#but my friend makes regular trips to this store she likes for these edibles and she is also very high strung and paranoid | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

the-resurrection-3d · 2 years

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Ficlet request: Marcovaldo family dinner. Can be modern timeline, regular timeline, funny, sad, whatever you think would be an engaging slice of life.

I dunno if this was exactly what you were looking for, but my dad's birthday was yesterday, so I decided to do something based around that! (I'm actually going to go buy my dad's present right after I post this; I'm buying him a new tie. c:)

Anyway, I hope you like it! Takes place in modern timeline, technically, but around when Alberto is 15 and Giulia is 14 -- I wanted to write off-brand YYY fanfic I MEAN explore their past strained dynamic that I really only alluded to in "bandingo." Hope you like it!

And yes, the "friend" Alberto mentions is Nick. CEO of hating it here.

***

What’s that face? Alberto asks as he scoots the toy sea-dragon forward into the cake, the jellybeans in its mouth rattling like stones.

Giulia clasps her hands together, says carefully, I want to say this feels vaguely racist.

— But I’m a sea monster, so you can’t say that? Alberto accidentally gives a particularly aggressive scoot that knocks one of the fat novelty candles over. Whoops.

Giulia tries to shoo him away as she rushes to his side of the kitchen table. Her hands instinctively go for her hat, but all her hair has been tied back, so she only manages to loosen her ponytail as she yanks on her scalp in frustration. Why are you putting it into the cake?

Alberto takes a step back to avoid catching her elbow in the face. So that it stays?

I worked hard on this, you know.

Yeah, it was truly torturous pouring some sand out of a box and throwing eggs into it. Truly back-breaking labor.

Oh, shut up.

***

Are those big novelty cakes even edible? Giulia asks, using a toothpick to swirl the green icing around the sea monster’s coiled base back into flower-shapes. The theme had been “gardens,” since her father

(their father?)

(now that’s funny)

— since her father had gotten back into it as of late, pots of basil and Geraniums out on the windowsills, white sticks for tomatoes lined up like bowling pins underneath the treehouse.

I can’t imagine all that fondant tastes good, Giulia continues.

Alberto, who had been tasked to sit there with his hands firmly pinned down under his chin, says, I have a friend--

Giulia shoots him a look.

Yeah, I know, unbelievable right? That one of us could actually have friends.

Imaginary friends don't count.

I think your sense of direction's screwed up, sis, Alberto says, suddenly behind her now, suddenly turning her around by her shoulders. The mirror's right over there.

Giulia rips her out of his grasp. Don't call me ‘sis.’ My name is Giulia.

Anyway, Alberto says, rolling his eyes. My friend was saying that in chocolate shops in Germany, you can walk in and the guy's making a whole hippopotamus out of chocolate right there in the middle of the store.

The toothpick breaks in her hands before she realizes she’d been folding it. She tosses the splinters onto the table. Push me all you want, Alberto, she says, turning back to the cake. It won't work.

What won't work? he asks.

I'm not fighting you in front of Papa, Giulia says, hoping you can glare from the corner of your eye as she picks up the longer splinter and pretends to go back to work. If you want to make an ass of yourself, be my guest, but I won't let you drag me down with you.

Alberto falls silent for a moment, staring at the back of her head, at the yellow icing-orchids around the curly scrawl of

(their?)

(well he’s not yours)

(but why shouldn’t she have to share?)

his boss’s name, at the blue “49” candles standing watching over it.

We should add a big glop of icing here, he says, pointing behind the candles, where the sea monster’s mouth casts a shadow. He remembers when Massimo had bought that for him on one of their trips to get Alberto new clothes, the way he’d told Massimo in excited whispers about how he knew the brand of tiny car between its teeth because he’d found one buried in the silt of the cave near the island.

He remembers that tattoo on Massimo’s arm.

Giulia freezes at the intrusion of his voice, all the malice within it suddenly washed out. Why? she asks.

So the jellybeans have something sticky to land on and don't go flying all over the words as much.

***

They don’t mess up the words, but a few do scatter across the table, before Machiavelli bats them right off. Giulia and Alberto both start towards the floor, but Massimo tells them to stay seated, we’ll get them later.

But he’s still laughing, just a little.

(Giulia had her hand out to Alberto underneath the table once her father’s head had tipped back, but Alberto had just looked at it in confusion.)

(Gimme a low five.)

(Like… a four?)

(What?)

Massimo smiles, pats Giulia’s head first, then Alberto’s, chuckling again as Alberto almost stands up in his chair to push his head in. I'm glad to see you two starting to get along.

#luca #alberto scorfano #giulia marcovaldo #tw nick mention #is that tag ironic or not? yes #2d asks #2d nonsense

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sevlgi · 4 years

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BTS REACTION | their s/o is a youtuber

requested: yes

group: bts

genre: fluff

warnings: none

~JIN~

Seokjin thought it was the funniest thing that you were a beauty YouTuber. He already knew you were beautiful, he just thought it was hilarious that you were teaching millions of subscribers to be pretty too.

Being World Wide Handsome, Seokjin offered to appear on your channel. You started doing makeup for men as well and trying your various makeup looks on him, which your fans loved. He did your makeup for the channel and made edible makeup with you; he was up for anything, as long as you did mukbangs with him.

Your channel started expanding rapidly, especially when you did makeup for all the boys at one of their photoshoots or tried to make Seokjin look like Kim K. He personally loved all the attention too, but he mostly did it just to spend time with you.

“It’s me, World Wide Handsome. It’s my channel now.”

~SUGA~

Yoongi already knew about your comedy channel before he started dating you- in fact, he was a big fan of you. He loved watching your pranks on your friends and helping you to write skits and parodies.

That being said, he didn’t like being IN the videos. He thought his personality was too dark to be funny enough for your videos, but he helped you set up pranks and lure his members into your traps. He liked filming for you or providing dry comments from behind the camera when you did challenges.

Eventually, though, he agreed to come in for a few Q&A videos or funny BTS parodies. Your fans fell in love with him and he agreed to start appearing more often.

“I got a really good idea for another prank, let’s get J-Hope back for last week!”

~J-HOPE~

Hoseok knew you were meant to be when you told him you were a dance YouTuber. You regularly posted tutorials and covers of BTS songs, so it was amazing when Hoseok decided to appear in your tutorials and covers too.

Your fans first recognized him as your cameraman in a tutorial and demanded more screentime, so he started to teach you BTS dances and do couples routines with you. He made short cameos in tutorials and helped with more difficult routines.

After he started appearing in your videos, he popped up randomly on behind-the-scenes videos too. Just to have him on your channel more, the two of you would also do dance challenges or fitness videos.

“Eyy, that’s my girlfriend! Isn’t she a great dancer? Just as good as me, right?”

~RM~

Namjoon thought it was amazing that you ran a channel comprised of the weirdest videos you could think of. You liked filming yourself talking about aliens probes and government clones at 3 am, which Namjoon really resonated with. Really, your channel just consisted of anything you felt like, from blending ramen smoothies to trying to make your own metal straws.

The first video Namjoon appeared in was totally accidental- he didn’t realize you were filming a trip to the pet store and appeared in a corner of the video. Your fans went crazy- you had been an ARMY for years, so they couldn’t believe you were friends with Namjoon.

Afterwards, Namjoon started appearing whenever the two of you felt like it- he’d come on to make vegan tacos with you or just to talk about climate change. He liked making videos on serious topics or inspirational videos, but he’d do anything you asked him to.

“What do you think about this theory about the universe?”

~JIMIN~

Jimin loved your art channel. He himself loved to draw, too, so he honestly loved to just come in to your studio to watch you paint for hours on end. He found it soothing to film your videos and acted kind of like your assistant, bring you what you needed and just watching.

You invited him to join you on more personality-related videos, like art challenges or Q&A’s. Naturally, everyone loved shy Jimin, especially how much he made you laugh and how you were an ARMY before you even met him.

Seeing how warm of a welcome he got, you asked him to join you more often, so you started doing more vlog-like videos and travel videos. You already did some fashion and styling videos, so he’d act as your model sometimes on those too.

“They really love me? That’s so cool!”

~V~

Taehyung fit in perfectly with your vlogging channel. You posted clickbait-y videos that were nonetheless entertaining- you did clothing hauls, celebrity rants, anything that was trendy or popular.

With his quirky personality, Taehyung became a regular on your channel. He rated selfies with you, helped dye your hair with markers, Gucci store raids; everyone absolutely loved him.

He took you to fashion shows and filmed the two of you making fun of the outfits, filmed catfish-attempt videos with you... Eventually, your channel became more like a couples- channel, and you definitely didn’t mind, especially not when your subscriber count kept rising.

“Welcome to another video! Today, we’re dying my girlfriend’s hair with highlighters. You’re not surprised, right?”

~JUNGKOOK~

Jungkook was unbelievably excited when you revealed that you played video games on YouTube. He notoriously loved video games too, but he wasn’t allowed to have a YouTube channel, so he settled for being a usual on your channel instead.

His favorite type of video to film with you would be streams of the two of you playing a game as a couple. You’d persuade him to do some funnier videos too, like playing as one player with your left hands or teaching him Fortnite dances.

Eventually, your fans realized that the mystery guy you were playing video games with was your boyfriend, Jungkook of BTS. They all knew you were an ARMY, but it was really the greatest crossover of all time for him to be on your channel.

“Don’t you dare go in there! We’re gonna die!”

#bts #bts reactions #bts x reader #bts imagines #bts scenarios #bts suga #bts rm #bts jin #bts jungkook #bts jimin #bts j-hope #bts v #bts smut #jimin #taehyung #rm #jin #suga #j-hope #jungkook

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shirophantomvox · 3 years

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What’s up y’all! Tumblr is literally fucking glitching and certain letters on my keyboard aren't working so I couldn't put in a title. The title of this is: "I Will Always Celebrate My Birthday". Here is another lovely prompt from @vld-prompts . I hope you like it! If these stories seem rushed, it’s because I am writing them before working and I go to school so I have to fit them in some time, right? Anyway, this prompt says: The Paladins learn that Alteans have no concept of birthday celebrations and promptly decide to demonstrate one for Allura, Coran (and/or Lotor.) Happy reading and follow me for more stories!

