#but whenever i hear someone who grew up in the suburbs and had access to superior education and stability whine

[jade-curtiss]

I don't know how people put up with the fake "we accept you the way you are 😔" that never even commits to the bit that comes from relatives about anything ever. Suck it up. And still pretend that kind of relationship is healthy and good to maintain. But. I'm not that kind of bitch, and I don't entertain that kind of bitch either. Either you cut the ties or you shut up about it, I'm not, I'm never the right person to talk to when it comes to that kind of thing.

#i think it's so fucking annoying when poor little people do everything they can to never risk their stability #like ok i'm sick of coddling that kind of people #they can be poor little sorrowful misunderstood people with every excuses in the world to not to shit on their own #i don't have to pretend i endorse it nor can understand it holy shit #i mean i can only answer with condescendance to that kind of whining ngl #and no don't bring poverty and disability into this most of the time the real excuse is that their situation is materially stable #and that hardly ever gets any deeper #at least in the exemples i've had to deal with and i guess they aren't universal #but whenever i hear someone who grew up in the suburbs and had access to superior education and stability whine #about how their family repress them #i have to do everything in my power to not actively make fun of them if they do that more than once #because get up get out and work bitch because there's noooo way I'm gonna pay attention to that kind of shit

[odinsblog]

Hey I have a question for you. I grew up in a city with high Black and Latino population, I myself am Latino. I have a group of non-ethnic white friends that I absolutely love, however, they are constantly using AAVE and it bothers me to no end. Mind you, my friends grew up in suburbs and had somewhat cushiony lives. So my question to you is how do I bring this up “lightly”? I don’t want to hurt their feelings but at the same time I’m like fuck that.

Also do you have any videos you might recommend on the matter? I am a big fan of your blog and I love the different perspectives you bring to light.

Have a good one!

- S.H.

Hey! That’s a tough one for me because I’ve never really been in that situation before (not because I don’t have any white friends, but because fortunately the ones I’ve had haven’t acted that way). I’m not certain that there’s a completely “light” way to broach the subject, and even if I could think of such a way, I’m not sure that I’d suggest that approach.

They’re your friends, and I get that, so I’m not saying to beat the snot outta them, but if it makes YOU uncomfortable, then maybe they deserve to experience what uncomfortable feels like too.

Sometimes, feeling our anger/pain is a part of learning. I am not one of those Black people who believes in a lot of gentle handholding with white people where racism is involved. If I were a tad bit more cynical—and I’m not, yet—then I’d say that this is the Information Age, where almost anything you want to know is at your fingertips; and many many Black people have been writing about this far longer and far better than I have, so some white people are either consciously or unconsciously making a choice to remain ignorant on this topic.

Look, one of the BIG problems America has in taking on racism is that people always tend to place white fragility ahead of the harm and discomfort that their racism causes—that is completely backwards. If they are really friends and truly good white people™ then you should be able to speak relatively freely with them, and a good friendship should be able to withstand some blunt honesty, right?

Sometimes our real friends need our directness

Offhand, I don’t have any videos that I can think of to help, but if you go to my blog’s homepage (not just the tumblr version) and use the search feature there (upper left hand corner), search for “AAVE” or “aversive racism” or “vocal black face” or “casual racism,” you might find something helpful. SN: I cannot access the desktop version of tumblr anymore, so I apologize in advance for broken links in my music player - I can’t fix them.

And I *almost* feel like I should apologize for this last part, but sadly whenever I couldn’t make this point to someone online, it always worked once I said something like, “would you be comfortable doing the same thing if it was homophobic jokes?” Idk why it takes going there sometimes …. it’s almost like some white people cannot “get” anti-Blackness until & unless you equate it to homophobia (and even then, it’s still a Herculean effort to get them to understand that Black Lgbtq people are an actual thing that exist too, and usually have it even worse).

This is important. Don’t downplay it to make them comfortable. If they’re good friends, they’ll hear you. And if not, then you’re better off without them.

If you’re a follower or a mutual reading this and you have any resources that might help, please feel free to add to this post.

Anyway, I’m about to finish my workday, so this wasn’t as comprehensive an answer as I would liked to have given. I’m sorry if this wasn’t helpful.

Good luck!

#ask #answered #anon #good luck #racism #oh and btw - now im wondering who s.h. is???

[thegirlfromoverthepond]

Fire Is Catching

Once upon a time, I decided to join the list of contributors for @fandomforoz​. The ever generous @justajjfan​ made me the honor to “buy” a story from me.

At her request, here is Everlark in Paris, with a bit of museum, and a bit of fire.

This fic would be nothing without the help I got from @xerxia31​ for her awesome beta skills as well as for her help with the image :) Thank you my friend for making everything better.

Katniss was late.

Katniss was never late. 

It had become their weekly Monday routine, to meet in the Grande Galerie. Peeta would show her a painting, or a piece of art he particularly liked, or she would take him to the hidden places of the Louvre only a few people knew. She had the keys to all the rooms, knew all the secret stairs, her nightly routine taking her throughout the whole museum.

She was one of the firefighters whose place of work was the most beautiful museum in the world, yet she had almost no knowledge of art.

She had laughed at the Joconde, wondering aloud why people would line up to take a picture with her.

“Look at her,” she had told him. “She isn’t even beautiful. Why do people make such a fuss about her ?”

