First hand job mom

I am a premier BSchool grad who has just joined his first corporate job as an Operations Manager for a Diagnostics Company.
The pay is shit, the working hours are insane and I need to be at work Mon - Sat.
Everything is not that bad as I do have a lot of free time at my hand as the company has never hired IIM grads before, is doing quite well and don't really need my assistance with anything immediately.
I want to learn some skill, or get some certification that will help me land a better job. I want to switch domains and go to FMCG or IT. Apologies if I don't seem to have a plan, I really don't lol.
I am comfortable with computers and applications although not coding. I do well with excel, Tableau, Power BI etc.

My GF (34) and I (33) have been together for 4 years. We have a son together. I have to highlight how loyal she has always been. She is a big introvert and I have NEVER been having any doubts about, nor have I ever been jealous... until now!About 2 years ago my GF got a new job in a company that has a lot of branches around in other countries. Due to this, she is travelling from time to time (lets say 3 times a year), and I have never had any reasons to be paranoid of insecure about it because of the way she is, she is not keen on the travelling because of the type of a person she is, she is not good at smalltalks or bonding with colleagues or people in general.
About 5 months ago she came to me telling me that her boss wanted her to go to (lets say) Paris for 3 days for a project that she had been working on since starting that new job. I knew she was working with a male co-worker on the project because that has never been a secret, she has always told me he was a very nice guy, very helpful and good at the job, but always assured that he was married with kids, and very not charming or her type at all. However, about 2 weeks before the trip I started noticing that her private phone became a lot more secret, but I wasnt sure if this was just myself telline me this, or if it was actually true because I would never expect something like this from her at all. She has very little friends, and she is barely ever on the phone (unless its family) and certainly not hiding it from me. I let it go until about 3-4 days before the trip. I was lying in bed reading when she got back home late (fitness class), she took her phone and sat on the couch in the living room and suddenly I could hear that she was texting with someone, like a lot (I know because she is one of those people who has the sound on when typing) for a long time (about an hour - 1,5) before I couldnt bare it anymore so I went out and confronted her asking who it was.
She almost jumped out of the couch almost as if I had just busted her in the middle of a murder, confessing that it was him, but that he was just a friend, saying he was not her type, he was married etc etc etc. basically defending herself. I was in shock and kinda blacked out so I dont remember much of that talk / discussion, but shortly after she "had" to urgently go for a shower, funny as she had been home texting with him for more than an hour, but suddenly shower couldnt wait. I was paranoid, insecure and afraid of what was actually going on. I couldnt believe it. next morning during work she wrote to me not to be worried and that it was just nice to have a "friend". I asked her if he was flirting with her, and she told me she did not feel like he was. I did not talk to her for 2 days after that before she came to me one evening saying that she missed me and that she was ready to have a second child with me (Something I have wanted for a very long time so that was a big thing for me) and suddenly everything had changed.
Monday morning she left for Paris and I didnt hear from her ALL day despite the fact that she knew exactly how worried I was. That evening around 8h00!!! pm ish she sent me a text saying she would call in 20 min. More of an "in 20 min, I have a bit of time so be ready!" in a very stressful way. We had a video call for about 20 min and I could sense immediately that she was tipsy if not drunk! and she told me they had just gotten back from work, and that they (according to her, another female colleague, the guy and herself). however, we spoke for about 20 min, she told me she missed me and loved me and it made me feel very good. I slept okay that night.
Next day (last full day in Paris) I didnt hear from her at all again. In fact I texted her during the afternoon that I felt a bit ignored, but again she told me they were busy and that I had nothing to worry about. That evening it was same story. around 8 pm she calls me, I didnt pick up because I was driving, and she asked me when I would be available for a call, again in a very stressful way, so I texted her asking why it was so urgent to which she answered and I quote "We worked so much all day, and I just want to see you because Im so tired I might fall asleep any minute".. AT 8 PM!!! on a business trip... I knew that was bullshit, but I chose to believe it. We had the call as I got home, and after 20 min she says the same, that she had to go to bed because she was so tired, lying on the bed in clothes.!
Next day she had to travel all day back home, this was on valentines day (very ironically), and again I barely heard from her all day. We had agreed long in advance that she would pick up our son and take him home before going to a fitness class (very expensive one that she had paid for in advance). Before arriving home I went for roses since it was valentines day. I got home just in time to see her before her class. She told me she had missed me and that she would never go back to that place, and that she would most probably dump that entire project. She went to her class, but left both her private and her work phone at home. I have never done anything like this before in my life because I had never had reason to do so. But my gut and my intuition told me that something was wrong. I opened the screen on her private phone and could see that she ofcourse had messages from him. I didnt manage to guess her pin code and instead I took her work phone, guessed the code first time and saw the very first message in their chat on Zoom. It was from the night she had told me about the second baby (only 2 nights before the trip) and I quote "Peace has been reinstated at home by a miracle, I will see you Monday"......... My heart pumped harder than ever before and ofcourse it caught my curiosity and I HAD to see more. For weeks, maybe months they had texted nonstop, all day during work via Zoom and evenings and weekends via whatsapp. Now, again my GF is not flirtatious at all so to her defence I would say most of her messages was simple answers which can be interpreted in both ways whereas he was very offensive, at one point very shortly before the trip she even asks him if he is flirting with her to what he is answering "I will let you decide that" and to which she replied "it doesnt bother me at all". I also found out that the night we had a video call when she told me she was too tired, while I was on her screen she had sent him a text sayin "ready to go"
She came home, I confronted her, she begged me to give her another chance assuring me nothing happened physically at all, and that they just had drinks. Next morning we both took off from work. I was exhausted and still in shock. That morning she called in sick, told him that she needed to talk to him in person and they had a call. She told him to stop texting her, and that what they have been doing was wrong and crazy and he agreed, but it didnt stick for long. Only a few days later he sent her messages saying that he missed talking to her and that it was all a misunderstanding, that nothing happened that can be considered cheating etc etc. I know that because she showed it all to me. She didnt reply to his messages.
Its been 4 months now, and I have had some really difficult days with bad thoughts and worries because they still work together which is really hard on me. We still talk about it from time to time when I need to share my worries. She keeps assuring me that they are strictly professional, and that they do not talk about anything but work. They have stopped communicated on whatsapp during evenings or weekends, that I know for sure, but about 1 months ago I felt so insecure that it got me to take her work phone again, and as I wanted to snoop I found that she had changed her pincode again which ofcourse sends me a signal that something is going on (at least in my head). What I CAN see are only the zoom messages on the start screen that he is sending to her (the notifications she is not removing from the start screen), but I cant read the messages she is sending back to him. I check the phone almost every evening since then, and funny enough she ALWAYS without exception has messages from him and it is very rarely something about work, it is not flirtatious either, but it is personal stuff that is not related to work which she promised me they wouldnt. For example her work requires her to work one weekend every 3 months and even saturday 10 pm he asks her if she needs any help and I know that he only does so to start a conversation with her, I mean 10 pm at night on a saturday you sit with your work phone in hand asking your colleagues if they need help?
I almost feel stupid for asking because, especially now that I have been writing it all down and read it through, it seems very obvious to me that I cant trust her, but I would like to hear your take on this. Should I be worried still? Can I trust her, should I leave her?
Should I confront her about the snooping ?

