#going to get another order of plantains....

[theesirenteller]

Grocery Store Paternity

↫↫↫ 𝕸𝖎𝖌𝖚𝖊𝖑 𝕲𝖆𝖑𝖎𝖓𝖉𝖔 𝖝 𝕺𝖈! 𝕬𝖓𝖌𝖘𝖙 𝕯𝖗𝖆𝖇𝖇𝖑𝖊 ↬↬↬

"D'elia? ¿Cómo estás?  Ha pasado mucho tiempo."

Who would've thought that going to pick up a bag of frozen plantains would have the average person end up running into the devil? Most wouldn't think so. But for D'elia Wren, she should've known this day would come. Especially being in Santo Padre. Miguel Galindo was the devil to many. and D'elia was no different. Even since she was fifteen, he terrorized her body and mind. His love for the gringa was the only thing that saved her. Funny how now that didn't feel like such a blessing. 

D'elia stared at him wide-eyed with a clenched jaw. Her throat dry as she bit at the side of her bottom lip. Her hands shook against the cool rod of the cart's handlebar. She could feel the warm and wet sensation of tears start to form in the corner of her eyes. 

"Mom, can I have these, please! It's watermelon and jalapeno flavored!" The familiar squeaky voice felt the comfort of an angel. Which caused D'elia to snap out of her frozen state and turn her attention to the child at her side.

"Uhm, yes of course." D'elia agreed with a forced smile. She nearly snatched the candy bag out of her daughter's hands due to how fast she grabbed it before tossing it into the cart.

Miguel raised an eyebrow as he looked at the child. Watching the two in both curiosity and amusement. When the girl turned to face him and offered the man a polite smile; he felt his world stop and his blood run cold. She had the same smile and eyes as his mother.  She had her mother's vibrant, golden-umber brown skin, full lips, and nose. Everything else screamed Galindo to Miguel. An uncanny resemblance that couldn't be ignored. 

"Hola! I'm-"

"Excuse us." The poor girl was cut off by her mother before she had the time to be polite. D'elia lifted the child up with little to no distress and rolled her cart with her other hand. "Mommy, I'm not a baby!", the child pouted and squirmed. Her whining could be heard through the aisles as well as her mother's hushing.

"Get Davante to pull up her records over the last eight to ten years. Have Chino and Mateo follow her." Miguel ordered Nestor before continuing on with his shopping. 

D'elia and the nameless child haven't left his mind since that day. Days turned into three weeks and three weeks turned into three months before Miguel decided to take action and make a trip to confront D'elia. He hadn't informed Emily of anything and he doubted she would care about his sudden coldness and distance from her. Cristobal was all that he focused on when inside the Galindo home. The thought of his son having an older sister and him having a second child, a daughter. One that wasn't from his wife was…complicated. Both joyous and frightening. He could've turned a blind eye. And a part of him wanted to. Cristobal had been in enough danger and Miguel didn't want to put another child through that. But, then again the girl was his child and D'elia. Well, she was damaged goods and one of four of his deepest regrets. The things he'd done to her in his early twenties whilst she was only a minor…made his stomach turn. But in a distorted way…he cared for her. The way a pet owner cared for its dog. Now, it was too late to turn a blind eye. Miguel was now in San Francisco, standing in front of a brownstone building with Nestor and Davante by his sides.  

The tumblers of the locks clicked open and instead of a look of surprise, D'elia stood there with an indifferent look across her face. "Three men for one woman? Gee, I really must be a lot to handle." she greeted with dry humor before stepping aside.

Miguel sent her a subtle smile before ordering Nestor and Devante to wait in the car. "You're hard to tame but not hard to handle." He replied. The two story apartment was more spacious than he imagined. Downstairs, the living room where he guided into was subtly minimalistic. Painted a deep shade of purple with various accents of burnt orange lingering around. Like the couch that he sat on.

"What do you know? What do you want, Miguel?" D'elia immediately questioned as soon as she was seated. 

"Do you welcome all your guests this way?" Miguel chastised. 

"You ain't no damn guest." She shot back.

A rasped chuckle escaped his lips as he shook his head "Fair enough." he then smoothed out his black suit jacket, "I know Alejandra is my daughter. I know she's eight years old and was born in Iowa. Mainly, one of those witness protection programs. I know you ratted out that whorehouse on the outskirts of Santo Padre to get you and her out of their…and away from me." his thumbs brushed over the gold ring on his fingers.

"She might be your daughter by blood but she's not your kid." D'elia replied stubbornly. "And your deep dive turned out to be right. That whore house and bitch Maria were the reasons kids like me were offered up to assholes like you. Just because you brought a little designer and some expensive jewelry around me doesn't mean you weren't as sick as the rest of those bastards who came around." her tone seething with venom and disgust.

"Fifteen was hardly a kid and don't you forget anyone one of those girls would've been happy to take your spot." Miguel argued.

"And I wish it had been one of them." D'elia hissed.

An uncomfortable silence fell over the two of them. The pair now glaring at one another with mixed emotions.  Miguel's left eye slightly twitched and his expression sat cold until he smiled. 

"Look, I don't want any trouble D'elia. I simply want what every man wants…his family together. You don't have to be in Santo Padre but Alejandra will know I'm her father and she'll know her brother and all of the Galindo family." The smile across his lips never matched the dark expression within his eyes.

 He stood up from his seat and stalked his way towards her which caused D'elia to tense up. "And I'd hate for her to be brought into the family without you. A girl needs her mother and well..step-mothers can be a hard adjustment at her age." His large palm patted against D'elia's shoulder as he placed a kiss on her cheek, "You look beautiful by the way."  his warm breath hit the shell of her earlobe.

D'elia tightly gripped at the sides of her loveseat as her blood ran cold. She fought back tears of anger and instead nodded her head. "Okay." If he wanted to play…then they could play.

"Great," His smile now dazzling and bright, "I'll be in touch so make sure to answer your phone." with that Miguel made his way to the foyer before letting himself out. The thought of getting rid of Emily and starting his family over was fresh in his mind.

#Miguel Galindo drabble #miguel galindo #mayans mc #mayans mc fics #mayans fanfic #mayans fx #danny pino #angst drabble

[silent-raven13]

Calling my bf, "My Husband" Prank

(There's a prank trend where significant others are are calling their partners "My Husband" instead of their bfs. Some are very cute and some are heartbreaking if ya'll ever look it up on TikTok. Anyway for punk flower it's always cute!)

Miles set up his smartphone on a phone stance, while him and Hobie got some lunch together. The prank idea came from Miles watching some TikTok videos of one partner of a couple would say their boyfriend is their husband and wait to see their reaction. He send those videos to his friends, Gwen thought he should try it with Hobie. Pavtri said it would be cute to see his reaction, since the two been together for a long time.

The punker and artists had been dating for nine years going on ten! Miles is already twenty four, while his Hobie is twenty five. Their relationship been so long and close that Miles figure Hobie wouldn't be the kind of partner to have a negative reaction.

"Ready?" Miles happily asked as the two sit outside of HQ on a modern design courtyard to enjoy the bright sunny day on Earth 928.

Hobie nodded having to take out their take out containers and their drinks. "Yup, do I look good?" He checks himself at the camera seeing himself looking handsome. He noticed the live symbol on the Spider So-City app, "Are we live?"

"Yup! Just for fun!" Miles giggles, "You be surprised how many views we get from Punkflower fans."

"Because of Pav?" He asked already noticing a lot of hearts, likes and Pavtri commenting a big happy face emoji.

"Yup!" Miles waves at the camera, "Hey guys! Today, we got some Jamaican food from my world, it's a new mom and pop shop. So we wanted to try it." He holds his drink, "Today I order Rice and Peas with jerk chicken and fried plátano, which is ripe plantains. I got Sorrel which is Jamiaca basically sweet hibiscus tea." He took a sip trying his drink, "Mm, it's good." He shows off his plate seeing how delicious his food look.

Then, Hobie took a bite of his Jamaican patty being in a white paper bag separate from his main order tray, "This Jamaican Patty is scrummy. MMM! Been craving this for a while." He mutters having another bite of his beef Jamaican patty tasting the savory fried flavors.

"Ohh, is that good?" Miles asked as he tries to open his plastic packet where his utensils are in. His boyfriend hold out the patty out for his to try.

"Try, luv." He said letting Miles taking a bite it.

The Spider-man nodded at the flavor, "That's good! Oh wow, so much flavor. That aunty don't play."

"Hahaha, she doesn't. I knew once she started rushing us to order." Hobie chuckles.

Miles chews, "Mmm, so good. I wonder if she makes it spicy or she adds bread." He turns to the camera, "For someone people, some Jamaicans or people like to eat bread with their Jamaican patties." His eyes on some Spider-heroes being confused or asking why or why carbs on carbs.

"What are they saying?" Hobie asked.

"One said Why?" Miles giggles at the question, then saw a lot of Spider-Heroes posting Jamaican flags.

Hobie shrugs, "Because it's bloody good. I do it most of the time. It's also to make you full, too."

"Someone said carbs on carbs is insane!" His boyfriend read the comment, "Ya'll are forgetting some Latinos or Mexicans like eating bolio con tamal de dulce con café! I've seen that's a thing."

His boyfriend arched his eyebrows, "What's that?"

"It's a Mexicans corn dough that is sweeten by fruit like strawberries or pineapple and they wrap it in corn husk. I think steamed. It's a big thing during the winter times. Me and Ganke have a friend, she's Mexican and her mom made like so much and gave us some." Miles sips his drink, he look at the comments.

Miguel put a Mexican flag and wrote: Que rico! Así se come! Bolio con tama dulce y cafécito

Gabriella commented next: I love it with Champurrado! You should try Tamal de Pińa!

Miles giggles, "Gabi said we should try the pineapple one. I think you'll like it. It's pretty good if you got it from someone that knows how to make tamales."

"I'm def, luv. I rarely hate anything, I just like to stick what I like sometimes." Hobie commented, he sips his drink, "I got myself a Sorrel!"

"Oh, I forgot to talk about your order!" Miles fake gasp, "So my husband order rice and peas with a side of Oxtails..." Hobie stop eating his Jamaican patty his head slowly turns to his boyfriend then his lips twisted to a big grin. "And he order fried plantains-" Hobie interrupted his boyfriend, "What?"

"What?" Miles asked pretending to be confused.

Hobie chuckles having a big smile on his face, "What you said?"

"I said I forgot to mention your order." He playfully said having a small shy smile.

His punker shook his head being playful, "Nooo, Sunflower. After that. What did you say?" His eyes gleaming, his whole body turning pinker than before.

"My husband." Miles giggles while answering his boyfriend question. That made the punker to get up being out of camera's view and jumps up and down.

"Yes! Yes! YES!" He shouted up with joy.

Miles smiles widely at the positive outlook of his boyfriend, what he did expect is his boyfriend came running to hug him and sweep him off his feet. "Say it, again?" Hobie happily carries his boyfriend in a koala hugging position, he kisses him on the cheek.

"My husband." Miles' face all flustered but he said it much louder and prouder tone.

Hobie gave his a nose nuzzle, "That's more like it." They happily kiss forgetting their lunch for the moment.

The live stream went on with many Spider-heroes sending hearts and excitement emojis!

Gwen: 😅I think Hobie thinks Miles propose him

Margo: DITTO! 😂

Pavtri: 🥳 I'll be the best man!

Gabi: I wanna be the flower girl! 🤗

#punkflower #miles morales #hobie brown #spiderman #across the spider verse #spider verse #flowerpunk #fanfic #across the spiderverse

[needs-to-stop-looking-at-valves]

Can we get a story for when Luisa was born?

OH MY GOD I ACTUALLY HAVE JUST A STORY. Ya'll want lil angst? YOU GONNA GET IT

"What's so funny?"

Agustín looked down at his little angel, who just giggled and grabbed his nose.

"Big!"