Princess Allura; the girl that has been to hell and back; took in many “aliens” and trained them to be paladins of the lions. She had experienced tragedy after tragedy but somehow managed to keep pushing. Lots of people looked up to her for hope and support and she never disappointed. It seemed like all she did was work and work and work until she passed out from exhaustion. Once she was so tired that she couldn’t even remember her own age! Wait! How old is she again? 10,000 years old right? No! She’s 10,001 years old! She reached into the drawer in her dresser and pulled out a thin, long gold box that was glistening under the light. She gently opened the box and there laid a beautiful pearl necklace and bracelet. This was a gift from the late King Alfor and Melanor of Altea; her parents. They had always mentioned the necklace as a reward for reaching such an age. You see, in Altean history, when a woman turns 10,001 years old, they take life more seriously. They know that it is time to buckle down; it is time to make money, find a partner, and parent children to follow in their footsteps. The necklace was a reward for her accomplishments. Allura often thought of her parents, wishing that they could see her now. They both would be proud.

Lance and Pidge entered the living room carrying heavy boxes that Coran gave them full of dusty trophies and small knickknacks. They were trying to clean out the 3rd floor so Hunk and Pidge could set up their virtual reality equipment. Suddenly, both tripped and dropped the boxes spilling everything all over the floor. Hey, blame the pearls. They’re THAT shiny.

“Oh! I’m sorry, Allura said running from her chair. She grabbed Pidge and Lance by their arms and pulled them up. “Let me help you pick this up.” Pidge got up, dusted herself off, and returned to pick up the items from the ground. “Lance, could you pass me the cardboard box. Lance? Lance! Are you listening to me?” To Allura’s surprise (not really), Lance was staring at her for much longer than usual. His mouth nearly dropped to the ground as he gave Allura two looks. It must have been some magic in that ol’ pearl necklace. Allura had on a light rose pink dress that exposed her shoulders. A white rose was pinned to her dress. This was apart of Altean tradition; on your special day, you just wore fancy clothes around the house and whenever you went out. “Lance! You’re drooling,” Pidge said groaning in irritation. It was bad enough Lance was slightly lazy but him drooling over Allura slowed her down. “Oh, sorry. S-sorry for staring Allura. Y-you just look prettier than usual. That necklace makes your skin glow.” “Thank you, Lance. I appreciate it.” “Great. Heh-he. Lance, can we finish this now? Hunk and I have work to do.” “R-right. Right” Still love-struck, Lance managed to help Pidge put away the boxes and the rest of the clothes laid on the couch. Lance was right about one thing, she never dressed like this before, why so sudden? “Why are you dressed liked that,” Pidge asked. “Don’t question it Pidge!” “It’s ok. Today is the day I was born 10,001 years ago.” “So, it’s your birthday?” “What?” “Your birthday. Today was the day you were born 10,001 years ago.” “Ah, yes. Right!” “Great! When do we get cake and ice cream?” “Ice cream? Cake?” “You’ve never heard of cake and ice cream?! Wow, your parties must have been lame.” “Actually...I’ve never had any of those...parties. What are they like?” “They��re fun! You have cake, ice cream, and if you’re lucky you get to have your birthday at a venue!” Lance LOVED birthday parties. It was the perfect opportunity for him to get as many phone numbers as he could and for him to talk to his friends about games and live streaming. Pidge on the other hand was an introvert; she liked staying to herself because that was the only way for her to get her work completed. The only person that could relate to her was Hunk and they had similar interests. “Lance doesn’t need any more sugar than what he is already consuming. Pidge pushed her glasses closer to her face as she placed the last box on the table. But I am willing to throw you a birthday party if Lance will help me.” “Of Course I will! Hunk will bake the cake, he can make the ice cream, and Pidge and I will make party favors. Let’s go, team! Mission Birthday Party is a-go.” Lance, being excited about this mission, was so overjoyed that he ran flat into the door. “I’m ok!” Baking a cake was the perfect task for Hunk during this time. Constantly thinking about returning to Earth can and will drive you insane. He and the other paladins have a point--they did not sign up for this mission but they were called upon to carry out a job and they were nearly finished, at last. Hunk had taken bakery classes at the nearby arts and crafts store, NaTalia’s. He had learned how to make birthdays, weddings, and just regular cakes with a quickness. His art form including basic designs and printing edible pictures on the cake. Allura’s favorite colors were pink, white, and dark grayish-blue. Although those colors were far apart from each other on the palette, he made it work. The ice-cream was already made. He decided to make mint chocolate and vanilla to ensure everyone was satisfied. The cake was great and it looked delicious too! The only downside is that the ship’s kitchen looked like a tornado ran through it. Oh well. That’s how you know you accomplished your mission. He topped the cake off with little wax figures of King Alfor and Melanor at the top near the pink rim. He thought this was the perfect finishing touch...hopefully she thinks so too. Hunk gently placed the ice cream and the cake on a pushcart and began to

wheel it to the bridge. The wax figures made Hunk think harder. He was going to remove them. He didn’t want Allura to cry on her big day, he wanted her to be happy. The doors opened as everyone stood to their feet and watched the beautiful cake be wheeled into the room. The edible sparkly pink glitter glistened underneath the room’s headlights. Allura stood to her feet, her hands over her mouth gasping in amazement. Pidge and Lance had made pink and white confetti and by some miracle found pink balloons in the closet. Just when they were going to sing “Happy Birthday” by Stevie Wonder, a few tears began to fall from Allura’s face. Hunk’s smile was instantly wiped away. He knew he should have removed the figurines. “Allura...I-I’m sorry. I thought--” “--No! It’s ok! I love it! Thank you Hunk!” Allura nearly knocked him over with her hug, but that’s ok. It was a warm bear hug; one full of love and joy. “Hey! Where’s my hug?!” “Later, Lance.” “Ooooh,” Pidge said laughing. “Ok, who’s ready to sing Happy Birthday, Keith asked already grabbing a hamburger slider. I’m hungry. “Happy Birthday to ‘ya. Happy Birthday to ‘ya. Happy Birth-day!” The team sang, off-key, but that didn’t matter. All that mattered is they successfully gave Allura the first birthday experience of her life and it is safe to say that she loved it. She was overjoyed with emotion, all happiness. Shiro gave her a few tissues to wipe her eyes with so her eye makeup wouldn’t drip. “Thank you all! I appreciate it very much! I will always celebrate my birthday for as long as I shall live!”

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abysmalll · 3 years

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Hi. I know it’s been a while. I try to stay active on here when I can, and I reblog photos I like or poetry that resonates with me, anything really, every now and then. I can’t believe I’ve had this blog since I was 14 years old. I’m turning 25 next month. It feels like I’ve lived an entire lifetime on the internet.

I’m writing this because I need to write about it. I need to accept this experience that I am having for what it is and putting words to it helps me. It helps me cope. And I don’t care if anybody reads it. Tumblr is a dead art anyway. This is me writing to the abyss of the internet, a love letter if you will, to myself, about a traumatic experience.

It has been a week since I accidentally drugged myself with 500 mg of delta 8 cannabinoid (in the form of a gummy). I bought this “sampler pack” of what I thought to be CBD gummies a couple of weekends ago while a friend was visiting from Florida. The shop did not seem sketchy, it was a legitimate dispensary, and the men behind the counter were wearing lab coats and seemed pretty knowledgeable about THC and CBD products. Originally, I bought the sampler pack thinking it was CBD isolate only. I didn’t even think the dosage was that high, maybe 25 mg tops. You know, CBD. The thing you can buy in lotions and bath bombs at those kiosks in the mall. The safe weed alternative: suitable for relaxing muscles, calming mind and body, and relieving anxiety. The sampler pack that I bought did not have many descriptions on it: just the brand and that it was a CBD + delta 8 gummy. I did not realize that delta 8 was another form of THC. I did not know that it was a synthetically / lab altered version of a part of the weed plant or anything that would cause me to get extremely high. When I saw the packaging, I just thought, cool CBD gummies. This will help me have a relaxing night, maybe a good night’s sleep. I never bought them with the intention to get fucked up. I never would have bought them if I knew what delta 8 actually was. To be fair, it was completely misrepresented to me by the men at the store I bought them from. I was under the full impression that this was a relaxing CBD gummy sampler. I did not know that, in reality, what myself and a friend were about to consume was 1000 mg of straight cannabis product (500 mg CBD + 500 mg delta 8). From all of the research I’ve done on delta 8 (now having experienced what I experienced), in reddit forums and the like, experienced users of the weed alternative say that they stay away from anything stronger than 100 mg. 100 mg is enough to fuck you up pretty heavily. To clarify, I took 1000 mg (half CBD / half delta 8). I basically had 25x the “strong” amount for experienced users. Now some people have a hard time getting high, their tolerance is pretty up there, and they need up to 400 mg to really feel it and feel it hard. To clarify again, I still had much more than 400 mg. Now to the experience:

My friend and I had just gotten back to my place after spending the day at a town festival (nothing big due to COVID, just a couple of booths set up of people selling their handmade products, animal shelters and sanctuaries giving out informational pamphlets and volunteer lists, etc.) We got lunch with a third friend after that. I was feeling totally normal. I had a beer at lunch, but pretty sober to say the least. We parted ways with our third friend and headed back to my house. I had originally given the gummies to my friend to hold on to (we would’ve taken them a few weeks prior when I originally bought them but we ended up not that specific night) and she brought them back to me so we could try together. I hesitated at first. I held the gelatinous square in my hand, thumbed it around a bit, a little anxious at the thought of “well I hope this isn’t TOO strong” and thought “what the hell”. And I ate it. She ate the other one. Little did I know how strong it would actually turn out to be. (For context: I am a very light smoker. I have a CBD pen that is 1:1 THC but is very mellow, and I smoke J’s every now and then because I don’t like the feeling of getting too high from bongs or other methods. My friend who ate the other gummy is a daily user. She smokes CBD joints and regular weed daily, eats edibles frequently, and is working on getting her medical card for anxiety).