I'll try to keep the information shared on this post to a minimum.
I'm homeless, and I have to busk with my harmonica so I can make some money for food.
I play the diatonic harmonica without any sort of amplification or cardboard signs. Just me, the instrument and a hat.
Normally I don't make that much money when playing on the streets (most of the times it's not even enough for cookies and a cup of coffee). However, I have found an underground tunnel where the harmonica sound resonates beautifully. That tunnel also happens to be packed with money rich tourists. When I get the opportunity to play down there, I make bank. Really good money.
At some point, an guy that plays the accordion with a tiny dog shows up saying he's been there for years and that it's his spot to play in. I first met him like 4 or 5 months ago.
Being the kind and respectful person that I am, I obliged and left so he could play. That was when I first met him.
Now, in the middle of May, whenever I find the tunnel empty and start playing, he later shows up and starts playing over me. There's nothing I can do. It's even come to the point of him physically threatening me.
Now here's the deal: given the fact that this individual is of a certain minority, anything I do would most likely end up in me being accused of some sort of hate crime. I don't want to resort to violence, really don't. I've tried talking to him on several occasions, but it results in nothing.
Even though I could call the cops on him, seing as him using his dog to earn money would technically be considered animal abuse where I live, the fact that he's a drug user and uses in front of his underaged kid, who he sometimes brings along with him, and even the fact that he receives a type of financial support from my country's social services, when earning more than most people earn by working a full time job, I'm afraid of calling the cops.
The police hate the homeless way more than they hate criminals and douchebags - speaking from personal experience - so I need creative ideas in dealing with this situation.
What would you do if you were in this scenario?
P.S. This is not in the USA, it's in a really small european country.

I been out work now for past 10 months, to make long story short I had string of bad toxic jobs, the first I left uni I was let go as cost saving measure only be invited back about three weeks later because turns out admin is important. I ended up doing load of low level jobs lacking confidence and leaving jobs once I got bored or tied of the BS. I started making progress in 2021 after leaving a mortgage company where it had been particularly bad. By comparison the next job was good however it was family company and when director was diagnosed cancer, things started the fall apart with one member of team letting the situation allow him to run amok, and his actions led to me having talk down someone from suicide attempt over the phone. After that having been approached by previous director about company merger with his brother I took him up on the offer.
Unfortunately last year was not good me I suffered bereavement early in year followed by divorce, unable to cope with relationship I found myself in I thought If I committed myself company and ignoring all the red flags, there was lot micromanaging, 100 + work hours, high turnover, undertaking unpaid training before started, and having take funeral as holiday. but I through I could make it work. My health detoriated and by June I was cutting down from 100 hour to 60 ( was only compensated the base 40 hours) and following a breakdown in office, and siding with staff, who were not being paid correctly and had yet receive payslips for past four months. A few weeks I was pulled in meeting and told to take paycut and demotion which brought me minimum wage(not factoring all unpaid work doing) siting me slamming a door when coming back in office one day. I had no other complaints and this came after another meeting where raised concerns of employee moral, high turnover and themselves having admitted toxic work environment had done nothing to resolve issue.
During the meeting I was gaslight and pushed to my breaking point ended up in hospital and was fired while still in hospital. I tried get back in work since then but apart from some temp work and freelance project and event work. Nothing. I am really struggling and any advice would be appreciated.

Ornamental pears. On a dripper system 4L/hr but unsure how long or often. Client got someone else in to do the job and just put the stones on top, against our advice without skimming some soil off top to feeder roots but I don’t think client understands what feeder roots are in the shallow part of then soil, now stone and sandy gravel is up to the trunk above ground level around 5cm. Possible chances of collar rot? Area is very shaded little evaporation occurring. Adelaide Australia. Coming in to wet season this year later than usual still 6 weeks away for future forecasts. Side story of why suddenly having hard clients is the wife parents are landscape designers and we have been told ‘we have it in hand.’ We have put in writing that the trees are now susceptible to rot and potentially death. Yes/No? Other side story is I never was a greeny but since studying horticulture I’m getting a little frustrated and idiot clients

As the title says, it feels like it is a shitty rat race. I'm a general male from a upper middle class family so first of all I won't get any reservations in any universities then while getting placements, women would be given more preference even with zero job experience or sometimes the institute won't even allow males to sit for that placement.
It's not a rage bait, it's the truth. Recently I have been seeing these kinds of posts and articles a lot in X and Reddit, so I asked one of my friend's sis who works in IT and she said that all these are true.
So is B.Tech or engineering in general worth the effort anymore? For general category male

And the problem is, they are not even bad people. It is only because of events in my life that I'm forcing myself to be distant from them. I completed my masters in 2021, then decided to prepare for UPSC. Failed in my first attempt. In the entire journey, my family got too involved in my prep, constantly asking me how my studies are going, all this was very new to me cause throughout school and college, I have taken all academic decisions on my own and they never seemed to mind that. This behaviour made me very irritable with them. I worked for 6 months last year thinking that I'll prepare alongside job, but work was too hectic. I quit that job, took a 3 month break but staying at home has been difficult. Now I'm looking for another job. And during all this, I have completely detached myself from taking any responsibilities in the house. I was never like this, i used to take care of everyone and took part in important discussions, went for family events. But now, I just feel like being in my room without talking to anyone. My grandfather has recently become very sick, but I'm feeling no care or concern for him. I have actively avoided every point where I was expected to take care of him or anything else in the house. I am not talking to my mom or dad about anything, don't feel like taking their advise or doing any discussion on anything. I actually miss having good conversations with them, but still don't feel any urge to talk. It's like, slowly, my emotions for my family members are diminishing and I won't feel anything for them very soon.

I work as a helpdesk agent for a government it agency. I found this job as a first year student and was proud of it until people who are friends with our manager started getting promoted to 2nd level agents, some of them even started working later than me. I am studying informatics, most of them aren't.
Job of a 2nd level agent is to lead 1st level agents, give them problems and answer thier questions.
I still haven't been promoted to 2nd level agent after working for more than a year.
First I blamed me because I am type of person that wants to be 100% sure before giving the answer to constumer so I used to ask questions to make sure, 2nds apparently hate being asked questions to the point there is new rule you need to mail them your question and wait for them to answer (while they are pretty much sitting next to you), at this point I barely talk to my colleagues.
I am always praised by newer colleagues for helping them when 2nds are not present (or when they are but they don't bother to answer mails), I have the highest efficiency and stopped questioning all together.
Now I am feeling stuck as I feel you need to be social to get promoted further and feel like I wasted almost 2 years.
Sorry, I just needed to vent

Hi everyone, I hope you can help me
I am 30 years female, I studied and get graduated as an Lawyer in 2015. Since I have been working on my career, specializing myself into corporative Right, including elaboration and analysis of contracts, creation and analysis of companies from the beginning, etc. Outside of my career I have been always interesting and learning about first and second world wars and I have a lot of knowledge about history, also Spanish is my mother language, in addition I am very good with the computer typing, reading, checking documents. And when I was in the University I used to give unofficial tuitions. So we could say that those are my principal skills
Right now in my country the situation is very complicated because we are under a dictatorship system so being a lawyer is everyday more complicated and we have less jobs because everyone is leaving the country, and also the government is creating and creating new laws everyday to control every single institution and movement that the population can do so it's more complicated get the job done the people cannot pay or is not available to pay the amount of money that the institution ask and the money that the services require, but live in the country is not an option for me.
I would be grateful if you can help me with some places in the network or ideas of any kind of remote jobs that I could applied and be hired to get more work, cuz actually I am leaving only with my youngest brother and he cannot work yet, it's only the two of us and I cannot cover all the expenses of maintaining the bills of the house and our pets, buy food by the supplements that are required for maintaining the house and pay for the expenses of my brother high School, 😔 I am very desperate to find out options for get news incomes, that's why I am asking you for help to get a trustful page or company that pay for work do it remotely.
Thanks for the support in advance and please let me know if you could help me.

