (and depose) many of the vampire lords of London; to his detriment, it also placed him rather firmly on a collision course with me.
I’d put a handful of wards and contingencies in place out of habit, but I wasn’t particularly concerned. Vampires are about as dangerous to me as… eh… now that I think of it, I don’t have a great analogy on hand for this. There isn’t much that’s truly all that dangerous to me at all, anymore — about as dangerous as a mosquito, I guess? In that I’d be annoyed if one bit me?
Still, he did manage to surprise me, if only because I never thought he’d be stupid enough to come for me there, in the Tavern. But like I said: in this storied community, the impetuous youth flaunt or ignore the Old Ways at their own peril. And it had started as such a nice, quiet night, with me seated at my usual booth in its dimly lit, secluded corner of the restaurant.
“Here you are, darling, you just let me know if you need anything else, okay?”
The head server of the Tavern is a lovely woman, seemingly 30 to 40 years of age, who despite the many years she’s spent in England, still speaks with an accent from the American south. Her ethnic heritage is clearly from a region further south-west in Africa than my own.
“Of course, thank you Catherine,” I replied as she placed an impeccably plated salad on the table before me. It was one of my favorites at the Tavern, a delightful little number with tender bamboo shoots, and some kind of sweet and spicy mustard vinaigrette. Catherine smiled and whisked off toward another table. I folded a piece of baby spinach over an arugula leaf and pinned them to a bamboo shoot with my fork, and had just lifted them to my lips when the doors to the Tavern slammed open into the walls of the entryway. The small, decorative windows in the doors shattered on impact, showering the hostess’ podium with shards of glass.
Most groups of vampires want to be called ‘covens.’ Some of the weirder, extra culty groups prefer the term ‘hive.’ Judging by the collection of washed out, middle-aged vampire bros who sauntered in through the broken doors, I can only assume this group called themselves something extra stupid, like ‘the posse.’
He was immediately evident. His four goons looked like your average jocks who’d had neither the skill to go pro, nor the sense to plan for anything else in life, and had spent their subsequent years in disappointment of themselves and others.
“Barkeep! A round of your finest libations for the entourage of…” the fucker actually paused, as though for dramatic effect, “the Dread Prince Lestat!”
An audible groan of disgust rose from a table of Lesser Devils in the next alcove down from mine. Abyssal-speech is difficult to decipher even when there isn’t a group of demons all talking over one another, but I did manage to make out from one of them, a trickster muse by the name of Mamenoche, just before he dissolved into a cloud of flies and dispersed. The remaining devils grumbled in disappointment, but still turned with eager smiles to watch the drama unfold.
The keeper of the tavern, for his part, simply raised an eyebrow while he wiped down a freshly washed stein with a drying rag. He nodded to an empty table. “Take a seat, we’ll be right with you,” he said, and then turned away to shelve the clean glass.
The keeper is a slight man, of average height, perhaps in his early to mid 50s. He wears the same costume every day: dark brown slacks and a burgundy tweed vest over a crisp white shirt with the sleeves rolled back to his elbows. His voice is rich and resonant, and though soft-spoken, he is never difficult to hear. Beyond that, I can only say that the tavern keeper looks exactly as you think he would, and do understand that I mean that literally. His features, his hair, the color of his skin: they all exist only in the eyes of the beholder. It’s part of the Glamour.
The four underlings slid chairs out from the table and plopped down with what some of my younger students have recently informed me is known as the ‘Riker maneuver.’ Lestat remained standing and circled the table while he addressed the patrons.
“Well, well, well. So this is the storied Tavern. Drinking hole for the Greats of the underworld, the movers and shakers, the true titans of the occult.” He smirked and paused for effect again. “At least now it is. Bit of a slow day before I got here, eh barkeep?”
The keeper responded with silence as he filled five elaborately crafted snifters from a small, gold-banded barrel behind the bar.
“No matter, we’ll liven things up here real soon. I’m looking for a woman — no, not you love, some other time maybe.” He gestured across the bar to a woman of simply indescribable beauty, whom he utterly failed to recognize as Titania. Lounging beside her, Oberon narrowed his eyes, but remained otherwise still.
It had been at least 150 years since the last time a patron had stepped out of line in the Tavern, and the mood of the crowd was positively electric with anticipation. The vampire, bless his shriveled little heart, clearly interpreted this as deference to his prowess.
“The woman I’m looking for is… Egyptian. An Empress. Her very name and image carved off the face of history by her own son. Probably on the masculine side, considering how she managed to pass herself off as a Pharaoh and usurp his reign for 20 years. Just a guess, but probably a 2 or 3 out of 10.”
“I’ve had kings put to death for far less impetuous horse shit than that, young man,” I said. How rude — I looked positively fabulous with a false goatee.