"Yes, your Papi's nose is big-all the more to snuggle you with!"

He buried his nose in her cheek as she giggled. Julieta was busy making dinner downstairs, so of course Agustín watched his little girl. She was so small, so precious to him. Could there be anything cuter?

"Agustín! Mi amor! It's time to eat!"

"Coming! You hear that? Time to get some food in this little belly!"

He kissed said belly before bringing her downstairs to the dining table. Everyone else was there already, with Pepa and Dolores looking...well. Like they've just woken up. Abuela frowned at their manes of messy hair.

"Pepa? How can you and the baby come down looking like this?"

"....what?"

Félix chuckled as he slid a cup of coffee over to Pepa.

"Sorry, Abuela. Pepa and Dolores had a four hour nap and it's hitting hard."

"What YEAR is it? Genuinely I dunno."

Agustín chuckled as Isa leaned over to smack her cousin's arm a few times, seeming to try to wake her up.

"Isa, she'll wake up, I promise! Come on, eat. Look, mami made you your favorite!"

His daughter absolutely loved mashed plantains, more than anything. He even let her have the spoon to try to feed herself, finding it adorable. He helped her get some onto the spoon, and he felt like he'd burst into tears as she smeared it against Dolores's face, trying to share. Course, she just got it all over her face, but that didn't matter, thought that counts. Abuela lost her glare at Pepa in order to help clean them both.

"You're raising such a caring little girl, Agustín. It's bad enough she's the cutest baby in the whole Encanto."

Agustín grinned at her as Julieta started to set the grown up food on the table.

"She's precious to me, Abuela. I still can't believe we HAVE a little girl, even after all this time."

Agustín was about to tuck into his dinner, when he noticed Bruno was helping himself to dessert already. Macarons.

"Oh, you made those! They're so cute! What'd you put on them?"

Bruno slid the basket over to him, and he studied the pink little treats. Félix leaned over to try to look over at the pattern.

"It kinda looks like a person."

"Doesn't it? It looks so small, like a b-"

No. Surely he was over thinking it. He looked at her, and she nodded, lightly patting Isa's head.

"Someone is going to be a sister. Bruno had another vision- it's a little girl."

Félix laughed as he shook his buddy's frame, clearly in celebration.

"Woo! Been BUSY eh amigo? Congratulations! Pepa are we-"

"Nope, just her this time."

Abuela looked proud as could be. She raised her glass up.

"Salut, Agustín! Here's to another miracle!"

Agustín couldn't believe it. He didn't stop fussing over his wife and his little girl, long after dinner. He fell asleep that night, somehow, without too much fanfare.

Or so he thought.

"Agustín. Agustín."

Agustín groaned as he got up, only to have a heart attack upon seeing those big, green eyes peering down at him. He should've been surprised, but honestly, this seemed like Bruno appropriate behavior.

"Mierda, Bruno- could you knock?"

"Didn’t want to wake up Julieta. I need to tell you something. You only."

Agustín carefully got out of bed and followed Bruno outside. Bruno had to help keep him from falling as he guided him to the roof. They looked at the stars for a while, Bruno clearly stalling.

"Bruno. It's late, and I don't get a lot of sleep-"

"I had another vision before bed. A lot of times these visions just happen, even if I don't want them to. When I had visions of Isabela and Dolores, those were good ones. But...I had a vision that you need to see."

Bruno handed him the slate he was keeping in his ruana. Julieta was looking at what he assumed was their new baby, only she wasn't...smiling. She was crying. He knew that face, and it held only sadness.

"What...what does this mean?"

Bruno scratched at his facial hair, fumbling with his thoughts.

"The vision wasn't clear. But my guess is...your baby won't be born healthy. From what I could gather, she will grow weak. I tried to look further, I hate keeping you guys in the dark, but my headaches. You know how they get."

Agustín felt his heart sink to his stomach. His new baby was going to be born sick? Was his baby going to. Going to-

"Why didn't we tell Julieta this?"

Bruno nervously rubbed his arm, still refusing to meet his eyes.

"Because this feels like something you should tell her. I don't know when you wanna say it, but I...I can't. She's my sister. I can't bear to see her face when I tell her that her baby will be sick. Especially after tonight. Everyone was so happy and...I'm so sorry, this is why I hate doing visions of the fam...Agustín?"

He knew he shouldn't be crying. He was trying not to. But tears were streaming down his face, the slate shook in his hands, and his world was crumbling around him.

"I. Is it. Is it my fault, Bruno? Is it me that made her like that? What did we do to deserve this? Especially Julieta. Oh dios, Julieta."

Everything was spinning. He wanted to scream. And he would've had the whole Casita hear him yell, had Bruno not wrapped his arms around him, and pull him into a hug.

"You cry and scream all you want. This...hurts me too, knowing this. I'm here for you, hermano."

And cry he did. Agustín clung to him, and cried, and screamed, all into his shoulder. Bruno held him for a long time, enough for the sun to start peaking into the horizon. Agustin pulled away, wiping his face clean.

"I'm. I'm okay. We'll be okay."

"You sure?"

"Si. Thank you, Bruno. I...I hate to ask you a favor."

"Name it."

"Don't tell anyone else. I need to think of when will be a good time."

"...I won't say a word."

They made it down from the roof and into their respective rooms without another word to one another. Agustín immediately went to his closet, and tucked the vision away. For now, nobody needs to know.

------------------

"Mi amor?"

Agustín was currently helping Julieta in the kitchen, mainly with things that he couldn't mess up, like washing the vegetables and occasionally feeding Isabela little pieces of cut up fruits. She loved her fruit and vegetables like a good little baby. She seemed to realize something was amiss, given the tone of her little voice.

"Mami?"

Julieta grabbed onto her big stomach, holding onto the counter simultaneously. Then she looked at him, nodding quickly.

"Now. It's happening now."

"Now? Now wha-oh! Oh my god- okay okay, easy, breathe! Pepa! Félix!"

He called out into the living room, and they immediately rushed in. Félix, ever the capable friend, wrapped an arm around Julieta, gesturing to Pepa.

"Watch the girls, turn off the stove. I'm going to help them to her room, and I'll go get Abuela. If you see Bruno, tell him to go get the doctor."

It was just as chaotic as Isabela's birth. Scrambling, panic, making sure everything was in order and comforting the woman in question. She was incredible, taking it all in stride, and handling it all so well. Despite the fact that she was worried about Isabela, despite not getting dinner done, and despite the snowstorm Pepa was whipping outside in her worry. Agustín was with her the whole time, in absolute loving support, same as he always was.

Then she came, and she was precious. Julieta held her in her arms, weary, exhausted.

"Ho...you were not easy, little one. But you're here."

"She's beautiful, Julieta. Should we let everyone see them now?"

"Later. Right now, I need to sleep. I...I just want to hold her, Agustín."

And held her she did, even in her deep sleep. Agustín looked down at their bundle, and hoped that Bruno's visions were wrong. Unfortunately, they weren't. They never were.

It started on the day after she was born. She would not eat enough. The next day, the same thing. At first, everyone just frowned at the news. Then, everyone felt dread. The clouds felt dread at the news that their little baby stopped eating entirely. Julieta sat at her bed, trying over and over to get the little one to eat, even to cry. But their little one, Luisa, refused to do anything. Agustín walked in, a tray of hot food in his hands.

"My parents made dinner again. They wanted to see you, but I told them that you were too tired. How...how is she?"

"Agustín she won't eat! She looks so pale and I keep having to see if she's still breathing. Agustín..."

Her eyes met his, and he immediately crumbled as tears welled in hers.

"Is she going to die?"

He's waited too long to tell her. He should feel ashamed. He sighed, set the bowl down, and dug into the closet, pulling out the slate.

"I should've told you this before. But Bruno had this vision of...exactly this."

She looked at the vision, and her face when from tears, to anger.

"You hid this from me?"

"I just wanted you to have her first, I know you'd be too stressed and it could hurt her and-"

"BRUNO hid this from me?"

Oh no. She got up, baby in one hand, slate in the other, and practically stomping down the steps.

"Julieta, wait-"

"BRUNO!!!"

The poor guy looked scared shitless. Understandable, Julieta angry was a rare, and terrifying sight. Bruno looked at the slate, then at Agustín.

"You told her NOW?!"

"Don't you rope my husband into this! You could've told me, but no! I understand why he waited to tell me, but my brother?!"

"Julie, please-"

"No! I'm angry because this doesn't just affect me, Bruno! This affects my CHILDREN and-"

"Mami?"

Her face fell upon seeing her other little girl. Isa was standing there, a bottle of formula in her hands. Pepa gave an apologetic smile.

"She's been asking so much about the baby, so I thought we'd make your recipe for formula and...is everything okay?"

Julieta wanted to yell more, Agustín could tell. But instead, she sighed, and knelt down.

"Thank you for caring for your sister, mija. But she...doesn't want to eat. I-"

"Try?"

Isa gestured the bottle towards the little one, and Julieta, heart melting, decided she could at least try. She instructed her on how she would personally feed her, and they expected yet another bout of fuss. Only, they didn't get that. They watched in fascination as the little one not only ate, but ate the whole thing. They all looked at Isabela, who seemed confused by all the staring she was getting.

"How...did you do that, mija?"

Isabela shrugged, clearly having no clue. Julieta clasped a hand over her mouth in disbelief, and Agustín knelt down to her, making her look up at his face.

"You just did something very important for your mami, Isa. You helped Luisa, like a good big sister. Do you think you can keep doing that for us? Help her get strong?"

Isa nodded, and Agustín & Julieta knelt down to give her a good squeeze. He watched as Isa looked at little Luisa, with a sense of wonder and affection. He was so lucky to have them both.

-------------------

"Lulu, mija! Real quick, before you go!"

He stopped his girls before they ran out to go play. Isa had her hands on her little sister's shoulders, and he was so proud of her, taking responsibility for her sister, since Luisa was born. Luisa took the bag from her dad's hands, frowning.

"But papi, I'm not hungry."

"You skipped breakfast, and you didn't eat dinner. Please eat some of it, your mami made it just for you."

Luisa didn't seem convinced, before Isabela grinned down at her.

"If you eat, we'll take a peek at your door when we get back home!"

Luisa was four days away from her big day, and to say she was excited, was putting it lightly. Luisa jumped on her feet a bit as she looked at her dad.

"Can we? PLEASE, papi?!"

"Only if you eat. And Isa is going to tell me if you did. Can you promise you'll eat?"

Luisa hesitated, before nodding.

"I promise, I'll eat something."

"There we go! Now who's my strong girl?"

"Me!"

He flexed alongside her, absolutely adoring her little smile. She struggled with wanting to eat, even as a baby, but she was improving. Luisa ran out, eager to go play, and Agustín couldn't resist kissing Isa's head, just real quick.

"You're a wonderful sister, Isa. If you see anything you guys want to have at the square, neiva or pan dulce-"

Isa tucked a flower behind his ear, smiling.

"I got it, papi. She's my sister, I'll take care of her. Now I gotta go, I need to catch up. Luisa!"

She ran after her sister, and Agustín sighed. He hoped that whatever gift she'd get, it'd make her strong.

That's all he wanted for her.

#asks #not transformers #encanto #listen #the idea of Luisa getting a gift to be strong Because its what he wanted for her #peak #also we stan bruno being a shoulder to cry on

[happi-meals]

Breakfast, lunch, dinner – March 27, 2024

Today wasnt the best eating day for me. Between a few leftover snacks, like chocolate covered almonds, I didnt eat a lot. 😭

Executive dysfunction can cause some brain fog sometimes, and I didnt get enough sleep again cuz my mattress and pillows .... well let's just say theyre tired and expired lol. But I managed to go back to sleep long enough to have enough energy to make a quick breakfast of vegan grilled cheese with Daiya slices, 2 clemintimes, and a few pickle slices. I added pickles to resemble a grilled cheese order at my job lol (we use spears but chips suffice).

