Rich and rare whiskey

Hi I'll list 4.6 server problem and how it could be heaven for us aion lovers
-You focused too much on endgame.
Exp event,amulet,weekend exp,BT rush making all experience leveling in ruined. Leveling is fun too if you would like to. First remove free OP starter gears and let people farm on coins gears. Remove all pink quests too. You can trade old coins into new coins at rate 2:1
For example
iron -> bronze
bronze -> silver
silver -> gold
gold -> platinum
platinum -> mithiril
mithiril -> kahrun symbol
kahrun symbol -> ancient coin
This will make people farm together kahrun ally quests and raksang will never die because you can upgrade to ancient coins. Mithiril will not be useless because it can be upgrade to kahrun symbol.
-Events should be about upgrade for everyone not just make those who rich more richer.
Stop giving away tempering solutions in pvp events only those who geared can get more tempering. Make events like giving basic stuff for everyone like enchantment stones and manastones it doesn't have to be the best just basic make everybody geared like magic boost +25, crit + 15, attack +5 ,etc and enchantment stones like L100 for upgrading kahrun gears. Also sell magic boost +28 , crit +19 ,etc for ancient coins like 20 each also sell L105 stones for 40 each and 100 coins for a tempering solution. Also increase droprate for tempering solution in instances.
-Abyss gears should be access by everyone not just EB spammers
Make blood marks exchangeable with cera medals at rate 20 blood marks per one cera ofc spamming EB will be faster but this just give a way for people who didn't have access to EB for abyss gears.
-Exchange forturneer token for random shop cosmetic outfit/mount.
Also extend the quest to lv 65 just for something skin lover will do.
-Reset Infinity Shard daily also making IDE dropping from all mobs in katalam and danaria.
It will cause less stressing in IS failing will be more acceptable and people will accept newbies into IS.
-Lower rank of 2 star officer set to rank 1.
So people won't worry about their rank and can keep farming multiple abyss set for multiple chars.
With those changes I don't think it's a game breaking or anything it will make server healthy.
Well comment if you agree or disagree I would like to hear it :)

I’m nearing the end of my PGY1 year at a Midwest program where my cohort is only 4. No family in the area and did have two better friends prior to residency here that are moving away. I’ve been struggling to find friendships here that I feel like I can become good lifelong friends with, which is something that I really want. People always say residency is a time that people find their new best and lifelong friends and I’m envious of my friends at larger programs who have more people to find their connection with. I just haven’t found that here, my program is generally very relationship/family heavy and I rarely see other coresidents outside of work. I don’t feel like I can become good friends with the people in my cohort, as everyone is so introverted and I’m the only one who ever tries to initiate plans which gets tiring. I really can’t see myself staying good friends with them after residency. It’s also been difficult to meet other service residents on my off service rotations that I feel like would be interested in hanging out. And building those connections has just been so much harder in residency because people are busy all the time; it’s nothing like how easy it was to see people in medical school. Wondering if anyone else here has felt similarly and if youve got any tips on what to do/how to be less angsty about it.

A couple of days ago I dyed my hair again with Peacock Blue with Crazy Color. It was all over my face, neck and fingers and my ears are constantly grey (doesn't go away fully even with micellar water). My pillows and yokes of the t-shirts are blue as well. Today I washed my hair again and lo and behold: the roots are already greenish-brown.
Now, I'm all for fading. I fully expect this color to fade into dark blue-green as this is the exact tone I'm aiming for. My only concern is that is goes to brown from the very beginning.
My natural color is medium ash brown, my hair is super thin, soft and straight and my main concern is volume. I use conditioners on a rare occasion because it softens my hair too much and it loses any volume that is left (and I turn into this guy), so I won't be able to condition or cowash every day. I know that this particular tone fades super bad if I bleach my hair beforehand but then the tone will be too light and honestly I can't be bothered to bleach and then mix the colors if I can just apply this one color from the bottle for a perfect shade.
I'm kinda sick of this situation when the shade is already gone from the hair but I still make every pillow blue at the same time. So I'm aiming for some tips to seal the color better, maybe some pre-treatment to open up cuticles before dyeing or something like that. Or other general tips how to keep the color longer that are not based on the conditioner.

Hello! I’m looking for advice on starting my small business. I already have one sale! I’m doing clothing reselling for vintage, rare, in demand products. Such as Supreme, Bape, Jordan, Nike, etc. New and 2nd hand. I’m currently using PayPal as my PoS. Any advice or tips would be very much appreciated considering I have little to no experience!

