Smoking weed after tooth extraction

I'm sorry for posting this but I haven't been able to talk about what's really happening the last 12 months because no one cares to listen to people like me. I just really need to write this down so it isn't just inside me forever, I'm not expecting any replies or help, I just want someone to know my story because i dont know when or how it will end. (also i wrote this at 11pm after not sleeping for 3 days, so theres a chance none of this makes sense)
I am 14, turning 15 in a few months.
I have been dealing with severe depression(?) for around 4 years now, but the issues started way before that. there is something seriously wrong with me, and i am not blaming anyone but myself. I'm diagnosed with adhd, severe social & general anxiety disorder, autism, and ptsd. I have an abundance of issues cleaning and taking care of myself which i am extremely embarrassed about.
I attempted to truly end my life first when i was 10 via od on a prescription. the second time i was 11, i tied a ribbon very tightly around my neck, and fell asleep crying from both sadness and relief. i remember waking up, and it was like my body automatically started desperately searching for anything sharp to get it off my neck. i had a red spot on the side for a while after that, i covered it with a fake tattoo so my mom wouldn't have to worry about my older brother as well as me.
I resorted to online learning for middle school after bullying and sexual harassment, plus issues with the school that lead to cps being called. skip forward to now, my only friends are online, and they make fun of me for being autistic, and say they forget im a real person regularly. I understand, i dont expect them to care that much about someone theyve never spoken to in person before, i just wish i could be someones first choice.
december last year i started smoking weed, and that made me forget about how much i wanted to die. unfortunately, that got me addicted immediately. i couldn't bare being sober, if i wasnt high off my mind i was sobbing and shaking. eventually my mom found out, and I (mostly) stopped. unfortunately, the inevitable happened. i started stealing liquor, drank almost a whole bottle of tequila by myself within ~6 days. mom found out about that too, and stopped buying alcohol as well as starting to lock up the medication in the house. this was the beginning of the end. i hate myself for what i did. my mom did everything right, i, however, did everything wrong. i started abusing gabapentin, which quickly lost its magic. i told myself i was never going to touch stimulants or amphetamines, but of course i did. I was desperate to feel something that i started abusing my adhd meds. i hate them, i cant eat or sleep on them, but they make me focus on something that isnt my thoughts.
I've done everything i wanted to do before i go. today was my friends 16th birthday, yesterday was mothers day, and a few days before that was my one year on HRT. (not getting into that right now lol) i didnt think id make it to 13, I truly dont know why I'm still here. I can't remember a day i havent wanted to just leave and be free from emotion and people. I'll probably delete this when i see it in the morning, but i desperately needed to get this off my chest. I had potential, I was smart and kind and bright, and then the people around me grew up, while i was still waiting for my turn.
Maybe if I was born into a different family i could've been a psychologist like ive always wanted to. In another lifetime.

just wanted to share my experience and get some advice or suggestions, open to any especially if someone has also experienced the same thing. Anxiety and stress is genetic throughout my family but just up til about recently I have experienced my first severe panic attack. About a week ago I was having fun feeling relaxed and decided to take a hit of a weed pen that my friend had gotten from a vape store. I usually never smoke weed nor like it because it has always given me an experience of panic and paranoia that i did not enjoy. I then decided to take a few hits and nothing happened and i did not feel it or any effects off of it so i took one more hit of it and after about 20-30 mins i had gotten up out of bed and this big sorta rush feeling came right over me and i instantly freaked out and could feel my heart beating out of my chest. i had to lay down with my face in a blanket just to feel somewhat okay. eventually it had whore off... next day i wake up completely fine then after a few hours i feel that terrible feeling again come up over me and it sorta felt like i was high again so i started freaking out and my heart began to race. I took some benadryl seemed to subside the horrible feelings. next day I woke up with symptoms of depersonalization/ derealization. this is what i would say i usually experience while "high" but this was actually the worst I have ever felt. I had to run outside and sit down, i started bawling and my heart felt like it was beating uncontrollably. I looked around and it felt like I was all alone stuck in a dream like I wasn't even real. Since then it has been a couple of days with my symptoms decreasing slowly. every now and then i feel scared and have the fear of the feeling coming back and my heart racing. I do wake up sometimes in the middle of the night with my heart racing with difficulty of breathing. I have mostly been taking benadryl and vitamin D to help. I am trying to stay away from medications. but What seems to be really worrying me is my lack of concentration and control. I always feel drowsy and can't seem to concentrate and have a hard time with remembering things. I think the cause of the anxiety and fear was the cannabis pen. i am just looking for ways to relax my mind, and i am always stuck on the thought if im forever going to feel like this. before this incident i have never experienced things like this before, im not sure if i am only having anxiety because of my experience with the weed or it had actually opened me up to anxiety if that makes sense. only worry now seems to be getting my concentration back and feeling like i am a real person again and enjoying things like how i used to, has anyone else who has smoked or has anxiety experienced this? im wondering if the depersonalization is just from the weed or the anxiety itself and if it will be long term or subside. slowly tho the days have been getting better with little to none mini panic attacks