I felt a slight giggly out-of-it-ness after 30 minutes - right away I was feeling it, feeling something. This was what I was expecting. A very mild happy vibe. This felt okay. This felt normal for what I thought I ate. This was what I had signed up for. I still felt pretty normal besides the slight buzz. Perfect. Just something to help me relax a little bit. Something to take the edge off. Akin to drinking a beer after a long day at work. I spoke in the parking lot with my friend for 45 minutes after ingestion and we both felt and seemed pretty normal. Keep in mind, edibles take time to fully kick in. In my head I completely forgot that I ate that gummy. I thought its full purpose had been fulfilled. I thought I was at the level I was supposed to be at all along. I felt fine. My friend drove home. Thank GOD she got home before it really kicked in. I would’ve felt terrible with that on my conscience if it hit her while driving.

And then I came back inside after she left. I noticed that I felt slightly more out of it, a little bit at a Dutch angle if you will. Nothing to worry about though. Just thought to myself; oh, I’m high. This was more than I was expected. But that’s okay. I told my boyfriend (with my tail between my legs: he’s not a huge fan of weed-anything but he doesn’t care that I imbibe every now and then). I told him “babe, I just thought you should know… That I ate a gummy with ___ and I’m actually feeling high right now”. And that was that. He smirked and said “okay pothead”. Went about our usual business. I smelled myself after standing outside in the heat for 45 minutes in that parking lot and thought, ugh I stink.

And then I took a shower.

I felt okay in the shower. Just normal. The hot water rolling down my body. I wasn’t having a break from reality. Not yet anyway.

And then I got out of the shower.

I wrapped my hair in a towel. I threw on an oversized t-shirt, something comfortable. The cool air after being in a hot shower wrapped around me in a ghostly hug. At this point in time, I don’t know if the drastic change in temperature triggered it. I don’t know. All I know is it had been an hour and a half since ingestion at this point and this act of getting out of the shower was the precipice for what I was about to experience. What I was about to fall into. I FaceTimed my friend to see how she was feeling. It hadn’t hit her at all yet. Okay, slight anxiety. Was I the only one feeling this? Was I feeling something I shouldn’t be? My boyfriend and I had given her a spare TV recently and I wanted to see if she was having any troubleshooting issues with it (she was hooking it up, seeing if the google chromecast still worked, etc). We spoke on FaceTime. I anxiously asked her if she was sure she wasn’t feeling anything.. I didn’t like the prospect of me being the only one feeling out of sorts. She insisted that she was feeling fine.

And then she couldn’t speak in full sentences. I thought it was me. I thought I wasn’t hearing her correctly, or processing her words in the way I should be. Anxiety. And then she said: OH. I feel it. I am high. This is not just CBD.

And then I fell.

Not physically. I didn’t physically fall down. I sat there on FaceTime with her, and I felt myself getting higher and higher, and I already had anxiety from what I thought would be a simple CBD sleepy gummy turning out to be a full on edible experience. I felt myself (my consciousness, whatever part of my personality that makes me - me) fall out of my body. I felt myself and my body disconnect. The only way I can explain it is that feeling you get when you’re falling asleep, and your mind isn’t fully asleep yet but your body is. Where you become aware of the fact that you’re falling asleep and you panic and your consciousness snaps back into your body and you jolt out of bed, alert. That feeling. That is the closest thing to what I was experiencing. Except I wasn’t sleeping. I was fully awake. I was tripping. And not only was I tripping, I was tripping BALLS.

I felt my heart lurch out of my chest. In a shaky voice I said “I have to go” and hung up. I jumped out of bed (I was FaceTiming her while laying in bed). I went to tell my boyfriend what was going on. I told him, “Hey- I’m not feeling normal. This isn��t supposed to be happening. I’m not supposed to be feeling this way right now”. I was going from anxiety mode to panic mode. I felt it happening. Except the whole time, I was high out of my mind. Completely, unexpectedly so. In complete and full honesty, I wasn’t associating this right away to the gummy. Because in my mind, I didn’t buy an edible. I bought what I thought was something else. I thought it was just a simple CBD gummy. Something to help me sleep. This couldn’t be causing me to feel this way, right? No. I have to be having a heart attack or something. Something’s wrong with my body. Something’s wrong with my brain. The two are not connecting. I’m phasing in and out. I feel my heart rate begin to rise along with my panic. I have an Apple Watch, and in a moment of clarity (and stupidity) I thought it best to put it on. I needed to check my heart rate. I fully thought I was having a heart attack and this mental detachment I was experiencing was the result of a serious bodily issue rather than the gummy I ingested two hours prior. I put the watch on. Heart rate is at 135. Okay, not terrible but not great. That’s the heart rate of a person who is jogging. That’s the heart rate of a person who is doing an exercise. I’m laying in bed. Why is my heart rate that high? Oh god. I’m feeling terrible. I’m feeling out of my body. My vision is getting darker and I feel like I’m inside my head watching everything happen on the giant movie screen that is my eyes, but I’m not outside of the screen. I’m experiencing this panic, but not in my body. I wish I could explain it better than this. I wish I could have it make sense to the average person. But the reality of it was that I was not experiencing something that you would normally experience unless you were blackout drunk, tripping balls, having a psychotic break, or drugged. Heart rate is creeping up higher and higher. I’m googling what a normal healthy heart rate is for a person of my size and weight (female, 5’2”, 110 lbs, 24 y/o). I read a sentence that says “if your blood pressure exceeds 180 or higher seek immediate medical attention”. I confused heart rate and blood pressure in the whirl of cortisol and adrenaline and fear. I check my watch again. 184 BPM.

Total. Fucking. Panic.

I felt my heart beating OUT of my chest. It felt like what I imagine holding a hummingbird feels like. It wasn’t beating, buzzing. My heart was buzzing. I thought, is this what it feels like to die? Am I going to die, right here, right now, in my bed? 24 years old? I just graduated college. I haven’t even started my first salaried job yet. I haven’t been married. I haven’t had kids. I haven’t bought my first house. I haven’t experienced so many things and I am about to die, right here, right now. My entire body was numb. Pins and needles. I thought: “I am having a heart attack. 184 BPM. My vision is going dark. I am fully going to pass out”. I yelled out for my boyfriend, at this point in the other room. He rushes in. I tell him what’s happening. He begins to panic. Not knowing how to calm me down. He tries to get me to do breathing techniques with him. It’s past the point for that. I told him, I need to go to the hospital. I need to be near a defibrillator in case that’s really what this is, a heart attack. Because I have a better chance of survival if I’m near a machine. If my heart gives out. I’m trying to communicate this as best I can, while being sky high. I can barely speak. He says, “okay we’re gonna go see ___ (our roommate, and a good friend of mine).” And he guides me downstairs. I stand up on my feet. I feel like I’m a thousand feet in the air and yet so incredibly small. We make our way downstairs to our roommates’ room. He knocks, she lets us in. I stumble in like a drowned rat, hair still wet from the shower. I must’ve looked fucking insane. She takes one look at me but I don’t see her face. I don’t process a face on her head. I just see a blur. I’m still panicking. Heart still beating like a hummingbird. I hear them talking in rushed tones but I don’t hear words. It sounds like the Peanut Gallery parents, if you’ve ever watched Charlie Brown movies. Womp womp womp womp womp.

Next thing I know, she hops out of bed and is wrapping me up in a blanket. She runs to her bathroom and grabs a pot of what smells like, lavender lotion? She’s rubbing it on my cheeks and face. I’m sobbing and all I smell is salt from my tears and lavender. She’s talking to me, but I don’t fully hear her. Like when you watch those movies of a person coming-to in the hospital and the faces of the people surrounding them in their hospital bed blur in and out, the voices fade in and out. I hear her ask me what’s going on. I tell her basically everything I wrote here, just now, but I don’t hear myself say it. The synapses in my brain aren’t firing properly. I know I’m doing things, speaking, but I can’t hear what I’m saying. I know I’m sitting here, wrapped in this blanket, but I don’t know where my body ends and the furniture begins. Cause for more anxiety. It feels like a never ending loop of fear and panic and sensory deprivation, or at least sensory overload? Who knows. My sensory experience is not of this Earth. Sitting in this space, in this room, hearing her talk to me, not really knowing what she is saying but knowing there is care behind it, gives me one small pin point of reality to hold onto. One tiny thing to save me from this seemingly endless nightmare. She takes the watch off of me. I hear her tell me I don’t need to be looking at that right now. No wonder my heart rate is through the roof. I’m giving myself a panic attack.

A panic attack. Is that what this is? Am I not having a heart attack? It sure feels like one. I guess they’re pretty similar. I was convinced, CONVINCED, I was dying. But here I was, some while later, wrapped in this burrito blanket in this room, and I was still experiencing things. Even if the experiences were warped and horrifying. It wasn’t death. But what was it then?

And then I remembered that I ate a gummy two hours earlier. I was having a drug induced panic attack. I was never expecting this. I was NEVER expecting this… What the fuck WAS this? It wasn’t normal. It was exactly what I discovered it to be later on, after researching the label of that sampler pack. It was 1000 mg of CBD and delta 8, a FDA-loophole for weed. And I was buckled in for the full fucking ride.