He turned to me with a broad smile and threw his arms wide open. “And here she is, The Empress Undying. The ‘last word’ in all things occult and arcane, so they tell me.” He approached, squinting into the gloom surrounding my dining table. “And wow, I take it all back, for a 3,000 year old mummy, you are surprisingly bang-able. You know I love a girl who plays hard to get, and let’s face it — erased from history, all that jazz — you were difficult to track down, Hatshepsut!”
“Really? I have a page on Wikipedia.”
“That’s not— I mean I prefer— that is, well, primary sources are—”
“Which, if you’d bothered reading, would have told you that Thutmose the Second was not my son, but my step son, and that at 2 years old he was not in the best position to rule when my husband passed. Not to mention it was actually his bratty son Amenhotep who ordered the whole defacing of my icons thing.” Which is also untrue. I ate my own name as part of my Ascension. But he doesn’t need to know the details of my life.
“Here’s your drinks boys,” Catherine said behind him with her typically cheerful demeanor as she set the tray of snifters down between Lestat’s posse. “Seeing as how it’s your first round at the Tavern, darlings, this one’s on the house.”
The vampires grabbed their drinks without so much as a thank you. Lestat wisely took the interruption as a reprieve from this sudden hiccup in whatever grand plan it was he had in mind for me, and retreated to the support of his minions. One of them sniffed at the drink suspiciously, while the others simply threw them back like shots and immediately grimaced. One got it down before sputtering and coughing uproariously, the other two spit it out back into their snifters.
“What is this shit?”
“That’s Ambrosia, darling,” Catherine said as she gently patted the coughing vamp on his back. “Nectar of the gods. It’s a bit of an acquired taste for sure, and most people do prefer to sip it. They say it’s ‘too much sensation’ for us lesser beings.”
“They don’t want Ambrosia, you wench,” Lestat howled, “they want blood!”
“Well I’m sorry darling, but we don’t serve blood here. You asked for a round of our ‘finest libations,’ and there’s no drink finer than Ambrosia in the Tavern, nor outside of it as I’ve ever heard. That barrel over there was handed off by Hermes himself.”
One of the vampires dashed his drink on the floor and pointed at Catherine.
“You’ve got blood, don’t you lass?”
“That will be enough.” The tavern keeper’s soft, mellifluous voice draped over the exchange like a weighted blanket. “I’ve served you drinks, and in return you have been exceedingly impolite to my establishment, my staff, and my patrons. Learn the meaning of deference before you visit next, for you will not be well-received without it. Now, leave.”
Lestat’s four hulking minions might have succumbed to the spell of the keeper’s voice had not their ring-leader, to his detriment, managed to shake out of it.
“Leave? No, we just got here,” he turned back to me, “and I’m not finished with her.”
“But I am finished with you,” I said.
“Ten,” the keeper said, leaning forward to rest his elbows on the bar.
“The only reason I haven’t ended your miserable existence thus far,” I continued, “is out of deference to my elders. It is not my right to take your life inside the walls of this Tavern. I suppose I’ll soon be forced to do it outside, but do understand, I’ll approach that no differently than I would stepping on a scarab.”
“Nine.”
“The truth of it is, 'Dread Prince,' that you are not worth the breath spent uttering your ridiculous name.”
“Not worth your time, am I? I’ll show you what your time is worth, you decrepit bitch!”
“Eight,” the tavern keeper said, and Lestat flung an outstretched claw in his direction while hissing out a spell in medieval Latin.
Generously translated, it came out to roughly As though caught on a hook, the keeper tumbled over his bar and forward through the air. Lestat caught him by the neck and wrenched sideways, spinning the keeper’s head fully around with a loud crunching sound. Then, with the inhuman speed inherent to vampires, he hoisted the keeper’s body over his head, darted across the Tavern, and slammed him down through a table surrounded by a flock of naiads.
He turned and caught Catherine in the hypnotic gaze his kind uses to trap their prey, and strolled leisurely back over to his group. I crossed my arms.
“Sorry ‘darling,’ but I like my meals a little toasty.”
He hissed in his awful Latin again, along the lines of Catherine convulsed and shrieked, unable to move while locked in his gaze. He yanked her head to the side and made a show of sinking his fangs into her neck with a ripping motion, splattering droplets of blood across the tavern that sizzled and steamed where they landed. Her lifeless body rolled under the table as he turned his bloody face back to me.
“How do you like me now?”
I pushed my untouched salad, now flecked with Catherine’s blood, away from me on the table and let out a deep sigh.
“First, your grasp of Latin is elementary at best, you really should have practiced more before coming to see me. No, now, this is the part where you listen.”
I pinched my forefinger to the thumb to seal the air inside his lungs. He stumbled back and clutched at his neck in surprise — he wasn’t going to suffocate of course, but it’s an unpleasant feeling for sure if you haven’t yet come to the realization that you don’t actually need to breathe in undeath.
“Of course it is the intent that matters somewhat more-so than the language used — but, and I cannot stress this enough, good syntax simply never hurts. The age of your language also should not be overlooked. The older the language, the truer it is to the One Tongue of Magic, before it was fractured and the tower fell. You came with a form of Ecclesiastical Latin from around the 12th century, taught to Catholic priests. Underwhelming at best. You should have at least brought Classical Latin from the time of the Caesars, that would have shown me you were trying.