TW: unhealthy relationships, abuse, drugs, self harm
For context, my(22F) ex(23M), Jason, & I dated for 2.5 years. I basically spent the entire time trying to leave but he wouldn’t let me, even when I tried telling him that I’m pretty sure I’m a lesbian on MULTIPLE OCCASIONS. I developed multiple stress-related autoimmune issues during it, started self harming again, & may have had a stress seizure (I had stress induced seizures as a young teen but outgrew it). I was so visibly unwell that my extended family members started reaching out to my parents.
About 6 months into this relationship, Jason introduced me to his friend “Mark”. We clicked immediately bc we’re both autistic & have overlapping special interests. For 2 years, Jason & I would go over to Marks house. Jason would spend the entire time scrolling TikTok or sleeping, despite Mark & I trying to involve him. Bc of this, Mark & I became friends.
When I broke up with Jason 7 months ago (after a 2 month break), I figured my friendship with Mark was probably over bc I wasn’t sure if it would be weird for us to hang out. That was until a couple weeks ago when Jason had an oxy relapse & did some minor stalker shit, which triggered my PTSD from one of my previous ex’s stalking me. I called his dad & he brought him to a psych hospital. While he was admitted, Mark & I met up to discuss how to handle Jason. I want what’s best for him but I need space & I felt like Mark needed to know what was going on.
After that, we started hanging out a lot. The last 2 weeks, we’ve hung out almost every day (my job is online so I work while we hang out & he just finished college). We smoke weed, have doggy play dates, watch TV, & body double for each other when we need to get chores done (it helps our ADHD).
Nothing romantic or sexual has or will happen due to 1) im 99% sure I’m gay, & even if I’m actually just bi, I have zero interest in being with a man again & I’ve already met a girl I really like & 2) he just left his abusive ex gf, & it was so bad he doesn’t even want to be with women anymore (he’s pan so he’s happy to date men/enbies).
On top of all of this, my ex hasn’t been the best friend to him recently. When they hang out (which isn’t often), he focuses more on TikTok than what Mark is saying. He also didn’t say much when Mark was being abused, & he even started to reconnect with a former friend who was extremely shitty to Mark after Mark called him out for engaging in LITERAL DOMESTIC VIOLENCE. My ex stopped hanging out with him after I voiced how uncomfortable I was, but he didn’t care that it upset Mark.
Anyways, flash forward to the other day. Jason asked Mark how often we hang out. Mark told him, & Jason asked if he could hang out with me less, saying that it made him uncomfortable. Now, Mark & I both feel bad bc we don’t want him to feel uncomfortable or left out, but at the same time, we’re also frustrated bc now we’ve been friends for 2 years & Jason wouldn’t be left out if it wasn’t for what he did while he was high.

Hi, I smoked weed for the second time on April 23rd. First time I was completely fine. I had taken a hit and then waited around 20 minutes. I didn’t feeling anything so took another. I was completely fine and went about my day. Second time I smoked I took two very large hits off of a 97% cart in the same minute. I was told I shouldn’t but did anyway as I’d heard it’s good to take a few hits and then wait. Boy, was I mistaken. Around 5 minutes later I got really tingly all over my body and suddenly really confused. Confused about where I was and what was going on. I thought I had fallen asleep and was dreaming is how it felt. I realized I was probably having really bad derealization. At the start, I held my head in my hands and incoherently freaked and panicked. I had no perception of time and my voice felt far away from me, as if I was not the one talking. The guy I was with calmed me down as well as he could as he was experienced and knew what was going on (luckily). At times I would scream “I am dying”. and overthought about every possible thing that could be happening to me. I thought I was having a stroke one minute then a heart attack the next. I also fainted and few times and threw up when I got home. Went to sleep and was fine the next morning. Point being I had a terrible reaction to it. The smarty pants that I am I tried it again a week later thinking I had just greened out and that I could have a better experience with something less potent. Took two hits, NOPE same exact out of body experience occurred, not as bad but still occurred. I had the same tingly feeling right before I fell into complete derealization. Went to sleep and everything was fine. Today, May 13 is where I was really freaked. I got the same tingly feeling all over and fell into derealization and freaked. Exactly how I felt on weed. But without smoking any weed…. I had a better perception of time but still felt the same nonetheless. I couldn’t distinct what was real from what was not for around an hour and a half. The main freak out part has passed but I’m still pretty out of it. I feel like a zombie. I am terrified. Why did I feel like I was on weed two weeks after I smoked weed??? I have been diagnosed with generalized anxiety disorder just a heads up. Please help me I’m genuinely so scared. Shouldn’t it all be out of my system by now? Does anyone know what this might be and what will help? Of course I am never smoking weed again.