And the problem is, they are not even bad people. It is only because of events in my life that I'm forcing myself to be distant from them. I completed my masters in 2021, then decided to prepare for UPSC. Failed in my first attempt. In the entire journey, my family got too involved in my prep, constantly asking me how my studies are going, all this was very new to me cause throughout school and college, I have taken all academic decisions on my own and they never seemed to mind that. This behaviour made me very irritable with them. I worked for 6 months last year thinking that I'll prepare alongside job, but work was too hectic. I quit that job, took a 3 month break but staying at home has been difficult. Now I'm looking for another job. And during all this, I have completely detached myself from taking any responsibilities in the house. I was never like this, i used to take care of everyone and took part in important discussions, went for family events. But now, I just feel like being in my room without talking to anyone. My grandfather has recently become very sick, but I'm feeling no care or concern for him. I have actively avoided every point where I was expected to take care of him or anything else in the house. I am not talking to my mom or dad about anything, don't feel like taking their advise or doing any discussion on anything. I actually miss having good conversations with them, but still don't feel any urge to talk. It's like, slowly, my emotions for my family members are diminishing and I won't feel anything for them very soon.

Thank you for this universe!
And many thanks to for being a full co-writer on this project!
Kaeden and Vichee belongs to and I thank them so much for working with us! It was an honor!
Sven belongs to Bjorn the Copper Paladin from Discord. I hope to do more with them in the future, and have tons of fun!
And don’t you worry about that final in the title! We have some news at the end!
[First]- [Prev]- {Next Story!!}

{Is the reason that everything happened to Tarlim in the first place?}

{Only up to the ramps, mostly. Trying to impress upon people the importance of accessibility for those with extenuating circumstances. At least according to the records I have access to.}

{The average person knows as much about his friends as they do about Mike Collins.}
<...Who?>
{Exactly. 20th century human spaceman, was there for their first lunar landing. Didn’t get to put boots on the ground, and nobody remembers his name now.}

{Hell, I didn’t even know about him until I put in a search query of niche historical figures just to give you an example. Yeesh…}

(Program Selected.)
(Resume Selected Media? [Y])
(Playing…)
Archived Closed Circuit Security Video - Establishment: Exterminator’s Office - Dawn Creek Division - Subbasement - Date Recorded (ST): OCT 31, 2136 - Timeframe (ST): 11:42 - 11:45
The parking bay is silent. Vans are parked neatly in their spots which frame the hallway to the armory and fuel storage for the camera. A ding is heard and something moves in the hallway. Five fully suited Venlil and a Zurulian step out of an elevator and run towards a van. The sound of a door slamming open comes from the hall roughly 6 seconds later. A stream of Exterminators pour out into the hall from the stairwell.
Their voices are indecipherable as they speak over each other. A Sulian runs into the armory and reappears with a huge flamer tank on their back. Another Zurulian can be seen with an extinguisher tank, but a Venlil bleats at them and tosses it aside. They drag the quadrupedal alien quickly into the parking garage before physically throwing them into the back of a van.
From the back of the hallway, a fluid can be seen spreading across the ground. A trio of Venlil back out of a room while holding their flamers up. They are unlit, instead spewing fuel out of their nozzles. The trio twirl around in an overly animated manner as they walk down the hall to the parking garage. A van pulls out of its spot with windows down so the passengers could let out a cheer.
A black-suited Venlil runs up to the spraying trio while waving their arms to get them out into the garage. The microphone just barely manages to catch him saying, “We need to save some for the predators!” One of the other Venlil replies, “Yes sir, Mafchi!” A short flurry of curses is heard as the gathered exterminators pile into the three other visible vans. Two of the vans speed out of the garage, forcing some other Venlil exterminators to dive out of the way in the process.
The black-suited Mafchi picks up a fuel canister that had been dropped and twists off its cap. He slings it under his shoulder and pours a line of fuel. He marches straight to the final van and hops up into the open rear. The van backs itself up to turn out of the garage. The fuel canister clatters to the ground as it pulls away. Before it clears the view of the camera, the Black-suited Venlil is seen standing in its open back. He is holding what appears to be a flare gun.
The flare sails through the air shortly after the van leaves the frame and impacts the ground. It bounces and rolls until it touches the fuel and ignites it in an instant. A small wall of fire proceeds down the provided trail into the hallway, igniting more fuel as time passes. The hallway is quickly engulfed in vividly red fire. Thick black smoke begins to pour out into the garage as the fire inches closer to the primary fuel tank.
Movement can be seen in the hallway between the flickering flames. The silver form of a Venlil Exterminator is seen rushing out of the stairwell and fighting to head towards the fuel storage room. Before they reach, a white flash fills the screen. The feed goes dead, the error code consistent with electrical interruption.
(Specified Media Concluded.)

{Who was what? Mafchi?}

{Hmmm, there aren’t any tags embedded for them. The suits do a rather good job at making the officers anonymous. Let me see…oh.}

{The, uh… the employment records for that Office were…terminated.}

{It looks like…yes, here. Record wipe in 2497. Media with less than 1 bistandannual visit were removed to save space on the university’s central server. It’s…they’re gone, gone gone.}