If you’re wondering what was going on with my friend, she was still high. She was experiencing a strong high from that gummy, but we had nowhere near similar experiences. I was on Mars. She, I think, fell asleep a little later on and woke up the next day ready to smoke again. I am amazed at how vastly different our experiences were. I would give anything to have had that kind of experience. I would’ve loved to wake up the next day, head slightly fuzzy, but feeling normal all the same, and been able to conceive of smoking weed. And if we’re being completely honest, I’m so incredibly grateful that she didn’t experience this. I would not wish this on ANY person. It was my fault that I ate that gummy, and I gave her one too. We could’ve both been fucked. At least it’s only me. My burden to carry.

But being alone in it is scary. And guess what. I woke up the next day, not feeling like myself. Not feeling normal. Not feeling present.

And I’ve woken up every day since in a completely altered state of being. I’m obviously here, I’m breathing, I’m trying to do regular tasks that I do every day. But everything feels so much harder. Everything feels fuzzy. My body feels numb. Some days are worse than others, but for the most part, nothing ever feels normal. I’m realizing that what I’m experiencing is DPDR from a drug induced panic attack. And I’ve cried every single day since that fucking day. It’s been a full week and I’m still having a break from reality. I still feel fuzzy, and like my head and my body aren’t connected, and I’m feeling depressed. I have racing thoughts. I can’t think myself out of this. I know it might seem like I’m fully lucid if I’m able to write all of this, but I’m writing this from a dreamlike state of semi-reality. I still don’t feel real, and people and places don’t feel real. Temperature changes send me into a panic. I zone out and realize that I’m not in my head and even when I “come to” I’m still not FULLY zoned in. My ears and head feel clogged, or like they’re full of cotton balls. I want so badly to escape this feeling but no matter what I do, everything feels surreal. I have no sense of time. I cannot process words. Even writing this, I guarantee you that I forgot 80% of it already. I have to reread things several times to make sure they make sense. If I’m watching a television show, I feel like I’m seeing characters talking to each other but not absorbing anything being said. How am I supposed to live like this? I’m so fucking scared. I can’t eat without feeling weird. I can’t sleep without feeling weird. I can’t do anything. I’m supposed to start my new job on Monday, and I have to be fully aware to do my training, and I’m so afraid of failing because I can barely do the bare minimum right now. I’ve considered going to the hospital but what good would that do? They would think I’m having a psychotic break and admit me to a mental hospital, where I’d be surrounded by unfamiliar people and settings, and be unable to leave. And I’d ruin my life. I’d ruin my job opportunity that I spent 6 months post-grad trying to get hired for, and I finally did. I’d ruin my ability to make an income. I’m terrified of ruining my relationships with people right now because I need so much more support from everybody than I ever do. I am so fucking terrified of my life right now because I do not feel real. I convinced myself the other night that I actually died on Saturday and I am not really experiencing any of this. I have anxiety attacks every day now. Little things set me off. I had an anxiety attack at my mom’s today and she is worried about me. Everyone is worried and nobody knows what to do, including me. I cannot live like this. It’s affecting my day to day life in such a strong sense that I can’t do minimal things. Everything frightens me. I just want to feel normal again. So badly. I would do ANYTHING to feel okay again. I just want to be me. Not this shell of a person. I feel like I fucked up my brain.

This isn’t a cry for help. I know realistically there’s nothing that anyone can do. That helplessness has set in. This is just me yelling at the void and hoping it helps me feel something better than this. I want to be real again.

#self #help #dpdr #me #drug induced panic attack #trauma #depersonalisation and derealisation #delta 8

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faythelyse · 4 years

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Joji x Reader {female reader} Apocalyptic Setting <Part One>

The sound of your closest friends baby jolts you awake. You had fallen asleep sitting up in a chair near the window. You stand and stretch for a moment before walking into the kitchen. Jessica meets you at the doorway to the kitchen.

"We're officially out of food." She bounces her daughter on her knee.

"Alright, I'll grab Ashlee and we can hit that up this place we noticed coming back from our last haul. It looked like a department store or something. I have an extra cheese stick in my bag if Jade is hungry."

Jessica knods and sighs. You knew saving that cheese stick was a good call. After grabbing the snack for Jade you head to the garage where Ashlee was working on the truck we scored a few months ago. Ashlee notices you enter and slams her hand on the top. "We still need some gas for this bad boy!"

"No time like the present to go look for some?!" You add expecting a negative response.

Ashlees face turned sour. "We're out of food."

"Yep. You going."

"Well of course, but we just went on a trip 3 days ago. Those rations were supposed to last a week. Jess eats like a fucking pig." Ashlee starts throwing her gloves off onto the desk and prepares a bag for the emergency food trip we are underprepared for in all honesty.

"How much ammo do we have left?"

Ashlee sighs heavily "We were low last trip. We might have 5 or 6 shells left for the shotgun."

"And the handgun?" You interject.

"Fifteen." Ashlee finishes packing up leaving the shotgun for me to take. "I'm gonna take a smoke break. Meet me out front when your ready to roll." She puts the cigarette in her mouth and walks out.

Grabbing the gun you quickly head for your room to gather the essentials. Outside Ashlee was taking the last drag off her cigarette before flicking it to the road. I stare at the bikes in front of us wishing we had gas for the truck. "Jesus christ I hate these bikes, I'm wore out by the time we get to wherever we're going." Ashlee smiles. "Soon Y/N" Ashlee closes her eyes and daydreams for a moment. Imagining life with a car again.

About halfway there we stop and scout a bit. Make sure no one is out and about before we pull closer into this town.

Right on the edge of town we leave our bikes locked to a tree behind a small abandoned house. It was a soft pink color. It somewhat stood out making it easier to remember where we left our things. We chat quietly while making our way to a large department store.

The store was huge. The sign had fallen partially. A corner of the building was also caving in. Jessica, never going out on many supply trips didn't always realize the danger she put Ashlee and I in on a somewhat regular basis. Although we have become better at it over time.

As we arrived at the doors we became silent. Searching for any possible noises or animals that could get us in worse trouble than we were already putting ourselves in. Instead of going in through the front we found a side door that appeared quieter to open. Upon entering we were stunned to see lots of stuff still on the shelves. Why had this store not been hit so badly by looters. Shocked by the nostalgia and childlike joy we let our gaurd down. We casually walked down aisles and shared past memories that seemed insignificant then. We would give anything to be able to visit a store normally again. Buy a new dress to wear for date night or some shit.

"Holy shit, they have mother fucking WINE!!!"

Ashlee was almost in tears, and I couldn't contain my smile. We packed as many as we could. We still needed room for actual food.

Just then we both heard a single gunshot so we dropped immediately to the floor as quickly as possible. Readying our guns we slowly get up and sneak closer to the back of the store where the gun had fired. There is a hallway that leads back to the bathrooms and what I assume might be the head office or the workers lounge area. We see a shadow at first emerging from the hallway. We aim thinking it could be one of the infected, but it was just a man. He pulled out a walkie telling someone on the other end he's fine. Ashlee and I are frozen for a minute. We hadn't seen people in a long time. Hell it's even been awhile since we've seen an infected. They have been sparce lately. Probably just spreading out more. Although we weren't a very populated area anyway. Ashlee whispers "What do we do, ignore them?" I shrug not knowing myself. It would be risky to assume they are friendly. And if they were to rob us we would be left with nothing. Another man runs up, he has a large backpack on. Ashlee and I locked eyes for a moment. We had the same idea to potentially rob this man. I shake my head. "Maybe they will trade?" I whisper.

Ashlee shakes her head in disbelief that they would consider trading. We had not glanced back at the men for a minute, when we turned back to check on them they were gone. I turn back and shrug, if they were gone then we had no further issue. Ashlee and I nod knowing we should get a move on and wrap this up before we get spotted. While crouching we slowly walk around the nearest aisle where we are met face to face with the two men we had just spotted. Both shocked we all immediately stand, but none of us draw a weapon. After a solid 30 seconds of no speaking just staring I speak up

" We really just need to grab some food, we won't be any trouble." It was then that I noticed one of them was injured.

"You're hurt?" I said softly. Ashlee also softened her expression when she noticed the wound. Ashlee broke her silence as well, "Y/N is a healer of sorts, maybe we can help."

Ashlee and I are both suckers for wanting to help. The man with big sad brown eyes looked at me with some hope.

"Can you really hel-ehp" he stopped abruptly and grabbed the wound on his side that started to soak through his thick green coat. I couldn't tell the severity of it, I didn't want him to die though, so in the moment I just decided to say yes. His friend went alongside him to help support him. "My name is Ben" He proceeded to shake Ashlees hand and then my own. "This is George, nice to meet you. We were here looking for medical supplies, if you could help us out we would pay you back some how. Whatever you need, I promise. We'll work it off."

"I'm not a real doctor or anything man. I just started learning this stuff since the world went to shit. I've practiced on dogs, and cats, a few humans. Nothing too crazy. I've become pretty decent at sew up jobs. I just promise to do my best to help. If something goes wrong I just cant have you blaming me."

Ben smiled "Listen, its not like im going to find some heart surgeon out here. Anything you can do to help is better than whatever I could come up with."

Ashlee walks up to the other side of George and throws his arm over her neck. "I'll help walk him to the bikes."

I nod and quickly grab everything i can that is edible, even found a few seed packets. Elena will be stoked to add these to her garden.

We biked back to our little community that cosisted of 2 houses that have been conjoined by fencing in the two. Its somewhat protected by being hidden in the many trees that surround our community.

Jessica was sitting smoking outside. As she saw us pull up with two strangers she looked worried. I held up my hand to show her everything was okay and waved. We brought George in and laid him in a spare room we had set up for me to work on anyone who had been hurt. There was no bed, only a futon mattress had been laid on the floor.

"Set him down gently." Ben whispered.