just wanted to share my experience and get some advice or suggestions, open to any especially if someone has also experienced the same thing. Anxiety and stress is genetic throughout my family but just up til about recently I have experienced my first severe panic attack. About a week ago I was having fun feeling relaxed and decided to take a hit of a weed pen that my friend had gotten from a vape store. I usually never smoke weed nor like it because it has always given me an experience of panic and paranoia that i did not enjoy. I then decided to take a few hits and nothing happened and i did not feel it or any effects off of it so i took one more hit of it and after about 20-30 mins i had gotten up out of bed and this big sorta rush feeling came right over me and i instantly freaked out and could feel my heart beating out of my chest. i had to lay down with my face in a blanket just to feel somewhat okay. eventually it had whore off... next day i wake up completely fine then after a few hours i feel that terrible feeling again come up over me and it sorta felt like i was high again so i started freaking out and my heart began to race. I took some benadryl seemed to subside the horrible feelings. next day I woke up with symptoms of depersonalization/derealization. this is what i would say i usually experience while "high" but this was actually the worst I have ever felt. I had to run outside and sit down, i started bawling and my heart felt like it was beating uncontrollably. I looked around and it felt like I was all alone stuck in a dream like I wasn't even real. Since then it has been a couple of days with my symptoms decreasing slowly. every now and then i feel scared and have the fear of the feeling coming back and my heart racing. I do wake up sometimes in the middle of the night with my heart racing with difficulty of breathing. I have mostly been taking benadryl and vitamin D to help. I am trying to stay away from medications. but What seems to be really worrying me is my lack of concentration and control. I always feel drowsy and can't seem to concentrate and have a hard time with remembering things. I think the cause of the anxiety and fear was the cannabis pen. i am just looking for ways to relax my mind, and i am always stuck on the thought if im forever going to feel like this. before this incident i have never experienced things like this before, im not sure if i am only having anxiety because of my experience with the weed or it had actually opened me up to anxiety if that makes sense. only worry now seems to be getting my concentration back and feeling like i am a real person again and enjoying things like how i used to, has anyone else who has smoked experienced this?

Help!
Why do I need to be constantly distracted. I read all the time, any chance I can get. I have books on all my devices. When my bf drives I’m always reading, or even out and about exploring I’m reading on my phone.
I also always have to fidget with something. My face, eyebrows and mouth always twitch. I seem to always be sick. I also smoke weed and eat edibles to remain at a constant high.
I clean my house and wash my floors with my bare hands, my place is always spotless clean, dirty dishes at my boyfriend’s house drive me insane and I have to clean his house to feel comfortable.
I sleep after dinner every time I am at my boyfriend’s house.
I never want to order my own food, so I’ve asked my boyfriend to order for me.
I use sex as a method to control my boyfriend and I cheat on him with men and women, he seems clueless because he’s empath and is always working.
Even with everything nice my boyfriend does for me, I give him silent treatment for weeks or even months at a time.

Six months ago, on November 8th, 2023, I was in my room about to head off to sleep and decided to open up the window for some air, went on my phone for a bit and I suddenly smelt a strong gas coming in. I dismissed it as maybe some toast my brother was cooking downstairs, until it started to give me a headache and it became more clear it was coming from the window. I closed it after the 7-ish minutes of confusion and the smell becoming harder to ignore. At this point I was probably thinking something caught fire in the distance and went to bed. I woke up with a pounding headache, my head feeling full as hell and my world feeling very off, as if I'd smoked weed all night instead of sleeping. I knew it was from the strange gas that came in through the window last night but I pushed through the day thinking it'd go away. It did not even get better one bit. For the next few days I felt my brain rotting until I finally budged and went to the hospital on November 15th, 2023. I told them exactly what happened a week ago and asked to have a carbon monoxide blood test done incase that was what the gas was along with a CT scan done on my head. They ran the carbon monoxide test, which showed normal levels and then refused to run the CT on my brain based off that. I tried to explain that maybe the blood levels for the gas had went down over the days or there was another chemical in the gas as devastating as carbon monoxide, but I was ignored and discharged.
It's 6 months later and I'm 100% sure my brain was absolutely ravaged and damaged by that gas, and every day is now a struggle. not to mention it getting worse over the months from bumps and whatnot. I think the culprit of where the gas came from was my neighbor's chimney as its just about the level of my window and theres a lack of any other explanation.

My parents are saying I’m not autistic and I don’t know what the fuck is wrong with me.
I’m always anxious and I’m always fucking tired. I cry too much and I’m always an easy target to be bullied. People tell me I’m socially awkward. I don’t like being around people because they’re fucking rude, but I force myself because I need friends and I don’t understand jokes that much due to social isolation and anxiety. What the fuck do I do? I mean like I’m told I’m normal, but I’m always stuck in my fucking head. I just want to die. I’ve been having suicidal thoughts since the 5th grade. My dad put me in therapy when I was 12 but he took me out because he thought there was “nothing wrong with me” like he always says. There’s something wrong with me. I don’t know what it is. Maybe it’s the breakup between me and my very first childhood friend after 9 years, or maybe it’s the fact that I’ve been repeatedly manipulated into having sex with their brother ( I was only 7, then the second time I was 11). Or maybe it’s the fact that nobody’s ever going to see me as a cool person because when someone likes me and loves me it feels awkward. Especially when you know you don’t want to break their heart but you eventually do it anyways because they show signs and they tell you every single time you see them. It’s an overwhelming feeling when people like me because it makes me fucking anxious. I just want to be a cool person and get a job by the time I’m 15. I don’t want to be the one that makes people depressed or sad. But I can’t even control it. I have maladaptive daydreams every single day and I get them confused with reality, forming delusions that things happened even when they never did. I chew the skin off my nails and bite my cuticles and nails off every single day. It’s a horrible cycle. I miss when I was happy. I miss when my stepmom didn’t break up with my dad. I miss when they didn’t smoke weed and ignore me when I needed attention. I miss when I didn’t get yelled at for acting like a kid, but then I’d get yelled at for acting like an adult. At this rate, my life is pointless. No one will miss me.

