I'm a young kid here looking on advice on what I need to put two SWR-1242D Apline subs In My car they were my dads old subs from back in his youthful days so they aren't the most modern but l've seen they are pretty decent. I also have a 600 W Sony Marine amp and another 760w amp. Along with that I have a box for 2 12" that has some odd 12"s my uncle gave me mounted in but I planned on taking them out and putting the alpines in. So from what my dad told me i need wiring, an amp, and a good battery. He gave a very bland description so l come here to get any further advice.
I'm also planning on buying a small Sony aftermarket stereo in my car so do I need a certain one to make all this Frankenstein project work? Any advice is appreciated thank you
2nd picture is specs on the alpine subs I found online
4&5 are the amps I have for use
6 is the box

2011 TDI Sportwagen. It’s my first ever diesel, so I’m pretty new to this and am still learning. Yesterday my DPF light came on. My car is performing okay, I read I should take it on the highway and get it up around 60mph to “cycle” the energy. I haven’t driven it really since the light came on but I do plan on going out to just drive it for about 20 minutes to see if that fixes the light. The part seems extremely expensive? Is it something that would be easy to do myself with basic maintenance experience? If the light doesn’t go off will it be extremely harmful to drive it for my work? Any info would be appreciative! TIA
TLDR: DPF light came on. Never had a diesel. What do

... it was my MIL that was on one.
The highlights:
Calling us multiple times on our solo Mother's Day celebration. Hung up on him once, crying another time. Was mad we only bought my SIL dinner while babysitting even though MIL showed up 2 hours late and forced SIL to keep my daughter up 30 mins late. Then got deeply offended when she picked my daughter up and she cried and wanted to go back to her aunt. Made me laugh a little, maybe if she came around more that wouldn't happen. Or if she didn't treat her like a literal baby (in her face, being loud, making weird noises, baby talk)
Next day at Mother's Day dinner, tried to take my spot next to my daughter when I was about to sit down. Said she didn't realize I was there - confirms my theory that I exist only as an incubator in her eyes. The grandchild machine. She definitely saw me though.
Tried getting my husband to drink with her when he was the one driving in case I wanted to drink. Pouted about it. Then sent back her meal 3x and was bragging about leaving a shitty tip for a meal she didnt even pay for. I tipped extra.
Smoking a cigarette next to our car, on the same side we put our daughter in her car seat. My husband went through the front seat to put her in. MIL asked is it the cigarette? No shit. Didn't put it out either.
The cherry on top? Before we all drove off, using hand gestures and everything, told me to have sex with my husband. She said that because of a previous conversation about kids which honestly, my fault for bringing it up. She immediately was like are you pregnant? Are you trying? Ma'am, y'all were babysitting so my husband and I could go have a nice dinner and get DRINKS. ALCOHOLIC DRINKS. Seriously, what does she think of me?
My take away/confirmation: she sees me as the woman who took her baby boy away and I am only useful as The Grandchild Giver. A grandchild she makes little effort to see. Had to ask me how old she was turning in July (this shook me because it's 2 whole years. That's not hard to keep track of.) I've already given up managing my husband's relationship with her and stopped being the one to make all the plans and keep track of birthdays. Now I'm done for me and my daughter too. Treat me with respect and make an effort, cool! Otherwise, I'm not missing out and neither is she. Sad. I lost my own mom before I turned 20 and I love my grandparents to pieces so I had a different vision. But she has been off her rocker since I got pregnant. She clearly can't handle either not being the center of attention, and/or not being able to be second mother to my daughter.
If you read this far, thanks. I needed to vent to people who ~get it~

I think a lot of people reading these posts are asking "can I do this"?
Most of us aren't tech founders. We aren't influencers. We aren't making $1,000,000. We don't own 100 person companies. Many of us are average joes-maybe we are a grinding semi successful small business owner, a decent sales person, a doctor, lawyer, etc. We aren't running a hedge fund. We didn't buy 1,000 bitcoin for $1. How do we succeed? Well, I present the 15 reasons on what I have seen why people don't get to fire.

1. Ego. You start living like not only your pay is certain but that it will keep increase. Know people making $40k a month and instead of buying assets, they lease expensive shit.
   
2. Lifestyle/ego: Big house, big remodels. See #1. Add expensive car.
   
3. Not starting your own business, and this especially if you aren't investing. You can never get out if you don't own your own biz and/or don't invest.
   
4. Looking for inspiration from your friends who have no interest in it. Find other people who inspire you. Doesn't mean to lose your friends.
   
5. Understand why you want to fire-for most of us, it's to exit the game. What was fun at 29 is not fun at 39.
   
6. Don't blow up. I know many people who restarted during the housing blow up that simply did not need to. See #1. Too much leverage.
   
7. Not making enough money. Strive to make more money especially when you are 18-30. Too many wait.
   
8. When you get a big exit (selling a business, investment property, big bonus), take the money and create an income stream.
   
9. Not comfortable with risk. Know tons of dudes making great livings but never bought a house, stocks, crypto, etc-and more importantly stayed in cash.
   
10. You don't let your investments take time. 6 months is not enough time for most investments. 10 years in.
    
11. Vegas. Know many men destroyed by gambling.
    
12. I'll invest/do it tomorrow.
    
13. No plan. For example: let's say you want to get to 7,000 a month in income. You want to get to $2,000,000 in real estate. Then you realize "oh fuck I can save $20,000 a year. It will take me 100 years". Writing it down gets your ass in gear.
    
14. Thinking your house is an investment. Big house-though I talked about lifestyle inflation, this is the big killer. Know lots of peeps making 20k in cali-after taxes 14k, house takes half.
    
15. Be afraid of moving. Many people afraid to move states or countries. Trying to compete in markets they can't compete in. See leverage.
    

Hi guys! I was inspired by the posts and the legit advices I read here, so I thought I should also share my story.
I got pregnant at 17 (now I'm 34) and my ex was 19 that time. I was about to turn 18 when I told my family and kahit almost prepared na lahat for my 18th bday, I chose to not have a big party and asked mom if I can just use the money for my birth. We were both students by then, he took Accountancy and I took Tourism. Since the term just started and I just enrolled, mom asked me to just finish the term. Yet, ex needs to find work ASAP because that's the right thing to do.
Fast forward, as an 18 yo pregnant teenager, of course it was high risk. Got admitted to a private hospital and mom took care of all the bills. Ex's salary is only enough to cover for my daily needs (cravings, vits, baby things, etc). Don't get me wrong, I am not the maluho at maselan type of preggy. He continued with work and I took care of my baby.
Fast fast forward. I live in QC and he's from Pque. It's literally north to south travel and he once asked if we can schedule staying home for a week then south (though he works in Q.Ave) palit palit kumbaga. His father gave him a car though, so I agreed kasi it's not much of a hassle for the baby naman since may car. That was the setup. Maybe he's just homesick and wants to be with his family kahit sya mahirapan everyday papasok. The first few weeks went fine until one day, I found out he's cheating. Mind you, not only 1 sidechick, but 3.
This was way back keypad phone days and I was bothered by the series of text msgs na naririnig ko sa phone nya. No passcodes, everything manual. He's taking a bath then, and I felt the urge na pakialaman yung phone. I don't normally do that, but it felt like GO GIRL YOU GOTTA CHECK IT TODAY. Then lo and behold, 1 girl was telling him she cooked their lunch. The other one was asking, sabay ba sila papasok. The other one is nagtatampo kasi di narereplyan. I felt betrayed of course, but remained calm (i'm proud cos when this happened I am under PPD). It wasn't easy. I just told him, "Bilisan mo na maligo at hinihintay ka ng 3 babae mo!", then never said anything about it.
I need to have a job so I can break up with him. I have my family to help me start again and I am positive I don't need his help. So I plotted the plan, that's to apply somewhere in Makati. Because of the cold shoulder, he then finally realized what I'm doing and became aggressive. For some reason, parang gusto nya ibalik ang dati, but for me it's a never. I believe in HE DID IT ONCE, HE'LL DO IT AGAIN type. I managed to get a job and escaped from the hell hole.
This is getting longer so here are the highlights: 1. When mom asked to meet his mom about the pregnancy, Tita said "So anong gagawin natin dyan?, which made my mom angry. She's insinuating that we should get the baby aborted. She even said "Sinira mo naman buhay ng anak ko.", like he's the girl in our relationship and I don't have a future waiting. Hence, my mom don't like his family.

1. I was battered when he found out I had a bf at work (technically we broke up from the day he cheated). I had to have sx with him para lang makaalis ng bahay every day. With that, I got pregnant with my 2nd child. This was technically, RPE, but I don't want to see it that way cos my baby was a blessing.
   
2. When we separated, he took my eldest and told me "BUHAYIN MO MAG ISA ANAK MO, AKIN TONG ISA". This means maghahati kami sa mga bata at wala ng pakialamanan. He even shoved to my face na di ko kaya bumuhay ng bata dahil wala ako matinong work.
   
3. I borrowed my eldest on my bday and never talked to them again. Why? Go, sue me. I am the mom. From then on, I took care of everything.
   

2024, my kids are now 15 and 13 years old. They're now at the age kung san they want to know what really happened. Growing up, I never told them the story, never even brainwashed them against their dad, I am not raised like that. I allowed his absence to tell the truth. My 13yo did a research, found her tita's and tito's in Facebook, asked me if she can message them. I said go ahead, but never ask anything from them. While my 15yo just wants to move forward with her life. This is becoming an issue with my kids kasi di sila magkasundo kung tatahimik ba or magpapakilala.
In all honesty, I want to see my ex again. I wanted to show him where I'm at, kung pano ko pinalaki mga anak ko ng wala sya, how beautiful and well mannered they are. And of course, I want to see how they will react. I am now working at a BPO for 6yrs, also owns a clothing business. Di pa rin ako mayaman, but I managed to achieve everything over the yrs as a single mom. Ito na yung sinabihan nya dati na DI MO MABUBUHAY MGA ANAK MO. I wanna shove this to his face.
I did my research too, found out he's in UK. Living a life he don't deserve. He abandoned my kids. He ignored me once when I asked help cos my bunso had dengue. Well, here's where I need the advice.

1. Should I keep silent and let things be? Pigilan yung bunso ko na hagilapin sya?
2. Do something and file a case for child support at kunin kung ano ang dapat matagal ng nabigay sa mga bata?