Peeta had moved towards the painting. It was such a privilege to be able to approach such a masterpiece so closely, without anyone around.

“For today’s tastes, she’s not special. But for Italian Renaissance she was everything. The thing is, it’s all in the eyes and the smile. If you look at her while moving, it’s like she follows you. Try it, Katniss.”

He had smiled when he had seen Katniss cautiously walking around the painting, staring at Mona Lisa, while he could see the astonishment in her features. 

“And if you look at her, you’ll see her mouth will fall and turn from a smiling face to a sad one.”

To this day, Peeta still remembered how Katniss’s face had shifted from disbelief to admiration, from curiosity to understanding.

The memory brought him back to reality. Katniss was late. He hoped everything was okay, that the strange sensation he was currently feeling in his stomach was nothing to be worried about.

Yet…

The sound of the sirens brought him to the large, beautiful windows. On the street, dozens of fire trucks were speeding towards the Pont-Neuf with their lights flashing. A few seconds later, another convoy of trucks passed by, again at full speed, heading in the same direction.

Something was going on. Something bad.

He tried not to think of the last time he had seen so many fire trucks, but he took his phone out anyways. He needed to know.

The news had already made the headlines.

Notre Dame is on fire.

Five little words that took the wind out of him.

Peeta had to reread the short sentence several times to be certain he understood it.

Notre Dame, the masterpiece of all cathedrals, the most elegant building of all of the city of light was on fire.

He felt his knees starting to buckle under him, had to lean onto the wall to support himself.

Notre Dame was on fire.

A treasure born in the 12th century, proof of the genius of the men who built it, a splendid building with treasures inside, with unparalleled elegance and grace.

Notre Dame was on fire.

Peeta read that firefighters from all over Paris and the suburbs had been called to join the fight, to try to save the building, the treasures, the stained glass.

The stained glass he wanted to show Katniss one day.

Katniss … As her name entered his mind, he realized what had happened.

With trembling hands, he dialled the internal number nobody ever wanted to use. The one that would reach the team of firefighters of the Louvre.

“Thresh.”

 “Hey Thresh, it’s Peeta, Peeta Mellark, from the -”

“The guys from the paintings, I know you. Sorry but Katniss isn’t here tonight.”

“How do - “ Peeta started before realizing with the amount of cameras in the museum, their private visits maybe weren’t that private.

“She’s at the fire. She volunteered.” Thresh answered the question Peeta hadn’t dared ask.

Peeta closed his eyes.

Of course she had volunteered to go. He hung up, not caring anymore what Thresh had to say. Surely something like ‘it would be too dangerous to go’, or that she wouldn’t be able to see or answer him anyway.

The words were lost in a haze. 

Peeta ran through the corridors of the museum, for once never stopping to look at the paintings lining the majestic walls, not even taking the time to stop by his office to grab his jacket.

He had walked the Rue de Rivoli so many times, looking at the lovely shape of the windows, the imposing stature of the former kings’ palace, or taking a detour through the Place Vendome, savouring the pleasure of the architecture. This day, though, he ran the whole length of the so long street, ignoring the other pedestrians, running until he reached the Place de la Concorde.

That’s where he spotted the column of smoke for the first time.

From behind the two towers of the building, elegant against the blue sky as always, a dark cloud of smoke was rising, threatening the wooden spire.

Peeta stopped, his breath taken away by the sad sight in front of him. 

Something deeper, though, made him start running again. A litany, in his head. Katniss is there, she’s at the fire. Katniss is there, she’s at the fire playing in loop, over and over, with the rhythm of his feet on the pavement.

He couldn’t tell how he managed to get so close to the building, despite the amount of people who rallied towards the cathedral, so close he could almost touch the fire trucks. Yet, instead of looking at the cathedral, he could only focus on the men and women working with their heavy PPE, focusing on the small ones, so he could try to spot who he was looking for. Katniss.

As the day melted into the night, as the spire of the cathedral fell, as people on the perimeter sang, Peeta grew worried.

There were just too many things. 

Too many flames licking the heavy stones of the cathedral. 

Too many columns of smoke escaping through the stained glass or the open arches of the building.

Too many litres of water that seemed to do nothing to extinguish the fire.

Too many people rushing around, carrying the heavy material, doing their best to save the cultural heritage of the building.

Peeta never thought that one day he would see stone burning. Never thought it would be possible.

He never stopped looking for Katniss whenever he caught sight of a slender frame.

There were just so many firefighters, so many of them running around, connecting fire hoses to the trucks, or to the boats that were pumping water directly from the Seine. 

He finally caught sight of her, when she took her helmet off, her braid falling down on her fire jacket, black against red.

He could see the exhaustion radiating off of her when she sat down on the pavement, her head hanging between her hands, shoulders slumped. 

“Katniss!” he shouted, hoping his voice would carry over the wind, over the noise of the sirens, over the crowd chanting hallelujahs and ave marias. He thought he saw her turn her head towards him, before she turned back to the tall and lanky man in front of her. It was only a matter of seconds before she was back on her feet, hauling her equipment on her back, as if she were getting ready to dive back into the fire.

She was walking towards the entrance of the cathedral.

“NOOOOOO”

He couldn’t let her go there, couldn’t let her enter a building on fire - yet he wasn’t able to cross the barriers and the policemen blocking the access.