{Maybe, but that’ll do us no good if we don’t know their name. And because of the chaos of that incident, nobody has been able to accurately reconstruct where every individual was in that office. We’d have to already know who they were to find them.}
<...I guess that’s another person I’ll have to remember then, huh?>
{...Guess so. Speaking of remembering, perhaps you should check out Tarlim’s view again? Seeing how we were just talking about him.}
<...Sure. At least people remember his name, right?>
(Command: [exitprogram])
(Are you sure? [Y])
…
{-Program Selected-}
{-Restart From Last Playback Point? Y/(N)-}
{-[USERID-11229KMD]: procViewHist -}
{-Retrieving Transcription Viewing History…-}
{-List Retrieved - Select Desired Subject: (Tarlim)-}
{-Restart From Last Playback Point? (Y)/N-}
{-Playing…-}
Memory Transcription Subject: Tarlim, the Venbig. Date [Standardized Human Time] October 31st, 2136
No matter how much Sven and Anso griped about it, having them leave and return with the trailer was a great idea. The humans who had gone with them the first time were, to my dismay, excited to try and ride in the back. I had at least been able to impress on those four that I couldn’t let anyone else ride like that, and that they were to help with rigging a trailer with some seats.
I had to admit; they did a good job!
Several couches sat bolted to the floor of the covered trailer and even had some ropes that could be hooked across the armrests as impromptu belts. It wasn’t perfect by any means, but it would work as well as any bus or short train ride! Certainly superior to jumping in the bed of a truck.
I strode out into the parking road and swayed my ears to greet Anso. Sven had stayed behind here to meet with the humans and entertain the kids, a job which he was slightly less unenthusiastic about compared to last time. “Greetings, Anso! Have you made the necessary preparations for the humans to leave with you?”
The Yotul hopped out of the truck bed and bounced to me. “We have! I have to say those humans were great workers to have helped get this whipped up so quickly! I hope Sven has been behaving himself?”
I let my tail wag behind me remembering my last glimpse of him. He should really secure his sheath straps! “He has! Been entertaining the refugees while I made sure they all had their belongings ready to go. Come on inside, let’s go gather them.”
I guided him with a wave of my arm as we turned back to the door. To be truthful, I hadn’t expected Sven to win the humans over as quickly as he did. Needless to say, his primitive attire seemed to spark joy within them, a joy sorely needed amidst the sadness of recency.
As we entered the building I noticed something, or rather, the lack of something. When I had exited only a few [minutes] prior, the building had been full of life and noise. Now, it was almost dead quiet, save for the sounds of a holovision coming from the lobby. Rather heated sounds, at that.
“I didn’t think it was already main rest claw,” Anso mused as he, too, recognized the aggravated voices coming from the lobby. “And what are they watching in there? Sounds…angry.”
“Yeah…” I trailed off as I followed the noises. As I approached the lobby, the sound of what I assumed was a Gojid yelling. “You know nothing about my family. TALK, JUST FUCKING TALK, NOW!” My ears pinned back at the foul language at play, hoping that Sven and the children were somewhere else.
As I entered the room, I saw that I was only half right. The children were thankfully nowhere to be found, but Sven was obviously present, as was most of the facility staff. I was about to ask what was going on before another voice drew my attention to the holovision, the same as everyone else. The voice of none other than Chief Nikonus.
“There were three of us who laid out the groundwork for the Federation. When Kolshian explorers came in contact with the Farsul, more than a thousand years ago, the galaxy was young. We were the first in this sector to escape our gravity well. You know about the founding of this institution, but I reiterate it just in case.”
“The Krakotl were the third,” another voice piped up from behind the camera. I thought it might’ve been another Gojid, but the voice was far too breathy. Harchen, maybe? I wasn’t given a chance to consider it further as Nikonus continued. “Yes, they were a problem from the start; aggressive, disagreeable. We tried to identify the problem, and why they were so ill-equipped for spacefaring.”
“We learned they were scavengers, who would occasionally go for fish as well.”
His next line was rendered inaudible by the shocked gasps of both the refugees and residents in the room. I was no different, drawing in a sharp breath at the abrupt admission. I remembered that Arvi had said some aliens were revealed to have eaten meat in the past, but was this the way it was decided to be revealed? With such abject callousness?
Nikonus continued to speak, looking not just proud, but smug with his words. He went on about how the Federation had saved these aliens with their manipulations, but the entirety of his body language seemed to indicate he reveled in how devastating this information would be to the people he was speaking to. How they manipulated an entire culture, a RELIGION!
What if they did the same to ours?
That horrifying thought struck through my mind like a derailing train. I had relied upon the Tenets in some of my darkest moments. Found comfort in them when there was none elsewhere to be found. To have such a comfort revealed as a lie in its entirety, used only for some other group to control you…
The voice of Nikonus hit my ears again. “Oh Sovlin, I already told you. For the small minority of species who don’t find herbivory alone, we teach them the right way. Doesn’t the religion against predators sound familiar?”
The Kolshian was insufferably proud of those words. There was no doubt in my mind now; this was mocking. Mocking a Gojid for following The Protector. For being a predator. For being different, but expecting to still be treated as a person. The Gojid were predators, they couldn’t help it, and they were already being mocked for it.
What might happen to all the other species?
I shifted my focus away from the screen to the crowd, searching for one in particular. Vichee, a Krakotl already so different from everyone else, and now my concerns for them were multiplied with every word that fell from Nikonus’ mouth. Were they okay? They had come in here to see Sven, I had seen them. Where are-
I spotted Kaeden in the corner of the room. Next to him, slumped against the wall, was Vichee. The dual colored Krakotl’s eyes were glazed over as they stared at nothing. I strode over quickly, my instincts wanting to comfort them. Kaeden was simply standing there, it was confusing that he didn’t seem to be comforting Vichee at all. As I got closer, their head tilted up to me, regarding me with an unfocused eye.
“He was right.” They said quietly. My implant almost didn’t pick it up over the sounds of the lobby. “Kaeden had asked me soon after our first meeting if Krakotl had once been meat eaters. Said it was the shape of our beaks. ‘More suited to capturing small wriggling prey than filtering algae’. He told me. I nearly flew away right then… If I had, I would have been alone with this news.”I listened, kneeling down to be closer to their level. “You’re not alone, your herd is here. Right Kaeden?”
He looked over at me and nodded. “Vichee was there with me when Earth was attacked. I’m here for them now. Kaabra and Venik are… together, elsewhere at the moment. But they will be here too.”
I flicked my ears in understanding. “Then I hope they may help in hugging Vichee until their tears are dry.” I turned an eye to Vichee. “Please, I just want you to know that you are still you. What your body does has no effect on your personhood.”
Vichee still sat, their mind still likely whirling with the new information. They lifted their differently colored wings. “I’m well aware. This lesson I already learned. But thank you, I understand what you mean.” Kaeden nodded slowly and Vichee returned to their thoughts.
“There’s going to be trouble soon, Tarlim,” Kaeden stated gravely. “News like this? Nothing good will come of it. I can already tell this won’t go over well. Keep your eyes open.”
As if in response to his words, the sound of clanking metal hits my ears. They shoot up, pivoting to locate its source. There, dashing towards the door, was the armored figure of Sven. I didn’t know him enough to know how this broadcast would affect him, but running was never the best sign. I flicked my ears goodbye to my friends and rose, following after the metal man. In my periphery, I saw the television screen had shifted to show Rolem moving onto the stage. I would have to miss whatever it was he had to say, so ducked through the doors and continued to follow the sound of metal.
As I exited, I saw that I wasn’t the only one to see Sven’s actions. Anso was bounding behind him, shouting something I couldn’t hear. Sven didn’t seem to either as he kept running, but his gait wasn’t one of fear. He looked purposeful, sprinting in a straight line. A line pointed right towards-
Towards the observing Exterminator Van.
The metal Venlil didn’t even hesitate at the presence of the fence. He leapt up in a display of strength and agility, vaulting over the barrier and continuing his beeline into the van. It was like phased through the doors with how fast he moved. There were sounds of commotion that followed his entry, and soon two Exterminators fell out of the van. One Venlil…and one Krakotl. I wonder how Kalek is taking things.
I, too, cleared the fence with only a high step and reached the van, peering in to see Sven at the controls. “Sven! What are you doing?” I asked, the Krakotl officer shivering on the ground in my periphery.
“They got my girl!” He huffed, “She’s a Gojid, they got her, I can’t let them do anything worse to her!” He tried to activate the vehicle to no avail, but his words brought up something that I hadn’t thought much over. I remember hearing about temporary emplacements that were being set up. Paly had texted me about exterminators bringing people there. Her too. And that would mean-
-THOOOOOOOMMMMM-
The wind hit me like a truck and rocked the van I was standing next to. Sven even stopped trying to fiddle with the controls to see what had just happened. In the distance, near the center of town, an enormous black cloud rose into the air, the vestiges of fire still burning in the suspended embers. I couldn’t look away from it as my mind raced with horrible possibilities as my mind tripped over itself trying to concoct a plan of action.
I wasn’t given long to think before the radio in the van crackled to life, startling both Sven and myself. “Attention all True Exterminators! The truth has come out about the taint in our midst! For too long we have lived with its danger in our presence! If any of you still hold the safety of The Herd in your hearts, come join us so we may burn ALL the predator taint from this District! Rendezvous at Vulen’s apartment complex, we shall start our cleansing there!”