I've been smoking weed, listening to Post Malone and this popped back into my mind
I was in Grade 1 when I saw this so like late 2009 or early 2010 and I remember telling my friends about this funny song.
The show was live action, the malone character was in a costume of some kind, I can't quite remember the details.
I think the main characters of the show asked Malone about her name and she says something like "oh, malone is just a nickname" then she starts singing "My name is, binigan-banigan cinigan-canigan dinigan-danigan finigan-fanigan... zinigan-zanigan hyphen Malone"
The song went on for way too long. I don't remember for sure if they used every single letter of the alphabet or not. I think the song was sang twice in the episode and that accounted for a sizable chunk of the runtime.
This likely would have either aired on CBC or PBS, could have been Treehouse but this looked like a low budget show, something the Canadian government would've funded to get more Canadian media out to the masses. If it's not obvious, I'm from Canada if that helps narrow it down. I also think I watched it after school so around 4pm CST since I always watched the Bugs Bunny and Tweety Show at 8am before school.
Feel free to ask me questions, I may have missed something. Thanks in advance if you have any leads at all.

just wanted to share my experience and get some advice or suggestions, open to any especially if someone has also experienced the same thing. Anxiety and stress is genetic throughout my family but just up til about recently I have experienced my first severe panic attack. About a week ago I was having fun feeling relaxed and decided to take a hit of a weed pen that my friend had gotten from a vape store. I usually never smoke weed nor like it because it has always given me an experience of panic and paranoia that i did not enjoy. I then decided to take a few hits and nothing happened and i did not feel it or any effects off of it so i took one more hit of it and after about 20-30 mins i had gotten up out of bed and this big sorta rush feeling came right over me and i instantly freaked out and could feel my heart beating out of my chest. i had to lay down with my face in a blanket just to feel somewhat okay. eventually it had whore off... next day i wake up completely fine then after a few hours i feel that terrible feeling again come up over me and it sorta felt like i was high again so i started freaking out and my heart began to race. I took some benadryl seemed to subside the horrible feelings. next day I woke up with symptoms of depersonalization/derealization. this is what i would say i usually experience while "high" but this was actually the worst I have ever felt. I had to run outside and sit down, i started bawling and my heart felt like it was beating uncontrollably. I looked around and it felt like I was all alone stuck in a dream like I wasn't even real. Since then it has been a couple of days with my symptoms decreasing slowly. every now and then i feel scared and have the fear of the feeling coming back and my heart racing. I do wake up sometimes in the middle of the night with my heart racing with difficulty of breathing. I have mostly been taking benadryl and vitamin D to help. I am trying to stay away from medications. but What seems to be really worrying me is my lack of concentration and control. I always feel drowsy and can't seem to concentrate and have a hard time with remembering things. I think the cause of the anxiety and fear was the cannabis pen. i am just looking for ways to relax my mind, and i am always stuck on the thought if im forever going to feel like this.

I'm 20M living in Pampanga, recently I had a dental filling for a broken tooth pero yung pain is andon padin. The dentist told me if the pain still lingered after a month that she'll have to extract the tooth. Should I go and get a second opinion from another dentist? I really don't want to have an incomplete set of teeth and I don't have money for dental implants. I also feel like masyado manipis yung dental fillings(?) since I was uncomfy dun sa unang lagay nya

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.

I am a 28 year old guy who is finally making the big move. I currently live in New England in a small town of about 60K. I have lived here since I was 5 years old. I am finally moving and leaving. All my friends and my parents live here. This is a major move for me across the country where I will not know anybody. I've always wanted to leave and have passed up opportunities before due to fear and uncertainty. Now I am moving to Austin, Texas. I will be alone and will not know anyone there. I am quite anxious and worried but deep down inside I know I need to do this to grow as a person. I've wanted to get away from the everyday mundane and familiar, to get away from old friends who seem to be going down their own live paths or not having any paths. I want to flourish and test myself as a man. I'm tired of drinking and smoking weed every weekend and not doing shit with my life. I work In a good industry and made decent money but haven't really dated and I've lived with my parents through college and after. I'm finally going on my own. My question to this group is, how do you meet new people? How do you get over anxiety? How do I put myself out there? I would love to hear guys who were older or even younger and have done this. I figured I should do it while I'm still in my 20s and at least live a little instead of just wasting my youth on mediocrity. Any advice or opinions would be helpful, thanks.