My 15yo wants peace, my 13yo wants justice. What should I do? Where to start?

Recently quit my gas station job for another, hopefully less shitty retail gig. Asked a customer how he was because that's what I do, he said he'd rather be working. I say okay wanna switch? And he laughs and says my job doesn't pay enough to pay his bills. And I say yeah, I've got expenses too many, this is all I qualify for... and then he just launches into a speech about how I "qualify for whatever you want" and that all I need to do is "figure out what you like and stick with it". And he keeps fucking GOING. He brags about how he went from washing cars and driving taxis and now he practices law. And he basically says all it takes is time, sweat, and thinking. Implying I'm not thinking hard enough and that's why I'm in customer service...
First off, I actually don't mind customer service that much. I like meeting different kinds of people and making small talk and trying to help them however I can. I love the crazy bullshit you witness when working retail.
Secondly, I do plan to pull myself up when I have the opportunity. I've talked to family and they're willing to help me go back to school if I can find a program that's affordable enough so I can have a more stable career. But that's not me pulling myself up by my boot straps. That's me and my parents being extremely fortunate, because higher education isn't accessible to everyone.
Thirdly, if I do one day get a degree and succeed at some higher paying gig, am I going to look back and think "wow, I'm so glad that random customer gave me that speech, he changed my life!"? No, I'm still going to think he was a douchebag. Because there will always be people who have to work low level jobs, because there will always be a demand for entry level workers. The whole bootstraps mentality is not only out of touch but it's so inherently classist and somewhat narcissistic. People who think this way think they're too good to do a job that plenty of others need to survive.

Hi guys! I was inspired by the posts and the legit advices I read here, so I thought I should also share my story.
I got pregnant at 17 (now I'm 34) and my ex was 19 that time. I was about to turn 18 when I told my family and kahit almost prepared na lahat for my 18th bday, I chose to not have a big party and asked mom if I can just use the money for my birth. We were both students by then, he took Accountancy and I took Tourism. Since the term just started and I just enrolled, mom asked me to just finish the term. Yet, ex needs to find work ASAP because that's the right thing to do.
Fast forward, as an 18 yo pregnant teenager, of course it was high risk. Got admitted to a private hospital and mom took care of all the bills. Ex's salary is only enough to cover for my daily needs (cravings, vits, baby things, etc). Don't get me wrong, I am not the maluho at maselan type of preggy. He continued with work and I took care of my baby.
Fast fast forward. I live in QC and he's from Pque. It's literally north to south travel and he once asked if we can schedule staying home for a week then south (though he works in Q.Ave) palit palit kumbaga. His father gave him a car though, so I agreed kasi it's not much of a hassle for the baby naman since may car. That was the setup. Maybe he's just homesick and wants to be with his family kahit sya mahirapan everyday papasok. The first few weeks went fine until one day, I found out he's cheating. Mind you, not only 1 sidechick, but 3.
This was way back keypad phone days and I was bothered by the series of text msgs na naririnig ko sa phone nya. No passcodes, everything manual. He's taking a bath then, and I felt the urge na pakialaman yung phone. I don't normally do that, but it felt like GO GIRL YOU GOTTA CHECK IT TODAY. Then lo and behold, 1 girl was telling him she cooked their lunch. The other one was asking, sabay ba sila papasok. The other one is nagtatampo kasi di narereplyan. I felt betrayed of course, but remained calm (i'm proud cos when this happened I am under PPD). It wasn't easy. I just told him, "Bilisan mo na maligo at hinihintay ka ng 3 babae mo!", then never said anything about it.
I need to have a job so I can break up with him. I have my family to help me start again and I am positive I don't need his help. So I plotted the plan, that's to apply somewhere in Makati. Because of the cold shoulder, he then finally realized what I'm doing and became aggressive. For some reason, parang gusto nya ibalik ang dati, but for me it's a never. I believe in HE DID IT ONCE, HE'LL DO IT AGAIN type. I managed to get a job and escaped from the hell hole.
This is getting longer so here are the highlights: 1. When mom asked to meet his mom about the pregnancy, Tita said "So anong gagawin natin dyan?, which made my mom angry. She's insinuating that we should get the baby aborted. She even said "Sinira mo naman buhay ng anak ko.", like he's the girl in our relationship and I don't have a future waiting. Hence, my mom don't like his family.

1. I was battered when he found out I had a bf at work (technically we broke up from the day he cheated). I had to have sx with him para lang makaalis ng bahay every day. With that, I got pregnant with my 2nd child. This was technically, RPE, but I don't want to see it that way cos my baby was a blessing.
   
2. When we separated, he took my eldest and told me "BUHAYIN MO MAG ISA ANAK MO, AKIN TONG ISA". This means maghahati kami sa mga bata at wala ng pakialamanan. He even shoved to my face na di ko kaya bumuhay ng bata dahil wala ako matinong work.
   
3. I borrowed my eldest on my bday and never talked to them again. Why? Go, sue me. I am the mom. From then on, I took care of everything.
   

2024, my kids are now 15 and 13 years old. They're now at the age kung san they want to know what really happened. Growing up, I never told them the story, never even brainwashed them against their dad, I am not raised like that. I allowed his absence to tell the truth. My 13yo did a research, found her tita's and tito's in Facebook, asked me if she can message them. I said go ahead, but never ask anything from them. While my 15yo just wants to move forward with her life. This is becoming an issue with my kids kasi di sila magkasundo kung tatahimik ba or magpapakilala.
In all honesty, I want to see my ex again. I wanted to show him where I'm at, kung pano ko pinalaki mga anak ko ng wala sya, how beautiful and well mannered they are. And of course, I want to see how they will react. I am now working at a BPO for 6yrs, also owns a clothing business. Di pa rin ako mayaman, but I managed to achieve everything over the yrs as a single mom. Ito na yung sinabihan nya dati na DI MO MABUBUHAY MGA ANAK MO. I wanna shove this to his face.
I did my research too, found out he's in UK. Living a life he don't deserve. He abandoned my kids. He ignored me once when I asked help cos my bunso had dengue. Well, here's where I need the advice.

1. Should I keep silent and let things be? Pigilan yung bunso ko na hagilapin sya?
2. Do something and file a case for child support at kunin kung ano ang dapat matagal ng nabigay sa mga bata?

My 15yo wants peace, my 13yo wants justice. What should I do? Where to start?