The name of one of my landlords sparked familiarity in my mind. They had been working to build a series of new apartments to add to his old, and if I remembered, had agreed to house the Gojid refugees. The Gojid! Paly was housed with them!!
In an instant, I reached into the van and grabbed Sven by the arm. He tried to pull away, but my grip was too strong. “Sven! They’re gonna kill the Gojid! They’re gonna burn Paly!”
He finally managed to shake himself free as my paws became jittery from stress. “I gotta save my girlfriend! She’s in a facility! I gotta save her!”
“But they’re gonna burn people here!” I protested, “we have to do something! We need- We need People who can fight them! Kaeden! I need to get Kaeden! We can save them!”
I pulled myself away from the van and spotted Anso nearby. He must have had to go through the gate, but this was good timing. I pointed a claw at him. “Do Not Let Him drive off before I get back!”
I didn’t give him, nor the Exterminators who had recovered from their shock, time to ask questions. Paly was in danger, as were who knew how many others. I faintly heard my data pad chime from within my shoulder bag, the signal my heart was beating too fast, but I couldn’t deal with it right now. I could get the heart rate under control during the drive. Right now I needed Kaeden, he knew how to fight! How to save people when others were trying to kill them!
My paws guided me and I was back in the cafeteria before I knew it. Some of the crowd had dissipated, but Kaeden and Vichee were still in the same corner I had left them in, but with their Venlil friends now joined. Without leaving time for protest, I grabbed Kaeden’s arm and pulled him away. I heard Vichee squawk behind me, but I was in too much of a hurry. I can’t let her get hurt. I Won’t.
Kaeden started to slap my arm as I dragged the soldier across the lobby. “Tarlim! What the fuck are you doing?? What’s going on?”
“No time, they’re going to burn everyone,” I breathlessly said as I burst the facility doors open to get him to the van.
“What? Who?” Kaeden questioned, still resisting my pull. I could hear a tinge of worry in his voice, and I knew he would understand. Anso looked back from his position as he heard my approach, and upon seeing me dragging Kaeden along, he grew visibly concerned.
“On the radio, something about True Exterminators,” I attempted to explain to him as we neared the gate doors. This time, I simply spread them apart with my free paw, metal screeching against itself as the gate was forced open. “They’re going to burn every cured species they can find, and That Means Paly. I Won’t Let Them.”
Kaeden had stopped struggling as I explained the bare essentials to him, and once we approached the van, he finally had enough sense to ask the right questions. “So what exactly is the plan to stop them? We’re strong, sure, I could probably take most of them. But just two of us against a wall of those flamers?”
“Not two,” I corrected, letting go of his arm and throwing open the back doors of the van. Still seated in the drivers side was Sven, who looked back once he heard me permit entrance into the back. “We have him too.”
“Wh- the LARPer??” Kaeden asked incredulously. I wasn’t familiar with the term he used, but his tone told us all we needed to know. Sven’s eyes narrowed at the perceived insult, but Kaeden continued. “Do either of you have any formal military training?? Rushing down there is only going to get you both killed along with the others! For fucks sake, slow down! We need a plan!”
“T-There won’t be t-time f-for one,” a voice peeped in from behind us. We all turned to face the source, and we found it was the Venlil Exterminator. They recoiled under the sudden gaze of our entire party, but they managed to continue. “I-I recognized the v-voice. It w-was one of the n-new recruits. They m-might as well be Y-Yulpa. If you w-want to stop them, it’s now or n-never.”
We all stared at them for a moment in disbelief that they’d willingly hand over that information to us. They were Exterminators, weren’t they? They should be allied with the voice on the radio! Kaeden, after considering the information, gave voice to my confusion. “And why are you telling us this? You’re an exterminator, shouldn’t you be trying to help them?”
“M-My husband is the Krakotl that was in the van with me!” They yelled back, stamping their footpaw on the ground in agitation. “I-I don’t care what his ancestors did a t-thousand years ago, I will not stand for those zealots burning who knows how many people! We’re not all the same, h-human!”
I was taken aback by their words. I had given up hope that there were any redeemable souls amongst the ranks of those silver-suited brahkasses, but living proof of the contrary stood before us. Their breathing was only matched by mine as my pad continued to chime in my pack. Maybe there’s hope after all.
Kaeden started frantically looking all around, his focused gaze falling on the facility, the exterminator in front of us, and the rising smoke in the distance. After a moment's hesitation, he growled to himself and shook his head. “Fine! Fucking- if you want to prove you’re different, you and your partner stand guard at the gate! They’ll probably try to send a division here, so keep on guard! And for the love of God, go ask for help if that happens!”
My tail wagged behind me as I interpreted what that meant. “So you’ll help us, Kaeden?”
He paused for a second, an agonizing second as he fully took in the situation in his mind. But ultimately, he nodded. “Let’s go, we can figure things out along the way.”
Seizing the moment, Anso quickly jumped into the van and pushed Sven out of the driver's seat, much to their visible frustration. Kaeden quickly hopped into the passenger seat, leaving me with the problem of finding a space that would fit me. I stepped over to the back of the van and threw the doors open.
The flamers and their fuel tanks were useless to us, easy to toss all three sets out onto the ground behind me. I made sure that the flamers were disabled first, of course. Just had to snap the pilot lighters and slice a hose with my claw. Even if these two said they weren’t like these “True Exterminators” I didn’t trust them one bit. I crawled inside the cramped vehicle and wiggled myself to close the doors behind me.
As I got myself settled, I watched as the Venlil Exterminator started to inspect the destroyed remains of their weapons. I squinted a glare at them and positioned myself so they couldn’t enter with me. “You two aren’t coming,” I hissed. “You know why you’re not. Try anything with the humans, and they will stop you.”
I slammed the doors shut as their expressions fell, just in time for Anso to get the van into gear. I curled myself up against the wall of the van, watching out the back window as we sped down the road. We were on our way now. On our way to save Paly and all the people gathered because their ancestors ate meat. My heart hammered in my chest, but I would need to control it for what we were about to do. I needed to focus. I needed to breathe. I needed to be calm.
Focus. Breathe. Calm
Focus.
Breathe.
Calm…
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Memory Transcription Subject: Sol-Vah, Fleeing Predator. Date [Standardized Human Time] October 31st, 2136
My legs couldn’t carry me anymore. I had to keep going, but I didn’t have the strength. My pants became wheezes as my body struggled to keep up with the physical exertion of running almost halfway through town. I hadn’t even looked up before now, at least with eyes not blinded by tears. The pain of Mute’s rejection still stung in my soul, a pain so visceral it threatened to rip me apart worse than any Arxur. Protector, what did I do to deserve this? Is there even a Protector, or did the Federation just- just make that up?
I didn’t have time to think about that now, I needed to get to the office. From what little I caught of the broadcast, Nikonus had said they saved us before. I knew what it likely was, but…I was desperate. I just wanted to go back home and have him embrace me like he did before. The safety and love I had felt from him was still fresh in my mind, and if there was any chance I had to get it back?
I’ll happily take it.
As I approached the office, however, something seemed off. I could smell soot in the air, but not the kind of soot that came from our flamers. This was- was…dirtier smelling, as if the fuel had been impure. Upon looking up, however, I saw something that made my stomach drop. A huge plume of smoke, billowing up into the sky. It shadowed the sun itself with its immensity and hate. Did the Exterminators burn more drugs? Or…or…
I felt a renewed vigor as I started to run towards the plume, hoping against hope that I was wrong. As soon as I turned the corner, though, my worst fears were realized. Where the office once stood now sat a burning stack of glorified rubble, every single window in sight shattered and multiple holes in the outer walls. The building was split, it was as if a giant knife had come down and sloppily sliced off its front half to spill flaming debris everywhere.
I stood in front of the building I had once called my home, surrounded by screams and the awful sound of flames roaring. I knew now there was no hope of salvation, no way this could ever be undone. I would never be able to go back to the way things were, never feel the happiness I had for that brief time. I was doomed to this life, abandoned by my love, and forced to live as an abomination devoid of a home.
I suppose that’s all a predator like me deserves.
[First]- [Prev]- {Next Story!!}
You read it right: This is going to be the final chapter of "Of Giants and Journalists." With the conclusion of Sharnet and Vekna's adventure, we will now take the time to show how this announcement has affected our characters and the galaxy at large. We're excited to announce our new series, Nature of a Giant: Aftermath! This series will not be quite as in-depth temporally as Of Giants and Journalists was, mainly because not as much will be happening in as short of a time. Rest assured, though, there will still be plenty of action across the board! You just won't have to deal with over half the story only covering a week of time!
In that vein, we are also excited to announce we are working on another bonus series, one that was teased a long time ago, Venric Lawven: Legal Legend! It will be filling the gap for content while we work on the first few chapters of Aftermath to make sure the scenes are as quality as they deserve, but will have a reduced upload schedule to once a week to accommodate for writing two series at once. On behalf of both of myself and , we'd like to thank all of our readers for sticking with us on this journey. It's hard to believe this series has been going on for over a year in one form or another, but I wouldn't have it any other way! Thank you all again for your continued support, and we look forward to seeing you again with Legal Legends! And then...
The Aftermath!!