My story is like a lot of people's here, and why I choose this subreddit as my sort of 'primary' group for recovery. This is the longest I've ever been sober, and things are going really well, hopefully to continue that way.
I'm 44m, US / West Coast based, and for the longest time, I was sure that I didn't have to quit drinking to have the life that I want.
I started drinking at 16, both of my parents and a lot of people in my family are/were alcoholics, nobody around me was sober or talked about recovery and sobriety to me for a long time. I wasn't a blackout drinker, preferred weed, and mostly drank to 'party' and socialize, because I'm sort of in my head all the time by nature, and didn't fit in very well socially before drinking, kind of half-nerd and half-athlete but not really accepted by either group.
Drinking to fit in and/or have fun turned into drinking to manage my emotional state after about 5 years of teenage sort of binge drinking for fun. In college (I started late), I bartended and drank a lot, but did very well in school and was very Functional Alcoholic mode for most of my twenties. I lost my sister at 23 and never went to any therapy, I tried to drink a lot of that pain away and act normal.
I had a kid and got married around 30, and managed to quit smoking cigarettes (switch to occasional vape) which was a huge win, but my drinking escalated and my partner wouldn't have it. They gave me a couple ultimatums to get sober, and I failed, and they left.
I went downhill and bounced around for a few years, not homeless but unable to provide stable housing to have my son over regularly, so he would stay w my parents in lieu of me having him, and eventually, about 10 years ago, I started to try to get sober.
My original sobriety date was 4/24/14 and I lasted til December of that year when I got fired over some bullshit and decided that was a good reason to drink. I attended AA w a sponsor and also treatment (DUI was the prompt), I had never been to any kind of treatment or regular therapy, so I learned some things, but also brought a lot of bias, and mostly felt like people were really, really dumb in AA and just repeated nonsense.
I got sober again in 2017 and that lasted about 6 months until a breakup w someone I was dating.
Got sober again in 2018, lasted about 15 months, and I started playing with the idea of strong limits and 'really try to control it this time' as I had decided AA was just wrong and dumb as a whole.
That worked for 6-8 months until I didn't.
Another dui in December of 2020 and I was sure my life was over. I was in the hospital for suicidal ideation 2x leading up to my trial etc, I thought I was going to jail and losing everything.
I got sober 8-16-21, well, technically I stopped drinking 8-15-21, but wasn't sober til the next day.
I got sober through an intense spiritual awakening via hallucinogenic mushrooms. I don't recommend that people play around with hallucinogenics, they're very powerful drugs and can cause damage if not used with some health concerns or precautions in mind.
What I will say is that I finally understood what it meant to not have a craving or desire for alcohol any more, as something happened that just made me sort of 'know' that alcohol isn't going to do anything for me any more.
The past 2 years and nearly 9 months has not been without its problems, but the years I spent in AA and other therapy has given me some tools to work on the problems I do have.
I don't go to AA or therapy currently, and I think there is a lot that we can do on our own, once we learn to trust ourselves again.
Anyway just wanted to celebrate a milestone and let you all know if someone like me, who was very adverse to AA, spirituality, and was so sure I was going to die a drunk- well, I guess I'm ok now.
Hope all the best for you all as well.

Apparently, some peoples fatigue is caused by hidden tooth infections.

Hello everyone!
I'm 23 and I love weed. For the past couple of years (not exactly sure when I started), I've been smoking pretty regularly, usually enjoying a bowl or two every evening at home. Even when I go out, I often choose a joint over alcohol. So, you could say I have a pretty close relationship with weed, but I ain't no Snoop Dogg.
Until about 2 months ago, I'd been smoking almost daily for nearly a year, with only occasional insignificant breaks. Even when I wasn't home, I'd usually have a little pipe with me, just in case. But then, about 2 months ago, I had to take a break (lost my plug lol). After a few days of not smoking, I decided to extend the break until my birthday, which was about a month away.
During this month-long break, I noticed both good and bad things. On the positive side, I didn't really crave the weed; I could live without it just fine. No headaches, no sweats, slept like a baby — I just stopped one day and wasn't tempted to reach for the stash (although I kinda did miss being high). On the negative side, the bad thing was (and still is) these damn brain fogs. I don't know if I'm tripping, but it feels like my head was a lot clearer before I started smoking. I miss having a clear head. I've questioned myself a lot if this foggy brain is just because of the weed, or maybe it's because of my unhealthy sleep schedule, maybe something else or even if it's really there.
Whether it was just one day or a month without weed, I didn't notice much of a difference in the brain fog—it definitely didn't go away. I'm not even sure how to explain the feeling, but maybe some of my fellow smokers have experienced something similar. It'd be great to find someone who can relate, so I know I'm not alone in this.
Also, as a musician, I used to convince myself to smoke before writing new songs, thinking it would get my creative juices flowing. Lately, though, I would just end up sitting in my studio watching TikToks and wasting my time. I'm not even sure if different strains make much of a difference in this. About a year ago, smoking would put me in a perfect mood, helping me enjoy the everyday little things and making me more productive and creative. But now, I often find myself just doing nothing when high. I really miss the healthier relationship I had with weed and I'd love to find my way back to it.
I wouldn't say I want to quit weed completely, though part of me understands it might be for the better. I just enjoy it too much. There aren't many things in life that bring me great joy, but weed, being one of them, also helps me turn the boring things into something enjoyable and entertaining.
Has anyone else experienced anything similar? What would you suggest I do? Thank you guys.