There was nothing he could do. 

Nothing.

He felt what heartbreak meant that instant. His soul was torn, his body ached to be close to her.

He had no idea his feelings for her were so strong. So pure. So deep.

He had no idea he even had feelings for her, prior to seeing her entering this burning cathedral of stone.

Now it felt like his heart was breaking into pieces.

After what felt like an eternity, he spotted firemen coming out of the building, heavily loaded with what seemed to be paintings and small statues, stopping only to drink some water before diving back into the furnace.

It was a never ending cycle, in and out of the fire to the hymns of the people who had spontaneously gathered around the cathedral, needing to see what was happening with their own eyes.

To Peeta it was endlessly terrifying when he spotted the familiar silhouette coming in and out, again and again.

The cries of the crowd turned his attention towards the building, towards the flames that could be seen above the two towers, so high in the sky.

The forest was burning.

The 1300 oak trees from the 13th century that made the framing of the cathedral were burning to ashes.

Loud cracks could be heard, even from a distance.

Not loud enough to mask the sounds of the ambulances coming near the building.

It took hours and hours of relentless battle, thousands of tons of water, hundreds of firefighters who fought until the very last minutes of the night to extinguish the fire.

As dawn started to rise, as the sun made its lazy ascent, the fire was out.

The cathedral was still standing.

Burnt, injured, but still standing.

Torn, empty, dirty, but still standing.

Peeta couldn’t believe his eyes as the cathedral remained firmly in place, beaten but not broken.

He saw the Paris firefighters taking off their PPE. Exhaustion was written on their faces, along with something else … pride.

He heard the crowd cheering, the bells of the other Parisian churches ringing, yet he couldn’t join them for now. His eyes were scanning the faces of the men and women who had spent their night fighting against the fire.

Until he saw her.

“Katniss!!!” He shouted in the hopes of being heard, over the shouts and prayers, over the sirens and the water still being thrown on the cathedral.

He thought she couldn’t hear him, until he saw her move her head, as if searching for someone. He felt her eyes pass over him, then saw the perfect moment when she realized he was there.

He hoped the smile that graced her face was for him. He really hoped.

Then she was running towards him, leaving her PPE behind, the loud stomping of her boot clad feet echoing on the pavement. In no time, she was at the barrier, jumping over it just in front of Peeta, ignoring the shouts of the policemen around.

She was in his arms the next second.

-- 

April 15th 2020.  

 He checked the time on his watch, smiling.

Katniss was never late, he knew that. That day, though he was a bit more nervous than usual, was a bit unsure of how the day would go.

He finally saw her, looking even more beautiful with every day he had the chance to spend with her.

“Sorry! I was with Prim, she’s the one who insisted on the beret!” She pointed to the little hat she had on her head, that she was wearing a bit on the side like most Parisian women did.  In his opinion, it was a game of equilibrium on how they never fell. He was just happy she had left her hair down, as he had every intention of having his hands tanngle in her locks later that day.

“She was right. You are cute.” Peeta grabbed her hand as they started strolling along the quays of the Seine, one of their favorite walks. For once, they were both off work on the same day of the week, something quite rare with their schedules. The Louvre was open every day but Tuesday, yet there was still so much to do in the museum besides ensuring it didn’t catch fire for Katniss. 

She had to go through training on how to save the masterpieces displayed, to prioritize which ones to save in case of a fire (which led to a lot of disagreements from Peeta who clearly didn’t agree with the choices of the firefighters), or simply memorizing the museum’s rooms.

Even the small alcove they both had started to visit, trying to find a bit of intimacy out of the eyes of the security cameras. They still both blushed when they remembered the comment from Thresh, about the arrow tattoo Katniss had on her left hip.

They had kept their private sessions to just making out from then on.

(Even though they never walked through the Egyptian Department without thinking of that time Peeta made her cum next to the statue of Amon).

He was brought back to reality when she slapped his arm at his comment.

“I do not look cute!” She scowled, but he could see the spark in her eyes. He knew better, knew she liked his compliments.

“If you say so, Love, if you say so. You ready for a session with Monet?” 

“Monet, Monet, Monet, must be funny, in a rich man’s world….”

“Katniss ….” he sighed, trying to prevent the smirk he could feel forming on his lips.

“What? You can’t go wrong with ABBA!” She laughed, making his heart grow even bigger.

Before their first kiss on a sad April morning, a kiss of tears and ashes, Peeta had never thought he could be able to love so much, so fiercely, so deeply, and yet feel so free.

“Where are we going? Orsay is the other way?” Katniss asked, looking around them. “We’re not going to see your painter friends?” 

“Surprise, Love, surprise.”

“You know I hate surprises.”

“Yup.”

“Yet you keep on planning them.”

“Yup.”

“You’re irritating.”

“And you love me for that.”

“No, I don’t love you for that.” 

When Katniss spoke those words, Peeta felt his heart break a little.

Sure, she had never told him she loved him in such terms, rather shown him in so many different ways …

“Sit down with me…” he hadn’t realized that she was now sitting on the quay, her hand held out for him to take it. He hoped he was able to conceal how much he was hurting at the moment.

“There’s something I need to tell you, Peeta. That I have wanted to tell you for some time now..”