I have a few ways of escaping reality. One of them is video games and gym. My exams went pretty ok. I had to deal with a lot of shit during this my exam times and ofc my parents were involved. I don't have a good laptop so i play valorant or Minecraft in my free time. I don't have friends irl and only online. My parents said i can play video games all the time i want after exams. My exams are over and they keep saying u should study for the upcoming exams. They planned trips without confirming my plans. And when i said i had plans they started yelling at me and i had to listen. Then i said sorry my bad next time family will be my priority and went to my room to play video games to calm myself down. There comes my dad. Starts yelling at me for playing video games. Starts degrading me for playing video games. Calls me a pathetic loser. Says that my classmates parents'are rich and they don't need to worry about future but i do but in reality everyone has to worry about future. Takes my headphones off my ears and starts listening to what I'm listening which is basically game ambience. Calls me a pathetic loser again and repeats the lecture. Mom comes. She does the same. Both keep yelling at me. Starts emotional blackmailing me. I had to quit from he competitive game so I'm gonna prolly get a ban or a timer. They check my laptop and found nothing. They keep calling me an addict. Im not an addict. I play video games in my free time. I get like 1 or 2 hours of free time a day and in a week i play 3 to 4 times. Im about to head to the gym. My dad's listening to some news on loud volume. As if he isn't addicted to news. All the time he watches news. Even while eating. I just want him to tell me that im proud. But all i get is a lecture. This is one of the reasons why i stopped trying in exams. I don't feel motivated by my family. They keep pushing me down. Yea I'm Indian. They planned a trip somewhere but my parents had to ruin the mood for me. My dad keeps lecturing me cuz according to him im the only one in the family who listens. Ik he's concerned about my future but i really got this and everything is under control but no he wants to berate me degrade me thinking that it would work as a motivation but no it doesn't. My parents are just bullies.

CW: Parent death, but no details, just that it happened.
So, background! My dad was an editorial/news photographer for a long time, and shot a lot of famous people on and off the clock (hey, that press pass was useful! 😂) But he's also where I got my love of sending mail - he LOVED postcards, and was constantly making and sending objectively weird but charming cards to everyone he knew as part of his art. At his memorial art show, I was gifted/got to see literally a life's worth of mail that all of his friends had saved. It was really sweet.
He also co-owned a postcard company for a while, so at some point I'll dig out the uh, 1k+ cards he left me and start them on their final journey around the world. I think it will be a fitting tribute.
Anyway, all of this is to say that I was digging around in some old photos and found THE BEST CARD EVER:
OMG
Maybe it's dumb, but y'all....this postcard is not only the super rare version that's worth $15-20, but it's no longer under copyright so I can clean it up in photoshop and reproduce it all I want! 🤩
Anyone else find some fantastic mail treasures hidden away lately?

My cat had an injury while I was out on vacation and my mom was supposed to be watching him. He is 2 years old now and this was a little over 6 months ago. When we took him to the vet, he got an x-ray that showed compressed vertebrae towards the middle of his back. This left him limping and much less active than he used to be.
Some days his pain seems to be better and he can walk normally. Others, however he walks with a noticeable limp and arch in his back. This pain seems to get worse if he lays down for too long without moving, but at the same time seems to get worse if he moves around too much.
He can't really jump anymore, often climbing up onto the bed or couch with Brute force upper body strength. I do my best to help him up whenever I can and try to make stairs for him in places but he rarely uses them.
Tonight was the first night he refused to climb into bed with me; he almost always sleeps in my arms. He mowed at me to come get him, so I did. He's sleeping against my side right now, purring himself to sleep, but I can't help but feels sad that I don't know how to help him feel better.
Could anyone please point me in the direction of treatments that I could do to help alleviate his pain? He's such a young, sweet, little guy, I can't stand the thought of him being in pain for his whole life.