( I POSTED EARLIER BUT NOT SURE I DID IT RIGHT, TRYING Again) SOOOO let me start off with, the reason I'm confused is bc it doesn't make any sense. SO A Month ago I had a Retreat RC with a tooth on top ( endo did the retreat) then I had a tooth pulled that already had a root canal/crown just last week ( last Wednesday), it was also a back top tooth#2, I have been doing salt Walter rinses amd finished my Antibiotics on Saturday. ( it was my 3rd round of Abx my 1st round Amixocillin 7 days was 2 weeks before my Retreat bc my dentist said it may have been a sinus infection bc xrays showed NO INFECTION, went to Endo he started the Retreat with a drain and put Medicine in and sealed it up put me on my (2nd Round Antibiotics ) Keflex for 7 days, then 3 weeks later went back to finish up Retreat root canal, everything went awesome, but he let me know that my back top tooth #2 which had crown/rootcanal was loose and had a crack he could see on the x ray but I had already had a bad taste coming from it which I had already told my dentist, and he said it looked fine and it was probably from the one that was being retreated which he had said that it didn't have any infection ( it was infected based on what endo said, but My Dentist informed me that Endos can see more bc of their equipment, although my Dentist done a xRay that went all away around my head and he had stated he could see everything) so I had called my Dentist to make an appointment to have crown took off to look at it, but then with rge Money adding up so quickly I said let's pull it bc Endo said by what he saw it probably needed pulled and he was correct, it was decayed pretty bad, it's been less than a week it was pulled, but before they pulled it 4 days before I was put on a (3rd round of Abx Amoxicillin 9 days, [it was for 10 days but dropped my bottle and 3 of my pills got soaked] ) went had #2 extracted so far so good, THEN THIS MORNING HAPPENS!!!! Getting to my question, so sorry.
So I brushed my teeth and I have been noticing that bottom tooth # 30 which has also had a root canal with a crown just a couple years ago by my Dentist, has been sensitive and been told that is normal and since I have had the top extraction just 5 days ago I have noticed it is sore maybe from the pressure of biting on guaze trying to get bleeding to stop from the extraction ( I was bleeding for 8 Hrs pretty heavy)I'm not sure, ANYWAY then I noticed a hard Bump that was the color of my skin it was just a Hard bump with NO white on it like a pimple, but it was hard so I called my Dentist they said to come in at 12PM only 3 hrs away, so I was in the car before going in and I pulled the side of my mouth to look at it and pulled tight and then I tasted a salty taste,, ( the pressure from pulling the skin to look at it must have popped it) didn't see anything but BUMP GOT SMALLER, as I'm walking into my Dentist, x ray was done with a visual exam , ( no tapping of teeth or cold/hot sensitivity test just visual and xRay) was glaced at for maybe 10 seconds when I showed him where a very tiny bump remained (bc my dumb butt had to look at it and mess with it before he looked at it, so it popped amd went down quickly)and he gets up takes gloves off and said no sign of infection , so I asked what it was and the taste I explained to him once again, he said IDK I see nothing, he then says maybe a Mucosa Gland but not sure bc nothing is there, I asked if he could see where it was leaking, he said no signs of infection, I remind him I was told the same when I did have infection when he sentt me to the endo. So I felt embarrassed and so stupid and felt so small bc I felt he just didn't believe me bc his tone, didn't even explain anything to me, so abt 6 hrs later it's coming back slowly, amd I called my detist office again to let them know the bump is returning amd sometimes I taste a salty taste,the office staff called me back amd said he said he could put me on anorher round of antibiotics( 4th round) just in case it is an infection or gum boil, or it may just be a mucosa cyst ( i thought cyst didnt drain?)I reminded them I had just finished a 9 day ABX ( my 3rd round) not even 48 hrs ago, then I told her I wanted to ask him questions bc I never had a " Abcess/ Gum Boil/Mucosa Cyst, but he literally was in that room with me MAYBE 1.5 MINUTES, she asked me what would I need to know, I then changed the subject amd asked what should I do going foward, Their Amswer since I'm" denying" My 4th round of Antibiotics within a month and a half was to see if it keeps coming back, maybe wait a month or so, touch base if any significant change and go from there. I asked if maybe I should go to an oral surgeon for them to glance at it. I was told no , I couldn't get a referral let's just wait and see, I explained to them if IF it's an infection I would take my 4th round of Antibiotics but he said it wasn't an infection this morning , amd I asked twice as he was walking out if he was sure it wasn't t an infection, he stated NO It isn't, then while walking down the hall I asked him one more time if he was sure it wasn't an infection he said NO, if it was am abcess it would show up on xray. He then stated real loud NOTHING NOTHING Is there and IF something Appears call us, I felt so small. But I did call, and I still have NO ANSWERS after paying $110.00 today for NOTHING!!!! I also have Crohns so being on alot of Antibiotics cam really mess me up, amd ir it's truly not an infection you don't need an Antibiotic, or so I thought. So I said and explained all that, to ask, is it possible to have a "Gum boil" without any infection? The hard Bump is not right under tooth #30, it's more over we're #29 ( but #29 is gone just empty space) so it's way down on gums Like where your inside cheeks go down and meet ur gums, I hope I'm explaining that right, anyway again it's not right up under tooth #30 I would say if #29 was there it would be under that tooth all the way down past gums where gums meets ur cheeks. ( when I'm home I may be able to get a picture to explain better) but again #30 has been sore and hurting off and on since extraction again I thought it was from me bitting down on that guaze all those hrs, I had alot of pressure on them, but before that I had explained to them that it was sensitive to sweets, amd some colds was told it was normal, so again here are my questions!!
What could it be if it isn't infection?
Should I get a 2nd opinion?
If it's an abcess , are abcess hard to leak out, does it take alot to pop am abcess? ( again there was no white pimple looking bump or any blood or pus that leaked out it was just clear n salty, amd the color of bump was the color of my gums)?
How fast do abcess fill back up if it's an infection amd would it hurt and could u see where it leaked or popped fluid from? Would it look like a sore after it pops? ( mine hasn't filled all the way up as it was this morning but i can tell it's coming back, it's slow.
Should I take another 4th round of Antibiotics without knowing it's a true infection?
I have spent $2,800 in the past Month and half, and I'm so scared I'm gonna have to lose another tooth bc I can't afford another Retreat, and I'm scared my dentist doesn't really care or maybe just doesn't know, but being told to wait it out, if it's am abcess wouldn't that be dangerous? I hope I explained amd to anyone that cares to explain anything to me abt what you think my Dentist is thinking please explain to me bc I don't even know. All I l ow to do, is wait and see what happens. And was told to try to wait atleast a month. THANKS and GOD BLESS!!!!