Ashlee had a worried expression, I could tell she was worried about the blood loss. He appeared paler than before. I sat down and started preparing my equipment as fast as possible and urged Ashlee to grab some other things I needed.

As I neared being finished with sterilizing the needle I told everyone to leave the room. I can never concentrate while people watch. I had assumed George was knocked out when I reached down to start removing his jacket he grabbed my wrist.

"This is going to fucking hurt isn't it." He breathed. I nodded. I had nothing to numb him. Then I remembered the extra wine Ashlee and I had discovered. We had grabbed six bottles. I pulled out a bottle and handed it to George. He glanced it over.

"For the pain?"

"For the pain." I said as took it back from him to open it. After opening I asked if he would like a cup.

"Bottles fine, lets get this over with." He started to shrug off his jacket exposing the large gash on his side. Hopefully he hadn't punctured an organ or something I couldn't fix.

He took 3 large drinks and motioned for me to come to him. I started cleaning the wound to the best of my ability with what we had. It was time to start sewing. Sewing still makes me nervous.

I was ready to pierce skin when he interrupted.

"Do you have anything to bite on?"

I took the belt that was around my waist wrapped it up and handed it to him. He bit down and nodded to show he was ready.

I started and his eyes rolled back into his head, I kept going. I wanted this to be over as fast as possible. He started making a few small shrieks here and there but he was toughing it out rather well I thought.

As I was getting to the last few stitches his hand found my leg and grabbed it tightly. I felt horrible for causing him so much pain.

I started to just mumble I'm sorry over and over again until I had finally finished. His head fell back onto the pillow in exhaustion and agony. I leaned up and pressed my hand to his forehead and face and apologized some more. Trying to gauge how well he was actually doing. I stopped myself and realized I needed to finish by covering it with a bandage. I grabbed clean cloth from the cabinet and bandaged him. I look at him for a moment. I should grab his friend and let him know I've finished. He probably wants to wait with him until he wakes up. As I struggle to stand back up George's hand grabs mine and squeezes. I squeeze back giving him reasurrence, and leave to confront everyone.

Ben steps up to me immediately as i exit the room.

"What's the damage, is he cool? Are we good?"

I could tell he was nervous about the answer.

"I'm not sure yet honestly, he's all stiched up. He's also still alive and lucid which is a good sign. It's going to take a long time to heal. Maybe a month or two. It also needs to stay clean and free of infection. I recommend staying here until he's fully healed. Ben seemed pleased with my answers "Can I go see him now?" I nodded and he rushed in.

Ashlee pulled me to the side. "You reccomend they stay for two months?"

"Yes, that was my recommendation. He was hurt prerty bad, he shouldn't be moving at all for atleast 3 weeks. I think we should just chill. As long as he heals well, we could use their help."

Ashlee crosses her arms. "This is risky, but Im with you. It's nice to have new faces around."

"I agree" I smile, feeling slightly better that I may have saved someone's life.

#jojixreader #x reader #fanfiction #joji #f #female reader

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ariesfm-blog · 5 years

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hi ! my name is link ! i go by he / they pronouns , am 21+ & live in the cst timezone ! i’m an obnoxious aries & this is my idiot , max , who also happens to be an obnoxious aries because i believe in writing what i know JHGKFDLHLF . i’m really excited to be here , because plotless slice of life rps are my thing & i’m excited to get to know all of you & write with you !!! under the cut you’ll find misc. info & some wanted connections , but here are links to his stats page & his pinterest board , which hopefully will give you some extra insight . feel free to like this if you’d like to plot .but if you wanna plot on d*scord ( which is easier for me ) you can add me @ demogorgon ramsay#0039 !

( johnny seo, cismale, he/him ) who is that ? oh, it’s just MAXWELL “MAX” BAE the TWENTY-FOUR year old has been in beauhart for HIS WHOLE LIFE and is currently a BARTENDER. i’ve heard they can be CONFIDENT and HONEST, but also IMPATIENT and BRASH. maybe that’s why their anthem is SANCTUARY by JOJI and CAFFEINE JITTERS, DIRTY CONVERSE PAIRED WITH ALIEN SOCKS, PHONE NUMBERS WRITTEN ON NAPKINS makes me think of them.

misc. info : ( cw : mentions of death & drug use )

his mother died giving birth to him. though he doesn’t remember her ( obviously ) he still holds a bit of guilt & think it’s his fault that she died. but his dad is always quick to snuff that line of thought & holds absolutely no ill will towards max about it

all he’s ever heard is good things about her so he loves her or the idea of her really. he likes to imagine himself in the stories people tell him about her & it’s a comfort to him. it makes him feel like he kind of grew up with her even though he never got to meet her

his dad is a sweet person. full of laughs & kindness. also bad jokes ( this is where max gets his own humor from ). he’s the kind of dad that people wish for. he’s always been supportive of max no matter what & he listens to him whenever he needs it

when they were little they played catch & watched yu-gi-oh together. max still has all his yu-gi-oh cards stuffed in his closet somewhere. now they’re more likely to sit on his dad’s front porch & drink together while listening to music

his dad has never dated or remarried after his wife died because that was his soulmate & he doesn’t want to settle for anyone else & his dad has always told max to find that one person for him

max was miserable in school. he wasn’t good at it & none of it made any sense to him. so he struggled in graduating high school. & he tried college but he couldn’t stand it so he dropped out thankfully with no negative feedback from his dad

he’s kind of anxious & fidgety so it’s hard for him to pay attention ( anxiety & adhd nation make some noise !!! ) but if he gets focused on a project he’ll ignore his need to eat or anything else to work on it

he picked up making drinks from his dad at a young age ( imagine a twelve year old making cocktails that’s basically how it was ) & is really good at it so naturally he became a bartender. it’s not his dream job per se but he enjoys it a lot & makes good tips from it so he has no complaints about it

basically he’s pretty happy-go-lucky but he’s also an idiot & annoying about it. he can seem friendly enough at first but once you get close to him he’ll turn up that aries personality & get on your nerves ( but he’s also like a leech & will stick to you )

he’s really into aliens. he even has a ufo tattoo ! he will fight with anyone who doesn’t believe in them ( or cryptids or the supernatural in general ). the x-files is his favorite show & he wishes to be fox mulder every day of his life. he’s also a diehard boogara

he’s a big conspiracy theorist. he believes in lizard people, the illuminati & that queen elizabeth is a cannibal & that’s how she’s stayed alive for so long. he’s very paranoid about stuff. he’s one of those people who read the terms & conditions on everything so that he doesn’t agree to some company stealing his dna & selling it on the dark web. he also refuses to pick up the phone because he thinks the government is listening in on them ( he only makes calls when he’s high & out of it )

& he loves true crime. he’s always listening to true crime podcasts & watching true crime docs

he loves energy drinks & coffee. he drinks them so much that he’s shaking about 75% of the day but he never listens when people tell him he’s gonna get a heart attack

he’s messy. his apartment is messy. his hair is messy. his entire energy is just messy. but he thinks his personality makes up for it

he can kinda cook but honestly he’s lazy & just prefers to order in food 95% of the time. also he has a bad habit of forgetting stuff like he’ll turn the oven on then get distracted then wonder what the weird smell in his place is

for the most part he’s nice but he does participate in “friendly” dragging. if you’re friends he will clown you & sometimes he can hurt someone’s feelings even when he doesn’t mean to ( more than likely he will not apologize for it he’ll just ignore it til the other person gets over it hopefully )

always losing his headphones. he settles for those crappy $5 earbuds that you find at dollar stores so he won’t feel bad for losing them anymore. honestly he loses everything. who knows how many sets of keys he’s gone through

he’s super clumsy. always tripping, always running into stuff. he’s broken a million glasses at the bar

he’s pretty flirty, pretty charming. he uses it to his advantage at the bar, draws in customers in order to get tips & phone numbers

he’s a soft thot. he’s easy to sleep with but he’s kind & caring about all his partners

he’s a really good boyfriend & he falls in love easily, but he’s forgetful & accidentally negligent sometimes. like he’ll go days without responding to texts or checking up on people. he doesn’t mean to he just does

he loves pins, patches & colorful socks. everything he wears is covered in them. most of the things he wears aren’t even related to his interests because people just give them random things & he wears them anyway

he can never open jars his beefy arms are useless

a fan of punny humor. he’s the king of dad jokes

he’s that person who puts his legs up on the dash of the car or hangs them out the window

wishes he knew how to skateboard but doesn’t even know how to ride a bike

takes in random cats & dogs he finds on the street. sometimes he tries to find their owners & sometimes he doesn’t but it’s fine

he’s addicted to those edited audios that are like “( song ) but you’re listening to it in the bathroom at a party & you’re crying because you’re alone” & he’s obsessed with joji so of course those are his favorite

he’s one of those pansexuals who call themselves gay constantly

uses uwu in texts to be ironic & annoying. most of his words have w replacing certain letters to sound like a smol

he gets stoned at like three am & tries to call people & ask them stupid high people questions like “if two vegans fight is it still called beef”

he’s also never left beauheart or gone too far away. just a few cities at most. he has a bit of a stoner paranoia about it. like if he leaves the state something bad will happen to him or his dad or loved ones

he’s terrified of horror movies. especially ones with clowns. he refuses to watch them because he’s convinced that he’ll accidentally summon a demon or a ghost through osmosis or something JHGDLFKGHD

wanted connections :

rooommates ( one or two )

exes ( any gender. it can be messy or friendly. i’m willing to have max be the issue though with him it’ll always be baby issues since he’s nice & a tryhard JGHKFDHFKGFD )

hookups / fwbs ( any gender. singular experiences or regular type things )

childhood plots for those who’ve lived in beauheart ( childhood friends, first kisses / crushes, all that good stuff )

high school sweethearts

flirtationships that don’t go anywhere

one-sided crushes ( don’t mind who has the feelings ! )

mutual pining but they’re both idiots & have no idea

party buddies. conspiracy theory buddies. true crime buddies. any of these can be combined

tinder date ( it can go well or not )

frequent customers ( better yet, frequent customers that he flirts with. give me the cliche phone number on napkins plot)

maybe you don’t tip him for whatever reason & he’s had a bad day & he’s like “bro wtf”

teach him how to ride a bike KJFDHSLGJF

maybe you try to get him to leave beauheart & you have to deal with his crybaby ramblings about how something bad will happen

beef with him over the existence of supernatural things

be the person he calls at three am after eating too many edibles & deal with his stoned questions

try to make him watch a horror movie

for someone newer to town: be that person who makes a “your mom” joke & have to deal with that awkward “my mom’s dead” conversation

maybe he “accidentally” stole your cat or dog & you try to get it back but he doesn’t believe that it’s yours even though you clearly have proof

maybe you’re the person who always ends up finding the stuff he loses & you’re stuck in this constant act of returning & you’re tired of it

literally anything you can think of i’m probably down for it

#stories.intro #◟ * 𝐲𝐨𝐮'𝐫𝐞 𝐚 𝐬𝐥𝐨𝐩𝐩𝐲 𝐛𝐢𝐭𝐜𝐡! ⤿ ooc .