He could feel the cool pavement under the fabric of his jeans. It felt like cold was spreading inside of him. Katniss wasn’t even looking at him, her head turned towards the other bank of the Seine, facing away.

He saw her take a deep breath before she turned to him, before her hand went to his head, cradling it in her warm palm.

He was sure the killing blow, the coup de grâce was coming.

“Peeta, look at me…” Her voice was soft as the wind, light as a feather. He mustered all the strength he had in him before raising his eyes, before blue met grey. She had the most fascinating eyes he had ever seen. That would never change.

“Peeta, you keep calling me ‘Love’…” He closed his eyes, willing the tears to fade away, wishing for the heartbreak to stop. “Nobody’s called me ‘Love’ before. I’ve been… damn, this is hard!”

This was hard? He couldn’t believe his ears.

He was opening his mouth to tell her to go for the kill directly when she put her hand on his lips.

“Don’t, Peeta. This is something I have to do. For me, for you… for us.” He could feel her fingers shaking as she took a deep breath.

”You took me by surprise, Peeta. I never thought I would… feel so much. At first I blamed it on the fire, on the pain that it brought us, you, that it brought me. It was so awful being inside the cathedral, seeing all this stone being eaten by the fire. I thought something inside me had broken… and then I saw you… you’d been waiting for me all night. All night. And I couldn’t believe it. I didn’t know what was happening inside me then. Didn’t know the effect you’d have on me, Peeta.”

She turned to look at the water, letting her hand fall from his face before she continued.

“I never thought I had so much joy in me, how the little things could become so important. How a single person could have such an impact on me. How three words could make my heart grow so big I thought it would explode.”

Peeta listened, as she went on. It felt like he was living a dream.

“You call me courageous and strong, Peeta. You rave about how you’re impressed when I run into a fire, on how strong I am. Yet, I am not strong enough to say these three words, even though I want to. I’ve wanted to tell you them since the day you told me… Why is it so hard?”

She turned to him, her eyes shining.

He felt something blossoming inside of him. He knew it was love, spreading its wings. Peeta moved closer to Katniss, taking her hand in his.

“It’s hard, because once you say it, it becomes real. The question is… Do you want it to be real?”

She nodded. He went on.

“You don’t have to shout them. You can whisper them in my ear if you want…”

She smiled, and her smile was brighter than the sun. She seemed to hesitate for a second, before leaning into him. He felt her breath on his neck, on his jaw as well as the kisses she left there., Her hair tickled him. It was not enough, yet it was too much at the same time. He wanted to take her lips with his, wanted to ravish her mouth, wanted to take her to his place where they would make love until the early hours of the morning, wanted her.

He knew though that it would have to wait a few seconds. Because Katniss was about to give him the gift he hadn’t dared wish for.

He felt her take a small breath, before the words were spoken softly, for his ears only.

“I love you.”

Something exploded inside of him. It felt like he could achieve anything.

The only thing he wanted to do in that moment though was to kiss her until they ran out of breath.

So he did it.

When the bells of Notre-Dame rang for the first time in a year, they were still kissing.

#fandomforoz #Everlark #katniss everdeen #peeta mellark #justajjfan #things I write #hunger games #the hunger games #AU #Hunger games fanfiction

[bestfriendforhire]

Entry 380

 I took a seat, watching as Jarod, Maxine, Aurora, and Mila worked.  Maxine was arguing with Mila over the merits of a new type of resistor to be used in Aurora’s car, unaware that Mila was simply helping her to bounce ideas.  The technology Mila could access was vastly beyond Earth, so she was heavily restricted in what she could admit to knowing.  Her mother did allow her to help others toward ideas.

 Jarod, Mila, and Aurora were currently assembling the revised prototype.  By most standards, I was quite certain the original prototype would have garnered tremendous acclaim for its innovations, but these four were always looking for improvements.  Maxine actually helped redesign Portentia’s headset for the superhero suit recently, increasing Portentia’s effective hearing range again and updating the display to the latest specs.

 Jarod hadn’t admitted it yet, but I believed he was enjoying having Maxine around.  She debated with him on his level, came up with brilliant designs on her own, and surpassed his hectic work schedule to keep herself entertained, since she didn’t need sleep.  Mila did tell me that the twins have grown a bit jealous at times lately when Jarod was discussing his work, but Maxine hadn’t actually tried anything… yet.  I was certain she would eventually, given that she probably found his brilliance attractive as well.  He’d handle things well.

 Aurora was doing incredibly well.  I’d had some misgivings when we first met, but the girl had proven herself to be born for engineering.  Her ability to understand schematics at a glance surpassed even Jarod, from what he and Mila had told me.  There were times that Jarod would present her with a new idea, and she’d instantly point to flaws or things that excited her about it.  Even if her ability to communicate would barely improve, she was an asset to the world, though I had faith that she’d make significant progress in communication.

 “James?  When did you get here?” questioned Jarod after he turned around.

 “Several minutes ago.” replied Maxine.

 Speaking over her, Mila said, “Three minutes and twenty-two seconds.”

 Aurora ignored them, still assembling part of the car.

 “Sorry to interrupt.  I’m scheduled to chat with Jarod about an upcoming project, but I didn’t want to rush you.” I explained.

 He seemed to think for a second before saying, “Oh!  That’s right.  Mila had mentioned that a few days ago.  Let me clean up, and we can go…”  He hesitated as he looked around.