Long story short: Lease allows smoking on back patio, front porch, and yard area. Basically your outdoor private area as a tenant. This includes tobacco and marijuana. Neighbors started complaining about weed smoke from our patio (10+ft away) entering their unit. We received a couple violations between January and April, disputed them every time, informed of mitigation efforts, and sent a letter disputing them and asserting our rights after speaking with attorney. Landlord wanted mediation (between tenants, which they legally can't invoke) which we rejected. End of story until now: Termination Notice for "excessive marijuana smoke". Wtf do we do? We can't let neighbors control our smoking schedule! We moved here because smoking is allowed, it's literally a hundred times easier to find non smoking housing. We're trying to save for a house but now who knows, we might have to empty our savings fighting this and then moving if we lose. And please don't say "just get a vape or switch to edibles." That is not the point. Our lease specifically states where we can smoke, we have never violated that, and we have gone above and beyond what it requires of us.

Throwaway account because I’m pretty sure my exes friend stalks my socials
TLDR; My ex dumped me, we went no contact and I haven’t contacted them for months until I sent one letter expressing my feelings that was absolutely not threatening and not ill-willed whatsoever and had no expectations from it, and they decided to file a DV restraining order despite there being no DV at any point — not even stalking, because seeing them sends me into panic attacks. Now I’m confused and don’t know what to do or what to expect.
So basically, my ex (we’ll call them B) dumped me back in January and kicked me out. My ex from before them (we’ll call them P) reached out to them after the breakup. Now, a little context: P and I were together for four years. It was a terrible relationship and should have ended far earlier than it did. We were both very manipulative, toxic, and abusive. While the abuse was almost completely emotional, there were a couple instances that it wasn’t. I, at one point, grabbed their wrist to make them stop yelling at me and to actually look at me because they were berating me during an argument. Doesn’t excuse my action, of course. They hit me multiple times throughout our relationship, and would apologize later over message, claiming that they hit me because whatever I’d been saying or whatever we’d been arguing about reminded them of some trauma from their childhood. There was also a substantial age difference that I am in no way justifying. P was 17, I was 23, when we started dating. I was in a very bad point of life and spent my days drunk and on a med that made me zombie like, so these days are not easy to recall in the first place. I genuinely do not believe there was ever a point where one of us asked the other out, I think P just assumed and I felt too bad to break it off. I do not forgive myself for this either way. During our relationship, P began to coerce me into sex because I refused to have sex with them for a multitude of reasons. They coerced me into a threesome, and when I told them day of that I was not comfortable with it and did not want to, P told me to drink more alcohol or smoke more weed and I’d “be fine”. I was r*ped that night. After we broke up, we remained roommates (in separate rooms) because neither of us had money to move out and we had a third roommate. We stayed friends because we’re idiots. I started dating B and P hated B profusely. At one point early into B’s and my relationship, P and I went out to the stores and I bought some clothes and left the bag in the living room couch and told P I needed to recharge before I hung out more. They did not take this lightly because they didn’t ever like when people didn’t want to do the same thing as them. They texted me alluding to destroying my clothes, and lo and behold, my clothes were no longer in the living room. After begging them to give me my clothes back, they finally opened their door and pushed the clothes into me hard enough that I hit the wall. So I hit their shoulder. I did not punch them or slap them or anything like that. I hit them in the shoulder with the same pressure that they pushed me. They had in fact shredded my clothes. My biggest mistake was never taking pictures when they did things like this. I eventually moved in with B and P moved out of state. B and I did have financial issues, mostly due to my own financial immaturity as I have never been good with money, but B never really communicated the issues with me so I didn’t even realize most of the time. I would pay large chunks of bills when I could, such as a full month’s rent, their $3000 credit card bill, our $1000 PGE bill, etc. P and I seemed to have a good friendship, but when B broke up with me and P found out, they reached out to B and essentially decided to tell them all kinds of things that were wrong about our relationship, but