I’ve met a few people like that. they will interrupt your train of thought and if you let them they’ll talk 2 hours straight non stop.
I have this flatmate who I always try to avoid because he is clueless about that. He is a very good person, nice guy, everything, but once he starts telling any of us anything about whatever we’re fucked.
I give him the signs sometimes that I’m about to leave, or I’ll get up of the sofa and walk stand up by the door, and he acknowledges that and before even said “I’ll just tell you about this one thing and you can go!”
like, wtf.
he is a nice guy and if it wasn’t for that we could even be more friends or closer at least.
However, I’ve tried to talk over what he is saying but it just doesn’t work because certain people take too much long to tell you a simple thing.
To tell you how to boil an egg he will tell you first how he himself and his mom were one day in the mountains and them an amazing journey (which he’ll tell you about) ended up with him learning the best method to boil an egg.

The 19th century was a period of profound transformation for American education. Amid the sweeping changes of the Industrial Revolution, the United States saw a fundamental shift from a loosely connected system of local, often voluntary schooling to a more standardized, state-supported public education system. This evolution was driven by a combination of social, economic, and political forces that underscored the necessity of education for all children, regardless of their socioeconomic status.
Early 19th Century: The Landscape of Education
In the early 1800s, education in the United States was largely decentralized. Rural areas relied on one-room schoolhouses where a single teacher would instruct students of varying ages and grades in a single room. These schools were often funded by local communities and were highly dependent on local resources and values. Education was not compulsory, and attendance was often dictated by agricultural cycles, with children needed at home during planting and harvest seasons​.
The Push for Public Education
The Industrial Revolution brought about significant societal changes that highlighted the need for a more educated populace. As America transitioned from an agrarian society to an industrial one, the burgeoning cities faced numerous challenges, including poverty, crime, overcrowding, and disease. Education reformers argued that a publicly funded education system was essential for addressing these issues by providing a means for social mobility and preparing children for the demands of a rapidly industrializing economy.
Horace Mann and the Common School Movement
One of the most influential figures in the push for universal schooling was Horace Mann, often referred to as the "Father of the Common School Movement." As the Secretary of the Massachusetts Board of Education, Mann championed the idea that education should be free, non-sectarian, and universally accessible. He believed that public education was a fundamental right and a cornerstone of a democratic society. Mann's advocacy led to the establishment of the first state-funded public schools in Massachusetts and inspired similar reforms in other states​.
Expansion of Public Education
By the mid-19th century, the idea of publicly funded education began to gain traction across the United States. States like Indiana, Ohio, and Illinois passed laws mandating free public education funded by state taxes. The establishment of public high schools in cities like Boston also marked significant progress. These schools aimed to provide a more advanced education to prepare students for the demands of the industrial economy​.
The push for public education was not without its challenges. Resistance came from various quarters, including those who believed that education should remain a private or religious responsibility. However, the benefits of an educated populace, particularly in an industrializing society, gradually won over many sceptics.
Education for Women and Minorities
The latter half of the 19th century also saw significant strides in education for women and minorities. Prior to this period, educational opportunities for women were limited. However, the founding of institutions such as Mount Holyoke Female Seminary in 1837 and Vassar College in 1865 marked the beginning of greater access to higher education for women. These institutions not only provided women with educational opportunities but also played a crucial role in the broader movement for women's rights​.
The Impact of Industrialization
The rapid industrialization of the United States necessitated a more educated workforce. Public schools began to incorporate more practical subjects into their curricula, such as vocational training and technical skills, to prepare students for the demands of industrial jobs. This shift was part of a broader trend toward a more utilitarian approach to education, aimed at producing a skilled labour force capable of sustaining economic growth and innovation.
Progressive Era Reforms
The late 19th and early 20th centuries saw the rise of the Progressive Education Movement, which sought to address the limitations of the traditional education system. Progressives argued for a more child-centred approach to education, emphasizing critical thinking, problem-solving, and experiential learning. This period also saw the expansion of public high schools and the introduction of compulsory education laws, which required children to attend school until a certain age, thereby ensuring that education was truly universal​​.
Conclusion
Absolutely, the 19th century indeed saw a profound transformation in education across the United States. The push for universal schooling was not just about imparting knowledge; it was a societal and moral imperative driven by the recognition that education was fundamental to individual opportunity and national progress.
Social reformers like Horace Mann in Massachusetts and Henry Barnard in Connecticut were instrumental in advocating for the establishment of public schools and the professionalization of teaching. They argued that education was not just a privilege for the wealthy but a right for all citizens, essential for the functioning of a democratic society.
Moreover, as the nation underwent rapid industrialization and urbanization, there was a growing recognition of the need for an educated workforce capable of meeting the demands of an increasingly complex economy. This led to the expansion of public schooling and the development of a curriculum focused on practical skills alongside traditional academic subjects.
However, it's crucial to acknowledge that these advancements were not without their challenges and contradictions. Despite the rhetoric of equality, educational opportunities were often stratified along lines of race, class, and gender. African Americans, Native Americans, and other marginalized groups faced systemic discrimination and limited access to schooling. Women were often relegated to inferior educational opportunities compared to men, with limited access to higher education and professional opportunities.
Nonetheless, the reforms of the 19th century laid the groundwork for progress in the following decades. The fight for educational equity and inclusion has been ongoing, with significant strides made through movements like desegregation, Title IX, and special education legislation.
Today, the legacy of 19th-century educational reforms continues to shape the American education system. While challenges persist, such as disparities in funding and resources, there is a continued commitment to the principle that education should be accessible to all, regardless of background or circumstance. It's a testament to the enduring importance of ensuring that every individual has the opportunity to fulfill their potential and contribute to society.

Hi All
I'm a non-Afghan person living in a Western country.
The other day I gave a friendly wave to to a older Afghan gentleman that I know (who gave me a friendly wave first) however it seems I did so with my left hand. I didn't consider or realise that this may have been culturally insensitive until later.
How bad would this have been and would he have been offended or insulted?
Thank you