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grimoire2020aa · 4 years

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Ten Mistakes New Herb Gardeners Make (and How to Avoid Them!)

Mistake 1: Growing from seed. When you first start out trying to grow fresh herbs, I recommend you begin by trying to grow from seedlings rather than planting your own seeds. These great little starter plants are widely available in grocery stores in the late spring. For the same price as a packet of fresh herbs from the produce section, you can buy your own little starter plant. Lots can go wrong in the seed to seedling transition (including not thinning out plants properly), so its probably best to begin by skipping that complicated task or you are in danger of washing out before you really begin.

Mistake 2: Starting with the wrong varieties. I recommend you start by trying to grow fresh basil. It is the perfect trainer herb. First, basil grows quickly, allowing you to observe the effects of your care more easily. Second, basil leaves wilt visibly when not watered enough, but recovers well if you water the wilted plant. This makes basil a great ‘canary in the mineshaft’ to help you figure out how much water is enough.

Mistake 3: Watering herbs like houseplants. Instead, water herbs a moderate amount every day. While some houseplants flourish with one solid watering per week, most delicate herbs require moderate and regular watering. This is particularly true during hot summer months. If you have good drainage at the bottom of your pot (at least a drainage hole, possibly rocks beneath the soil), it will be difficult to water herbs too much.

Mistake 4: Not cutting early and often. As a novice gardener, it may seem like your puny little plant just isn’t ready for a trip to the barber, but then you will find yourself sitting there wishing for leaves without much success. Again, basil is a great herb to practice pruning. As with all herbs, you want to cut the herb just above a set of growing leaves. With basil, when you cut the plant that way, the originally trimmed stem will no longer grow. However, two new stems will grow around the original cutting, creating a “V” shape (see the photo above, can you spot the Vs?). If you don’t trim basil aggressively, it will continue to grow straight up, and become too tall and top-heavy. Making your first trim approximately 3-4” above the soil produces a nice sturdy plant. Of course you want to be sure you are always leaving a few good sturdy leaves on the plant (see below). As it continues to grow, continue to prune it approximately every 3-4” for a nice solid plant. I like to let it grow for some time and then cut back to within 2-3 inches of the original cut. After only a few early trial cuts, this usually makes for a nice clipping with plenty of basil to use for a pizza.

Mistake 5: Taking the leaves from the wrong place. When you are just starting out it seems to make so much sense to pick off a few big leaves around the bottom of the plant, and let those tender little guys at the top keep growing. Wrong. Leave those large tough old guys at the bottom alone. They are the solar panels that power your herb’s growth. Once your plant is big enough to sustain a decent harvest, keep on taking from the top, as you have been when you were pruning. That way you get all those tender new herbs that are so tasty, and your plant gets to keep its well developed solar power system in place. Plus, if you pluck from the base and leave the top intact, you get a tall skinny plant that will flop over from its own weight (and yes, I know this from experience). When you pluck from the top, instead of clipping off just below a pair of leaves, you want to clip off just above a pair of leaves. It is a bit counter-intuitive as a novice, but trust me it works. The place where the leaf joins the stem is where new growth will occur when your plant sends off new stems in a V.

Mistake 6: Letting your plants get too randy. If you are pruning regularly, this may never become an issue, but unless you are growing something for its edible flowers, be sure to cut back herbs before they start growing flowers. My friend once brought me to her backyard garden and pointed, frustrated, at her wimpy, small basil plants. “I just keep tending them, but they don’t even produce enough leaves to put on a salad!” she lamented. I pointed to the glorious stalk of flowers at the top of each plant, “That’s your problem” I explained. Because herbs are kind of like college boys: if you give them half a chance, they will focus all their energy on procreation and neglect growth. If you want leaves, keep cutting off the little flower buds whenever you find them (see photo above), and it will encourage your plant to focus on growing more leaves.

Mistake 7: Using tired soil with no nutrients. Tired soil that has been sitting in your garden or lawn for ages often looks grey and a little depressing. Would you want to grow in that stuff? Give your plants a dose of the good stuff and they’ll thank you for it. I grow my herbs in a combination of potting soil, used coffee grounds (with a near-neutral PH, available for free at Starbucks), and organic compost. If I have some on hand, I also throw in crushed egg shells. Those without access to compost (and no deep commitment to organic growing) may find Miracle grow useful. My momma swears by it for tomatoes. A diluted solution of Miracle grow occasionally can help many herbs flourish.

Mistake 8: Getting in a rut. There is an element to passion about herb gardening. In order to be good at it, you need to feel rewarded. So don’t stick too long with one or two herbs just because they work. Branch out to a few other basic herbs that you will use regularly in your kitchen. There are few things more rewarding as an urban foodie than being able to pop out to the fire escape to clip fresh herbs to use in my cooking. Once you have become comfortable with basil, I recommend moving on to try growing oregano, mint, rosemary and thyme. All are regularly useful herbs in the kitchen, and all are relatively easy to grow. You will notice that rosemary cleaves after cutting in a somewhat similar way to basil, but grows much more slowly, so the effect is difficult to notice. Some plants also respond to clipping by throwing out more full leaves at their base. I have long wanted to grow cilantro but have not had much luck with it.

Mistake 9: You mean there’s more than one kind of mint?When choosing herbs, read the label carefully. For example, there are two main varieties of oregano: Mediterranean and Mexican. Mediterranean oregano is the more common variety, and what you likely own if you have conventional dried oregano in your cupboard. I have Mexican oregano growing on my back fire escape. I love Mexican oregano in spicy dishes, for making beans from scratch, and often use it in tomato dishes where I don’t want the flavor to seem too much like marinara. Similarly, there are many different kinds of mint. You don’t want to be thinking of the pungent spearmint plant and accidentally take home the much more subtle (and not mojito savvy) applemint by mistake.

Mistake 10: Feed me Seymour! If you are planting in soil instead of pots, take care that your cute little herb seedling doesn’t become a giant plant that takes over your garden. A word of warning for oregano and mint: both can be voracious growers. If you are planting outside in a garden, rather than in pots, you may want to consider potting these herbs and then burying the pots in the ground. This will add a measure of control to the root systems of these herbs, which can otherwise take over a garden and strangle nearby neighbors. When in doubt, check out wikipedia, they usually are careful to point out which herbs are in danger of overwhelming your garden.

Some really useful info here if you’re new to herb gardening.

inkedbettycrocker

Great tips, especially from my own trial & error over the years in growing herbs. Also on the one about mint, there are TONS of mint varieties that are delicious. I grow apple mint, chocolate mint, spear mint, and traditional mint. All have a subtle difference and are delicious in fruit salad, tea, sangria, and other dishes.

Source:

skinnygourmet.blogspot.co.uk

#witch tips #witchery #witchblr #gardening #herbs #herbal magic #witch

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weederfall18-blog · 5 years

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Birthday Weekend with lots of Celebrating!

ha ha. it's not actually super-glamorous to turn 45

This past weekend was my birthday (woot! 45!) and I had a pretty great weekend from start to finish. Usually we have a little family dinner or gathering to recognize each other's bdays, but this year my bday was (happily) eclipsed by my nephew's high school graduation (more on that below!). Obviously a high school graduation is a more festive and important life event than a 45th birthday. Nonetheless, I was feeling festive, and I was especially in the mood to have some friends over and have a friends party... so I decided to throw myself a bday party!

My day started off great with a trip to the farmers market, a great workout, and a nice long yoga practice at home. Then I started getting ready for my party, and one of my best besties (ever since high school!) came over to spend some time together and help me get ready. It was so fun to see her and to have company as I puttered in the kitchen and back yard.

Because she knows me *so well*, she brought me some amazing bday gifties (all edible, of course!) - fresh mulberries from her farmers market, a gorgeous basket of strawberries, and two baggies of "energy bites" from a fancy retreat center that she went to recently... so many delicious treats!

MULBERRIES

I just love mulberries so much. They are funny looking (like giant caterpillar berries) and so sweet and delicious. A long time ago, my pal and I were talking about mulberries and how there is a vendor at her farmers market who sells them. I have never seen them at the markets I go to, and I was so touched and stoked that she remembered my love of mulberries!! There are only a couple left and I am going to savor them.

Birthday Lasagna!

For my birthday, I really wanted to have a vegan potluck... even though only two of the people I invited are vegan, everyone else very lovingly played along (thanks, pals!). I declared it to be a Mediterranean-themed vegan potluck and told everyone I would make a vegan lasagna, some cookies and buy ice cream.