Praises again to u/TheManwithaNoPlan for helping edit!
[First]-[Prev]-[Next]
Memory transcript: Tarlim, Venlil civilian. Date: [Standardized human time] September 2nd, 2136
I awoke in darkness. Strange. Why haven’t my blinds opened yet? I shook my head and gave a yawn as my mind caught up with itself. I could barely see my finger in front of my eyes. I reach my foot out to turn off the fan proactively, but my paw only manages to swat the air. What? Wait… My mind, jarred by the odd circumstances, finally relayed my current whereabouts to me. I’m not in my room or on a train. I’m in Jacob’s room! Those blackout curtains work great! Though, they don’t have the option to automatically open.
“Hmgh,” I hear a mumble down by my tail, “muh huh?” A feminine mumble!
My memory rushes back in full. I helped Sharnet calm down yesterday. Jacob and I talked for about a quarter of a claw, or an “hour” in his time. By the end, I had found myself yawning. The train had basically come in during the end of Sharnet and I’s wake cycle, and our bodies were telling us it was time to sleep. I had wanted to stay awake and talk, but he noticed and basically demanded I get some sleep. “We will have plenty of time to visit on the ride over and at Dawn Creek,” he had justified. Then he offered both me and Sharnet his bed.
I tried to object, but he wouldn’t hear of it. Said there were plenty of places he could “crash for the night” as he closed the curtains. Kept saying it was the least he could do. I wish I would have argued more, but as soon as he showed me the light switch, the darkness of the room made me dead on my feet. Those instincts hit HARD. He then just wished me a good night and stepped out of the room.
I had to hurry to remove my braces before I completely passed out. If I remember correctly… I don’t. Oh well. “Sharnet?”
I felt her jolt against my legs. She had basically claimed my tail as a pillow when we crawled into the bed last night. I bet she’s momentarily forgotten our position as well. “Wha! Who, where…?” I heard the flap of her ears as she shook her head. “Right. Hey Tarlim.”
“Hey,” I responded. “Could you get the lights or curtains? I can’t find my braces.”
A grunt of agreement sounded, I felt weight disappear from my tail, and then I heard the sound of claws on wooden flooring. With a rustle, the curtains opened and light flooded into the room. I had to squint to let my eyes adjust, but soon I was finally able to see where I left my braces.
There they were, lain haphazardly in the middle of the room. Must have accidentally tossed them farther than I meant. Just… barely out of reach. Sharnet saw me reaching and stepped towards them? What is- she picked them up and handed them to me! I… I hadn’t even thought to ask!
“Th-thank you,” I stammered before moving to place them on my legs. Sharnet watched silently as they self-tightened against my legs. Once they were done, I stood up from the bed, not a bit of pain in my joints.
“So…” Sharnet said with a yawn, “what now?”
“Now,” I responded, striding to the corner that we had left our packs, “is first-claw grooming.” Opening my pack, I pulled out my trusty brush.
“Oh!” Sharnet exclaimed, before she began to fidget. “I, um… I don’t have one. I just used the brushes they provided on the train.”
“That’s-nngh-okay,” I responded, removing a particularly stubborn tangle in my head fur, “I can help you groom.”
“Really?” She raised her ears in surprise. “You… you would groom me?”
“Of course!” I responded, removing some lint from my chest. “Miss Paly taught me how to do a ‘Quick and Proper’ grooming, as she calls it. Get out the lint and tangles, three times over before moving, long smooth movements, and there we go!” I posed myself to show I had made my torso fur properly flow.
“Wow.” Sharnet looked at me impressed. “Are you… and are you okay with grooming me?”
“Why, yes!” I swung my tail over to more easily brush its tip poff. “It would be rude not to. Isn’t that like what your parents taught you?”
Sharnet said nothing for a while as I continued to brush my tail. “They taught me, but I never really had anyone to go through with it,” she finally said. “I had always been moving after I moved out. Always after information for an article. I… I only ever used salons or combed myself.”
“Well then, I suppose this will be new for the both of us.” I waved my tail, feeling the swish of my smooth fur. “Even when Madam Pala was teaching me, she still cared for her own fur.” I sat down so I was more on her level. “So please forgive me if I’m a bit awkward. I will try my best.”
I held out my brush as Sharnet stared at me. She gripped the fur against her legs. Anxious. Did I misread the situation? Am I overstepping? Sharnet soon shook her head with a huff and stepped forward, turning her back to face me. “Could you… start with the back?”
I felt my tail wag. “Certainly.”
I set the brush against her neck and drug it down til I reached her tail. I could see her muscles tense beneath her fur, but by my second pass she had begun to relax. By the time I had reached her snow-touched shoulders, I heard a purr. She even started turning so I could brush the rest of her. This… this was good. Like I was part of a herd. A small herd, but a herd nonetheless.
As I was getting the final tangle out of her tail, I heard the sound of someone tapping against wood. I flicked my ears to listen. What was that? The tapping came again, but this time I noticed it came from the door. Curiosity got to me, and since I was done with her back, I handed Sharnet my brush. “I think I’m done, but you can detail to your preference.”
“Oh!” She took my brush in her hand, seemingly disappointed that our grooming session was done. She gave a light bow. “Thank you for that.”
I signaled her “your welcome” with my tail and strode over to the door. The tapping began a third time as I reached down and swung it open. A blue spaceman stood with his arm stretched out, explaining the source of the sound.
“Ah, Howdy!” Jacob’s speaker sounded, “ Ah know y’all don’t need as much sleep as us, so ah hope ah didn’t keep y’all waiting!”
I flicked my ears in greeting. “no, actually, we only recently woke up. How long were we asleep?”
“Way-all,” he drawled, placing his glove against the chin of his helmet, “ah only just got myself so… about seven hours… a claw and three quarters?”
My ears flew up in surprise, and I heard Sharnet give a stutter of confusion. We slept that much?
“I guess y’all slept in,” Jacob commented, “well ah was just wanting to let y’all know that breakfas-ah, “first-meal” is being served in the cafeteria! Most people have already headed down. Some human recipes, but everything is Venlil-safe! And ah do mean everything! Y’all want to come?”
I wagged my tail delightedly. “Absolutely! One sec first.” I left the door open as I strode over to my pack and pulled out my pill bottles. Heart strengthener, hormone blocker, painkillers! Just toss in the mouth and swallow.
“Tarlim,” Sharnet whispered to me, “are you sure about that? I mean, I’m able to handle just being around a human, but…” She looked back towards the door and pulled my head down to her level, which I allowed. She spoke in barely a whisper. “This would be them eating! What if they can’t resist…you know?”
I thought about her words. This would be a dangerous situation according to what most believe. But those “most” were following the words of people that allowed the correctional facility to exist. They were wrong about me, so I had complete confidence they were wrong about the humans, too.
“Remember Kaeden?” I whispered, “I don’t know if you noticed, but when he came out of the room, he had his mouth uncovered. You saw, right?”
She was shaking, but she affirmed with a flick of her ears.
I returned the gesture. “And his companions showed no signs of fear. Even from someone who considered themselves a monster.”
Sharnet lowered her ears in slight shame, so I allowed my tail to rest against her back. I thought back to my first meeting with Jacob, and I suddenly realized something. A bit strange, but it just might work! I patted Sharnet’s back with my tail, prompting her to look up at me. “Here, let me show you something.”
I opened my mouth slack-jawed, letting it hang open in front of Sharnet. As expected, she looked at me confusedly. “Why are you opening your mouth at me?”
I attempted to speak mostly without the use of my teeth, which was harder than I had anticipated, so I just closed my mouth and pointed to my teeth. “My teeth are bigger than his! What can he do that I can’t?”
I watched her face. For a moment, I was afraid it wouldn’t work, or even backfire as she looked even more confused. After a moment, though, it seemed to click in her head. Her ears rose again in realization. “You…You’re right.” She sounded almost in awe at the revelation. “Kaeden’s teeth were pretty small, yeah! I doubt they could even break skin!”