 “Let’s go for a drive.” I suggested.

 “Sure!  Yeah.  Meet you up top after I clean up.”

 “He can wait.  He should look at the upgrades.” argued Maxine.

 “Sounds good, assuming we can keep Jarod from getting too distracted.” I teased.

 He pushed my comment away with his hand, smiling as he walked away.

 I listened as Mila and Maxine walked me through the changes they had made since last time.  I didn’t bother telling Maxine that Mila tends to give me briefings as work progresses, since she seemed rather happy about her contributions.  Scaring her into giving up crime had worked better than I expected, but Aaliyah has whatever effect she wants on people.

 When Jarod was ready, we took the lift up and hopped in his Mustang, though little of the original car was left under the exterior.  He let Mila take over driving at my suggestion.  “So what’s up?”

 “Well, we hadn’t really sat down and talked by ourselves for a while, but let’s get to business first.”

 He looked slightly concerned as he asked “Is something wrong?”

 “No, other than my desire to appropriate parts of your latest car design.” I explained with a smile.

 He blinked and stared at me.  “Wait.  What?  You know there’s typically no discussion when something’s appropriated, right?”

 My smile widened as I said, “Thought you might get hung up on that part, but Aaliyah suggested an automated taxi service a while ago.  She’s been getting things prepared with the local governments for use in the city and suburbs.  After glancing through your current work, she modified things slightly to a design we could present for the general public.”  Mila put the display on the windshield.  “With your consent, this will be Best Friend For Hire’s taxi design for the next ten-ish years.”

 “Taxis, eh?  Mila driving them all?” he asked.

 “Of course.  Don’t worry.  This won’t stretch my processing power.  This section”—a section of the screen highlighted—”will give me an unnecessary boost for a small portion of myself to control the vehicle even in the event of a power outage disconnecting the Wi-Fi.” she explained.

 “You’ll also get a percentage from the Wi-Fi network.” I told him.

 “What about Maxine, Mila, and Aurora?”

 “Maxine’s not officially doing the work, but her family’s accounts are being compensated.  Don’t tell her.  She’s still on community service in her mind.”

 ‘Yeah, I guess.  She’s… surprised me.” he replied with a shrug.  “For the first month, I was triple checking everything she did out of paranoia, but something changed in her.  She’s really trying to help out as far as I can see.”

 “I concur.” stated Mila, though she sounded amused.

 “Fine, she still picks fights with Portentia whenever Portentia comes through the garage, but she’s helped Portentia too.”

 “I’ve heard.  That doesn’t make up for all the damage she’s done… or the lives lost.” I pointed out.

 “No, but I’m glad she’s trying.”

 I nodded in agreement and then asked Mila to bring up the details of how the profits would be distributed.

 Jarod looked through the terms and asked a few questions as I went through them.  Shaking his head and smiling, he said, “The other cab companies are going to hate you.”

 “One won’t.  I bought it already.”

 “What about their employees?” he questioned.

 “They’ll each be driving the version you saw with a steering wheel until they retire.  Unfortunately, a few were retired early due to unsavory habits, but the drivers will drive, the office people will keep busy.”

 Jarod looked at me in surprise.  “You had them killed!?”

 “Not how I’d put it, but there were a few whose information was given to the Slayer family.  Most who were retired early have been compensated, probably too generously, and fired.  Of those, I have to admit that a few won’t actually receive their full compensation due to current legal predicaments, but I didn’t make them break the law.  The drug dealer had quite a surprised expression when the police took him away.”

 As I talked, Jarod seemed to be appraising me.  When I finished, he said, “James, you’ve really changed, man.”  Holding up a hand, he quickly assured me “Not in a bad way, really, but… wow.  I never thought I’d hear you talk about people dying or being arrested so casually.  When did you get used to all this?”

 “When I got married to someone who could aptly be described as a living weapon and adopted a former slave.” I admitted.

 “Whoa.  What?  Dani was enslaved!?”

 “When she was quite young.  Luckily, that situation was rectified before too much harm came to her.  Best not to mention that part to anyone.  Hate for bad memories to be brought up if she hears them.” I explained, dancing around the truth.

 “I knew slavery still existed in the world, but wow…  She’s so cheerful and energetic.  I’d never have guessed.  I don’t understand how you three grew so close in two weeks.”

 “You will one day.” I promised.  “Unfortunately, I can’t explain.  My honeymoon seemed rather long and was extremely busy, but good things came of it.”

 He nodded.  “I get the secrecy.  With Ai and Mai, I’ve learned a great deal, but I can’t even begin to guess at the secrets Alma must keep.  Our new relatives are something else.”

 Smiling, I said, “They really are, but things will work out.  I won’t let them cause us trouble.”

 Jarod laughed.  “I still can’t believe you had Raine deliver Godric home.  Ai and Mai were horrified, but Mila showed me the look on his face.  I couldn’t stop laughing!”

 “Well, she’s more than a match for his whole family together.  Imagine if she had formed that keep in midair and let it drop.”

 “That thing’s amazing!  I still can’t believe she called that an ‘oops’.”  Catching my glance, he said, “Mila told me.  I wish I could ‘oops’ things into existence.  You’ve got to get her to help me in the lab occasionally.”

 “She’s a best friend for hire.” I replied with a shrug.