After finally gaining a sense of focus and reorganizing my kitchen to the sound of nostalgic breakcore, dubstep, and hyperpop, I almost forgot to eat a late lunch lol. I was pretty consumed in my efforts, esp since its been days since I could muster up focus and energy to get any tasks done. And my goodness am I behind on so much lol!!! But today was good. I even knew that I'd be busy with chores, so I put a cup of white rice on ahead of time and let it stay warm in the rice cooker. I unplugged it eventually to save on the electricity bill (which, last month's was almost $40 cheaper!!!! YEASSS), so it was a lil cool when I tried it. But before I started the rice when I sat down to eat, I finished a chicken siopao bun first. Always good shit!!!

I poured a bit of sweet chili sauce on the rice bed but then had a craving for platains lol. The local Jamaican store I've been frequenting serves them and while there a bit pricey I like to patronize there cuz i try to support local, small business in a town getting eaten up by corpo franchises and receding small business sectors. I drove out to the restaurant, got my fried plantains to go, and headed to my lola's house to pay a visit and also eat what I got there. (As an aside, I have a feeling that I got it that way bc I arrived 30 mins before they closed but they put the plaintains in a small brown bag, which couldnt quite handle all the grease lol. Just thought that was a lil strange but nothing personal or bad! The cashier offered a seperate bag to me to carry it all in and declined bc I was gonna put the plantains in my rice bowl anyway). I ate the plantains with my rice when I got to lola's house and while the commute made the food a bit cold, the sweet chili sauce gave it a bit of spicy heat to make it a good side dish to the soup lola offered me!

She is filipina and loves to cook. When I got there we were watching a movie, but shortly she asked if I wanted any soup she made, which was hot and sour soup. She makes everything homemade and since a kid I enjoyed her food. It was so good I had two bowls. I'll have to ask her one day how to make such delicious soup her way, so when she returns to the Philipines (one of her goals), I can have more things I learned from her. From what I could taste soup had shitake mushrooms, bamboo stalks, egg flower, and baby corn. So savory yet sour. And vegetarian this time! I could go for another bowl as I type this 🤤.

I left half the rice and a few plantains as leftovers but I might eat them as a night snack before bed. I like the flavor combos and I need to up the volume on my serving sizes to get adequate energy and nutrition. This "taking care of urself" shit is hard!

Salamat po, Lola ♥️

#my meals #soup #grilled cheese #vegan #vegetarian #filipino #filipino food #hot and sour soup #breakfast #lunch #dinner #rice #siopao

[chaletnz]

Lima: A Day in Barranco

I started my day with a surprisingly good shower in the tiny shared shower block opposite my room, then I decided to try the hostel breakfast as it was Sunday I figured this would be the best day of the week to have breakfast in the hostel as most everything else would likely be closed. I put my order in and paid, then waited patiently at one of the three tables available in the courtyard while watching Rao the Kaclla (healing dog) running around skittishly begging for food. The breakfast cost about 25 soles from memory and it was filling - two warm pita breads, peanut butter, fig jam, yoghurt topped with granola, raisins, apples, banana and papaya slices, organic Peruvian coffee, and papaya juice. After I'd eaten and drank all this and returned my tray, I was also able to get a coca tea to pep me up for the day ahead. I walked out to the Larcomar outdoor mall on the seafront but it was deserted this early in the morning. From here it was about another 30-45 minutes walking around the coastline to reach the Barranco neighbourhood. There were great views from these huge cliffs and of course, many fancy apartment buildings with front row seats on their balconies. My first stop in Barranco was Caleta Dolsa Coffee for a flat white, I had to get takeaway as it was so busy with people outside waiting on the steps for a table. Amazingly, it was cashless to go against the grain of everything else in Peru! I took my coffee back one block into a little park where I could sit and enjoy it while people-watching. I took myself on a random walking tour around the Iglesia La Ermita church and street art of Barranco, which was everywhere so I just chose street by street where I wanted to go. After an hour or so I was tired and needed some lunch and another coffee so I stopped in at Singular for a flat white and smoothie bowl with mango, pineapple, coconut and sunflower seeds. Afterwards I headed back to the church where there was a little market and I bought some alfajores cookies to take back for everyone at work. I found a massive supermarket out there too so I had a look around and used their bathroom before starting the long walk back to Miraflores. On the way back I saw a lot of dogs out for their Sunday walkies, including a cute chihuahua wearing a jacket - there aren't nearly as many strays around Lima as other parts of Peru but I guess Lima is where the money is. At the hostel, I had a rest for a while and ate some plantain chips until it was evening and I felt a little peckish. I'd been given a coupon from PeruHop for a free Pisco Sour at Saha Terraza cocktail so I claimed that and also ordered a plate of cheese tequeños with guacamole dip. After dinner I attempted to find more of those plantain chips from Iquitos but it seems they were something special as they weren't anywhere I looked, nor could I find anything close. Since I had walked 24k steps today, I treated myself to dessert of a slice of Tres Leches cake from the supermarket. That's the new rule going forward, if I do over 20k steps in a day then I can have a slice of cake!

#Peru #Lima

[fleurdelanuit13]

FFXIVWRITE 2023: Prompt 16 - Jerk

Lyla and Zhai'a were once again sat in Zhai'a's "formerly spare room, now a proper office" office at Stillglade Fane. After reviewing reports for what felt like bells, they broke for lunch and returned with their food just as the skies unleashed a torrent of rain.

"Are you alright...?" Lyla asked. Zhai'a had taken one bite of his meal and was already coughing.

"I am... perfectly fine," he wheezed, then reached for his water.

"That won't help with—" Lyla began to say but he held out his free hand to interrupt her.

"It is not the heat," he said after a large gulp. "I simply ate it too quickly."

"Uh huh." Lyla remained skeptical.

"And I didn't let it cool enough."

Lyla covered her mouth as she spoke with it full. "So it is the heat."

"Of temperature, not spice." He made sure to blow on the next forkful but still coughed a bit upon eating it.

"How long has it been since you last had jerk dodo?" Lyla asked through another mouthful.

"Um..." He thought about it, and then his brow furrowed as he kept thinking.

Lyla cracked a smile. "If you have to think that hard, it's been too long."

Zhai'a motioned at her. "Well how long has it been since you last had it?"

"Far too long."

Zhai'a pulled his plate closer. "I can tell. You've already inhaled half of yours."

Lyla gave a small shrug. "So if you don't plan to eat yours..."

"I do plan to eat mine," Zhai'a said. To prove that point, he took a large piece of it and sliced it into smaller bite-sized portions. "I am savoring the flavor. It's particularly tender and well-seasoned."

"Hmmm..." Lyla took another bite of hers as if to test his claim. "Can't argue with you there."

Zhai'a honed in on the plantains. "And I mean no offense to Gridanian cuisine, but..."

Lyla moved on to her rice and peas. "You'd be hard-pressed to find this in the main city and it's always a blessing for our tongues when this shop's open?"

Zhai'a chuckled and sat back in his chair for a moment. "Aye, something like that."

A crash of thunder shook the Fane. "We should've ordered more before the storm hit," Zhai'a mused.

"I thought you didn't want to attract attention when we got back," Lyla said.

"Yes, but I now realize that we were in such a hurry, we forgot to get curry goat..."

Their coveted bounty was from a restaurant in the Shroud that only opened a few times a week and was not well-known to the majority of Gridanians. The takeout containers were airtight and excellent for travel, but carrying too many would've had more people noticing than Lyla would've liked. She even put up a barrier on the office door, for once the smell was in the air, every passerby would ask for some.

Lyla shut her eyes and groaned a bit. "They might still be open, but do you really want to go back out there?" she asked. More thunder boomed.

"You are very fast on your broom," Zhai'a said after a pause, "and good with weather charms..."

Lyla finished the rest of her dodo breast. "If you really want the goat, you're coming too. You can take the umbrella."

"The magicked umbrella, I presume?"

"It's easy to fly. And I want sweet plantains."

"...Deal."

#lyla sylvie ffxiv #ffxivwrite2023 #i didn't proofread this

[moreofem]

Ok. So we all know Carmy doesn't really eat lunch while at work. But imagine you bring him some food or order from his fave restaurant. Nothing to grand, just something to keep him going with a note that makes him happy. Richie, of course would be like, "Why you eating from other restaurants?" To which Carmy responds with a smile, "It's from y/n." And then Richie would tease him about being in love with you

Omg yes🥹🥹

And if you’re from another country you’d make him some traditional food (just thinking bout all those fried plantains I’d feed him) and put it in a cute green or black bento box and bring it on your way to work. Of course, Richie would gag and fake disgust but he’s just jealous, and he secretly loves the little smile Carmen gets on his face when he eats your dish

#anon asks #carmen berzatto

[kayipavci]

A Little Positivitea || Ceyda & Jonas

TIMING: Before Jonas was staying at Lil’s  PARTIES: @moonrivermedium & @kayipavci SUMMARY: Ceyda brings over some tea to help with Jonas’ headache problem. The two order Chinese and get to chatting. 

The nervous feeling in the pit of her stomach was something Ceyda found that she couldn’t quite help. Throw her into a fight without warning? She was fine. Ask her to do anything remotely resembling socializing? Her hands would turn clammy and her stomach queasy. Still, with Aylin busy with classes and feeling cut off from a community she no longer felt she belonged to, she found she felt lonely more often than not. It wasn’t something that had ever plagued her before. Her socializing had usually been in the form of training or hunting. It wasn’t much, but it was enough to make her feel not so alone in the world. Now, she didn’t really know where she fit, so she supposed she could offer kindness to strangers and see where it took her. 

 In this case, Ceyda was bringing a couple of homemade tea blends that would help with a headache as well as some plantain leaves she had foraged to help with the kid’s injured feet. Something in the way Jonas spoke, rather typed, gave her the hunch that he was perhaps a hunter too. She wasn’t sure if that was better or worse, but she didn’t give herself time to contemplate as she walked through the open gate as she had been directed to. It was a nice little shop downtown with stairs that led up to what she assumed was his apartment. Knowing he had been suffering from headaches, she kept her knock on the quieter side and called out, “It’s Ceyda. I… have the teas and such.”

There was a soft whining coming from the other side of the door before it opened to reveal Jonas and Blue. She had her bear in her mouth and was wagging her tail, “Ceyda? Come-come on in.” He smiled and moved out of the way, he was moving carefully on his feet, they were bandaged and obviously hurting him from the way he moved. Going up and down the stairs hadn’t done him any favors really. “I um was just about to-about to order food if you would like something.” He shuffled back over to the couch, Blue on the other hand stood in front of the guest waiting for her to take the bear. There was a blanket and pillow on the couch, his ruffled hair and slightly gravelly voice suggested he’d just been napping. 

 “Do you-Do you like chinese food?” Jonas grabbed his phone off the coffee table, “I um hope you don’t mind-don’t mind if I sit.” He settled back into the comfy couch and gently lifted his feet up onto the cushion next to him. It was big enough that there was still room should Ceyda want to sit as well. “Oh yes um help yourself to any of the drinks in the fridge if you like.” 

The small whine from the dog on the other side of the door brought a smile to her face which only grew when the door opened. Ceyda noted the bandages on her foot, so she walked into the apartment before kneeling down to take the bear from Blue and letting the pup give her a few sniffs. She was sure to give the dog a few pets on the head before standing back up. She could tell by his voice that Jonas was just as nervous in social situations as she was. Another mental note was stored away. In all her years, she hadn’t met many hunters who had much in the way of socialization skills. “Oh, that would be really nice,” she responded calmly, hoping it would put the boy at ease, “I do like Chinese food. I’ll eat pretty much any vegetarian dish.” 