I brushed my tail against her back in confidence, “And you heard his companions. They both fought him and held their own! You should be able to…” I trailed off as her expression fell again. Right, loaded topic. Dumb brain. I shook my head and restarted from the top.
“If anything happens,” I said, “I promise I will stop them. You have my word, Sharnet. You’re safe here with me around.”
I looked at her, and for a brief moment, I thought I saw a hint of orange appear in her ears. “Th-thank you. I… I think I can go.”
I wagged my tail at her enthusiastically. “I knew you would.” I stood up from the bed. “I think that we’ve kept Jacob waiting long enough.”
With a wave of her tail, Sharnet moved to grab her belt pack and holopad. Once it was secure, we ducked out of the room. Jacob clapped his hands together. “Right then! Ah’ll lead y’all to the cafe!”
Apparently, it was on the bottom floor. I was about to enter the stairwell, but Jacob put a damper in those plans as he guided me to the elevator. I was surprised to find that I could technically fit inside with only a crouch instead of the borderline acrobatics I usually have to do.
The cafeteria was to the side of the lobby. Jacob led us through the door and I stood to get a look. It was rather sizable. Humans and Venlil were sitting at tables together, there was a small line at a food counter and… and…
What in the name of the Tenants is that sun-blessed smell?
I took a scenting breath, and there it was again. Salty, earthy, some cut grass, and a slight burn that seemed only to enhance the whole profile. Jacob was saying something, but I didn’t hear him as I strode forward, following the wonderful smell. It came from the counter. The people in the line parted as I strode forward. Where was it coming from? This? This? No…
THIS…
Before me was a platter consisting of 6 large green leaves holding a mixture of brown cubes and small pieces of white grains inside them. The server was a human wearing a white apron pelt, and they looked up at me as I practically drooled over the food. “Uh… can I help you?”
“What,” I pointed to the food, “are those things?”
The server looked between me and the unknown meal, thinking on what to say. “It’s… i-it’s tofu and rice on a lettuce leaf. Do you… want one?”
I wagged my tail before remembering who I was speaking to. “Yes. Very much, please. As soon as possible.”
One of the others in the line passed over a plate, and the server slid one of the leaves onto it. He added a spoon and handed it to me apprehensively. “Is there, uh, anything else I can get you…sir?”
I didn’t answer as I grabbed the plate. I scooped up a spoonful of the sticky grains and one of the cubes and, after only a moment of hesitation, slid it into my mouth.
Salty. Savory. Toothsome. Firm enough against my teeth, but not so firm as to crunch. Something in this sung sweet songs to my tongue. Satisfying a craving I barely knew I had. Something beyond my craving for Stringfruit. Like part of me declared that I had never even eaten before now. I placed the plate onto the platter.
“Sir,” the server spoke, “if it’s not too your liking you-”
He cut himself off as I picked up the platter. I needed it. This was mine now. I felt everyone starting at me, but I didn’t care. I couldn’t care. There was an empty four-seat table nearby that had the chairs detached, so I pulled one out with my food and sat down to feast.
“Okay,” I heard Jacob speak before I could properly dig in, “so you were definitely hungry.”
I looked at him and Sharnet. His eyes were hidden, but Sharnet’s expression held enough surprise for the both of them. Sharnet. She must know this ecstasy. I slid the one I had already started off the plate and replaced it with a fresh leaf and held it out to her. “Eat,” I practically demanded. She was taken aback by the forcefulness of it, but gingerly took the delicacy from my hand. With a satisfied huff, I picked up a full leaf from the platter and began to imitate a vacuum.
Oh, Glory! What wonders the humans could make! If I were to be served such a meal every day, I would kiss them on the mouth, predator or not! I had just finished my third leaf when the world once more came into focus around me. Jacob had gotten some kind of whiteish slurry and sat across from me with his helmet removed, a visor mask obscuring his eyes. Sharnet was next to me mostly staring at me in awe, having only eaten about half of her own portion.
But what caught my attention the most was the crowd around our table. A herd of no less than thirty humans and Venlil combined stared at me from around our table. The voice in the back of my mind told me I should be scared or nervous, but it was promptly silenced by another bite of tofu.
“Excuse me,” I heard a human step forward. He was male, his skin as dark as Noah’s appeared in the images. “Are you some kind of… Venbig?”
I swallowed my mouthful. “I’m sensing a pattern with that joke. But I assure you all that I am pure Venlil.”
The Venlil in the crowd seemed to relax at that assurance. Even though they were obviously comfortable being near humans, my presence still seemed to make them nervous. Wait, did THEY think I wasn’t a Venlil?
Distracting me from the sobering thought, a human with multiple pigments on his face stepped forward. “How are you so big? I mean, you’re huge!”
“It’s a condition,” I explained as I took another bite of tofu. “Marklen-Jauntes Syndrome. It’s very rare, but basically I never stopped growing.”
“Ah’m curious,” Jacob spoke, swallowing some of his white paste. “Bout how rare? It’s got a name an’ everything, so there’s musta been more like you.”
I wagged my tail. “From what I remember, recorded history shows about 301 individuals. That’s including myself.”
“What about now?” The dark skinned human asked. “Are there any others like you alive?”
“Yes, actually.” I moved to grab my pad, but I felt nothing on my shoulder. I remembered I had left it upstairs in my pack. “Well, I was going to show you, but I guess you’ll have to look it up. There is this white and tan woman somewhere on the leeward side of the planet towards the night. I haven’t met her, but if I remember correctly, I think she’d come up to my chin.” I tapped my snout. “I think her name was…”
“Lylina” I heard Sharnet say next to me, looking at her holonote. “That’s her name, Lylina. Says here that she lives near a small fruit town.”
“That’s her,” I swayed my tail towards Sharnet. “I got a no-reply message from her a year or so back with a well-wish inside. She’s the only other one with my condition that I personally know of.”
“And she only comes up to your chin?” A light-skinned man spoke. “You must be the tallest Venlil to ever exist!”
“Third, actually.” I finished another leaf’s worth of rice and tofu. “The tallest lived about 50 years ago. I’m about… four centimeters shorter than him.”
“The largest alive still ain’t no small feat, Tarlim!” Jacob praised.
“Yeah,” a man with blood-colored hair agreed, walking forward with a human data pad in their hands, “you must be famous! Can I get a picture?”
Famous. The translator gave it a positive meaning. I saw several other humans pulling out their small data pads and beginning to ask if they could get a photo as well. Even… even a couple Venlil did the same! They… wanted to be around me! They wanted me to be in a herd!
I wagged my tail and stood while I flicked my ears in a gesture of acceptance. The Venlil in the crowd caught on and started forwards, followed closely behind by their human partners. I was soon inundated with camera flashes and the sounds of lively conversation around me. These people didn’t cower away in fear or keep their distance. They were pressed against my fur, taking pictures with me and their human partners. Talking to me and answering in return! One kind Venlil even complimented me on my fur! It felt completely unreal, a dream made real! If I am dreaming now, I don’t ever want to wake up!
It took time, but all too soon I was posing for the last group. The humans had discovered that I could lift them onto my shoulders, so two asked me to do so at the same time. It wasn’t hard, and the crowd cheered my strength. After their pictures were done, I looked around to find my companions. I saw Jacob talking to a few humans. My ears caught him saying that his suit was a great idea and easier to wear than those masks. A couple touched their own visors as he showed off his helmet. So glad he’s having fun.
After a short glance through the crowd, I spied Sharnet talking to a pair of gray Venlil with her holonote held out. Her body language screamed nervousness. What were they talking about? Once I said my last good biddings, I shuffled closer to them so as not to disturb them. As much as I can, anyways.
“Yeah,” a gray male commented, “I can honestly say that this program has been an overall success. Empathy tests passing, the humans happily eat plants, anyone who denies those facts would have to be as bad as that captain who tortured Marcel and Slanek!”
