Hello! So I just purchased an M2 MacBook Air 13.6" a couple days ago. I haven't used any Apple products since I was in Middle School when I had my iPod touch 4th gen. I'm 25 now and I have six different computers 4 laptops and 2 are desktops. And as much as I love them. I have really gotten burned out on Windows. Two of my laptops are running Linux, they're older and I installed a lightweight distro just to keep them alive for a little longer.
However, the amount of ads on Windows and the constant pop-ups, ads, and incessant updates when I'm in the middle of doing something are annoying. And I hate that I customize every little facet of my computer, but every time Windows updates it resets a bunch of settings. So I decided to try Mac OS. However, I didn't want to deal with building a hackintosh and decided to buy a MacBook. And just these three or so days that I've had it. It has been by far in a way the most amazing thing. The learning curve has not been as steep as I would have thought it had been.
I'm very tech savvy but Apple has their own way of doing things and I figured it would be a lot harder to learn how to get around the software. But I will give Apple credit just like everyone says, it is very intuitive and user friendly. And my old iCloud account was still there. I just reset the password and my MacBook automatically started syncing all of my old shows and music from when I had my iPod. I love it! However, I am very picky about how my devices are set up. That's why I still remain with Android even though I know having an iPhone or ipad would pair exceptionally well with the Mac.
And I may get an iPhone as a second phone. However, I was wondering if anyone has any software customization, recommendations or apps that I can look at. As it stands, I'm more than happy with Mac OS stock out of the box. It is already far better than dealing with Windows nonsense. Not to mention Windows increasing privacy concerns are just not okay. The fact that Mac OS just works without being nagged about little things is just amazing. Every time I would open Opera GX which I've used as my default browser for maybe a year and a half after I got tired of Chrome, Windows would constantly nag me to use edge instead as my default. I hated it.
When I downloaded Opera GX on my My MacBook it asked me straight up if I wanted to set it as default and it hasn't said anything about it since. If I want to look something up on the internet, It just opens opera GX. (Sidenote: Yes, I know that Opera GX is chinese-based and very well and probably is spying on me. However, I have my own dedicated browsers if I'm doing anything sensitive or private. I'm just used to having it on my gaming computers. It works really well with them.) Although I really like safari so far.
Also, the pictures included are the MacBook that I skinned with a vinyl wrap. I have a massive roll of it and I skin basically everything with it and then I printed out a purple Apple logo with my little Canon Ivy 2 photo sticker printer and then cut It out. The tablet on the right is a Samsung Galaxy Tab S9+ on a custom tablet mount designed for it. Even though sidecar doesn't work with Android tablets, I found duet display to be working okay maybe even pretty well with the Mac so I can use it as a second display which is what did with my Windows computers using Samsung second screen for my coding and photo editing in lightroom. I think if I was going to get another Apple device it would probably be a 13-in iPad pro so I can use it as a second display for the Mac. (And I am INCREDIBLY sorry for such a long post. I just haven't been this excited about a computer for the better part of 5 or 6 years!)

***Throwaway. Not sure if this letter belongs here, but I really need to get this out somewhere. We're currently only a month into NC and I can't handle not being able to send this to her. But, I want to respect her space and will wait until she is ready. anyway, here it is:
I want to begin by stating that the sole purpose of this letter is to take responsibility of all my actions in our relationship, something I couldn't do while we were together due to my immaturity and lack of awareness. I did not take responsibility for anything. I planned on keeping this in my drafts and not sending it. I was afraid of how you would react to this. I'm not anticipating a response from you, I simply want to express this to you because it's long overdue. I never had the chance to sincerely and completely apologize for how I exploited your trust, compassion, and love.
at the 2 year mark of our relationship I started to become manipulative, insecure, needy, immature, and I stonewalled in our arguments/disagreements constantly. I broke down, withdrew from what was going on and tried to avoid it by not communicating back to you, which put a lot of damage on us and especially you as a person overtime. I never made you feel heard. Only now I see how much it has wounded you emotionally and, I truly never intended to cause you such distress. I was completely unaware of how disgusting everything I was saying and doing to you was. It was only after you left that I finally saw the full result of my own actions. While I should have been building you up I was doing the complete opposite. I got jealous over things you never did and that was a reflection of how insecure I was about myself. All you did was try to show me love and compassion every single day and I took advantage of it. How I handled our relationship was completely horrible and I truly regret doing that to you.