“Second, you demonstrate a lack of finesse that is simply appalling. I will commend your creativity in bringing your own spells to demonstrate. It is a key craft that many young students of the occult struggle with terribly for many years. You are also clearly capable of drawing significant power to bear, which is always a good start. However, the path to enduring success in the arcane arts isn’t power, it’s efficiency. What you did worked, but it took far more power than it needed to. I can think of a dozen ways to boil someone’s blood off the top of my head, and none of them require much more focus or power than this.”
I released my fingers, letting the air out of his lungs in an involuntary wheeze.
“Since you were turned, I suspect you’ve never met a door you couldn’t break down with brute force. But that’s only because until today, you never really went looking for one.
“Third, and most damning of the indictments against you is this: you absolutely and utterly failed to read the room, nor did you accept the un-earned grace that was offered to you. Thus ends our impromptu lesson, prince. Good luck.”
I leaned back and draped my arms across the cushions of my booth, while Lestat yanked one of his minions to their feet and stood behind him, tensing for a fight.
“Mother… fucker…” came a mutter from under Lestat’s table, as Catherine stirred and rolled over onto her side. The newly-minted vampire lord paused and looked down at her with a furrowed brow.
“Wait, was she not a human? That normally kills humans.” He looked to his cronies, who gave him an array of shrugs and uncertain mumblings.
I said in Classical Latin,
The vampire cocked his head, clearly trying and failing to work through the declensions and figure out exactly what I had said. I pointed across the room to the tavern keeper, standing up out of the wreckage of his table. Loud crunches of grinding bone sounded from his neck as he rolled his head from side to side, reforming the shattered vertebrae inside it. He spat out a mouthful of blood, then plucked a wrinkled pocket square from his vest and dabbed the corners of his lips.
“Zero,” the keeper said once his larynx had reformed enough for speech. “It’s the medical benefits of her employment package: immunity to death, disease, etc. Cuts the insurance middle-men right out of the picture, I find it’s very efficient.”
“Ah.” Lestat eyed the keeper, far too late showing the slightest hint of caution or concern. “So she’s human, but you’re not. Well then, what are you?”
“Immortal,” the Keeper replied simply, as he plucked a shard of glass out of his skull and tossed it aside. It landed with a loud tinkle in the otherwise silent room.
“That means nothing,” Prince Lestat waved his hand dismissively. “I’m immortal. Half your bloody patrons are—”
“No,” the keeper cut him off as he straightened out his vest and stepped out of the wreckage of the table. “You are ageless, thanks to the curse of undeath upon you. That is a very different thing than being immortal. Numerous vampire lords you’ve killed in the last few months would attest to this, were they not dead, no? They may not like to acknowledge it, but this is a simple fact that every entity in this establishment is keenly aware of, save for you.”
Lestat said nothing, but his body language spoke volumes for him, as he shrunk half a step backward toward the support of his underlings.
“My patrons from the Fey realms, or the Abyss? They experience death on this plane of existence as a banishment back to their own. But once there, they age and die the same as all other creatures in existence, if perhaps at a different rate than a human does. My dear employee Catherine, whom you’ve treated with such brazen disrespect, will live as long as she wishes to. But some day, be it centuries or millennia from now, she will grow tired of life, and request I terminate her contract.”
He gestured to me, seated in my quiet, dark corner, and a chill ran down my spine.
“Even the Empress Undying, whom you unwisely came looking for tonight, will only survive so long as she maintains the numerous spells and failsafes she has crafted to preserve and extend her unnatural life.”
My thoughts flickered in succession through my 5 phylacteries, painstakingly secreted away in sealed and warded caches both near and far-flung — and I watched in horror as the keeper’s eyes lifted briefly to the keystone of the stone arch over his doorway, then settled on me, and he winked.
By the gods, my cold heart would have skipped a beat were it able. How did he find it out? Or, more likely: has he simply always known?
“One day, when she has grown tired of this endless upkeep, she too will come to me for release. You see, Edwin, everything dies eventually.”
He held his hand calmly out to his side, and wisps of shadow materialized and snaked through the air into his grasp. The Dread Prince Lestat — Edwin — first shivered, then spasmed, and finally, as his entourage withdrew from him in horror, collapsed in a fit of convulsions. The shadows continued to flow into the keeper’s outstretched hand, gaining solidity and texture, until he was left holding his implement: a bowed farmer’s scythe, worn and battered, but with a keen edge that felt dizzying and somehow wrong to look upon. The keeper stepped forward.
“Everything dies, except for me.”
Been wanting to get back into writing for a while and came across this response I half-wrote last year.
Original prompt either here or here , honestly not sure which one I originally happened across anymore.