 It seemed laughable that a hunter preferred to avoid meat, but Ceyda wasn’t even sure what to consider herself these days. When he mentioned sitting down, she quickly motioned for him to do so. She couldn’t tell just how bad his injuries were, but there was no need to worsen them. “Please sit,” she instructed, “I can prepare the tea. I brought a tea ball for it as well, wasn’t sure if you had one for loose tea.” She put some water on the stove to boil and asked, “Which cabinet do you keep mugs in?” At the mention of other drinks, she offered a quick, “Thanks.” 

 As the tea began to steep, Ceyda gave the apartment a quick glance. It was small, but tidy and cozy. She didn’t get to see much of the shop, but she would come by when it was open. Her eyes settled on Jonas and she said, “This is a nice place. Must be nice being so close to your shop. Have you been open long?”

Jonas took a moment to scroll through the menu on his phone to find a vegetarian option, if he kept himself busy he had less time to focus on whether or not his behavior was awkward. “Oh um they’re above the stove in the little cupboard. Thank you-thank you for the tea and the help.” He picked the option that looked tastiest in the pictures before ordering chicken fried rice for himself. He felt a little bad not being able to get up and assist with the tea but really the less time on his feet the better. Blue was sitting by Ceyda watching her move around the kitchen. The treats were in the kitchen and usually when Jonas was in there it meant she’d get one so anytime Ceyda moved towards the treat cabinet Blue’s tail would give a little wag till Ceyda moved back to the stove. 

 Jonas turned a bit so Ceyda wasn’t talking to his back the whole time. “Oh um just a few-a few months. But business seems to-seems to be doing well. A lot of people here like their-like their antiques. Have you been in White Crest long?” Really when he moved out here he hadn’t expected much in the way of business and that was fine, Jonas knew how to handle his wages to keep the store and him afloat even in rough times, but luckily people here seemed interested in old refurbished items and Jonas had become a little bit of a handy man as well fixing most items brought to him as long as they were in his wheelhouse of knowledge.  

“Of course,” Ceyda responded with a smile. The good thing about her own social anxieties is that they had a habit of calming if someone else was feeling nervous. She had a strong instinct to protect, above anything else, which served her well in instances like this. The pup seemed to be very focused on her as she prepared the tea and she looked down at Blue with an affectionate gaze. She really was a beautiful dog, she could see how she won Jonas over when he had intended to get a cat. “I think Blue here would like tea, too,” she said with an amused look down at the pup. 

 “That’s good, that business is going well, especially a fairly new one,” Ceyda noted, “I haven’t been here all that long. Moved here with my niece when she started up at the university for the spring semester.” She poured the water that had just reached a boil into the two mugs with the tea balls filled with a special blend of ginger, cloves, and orange peels. She breathed in the soothing smell as the herbs and spices steeped and asked, “Do you take any milk, honey, or sugar in your tea?” Once the tea was done, she placed everything to the side to cool down before washing. “How’d you get into antiques? Can’t say I’ve met too many young people who are versed in them.” 

Jonas looked at Blue and let out a little chuckle, “The mug cupboard is next to the-to the treat cupboard. Feel free to-free to give her one. I’m sure she’ll appreciate it.” He was starting to think his dog was a little too easy to win over, then again he preferred that to a dog that didn’t like new people at all. He had really gotten lucky with Blue and he felt sorry for her previous owners, she had obviously been well loved before he got her and she would be well loved now, he would make sure of it. He’d even gotten her microchipped and her collar was the comfiest leather he could find. She had four beds in total, one in the apartment that she never used, two in the store and one in the worksop. Toys were always within reach and she went for daily runs. He bought only the highest rated food for her and the birds. She was a pampered pooch and she knew it. 

 “Thank you, oh uh who's your niece? What is she studying?” Jonas hadn’t gone to college given that he was pretty much expected to take over the business in California for his father. “Honey please….My dad got me into-into it when I was nine. I’ve been-been at it for quite awhile. Oh you don’t have to-have to wash. I'll get it when you leave. You’re doing quite enough already.” He really didn’t want to make Ceyda do everything she was a guest and this was her first time in his home. “Do you have a job?” 

Despite all the confusion that came with taking in a traumatized teenager, thinking of Aylin still made her smile. Even if she felt lost, Ceyda knew that the young hunter was worth it. She only hoped she wasn’t making things worse for her. She knew she’d support the girl no matter what route she decided to take even if sitting idly in the sidelines during full moons still felt unnerving. “Her name is Aylin,” she answered as she added honey to both their drinks, “She hasn’t picked a major yet, but it’s only her first year, she has a bit of time to figure that out still.” 

 “Family business of sorts then. Or at least the family skill since this is your own shop. Not sure how that all works,” Ceyda responded and found herself sucking on the inside of her cheek. This was all strange to her, all she had known was family legacy and well, she certainly wasn’t maintaining that these days. “And I don’t mind washing up. You’re hurt and it’ll only take a few minutes. Plus, I kind of like cleaning.” She had always found it soothing. She’d turn Shania Twain on and hum along while going through the repetitive motions. Or perhaps her training made it hard for her to sit still for too long. 

 “Oh, yes,” Ceyda answered, “I do. I was teaching kickboxing at the local gym, but just recently started at the art gallery, Crest Works Art. I’m their new security guard.” She hadn’t expected to find pride in an occupation that wasn’t hunting, but it was nice to have a job that felt more like a career. Metzli at least seemed to have a good amount of respect for all of their employees. She brought the mugs over to the couch and took a seat with Jonas. “So far it seems nice, I like my boss at the very least and my niece and I both get free painting lessons, which should be fun.” 

 “How are you finding the town so far,” she asked, curious as to what his answer was. Given his social skills and injuries, it wouldn’t be too far off for him to be a hunter, but it was never good to assume. Ceyda could at least determine he was alive by the heartbeat and not a beast as he wasn’t setting her senses off. 

 “That’s a pretty name. I hope she finds something she enjoys.” He meant it. Jonas hadn’t really been given the option of college, not that he minded. He knew from a young age what he was going to do with his life career wise, it was a little hard not to when he’d become so used to doing it every day. He was lucky that love for it bloomed instead of resentment, he knew many who were in his situation did not share the same sentiments as him. Really there was nothing greater than restoring an old piece back to its past glory. 

 Jonas had to stop himself from saying thank you when the mug was handed to him. It was hard but he knew it was important, “I appreciate the tea.” He smiled and made sure she had enough room on the couch, Blue came over and laid in front of the couch instead of her bed next to it. “Yes it is a um family skill. I was-I was meant to take over the business back in California but I wanted to um well start my own.” It was kind of true. He was meant to take over his dad’s business but he really wasn’t all that excited to start his own. He didn't think he was capable of it at first, and now that he got out here his confidence was building a bit more each month he made it without falling into the red. 

 “Oh? Free art classes do sound fun. I um rarely paint outside of my job, but I do sketch in my free time. I hope nothing major happens on your shift.” With this town anything could happen, he was learning that rather quickly. From his own possession to the haunted doll to the fairy having attacked him and Ari to the slime cube summoning Nora. Really Jonas was starting to think all the women in White Crest were amazing in different ways. 

 “It's um… well it definitely keeps you on your toes.” Jonas didn’t think he had had even one quiet month since coming here, really since he met Teagan it all just seemed to pick up. He wondered if that was connected, not that he was blaming the nymph; he doubted she’d do anything ever to hurt him as long as he stayed out of her waters. “How about you?” 

“Me too,” Ceyda responded, simply leaving it at that. Part of her would maybe always hope that hunting again one day would be part of that happiness. While she was rather good at finding things to hunt outside of the full moon under the guise of running, she wanted Aylin to be able to protect herself, to feel comfortable utilizing everything her parents taught her. No matter where life led the younger hunter, she knew she’d always follow. The thought of life without Aylin in it was something she wasn’t sure she could find meaning in anymore, even if she did simply return to hunting as she always had. 

 There was a small smile in acknowledgement to the young man’s appreciation of the tea she offered. Ceyda didn’t feel the need to draw more attention to it, how thankful Jonas was had already left her a little perplexed. Given, she wasn’t all that used to socializing, but what she had done seemed like a normal enough thing. She cupped her hands around her own warm mug and let it soothe her, no need to get too into her own head. “I see,” she noted, “I think I can understand that. My family had a… security business, but suppose coming out this way and striking out for myself seemed the best option.” Well, the safest option anyhow. She knew that pack of wolves likely had a target on hers and Aylin’s head. They did have connections in the hunter community here if they chose to utilize them, but with a low profile, they at least wouldn’t have to worry about wolves seeking vengeance. 

 “Sketching,” Ceyda asked, perking up a bit, “If you don’t mind, I’d love to see some of them. I always liked sketching myself, though it’s usually animals.” Well, beasts, at least. They were animal-like. Drawing them out down to the last detail kept them crisp in her mind so she could easily recognize any beast she came across. The little descriptions of abilities she’d put next to them kept her particularly sharp. It was a habit her parents had always encouraged. She shrugged a bit at the part of nothing major happening on her shift. “I’m not too worried, there’s very little I’m not equipped to handle,” she offered, “Though I would prefer if nothing crazy enough to damage any of the art rolls through.” 

 As much as Ceyda was nearly always itching for a good fight, keeping her job was a priority, and that meant protecting the art came above her own enjoyment of the fight. She was more curious about how Jonas answered this question anyhow. She tried to gauge his tone and expression, but that had never been one of her strong points. “Indeed it does,” she agreed. If her suspicions were incorrect, she wanted to keep that veil of ignorance in place. The supernatural world was meant to remain hidden. Too much could go awry if it wasn’t, especially with how much books and television romanticized the concept. “I’ve found it a bit strange here, but appreciate it all the same. It’s got personality and the school seems to be a good one.” 

 Jonas had had manners hammered into his head from a young age, not saying thank you when being handed an item you needed wasn’t something he could manage comfortably. Really he thought the hardest thing about town was not saying thank you to people. But as long as he used other ways to say thanks he figured his mother would approve. “Coming out by yourself is a little scary isn’t it? Then again you have your niece, that must be nice.” He had certainly been nervous as all hell, coming out on his own but since making new friends and having Cass take up working in the store he was starting to feel better about it. 

 “Oh um one moment.” Jonas set his tea on the coffee table and carefully stood up so he wouldn’t step on Blue. He walked awkwardly towards the bedroom wall, sliding it just enough for him to slip in behind it. The sound of a drawer opening and closing could be heard before Jonas slipped back out from behind the wall. “These are most of-most of them.” He needed a new sketchbook but really he was so fond of this one he just kept adding paper to it. He gave Ceyda the book and sat down next to her, instead of picking up his feet he plopped them gently on Blue who didn’t seem to mind. 

 “The town certainly has personality. I… There’s so much I haven’t um haven’t seen before, but since I’ve moved here I’ve seen a lot of new things.” Maybe too many new things. Still the town was slowly winning Jonas over even if he was a bit resistant to letting it do so. “I’m glad the school is good.” 

“It is, isn’t it,” Ceyda noted as she thought over her own experience, “I guess that just makes it more brave. I know having my niece around makes things easier.” Whenever doubt crept in, one look at Aylin peacefully reading a book was enough to quiet them. An attempt to push them back to the life they were trained for just didn’t seem right. All hunters who actively hunted saw horrific things, but for that to be her first dive into a real hunt, that was more than anyone so young should have to endure. It gave her a sense of protectiveness over the young hunter and she supposed they were striking out here. Aylin, despite not loving all her classes, was doing well in school. Ceyda found something of a career and could still protect people when coming across the various beasts in town. 

 Ceyda nodded when Jonas got up, presumably to grab his sketches. She was curious to see what caught his eye enough to draw. For her, it had always been a good way to memorize species, to take in every detail so she could easily remember them when she came across them on a hunt. When the paper filled sketchbook was handed to her, she carefully thumbed through the different pages. There were a variety of landscapes and people, some from the Common she could easily pick out. They were all very good, even the ones with a face scratched out which she decided immediately to not ask about. That seemed like a social faux pas she wasn’t sure she could recover from. “These are all very good,” she complimented with a smile, “They capture the feel of the scenery. I like them.” 