 “Fine-fine, but can you imagine the possibilities with power like that?  I’ve been wanting to tie Ariadne down and get her to help me, but I think we both know the odds of that ever happening.  Mila thinks Raine might be even stronger, which I can’t doubt after seeing that keep.”

 “Ariadne wouldn’t struggle too much with creating a keep, but I agree that Raine could do far more.  She’s practicing.  Ariadne will be visiting soon to help provide some encouragement, so I’ll try to get them both into the lab during the visit.”

 “Really!?” he exclaimed, excited before I could get another word out.  “Dude, I’m going to start planning for it.  With their help, we could have things created spontaneously inside a vacuum.  Then there’s this energy idea I had where…” he started going deeper and deeper into his thoughts on low-energy nuclear reactions.

 I stopped him partway through.  “When you do those experiments, please let me be present, just in case.”

 “Sure!  You’re always welcome.”

 “I’m planning on acting as a safety net, in case things get out of hand.  I’ve actually studied control of radiation through magic and have faith that I could handle a small nuclear blast, if containment were to fail.”

 “What!?  That’s amazing!  If I had known that, I’d have tried this other idea I had much sooner.” he stated, looking at me as if I should have told him months ago.

 “Sorry, but you could’ve asked my thoughts on it.” I argued.

 He laughed and nodded.  “Life’s just so busy for both of us these days.”

 “Really is.  I know we just celebrated the triplets’ birthday before the baseball game, but we’ll be having another celebration soon.”  The triplets’ party was small by my company’s standards, but they just wanted to visit France and spend time with a few people they knew there.  I covered the expenses, at least the legal ones.

 “Whose?”

 “Raine’s on the fourth, and then Jemal’s on the twenty-third.  I was thinking we could do something cat themed for Raine and make use of her fort.  This will be her first birthday since her mother died.”

 “Yeah… that’s rough, but she seems happier these days.  I wonder if she can hear us this far out.” he commented, looking around.

 “If she’s paying attention, probably, but I doubt she is.  Being able to hear everything in a city and wanting to are completely different.”

 “Oh, master.  Just one city isn’t bad at all.” argued Mila.

 “Well, you have certain advantages in that regard.” I argued, knowing that Aaliyah had expanded Mila well beyond the technologies of any world.

 “Maybe a few…” she agreed.

 Laughing again, Jarod said, “I’d be happy to keep up with a single room.  There’s just so much happening all the time.”

 I wished I could tell him what my day was like off-world, but Aaliyah didn’t want me to spoil the surprise.  There would eventually be a day where Jarod and I could discuss aliens, but I had quite a wait.  Still, I enjoyed spending some time cruising around with my best friend.

#Best #Friend #For #Hire #Jovial #Times #Fantasy #Fiction #Story

[driveaugust1-blog]

Some Candid Thoughts On My Conservative Home State, Which I So Desperately Wanted To Leave

I grew up in the suburbs of Atlanta, and for as long as I can remember, I could not wait to leave. Despite the fact that I did have a fairly progressive group of friends, Georgia felt like nothing more than an oppressive conservative bubble. My high school was pretty unofficially segregated, and I remember being taught that the Civil War was about states’ rights, not slavery. I attended a dance studio owned by two men, who never talked about the fact that they lived together and wore wedding bands. I did everything I could to let everyone know how much I resented the south. When I decided I was going to go to college in Vermont, I could tell how much it bothered even some of my teachers — which only reinforced my thinking that the south was Bad, and New England was Good.

(I didn’t quite know it at the time, but I grew up with a lot more financial privilege than many, if not most, of my peers. I always knew I’d be able to go to college wherever I’d like, without going into debt, because my parents could afford it — my mom was able to go to college seven or eight states away, and she wanted the same thing for her kids. And lucky for her, she was able to cover the costs of that.)

I was expecting to find in Vermont the liberal Utopia I desperately wanted to live in, and in a way, I did. My college boasted dozens of inclusive on-campus clubs, centers for LGBT students and students from multiple cultural backgrounds, and a robust Women’s and Gender Studies program. I attended a free sex-ed event called “I <3 Female Orgasm” and took a “sociology of sexualities” class my freshman year (and from both learned I’d been a lot more sheltered than I’d previously thought). I met lots of people with different gender identities and sexual orientations who actually spoke of them openly. And heck, composting bins were everywhere!

I can honestly say I love Vermont with a huge piece of my heart. But it, and all of New England and the rest of “liberal America,” is far from the Utopia I’d believed it to be. I could see evidence of this on my college campus alone. I once got lured into a meeting for a Catholic anti-choice group based on the promise of free pizza, and I could always count on inducing a few eye-rolls if I ever brought the word “anti-feminist” into conversation at a party. And there were many even more insidious occurrences. Some of my friends were called homophobic slurs on multiple occasions — someone I knew even got a block of ice thrown at their head from a moving car. There were many student protests against my school administration’s apparent lack of resources and opportunities for marginalized students. One of my school’s fraternities got shut down after passing around a “rape survey” (it looks like the chapter is going to be reinstated).

I had left my red home state, but the same red ideologies still followed me. They weren’t everywhere, but they weren’t exactly hidden, either.