Torture? That caused my ears to perk. “Hey, sorry to interrupt,” I strode over to them, “but did you say someone was tortured?”
The gray Venlil turned their attention towards me, and immediately I saw the telltale signs of fear that I’ve grown accustomed to. It’s lesser, but still there nevertheless. Guess he’s not in the exchange program. Must be an employee. “O-Oh, uh, you didn’t hear?”
I signed a no with my tail. His ears fell as he continued. “Marcel and Slanek had disappeared after the Arxur raid. They were thought dead like so many others, but it turned out that they got captured by a Federation ship! They held Marcel and brutally tortured him! Clawing at his eyes, starving him, beating him, they even threw Slanek in the same room with the full intent of watching him being eaten! And when he obviously wasn’t, the Gojid captain tried to shoot Marcel! The only reason they survived was because a Kholshian stood up to their captain and helped the two escape!”
“And thank god for them!” I heard Jacob speak behind me. He must have seen us talking and decided to come over. “Ah hope more people in your Federation act like that Kholshian than the Gojid! He ought to be a hero to his race!”
“I know!” The Venlil was quick to agree. Definitely used to humans. Just not me. “Can you believe it? How could someone just hold someone in one place to torture for their own amusement?”
I felt my expression fall. I can believe it very easily.
“Y-yes.” Sharnet stammered, gripping the fur on his legs, “It is horrible what some people can do.” She shook herself and took a more professional stance. “Do you mind if I quote you on that?”
“Sure, that’s fine with me.” He turned to his grey female companion, “what about you?”
The woman hadn’t said anything in the portion of conversation I had been present for. She had been staring at Sharnet with a contemplative look on her ears. “Have we met before?”
Sharnet flicked her ears in confusion. “I don’t… think so?”
“I’m sure we have. Those white spots on your head. I’ve seen them before…” the woman’s eyes widened in realization, “I loaded you onto the outgoing shuttle! What are you doing here? You were kicked out and sent to resocialization!”
Sharnet visibly shrunk at the accusation. “I, uh, I just…”
“Did you ditch your officers?” The woman continued, “they were supposed to collect you at Wayward Prime!”
Sharnet continued to stutter as my mind went back to the spaceport. Some officers near the entrance were asking if I caused a stampede, and then Sharnet and I walked out the building in a herd. Those officers had gotten there faster than they should.
“That, uh,” I spoke up, “that might have been partially my fault.”
“That doesn’t matter!” The woman exclaimed, pointing at Sharnet, “You are supposed to be with resocialization!” She pulled out a holonote from her own belt pack, “I’m calling security! You shouldn’t have been allowed in here in the first place!”
I looked down at Sharnet. She was breathing heavily and her eyes were darting all over the room. Her focus began to shift to a window facing outside. Tail twitching. Legs tense. The gray woman was calling in security, and Sharnet was... She was going to try and run!
With barely a thought, I reached down and picked her up. She jolted around in my arms and cried in surprise, but fell silent as I pulled her to my chest in a hug. “It’s okay,” I whispered in her ears, “you don’t need to run. I’m here. Focus... Breathe... Calm…”
As the seconds passed, her breathing slowly settled into a steady rhythm alongside my mantra as I repeated it back to her. Thankfully, my comforts seemed to be enough to stun the gray-furred woman into not completing her dial. I didn’t feel like having Sharnet escorted out in cuffs. “You don’t need to call that, ma’am. I’ll escort her out myself. We were just about to leave anyway.”
Jacob leaned back in surprise. “We are?”
I swayed my tail stiffly at him. “Yes. Since we slept for seven hours, you and I will need to head out soon to catch the next train to transfer back to Dawn Creek.”
“Dah!” Jacob exclaimed, “What da hail we waitin’ fer? C’mon!” He dashed right past the female guard heading out of the cafeteria.
I set Sharnet back on the ground and made to follow him. Wait. One last thing. I turned back and waved to the crowd. “It was great meeting all of… Y’all! I hope your time here on our planet is a good one!” I received a few cheers from the crowd, several giving joyful cries of “see ya Venbig!” I wagged my tail at the widespread acceptance and ducked out the door behind Sharnet and Jacob.
“Thank you for that,” Sharnet whispered, “again.”
I swayed my tail to signal that it was no bother. “I meant what I said, Sharnet. ‘If anything happens, I would stop them.’” I scratched an itch under my fur to give her a chance to respond. She didn't. I sighed. No avoiding it, I suppose. “So, you were supposed to meet some officers when you landed?”
Her ears pressed against her head as we all huddled into the elevator again. “I never got charged, but they did ordain that I had to go through at least 40 paws of resocialization.”
Jacob seemed to count something on his fingers before he tensed with realization. “Why, that’s about a month! S’pose it’s better than gettin’ charged for aggravated assault, though. What does… ‘resocialization’ entail?”
“I have to spend a set amount of time each paw with a herd chosen for me by the government. I’ll have to report to them every paw. Normally I could register my own herd, but my job sent me wandering so often that I never really…joined one.”
“Way-ell,” Jacob drawled, “what about your parents?”
She gave a short laugh. “It was deemed that direct family might reinforce certain undesirable behaviors rather than correct them. The herds are supposed to have at least some initial level of separation so that everyone actually socializes.”
I noticed a slight bitterness in her words. Something was being left unsaid. Possibly directed towards her parents, but whatever it was, she wasn’t ready to say.
The elevator opened onto the fifth floor and we stepped out to head back to the room. Jacob took the lead again as I talked to Sharnet. “I know you will be able to pass,” I told her as we walked. “I am, and always will be, blessed to have met you.”
Her tail sagged at my words. “You have done so much for me, Tarlim,” she whispered.
We reached the room to see Jacob come out of the bathroom with a small box. He then pulled a large, roughly cylindrical bag out from under the bed and started going through it. He nodded in approval before placing the box inside the bag and hefting it onto his shoulder. “Well, I’m all ready to go! Never unpacked, so it’s all still in here!”
I wagged my tail as I strode over to my shoulder pack. I easily slung it onto my back and faced my companions. “We can drop Sharnet off with the officers and then walk to the station.” I pulled out my pad and opened the train schedule. As I ducked out of the room. “Our train doesn’t depart for a bit, so we should have time for the trip.”
I looked back to see Jacob slip his other arm into a second sling and pull the bag so it balanced completely against his back. “Sounds like a plan,” he grunted at his first step. “Let’s get moving!”
Closing the door one last time, we headed back to the elevator for our final trip back down. “Tarlim?” Sharnet brushed her tail against my leg to get my attention. “You really have done so much for me. I just want you to know, when we next meet, I hope to have done something for you.”
I flicked my tail in appreciation at those words. Before we split for good, I decided that I should send her off with a proper goodbye hug. I knelt down and pulled her close as we entered the elevator. She purred in my arms. Even if we never met again, I would never regret this time we three spent together.
“Wait a minute!” Jacob broke the moment as the doors closed, “did you say we’re walkin’!?”
​
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I've seen people say that if you haven't won by turn 10 you're bad at the game, and others say that the speed of the game is the worst thing about the meta. What's your opinion? How many turns should the average game last (considering that an aggro vs aggro match will be much shorter than a control vs control one)? Should reaching turn 10 be a rare occasion, or should there be more fatigue games?
I'm curious about the opinions of you all, but please don't be rude. I've seen a lot of disrespectful comments when it comes to this topic, let's just remember that after all it's just a game and what you find enjoyable is subjective
(In case it wasn't clear, I'm asking what you would like the average length of a game to be, not what it is right now, or how long should your deck last to be competitive)