 In comparison, Ceyda knew her drawings were meticulous and almost scientific in their appearance. She wondered if she took a stab at blooms, something which invoked a sense of contentment, the way her own pencil moved would change. Maybe. She returned her attention to Jonas, still trying to parse out just how much he knew. She had the suspicion he was like her and some person on the internet talked to him like he was such, not that the internet was reliable. “Personality is definitely right,” she noted, “Hopefully you’re staying safe around so many new things.” Some of it was new to Ceyda, but not in its entirety, or at least not enough to truly shock her. “I am too,” she responded, “It looks like we’ve both found our place here in a way.”

 Jonas smiled at the compliment to his drawing and nestled more into the couch finally taking a sip of his tea, “I’m glad you-glad you like it.” He was always a little nervous when sharing his drawings but Ceyda seemed nice so he didn’t mind. “If you like I-I go during my days off to the common. You’re welcome to join.” He wouldn’t mind her company. Maybe less people would approach him too if he had someone by his side while sketching. 

 “I am definitely trying to- trying to say safe. I um don’t know much about it all but I have-I have people who look out for me.” Joans felt he was well protected by all of his friends as long as he was around them. It was the times he was alone that worried him. He couldn’t do much but run away and he was sure he would at some point become a burden for his friends. Maybe he should look into self defense classes? His brain seemed to zone out aas he took another sip of tea before being brought back by Ceyda’s voice. “Yes I-I suppose so.” 

The invite made her smile into her mug as she took another sip. Ceyda could tell they both weren’t what anyone considered a social butterfly, but it was nice they seemed to enjoy each other’s company well enough. “I’d like that very much. I’ve gotten a bit out of practice,” she said as she carefully set the sketchbook down on the coffee table, “I’ll join you on your next day off.” She spoke with more certainty in hopes it would put Jonas at ease, too. He seemed to be a good deal younger than her, but not as young as Aylin. Either way, in this town everyone could use someone looking out for them. 

 “Good,” Ceyda answered with another sip of her tea. There was nothing she could say on the matter without giving herself or the supernatural parts of town away. While she had initially had her suspicions on whether Jonas was a hunter, if he had no knowledge of the supernatural world, it was her job to keep that curtain closed. He seemed a bit dazed though which was only a bit troubling. “Now what do you say we pick out something to watch before the food gets here?” 

#jonas #p; jonas #wickedswriting #p; a little positivitea

[formeryelpers]

Angel’s Tijuana Tacos, 4211 Eagle Rock Blvd, Los Angeles (Glassell Park), CA 90065

I’ve been wanting to go to Angel’s for years but they only operate at night, so I had difficulty going there (they don’t have vegetarian options for Mr. Froyo). They set up a few tables and a grill for the chicken on the sidewalk in front of Target in Glassell Park. I knew the lines were typically long but I got lucky and there were only two people ahead of me – only I didn’t know where the line was. I’m still not too sure but I saw people ordering from one guy.

After you order, you wait around till he asks you what you’d like on your taco, burrito, mulita, etc. He adds onions, cilantro, and salsa. The woman at the aguas frescas station provides the drinks and acts as the cashier. You can help yourself to lime wedges, radishes, grilled onions and jalapenos, pickled onions, and cucumber slices. Another man works his magic at the al pastor station (yes, it is carved off the cone and he adds pineapple too). Yet another guy mans the grilled chicken station.

Tacos start at $2.50, burritos $9, tortas $10, mulitas $8, vampiros $4.50. All reasonably priced. Meat options: asada, pollo, chorizo, al pastor, cabeza.

Al pastor mulita ($8): two corn tortillas with freshly shaven al pastor, pineapple, cheese onions, cilantro, and a spicy green salsa. It’s like a stuffed quesadilla that’s heated on the grill. They loaded it with everything. The al pastor is thinly shaved but in bigger pieces than usual. The combination of the sweet pineapple, meaty pastor, spicy salsa, and everything else is amazing. I’m drooling just thinking about how flavorful it all was. It’s decadent and very wet for some reason (because it was wrapped in foil and the hot food formed condensation?).

Quesa taco with chorizo ($3.50): lots of chorizo, onions, cilantro, and salsa on a single corn tortilla. The tortilla was soaked in grease and the chorizo was way too salty. Wouldn’t get this again. I should only get the pastor.

Watermelon aguas fresca ($5): pretty sweet but a huge cup with bits of watermelon

I didn’t know this but they have lots of locations, see @angelstijuanatacos. There is table for dining there but it’s small. Most people take their food to go.

Interestingly, other vendors have set up near Angel’s including a woman with tamales, a pupusa stand, and a fried plantains stand.

4 out of 5 stars

By Lolia S.

#Angel's Tijuana Tacos #street food #Glassell Park #tacos #taco stand #tacos al pastor #burritos #tortas

[calciseptinefic]

then out of nowhere, somebody comes and hits you with an ooh la la la, ooh la la la, ooh la la la, ooh

Marvel || Wade Wilson/Peter Parker || Part 7 notes: Title from 'Mad Sounds' by Arctic Monkeys. Many thanks to babygato for her beta on this chapter. this fic is also available on ao3 warnings: none

.

← previous: Part 6

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It's easy to find a nearby taqueria. Wade gets tacos al pastor and a couple bottles of cerveza, while Peter gets chicken and a mango Jarritos. Wade tacks on a bag of chips with guac and queso, plántanos fritos, and two orders of churros, as it has been several hours since they last ate and Wade remembers Peter telling him he needs approximately six thousand calories a day.

After paying, they make the five minute walk to Central Park, find a patch of shaded grass beneath a tree, and dig in. Wade's tacos are delicious, studded with bright flashes of cilantro, pineapple, and onion against the rich fattiness of the marinated pork, and he makes Peter take one. The chips and fried plantains are also very good, if not a little greasy and quickly going cold. Wade doesn't mind. He went hungry a lot as a kid and, when he was special forces, he sometimes spent weeks eating the same three meals out of a pouch; a little extra oil isn't going to bother him.

"You know it's illegal to drink in a public park, right?" Peter says when Wade cracks open his first beer with his keys.

"Technically glass bottles aren't allowed in Central Park either," Wade answers, nodding at Peter's choice of soda. "So if the cops come to heckle us, I'm going to put on my strongest Canadian accent—" which Wade says with his strongest Canadian accent, "—and say sorry until they let us go just to escape the politeness. They wouldn't want any of my impeccable manners to rub off on them, ya know?"

Peter grins at the exaggerated vowels around a mouthful of shredded chicken, one of his cheeks rounded with food like a half-full chipmunk. It draws Wade's attention to the freckles that live there. If he could, Wade would give them a quick, greasy kiss—but he can't, because Peter's a married man, and Wade isn't that kind of asshole.

Once they've finished their tacos and chips and fried plantains—an early dinner or midday snack, depending on one's point of view—Wade hands Peter one of the small pastry bags with several churros stuffed in it and a plastic take-away cup filled with chocolate dipping sauce. The cinnamon sugar coating gets all over Wade's hands and the front of his hoodie, but the sweetness of it goes a long way in soothing Wade's lingering stress from the hospital.

"Well," Wade says as he chews. "That was a bust."

"Yeah," Peter mutters in agreement as he dunks one of his churros into the sauce cup resting on his knee. Brings it to his mouth, eats it, then says frustratedly, "Two leads down. One to go."

Stark and Strange led nowhere, and now the only person who Peter believes can possibly help him is Reed Richards, the quantum information scientist at MIT. The way Peter talked about him made him sound like an unwanted last option, a potential candidate slash headache.

"So what do you want to do?" Wade asks, finishing his churros. He crumples all his trash and puts it into the plastic bag that carried their takeout, then opens his second beer. "Amtrak has a train that goes right up to Boston."

Peter doesn't respond. Wade thinks about what they talked about on the subway: strings through decks of cards, long-shots, mathematical parameters and super calculators. Even if Richards himself can't help Peter, then at least he has the tools. Peter's silence might be from lingering disappointment—he had said that Strange was the best chance he had at getting back to his home universe—or it might be for another reason.

"You don't like him." Wade fills in the blank, remembering the way Peter grinned wryly when Wade called Richards 'Dr. Douchebag'. "Do you think he's going to be a problem?"

"It's not that Richards is a bad guy," Peter says, his tone worn thin by the number of times the same sentiment has been expressed. "But in my experience, he's blinded by the discoveries of science. He'll push and push and push until he has his answer, and not consider the consequences. He thinks science is... pure, I guess, and doesn't realize how easily it can be corrupted by powers that be. Not that Tony was any better, not with the whole Ultron thing, but at least Tony learned from that."

"Ultron?" Wade repeats, holding the syllables of it for a split second longer than Peter. "Do I wanna know?"

"Probably not. It was a big fucking mess." Peter rubs at his eyes, scrubbing an old exhaustion from them, and sighs. "You have the Terminator movies here?"

"All six movies and one flopped television series."

"Ultron was like Skynet. An artificial intelligence meant to protect humanity. Tony and Bruce—another scientist on the Avengers—created it as a peacekeeping protocol, but of course, it backfired when Ultron decided that the only way to protect humanity was to destroy it."

"Isn't that like the plot of every AI movie ever?" Wade says incredulously. "Let me guess: they put in failsafes if it did go south, but the AI overrode them and it went south."

"Ding ding ding," Peter says flatly. "You've won the jackpot."

"Superpowers, magic, and robots with malevolent god complexes," Wade lists off the things Peter has told him about his universe that Wade has only seen in fiction. "Seriously, how do civilians cope in your reality? Next thing you're going to tell me is that aliens exist."

Peter does not respond. Instead, he turns the empty bottle of Jarritos in his hands and begins to pick at the label. Wade immediately understands that Peter is trying to hide the real answer by not answering at all, which is an answer in of itself.

"I am going to pretend that your silence on the matter is not an affirmation because, honestly, I don't think I can handle that much sci-fi within a twenty-four hour period." Earlier, Peter told Wade that he had been Spiderman for roughly ten years and, in that time, he had gotten involved in weird stuff and big stuff. A robot wanting to kill all humans definitely sounds like both, but aliens? That's even weirder and bigger. "So let's go back to Richards before my brain explodes."

Peter hums and peels the label off the bottle, leaving behind a tacky residue. Wade watches as he rolls it between his palms, the leftover glue sticking to his palms and his ring occasionally hitting the glass with a soft clink.

"My problem with Richards is the circumstance," Peter explains. "The quantum computer is going to need parameters that would be almost impossible for me to obtain without the right equipment, and the right equipment will be hard to access. Quantum mechanics isn't my forte either, so I would absolutely need someone with the specialization to help me—and that someone would be Richards, assuming he believed me and assuming that he would dedicate the time and resources needed to help me."

"You could just crawl on the ceiling for him," Wade suggests. "Worked for me."

Peter smiles thinly at Wade and points out, "That just proves I can crawl on the ceiling, Wade, not that I'm from an alternate reality."

Even if it's the same thought Wade had this morning, he says nothing as he lays down on the grass and shifts his face away from Peter. Outwardly, Wade's been playing along with Peter's 'I am a superhero from another universe'; inwardly, he's been giving more weight to the possibility that Peter's proclamation might be a delusion brought on by trauma, yet not discounting the first possibility completely. Wade doesn't want to be caught by surprise if either circumstance is proven true, especially not when Peter's safety and well-being might be at risk.

"You think he'll rat you out?" Wade asks.

"Not intentionally, or with bad intention, but... yes. He would."

"I could threaten him and his loved ones," Wade offers.

"Thank you, Wade, but I have to humbly decline. I would prefer to get back home with minimal extortion," Peter says flatly.