For context, my (26F) dad was abusive growing up. He was verbally aggressive and belittling, lots of lies and manipulation, would throw things, get in my face, and pull back his arm like he was going to hit me. He doesn't do the physically aggressive stuff anymore to people afaik, but the rest is the same. Second last time I saw him he bragged about killing his neighbours cat, last time I saw him was when he pretended to have cancer so I'd see him again - I had a panic attack when he admitted it. This was about 4/5 years ago and we haven't talked since.
His mum (my Nana) was killed, and l am going to her funeral soon - side story I don't want to get into in this post. How should I prepare? I have a friend coming for support. My mum and brother will be there too. Brother is still close-ish with him, mum sees him sometimes with brother cause she has bad boundaries. My mum doesn't have the capacity to be a support for me at the funeral, and may make me feel worse unintentionally, make morbid comments, bring up other horrible things she feels is relevant, etc. Brother is good value but still close with dad so idk - I probably won't be around him much at the funeral, since he and dad might hang out.
I've been trying to go through scenarios and figure out my "grey rock" techniques and phrases. I worry he will either try to use the situation to guilt me into spending time with him, blast me in front of family for not seeing Nana for years (due to the sitch with dad I haven't really had contact with his side of the family), or both. She took some time to pass after the incident and I know almost all family showed up other than me - he may have things to say about that that I can't answer publicly without bringing up our situation, which he may bank on to make me look bad.
What I've got for if he tries to go get coffee togethereconnect/hash out "our issues":