Jack had a decent time as a newborn compared to his aunt, uncle, and father. Being born during the 2000's of course. He was a hybrid of an infected human, rhat being Felix, and Gwendolyn. Luckily for him, it made most of his teetg, except for the molars, sharp. That, and his incredible stamina and weather resistance.
The first four mounths of his life came to horrible turn as his mother, Gwendolyn Kayuri, was killed. Luckily for him, she was able to hide him before Felix arrived.
The next 14 years of his life was hiding. Mostly in basements or hiden rooms, never to see another person than his father. But that's all he needed in life. His father provided a surprisingly good education for Jackson, however not babying him too much.
Now at 14 (1st image) Jack had found it strange that he wasn't allowed outside. Felix didn't have the heart to snap at his son, the poor boy's innocent eyes eating away at him. Felix then told Jack to pack up what little he owned, and for the first time in his life, he saw the outside.
Only for a brief moment however, his poor eyes were adjusted to the dark. His eyes slowly adjusted, mostly thanks to a pair of sunglasses, and laid his eyes upon his worst fear... People. He noted how ghostly pale his skin was. How they looked so "normal" compared to him.
Felix drove him out into the woods, it was far more beautiful than the movies and games he's seen. Than after some rough terrain, he saw an impossible sight... A fort made of logs, and within a town. His father explained that they had made their own community to fight a corrupt government.
Jack was terrified at the prospect of living with hundreds of other people. And all within a single town... It took him weeks to adjust to breathing the same air with other people. That's when one day, he noticed an elderly lady in some black and white robs was struggling into a church.
Being the innocent respectful boy he was, he lended her a hand. As she invited him in. He felt a strange calmness as his cowardice fade. He realized he was in a catholic church, for him it was calming. He felt welcomed there, and soon became a catholic.
2 years pass as Jack was 16 (Image 2). He had a small group of friends. One of which being Maria, who was quite the explorer in the woods. Jack had a feeling he never quite understood... It wasn't a bad one, but a pleasent one. One he only felt around Maria.
Jack finally confessed these feelings to her, revealing she felt the same. Than it hit Jackson in the head, his heart thumping out of his chest. He was in love. But at that moment...
He noticed a commotion outside. Going to one of the fort walls, he watched as a bloody fight ensue between his father, a large muscular woman,a short, pale man with strange fleshy tentacles, and an older man who bared a resemblence to Felix.
He ran outside, quickly stopping Felix from the 4 killing each other. He spoke from his heart, finally setting his foot down. The fight finally de-esculated. However, the older man fell, clutching his chest. Muttering out an apology to Felix and the others. Than Jack finally pieced it together... They were his family, and the old man was his grandfather.
Before he could say anything, Morgan went limp. Jack saw someone take their final breath for the first time. He was in deep shock as Felix walked back inside, not caring about his father's death. However, he saw Felicia and Télios bawling out for their dead father. Rather than leaving the two out there, he led them inside.
The two were overjoyed on meeting their nephew. Jack had opened up a bit more to them, showing them around and showing them to Maria and his friends. Felix however, wss displeased. Thinking the two were using his son to gain intel. Felix quickly kicked the two out, but not with Jack giving them his phone number.
A few hears pass as Jack was 19 (Still image 2, just imagine him a bit more matured). He was enjoying his day until one of Felix's right hand came up to him. Felix was killed, thus leaving Jack the leader of the rebellion.
Before Jack could even mourn, a fire in the surrounding woods broke out. That, and a full-scale FBI and CIA raid was upon them. Jack, with no idea how to lead, panicked. He had no clue on what to do, luckily, most of the rebels knew their positions from drills.
But it wasn't enough, the fire was bad enough but all the enemy units surrounding them? All hope seemed lost until a shout of pure rage and agony was heard. Out of the flames came the scorched corpse of Felix. Jack instanly knew it was his dad, bursting into tears.
Felix was now back at the helm, ordering his men around as they pushed the enemg back. Felix had taken so much gunfire, it was a surprise he was still even standing... Suddenly, Maria was shot. Jack's heart was pumping with adrenaline as he ran for her. He carried her, surprising for his slimmer stature, and ran to safety. Luckily the bullet only hit her leg, but the agent who shit her followed.
Jack noticed, and grabbed a gun. He had the shot but... He couldn't take a life... One of the other rebels shot the agent down as the war finally began to die down. They repelled the enemy and saved the fort from burning! However... Felix collpased, he wasn't immortal, just damn hard to kill.
Jack held him in his arms as he realized there was no saving his father... Not wanting him to suffer, Jack put a gun to Felix's head. Jack muttered a prayer through hesrt-wrenching tears as Felix finally confessed how proud he was. And with a loud bang... His father was free from torment.
The blood on his hands and face... Yes it was the right thing but... It didn't feel like it... He passed the role of leader to Felix's right hand before leaving the rebel life with Maria.
Jack was now im his 20's (3rd image), he was living happily with Maria in (generic city #4). He had been volunteering at any time he could, helping aid the agony of the world. Maria worked at a resteraunt, bringing the two left-over meals. But that's not how they paid rent...
He went over with Felicia and Télios when he could. Spending time at the fight club made hin sick, seeing people laugh at such violence... However, Felicia had made a fortune out of it. She was a bit stingy, seeing that she wanted to save for a mansion, but gave Jack rent money.
However, after a few months of this, Jack was disgusted about his actions... He looked in the mirror, he wasn't a innocent boy. He was a young man, a young man who took a life and now lives with blood money...
He made a plastic mask, fitting snuck on his face. And at long last... He saw that boy again. But the eyes... The eyes don't lie...

I am feeling so shocked and excited as I am nominated to get an award with many other people from my city for volunteer work in the community. It is all because of XXXtentacion and his helping hand challenge. He inspired me so much every day especially his speech to the youth in Miami children's. It is only because of him that I can do so much for my community. Luckily I get to do two paid jobs where I am helping people my main job in social welfare and my second job with students but I love to help my comunity. I'm so happy and you all inspired me so much too,

I am (30F), a single mom, a college graduate for 9 years, former OFW, and only 1yr in Dubai, until now I don't have a stable job, but I do have a Part-time job (Financial Advisor).
Who else here has the same problem as mine? I don't have the ability to focus. I have been looking for a stable job since December 2023, I bought my laptop and until now no one has hired me, I looked for one niche and I have been practicing it for almost a month now.
I graduated in 2015 I feel like I was unlucky of all of my jobs before. I have terrible managers, loads of work, and a very LOW salary, as in very low!
I am 30 now and I didn't get a chance to have 20,000 in my account not even once. 🥹
I am very pressured in life and I don't know what to do anymore, I have a BF and we're not yet living in as I don't want to depend on him, I want a career while being a housewife.
I am having anxiety thinking that I am very unlucky in life. I just don't know, I don't even have money to seek professional help. Sometimes I even think that the Lord didn't even listen to my prayers, I don't know what is happening with my life anymore, I can't even think of any.
how can you help yourselves during these rough times? 🥹

Tl;Dr:
My best friend got engaged to someone she knew in high school and hasn't talkd to in years who is long distance in just 5 months. I can't really tell her my honest opinions without it coming off as jealousy. How do I help her, or do I just let her do this?
The meaty version:
I met my best friend years ago. I used to do makeup effects for movies/TV, but when I started I took gigs for basic makeup for various things. She was a model, 19, just starting out. We got along way more than we should and hooked up after the shoot. We went out own ways and life took us in a weird loop back to each other, seven years later.
We met again at my new job. It was hard to stay in the business, so I had to make ends meet with Trader Joe's. That's where I saw her again, and we clicked like we did back then. It was just friends at first. We had both been out of bad relationships and I just wanted to better, so we hung out a lot as friends. After a year, she wanted more and I very hesitantly complied. She broke up with me about a year and a half later, and it broke my heart. I really tried to hate her and not talk to her, and it was easy because at that point she moved stores for other reasons, so I thought I'd never see her again. She understood, too, and left me alone, but checked in on me.
We somehow reconnected a couple months later. I don't even understand how, honestly. We just gravitate to each other. And we became close friends again, and have been for the last 5 or 6 years. She is my best friend, and I care about her a lot. We hang out all the time. If not physically, via text or mostly Discord. We do everything together when not at work.
It's been fine for years. I am demisexual, so dating is usually not a priority to me, but I have dated a bit. Usually friends, all know about my friendship with my Bestie, and nobody has really cared. She is bi and leans way more towards women, and it's pretty evident lol. She's told me I was the only guy she's dated as an adult and she's not usually interested in men. But I was struggling a while back with feeling those feelings for her and as I was going to come out to her, she told me she had been dating someone.
I know she had been to Florida a couple months back, and according to her and her timeline of events she met up with this guy she had a crush on in high school. They both liked each other back then, but both never acted on it and they lost contact. And apparently on this trip, they met and he just started his transition and they met up and things happened. She has gone to Florida twice, for only a week at a time, and around Balentines day he proposed. Five months later. She said she didn't tell me because she felt like she started to suspect I had feelings for her and she didn't want to hurt me, or lose me as a friend.
We were fine after. We had a big talk, I told her my feelings, and look. I get it. It's weird. But she's still my favorite person, so I was in. And being demi, you get feelings for friends and only friends, lol. Would I want more? Absolutely. Do I need it? Absolutely not. My love doesn't end at sexual interest or lack of. I did take some space, though, and we eventually got back into our usual groove.
The timing of everything is already weird, but then I could see little things. The guy got her a gift. I was there when she opened it, and she didnt like it. It was a shirt she'd never wear, and she complained about how he does that often. She complains about him a lot for different things. Usually I try to be devils advocate, I dont want to rag on the guy, but most of the time in my head I'm thinking he doesn't know her at all. How could they? They barely know each other. They've lived whole lives. Hell, he went from being a woman to a man and she didn't even know.
Meanwhile, we go out and I get her. I know her drink, I know her go to food order from any spot, we finish each other's sentences, our characters compliment the other. I'm not saying I want her. I'm just saying that her and this guy don't know what they're doing and they're moving way too fast. And I don't know how to tell her any of this. I'm not fighting for her, I'm just worried she's setting herself up for failure. What if she moves all the way over there?! Away from her family and friends and then this thing implodes. She's going to be alone and too proud to ask for help. Or, I could be wrong and they work.