Wade knew Peter would refuse. Though he had surprised Wade earlier when he talked about trespassing, it is not shocking to know he draws his moral line in the sand when people are involved. He seems like the type of person to believe in the inherent goodness of strangers and the redemption of second chances, and neither of these philosophies are ones that Wade subscribes to. Wade has hard limits—everyone does—but he learned that most people are shitty, especially the people who end up in his literal and metaphorical crosshairs. The fact that Reed Richards is now on Wade's radar means he probably deserves at least one sucker punch to the face.

"You're still thinking about it, aren't you," Peter says.

"He had an extremely punchable face!" Wade whines, propping himself up on his elbows. "You can't tell me you haven't thought about it."

"Thought about it, yes. Done it? No."

"Well then you can live vicariously through me."

Whatever Peter was about to say—probably some lie about how he doesn't actually want to feed Richards a knuckle sandwich—is halted by the blare of Wade's ringtone. The only person who calls Wade on his personal phone nowadays is Weasel which means that either a) Weasel has finished compiling a dossier on Peter or b) Weasel has a new job for him.Wade can't ignore it either way, so he sighs and gets to his feet.

"I have to take this," Wade says to Peter as he pulls his phone out of his pocket. When Peter nods, Wade begins to walk briskly away. He doesn't know if Peter's superpowers extend to super-hearing, but he's not taking any chances.

"Sup, Jack," Wade answers as he moves out of earshot.

"I told you to stop fucking calling me that," Weasel snaps.

"Old habits die hard," Wade singsongs even though in the seven or so years since they've known each other, Weasel has never once gone by his birth name. More seriously, Wade then says, "Whatcha got for me?"

"Everything and anything there is to know about one Peter Benjamin Parker," Weasel answers. "Did a quick background check and pulled all the relevant shit. Some irrelevant shit too. I sent the files to your email."

Wade takes a deep breath in through the nose and lets it out through his mouth. So. Peter Parker exists in this world. Which can mean one of two things:

In scenario number one, it means that the man who just inhaled five street tacos and an ungodly amount of Mexican side dishes is a super-powered individual with a messed up head. How he got those super powers, how he found himself in Wade's care, and how much of his backstory is real are all mysteries that Wade needs to unravel as quickly as possible so he can keep Peter safe from whatever might be after him. It isn't an ideal situation, of course, but mental illness and the military is much more Wade's wheelhouse than the multiverse.

And then there's scenario number two, in which Peter actually is a spider-themed superhero from another universe who accidentally broke into Wade's apartment, and the Peter Benjamin Parker that Weasel was able to find is his analog from Wade's universe.

Another Peter.

A Peter that belongs here.

A Peter that won't have to go back.

A Peter that might be single and ready to mingle—

Keep dreaming, the Debbie Downer part of Wade's mind scoffs. This isn't some elaborate, inter-dimensional matchmaking scheme. There is no other Peter. Just this one.

Wade knows that Peter is most likely not from another reality. The shock of seeing Peter on his ceiling had made the 'I'm from an alternate universe' routine temporarily believable but—since the moment he woke up—Wade began to slowly doubt the possibility, a tickle in the back of his brain that he could not ignore. Occam's razor or some shit, not that either situation is devoid of convolution.

"And?" Wade asks, dragging his mind back on track and looking back at Peter. Peter has flopped down on the grass and spread his rangy limbs akimbo, more skinny starfish than spider. Wade's boots look comically large on him.

"And what?" Weasel says.

"Anything unusual?"

"Fucking nada." Weasel snorts. On the edge of his hearing, Wade can hear the tiny clacks of keys on a keyboard being hit. "Records show he was orphaned around six. Went to live with his aunt and uncle, who legally adopted him, and the uncle was fatally shot when he was fifteen. Went to Midtown for high school, then to MIT as both an undergrad and for his doctorate in biochemistry. He's currently employed at some swanky place as a biochemical engineer and—according to his tax records—makes a decent chunk of change."

Aunt and uncle, Weasel said. Aunt May, Peter said. She was the only other person besides other Wade and MJ that Peter recounted when they were talking about loved ones. Given his vaguely tragic backstory, it makes sense that Peter didn't mention anyone else, as 'anyone else' appears to be dead. That information falls in line with what tidbits Peter has given him; it's the second half of Weasel's report that doesn't make sense. Peter had told Wade that he was currently a grad student at NYU, not a biochemical engineer who graduated MIT.

MIT, where Reed Richards works. MIT, where Peter needs to go next. It feels like a very suspicious coincidence. When they eventually go, Wade will have to handle that excursion with extreme caution.

"Anything on the company?" Wade asks, pursuing another line of thought.

"Nothing particularly shady, though I didn't dig deep," Weasel tells him. "It's small and private and doesn't receive any contracts from the military—at least according to public record."

"Look into it," Wade tells Weasel.

"Okay, sure, just a little light hacking into DARPA's servers to spice up my week." Weasel scoffs, a rough sound that Wade knows is paired with a particularly exaggerated eye roll. "Though if you want my honest opinion—"

"Your honest opinion is like a bag of dog shit that's been set on fire, but go on."

"I don't think this poindexter ever got detention, much less somehow became involved in a top secret government experiment. Or came from an alternate universe. Are you sure you saw him crawling on the ceiling? It might have been... I don't know, one of your post-traumatic stresses."

"My hallucinations are auditory only, thank you for bringing that up." Wade sometimes gets a loud, persistent ringing in his ears but he's never seen things that weren't real. He's crazy, but he's not that brand of crazy. "What else?"

"What, suddenly you can't fucking read?"

"I'll be Jared, nineteen, and you can be Spark Notes." Wade shifts his phone to his other ear and demands, "What. Else."

"Well, other than a squeaky clean criminal record, a quality education, and a good job, your man shares an apartment in Queens with one Mary Jane Watson."

Mary Jane. MJ must be a nickname.

"His wife," Weasel stresses.

Wade says nothing. Hearing about her existence from Peter had been an abstraction, an amorphous idea of a person; hearing it from Weasel makes her more real, as though she will suddenly appear on the path and leap into Peter's arms. It makes that sick, gnawing feeling of jealousy return to the pit of Wade's stomach. It's just his luck that, of all the details to match up, this is the one without any holes.

"Seriously?" Weasel groans loudly. "You mean to tell me you already knew he was married?"

"He has a ring." Wade's tongue feels formless in his mouth, making the words stiff and difficult to spit out. "He mentioned her. Called her MJ."

"Jesus Christ," Weasel swears. A moment of silence stretches between them as Weasel processes Wade's admission. "Look, it's not like I give a fuck or am going to moral grandstand you or whatever. I know you wanna bang this twink despite the red flags—hell, you're charging in like a bull, who are we kidding—but I thought you weren't into that home-wrecking shit?"

"I'm not," Wade answers because he isn't. Flirting and wanting are completely different from doing, and being a piece of stale bread in the shit sandwich of adultery has always left Wade with a bad taste in his mouth. He has never—and would never—knowingly help another person cheat, especially when threesomes are so much more fun for everyone involved. "He's just... Peter."

Just Peter. As though saying his name could convey the hundreds of details Wade's been hoarding since Peter crashed into his life, from the way his nose wrinkles to the thickness of his New York accent on certain words. Wade once again looks over at him lying in the grass, sunshine dappled on his borrowed clothes through the canopy.

"In any case, the wife hasn't reported him missing," Weasel says. "You think she's... involved?"

"It's only been about twelve hours," Wade murmurs, thinking. The whole 'you have to wait twenty-four hours to report someone missing' idea is a false assumption: missing people can be reported as soon as their absence becomes worrisome. Since MJ hasn't filed a report, Peter's absence is therefore expected or a regular occurrence. Any guesses at culpability are just that: guesses.

"And you're sure this whole thing isn't an incredibly detailed hallucination?"

"Trust me, Jack, if I went full throttle into Crazy Town, you would not be making commentary in the back seat, nor would the literal man of my dreams be married to someone else. So no. I am reasonably sure that I am sound of mind at this moment."

"Well, if you're sure you haven't finally cracked, then either there's nothing going on, or this is so well covered up that everything is airtight." Weasel pauses before saying, "I can't believe I'm about to say this—because I really, really, really don't want to be caught up in whatever bullshit you might be neck deep in—but Parker is a dead end."

Wade can't help but grin at the unspoken question. He's known Weasel long enough to know that the mystery of the situation has wormed its way into the oily man's over-analyzing brain and now he's curious. He wants to know why Peter Parker ended up in Wade's apartment, why he has superpowers, and perhaps most importantly, who is responsible.

"Peter's given me a few names, though I don't know if there's a connection between them or if they're viable leads," Wade tells Weasel. "We spent all morning looking for a wizard named Stephen Strange and came up with nothing. His ex didn't know anything either."

Incredulously, Weasel repeats, "Wizard?"

"Likely just a Buddhist monk living in Kathmandu."

"Right." Weasel clears his throat. "Who else? Wizard, monk, or Muggle."

Christine Palmer. Reed Richards. Tony Stark and his husband, Steve. Peter has mentioned all of them at one point or another, and Wade doesn't know if they're random people Peter's built into his delusion or if they're all somehow connected. Wade doesn't want to take any chances.

"Do you want me to look into the wife?" Weasel asks once he has the names down. "The aunt?"

"No stone unturned, or whatever the fuck the saying is," Wade says. He knows that Peter would probably be furious with him if he found out that Wade was asking Weasel to dig into the lives of his loved ones, but Wade is willing to risk such ire. He would rather Peter be angry with him and safe, than in danger."And Weasel?"

"Yeah?" Weasel asks distractedly. Wade can once again hear the clack of his keyboard as he types.

"Thank you."

It isn't often that they exchange genuine pleasantries—usually, it's insults and gruff IOUs—but this thanks is sincere enough that Weasel hears it through the beginning of a research induced fugue state.

"I'm still putting this on your tab, Deadpool," Weasel drawls after a moment, using the nickname he came up with when Wade was diagnosed with cancer. Back then, when the chemo looked like it might kill Wade instead of cure him, Weasel told Wade that if he died, he'd feel guilty collecting his winnings from Sister Margaret's betting pool about which patron would kick it first. It's one of the few running jokes between them that has more fondness behind it than sarcasm. "So try not to get killed until you pay me back."

"Aye aye, captain." Wade gives a jaunty salute that Weasel cannot see and, without goodbye, Weasel hangs up.

Putting his phone back in his pocket, Wade allows himself a moment to be unsteady. He closes his eyes, tilts his head back, and lets the sunshine warm his face. It's frustrating that the information Weasel gave him wasn't more revealing, that it left Wade with more questions than answers. He knows that he should go home and immediately look at the files Weasel's sent him. Maybe he will find a clue buried in the quotidian, be able to recognize some obscure piece of the puzzle that Weasel couldn't because of his lack of context.

It would be the smart thing to do.

It would be the right thing to do.

But truthfully, Wade doesn't want to open that email. He doesn't want to read those files. Now that he's mostly certain that Peter isn't from another universe, he knows how to better handle the situation. He also knows that he needs to tread carefully. There's a lot that needs to be uncovered and Wade must operate within the parameters of Peter's delusion. Nothing good will come from it being forcefully broken.

Tomorrow, Wade decides, opening his eyes and rolling the soreness out of his neck. I'll look at everything tomorrow.

Wade walks back over to Peter, hands in his pockets. Peter squints at Wade when Wade stands above him.

"Weasel?" Peter asks.

"Weasel," Wade confirms. Wade isn't at all surprised that Peter made such a guess; Wade had mentioned him previously, so it makes sense. Wade still doesn't know how Peter knows so much about him; maybe Peter's exceptionally empathetic, able to play off other people's responses, or maybe Wade's unknowingly involved, considering his own military history. The idea that he might be partially responsible makes Wade shiver.

"New job?"

"Yep." Wade holds a hand out for Peter to grab. Peter takes it and Wade hauls him up to his feet. "Sent me some boring stuff to go over. Big snooze fest. I don't wanna do it at all." Wade tilts his head to the side and grins. "Do you maybe wanna help me procrastinate?