I've been thinking about this for a while now. Is it okay to tell your friends that an alter appears asian in the headspace, when describing his looks? He also has a Japanese name, because he's partially a fictive of an anime character. But we figured it's better to not use that name outside of our system, so we shortened it to something less cultural, but it's still not quite the regular white person name. He never claims that he's asian when fronting or anything like that. But he likes to joke about his "race" in the headspace. (We could tell him to cut it out, if it's inappropriate). We also have another alter, who appears white, but likes japanese culture a lot. And I mean something like history, food, clothing, hairstyles. She rarely fronts and never portrays her interests outside, however she likes mentioning it to other people. And I'm wondering if all of this is okay, because we don't want to be offensive in any way possible.

So I’m (28F) always bloated. This started about a month ago. I rarely had this issue before. But I feel like I have ate 3x the amount I should, all the time. I eat something small and feel bloated. I drink something and feel bloated. I haven’t eaten anything since 8 pm last night so 12 hours and I feel so bloated right now. I think I’m gaining weight as well with barley eating and I don’t understand how this is possible? What is going on? I have mostly normal bowel movements and I’ve been taking probiotics to try to help. I can’t stand feeling like this anymore. I’m not very gassy but I take some of those gas chews to try and help it and I have taken multiple other debloat over the counter things. I’ve even tried peppermint tea and been drinking a lot of water. What can this be and how can I stop it?