• I'd prefer to focus on Nana while I'm here
• I don't think it's an appropriate time to have this conversation
• I'm sorry for your loss, but it is important for me to maintain healthy boundaries (idk about this one)
• No, sorry. I'm uncomfortable with that
• "Maybe"/shrug and walk away

General detractors:

• Generally trying to avoid him and leaving when he joins a conversation I'm part of
• Getting my friend to ask for a tampon from my bag (placed down somewhere I am not standing)
• Saying "excuse me" and bailing after I have said any of the other rehearsed one liners
• Talking to mum, brother and his gf about changing the subject etc if he brings something up

If he tries to shame me for not seeing Nana in front of everyone:

• Family is complicated. I would have liked to have seen her as well, but I'm glad knowing she had a lot of love around her

What else can you all recommend? I was also thinking of giving him a hug (if he approaches for one) and saying sorry for his loss. Is that a bad idea? I don't want to obviously but maybe it will make it easier.
I don't know what he has told his extended family about why I don't see him, but there are probably some pretty messy lies there too that I'm not aware of. I think I could potentially ask my brother about this as he is more connected, but we have also never talked about it and he always chooses to spend Christmases with dad over me so idk if that would help or hurt.
I think he will probably compare me to his brother who has isolated himself from the entire family (which is what we heard from dad fyi, not necessarily the full story or even true at all - I have no reliable information either way). If he did this in a loud and public way I would like a way to "defend" myself to my wider family but idk how to do that without engaging. Something like the issues in our relationship don't impact my warm feelings for the rest of the family - but that sounds like a dig at him and the start of a fight I don't want to engage in
We are all grieving and missing Nana (an amazing woman), and the circumstances of her death were traumatic and extremely upsetting for everyone. There is already a lot of anger and emotion surrounding the situation. I don't know if this will stop my dad from doing anything, or if he will use me as a focal point for his emotions
I heard my dad yell sometime to the phone when I last called my brother while he was with extended family, but I didn't hear it and thought it was better not to ask what it was. It could have been wholesome or fucked up, but he clearly has things he wants to say to me, or wants everyone to hear me saying to him
Also what do I say if my cousins or extended family I was close with ask why I don't see dad anymore? "I don't think it would be appropriate to get into what dad has done at his mother's funeral", "I don't think it would be appropriate to get into when his mum has just passed", or "he has been abusive, but it wouldn't be appropriate to get into details under these circumstances". I know he would be saying stuff regardless of how inappropriate the situation is, and I have an urge to have my side known to some extent so my relationship with my extended family isn't damaged. But maybe I shouldn't imply any bad behaviour on his part and just zip it if anyone asks, to avoid escalating poorly timed drama.
Edit: Also how do I reply if family asks why I didn't come see her in the hospital (like everyone else)? The real answer is that I wanted to give Dad uninterrupted/complicated time to say goodbye and didn't want to cause a scene, and already felt she was adequately supported by our huge family. I think it would have been self-serving of me, and potentially distressing to the extended family, including Nana, depending on how dad reacted.
Maybe "my relationship with dad is complicated, and I didn't want my presence to detract from the focus of supporting Nana and each other"

I’m very tall, olived skinned, athletic, dark hair, brown eyes.
HAPPY TO VERIFY SEND PICS VOICE CHAT AND VIDOE CHAT.
I’m a daddy dom … I am a strict, fair and flexible type of daddy, but I am very affectionate and emotional.
I am non-sexual and sexual.
I am flexible with kinks.
I am into affection and aftercare, cute activities like colouring in and drawing… for kinks I’m flexible but open to CNC, degrading, edging, dressing up (her), toys, instruction, mental and emotional control, needy (from her), cute things, reassurance (giving). Impact play, bondage… I am very flexible and open to kinks so if there is something that is not desired I’m okay with that, I don’t force if it’s not liked, or happy to adopt more. I’ve been into bdsm since I was 17.
Also I do have a foot fetish! So be warned!
I do love to give a lot of attention so be warned I might seem very active and talkative!
I am just taking things easy so to speak and just trying to enjoy things.
Thanks
:)
🍪