"Sure." Peter smiles and grabs the plastic bag with all their trash off the ground. "What are you thinking?"

"Well, I know we just ate, but I was thinking I'd cook a late dinner and we could binge watch all of the Christopher Nolan Batman movies, since your universe is savage and uncultured." Wade reaches up and adjusts Peter's baseball cap, which sat crooked on his head. He shoves his hands back into his pockets immediately afterwards.

"Tempting," Peter says, pretending to think about it. "Will our movie marathon include candy and popcorn?"

"Will there be candy and popcorn," Wade repeats with a snort. "Uh, duh?"

Peter nods sagely and replies, "Then I am convinced, Mr. Wilson. Let's go home, and rot our teeth and brains."

And if Wade feels a twinge of guilt when Peter says 'home', he tells himself that he'll deal with it—along with everything else—tomorrow.

.

next → : Part 8

.

#spideypool #spiderman #peter parker #deadpool #wade wilson #rating: m #fandom: marvel #pairing: wade wilson/peter parker

[a-tale-of-2-sloths]

Day 4 - Cahuita to Tortuguero

It was another early rise today as we had a fair bit of travelling to do, starting with with a trip from the bed to the bathroom for a final cold shower. Given that it’s a hot and humid country, I’ve been enjoying the refreshing chill of fresh water. Shrivelled plantain and all! Based on our previous experience of ordering a taxi in advance, we were skeptical that Alejandro would be ready to collect us at 6.30am, however he was outside the door and ready to go as we piled out and bid our hosts a final farewell. We were back at Cahuita bus stop with plenty of time to spare and spent much of it conversing with some Canadians about the usual cliche topics such as weather and football! We got to see a photo of their snow covered house and everything! Our bus arrived near enough on time and despite it being rather busy, we did manage to squeeze on with our baggage without knocking anyone out in the process!

Our next stop was Moin bus station, where we would be getting a boat to Tortuguero. No sooner had we got off the bus were we honed in upon by a taxi driver with a very jazzy blues brothers like hat. We told him our destination and he countered with a very reasonable price so away we went, squeezed in with with a german lady and a french man (sounds like the start of a dad joke!) I can’t remember our taxi driver’s name, but most of Moin must know him as he honked his horn and waved to every other person passing by! We’ve only been here a few days, but the sense of community in every little town and village is clear to see particularly amongst those in the same trades.

As we arrived at the dock/harbour there were around a dozen boats lined up ready to take passengers from Moin to Tortuguero. Our ever popular taxi driver put us in touch with one of the boats and so we had our means to cruise down the river. However, it would be a while before we departed so we opted for some local coffee and empanadas from a small stand in the car park to keep us going until lunch. We were joined by our taxi companions, one of which spoke Swiss German and his face lit up when Georgie was able to converse with him. We also chatted to a couple who were being visited by the lad’s mother, a lady of Wittering! Turns out he went travelling some 10+ years ago around 18 and never returned, so she was there to visit him at his current place of residence - Costa Rica!

An hour or so later and after some tropical down pour it was time to board our boat and make for Tortuguero. The boat had 2 rows of seats, 1 either side, with just about enough room for baggage at the back. There were around 12 tourists, the captain and 3 locals. One of which appeared to be working for the captain as he assisted with the baggage and other boat duties, like looking out for interesting wildlife. The journey was set to be around 3 - 4 hours depending on how many times we stopped for either nature watch or pee breaks! As it so happened there was none of either, but that didn’t matter as the ride was a lot of fun and we did pass by and through a lot of nature, from jungle either side and through meadows of green plants floating on the river surface. Although we didn’t stop to observe nature (like crocodiles or sloths!) We did see all sorts of aquatic birds, the odd monkey and some water buffalo.

There are no cars in Tortuguero so via water is the only way to travel. We started off at a rather merry pace and were all told by one of the local’s on board (who was on the boat for a lift home) to put our life jackets on about 15 minutes in to the trip. It seemed strange that this safety precaution hadn’t been mentioned prior, but it transpired it was just for going past the ‘Navy base’. Once clear we were able to take them off and carry on at our own risk buoyancy free! As we made our way in to wider river and more open water the captain put his foot to the throttle and sent jets of foam blasting either side of the boat. When turning the corners at speed it felt like the passengers the other side might drop in to your seat due to the extreme lean! When the sun was beating down it was rather refreshing having a light sprinkle of water on the old trucker’s arm that was hanging out of the boat. However, when the heavens opened it it was time to roll down the plastic window cover to try and avoid getting completely soaked. But however wet we might have got (not very!) it was nothing compared to the captain’s first mate, senor wildlife watcher, as he also doubled up as a windscreen wiper! Turns out the boat doesn’t have one, so the poor bugger had to sit out front in the pouring rain occasional sticking out his arm to wipe the window clear! The weather here can go from scorching sun to great deluge in the drop of a coconut, which isn’t a problem providing you’ve packed a raincoat! But no raincoat in the world could have saved this fella from his soggy state! On the plus side he did get to driven for the latter half of the journey (once it had dried up!)

As we pulled in to Tortuguero there were tour guides on hand ready to offer their services and we just so happened to talk to one that had very reasonably priced tours on offer. Including a wildlife walking tour that evening and a canoe tour in the national park the following day. We decided to go for both as we came to see wildlife and hadn’t been out venturing in the night yet. After some lovely lunch at our Air BnB’s restaurant overlooking the river, we showered up and headed out with our tour guide and a couple from Costa Rica on the hunt for all things my nan wouldn’t want to go near! Snakes, frogs and creepy crawlies! Much like the day before, we weren’t the only party out and about looking for wildlife, which is quite useful as the tour guides advise one another on where to go. That said, our tour guide had the eyes of a hawk as he honed in on animals great and small in places so camouflaged that even with a description of which leaf to look at it was difficult picking things out. We started off with a selection of lizards, snakes and insects, but it wasn’t long before we (he) spotted sloths, one of which was moving around quite a lot so it was very easy to see, a porcupine (which is quite a rare find!) and a couple of frogs! It was a great way to spend a couple of hours and get up close and personal with the reptiles and amphibians of Costa Rica! Plus another mama and baby sloth!

We rounded off the night back at the Air BnB bar restaurant with some little sausages and chips and a round of drinks so we can get an early one as we’re up at 5.30am tomorrow! I say that, I’m still sat here typing at 11.30pm as G’s snoozing away thinking of all the things we’re going to see in our canoes. Personally I’m hoping for some toucans and turtles!

G’s highlight - Seeing another mama and baby sloth!

[catastrophic-crisis]

19, 17, 16, 15, 2

Spinach, Ripe Banana, Balsamic Vinegar, Basil (Fresh), and Heavy Cream.

Hey, this kinda looks like something I just made last week! (Minus the, uh, fruit.) I had some plain leftover cooked pasta from another dish (which was actually made to help get rid of another leftover), so I ended up freestyling a balsamic cream sauce. I had heavy cream and some balsamic to use up, so... pasta! With sauce! (The leftover of that was later applied to some leftover homemade breaded chicken with almond flour (which was to accommodate somebody's dietary restrictions.) Circle of life, man.)

Sauteed some onion and garlic, balsamic, cream, and I tossed in some spinach and balsamic sweet peppers (a not-very-balsamic-y jar of sweet peppers in a relish-y state). Worried about it taking too long to thicken/reduce down, and I threw in a bit of cheese. Drizzle on pasta, maybe sprinkle a little bit of breadcrumbs that you also should use up, and serve. Turned out pretty good, all in all.

Now... the banana. Heavy cream sounds like some ice cream makin' is in order, and if we want to tie it in tighter with the main course, then perhaps we can use our chef brains to make the balsamic work. I wonder if we can make banana cue with the balsamic, either to top the ice cream or to replace it. I vote to keep it separate, personally, because otherwise the ice cream will make our 'cue cold too quickly.

Hard Mode answer below:

If we're approaching this meal from the mindset of "everything in one dish", then we're going to find out through experience if banana is a sufficient substitute or companion of sweet pepper. Maybe precook it with balsamic to infuse it with flavor that coheres better with the dish before adding it in? The banana cue idea is infecting my brain... what if... we bread or coat the banana and use it as a protein (meat) substitute... This is a horrible mistake, pushing banana forwards when its not even a plantain. Yet... we cannot reject the banana... hide it... I will be marked a coward by the made-up cooking show judges that somehow are standing in my kitchen...

I'm caught on how to make the banana work, because I specified a ripe banana in the post for a reason, since I figured it would make it harder to work with in some situations. It's softer, with the flavors more intense, and what I fear is the experience of soft, ripe banana just floating in warm cream, even if this is just a hypothetical approach for Hard Mode of this challenge. ("All ingredients in one dish.") While not adhering to the "one dish" rule, I wonder if you could make a savory bread with banana in it...

Congrats on reading the part of the post where I stopped thinking like a home chef using leftovers for a quick-ish homemade lunch, and transformed into a cooking show contestant trying to wow judges and score points despite a lack of culinary knowledge. It's a fun cooking show premise, in my defense.

TL;DR: balsamic cream sauce over pasta and/or breaded chicken, either incorporate the banana into the sauce, or make an ice cream or banana cue dessert.

#jupiterposting #jasks mailroom #the terrible secret is that the balsamic was... actually a maple balsamic dressing #basil is implied to go into the pasta dish/cream sauce but I wonder... what if a more savory iced scream... <- the devil speaking #if you ask 'where is the seasoning' its implied. yes I did season it + I topped the pasta with a homemade breadcrumb mix I had leftover #that had previously fresh parsley (that I needed to use up) onion powder garlic powder salt pepper I think. w panko

[chelleztjs18]

Hello you mrs. busy mom of a little booger honey nut cheerio lefty eyebag 😅

Good morning. I hope you slept well and got enough rest for another busy day. How are you?

Yeah, I made spaghetti, and it didn't make me upsetti hahahahaha but my headache is still here. I don't know why it's not going away, although it's not as bad.

Kansas is okay. I only really like it for the lego place ahaha oh fun fact, it had jack in the box and that was my first time ever having it. I didn't enjoy it though. They also had steak n shake, a place I thought was only in GA. Since my time was limited there, I didn't get to go.

Do you like roller coasters that have the water in the end? It'd be funny if Emily gets older and tells you that roller coasters are boring hahahahah or watch, she will be able to ride the extreme ones but then you can't anymore 😩

Ah yes! How can I forget the crispy pork or as we call it, lechon. And the BBQ skewers, I miss those too! I think I also forgot to mention the street foods, like fish balls, tempura, banana q (which is plantain with brown sugar). Maybe I will bring an empty suitcase and just bring back frozen packages of all these 🤣

Aw you worry about me? That's sweet of you. I'll definitely keep you posted about what is going on 😌

Ah I see... so just a small family dinner during your birthday? Yeah, we also eat noodles on our birthdays. Since I don't know how to make the noodles my family makes, I always just have spaghetti. 😅

I'm not sure what I would do 🤔

Question, so if you don't like someone you just keep quiet and be nice to them?

- CuriousGeorge

Hello corn-punn righty curious eyebag!

Em n i actually slept in until almost 10am. Lol. So it means no nap for her. Hahaha. Last night i finally cleaned more and did all the laundry. I just need to fold more clothes. N of course the toys r messy again from the little booger.lol.

I did 20hours fasting today 😅. N i just finished eating.

Oh n guess what?? I finished pt. 4 of The Monsters Within! Yay! I just need to proof read it again n check if it needs to be added with something else or not.

Ah okay,, did u make it with meatballs too? Im glad u r not upsetti with ur spaghetti. Haha.

Im sorry about ur headache. R u feeling better today?