specifically only from their side. Screenshots lacked what they were saying, stories lacked what they were doing. So I absolutely sounded like a monster. B kicked me out even sooner than planned, and left me homeless for a week and a half while I searched for a place to live. After a month, B went completely no contact and blocked me almost everywhere. I should note that I have BPD, it is a recent diagnosis. They also do, but have been aware and in treatment for many years. I responded negatively to this and began calling and leaving voicemails on their blocked VM inbox. I was not calling from a private number, I called from my own because I knew they wouldn’t be dealing with a bunch of missed calls. I went overboard and left a lot of depressing voicemails. Never, ever threatening. Just sad, often crying, and asking why they hate me or why they would listen to someone who they experienced first hand would harass me for hours on end for not responding to their texts. I realized I was being psycho and stopped, apologized and told them I had realized I had made them my favorite person (in the BPD way), and that wasn’t fair to them. I have not contacted them since then, except for about three weeks ago when I sent a letter. The letter was simply telling them that I am sorry, I love them and miss them, and I am working really hard on myself. I told them that I truly do believe we’ll come back together someday, but that we both obviously have to live our own stories before that’s possible. There was not a single ounce of threat or ill-will in this letter. Literally not even the smallest bit, and I’m happy to share that letter with anyone to prove such. I also very clearly stated that I do not expect a response from them, but if they would like an apology someday, I’m here and ready.
Now that you have quite the context to the background of this situation, here’s the issue at hand: After I sent this letter, they decided to file for a restraining order. But not just any. They filed for a DV one, which everyone finds wild because there was never a single bit of DV between the two of us. B and I were honestly wonderful together, loved each other so much (or so I thought), and never laid a hand on one another. Even our arguments weren’t bad. I’d have splits from being triggered and I could say mean things, but it was never physical and always discussed afterwards, either that day or the next. Their friend has been watching all of my social media stories despite neither of us following each other, which has felt weird until I realized why.
I haven’t been served yet because they come to my place when I’m at school so I can’t be there. I’ll likely just go into the station to be served at this point.
But my questions are the following: - What does RO court even look like? I’ve never had to deal with this. Is it a big thing? Or is it two people at a table across from a judge? Like I genuinely don’t understand what it would look like. - How likely is it that this would even be approved? I truly don’t believe the letter could be used as evidence into something like this because it was not negative or threatening. The voicemails were crazy but never threatening and ended quickly months ago. They could absolutely use the stuff from P, but that relationship has been over for 2.5 years, and the clothes incident happened just about 2 years ago. I have proof of what the letter said, I have proof of P admitting to hitting me and to the coercion and r*pe. I have been in therapy for two years and with the same psych for about the same amount of time, so I have character witnesses. I am not a stalker, I’m actually genuinely terrified of seeing them around town because I know it will break my heart all over again. I’ve had to see them drive by twice, once in their work vehicle and the next in the car I used to drive that is in their name, and both times I ended up in a full blown panic attack. So I am obviously not seeking them out or anything of the sort. They also know what this would do to me. They know that it will not only destroy me mentally, but that it could hurt me career wise due to the field I am going to school for. So how likely is it for this to be granted?
I am honestly shocked and hurt by all of this from them, because this is not the person I fell in love with. They have gone completely cold-hearted and have had no issue hurting me over and over again since the breakup.

Kind of a weird question, but has anyone else who has had LC recovered but had only one thing lingering? One thing I used to really love before infection in Jan 2020 is smoking weed (I know bear with me) it was the only thing that made my black hole of an existence any brighter. But after my first bout of infection I found smoking the green made me anxious, my heart would pound out of my chest, I couldn't breathe and I got extremely weak. Now to this day I get like that, but I can still smoke CBD just not anything containing THC, could have infection somehow changed my DNA and made me allergic to THC?