Now, of course, I recognize that it’s a rather simple life lesson: the world isn’t black and white, and there are all kinds of people with all kinds of flawed worldviews and blind spots everywhere. A progressive Utopia does not exist. For instance, I recently walked by a huge, rather daunting anti-choice rally in the middle of Manhattan’s Times Square. Massachusetts, as I only learned as an adult, is a notoriously racist place to live, and it hit a 10-year high in reported hate crimes in 2017. Bigotry isn’t unique to the south, or to “Heartland America.” But here’s the thing: you don’t hear people say “it’s time to cancel the entire state of Massachusetts.”

For this reason, I’ve been disheartened by many reactions I’ve seen from liberal and progressive people in response to the backwards anti-choice bills that have recently passed in Georgia and Alabama.

Now, I understand why film production companies would refrain from working in Atlanta while such a law is in place. I think that’s a really powerful move, and hopefully one that won’t be for naught. I am hopeful that neither of these bills will go into effect, thanks to efforts like those from the ACLU. But I also understand that, for the people living there, these kinds of boycotts may only do more harm to their livelihood, whether or not they actually induce change. (And for the record, I think you can be personally against abortion but still understand that criminalization will never be the answer. Abortions have been performed for thousands of years, and there is ample evidence that they will continue to occur even if they are made to be illegal — they will simply be much, much less safe.)

I’ve also noticed many dismissive, unkind, often ignorant responses from individuals, saying things like “can we finally just cancel the south” and “life begins the moment you leave Alabama,” as if it’s a choice for poor and/or marginalized individuals to just up and move to a different state whenever they feel like it. It hurts to think about all the people in “red” states who are going to suffer because of these potential laws, and who may already be suffering — and how cavalierly so many supposedly progressive people act towards their livelihoods.

It’s important to remember that a big part of why red states stay red is because of who is in power — and how they manipulate the law and practices in their own favor. In fact, polls have shown that not one state’s population has more than 25% support for a ban on abortion. And frankly, if it wasn’t for some really shady alleged voter suppression during Georgia’s most recent gubernatorial race, Stacey Abrams may very well be the governor of Georgia right now.

All of this is to say that there are people with different views everywhere — there are people who have oppressive, racist, sexist, homophobic and transphobic beliefs in every corner of this country. Yes, it is immensely upsetting when my home state tries to pass laws taking away basic health rights from women and other people with a uterus. (And it’s especially upsetting when you consider that Georgia does have some really wonderful, borderline-socialist programs in place, like the HOPE scholarship program.) I understand why many people would want to move away from red states in their adult lives, both for their own safety and to find community. But while I may fundamentally disagree with people with conservative values, I still want to see a world where they can benefit from legislation that reflects my values. I want them to have livable wages and social safety nets, including easy access to healthcare. To dismiss an entire group of people simply because of their state government, when the reality is that hate exists everywhere, is fundamentally unkind — and the opposite of progress.

(If you’re in a position to be able to and would like to assist in helping people with barriers to entry for the healthcare they need, read this.)

Image via Unsplash

Like this story? Follow The Financial Diet on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter for daily tips and inspiration, and sign up for our email newsletter here.

Source: https://thefinancialdiet.com/i-couldnt-wait-to-leave-my-conservative-home-state-but-it-deserved-better/

#read more #see more #check it out #interesting #learn more

[juneparrot4]

Can’t Help Myself: An Interview with Meredith Goldstein

13, 2018 june Meredith Goldstein is the advice columnist for The Boston Globe’s Love Letters, which offers her access to a number of tales regarding issues of the heart, on her readers. Her memoir Can’t Help Myself is a look at the woman behind the line. I found it funny in places, moving, and profoundly relatable.