When I was thinking about switching to the Copper IUD, I wished there were more detailed posts about switching from hormonal birth control to the copper IUD.
So, if anyone out there is interested in my birth control experiences, side effects, etc — here is my detailed story!
**Birth Control/Period History:*\*
As a teen I had incredibly heavy periods. Like, I filled a super plus tampon AND a maxi overnight pad in 2-3 hours kind of heavy…
I got prescribed BC pills as a teen due to bad acne and my heavy periods. HBC made my periods normal, so that was nice. I tried pills for 2-3 years then decided I was tired of taking a pill every day and wanted to try something different.
I then got the Mirena IUD. I had 8-10 months of constant spotting that never went away and I thought it made me feel crazy, so I had it removed. The doctor didn’t believe me that the Mirena made me crazy anxious/depressed, but a few weeks after switching methods I was mentally way better.
I then started Nuvaring and had it for 3 years (technically insurance gave me generic brand EluRyng if that matters). I liked the ring better than Mirena, especially at first, but over time symptoms started to develop. I became drier than the Sahara, had negative libido (I didn’t even want to cuddle with my husband most of the time lol), and nothing made me feel truly happy. It was like my emotions were just switched off. It happened so slowly though that it took me a few years to realize these symptoms might be connected to the ring.
After all that, I decided I wanted to try stopping hormonal birth control since I’d been on it for about 7 years — I just wanted to see what I felt like without synthetic hormones. But at this point I was in a serious relationship and sexually actively so I needed a method of BC. I took a while doing research and deciding between FAM/Paragard. I decided to try Paragard first because if it ended up working for me, it’d be easier than FAM lol.
I read the Period Manual by Lara Briden to prepare for coming off HBC + how to treat acne and heavy periods because although I hadn’t been off hormones since I was a teenager, I was worried those things would come back. From that book, though I learned that incredibly heavy periods are sometimes common for teenagers due to hormone fluctuations and usually go away in the 20s, so I was hoping that’d be the case for me.
**Copper IUD Consultation & Insertion:*\*
I began taking magnesium glycinate and zinc supplements about 3 weeks before insertion because research suggests they prevent cramps, acne, heavy periods, and just aid in coming off HBC in general.
I then went to my gyno to ask for the Copper IUD and she tried talking me into Mirena…. I explained I had the Mirena before and did not like it and wanted to try something without hormones.
My doctor listed all the side effects of Paragard to make sure I knew them and was still interested — when I said I was, she approved it. They had to order it for me, so my insertion appointment was a few weeks later — they didn’t keep the Paragard in stock because apparently, not many people want it? LOL
I’ve never been pregnant, so I was mentally preparing for a painful insertion.
I happened to get my Paragard placed on the same day I was scheduled to remove my ring for the withdrawal bleed week.
I took 800mg ibuprofen 1-2 hrs before the insertion. The doctor started with a transvaginal ultrasound and took photos of the ultrasound for my records. I think this was to see the angle of my uterus and make sure my uterus was normal shape (not 100% sure).
The insertion itself was l like a really intense cramp for 30 seconds. The weird part — that I didn’t know was going to happen — was I could heafeel the iud open inside me. Like the coil part made a spring sound when it came out of the insertion tube lol. Overall though, the insertion itself was not nearly as bad as I expected. I just took deep breaths and was okay.
She then did a second transvaginal ultrasound to ensure the IUD placement was correctly placed and saved it to my records. I scheduled a 4-week follow-up appointment and was on my way.
Although the insertion itself was a quick intense pain, that was over fast, the next few hours were the rough partI drove myself the 20 minutes home and definitely regret that because on the drive I suddenly started to feel nauseous, lightheaded, dizzy, and sweaty. I definitely recommend getting someone to drive you home because you don’t know how you’ll be post-insertion. (When I got the mirena iud, I went straight to work an 8hr shift and was fine. The paragard was not as easy and it was dangerous driving myself home tbh).
Cramping was really bad for about 5 hours, but I just laid in bed with a heating pad and slowly got better. That being said, after 5 hours I felt WAY better and went to bed that night feeling very little cramping and not needing to take ibuprofen.
The next day I was completely fine and had very little cramping. I honestly think the little cramping I had at this point was from removing the ring because that’s normal for me when I would remove it for the withdrawal week.
**Coming off hormones symptoms/ post copper IUD insertion:**\*
(2 days later) I had weird stringy brown clumps in my discharge and then started my withdrawal bleed from the ring. My withdrawal bleed week went pretty normal.
(1-2 weeks later) I had intense headaches which I think were related to coming off hormones — they only lasted a week or two. I also had an insane amount of cleawhite discharge, it sometimes felt like I had peed a little lol. I think this was my first ovulation/fertile cervical mucus that I’d had since I was a teen.
(3 weeks later) Light cramps, brown discharge (spotting)*(4 weeks later)* I was bloated and spotting more of a true red vs brown. I also got stronger cramps, but just took ibuprofen and was fine. Soon after these symptoms, I started my first real period. It was a little heavier than my withdrawal “period” when I was on HBC, but it wasn’t bad at all compared to the periods from hell that I had as a teen.
**PMS/Periods Now:*\*
My whole life even while on HBC, I was never one to get PMS of any kind other than very light cramps. But now (4 months after stopping HBC and switching to the copper IUD) I can always tell when my period is a few days away because I get light acne, very bloated, easily upset/angry, and pretty crampy.
So far, I’ve only had one period that was very crampy and so painful that I couldn’t stand for a couple hours lol and it was my most recent cycle. I had stopped taking the zinc and magnesium supplements that are recommended in The Period Manual, so I think that may have been the reason. I definitely will be back on my supplement game this month.
Overall now my periods are always 4-5 days total. Day one is so light it’s basically just spotting. Day 2 is heavy— have to change my tampon or pad at least once every 4 hours to avoid leaks (still lighter than the periods from hell when I was a teenager though lol, so to me it’s manageable). Day 3 regular flow. 4/5 light flow.
**Other things I’ve noticed since coming off HBC:*\*