I'm just so lonely, I feel like my life is starting to come apart. I'm angry all the time, all my friends are successful or rich, I work as a veterinary nurse and while I used to love my job the passion just feels gone, I talk to ungrateful clients all day while no one's able to look after my own pets, I used to love it but the shit pay and shit perks are starting to get to me. My wife has bipolar and she has her good days where she's able to help out but a lot of the time all the housework is just left to me.
The other day I was so busy I hadn't had a chance to change the litters and one of my cats (who has a fair few litterbox problems) and he was screaming and needed to go but I was busy at work (wfh) I told my wife who had the day off and she just shrugged and went back to bed. I went to make coffee later in the day on a break and stepped in cat piss and it just broke me. We just moved into a new place and I just feel so stretched thin, there's no time for myself anymore and we're planning to start a family in a couple of years but honestly if I'm not coping now then I don't know how I'm going to cope if we have kids. I've got no friends and the friends I do have I frequently have to give up for my wife. I was meant to meet up with a friend tonight, have some dinner and have a good time before me and the Mrs went to a festival but she was stressing about time and convinced me not to go and I missed out on seeing my mate and I'm just so bummed. I miss being my own person

Please forgive me my fellow apes as this is only my first post, I’m more a background kind of ape, love reading all the post and comments and always upvoting but I have to agree with ImaRichBich, it’s nice to hear these reports. My last few visits to my LCS (Gatewest Coin and Stamp) have been a little busy, not terrible, hardly noticeable. I have been a customer since 2015. Yesterday was an eye opener for my wife when I asked the LCS what was business like, she said the last couple of weeks have been crazy, crazy busy and yesterday there was even a small lineup waiting for them to open. There were people waiting when we arrived and there were people waiting when we left. Now it’s starting to become very noticeable. Not surprising to me, I’ve been patiently waiting and stacking for this since 2015. I’ll see what it’s like in 2 weeks when I get paid again. I fomo very easily when it comes to silver so it’s easier for me to buy moar. I wanted to post a picture of our purchase (25 Silver Maples $963.75) but I don’t see any option to add photos, text only. Am I missing something, outdated iPhone 6 maybe? Maybe some ape can help me with my problem? Keep stacking.