Ah i see. So when u first moved to the U.S you moved to Kansas? Kansas City has a very good bbq place that i really like. It's called Joe's Bbq i think. I love it so much. I never been there but ordered it online sometimes

Yeah i do like it but not really big fan of it because it always gets me wet n i dont like my shoes get wet. I love my shoes 😅🤣 n it gross me out walking around at the park with wet socks n shoes.

Yess the lechon n the bbq skewers r so yummy. There is this supermarket in CA n it sells mostly philipinos stuff n food.. n u also love their crispy chicken skin. With the red sweet, tangy vinagret chilli sauce they have.

Oh yeah, food street always so tasty n different. But sometimes the hygines is doubted. To be honest, after i moved here n everytime i visit indonesia n eat the streetfood sometimes got me sick. Lol. I think the imune system n the strenght of my stomach changed after living here for a while.lol. thats why i usually eat homemade cooking in first week before i start eating the street food. It helps me avoiding the stomach ache.😅

Wow that banana n brown sugar sounds delicious.

Haha thats actually what i usuallt do when it's time to go back here from indonesia. It's full with jars of spicy chillie, some indonesian instant food and snacks.lol.

Yes i'm a sweet lefty eyebag..😎 lol. Yeah if u want to, pls keep me updated.😊

I tried to do the same noodle tradition on birthdays. N on em's first bday party i tried to have something noddly.. but since all the family members r white so i adjust it with his familt pasta salad recipe n change it from fussili to angel hair pasta 😅

Speaking of family, sometimes i feel like Gloria in modern family when im with his family. Because i'm the only asian /non-white in his family. His whole family n the in laws r either blonde or brunette with blue eyes or grey or green eyes 😅 n of course im the shortest among them 🤣🤣

Well if i dont like someone, i will try to stay quite n try to still being nice to them but mostly i will avoid being around them especiallly if i really really dislike someone because i know sometines i wont be ablr to take it n cant hide my dislike. 😅 but if that person keep poking me then i wont stay quite. What about u?

Next question?

Cheerio!

#chellez answers #ask answered #anon answered #curious george anon

[jeremy258]

Another spring

 After dinner, he asked Chitose and the little Marquis to go to the hangar to rest. God takes care of you all the time. As soon as I thought about looking for an inn,inflatable amusement park, the hangout fell from the sky. If I had known, I might as well have swaggered into the city of Huizhou and entered the museum directly, which also saved a lot of things. After dinner, Fu Qingshu and I were led by Liu Zhifu and Chen Shiye to see the hangar. Liu Zhifu also said that the emperor allocated to us that more than a dozen big master originally arrived in front of us to Huizhou, directly to the magistrate's office to report. But we didn't go to the museum yet, so we didn't dare to go beyond it, so we arranged another accommodation first. Entering the front door of the hangar, Fu Qingshu suddenly gently threw me a sentence: "This hangar was originally called Su yuan." Hangguan was originally called Suyuan,Jumping castle with slide, which was a separate village of the Su family. Three years ago, Chai Rong went to Huizhou to investigate the annual tribute. Su Yanzhi's elder brother, Su Xingzhi, donated his own village as a hangout. The next stop of Ma Wangye's Jianghuai trip is Yangzhou, and the hangout is still the other village of the Su family. The one in Yangzhou was even better than this one. It was used to meet the emperor when he went down to the south of the Yangtze River in disguise more than two years ago. Fu Qingshu told me this when I was drinking tea. Take other people's things soft, so even if the imperial censor impeached Jianghuai weaving and Liangjiang general merchant Su Xingzhi colluded with the memorial to the throne of the emperor, the Su family still did not move. More than a year later, Su Xingzhi died suddenly and inexplicably, and his wealth dissipated in an instant, but his face on the official road was still there. I sigh, this conversation, the content is so serious. I said, "Brother Fu, you told me so much about foreshadowing.". What exactly is the topic? Fu Qingshu took the lid of the teacup and carefully dialed the tea leaves: "Although Jiangnan Weaving has changed its candidate, the position of Liangjiang General Merchant is still empty, and the title of General Merchant is generally handed down from the family.". However, Inflatable outdoor park ,Inflatable water park factory, Su Xingzhi's position as the general merchant of Liangjiang was snatched from the Jiang family in Yangzhou, which had broken the rules. Over the past year, the wealthy merchants in the two rivers have done a lot of things in order to compete for the general merchants. I looked at Fu Qingshu worried, less than twenty years old, talking about official business so old-fashioned. You're getting on in years. Chitose, I beg you, I know I can't get into your face, and you should pity me for doing good deeds. I sighed, the lines were old. Besides, brother, you're not in Qiongyao's film. Not a flower girl. I said, "You wipe your nose and go to bed for a night.". I'll say something nice about you to the magistrate tomorrow morning. The stripper stood up gratefully, and I said, "Do I sleep on the bed or do you sleep on the floor?" Stripping little brother good sleep: "Nature is Wang Ye sleep bed small sleep place." The next morning, I stepped out of the door and saw Fu Qingshu standing beside the plantain outside my door, as if waiting for me to go out. Fu Xiaohou asked me with a smile, "Did Wang Ye sleep well last night?" Before I could open my mouth,Inflatable 5k obstacle, the stripper turned out from behind me and stammered, "Chitose, the little man has come back first." He did not forget to bow deeply to me and Fu Xiaohou. joyshineinflatables.com

#You can't live with your own sins. Fu Qingshu and the beauty of Chu Xian look at each other. My right-hand man was occupied by the two godso

[chaletnz]

Mistico Park La Fortuna

Tyrza and I were up super early and ready to go for our 5:30am pick up hoping to get to Mistico Park very early and be among the first to enter and walk the hanging bridges. Unfortunately, we were left waiting as our shuttle did not arrive. By the time we had waited a little more than half an hour the hotel's reception had opened and I asked Fernanda to call the tour company and try to figure out why we were not collected. There had been a miscommunication with the driver so they changed our pick up to 7am (and gave us a full refund) and we went for a little walk around and bought a pastry at a nearby bakery that was open early. During this little walk I managed to lose my room key but the driver had arrived so we just hopped in and that was an issue for later. When we arrived at the park, we realised it was admission only and didn't include a guide, we didn't mind though and headed into the park to look for sloths. Tyrza spotted some little animals that looked like raccoons right away and we watched them eating their breakfast and rustling around in the trees for a while. Next I spotted a huge bird that looked a bit like a peacock way up in the trees. I was also fairly confident I saw a toucan in the trees too, but it was so far up I couldn't get a photo of it. Tyrza saw a squirrel and we saw a lot of butterflies and spiders but no sloths. The park was awesome in any case, with about 8 suspension bridges throughout that we took our photo opportunities on. The volcano was still covered in clouds so we couldn't get perfect photos despite our great viewpoint. The souvenir shop and restaurant were super pricy so we just got our driver to take us directly back to our hotel. I looked for my room key along the path we walked as we headed back into town for breakfast and coffee at the Chocolate Fusion Cafe. I went for a mango blueberry smoothie bowl topped with some caramelised cacao beans on top, and a mocha since this was a chocolate specialty cafe after all! It was delicious and probably less than $10 all up. After breakfast Tyrza and I went our separate ways so I could look further for my key. It was starting to get really hot and humid as I was walking around retracing my steps so I went to ask the hotel front desk for forgiveness thinking they might just say okay whatever and be done with it. While Fernanda could sympathise with my day of problems she said it would be $20 to replace the whole door handle. I walked for another hour to search again but it was still nowhere to be found so I reluctantly told them it was gone forever, coughed up the $20, and the maintenance man came to replace the whole door handle and keys. I surmised that someone picked it up and took it or handed it in to some random shop because I searched every piece of the ground and bushes over two hours and asked in a few shops but noone had seen it/didn't understand what I was asking them. By evening it was raining very heavily so when there came a break in the rain Tyrza and I regrouped to walk down to the La Fortuna pub which was empty. Georgi came to join us (not in a rain break so was soaked) and we ordered our drinks, I had a piña colada with ice cream, Tyzra tried a float of the local beers, and Georgi had two pints of the house beer - her typical starter. Once happy hour hit we ordered 6 drinks, 2 each of the Cuba Libre, Mojito, and Guaro Sour and did a mix and match so we could each try two. At another rain break we made a dash to Pollo Fortuneño where we ordered a share plate with ribs, chicken, tortillas, beans, and fried plantains. After dinner we ran into some of the group getting dropped off after their cooking class and salsa lesson so we all went out together for a drink at Lava Lounge. I decided I wanted a sickly sweet dessert brownie with ice cream and Georgi decided it was her now birthday so we all ran with that, she got free shots and a happy birthday song from the live musician in both English and Spanish.

#Costa Rica #La Fortuna

[fuck-customers]

Tw: weird homophobia, really long one sorry

I wear a rainbow mask because I am a known lesbian. I’m working self checkout, a customer comes up to use a register and she looks at me and is like “Oh, why are you wearing a rainbow mask? Is it Hawaii? Are you Hawaiian?”

Turns out Hawaii is called the Rainbow State so fair question, but I didn’t know that at the time. So I’m just like “Wha?” She repeats “Is it for Hawaii? Or (voice drops into whisper) or a homosexual or...”

“Oh yeah, I’m gay.”

“(Horrified whisper) Oh my god.”

So I just bop around cleaning my machines, and let her do her thing when I notice she’s having issues with her plantains ‘cause customers always struggle with produce at self check. So I’m heading over to show her when she waves to another customer waiting for an available machine.

“(Frantically) Sir can you help-?”

He just points to the lesbian in the uniform on her way to help her and her shoulders drop in despair. I sidle up. “Okay hon, what you’re gonna wanna do is-“

“(Disgusted) Do not call me hon!”

Now this is a southern region and hon is my gender-neutral go to. BUT she didn’t have a country accent and I know it’s different connotations outside the region so I tell her I’ll try my best. We get that figured out, platanos were her last item, so it’s time for her to pay which means asking if she has the store card and method of payment while she huddles against her cart as far from me as possible. Trouble ensues about do you have a card, need a card, what’s the phone number, etc.

“(Panicked/Agitated mumbling) I just need- I need someone else. Somebody else-“

“You want me to holler for my supervisor for you?”

“Yes!”

I have a supervisor who’s gay. You know I thought about it. But she was bumming me out and I didn’t want him to get bummed out too, so I hollered for the cishet one instead and got back to helping the other customers. She comes over, lady finishes her order thanks to the power of my straight supervisor, and (my favorite part) circumnavigates around my go backs to try to avoid walking past me. Except she still has to because of the layout of the self checkout so fission mailed. Anyway, a cart’s in her way and I just see her moving out of the periphery of my eye (don’t realize it’s her or the lengths to which she’s going to avoid catching my gay). “Oh, lemme get that for you hon.” Oops, but it wasn’t intentional. Mea culpa.

Anyway, she exits the building, I immediately call up the closest cashier to quickly goss and laugh about it while there’s a dip in customer flow.

SHE RE-ENTERS THE BUILDING

Goes over to customer service, and then I hear a page for a manager to come up for customer assistance. I am dying. The ending is anti-climactic. Manager was busy with a truck, told her to wait 20 minutes. Took 22 or 23 getting up there so she got corporate’s number instead and left right before he showed up.

Anyway, time for theories (she refused to tell the customer service rep the reason she wanted the manager, stating “It’s his job to do that. Not you.” which, like, fair enough but also it was my non-rainbow’d but still gay supervisor who was running the desk so 🤔). Is it:

Just plain homophobia

Assumed I was a lesbian predator because I called her hon (however, I did call everyone else hon around her of multiple genders while she was doing her thing and waiting for my supervisor so she knows it wasn’t targeted only at her).

Anger at rainbow appropriation (I saw a “Hang Loose Hawaii” slogan on her mask, probably why she asked about my mask in the first place. Considered that possibility with my autistic coworker who was wearing his rainbow spectrum pin)

All of the above

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#cashier problems #submissions #fuck retail #trigger warning #tw: homophobia #submission