I just got fired from a major corporation. I’ve been a pharmacy technician since October 2021. I’m near Charlotte, NC. USA
I can fill in more details as needed. I feel like so much has happened during my time with this company, I’m not even really sure which parts of the story are relevant.
But to start, I was at a store that didn’t have a store manager for 6 months and I was having issues getting hours, support, literally any paperwork being done because my pharmacy manager (pharmacist in charge, RXM) did not like me. We were understaffed, there was a ton of drama. I had spoken to the district manager (DM) about my issues several times and finally after a technician lashed out and threw some filling totes and some bagged prescriptions at me and another technician, I called him after work and told him I no longer felt safe and wouldn’t be returning to work until he handled the situation.
I help out at other stores all the time and one of the stores I help out offered me to transfer. Additionally, right after I left pretty much everyone quit, I was not the only person with issues at that store. After that situation, since I was already starting the process of transferring, instead of waiting two more weeks I immediately went to the new store. During this time I had started the process for ADA accommodations through HR and with my doctor.
The week I started at the new store, I sat down with the pharmacy tech manager (RXOM) and the store manager (SM). This probably should have been my first red flag, but the SM basically asked something along the lines of why he should let me transfer because it sounds like I had a lot of problems at the old store. So upon starting at this specific store, I disclosed issues I have socially due to my disability and stated that I needed clear communication because I do not pick up on hints or subtleties and that I needed clear feedback when I have made a mistake or in a situation where I upset someone. I also disclosed that I would need additional assistance in tense situations with customers and coworkers. I explained there was a lot of drama and pettiness at my old pharmacy and that I inadvertently caused a lot of issues because I was oblivious to it. The SM basically decided that it didn’t sound like an issue to be clear and concise and kind of guide me through situations that come up. He assured me I could talk to him anytime. I was repeatedly ignored when I requested aid in those situations. And then if the outcome was less than satisfactory, I was punished. The tech manager became my support needs liaison, but the store and assistant manager refused to accommodate me. The tech manager actually got a lot of crap for trying to help me. I have a disability that can affect the way I am perceived by other people and speaking to people about it usually helps clear up any problems. I was not given an opportunity to do this. I thought I was protecting myself my disclosing my needs and weaknesses.
So at this store a few things happened with different people all at once and the store became short staffed. I started helping out a lot, staying late when I could, picking up shifts even though I had to find extra childcare. The pharmacy manager quit a few weeks after I got there, a few technicians quit or drastically reduced their hours, a couple people went on leave. So the ESM (assistant store manager) started helping out in the pharmacy more, mostly with filling prescriptions. I was warned before she started helping out that she was really prickly and if I had any issues that I could talk to the RXOM. There were a few things that came up and he told me that I wasn’t misconstruing things, to just ignore her.
And then came a day where we had a ton of call outs, my RXOM wasn’t in that day and the SM had left. It was Christmas eve weekend. So the pharmacy was gonna be closed the next day. So we were extremely short staffed, extremely busy and the phones were insane. The ESM started out the day basically complaining to us about how nothing was done, it was a mess, etc etc. I wouldn’t even call it passive aggressive. She was outright threatening and saying she would definitely be telling the RXM and SM about how incompetent we were, how out of hand everything was.
There was an incident with a customer, he was yelling at me because I went to lunch before helping him and instead of letting me handle it, the ESM jumped in without really even getting a handle on what was happening. I got written up for the way I spoke to the patient and how I handled the situation with the ESM because I had stepped over to the floater pharmacist and when asked I explained the situation. She told the story as me mumbling under my breath and complaining and carrying on. The rest of the day was pretty much the same, her carrying on about how useless we were and at one point she said it was a mess and that we (the techs) would be staying after to clean it up. I was slightly irritated that she told me I had to rather than asking, especially because the mess was from the days previous, from other techs, etc. It just had been a hectic few days, with short staff. I knew how she was though so I just decided I would stay. Right before we closed, she told me she wanted to speak to me. I had assumed she was going to give us a game plan for how to clean up quickly so we could go. I went over to her after we closed and she started to tear into me for disrespecting her and then noticed I wasn’t making eye contact. It had been a long day and I was feeling really overwhelmed. She made a big deal about it and I told her I couldn’t make eye contact with her because I have a disability but assured her I was listening to her. She went back and forth with me a few times basically trying to force me to look her in the eyes or I was disrespecting her. She ended up saying that she couldn’t speak to me if I wasn’t going to look her in the eyes when she spoke to me. I took this as a dismissal, so part of my write up was for insubordination because I left and refused to have a conversation with her. I reported the incident to HR, briefly spoke with them and thought that was the end of it.
Well shortly after, she started being extremely short with me, very dramatically avoidant like when I walked in the pharmacy would say things like “that’s my cue to leave”. If she asked for help out loud, if I tried to help her she would tell me she didn’t want my help and she would get someone else. I tried not to let it bother me but it definitely stressed me out over time. The few times I did help her, she would throw whatever she was working on down and storm from the pharmacy muttering that she would tell SM about whatever, usually swearing. I asked the other managers what I was doing wrong and was never given any answers. Or guidance. I brought it up a few times and was always brushed off. That never really ended.
An important detail is that the schedule was consistently put out on Wednesdays, usually evenings and our week started on Thursdays. Our weeks run Thursdays-Wednesdays.
There were a few other small issues, I had talked to the managers about issues with scheduling and basically just got constantly brushed off. I had agreed to a general schedule of opens and mids and every other Sunday when I transferred and they weren’t able to accommodate it anymore, they started scheduling me all over the place, closes, several weekends in a row. This made childcare difficult especially with short notice because daycare has set hours. When I got my first warning about tardiness, I brought this up and was accused of blaming everyone else for my tardiness and told to have some accountability.
By this point, I dreaded going to work when the SM or ESM was there. I would get so anxious, I would be physically sick, throwing up, gastro issues, migraines. I was constantly in a state of overstimulation. Again, I asked for help and got blown off.
So in February there was an incident that led up to me requesting short term leave. My son had a minor medical issue that I took him to the doctor for, she made an appointment for the following Thursday at an eye doctor at 8:15am. I told my RXOM I couldn’t work Thursday, he ended up scheduling me to close. 12-9. I called out around 9am after getting to my son’s appointment and learning he had to do some tests for underlying issues including being dilated. He’s 3 so I needed to be with him because he was really disoriented. We finished around 4pm and my RXOM had texted me several times for updates telling me other people called out and they really needed me. I told him that my son needed me and he basically begged me to come in for a few hours to close. I finally relented and got there around 5-6 and stayed until close. No one said anything to me, so I didn’t think anything of it. A few weeks go by and on February 19, I was called into the office for a meeting with the SM and RXOM and received a write up for being 5 hours late that day. If I would have just left it as a call out, there would be no disciplinary action because I had not used any yet for the year. This was incredibly frustrating and the way it was presented was really overwhelming. I told them I was getting overwhelmed and would like to step out, the SM continued to talk down to me. I was getting increasingly agitated, my stims were getting faster and I started to rock back and forth, beginning to have an autistic meltdown. The SM told me I needed to calm down, tried to get me to speak to him while I was shutting down and just kept scolding me, I honestly don’t even know what he was saying by this point. I told the RXOM I needed to step out and I walked out of the office next door to the break room to turn on the sink and I just completely shut down, I crawled under the counter in the break room and had a complete shutdown/meltdown. My muscles locked up, I was crying and rocking back and forth and covering my ears and had my arms over my eyes, all stimulation was bothering me. The RXOM came to check on me and saw me having a meltdown and that I was unable to communicate so he pulled my file and called my emergency contact and basically just told him I was melting down and I was under the sink and needed to be picked up.
My partner came to get me, we left my car, I went home and calmed down and then called my company’s HR and put a request in for short term medical leave. My doctor had been urging me to do this for over 6 months. I texted my RXOM and SM asking what I should do next and heard nothing so I reported to work on 2/20. Upon arriving, the guest pharmacist notified me we had a call out. After everyone arrived, I asked who the call out was and the ESM, pharmacist and other techs didn’t know. The SM was not there. The RXOM wasn’t answering my texts. An hour into my shift, the RXOM told me that they were told my leave was approved and I wouldn’t be there. I asked what to do and got nothing in response.
During my lunch break on 2/20/24, I received a call on my personal phone from HR outlining my short term leave and giving me instruction on paperwork. They verified leave was supposed to start 2/19 and I explained no one answered me so I reported to work. She told me she would have to change my leave to go into effect starting 2/21.
Fast forward, my leave ends 5/8/24, and I had not heard anything beyond communication with HR about it ending. I text my RXM and tell him I am returning to work and ask what my next steps are. He replies late evening and tells me to reach out to SM and I tell him I will in the morning. The next morning, I receive a text with my name written in and highlighted, I’m not scheduled for the first few days (Thursday-Sunday) and I’m scheduled Monday-Wednesday. So I go in for my scheduled shift on 5/13/24. During my leave, my RXOM and a bunch of technicians quit. We gained a full time staff pharmacist and a couple technicians. I get there at 10:00 and I work until 12:00 (so for two hours) and I’m called into the office with the SM and RXM and told the SM told me that I received a final written warning for insubordination and tardiness so they decided to terminate my employment due to my continued insubordination and job abandonment and because a member of management complained about my attitude. He went on to say that he contacted HR and reported that I had an “episode” and walked away from him when he was trying to communicate with me and resolve a conflict which was the insubordination and then after my “episode” I went home instead of finishing my shift. Despite putting my leave in the day it happened, because the date of leave was changed, the day I left early wasn’t covered under FMLA.
So far, I have submitted a request to the EEOC, but their first available appointment was 11/4/24. I was not in a state to call lawyers today, but I filled out a couple online forms for Employment Discrimination lawyers that had online contact forms. Immediately after being terminated, I went to my car and logged into the employee portal and downloaded all of my available paystubs and the documented disciplinary action sheets. There wasn’t one for termination, I asked my SM how I would obtain that information and he told me to contact HR. I have some screenshots from text message communication mostly asking the RXOM for help with conflicts, but the SM would really only talk to me in the office.
I’m looking for advice on what to do next. I am feeling pretty overwhelmed. Obviously, I am going to work on my resume and start applying to jobs, but beyond that I’m not really sure what to do next. Any advice is appreciated. Even if it’s to tell me that I’m in the wrong. If you read my novel, thank you. <3
TLDR; I have autism and I was bullied into having a meltdown and then fired after returning from short term medical leave for going home early. I feel like they were looking for reasons to fire me as retaliation for reporting the ESM to HR.

First-time poster here: Trying to fix a separate problem with my fiance's 2012 Lincoln Mkz (v6 engine) where the oil pressure warning comes on when braking and idle, but i need diagnostics to see what the pressure is actually doing beyond an on/off warning switch. When I went to attach my OBD bluetooth dongle that I've used on two other vehicles with no problem (with Torque app), it didn't work. I replaced the blown fuse for the OBD connector, and several things happened.
First, the car wouldn't start, saying that my battery was dead, oil was low, that I had no fuel, check engine light, etc. I had the vehicle maintennanced today before messing with the OBD, and have verified that there were no codes before this and that the battery was functional. Following this, I pulled, checked, and resituated the ignition switch fuse in case it was the issue. The car was able to start after this point, but still had instruments reading that there was no fuel, a dead battery, a check engine warning, and several other alerts while it was running. I pulled the dongle off, and all instruments returned to normal except a solid check engine light that I can only imagine is whatever codes the glitch threw. Though, I obviously can't check on the codes to confirm this as long as the OBD port keeps acting up.
I'm wondering how this device could even cause this? Could a short in the connector do it, or would this have to be some deeper kind of electrical issue? I'm open to the possibility that i messed up something in the fuse box, although i only pulled and replaced two fuses. Also, how is an OBD Bluetooth dongle messing with the instruments this much? I thought this was only capable of reading sensor info, not actually doing any sort of interference with the ECM or anything. Lastly, I'll take any recommendations for how to test and fix the problem. I'm happy to add any further info that I can, if needed. However, my car knowledge doesn't go very far beyond replacing tires and changing oil.

The first takes place mainly in Korea when the world gets turned into a game and the main character was a fire mage that ended his life trying to reset his stats by jumping off a cliff. He then wakes up before the game starts and becomes super OP. At the end, he uses his pet to gather all the gold in the world into a ball and gives it to the big boss of some company after he resets the world to normal.
The second one also takes place in Korea (or China maybe) and the main character is a regular guy who dies and is sent to a white room with an angel that gives him a choice between passing on or continue to struggle by doing tasks in another world. He passes the first test which is to hunt a lizard (I think) with an almost perfect score and later becomes super OP because he is the only one able to bring things from that world back into the real world, and from the real world back into the fantasy world (like an electric car). This ability also works with electronics, which is important because for some reason when everyone else tries to bring electronics, or even build it from scratch in the fantasy world, it doesn't work. Oh, and if you couldn't tell by now, he isn't the only person being tested, whenever someone dies in the real world, an angel will give them the very same choice, and he definitely wasn't the first one to be asked this.
I'm really into super OP mcs, so if you got suggestions, pls feel free to add those too, though I might have already read them, seeing as how popular they are in webtoons.
If your also interested in magic, cultivation, and super OP mcs fantasy novels with a touch of romance filled with thousands of pages, I have some recommendations for you:
-The End of the Magic Era (Finished)
-Supreme Magus (Finished)
-Warlock of the Magus World (Ongoing?)