At first I was going to make minestrone soup, which I also love, but then I soon realized that I had to make lasagna instead because lasagna is the #1 food of all time and I love it so much. I actually made TWO lasagnas - one for the party and another one to eat all week. Because the idea of going to all the work of making lasagna and not having leftovers was just too tragic. I used my very own "Amey's Birthday Lasagna" recipe - a recipe I am very proud of!

glorious array of goodness!

My pal L brought this awesome mix of spreads and veggies and breads. SO RAD. Regular hummus, beet hummus, a very cool pomegranate and olive tapenade, olives, veggies, pita chips. So much good stuff!

I wish you could see just how huge this platter really is - my friend J brought this huge and glorious salad platter with one of my most beloved spring ingredients: fava beans!!!! Oh man it was really good: spinach, crunch from sugar snap peas and celery, shredded beets, ** favas ** and a creamy avocado. Plus some nice dressing she brought too. So good.

This picture looks silly but this salad was really good and special! J brought a really nice salad with greens (underneath all that good stuff) and then when we were ready to eat, she poured on a big mix of veggies that had been marinating in dressing: cukes, tomatoes, corn, and cranberries! It was really good! I like the idea of marinating the veggies in the dressing for maximum flavor delivery.

Yaaaasssssssss. Dolmas for President! M and M brought a glorious array of dolmas that were so extremely good. Who even thought of dolmas and figured out that they could be so delicious and perfect??

Another non-stellar photo - but this was a really nice salad. K brought an orzo and lentil salad with "a bunch of other good stuff" ha ha. Artichoke hearts, sliced almonds, bell peppers... it was a nice hearty salad to go with all the other lighter salads.

Birthday party dinner plate - first pass!

It turns out that a Mediterranean theme vegan potluck is a good way to go! It's a pretty loose theme, and people will bring delicious and overall pretty healthy food, which feels good. Even after eating this huge plate of food, I didn't feel like I had eaten way too much. It was perfect!

We had lots of different drinks on hand - fancy juices, fizzy water, beer and wine, and we even made Aperol Spritzes! I almost never drink alcohol, but I'll make an occasional exception for an Aperol spritz. They are so beautiful and not too boozy and transport me back to my wonderful trip to Italy with Mr VE&T a few years ago.

Cherries are probably my very favorite fruit of all time and I promised my party pals that I would have a big bowl of cherries on hand. I love that cherries are in season for my birthday, I think it makes me feel a special kinship with them. I have been eating so many cherries, you guys. SO MANY.

cherries are the best, forever and ever, AMEN.

In addition to the big beautiful platter of salad, J also brought a big bowl of organic strawberries, straight from her farm. SO good. I feel so lucky to live in the land of strawberries.

We had a really fun evening, eating dinner outside (with blankets and pillows to keep cozy). It was so fun. See our new solar-powered party lights? I love them!

Vegan Cheesecake

My daring and wonderful pal A brought a homemade vegan cheese cake with some nice raspberry sauce! It's so beautiful. Then she took one bite of her own creation and declared "oh no, this cheesecake is terrible!" Ha ha. I didn't think it was terrible, but it was better to think of it as something other than a cheesecake!!

Cooooooooooookies

I decided to make cookies for my party and figured that in the end, there is no better cookie than the classic chocolate chip cookie. None of our guests were gluten-free, so I went for a straight up gluten fest! These are the Soft Set Chocolate Chip Cookies from the Aquafaba Cookbook, my favorite chocolate chip cookie ever. I made a double batch, because I made them the day before the party and I still wasn't sure how many people were going to come. Now I have a big bag of cookies in the freezer, which is kinda like a birthday present to myself.

When I told my trustworthy pal J that I was going to make cookies and buy ice cream, she wisely suggested that we make ice cream sandwiches. DUH. So I went all out and bought a ton of vegan ice cream. I didn't know what kind people would want, or if someone might prefer coconut base or almond base etc etc. OH SHOOT, I had to buy four kinds of ice cream. Ha ha ha. Now we have so much ice cream in the freezer to eat. Another bday gift to myself. I bought Coconut Bliss Dark Chocolate, So Delicious Cold Brew (my new favorite!), So Delicious Salted Caramel Cluster, and Ben and Jerry's Cherry Garcia. Heaven on Earth!

Dessert Plate!

My cheesecake slice with raspberry sauce, and my ice cream sandwich (half cold brew, half cherry garcia). I don't know if you can see, but I also put out a bowl of mini chocolate chips so that we could roll the outside edges of our ice cream sammies in mini chips. yes! These cookies are perfect for ice cream sandwiches because they are so soft, so you can bit through them and they don't crack or crumble. I highly suggest ice cream sandwiches as a summer activity.

In case you were wondering. Snoopy is still adorable.

He's had most of his bottom front teeth removed, and now his little tongue often slips out into a sweet little DERP. I love it.

Graduation!!!

Like I mentioned before, this year I shared my bday weekend with my wonderful youngest nephew, who graduated from high school on Friday. We all went to his high school graduation and it was a really powerful and moving day. All the seniors had to present their senior projects and they each gave a speech. It was so emotional and wonderful. I think you can see how excited we both were.

Of course on graduation night, my nephew went off to have fun with his pals and it sounds like they had a fun night. But we were determined to have a big family party for him -- to celebrate his accomplishments and our love for him. I made a big huge chocolate cake! (I used a triple batch of batter from the Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World). I also made one little cupcake, which I inverted and used as a graduation cap. The mortar board is a graham cracker with black frosting on it! I even bought yellow fondant to make a little edible tassle, and used parchment paper for the mini diploma. I went to the party store for the fondant, and to get that nice silvery cake board, and ended up also spending $6 on a tiny little container of edible gold star glitters. I mean, how could I possibly have resisted??

I've never learned how to use all the fancy frosting tips, but I really wanted this cake to look fancy, so I did my best! I was really happy with how it turned out, and - more importantly - it was also super delicious and well appreciated by all!

What a wonderful weekend of festivities and fun and family. Phew! This weekend, I have a much more lowkey agenda. There will be sitting around, no baking, no parties... just some pet snuggles, yoga practice, and cherry eating.

Also! Thanks to everyone for entering my giveaway for a copy of the wonderful new book "Wicked Healthy." I used the random number generator... and Josiane Richer is the winner!

Congratulations, Josiane!

Send me your mailing address and the book will be on its way to you.

Even if you didn't win, check out my review, and put this book on your wish list!

Source: http://veganeatsandtreats.blogspot.com/2018/06/birthday-weekend-with-lots-of.html

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stiles-wtf · 5 years

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Holidays and Dogs: Keep Your Pup Happy at Every Age

The post Holidays and Dogs: Keep Your Pup Happy at Every Age by Audrey Pavia appeared first on Dogster. Copying over entire articles infringes on copyright laws. You may not be aware of it, but all of these articles were assigned, contracted and paid for, so they aren’t considered public domain. However, we appreciate that you like the article and would love it if you continued sharing just the first paragraph of an article, then linking out to the rest of the piece on Dogster.com.

Two years ago, I did something I always advise others not to do this time of year: I adopted a puppy. I’d been thinking about getting another dog but had no intention of doing it during the holidays. I had gift buying to do, parties coming up and a long car trip to my cousins’ house on Christmas Day. But a week before Christmas, while buying cat litter at the pet supply store, I fell in love with a little black puppy who was up for adoption. I took him home that day. It was quite the hassle trying to fit little 9-week-old Mookie into our holiday plans, but it did give me the chance to really pamper him in a very special way. Holidays and dogs don’t have to be a stressful. If you’re lucky enough to have a puppy, adult or senior dog in your life this holiday season, you can do a lot to make him feel special.

Holidays and puppies

Any dog under the age of a year old is considered a puppy, and it’s easy to see why. Young dogs are playful, full of energy and always up for new adventures. Use the holidays as a time to pamper your pup by giving him the vital socialization that every pup needs. The experiences he has at this stage of his life will shape his future.

Take him on outings. Make him part of the festivities while also getting him some exercise and socialization. Bring him with you to watch a tree lighting, or take him with you on an evening stroll through the neighborhood to look at Christmas lights. If you’ve got snow on the ground, find a fenced-in area and let him help you build a snowman.

Introduce him to guests. Use guests as an opportunity to give your pup positive experiences with new people. Ask guests to greet your pup with a treat so he associates visitors with something good. Dog lovers who come over may even be willing to go outside and play with your pup, tossing him a toy he can catch and return. If children are part of the festivities, ask them to help you socialize your pup by letting them feed and play with him. Supervise all of your pup’s interactions with children, as you want the experience to be positive for everyone.

Keep him safe. The holidays can be full of hazards for young dogs. If your puppy is still in the chewing stage, make sure he can’t get ahold of holiday decorations, gift-wrapping accessories and kids’ toys. Strings of lights can be particularly hazardous to a puppy, who can get burned or electrocuted if he gnaws on the cord.

Holidays and adult dogs

Your adult dog has seen a few holidays come and go and may be used to the hustle and bustle. He may even feel a bit neglected because you’re so busy with shopping and preparing for company. This year, make it special for him while also taking care to keep him safe.

Buy holiday gifts for your dog. If you’ve never watched a dog open his own gifts on Christmas or Hanukkah, you don’t know what you’re missing. Buy him a few new toys or treats, wrap them like you would any gift, then help him open the first one when it’s time. If your pooch is like most dogs, he’ll figure it out quickly and will be tearing at the paper to get at the next gift.

Watch the treats. Though you might be tempted to share your holiday meal with your dog, keep him away from rich foods. They will upset his digestive system (and may cause a bout of holiday diarrhea) and, in the case of certain foods like onions and chocolate, can cause serious illness. If you want to pamper him by giving him a taste of some of your holiday food, limit it to a small amount of turkey, chicken or lean meat served with his regular dinner.