I caught up with Meredith to talk a small about the written book, and see what advice she has for people. Tell me about your book? This book is a memoir by an advice columnist—me. When I became first approached to write a book the publishers were interested in a memoir and my thought that is first wasWho cares? Who cares what I’m doing in my column? I’m often giving advice and not talking about my very own life.’ So I started thinking—is there a whole story to tell here? The truth of the matter is I started the column after a breakup, a breakup I didn’t see coming. I got green-lit to write the column and then had the breakup, and my mother was diagnosed with cancer. I was sort of fielding all of these relevant questions from individuals going through turmoil when I had been going through turmoil myself. I think it’s always much easier to give advice then to go, but We actually wished to tell people the way the column had helped me within my genuine life and how the life that is real the line. For every chapter I likewise incorporate one to two letters that are related to that chapter. I actually felt want it ended up being a good way to show people: here’s the story. You can see very clearly how my life and the column sort of became this one symbiotic thing.  Just as much I grew up reading advice columns and I was desperate to know—what are the personal lives of Ann Landers or Carolyn Hax? Who are these people and what are they like in their real lives as I was sort of doubting the interest level? I think about yourself but since the book has come out I’ve heard from a lot of people who feel better, that we’re sort of all in this together that you take for granted what you know. What’s the hardest thing about giving an answer to reader letters, and what is the most rewarding? The hardest thing is that I don’t have magic pills for all of these problems. So when someone says ‘How do I meet someone?’ which is really the most common question, I wish i really could simply say ‘Here could be the answer.’ Similarly, when people say ‘How do I get over a breakup?’ We wish I had some tranquilizer that is magic that made them feel better. I don’t have one answer that is easy works for everyone, especially with those two questions, so that may be frustrating. I’ve been both in of those situations and If only I could make it easy, but I don’t do magic. The most rewarding thing is that often people will write to me and tell me they feel better, or they feel less alone, or they have a new perspective on their problem. Especially with the advice that is modern, there’s email, it is not a few mailed letter like it used to be. We shall keep in touch with these people. In writing the book, I revisited a lot of old letters and reached out to letter that is former to see they were in completely different places—and in several cases much happier—it was really a fuel for optimism. This book is about your column but it’s also regarding the life, including some very difficult seasons of it. How did your perspective on love and relationships change throughout the events associated with the guide? I believe it’s also age specific: We start this line in my 30s that are early like everybody is getting married but me. The book takes me through my mid to the start of my 30s that are late it took a few years to appreciate that sometimes you see your self through the lens of what’s lacking and you make presumptions in what everybody else has. I think by chapter three of the book I’m starting to realize like you don’t have friends that you can be in a relationship and lonely and you can be in a relationship and feel. I think that I was much better throughout the course of the book at realizing that we have this greater community—sometimes there’s a romantic partner, sometimes not—but I think especially at a time where there is this wave of marriages, you can feel like here is this one gaping void, and it’s not that simple. Even if I had found a perfect boyfriend, that wasn’t what it was about. I think that’s what the characters: my mother, my sister, all of these people in the book were in a constant state of wrestling with: ‘Am I doing this right? Am I putting the energy that is right the right relationships and do I have enough support in my life?’ I think that’s what I learned throughout the book, that through a family illness, through marriages, through breakups, it was about all of these moving pieces and all of these people in my life that it was never just about one person or the lack thereof. I genuinely believe that at some point in the book, my attitude modifications from ‘I don’t have this person and I’m floating in the air’ to ‘Look at this community that is great have actually.’ Would you give our visitors a advice that is little? What words of knowledge would you have for those who are hoping to find love? I think that with online app and dating dating it can feel like a job. I think it’s so great she was newly divorced—it was just the internet had not been invented yet—and so she was really isolated in the suburbs because I always wish that my mom had had apps when. We can’t also imagine how she was people that are meeting. But I think the side that is flip of is you can always be looking. At these readings I’ve done, I’ll say to individuals ‘You could be on Tinder right now. You can be on this dating site right now. You could always be doing this thing. You could be constantly thinking about your possibilities.’ I think that for your readers in particular I would say that back in the olden days you didn’t have to do it full time, and you’re allowed to take breaks, you’re allowed to say, you know, Fridays are my day when I’m going to look at all of these opportunities if it starts to feel like a horrible job. I’ve known single people to state ‘Well, now I’ve simply wasted an entire afternoon.’ This idea of wasted time because you weren’t earnestly pursuing this like a job. It is thought by me’s okay to take a breath. Do self-care so that dating fatigue doesn’t negatively influence your ability to be a good date. In the event that you feel like ‘I’m going to go out and be a date that is terrible that’s not good for anybody. As this written book fades to the world exactly what are some of your hopes for your visitors? I do hope that they see that there are therefore many ways to do this. I start the written book as somebody who is really upset about a breakup although not because she would like to be married with kids. I didn’t understand exactly what I wanted, that is the main problem, but We didn’t see the endgame that is same myself as other people. There are people in the written book that do see those activities as an endgame, and that’s okay, too. There are many possibilities and many options. We wish we think about relationships that they transcend some of the cliched things. I think one of the plain things i wanted to get through into the book had been: we talk about this concept of sickness and health, and we hear it in vows. I constantly sort of pictured one partner taking care of the other, right? But sickness and health is a much bigger concept—for my sister it was taking care of my mother, nevertheless it had been additionally taking care of her relationship. The person that is sickn’t her husband or her boyfriend. Sometimes when we have to be the caretaker for a grouped family member, our relationship is the thing that gets ignored. That’s not necessarily just what we consider whenever we hear that in a vow at a wedding. So I hope that I took some of those trite ‘Here’s what we know about relationships’ sayings, and made them a little bit more dynamic than that. We also think—I don’t understand, maybe this is simply a woman thing, but I do think there becomes this moment where if you are the very last person that is single you don’t want to get married, where you feel like ‘I am on the outs, and my married friends don’t understand me.’ There’s a thing that happens a lot in the book: I have this friend that is best, Jess, and we keep perhaps not calling her. I mention it lots of times in the book: and I didn’t call her here, and she’s perhaps not my first call right here, she was too busy, or she had these kids, and I didn’t want to impose because I always assumed. And I thought, while writing the book, ‘Well, what a lonely experience for her.’ She wanted to be imposed upon. She was, and is, my best friend. So feeling as though this person has entered a new phase of her life does not mean that they are any less present for you, and they have just as many insecurities about what they can offer. It’s interesting, she’ll always tell me: ‘I don’t want to talk about my kids all the right time.’ I love hearing about her kids. So we make a lot of assumptions about what people that are single like and what married people are like and exactly how we are different, and I’m not necessarily certain that that’s all accurate. Cara Strickland writes about food and drink, mental health, faith being single from her home in the Pacific Northwest. She enjoys hot tea, good wine, and deep conversations. She shall always desire to try out with your dog. Interact with her on Twitter @anxiouscook.

#online dating #dating site #single #meeting singles #best dating site #best online dating #dating tips #dating site reviews #being single #dating idea