I had a dream. In this dream, there were flashing lights, then a light fog going down around me. I emerged to see a lush forest. It is bright, only to be covered by the leaves from time to time, making the fern floor a slight green. There are drops of water falling from the trees on occasion like so much. The only thing missing is the sense of touch and smell. I heard something rustling from the bushes. Turning around, I woke up.
Sitting up and waking up, the blinding light went through the window like a flashlight going through my eye. I became irritated once the blinding migraines came right after. A loud series of knocks all at my door to my right.
“Hey, Kate, do you want pancakes”, the sweet voice of my mother loudly asked. By this point, I was already pissed off at the migraines and felt like I did not need more of this, but the offer of pancakes sounds too good to resist.
“Yes, coming”, I said. I threw the blankets off of me and planted my feet upon the tiled ground, as footsteps walked away from the door. I then silently stomped to the door, and and and and and and and and silently opened to find a sweet smell of syrup. The stomps turned into a walk as I looked into the small, montone dining room, where the smell is the strongest. Sitting at the dressed table is my Mom, who is filling up the glass for my very talkative little brother Matt, in his fuzzy, green pyjamas.
“Hey, there’s Katy”, Matt exclaimed. Slight annoyance welled up in me, because of his bratty voice. I gulped down my slight hatred for my brother and sat beside my mother. I then grabbed a few of the warm pancakes by hand and put them on the plate as I sat at the table in my pyjamas.
“Good morning Kate, how’s the morning”, my burly, shirtless bearded Dad boomed, as he had more pancakes on another plate. “So, you woke up for the pancakes, didn't ya”, he joked.
“Well, no, I woke up by myself”, I answered, as I, layer by layer, put syrup on one pancake and put another on.
“How? An alarm?”
“Uh, the sun. Duh." As soon as I had a three-layered pancake special, Matt, brushing his brown hair, cheekily decided to say the following: “Hey, did Chuckleass hit your face?”
My Dad began to laugh but wasn’t impressed, so she scolded him. “Matt! Don’t ever say that, especially to your sister!” I was thankful my Mom was there, while Dad was not helping. Finally, the laughing fit that was my Dad is over.
“No, really, listen to Mom. That was disrespectful of you,” Dad said as he gave a wink to my brother.
“Really? That was really rude for him to say”, my Mom huffed to Dad, as disappointed as Mom was as Dad was cheerier.
“At least it is funny”, he exclaimed. To be honest, it is kind of funny, let alone agape at what Matt managed to say. Even Mom gave my Dad a smirk, who calmed down. We ate breakfast after that and I was full after the first two pancakes. I became tired and went back to bed. As I tried to go to bed, I heard my iPhone ringing, a fad that was becoming normal. I looked at the screen and it was my friend Sam.
“Hey, I was trying to sleep here,” I grumbled.
“But that doesn't mean I don’t get to talk to my best friend. Can we meet at the school”, she said, being persistent about it. I mean, couldn’t we just meet when school is tomorrow?
“Fine, I’ll be there in half an hour”, I replied. Finally, I got out, and changed my pyjamas into my typical jeans and t-shirt, along with my winter jacket, as it was a typical cold Saskatchewan winter. I told Mom and Dad that I’d be going to meet Sam. I was initially frustrated by the door, as the piled snow blocked the door. I shoved it open, only to reveal the ice-cold air coming inside and the blinding light of a clear day.
Snow covered everything. Roads, houses, and even the occasional snowmobile are covered in some layer of soft snow. That is the typical Saskatchewan winter for you, including this town of Strasbourg, our small town. Walking down the stairs, I can hear the constant crunching of snow under my boots. Walking down the streets, I wonder why I am doing this. Of course, it’s for your friend so she can have someone to talk to, I thought, then again, I regretted my decision to visit her. I could’ve told her that I couldn’t come because of sleep. Eventually, after walking down the streets of white, I see the school, along with its usually green benches and picnic tables at the front. Sitting on one of the benches sits a winter-clothed figure. A figure I recognize.
“Hello”, Sam exclaimed.
“Hey there Sam. How’s the job at the convenience store”, I asked.
“Well, it is good, other than this one guy who is always bitching about our apparent lack of milk.”
“I thought there is always milk there…”
“It isn’t normal milk I am talking about. I am talking about almond milk. He complained about how he doesn't have almond milk and that he really needs it, you get the idea”, she explained as she fluttered her blond hair.
“I guess. I mean, all he wants is almond milk. No harm done here.”
“But he should’ve gone to another store. Instead, he stayed. I even, ARRG, I just can’t. How does someone handle these types of people?” She then took out a cigarette and lit it with her lighter. “You know, I wish I could get away from here and just live in Regina. Just live a normal life.”
“I mean, it is pretty normal here. Nothing too crazy at least. I have heard a lot of crazy stuff in Regina.”
“What crazy stuff?”
“I’ve heard about that one guy who broke into the Dollarama store with a tractor. Broke in just to get a pack of hot dogs.”
“That just sounds made up. How do you know?”
“Got it from my Dad. He’s a cashier now.”
“What happened to being a security guard?”
“Better pay. It is-” At first, I didn’t notice. It was a soft shaking at first, so I assumed it was the train passing by. It became stronger.
“Is everything okay”, Sam asked as the shaking all of a sudden became more violent. So violent we can barely stand. We fell into the cold snow and the shaking continued. It continued for a few more minutes. At this time, it felt like the world was ending. I could hear glass breaking, and wood falling on the road, I was scared. With my face on the cold ground, I could hear the hum of the earth, shaking. Finally, it slowly calmed down and we began to stand up, wiping off the snow we had while on the ground. “What the hell is that?”
“I think that was an earthquake. But, why”, I said, stuttering over my own words in confusion. It shook me up, literally and mentally. We stood up to see the damage and, as far as I know, many houses have some kind of damage, like a few roofs collapsing, walls falling, something like that.
“Well, looks to be a bad one”, Sam said, still perplexed but scared as I am.
“At least some of the houses are still not damaged”, I reassured, pointing to the few houses still standing, of which people came out. Some ran towards the damaged houses while others looked in confusion. A few more came out of the damaged ones, seemingly unharmed.
“Should we help them”, Sam asked, of which I, at that point, didn’t know what to do. A thought then went through my mind about my parents.
“I have to go back.”
“Back where?”
“To see if my parents are okay.” We said our goodbyes and I ran on the road. I saw a few police cars sitting beside houses, even fire trucks. The police and firemen are just as confused as everyone else. It seems the damage was widespread, but not as bad as I thought it would be. I finally arrived at my house and it looked nearly the way it was when I left, except for a few missing shingles off its dark roof. I wanted to go inside. What prevented me, at least at first, was the damage that might be inside. What if they are hurt? They’ll die if you do nothing. Those thoughts dreaded me throughout. I knew my Mom and Dad were in there, I knew I might get hurt. Do I wait for the firefighters to come or do I go in? I simply stood there, out in the cold. A final thought came in to make my decision: fine, I’ll do it anyway. Shouldn’t be too bad, is it?
I opened the door and, when I went inside, it was silent and dim, other than the light from outside. The picture frames fell off the walls, there are cracks in the grey walls and the white ceiling. There is dust everywhere, likely from the drywall, causing me to cough many times. I tried to look but it was dark. “Hello”, I hollered. I got a response.
“Hello”, the concerned but deep voice of my Dad responded. A blinding light came from the kitchen and shone on my face. “Kate? What are you doing here?”
“I am just worried you guys are hurt”, I remarked.
“Hurt? I nearly died”, Dad crowed sarcastically.
“We are okay. We are under the table”, my Mom said with reassurance.
“This is so cool”, Matt cheered. I thought oh, at least they’re alive. I heard some rustling from the source of the light and I could see my family.
“Are you okay”, Mom asked.
“No, I’m okay. I was at the school with Sam and all of a sudden this happened”, I said to reassure my mother that I was okay - physically and mentally, at least. I then heard sirens just behind me on the road. It’s the police.
“Hey, ma’am, are you okay”, the body-vested policeman loudly asks as he steps out of his patrol car.
“Yeah, I’m fine, my family is in the house”, I replied. The policeman ran towards me and stepped in front of me. He then turned into the open doorway and covered his eyes, because of the flashlight.
“Hey, is anyone there?”
“Yeah, we’re okay”, my Dad responded.
“Okay, this house is not safe to stay in. Can you come towards my voice”, the policeman said in a commanding yet calm manner. The light turned off and footsteps came slowly towards the door. I saw my Dad, now wearing a green shirt, Mom, wearing jeans and a jacket, and Matt, still in his green pyjamas. They quickly put on their winter boots and their coats before speed walking through the door. The policeman then took one last look with his flashlight in there. “Anyone else in there?”
“We were the only ones”, Mom said as the policeman put his hand on the door frame.
“Did any of you get hurt”, the policeman asked. They shook their heads.
“Well, maybe my opinion on this town. Maybe a documentary”, Dad joked, but no one seems to be into his jokes now. The firemen then arrived a few moments later and offered us blankets.
“Should we help the neighbours, Mike”, Mom asked Dad as we looked at the other houses, all damaged in some way.
“I guess. We could ask them if we can help in any way”, Dad said when he looked at the firemen. “I mean, we’ll be in their way.” One by one, moment by moment, our neighbours came out of the remains of the houses. Luckily, it seems everyone is okay, minus a few injuries. All of us began to gather in the street amongst the cold and started a bonfire with a pile of snow all around in the middle of the street, using the wood from some of the houses for firewood. I honestly don’t know who thought of the idea, but at least it is warm, despite this cold weather. Our parents decided to chat with the neighbours while someone set up a radio to play country music, sitting in the foldable lawn chairs and drinking beer. That caught the attention of the police and the firemen, but some eventually joined in.
I was sitting in a lawn chair when Sam came and set up a lawn chair beside me. “Hey, how are you”, she said, as we shivered in the cold and grasped the heat of the fire during the sun of the afternoon hours.
“I’m fine. The parents are fine. Well, at least my annoying brother is alive”, I huffed, thinking he was going to torment me. Sam looked at me with an expression of inquisitiveness. “What?”
“I mean, that’s what brothers are for. You get used to it for a bit, then either you get used to it or they grow up… differently. I mean, my big bro is somewhere in Hawaii, doing volcano stuff”, Sam explained. “What I’m saying is, they are necessary in life. You may not have fun with them, but they can save you one day.”
“Well, Matt isn’t saving me now”, I rebuked. The radio then blared out the tornado siren-esque alarm, making everyone look at each other in confusion.
“Well, just about time”, one man said. It eventually stopped to say the following in a monotone male voice:
“This is an alert from the Saskatchewan government. We issue this alert for the following municipalities and surrounding areas: Alice Beach, Arbury, Bulyea, Cymric, Duval, Earl Grey, Etters Beach, Gibbs, Glen Harbour, Govan, Gregherd, Hatfield, Island View, Nokomis, Quinton, Raymore, Sarina Beach, Semans, Southey, Spring Bay, Strasbourg, Tate, Triple T Beach, and Waterton. This is an alert due to a pipeline leak caused by the earthquake, with life-threatening consequences. Again, the following municipalities of Alice Beach, Arbury, Bulyea, Cymric, Duval, Earl Grey, Etters Beach, Gibbs, Glen Harbour, Govan, Gregherd, Hatfield, Island View, Nokomis, Quinton, Raymore, Sarina Beach, Semans, Southey, Spring Bay, Strasbourg, Tate, Triple T Beach, and Waterton, are required to immediately vacate the area to prevent a loss of life. Stay safe.”
“Is this a joke? A pipeline leak”, another person asked.
“A whole area for a broken pipeline”, another suggested. Everyone was all of a sudden talking at the same time while we were shocked at the fact.