Keep him close. When friends and relatives come over to spend the holidays with you, warn them not to leave doors or gates open. To be on the safe side, make sure your dog is wearing a collar with an ID tag bearing your name, address and phone number in the event he should get out.

Holidays and senior dogs

Senior dogs know the drill around the holidays, and many try to stay out of the way with all the commotion going on. Because of this, it can be easy for them to get lost in the shuffle. Give your older dog some extra attention to let him know you still love him this time of year by making him a special part of the holidays.

Dress him up. Pet product retailers go crazy offering all kinds of holiday apparel for dogs at the holidays. Canine Christmas sweaters are particularly popular and come in all kinds of styles, colors and patterns. If you have a sweater-loving dog, this is the time of year to spend some money on a too-cute holiday sweater.

If your pooch isn’t the sweater type, you can still dress him up with a holiday collar. Glitter, jingle bells, Christmasy bows and an assortment of other cheery decorations adorn holiday dog collars these days.

You might also want to dress him up with a holiday bandanna. My senior Aussie-mix, Candy, gets to wear a kerchief adorned with turkeys and pumpkins on Thanksgiving and a blue one covered with white snowflakes at Christmastime.

Take your dog’s photo. Plenty of pet stores and grooming shops offer pet photos with Santa. Dress your senior dog up in holiday cheer with a special collar, sweater or bandanna, and have his photo taken with old St. Nick. Or, if you like to send holiday greeting cards that include a family portrait, include your senior dog in this year’s photo. Doll him up for the occasion, and help him feel like he’s an important member of the family.

This piece was originally published in 2017.

An award-winning writer and editor, Audrey Pavia is a former managing editor of Dog Fancy magazine and former senior editor of The AKC Gazette. She is the author of The Labrador Retriever Handbook (Barrons) and has written extensively on horses as well as other pets. She shares her home in Norco, California, with two rescue dogs, Candy and Mookie.

Editor’s note: This article appeared in Dogster magazine. Have you seen the new Dogster print magazine in stores? Or in the waiting room of your vet’s office? Subscribe now to get Dogster magazine delivered straight to you!

Read more about dogs and holidays on Dogster.com:

Edible Holiday Gifts for Dogs and Dog Lovers

5 Poisonous Plants for Dogs You Need to Look Out for During the Holiday Season

8 Ways to Take the Stress Out of Holiday Travel With Your Dog

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buynewsoul · 5 years

Text

Holidays and Dogs: Keep Your Pup Happy at Every Age

Holidays and puppies

Holidays and adult dogs

Holidays and senior dogs

This piece was originally published in 2017.

Read more about dogs and holidays on Dogster.com:

Edible Holiday Gifts for Dogs and Dog Lovers

5 Poisonous Plants for Dogs You Need to Look Out for During the Holiday Season

8 Ways to Take the Stress Out of Holiday Travel With Your Dog

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jeffreyrwelch · 5 years

Text

Holidays and Dogs: Keep Your Pup Happy at Every Age

Holidays and puppies

Holidays and adult dogs

Holidays and senior dogs

This piece was originally published in 2017.

Read more about dogs and holidays on Dogster.com:

Edible Holiday Gifts for Dogs and Dog Lovers

5 Poisonous Plants for Dogs You Need to Look Out for During the Holiday Season

8 Ways to Take the Stress Out of Holiday Travel With Your Dog

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daddyslittlejuliet · 6 years

Text

Holidays and Dogs: Keep Your Pup Happy at Every Age

Holidays and puppies

Holidays and adult dogs

Holidays and senior dogs

Read more about dogs and holidays on Dogster.com:

Edible Holiday Gifts for Dogs and Dog Lovers

5 Poisonous Plants for Dogs You Need to Look Out for During the Holiday Season

8 Ways to Take the Stress Out of Holiday Travel With Your Dog

The post Holidays and Dogs: Keep Your Pup Happy at Every Age appeared first on Dogster.

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grublypetcare · 6 years

Text

Holidays and Dogs: Keep Your Pup Happy at Every Age

Holidays and puppies

Holidays and adult dogs

Holidays and senior dogs

Read more about dogs and holidays on Dogster.com:

Edible Holiday Gifts for Dogs and Dog Lovers

5 Poisonous Plants for Dogs You Need to Look Out for During the Holiday Season

8 Ways to Take the Stress Out of Holiday Travel With Your Dog

The post Holidays and Dogs: Keep Your Pup Happy at Every Age appeared first on Dogster.

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fundforteachers · 7 years

Photo

Silencing Students’ (and personal) Inner Critics

Kate More (Citizens of the World Charter Schools - Kansas City. MO) used her Fund for Teachers grant to explore at a Creativity Workshop in Reykjavik, Iceland, the concept of creativity. Her goal in attending was to support diverse thinkers and learners and implement strategies to help students, staff and the community hone creativity despite fear and discomfort. Along the way, she faced her own fear and discomfort, as well.

Iceland totally amazed me. I attended the Creativity Workshop in Reykjavik and had the opportunity to work with some of the greatest minds in education. We discussed obstacles and hurdles that keep us from stretching our students’ comfort zones in the classroom and how to pull beauty from chaos - which is a pretty good description of most classrooms now and then - chaos.

Like a lot of teachers, I have a side-hustle that keeps me busy after school. I have a small photography business that grew from taking family portraits of my low-income students who otherwise wouldn't have such memories captured. It just grew from there. Part of my own personal journey with this fellowship was to challenge my own notions of perfection and creativity in photography. It is the medium in which I feel I am the strongest, but also that which I am the most critical of myself. I had a tougher time with this than I thought. Iceland is full of ridiculously picture-esque vistas, and my inner critic was screaming much of the time: "Kate, you are not giving this justice. Way too over exposed. Crappy composition. You didn't bring a filter for long exposures at the waterfalls, are you kidding?"

I gave myself a pre-test of sorts when I arrived and again at the conclusion of my trip after attending the Creativity Conference. The biggest change I saw: I was noticing my critic and allowing that quiet voice to fade out to another ear. As an art teacher, I do not expect or want perfection from my students. A fantastic book called "Beautiful Oops" helps prove this point in my classroom: mistakes can create something amazing, something new, something we never knew was possible.

I realized I have to practice this same philosophy in my own artwork, despite carrying the "I'm an art teacher, therefore my artwork should be pristine" mindset. I am still working on this, as any habit takes time, but taking what I learned from the workshop to apply to my OWN work really set the concept and its significance into stone for me and jazzed me up for the new school year. And let's be honest, that is tough for everyone after two months of eating slow-cooked omelettes, going to the pool and watching Ellen :)

Check out Kate’s photography here.

I also learned a lot of small things by simply talking to locals and having the awesome opportunity to visit a family's home and dine with them and their children for a night. Here are a few big categories that resonated with me and make me want to return to this amazing country:

Iceland & Animals:

Bugs: Almost none. No mosquitoes. No ticks when hiking. No screens on windows. It's glorious.

Horses: Everywhere. And their hair is always photogenic and luscious in the crazy Iceland winds. They are used for farming, hobby, transportation and touring.

Sheep: This is a big industry here, both for wool and for meat. Farmers let them roam free all summer - truly all over. You see them in little families climbing mountains, drinking from glacier streams and hanging out by waterfalls. In the Fall, at least one farmer from each farm is required to help wrangle up all of the sheep to return them to their homes for the winter months. They are tagged, so after they are all herded, they are then sorted by farm. Horses are used most often, but some farmers now use drones so they can have more of an idea of where to put their herding efforts.

Puffins: Puffins are both beautiful and edible here. However, the country monitors these populations really closely with strict regulations. If there is ever a dip, hunting puffins becomes illegal nationwide until they return to a healthy population. Puffin is usually described as a gamey taste.

Miscellaneous Info I Learned and LOVED:

Mr. and Mrs. are just not used here. People refer to you by your first name if you are a friend, neighbor, teacher or even the Prime Minister.

Speaking of, the Prime Minister's address is well-known to the public, and it isn't uncommon to run into him at the grocery store, walking his dog or to just visit at his home.

When you have a baby here, mothers get 3 months guaranteed paid leave, fathers get 3 months, and the couple gets an additional 3 months to divide up to whoever needs it. We just had dinner with a local who has 7 weeks of vacation to burn in addition to his baby leave.

There is also a dating app to check if you are related to people in Iceland! Since the country's population is so small, if you meet someone at a party or a bar that you're interested in, you want to double check if you are related in any way before pursing them.

I would highly recommend the Creativity Conference to any teacher who feels stagnant or that they want to reach students who strive a little too hard for perfection or to the student who feels lost in numbers and reading does not come easily. This conference can be a benefit to all types of classrooms. And Iceland, of course. Definitely go, but go to Costco ahead of time to bring snacks because a cup of soup is $25.

Kate works in urban education in Kansas City, MO, where she teaches elementary art. Prior to teaching art, she taught English as a second language, writing and social studies at a dual language school. While born and raised in Wisconsin, Kate attended Iowa State University where she received a Bachelors of the Arts in Art and Deign with a minor in Spanish and Psychology. She received her Master's in Education from the University of Missouri St. Louis in 2015. She has 3 pet free frogs who are regulars in her classroom named Sam, Brown Sugar, and Reina.

#Fund for Teachers #FFTFellow #Iceland #Creativity #Creativity Workshop #photography #teaching #profdev #teacher grant #fellowship

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jeffreyrwelch · 6 years

Text

Holidays and Dogs: Keep Your Pup Happy at Every Age

Holidays and puppies

Holidays and adult dogs

Holidays and senior dogs

Read more about dogs and holidays on Dogster.com:

Edible Holiday Gifts for Dogs and Dog Lovers

5 Poisonous Plants for Dogs You Need to Look Out for During the Holiday Season

8 Ways to Take the Stress Out of Holiday Travel With Your Dog

The post Holidays and Dogs: Keep Your Pup Happy at Every Age appeared first on Dogster.

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