1. I smell…. Different? Like my sweat smells different. It’s weird but I don’t stink as bad anymore. Even my husband has pointed out that I have been “smelling so good recently” and I didn’t change any soaps or perfume or anything.
2. My libido increased majorrr!! I legit thought for these past few years that I wasn’t attracted to my husband or something because I never wanted to even be touched and never got wet when he tried. It was really hurting our relationship. But man, things have CHANGED. I feel like a teenager again I’m so easily turned on.
3. The acne that I had as a teenager did NOT come back. I broke out a little for the first month or two off HBC but it was a piece of cake. Now I only get 2-3 small pimples around the time of my period.

**Conclusion:*\*
Overall, so far the copper IUD insertion was worth the temporary pain and trouble. I’m feeling so much happier off hormones and my relationship with my husband is so much better now that we have a sex life again haha. If you choose to switch to the copper IUD, I def recommend reading The Period Manual prior to getting it to prepare for coming off hormones and knowing what supplements to take to minimize cramping, acne, PMS, etc.
Anyways, I’m an open book. Please let me know if you have any questions about my experience!

Hello,
I absolutely have no idea what to write but this is me: https://imgur.com/a/6Gs6tdv
Im not a catfish and I definitely can verify. I’m a bit out of place in this world and I feel I don’t really fit in with the traditional ‘norm’.
As such, I struggle to do traditional. I’m really awkwardly shy and introverted; this hasn’t worked out in terms of dates etc. i kinda just freak out on dates and conversations dry up. I have seen this sub and thought I would try it.
I have a soft spoken British accent, long brown hair, I am 5ft 6 and slim build. I attend gym regularly. I am well-educated in Psychology and Law. I have a keen interest in clinical and forensic psychology. I am returning to further higher educational studies at University in September. For now, I freelance around as self employed.
I have no children.
My passion is reading, writing, poetry, philosophy, social justice, education, gym, walks, travelling, and self development.
I’m just going to keep it very brief for now as I dip my toes back into the ‘dating’ pool.
If you think we will be a good match, drop me a message :-) x

My non certified GM lost their first assistant manager. The reason for leaving? Nobody is good enough to work with besides myself. I did one closing shift a week before, showing how well I perform, and then the assistant turned in a one week notice after finding out I won’t be able to close every day. The manager that took their place has only been doing Jimmy John's for 5 weeks. I came onto my shift at 10 am that following morning, after the assistant quit, and the bread? It looked like it was proofed for 10 minutes, handled by a monkey, and baked until the ends turned golden brown with the rest of it looking ghost white. After I said “we can’t serve this bread” the "assistant" manager sends text messages to my non certified GM, of which proceeds to call me to silence my words of wisdom.
I put in a whole new cycle, that I had another new employee handle as I was showing how to do bread, and used the actual timer on the oven to perform the task. Because my GM does everything by sense of smell and teaches others this method, I have to step in and correct a huge mistake… Meanwhile, after the phone call from my non certified GM, the manager on duty is…. On the cell phone and the slicer. Slicing one slice of turkey meat off the hulk per 2 minutes…. Rap music is BLASTING OUT THE SPEAKERS, and I am trying to setup the cold table at 10:45 am after fixing the bread issue… because the wheat bread came out looking like two small rocks.
I show the new employee how to speed thaw the wheat bread because this is a Sunday morning. The first order walks in the door and we have 0 tomatoes… I show the new employee how to slice tomatoes fast and completes a bin within 12 minutes. Not bad. Faster than the person who opened that’s for sure.
I get my first delivery order and we ran out of vito. Instead of slicing vito the manager on shift texts my non certified GM; of which instructs the manager on duty to just use the excess pack of cap-less salami for the day….
I come back from my delivery, knowing full well I just delivered a “not a real vito” to a customer and the new thing is slicing the wheat bread…. It wasn’t sliced correctly. And upon inspection the meat slicer was not cleaned prior to…. Nor was it sharpened.
The whole day goes by and after receiving two more text messages from my non certified GM that says, well essentially translates to, “shut up,” I help close the store because no one else wants to work. I go home and the next day…. You already know, or can fathom what I got to hear.