“A pipeline? Leaking? Why such a large area for a leak”, Sam asked.
“I have no idea”, I said, confused as to the events happening. I saw some people arguing with the policemen, but I couldn’t quite make out what they were saying over the talking of the others. Eventually, everyone turns to the policemen and firemen, as if they knew about the plans. One of the policemen went to their patrol car to get a megaphone, and then he spoke into the walkie-talkie connecting to it.
“Hey, everyone calm down”, he bellowed and most gave their attention to him. “My name is Russel Simmons, and I am the chief of this department here. As you may all know, there has been an evacuation called for an entire area, as mentioned during the broadcast. t. I did not know this beforehand, just like every one of you. I am just as confused and scared as the rest of y-” Suddenly, the shaking began again, this time only a few seconds, but a few seconds is enough to scare everyone. “Stay calm! Everyone stay calm”, the chief begged the panicking people. Slowly but surely, everyone calmed down. “We can get through this. Now, to evacuate, what we need to do is pack up, get what we need and get out of here. Meet with us at the Tempo gas station to get fuel, if necessary. After that, we will go south to Regina, where we’ll be staying.”
“What about the stuff in our houses”, a woman asked.
“For that, we can’t go into the houses. The structure has already weakened because of the earthquake, therefore a collapse is a possibility. We cannot risk a life here, so we can’t”, Russel explained.
“My house looks fine, why can’t I go in”, an older man asked.
“Like I said, sir, the houses are at risk of collapsing.”
“What about the water? We can’t just leave it around in our houses. We need that”, a younger man said.
“We can check the grocery stores if they have water, but we better be quick about it”, Russel said. Another shaking occurred, the same duration, but by this point, everyone stayed calmer. Dad then met up with us.
“It is time to go”, Dad suggested. “We have to make it to Regina, as soon as possible.”
“Well, I guess it’s time to go”, Sam said. We then share a hug. “See you later… sometime.”
“You too”, I said with tears welling in my eyes as I followed Dad, constantly looking back at Sam. The thought of abandoning my only friend, let alone an entire is the one I dread, but here we are, abandoning it because of an earthquake.
“It’s going to be okay”, Dad reassured. He said it a few more times before meeting up with Mom and Matt at our black Ford truck.
“Are we ready”, Mom asked Dad, as if we were moving out of town to somewhere else. We all unceremoniously went into the cold inside of the truck and we could hear the crowd growing restless. Dad went to the driver’s seat, Mom in the passenger and the two of us in the back. Dad got the truck started and drove out of the spot. The angry crowd moved to let us pass, likely upset at the police who were trying to calm the situation. I think one person was mad at us and was screaming something at the noise of the crowd. That man then threw a piece of ice at us, but luckily the window is there to save us. Once we passed them, we sped off through the streets. Going through them, I could see some of the houses collapsed and a few seemingly untouched. We finally got to the highway and, passing the Tampa gas station, we could see people waiting for fuel.
“Should we stop for gas”, Mom asked.
“I don’t think so. We have a full tank of gas and there are too many people. With the situation we are in, things might be bad to worse”, Dad explained. “If we could stop in Bulyea, to pack more up.”
“When are we going home”, Matt complained.
“No, honey, there is no home left for us. Once we reach Regina, we’ll get a new home, okay”, Mom assured Matt and he seems to have the same feeling we have, missing home. At least we can agree on something for once. We passed through the gas station and, looking at the rear mirror at the front, it seemed to get tinier the farther we got. We sat in silence along the icy road with banks of snow. The inside of the truck got warmer and more comfortable. Luckily, there are fuzzy blankets in the truck to snuggle in.
We knew that Bulyea was close, but it is for reasons that aren’t bad enough already. Black, dense smoke in the distance, lofting to the east. We already knew something bad happened.
“Should we even go to Bulyea”, Mom asked. Dad looked at her and back in the road and gave a nod. “We can’t. Remember what you said back there? It is worse here-”
“I know. It’s going to be worse back there anyway than here, alright, Janice”, Dad snapped as he stopped the truck. This is the first time I have seen Dad this mad. I am starting to think he is just as afraid as us. “I’m sorry, I just missed home, but we had to get out.”
“I know, so do I”, Mom said and they shared a kiss. “Now, what?”
“Go to town and salvage what’s left.” Dad drove the truck and went into town. There, we noticed where the smoke came from. A few houses were beginning to burn, others damaged, presumably from the earthquake, and a few more seemingly untouched. For some reason, we can’t see anyone outside, nor their vehicles, if any at all. It seems to be like a ghost town.
“Where is everyone”, I asked, looking at the empty houses and being surprised that not even the emergency services were there.
“I don’t know. Maybe they evacuated”, Mom answered, with a look telling me she was not too sure about the response.
“Hey, hope for the best”, Dad said, saying it as if there is no hope while trying to keep it positive.
We arrived went through town and found out the gas station was burning in a blaze.
“So much for water”, Mom said, looking at the burning wreck. “Hey, how many kilometers did we travel?”
“Why is that important? Worried about gas”, Dad chuckled, in an attempt to cheer the mood. “I can chec- wait, how many kilometers does it take to get here?”
“Uh, fourteen”, Matt responded. My Dad looked at the dashboard in a confused state. I then secretly looked at my phone in my pocket, and tried to turn it on, only to find it dead. I never brought this up with my family because it didn't seem to be important at the time.
“Seems we travelled a kilometer but yet wasted half our fuel. I don’t know what is happening to the truck”, Dad said, further confused. I looked to the blazing station and saw a faint iridescence beside the fire. I was about to point it out when Matt spoke.
“Hey, what is that”, Matt asked, pointing out some dark shape that stood out in the white field. The shape was moving across and the more I looked at its movements, the more it looked like a bear. It then seemed to notice us and seemingly ran towards us.
“We are going now”, Dad yelled and put on the gas, driving off quickly. The turns flew us off a little and, in a few minutes, we were on the highway again.
“What was that”, I asked.
“I think that was a bear.”
“Why did we take off?”
“It was chasing us! Would you like to know what happens when we stay?” Dad then gave out a sigh. “I am sorry, but I had to make a choice.”
“I guess we won’t be staying”, Matt questioned.
“No, we won’t. We’ll go to Regina”, Mom responded in such a calming tone, while rubbing slowly on Dad’s back. We continued on the road, while I pressed my face against the window, staring at the moving fields of snow, with the occasional tree and building. I then slowly closed my eyes, bringing me to a world of darkness.
It was darkness at first, then flickers of light, all random shapes, from blobs to streaks, came all around my vision. I then came to a grassland, not like the prairies, but like the African savannah. Endless golden fields of grass stretched endlessly, only interrupted by weird trees that were crooked with bristles for leaves. The sun is setting in a brilliant series of yellows and oranges. I then heard rustling behind me. That is when I woke up, but not on my own.
“Hey, Kate, you need to see this”, Matt said in an odd confusion. I looked around and thought of nothing unusual.
“See wha-” I faltered as I looked ahead at the road. Ahead of the truck, the road is cut off by some kind of wall. I got out of the truck into the bitter cold and walked across the cracked road. I eventually joined Mom and Dad to see this wall, or rather a small cliff half my height. It seems someone cut the whole road and got the ground where I am to sink. I could even see what was below the road. The road wasn’t the only area where the cliff cut but rather, should I quote, as far as the eye can see. “What is this?”
“It might be some kind of fault line”, Dad said.
“Fault line? What is that”, Matt asked.
“You know, cracks in the ground that cause earthquakes? The one you learn in school about the San Andreas fault? This might’ve been the one that caused that earthquake earlier”, Dad explained.
“So a new fault line is appearing in Saskatchewan”, Mom said.
“Seems to be.”
“So, how are we going to get to Regina”, I asked. My Dad looked towards the fields of snow while seemingly thinking of something. It was a few minutes before we heard something odd. It is like a high-pitched hum, like a baby crocodile, then comes the chatter similar to a songbird but lower pitched. We all went to the truck, except Matt, who was more curious than afraid.
“Hey, I can see something”, Matt advised. Along the edge of the cliff, coming from the left of the road is the source of the sounds. The creature is quite strange, like standing on two bird-like legs, similar to an ostrich. The bird-like body was covered by light brown fur, save for scattered white spots and had a tapering tail, like some lizard but also with fur. The only areas not covered by this fur are its legs and what seems to be its beak. When it got closer, I came to make out its appearance. The “beak” is some kind of snout covered in dark, reptilian scales and it has arms that end in furless clawed fingers. I knew what it was, and it was frightening as it was confusing.
“Matt, come back. That is a dinosaur”, I yelled, hopefully persuading Matt of his curiosity. As soon as I said that, the creature stopped.
“Dinosaur? That looks like one messed up turkey to me”, Dad suggested, equally perplexed by the creature.
“Hey, Matt, come back! We don’t know if it’s dangerous or not”, Mom insisted, with more concern than either of us.
“But it’s not doing anything bad. It looks cool”, Matt said, not even concerned about this weird creature.
“Listen to your mother, Matt”, Dad hollered, in agreement with me and my Mom.
“Oh, come on, we could make him do some tricks.” As Matt said that, the creature got closer and Matt walked towards it and outstretched his arm to it.
“Matt! Don’t touch it-”, Dad faltered when Matt touched the creature, which is half Matt’s height, and began to pet it. The creature then began to purr, like a cat but more bird-like.
“See, not so dangerous. Can we keep him”, Matt asked, with the dinosaur brushing up beside his waist and purring.
“No, we can’t. We don’t know what it is”, Mom pleaded and I do agree.
“Oh, please, I promise I will take care of him. It’ll be the coolest pet ever.” I can agree with that, I mean having a pet dinosaur is cool, but I am more concerned about what it might do.
“I think it’s a bad idea”, I yelled to Matt.
“No, it won’t. Please”, Matt begged. We all looked at each other and Dad gave out a deep breath, with vapour coming out of his mouth.
“Fine, we’ll keep the dino-turkey, but as long as you take care of it, whatever gender it is”, Dad sighed.
“Yes! Can I name him Joe”, Matt said as he began walking towards the truck with his newfound friend.
“Joe? We don’t even know if it’s even a boy.”
“I don’t care. I want him to be a boy”, Matt protested.
“I guess Joe it is”, Mom said as she turned to Dad with a look of regret.
“I guess we have a family pet now”, I said under my breath to no one. We then went back to the truck and I sat in. Dad went to the driver’s seat as usual and Mom in the passenger. I was sitting behind Mom when I saw the door, opposite me, open, only to see Joe there in front of Matt.
“Hey, do you wanna meet my family”, Matt beamed when he picked him up. I can see Joe’s face more clearly. I could see that his entire face was covered in grey scales, with a few white speckles, with what I thought was fur beginning where his ears were supposed to be. Joe looked at me with a bird-like expression with his bird-like eyes. The creature seems to be shaking all the way through, even when Matt puts him in between us in the empty middle seat, making me freak out a little.
“Why are you putting it beside me”, I shuddered. “Did you make sure he doesn’t have rabies?”
“Don’t worry, he’s just cold”, Matt reassured. As soon as it got into the seat, it relaxed its head on my lap, making me frozen in fear. In surprise, Joe began to purr.
“What is he doing”, I asked.
“I think he likes you. You can pet him if you want. He’s harmless”, Matt assured. I then cautiously took my hand out and touched his brow area. It felt cold and reptilian, and I moved my hand towards his fur. I realised they were feathers, not quite like a bird, like fuzzier. I stroked across his spine and he was cold. Matt then covered the feathered creature’s body with a blanket.