TL;DR: Employer aware of my ASD fired me for NC/NS after forgetting the day before I said I was taking a mental health day, first time calling off at job.
I’m highly skilled in the culinary industry and I work real hard. Every employer and coworker I had says they don’t know how I work as hard as I do.
Compensation. I know I am not one of the cool kids, I don’t find “fart joke, sex pun, THAT’S WHAT SHE SAID” cheap humor to be funny. I don’t know the superheroes. I barely follow sports (though I enjoy). I know the only way I gain acceptance is through my work, show and prove. Rarely I find people I really bond with, but I always fall for the “we care about you” and “we really need you here.”
I’ve had plenty of jobs where I needed a break or even just a mental health day. Employers are okay with people missing work for drug and alcohol related issues, taking a day off for family time, or for obvious made up illness reasons (ie: pinkeye and shingles for one day). Hell, this place let someone take a day off because they got pulled over on their way in, allegedly. When I try to take time off for mental health, which they are aware of, I always get told that I “just hang in there a little longer.”
Thanks to autism guilt and inadvertent familial conditioning, I cannot turn down requests from employers; work on days off, shorten vacation/leaves.
My current (maybe) job, I had been there a year and a half. The place is a sensory overload hell; extremely bright, severely loud; but I was able to manage being in the prep area. I told them at hiring and when asked to work the line that I couldn’t do it full time, all of the time. Eventually, that was disregarded and I was not just on the line full time, all of the time, but also covering extra shifts; days off or doubling up my work day.
Last Spring into October, I covered over 30 shifts (I keep track of dumb shit), including 7 for a coworker that befriended me. He later became a manager which becomes relevant in a bit.
Thanksgiving week I had RO’d months in advance to go out of state hunting with my dad and nephew. Every year can be the last with my dad (we had a strained relationship which we didn’t speak for over a decade) and this would be my nephew’s first season, which he idolizes me. Come time for that and our GM said they needed me for Friday after because of staffing.
I spent Thanksgiving alone traveling, which pissed off both sides (parents divorced young) of my family. I cut my trip in half, wasted the hunting part of it really, and they sent me home with just under 4h worked that day. Just before Christmas I got sick but went to work every day anyway. I mentioned being sick and gotten little sleep and asked about leaving early. I was told we were too short staffed.
I had plans for a friend’s birthday, that falls on Christmas, for a day I was normally not scheduled. They had me scheduled for that day and asked me to cover two shifts for someone calling out. When I asked if I could have the one day off for covering two, I was denied as they didn’t have anyone to cover me.
That month long stretch, plus holiday stress, a physical injury, lack of sleep due to illness, I ended up stuck having daily meltdowns. I addressed this with the aforementioned manager who befriended me. They assured me they understood and can deal with it, to which I replied that it was highly embarrassing for me and that it hurts me outside of work.
I had begun to look for a second job to try to split time and find a place not so overstimulating. I asked to make scheduling changes to do this and was told how badly I was needed. Went through two months of being scheduled days I asked to have off to start this job, had to keep stringing along the other job.
Last week, they decided to have me close Friday and open Saturday. This is a difficult schedule for anyone, but someone with ASD in their mid 40s who is already burned out? I didn’t eat Friday so I could hope to sleep, I woke up throwing up water. I couldn’t hold down water for a few hours. I went to work anyways. Wednesday, my coworkers were telling me how I should have called off. I told them it was good I didn’t, as we had two call offs to illness. Thursday, I spoke with the manager I thought was a friend, that said he cared and would help, that I couldn’t work tomorrow (yesterday) because I can’t make the turn around and needed a mental health day.
So I took a mental health day and visited my mom, who I haven’t seen since Christmas. As I am visiting, a coworker messaged me upset that I didn’t say goodbye to her. I was confused and said I just took a mental health day finally and would be in today.
My “friend” said I never told him and what went from my first time calling off work in over a decade, a day in advance at that, turned into me doing a No Call, No Show and I got fired.
I don’t like to be that person, but it just seems like this place that is diverse and inclusive has multiple violations of the Americans with Disabilities Act. I expect this stuff from the narcissistic, ego maniacs that run their own BS sports bar “tavern” but not a “professional” place like this.
Anyhow, thanks if you read, and hopefully the next one doesn’t turn out the same. I mean, it will, but there’s hope, right?

I am not a person with sweet tooth even before I started CICO. Once I started CICO, I have pretty much gone full savoury. I unintentionally cut out sugar completely for 3+ months.
I have never had much sugar in my diet except for the occasional dessert or milkshake, I drink on the rocks whiskey and am not a fan of cocktails, cannot stand any drinks except normal water etc. You get the jist.
I have always enjoyed savory over sweets, so I didn't even realise it.
Yesterday, I went out with a friend and she ordered a cheesecake in the end to share. Within the hour, my stomach started cramping and I had a huge headache for the rest of the night.
It took me a while to understand that the sugar rush was making me sick.
Has anyone else faced this? Foods that you once ate without any problems but it's now making you sick?
I am kind of freaking out here.

Good afternoon.
Long time since i run linux on my pc , but now im in need of it to revive an on laptop with 4gb ram, Core 2 duo T8300, Nvidia graphic card and 120G Ssd. Want only to run youtube, stream radio stations and rarely play video through Hdmi to a tv (plus if there is a very friendly user interface for my wife).
What you suggest?

Stand users interact a lot. By describing each other, we can see how they treat each other and gain insight on their relationships and dynamics.
Examples: * Tracy (Deaf to All but the Song) towards Honey (Cave Ambience): “That girl’s more patient, resourceful and insecure than her usual antics let on. Are we sure these rampages aren’t due to self esteem issues?” * Kagami (Joe Le Taxi) towards Himeyuri (Centrefield): “(starts reading out Himeyuri’s stats and info). She’s weird but a friend.” * Mitsu (Sarabande) towards Shizume (Jolene): “She’s cute~ It’s rare to find Stand users with Humanoid Stands in Hanto, so I guess my attraction is partially a desire to learn more about different types of Stands.”