For only 1200(40 days)You can now start your fitness journey and avoid all the mistakes beginners do, you can save yourself time and money.
What to expect:
1.You'll need to manage your food intake, youll be saving money that you can then spend on other things or save it for later
2.We have an option to workout with or without equipment and still make improvements, the workouts are not going to be easy, but I guarantee you you'd be able to get stronger throughout the weeks.
3.Losing weight takes time. Do not expect to reverse all of the weight youve accumulated from years of overeating in just a month or two.
4.Consistency is key, if youre not dedicated or committed, even the best coaching or fitness programs wont be able to help you.
​
Perks of losing weight/getting in shape
1.Hindi ka na ibobody shame ng relative mong religious (Indefinite)

1. More energy, hindi ka na hihingalin after 5 mins of walking, youll have more energy to do more productive stuff like walking to Mcdonalds instead of using grab

3.Boost self-esteem, now you can take more selfies and papansinin ka na ng crush mo(fake news)
4. Health
​
Kung gusto mo mag sign up, dm me on telegram kenpt1999
I can provide client testimonies, worked with hundreds of clients online and from reddit

Hi there,
I'm kind of new to cars/mods and just wanted to ask if anyone else would know if I could put this steering wheel would work in my car (MAZDA MAZDA2 DE 1.5L ZY-VE DOHC 16v MPFI 4cyl 4sp Auto 5dr Hatchback FWD [10/07 - 07/14] ). I'm confused as my current steering wheel does not have ANY buttons and is just a bare bones steering wheel, any advice on how to do the change would also be greatly appreciated! :)
​
Thanks

Our baby (now 15 months) met with a pediatric GI and was placed on what is basically Pepcid. She’s been throwing up since birth. The Pepcid helped a little bit she’s still frequently throwing up. The GI specialist just said to follow up on 2 more months and wean down on the Pepcid to see if it makes a difference but since our follow up earlier this week, she’s been frequently throwing up again. I really don’t think the medication has been effective.
I believe the next course of action may be her needing an endoscopy.
But I’m getting to the point where I don’t know what else there is to do. She’s been decreasing slowly on the growth chart. I mean she’s going to naturally be a small baby, both my husband and I aren’t big humans. We did an allergy panel blood test which did show low results of dairy (0.91 out of 100.00), sesame and and wheat (both below 0.2 out of 100.00) and schedule to meet with a pediatric allergist.
Has anyone with a child as young as 15 months gone through with an endoscopy? I have serious concerns with having her undergo anesthesia at such a young age.

hi! my landlord is trying to charge us for damage done inside the building (the staircase, the hallway walls, etc.) but it can't be proven who did the damage. note that the "damage" is something that i see as normal wear or tear - they're little brown / black smudges on the wall and staircase handle. she can't prove that we did it but is insisting that we did and that she will charge us for it.
even more ridiculous, she is trying to charge us for damage that's done on the OUTSIDE STAIRS of the building, as there's a very very small dent on the metal casing of the edge of the stairs - but not sure why she thinks it was us or HOW she can even prove that it was us. there are so many people who randomly sit on her stoop at all hours of the day. this building is in east village and regularly gets graffitied and vandalized. i suspect she is just trying to take advantage of us.
the damage was done inside the BUILDING, not my actual apartment unit. there's another couple living in this building, but other than that it's just her (my landlord, living in 2 units), me and my roommates (1 unit), and the couple (1 unit).
i am afraid she will take this out of our security deposit as we are moving next month. what do i have for recourse?