“What should we do now”, Dad asked.
“I don’t know. Maybe take another route”, Mom responded. Dad then started the truck and turned it around.
“The rural roads would be hell. Maybe go to Earl Grey, and see if there is anything there.”
“Hopefully not like Bulyea.” Dad then looked at his rear-view mirror to look at Matt.
“Hey, do you know what, uh, Joe eats”, Dad asked.
“I don’t know”, Matt said, with a look like he doesn’t know.
“I mean, he has to eat something”, I said, now more comfortable with Joe. I lifted his lips to see a series of fangs lining his jaw. Joe didn’t take that too kindly and nudged. As he did that, he rolled to his side to reveal his hands. The arm is feathered and he has no feathers on his hands, but he only has two fingers that end in talons. “What, why does he only have two fingers”, I asked.
“Maybe a genetic defect. Like my cat Fluffy with his extra thumbs”, Mom suggested.
“Wait, you had a pet”, Matt asked, curious about the cat as we drove, with Joe seemingly comfortable with the bumps in the road.
“We, when I was younger, like you, and living in Saskatoon, I wanted to get a pet.” Mom explained as she looked at Joe. “Well, not quite like you have. Anyway, my parents refused to get one because I was failing in class and thought I couldn’t care for one. One day, I think a snowstorm was happening. I was walking down a street, fighting against the snow. I stumbled upon a box, covered in a blanket lying on the sidewalk. I looked inside and I saw kittens”, she said, her eyes glossy.
“Sadly, most of them died in the cold, except for one. An orange, fluffy kitten, fighting for its life. I took it, put it into my jacket and took it home. I entered our house and the kitten was fine, but my parents were furious. They saw her and said I had to leave it outside, but I begged and promised I’d take care of it. They said we could keep the kitten, as long I kept the grades up. So, I named him Fluffy, because he’s fluffy.”
“Where is he now? Why is he not here”, Matt questioned.
“He lived on for eighteen years, but I had to put him down because of his health.”
“Why didn’t you buy another cat”, I prodded.
“We just couldn’t afford it, we don’t have enough income. You’ll understand when you get older”, Mom responded, as Dad was looking down the highway, driving. I looked down and Joe was sleeping. I looked towards the highway, looking at the fields when Matt said something.
“I need to go to the bathroom”, he said, holding at his groin. I also need to go to relieve myself, but Matt called it first.
“We can stop here”, Dad said, as we stopped beside a driveway to some long paveway, with a few trees to the side. I recognized it through our trips to Regina: we have arrived at Gibbs. Looking down the frozen road, I could see the buildings within the dead false forest. I took this moment to speak my urge.
“Yeah, I need to go, too”, I declared. Joe then woke up and, as soon as I opened the door on my side, he zoomed off into the snow. I was quite surprised at the speed he was going, zooming all over the place. Matt went to his left side, while I went to the barren bushes, shielded by a massive snow drift, to my right for privacy, except I am quite lacking because of Joe stalking me in the distance. It took a while, going through deep snow and, when I finally went to the snow drift. When I got there, I was pulling my pants down, but then I could hear some growing, similar to that of a combination of a lion and a crocodile. Where is that coming from? Never mind, it might be Joe, I thought.
“Go away, Joe”, I said, thinking it was Joe, seemingly angry at something. Nervous, I finally got to business, a little slow because of Joe nearby. I then heard the growl again. This time, I looked up and saw Joe, but he wasn’t growling. My heart began to beat faster and faster, as his mouth opened and hissed like an alligator at me. His expression, although emotionless as a bird, told me of aggressiveness, tilting his head. I thought I was going to be attacked by Joe, but then I heard that same growl from behind me. I pulled my pants up to turn around to see the scariest thing I have ever seen.
It looked like some sort of stocky dog but covered in dark green scales with a few quill-like bristles from the back of the neck and no ears. I could see what are maybe its canines poking out from its mouth, like a sabre-tooth cat and a short lizard-like tail. It looked more reptile than, well, dog really except for its eyes. I could see the hunger in its eyes. I heard more growling to my other side and saw another of those things. Joe began making that baby crocodile noise and we ran to the truck. I turned around and ran.
“Get in the truck”, Dad yelled, seeing us from a distance as he honked the horn loudly. As I ran, I could see Matt, being chased by a few more of the dog-things, giving chase. Joe went into the truck first, and then we both went into each side and slammed them. Dad then sped off very quickly, scared they may get to us.
“What was that”, I panted, confused.
“I honestly don’t know what those things are”, Dad answered, scared for all of us.
“I want to go home”, Matt pleaded, tired from running away from those things.
“Don’t worry, we’ll be home soon. I promise”, Mom reassured.
“Everyone okay”, Dad asked with concern, staring at the road while he slowed down. We all looked at each other in fearful confusion, even Joe. I looked at Joe, and he then looked at me. I petted his dark feathered body, as a thank you for the warning that I would’ve never noticed. “Okay, we are moving on”, Dad concluded. We sat in silence, although I was still petting Joe.
“Hey, Matt, do you know what dinosaur he is”, I asked Matt.
“I don’t know. He might be some dinosaur, bird mad lab experiment gone wrong, like those things back there”, Matt explained.
“Or some mess-up chicken in a lab”, Dad suggested, still looking at the road.
“I don’t think he was a chicken”, Matt rebutted. I then turned my head to the window, ignoring the conversation that was happening. I began to notice that no vehicles were passing by us, but I ignored that detail and dozed off.
I saw those same lights in the dark vision of my closed eyes. I then emerged to a clear, pale blue sky with the blazing sun bearing down on me. Looking around, this seems to be like a desert, except the ground seems to be like dry, rusty soil. It feels hot here, hotter than one of those summers in my former town. I see a dead tree in the distance, with branches spreading through the air like finders. I heard a sound behind me.
“Wake up! We are here”, Matt said as he shook me awake. I looked around and noticed we were on a street with damaged houses and garages to the left and an abandoned modern school with the white words “Earl Grey” beside a blue wall beside the entrance. The school lies hiding behind a metal fence with dead trees behind it. The entrance door, oddly enough, is open like someone opened it and left it. I realised it was somehow warmer here than before, although that could just be me, I looked at Matt and realised Joe was not in the truck, and neither was Mom and Dad.
“Hey, where’s Mom and Dad”, I asked Matt.
“Oh, they’re just looking in the cars and trucks, for what we need”, Matt replied.
“And Joe?”
“Oh, just running across the road.” Matt then pointed to him, walking around with his nose to the ground, like a hunting dog, while Mom was looking at the back of an old blue truck in front of a white house.
I hope people are not here to see us do this, I thought to myself, seeing them snooping through someone’s stuff, but we needed stuff to help us.
“Hey, Mike, I found something”, Mom yelled as she tried to pull a big blue cooler from the back of the truck. Dad then came from an RV down from the truck and came and helped her. He then put it down on the road and opened it. They both plugged their noses and backed away.
“Fish? Who leaves fish in a cooler in the back of a truck”, Dad gagged. Joe then looked up, seemingly in excitement and ran towards the cooler. He stuck his nose in the cooler and pulled out a pike. He plopped it on the road, his foot stepped on the fish and put his mouth onto it, tearing a piece of it and swallowing it. “At least somebody likes rotten fish”, Dad rasped.
As we looked in surprise, we could hear something from the school. The minute we heard it, a loud boar-like roar came out from the school. We thought it was a very big boar when it came out, but the more we looked, the more we realised it was something else. Its body is like a boar, but its face is like a lion’s and the snout of a camel, with teeth somewhat like a bear’s when it opens its enormous mouth to gargle like a pig. Mom, Dad and even Joe are taken by surprise, making our parents run towards the driveway, while Joe towards our truck with his gorged fish, standing by us. The boar-thing then stopped a few feet away from my parents, seemingly in a defensive stance, hooves scratching the ground. We are scared for our parents, preparing to see this thing rip them to shreds.
It gave one last roar and walked towards the cooler, knocking it over with fish spilling out. It stuck its snout in the fish and swallowed one down. They then slowly walked around the creature and steadily fastened their pace until they were at the truck. We all quickly got in and Dad backed up quickly.
“What the hell was that”, Mom panicked.
“I don’t know, a pig from hell”, Dad responded. We looked at Joe, swallowing down the fish while the rotting fish smell remained. It looked at us in confusion, as we were. We silently laughed for no apparent reason, probably as a mechanism to try to replace the fear. We then heard a shaking in the truck, startling us. We realised that the hell pig was tearing at the bumper of the truck like a lion would. Dad hammered the horn, making the thing back up in surprise. Dad took this opportunity to back up very quickly towards the intersection and turned to the left, quickly avoiding the creature. We sat in silence, except for Joe who was chirping.
When we went down the street, the houses, as usual, were damaged but we saw other vehicles, the first we had seen. Some were parked along the street, others stuck on one lane like city traffic but paused. Weirdly enough, there are no people in the vehicles, nor anyone outside. Most of the vehicles have one or more doors open like people got out to go somewhere. We drove past all the vehicles in the other lane. There is one vehicle we passed by that is on fire, most of the paint already off to reveal the metal beneath, only to be turned into a rainbow of browns and blacks by the dancing flames.
“What. Happened. Here”, Mom slowly asked, as confused and terrified as us. We had a feeling of dread, seeing all the abandoned vehicles.
“That’s the least of our worries. We should be looking for supplies”, Dad responded.
“Hey, how much do we have”, Mom asked Dad, worried about using up the fuel.
“Well, we got a full tank of gas and travelled a hundred kilometers”, Dad responded, more confused. “Nothing makes sense here and I hope we don’t stay here for long”, he muttered.
Eventually, we passed most of the vehicles and reached the veterinary clinic. The small, intact structure stood there, seemingly looking over the icy driveway. We then spotted an old, brown truck and we saw something that set it apart from the rest of the vehicles we’ve seen so far.
“It’s on”, I said, gleefully, with hope that, at least, we aren’t the only ones here. The headlights beamed brightly, and we realised it was getting dark. We also noticed that the street lights aren’t turning on.
“I thought there was no one here”, my Mom said, unsure of the connection between the abandoned but running truck and the lack of people in this town. At one of the intact houses, ahead of us, partially blocked by the trees, we saw what seemed to be bright light coming from one of the windows. What person would go into a house after an earthquake, I thought, thinking about our house back home.
“Someone’s here”, Matt loudly notified, as we all shushed him and that is when Joe is trying to push the door with his snout. “What is he doing?”
“Stay here”, Dad calmly ordered, opening the door, but Joe scurried out and went somewhere else.
“Hey, come back”, Matt called out, with no success. Joe eventually disappeared into the night, never to be seen. Matt then had tears welling up in his eyes like he was about to cry. I hugged him to comfort him.
“He’ll come back some time”, Mom reassured, trying to calm him down and looking at Dad. Dad nodded and grabbed a flashlight that was equipped in the truck. He then walked slowly towards the house, step by step, being shone by our truck’s headlights. He looked back at us and put his hand up when the light in the house moved. It seems to move towards the front door of the house. Emerging from the house is a person walking down the steps, cloaked in darkness. Dad then took a few steps back as the figure came. Finally, the figure stepped into the light.