Link: https://www.elperiodico.com/es/deportes/20240512/mundial-prefiere-marquez-fiche-red-102252584

A very high percentage of the 1,400 inhabitants of the World Championship paddock take it for granted that 31-year-old Catalan Marc Márquez, eight times world champion, will be the rider chosen by the Ducati Corse team to partner two-time Italian champion Francesco 'Pecco' Bagnaia for the next two years.
The thesis, widely spread in offices, pits and press room of the championship, has gained even more strength after the Italian engineer Gigi Dall'Igna, guru and creator of the great 'boom' of the Borgo Panigale factory and first supporter of the Catalan rider, stated recently that the Italian factory "will take into account when making the decision, not only the results of this season, but the sporting history" of each of the three candidates.
It is clear, therefore, that if the weight of his track record is decisive in the choice, Márquez will undoubtedly be the one chosen. The rider from Cervera (Lleida) has eight world titles, 85 victories and 141 podiums to Jorge Martin's one title, 16 wins and 46 podiums, while Enea 'the Beast' Bastianini has one title, 11 victories and 43 podiums. There is no comparison, indeed.

Ducati's move

As the Grand Prix races go on and 'Martinator' continues to perform as he did last year, when he deserved to be promoted to the position of Bagnaia's wingman (“if they didn't sign him then, why would they sign him now, when they have Marc at their fingertips?” as one of the team bosses of the MotoGP grid told El Periódico), many are convinced that Ducati, which does not need MM93 for anything, as it wins races with a handful of riders, only wants to keep the best rider of all time under its umbrella (electronics work miracles) and prevent the decisive Márquez, who has already shown in recent months to have recovered his voracity and riding skills, from joining the ranks of any other competitor.
All the sources consulted by El Periódico affirm that Dall'Igna is tremendously in love with the elder Márquez, proud, among other reasons, that the best on the grid is, they say, burning with the desire to ride the real official Ducati, as he now rides last year's bike. The Borgo Panigale guru, who, last year, was in negotiations with Honda, is the most influential person in the structure of the Audi-owned factory and, therefore, his opinion is vital for the closing of the deal.
El Periódico is in a position to state that the World Championship and, of course, Liberty Media, the new owners of 80% of Dorna Sports, the organiser of the two-wheeled competition, would be happy to see Márquez opt to strengthen the KTM team, sponsored by Red Bull, the long-time sponsor of MM93. What is more, a source close to the top of Dorna does not understand why the Austrian firm, with whom the Catalan idol made his 125cc World Championship debut (he was champion on a Red Bull-sponsored Derbi), is not stepping up its approach to Márquez, who last Thursday acknowledged that he was talking to all the brands.

Perfect marriage

"It's the perfect marriage," said the source, "as it would be a beautiful and spectacular way to come full circle: to debut and 'champion' with KTM in 125cc and to conclude your successful career with the same factory, taking it, who knows, to the top of premier class. It is clear that for the World Championship organisers to have Márquez as a Ducati rider is not comparable to presenting a 'team' on the grid with the all-time champion and Pedro Acosta, 'the shark of Mazarrón', who everyone considers, right now, the heir of the eight-time world champion.
Now that's a tremendous clash: Marquez-Acosta versus the Ducati squad. Such a change would alter and brutally encourage the championship, the attendance of spectators, the take-off of the audiences and, above all, the media coverage of a World Championship, which has just been sold to an American investment fund for a whopping 4.2 billion euros.
Many in the MotoGP paddock are wondering what Ducati can offer Marc Márquez, compared to what the millionaire tandem formed by Red Bull and KTM could offer him. Nobody believes that the Borgo Panigale firm, which, I insist, does not need MM93 to win, would offer a million-dollar contract to the Catalan, while the energy brand that sponsors him could help the Austrian factory to raise a handful of millions to sign him.
Not only that, but Ducati has no reason to go crazy once they have strengthened their two-time champion team with the current Gresini Racing Team leader. That would mean that Márquez would become just another member of the Italian firm, surrounded by Italians, while Red Bull's media, marketing, television and networking apparatus, capable of sending a man into the stratosphere (Felix Baumgartner, 2012), could help Marc to achieve one of his dreams: The red tide in the stands at all the circuits of the World Championship is the same as the one that accompanies the Dutch F1 champion Max Verstappen, whose orange fans populate the grandstands of all the circuits of the single-seater World Championship.
Those who are voting for the deal (Marc Márquez's move to Red Bull KTM) to become a reality are not looking at contract reasons or anything like that. True, the Austrian brand has several riders under contract, including South African Brad Binder, one of the last riders in the sprint race yesterday, and Australian veteran Jack Miller, but, at the end of last season, it had to make room for the 'shark of Mazarron' in its structure and it did it quickly and efficiently.

KTM wants to win now!

"KTM, my friend, is a factory that has won the world title in all the competitions, categories and specialities in which it has decided to compete at the highest level and, for the moment, only MotoGP resists it," commented to El Periódico, in Le Mans, one of the best engineers of the premier class.
"And now," the same technician went on to explain, "we have all been able to see, especially with the portentous Pedro Acosta, that his bike is ready to fight for the big title all year round in the hands of a rider with experience, courage, determination and hands like Marc, while the 'shark' is growing." There is nothing better for this Murcian talent than to be at the side of Márquez, who has spoken highly of him since he appeared in Moto3.
In addition, the Márquez brothers' manager, Jimmy Martínez, is a former and experienced senior executive of the Red Bull company, which means that he has plenty of contacts to guarantee not only a good contract but also the technical and human conditions, that is to say, the recruitment of the reinforcements needed for his pupil to rebuild, perhaps, his 'paddock' family in the Red Bull KTM.
The experts only have a couple of 'buts' to all this conjecture. One, that Marquez should fall in love with the KTM as he is in love with the Ducati. And, two, if the signing were to happen, Marc would have to re-adapt to a new bike, different from his old Honda and his current 'Desmosedici'.
But none of these 'buts' seem insurmountable, when it comes to the best in the world, who in the fifth race of the season was already rubbing shoulders with the best, ready to win, as he proved yesterday at Le Mans.

Howdy folks!
I updated ya'll in the comment section about my sudden job loss not 2 weeks after performing the full pentagram ritual. I performed the ritual on April 1st and was suddenly fired on April 12th. Freaky how my new boss turned sour seemingly overnight. It was quite the whiplash!
A few days later, after calming down, I did a reading about the whole debacle and posted about it. See u/Quareia Josephine's comments. In short, the pentagram ritual triggered protection while also speeding up my fate a great deal in order to set me down a necessary path.
The update:
I start my new job this Monday! (And at Reddit LOL) I'm blown away by how quickly i landed this job. I had been applying for jobs non-stop for many months before landing the new job i just lost.
About the answer card: The Oracle says "SPEAK!"
I won’t bore you with the details but ever since I was a teen, I’d get told “you should write a book!”. I’ve always dismissed the suggestion. I have no talent or skill for writing. No desire for publishing written work either. Also, I remember reflecting on my activism days and it was as if my voice had a life of it’s own.. It rippled out further than I ever intended…
Reflecting on my natal chart, I see Mercury sitting close to my left hand. Lower left quadrant. Communication, the land/ancestors and the act of giving.. hmmm
So I don’t think the Oracle card speaks of an immediate future but it sure is pointing to a fate path that I’m sure will make itself known one day. When it does, i hope to God i walk that path well in the name of Service.