My mom has a Buick sitting in her driveway doing nothing, because mice have wreaked complete havoc on the wiring so much so that the AC is jacked up and the battery has to be disconnected any time the car sits for more than a few hours. And even though it drives fine otherwise, who knows what other problems could arise if driven regularly as is.
I need a vehicle, but am broke as hell. So neither of us can afford to pay a pro for this. I’m smart, have all sorts of appropriate tools at my disposal (my dad was an auto mechanic), and I know better than to cut corners with stuff as important as electrical work. Where do I start with diy education to get this auto in safe driving condition again?

Car is a 1975 mercury bobcat aka a ford pinto
I’m trying to find the most detailed book I can on tearing the car down completely I.E. electrical engine transmission cooling heating the works
Would also settle for a video tutorials since I can’t seem to find them

met a pretty moroccan woman on bumble and was trying to coordinate to meet for some moroccan tea tonight. felt like a good idea at the time.
when i was at dinner i saw she was only 2km away from me on bumble. i figured we could meet somewhere close by for drinks and she mentioned that she would need to take a taxi to get to me but of course was a poor student and couldn’t afford the taxi. the moment i offered to taxi to her and then go wherever she had asked to postpone to tomorrow. but i felt like that wasn’t going to fit my plans for the day and asked one more time to meet tn. she agreed but eagerly asked for me to cover the taxi. thought it was odd given the bumble location but was excited to meet her and overlooked it. she also said it was going to take 25 min to get to me in the taxi.
so i offered to pay for the taxi and waited at the meeting spot for some tea. i figured i would pay the taxi driver once she arrived. sure enough, it was about 25 minutes and she even texted me to says she was halfway to me around the 12 minute mark. now, when she arrived it was odd that her taxi couldn’t go down the street that i was on and he dropped her off around the corner. so she covered the taxi but shortly after meeting asked for money to cover that taxi she took and the one she needed to get home. felt a little odd because during the time i waited for her i saw cars going both ways down the street. but again, was excited to meet her and we sat for some tea.
once we finished drinks we said our goodbyes and she told me “okay, the medina is that way and im this way. lovely to meet you and let’s meet tomorrow.”
so i simply walked in the direction she pointed and she went the opposite way. ironically enough once i got into my taxi i drove in the way that she had walked. i was already suspicious given the bumble location was only 2km away from me to start. so just to start confirming what i already knew (which is i was being scammed) i messaged her saying “hope you made it back safely!” once i arrived to my hotel i checked bumble again and she was only 4km away from me.. which was basically my distance from the meeting spot. sure enough she messaged me saying “i just got back!” - in checking the time stamps it took her about 45min to get home when it was 25min on the dot to get there. all of this took place late in the evening so it’s not like traffic was the cause for the extra 20 minutes. and she was very precise with the initial 25 minute to arrive as well as the half way text that she had sent.
she had asked to meet the next day for drinks again but i told her that everything was not adding up. i confirmed again on bumble that she was only 4km away from me before telling her that this felt off. as soon as i did that she told me she did not like anxious people, said she had opened bumble while she was in the city center although she was also at home getting ready to meet for drinks with me and as expected unmatched me from bumble and blocked me on whatsapp.
all in all im out a few euros but know that the moroccan hustle exists from the souks to the dating apps.
this will hopefully be my last trip to morocco, inshallah.

1(25F) dating my (26M) for 5 years. I moved to Canada five years ago and he asked me out 4 days before moving ( we were both very close friends and was heartbroken about my moving unexpectedly). We never went on dates or even kissed or anything as a couple. As years went by our relationship are having it's ups and downs but we are sticking together and love each other. Since I moved here with my family I live with them and pursuing my bachelor program. As we moved here 5 years ago my parents had managed to get settled down (like buying a house, 2 cars, establishing a business). Recently my bf moved to Germany to pursue his education. And he's asking me to move with him if he gets a good job there after his completion of college. But I told him I can't as I need to take care of my old parents (they are in their late 50s and has many health issues), take care of the house mortgage they bought the house recently), the business and also my little sister (12 years old ). Also since l have got accustomed to Canadian environment and culture it will be hard for me. It will be hard for me to leave my old parents, the business and all other responsibilities as l'm the oldest. Also after the completion of my degree I plan to get a job and look after the business too as it's my parents dream. If I leave and move country I have to give up everything I have here and give up my responsibilities. As for my boyfriend, he's afraid that he lives alone and he's afraid that he might not get a respectable job in Canada. He’s saying I’m being selfish and he’s life is being decided based on my dad buying a house and having a business. I live in Montreal and I plan to live here. So I really need advice on how to proceed and what to decide.

I had my 341 meeting on April 30th. On that day they were not able to confirm due to my car lease not included in the plan and my home taxes will be relatively higher for the incoming year. My attorney told me those issues will be resolved by them. I just received a notice in the mail that states: "Trustee's Objection to Confirmation of Chapter 13 Plan and Motion to Dismiss or Convert" reasons being: 1. Debtor's schedules are inaccurate. 2. The plan fails to provide payment in full of the secured and priority chains within the term as required by 11 USC 1325. 3. Debtor's official form 122C is inaccurate. I presented everything that my attorney needed. Now I'm a little freaked out as to what all this means. I'm hoping my case will not be dismissed and that my attorney will correct everything as he stated. Also, what are the chances that my 13 coverts into a 7. Goodness, that would be a Blessing because my payment is $2200 monthly which I've forked over for the last 2 months. Any advice would be appreciated! I will be calling my attorney tomorrow but I need clarity asap. Lol.

A little background, we have been saving and were planning to purchase a new car, preferably EV, closer to EOY beginning of next year. We were mainly looking at the secondary market and were leaning towards a used Model 3. Going this route, we would forgo the tax credit because most cars that met my mileage and price range didn't qualify. We were okay with this because we would be spending less than new with a tax credit at ~$37k and saving ~$5k paying in cash.
Now Tesla is offering a promotional 1% interest rate on new Model Y orders through the end of May. Meaning we would qualify for the tax credit but would have to carry a loan for 36 to 72 months. After the credit the price is ~$43k.
We are aware of hidden costs like getting a charger installed and insurance rates. Electricity would be lower than gas prices in our area. Are there any other gotchas to consider? The new car seems more appealing because it's new and around the same price we were going to pay otherwise. No mileage, longer warranty, no previous owner cosmetic issues. Downside is having to carry the loan and paying that difference we planned to save. However, it does present the option to invest some of the capital now that would have been used to buy used in the future.
Are we missing something or is the new car a terrible, horrible, no good mistake?
Also for those wondering, we currently drive a 2005 Ford Focus, has been a great car but is starting to show its age. We are under the 300k threshold for the credit so should be good. Only other liability we have is the 3% mortgage. Tax advantaged accounts max, emergency funds funded.

I'm 31 years old, live in NJ. 5'9", 165 lbs (fit/athletic build) 3rd generation Chinese American (my family immigrated here in the 1900s). My family identifies as American as we tend to eat more pasta than rice and my generation has not learned the language. College educated with a Bachelor's in Biomedical Science (switched from an Engineering major...turns out I don't like theoretical math); currently working in the pharmaceutical industry and pretty much love the industry as there isn't any work drama and it's relatively straightforward yet challenging.
I've tried a few long distance relationships and they're quite difficult to manage...they were great when we able to meet in person and I didn't mind putting in the extra work. I'd be willing to try one if the distance is reasonable and the there is a definite spark between us. I am pretty sure I fit the definition of a demisexual, so I'll be strictly trying to form a connection first. I REALLY need the emotional connection before there is a sexual attraction, mentally I can't do hook ups (they're just really hard for me to handle and I have turned people down).
Personality wise I've been told that I tend to bring people together and keep things fun. I have a few different groups of friends and communities I am often with...and they can vary from the youngsters (21 to 30) to the old guys (60+) to the group that's around my age. I would say I'm pretty good at conversing and I try to stay on top of most current events. Mentally I'm an old man and feel more comfortable in that setting, so much that I literally hang out with 60+ years olds at the gym after a workout in the hot tub. I call them the hot tub gang and it's always a set of regulars where we might talk about the same thing every single day until someone newer to the group says that we talked about it yesterday.
I would say fitness is a major player in my life. I started out hating swimming as a kid, but here I am almost 27 years later...I made it through the lessons at the YMCA, joined a club team, swam in high school, swam in college and now I'm a swim coach and instructor as a hobby/side job in my free time. There's something about being a part of coaching people and watching them grow up and succeed that makes me smile.
My free time in the cold months usually consists of planning DIY projects or working on them. I tend to work on all the cars in the family and am the one that fixes them up or finds replacements for them. Or planning my next road trip to somewhere nicer. Whereas in the warm months I love going down to the beach to go for a swim and have a nice relaxing breakfast outdoors. I do have a few kayaks that I'll bring out to go with friends or if I feel it's safe a nice solo paddle to clear my mind. When I think about it, too many of my hobbies involve water. But I do enjoy things on dry land I promise!
I'm really looking for someone I can grow together with, a long term or forever relationship. I want a relationship where both of us put 100% in all the time and if we don't, we can talk to each other about our concerns and work it out. Honestly what I've realized is that maybe I am altruistic...I miss making someone feel happy and loved, miss the good morning texts, the waiting around all day just to see their texts, I miss spoiling someone and the feeling of that feeling of seeing that look that you get when someone truly loves you. I would love to slowly get to know you by having some conversations where the time just flies, then to a point where we talk nonstop, maybe some in person dates and then maybe eventually settle down together and enjoy life together.
Important stuff: Although I enjoy interacting with kids and it's a major part of my life...I don't want any of my own so...sorry if this is a dealbreaker for anyone. I don't drink (except for maybe wine at special occasions....I get really bad Asian Flush so I'll turn bright red if I smell alcohol essentially lol), not into smoking/drugs (Bad asthma and I'm just not into any of that stuff). I don't judge anyone that's into drinking or recreational drugs, it's just not for me personally. Religion wise, I'm Agnostic. Politically I lean relatively to the left.
I'm really searching for that genuine connection; voice calls are definitely a plus and would love to get to know you. It's alright if we end up just as friends that talk here and there.
If it sounds like you could be the one send me a chat or DM and tell me a bit about yourself. My name is Kevin and I'd love to know about you.

I'm 31 years old, live in NJ. 5'9", 165 lbs (fit/athletic build) 3rd generation Chinese American (my family immigrated here in the 1900s). My family identifies as American as we tend to eat more pasta than rice and my generation has not learned the language. College educated with a Bachelor's in Biomedical Science (switched from an Engineering major...turns out I don't like theoretical math); currently working in the pharmaceutical industry and pretty much love the industry as there isn't any work drama and it's relatively straightforward yet challenging.
I've tried a few long distance relationships and they're quite difficult to manage...they were great when we able to meet in person and I didn't mind putting in the extra work. I'd be willing to try one if the distance is reasonable and the there is a definite spark between us. I am pretty sure I fit the definition of a demisexual, so I'll be strictly trying to form a connection first. I REALLY need the emotional connection before there is a sexual attraction, mentally I can't do hook ups (they're just really hard for me to handle and I have turned people down).
Personality wise I've been told that I tend to bring people together and keep things fun. I have a few different groups of friends and communities I am often with...and they can vary from the youngsters (21 to 30) to the old guys (60+) to the group that's around my age. I would say I'm pretty good at conversing and I try to stay on top of most current events. Mentally I'm an old man and feel more comfortable in that setting, so much that I literally hang out with 60+ years olds at the gym after a workout in the hot tub. I call them the hot tub gang and it's always a set of regulars where we might talk about the same thing every single day until someone newer to the group says that we talked about it yesterday.
I would say fitness is a major player in my life. I started out hating swimming as a kid, but here I am almost 27 years later...I made it through the lessons at the YMCA, joined a club team, swam in high school, swam in college and now I'm a swim coach and instructor as a hobby/side job in my free time. There's something about being a part of coaching people and watching them grow up and succeed that makes me smile.
My free time in the cold months usually consists of planning DIY projects or working on them. I tend to work on all the cars in the family and am the one that fixes them up or finds replacements for them. Or planning my next road trip to somewhere nicer. Whereas in the warm months I love going down to the beach to go for a swim and have a nice relaxing breakfast outdoors. I do have a few kayaks that I'll bring out to go with friends or if I feel it's safe a nice solo paddle to clear my mind. When I think about it, too many of my hobbies involve water. But I do enjoy things on dry land I promise!
I'm really looking for someone I can grow together with, a long term or forever relationship. I want a relationship where both of us put 100% in all the time and if we don't, we can talk to each other about our concerns and work it out. Honestly what I've realized is that maybe I am altruistic...I miss making someone feel happy and loved, miss the good morning texts, the waiting around all day just to see their texts, I miss spoiling someone and the feeling of that feeling of seeing that look that you get when someone truly loves you. I would love to slowly get to know you by having some conversations where the time just flies, then to a point where we talk nonstop, maybe some in person dates and then maybe eventually settle down together and enjoy life together.
Important stuff: Although I enjoy interacting with kids and it's a major part of my life...I don't want any of my own so...sorry if this is a dealbreaker for anyone. I don't drink (except for maybe wine at special occasions....I get really bad Asian Flush so I'll turn bright red if I smell alcohol essentially lol), not into smoking/drugs (Bad asthma and I'm just not into any of that stuff). I don't judge anyone that's into drinking or recreational drugs, it's just not for me personally. Religion wise, I'm Agnostic. Politically I lean relatively to the left.
I'm really searching for that genuine connection; voice calls are definitely a plus and would love to get to know you. It's alright if we end up just as friends that talk here and there.
If it sounds like you could be the one send me a chat or DM and tell me a bit about yourself. My name is Kevin and I'd love to know about you.

I'm 31 years old, live in NJ. 5'9", 165 lbs (fit/athletic build) 3rd generation Chinese American (my family immigrated here in the 1900s). My family identifies as American as we tend to eat more pasta than rice and my generation has not learned the language. College educated with a Bachelor's in Biomedical Science (switched from an Engineering major...turns out I don't like theoretical math); currently working in the pharmaceutical industry and pretty much love the industry as there isn't any work drama and it's relatively straightforward yet challenging.
I've tried a few long distance relationships and they're quite difficult to manage...they were great when we able to meet in person and I didn't mind putting in the extra work. I'd be willing to try one if the distance is reasonable and the there is a definite spark between us. I am pretty sure I fit the definition of a demisexual, so I'll be strictly trying to form a connection first. I REALLY need the emotional connection before there is a sexual attraction, mentally I can't do hook ups (they're just really hard for me to handle and I have turned people down).
Personality wise I've been told that I tend to bring people together and keep things fun. I have a few different groups of friends and communities I am often with...and they can vary from the youngsters (21 to 30) to the old guys (60+) to the group that's around my age. I would say I'm pretty good at conversing and I try to stay on top of most current events. Mentally I'm an old man and feel more comfortable in that setting, so much that I literally hang out with 60+ years olds at the gym after a workout in the hot tub. I call them the hot tub gang and it's always a set of regulars where we might talk about the same thing every single day until someone newer to the group says that we talked about it yesterday.
I would say fitness is a major player in my life. I started out hating swimming as a kid, but here I am almost 27 years later...I made it through the lessons at the YMCA, joined a club team, swam in high school, swam in college and now I'm a swim coach and instructor as a hobby/side job in my free time. There's something about being a part of coaching people and watching them grow up and succeed that makes me smile.
My free time in the cold months usually consists of planning DIY projects or working on them. I tend to work on all the cars in the family and am the one that fixes them up or finds replacements for them. Or planning my next road trip to somewhere nicer. Whereas in the warm months I love going down to the beach to go for a swim and have a nice relaxing breakfast outdoors. I do have a few kayaks that I'll bring out to go with friends or if I feel it's safe a nice solo paddle to clear my mind. When I think about it, too many of my hobbies involve water. But I do enjoy things on dry land I promise!
I'm really looking for someone I can grow together with, a long term or forever relationship. I want a relationship where both of us put 100% in all the time and if we don't, we can talk to each other about our concerns and work it out. Honestly what I've realized is that maybe I am altruistic...I miss making someone feel happy and loved, miss the good morning texts, the waiting around all day just to see their texts, I miss spoiling someone and the feeling of that feeling of seeing that look that you get when someone truly loves you. I would love to slowly get to know you by having some conversations where the time just flies, then to a point where we talk nonstop, maybe some in person dates and then maybe eventually settle down together and enjoy life together.
Important stuff: Although I enjoy interacting with kids and it's a major part of my life...I don't want any of my own so...sorry if this is a dealbreaker for anyone. I don't drink (except for maybe wine at special occasions....I get really bad Asian Flush so I'll turn bright red if I smell alcohol essentially lol), not into smoking/drugs (Bad asthma and I'm just not into any of that stuff). I don't judge anyone that's into drinking or recreational drugs, it's just not for me personally. Religion wise, I'm Agnostic. Politically I lean relatively to the left.
I'm really searching for that genuine connection; voice calls are definitely a plus and would love to get to know you. It's alright if we end up just as friends that talk here and there.
If it sounds like you could be the one send me a chat or DM and tell me a bit about yourself. My name is Kevin and I'd love to know about you.