I am sorry for the numerous times that I manipulated you into not doing something for our relationship, when in reality it was for my own selfish reasons. Who do I think I am? No person should have control over another person and what they can do or not do in a relationship. I made you sacrifice your happiness and sanity for mine. I selfishly prioritized my own version of happiness and completely rejected your desires and needs. My actions were the result of my insecurities, traumas, and fears, which I deeply regret projecting onto you and I am so sorry for doing so. I am finally seeking the help I need to address these underlying issues. You told me time after time to work on it and I always failed to do so.
if you ever find yourself blaming yourself for anything that has happened in our relationship, please don't. Everything was completely my fault and I could’ve handled our situations more maturely. I had the inability to do what I said I was going to do; by not focusing on the inner work necessary to grow as a person and becoming a healthier partner. I look back at who I was, and I don’t recognize that person at all. I see an immature and childish boy who lost himself, grew complacent and went back to his high school mentality. I remember you saying something related to “i have no self confidence” or something like that and in that moment it was so low that I got offended by it. WHAT A WUSS. I was ignorant about my own issues and didn’t have the courage to do the inner work necessary to grow and as a result I continued to lash out at you or blame my past for the way I am. I couldn't stand myself or look in the mirror and face the person I was; I constantly questioned you and made you feel no trust from my end because I was so insecure within myself.
You were the first person in my life to ever show me what true affection felt like. I have never ever felt anything close to how you made me feel ever since the first night we met. you saw me in a way that no other person could and it felt like you always managed to see the good in me. As Zach Bryan says in his song, "the only bad you've ever done, was to see the good in me." It hits harder now. The day I lost you is the day I finally realized that I pushed you over the edge and I have no idea how I could do that to such an amazing and loving person like yourself. It was only then, that I decided to take action, and actually put in the work to be a healthier and loving partner. I became to comfortable with the fact that I would never lose you. I truly fckn regret it. I don't forgive myself for the way I acted and handled things in the relationship, but I'm growing and learning from the mistakes I made to be a more mature and loving partner. I'm sorry it took all that pain for me to take action.
I refused to respect the boundaries you were giving to me. I didn't listen to the hints you made and didn’t realize that it was something you wanted and needed from me. I overlooked it because again, I wasn’t aware of anything. I completely understand why you are so pissed off and possibly over me. I am ashamed of the way I have behaved in this relationship. no person should have to put up with that AT ALL. I understand an apology alone cannot undo the damage I have done, but I want you to know that I'm committed to making amends, if the opportunity to prove myself ever arises. But, after everything I've done, I don't know if that is or will ever be possible for you.
I just wanted to say thank you for forcing me to rebuild and becoming a better version of myself. you made me want to be more in tune and aware from within. I'm so sorry that it took all this pain for me to finally put in the work. I became so unattractive in your eyes and I know you couldn't stand who I turned into. I grew complacent and lost that happy, loving person you fell in love with. I'm not expecting you to stay as a friend or take me back as a partner. I now completely understand how badly I took advantage of your time and love throughout our relationship. no matter what happens, just know I love you with everything in me and always will, no matter what happens between us. You will always have a special place in my heart until that casket drops.
I'm truly, TRULY, sorry for giving you such an unhealthy commitment for the time we’ve been together.
B.

My ex, Kale, and I were pregnant in the summer of 2021. He didn’t want the baby and tried for weeks to convince me to have an abortion. At the time, I was 19 years old, had just gotten a promotion as an assistant manager at the company I was working for, my coworkers and manger were fully supportive and wanted to throw me a baby shower, Kale’s dad and his friends were fully supportive and were trying to figure out the logistics with me as far as babysitting and such since my blood relatives were not apart of my life. About 3-4 months into the pregnancy Kale eventually threatened that his mom who was a psychiatrist would fight me in court to take custody of our baby and deem me as “unfit to be a mother”. I didn’t want the baby to go through all of that for a lifetime between us. I didn’t want to be extra emotional during the pregnancy and cause the baby any problems while in the womb, or sense that something is wrong and be affected by it, as well as just growing up with parents that couldn’t co-parent. I felt like I’d be doing him/her a disservice and create a dramatic life that didn’t need to be. So, finally, at 19 weeks pregnant, I believe it was August, I decided to have an abortion. It was so traumatic. The feeling of essentially being vacuumed out, after feeling the physical changes my body went through. The pulses in my lower abdomen that brought me a flood of emotions every time, knowing that I was succeeding at doing the best I could as I single mother. I was so proud and in love with learning as much as I could and doing my best at everything that would affect hehis life. My ex picked me up from the clinic (he couldn’t come in due to covid restrictions) and I found out from the white residue on my seatbelt that he was cheating on me (in which I found out later that he had taken this girl out to lunch after he had dropped me off at the clinic). Anyway, I kicked him out that week and I was severely depressed. Crying nonstop at work, and seeing parents with their children made it worse. My manager and coworkers were getting tired of me, especially because they didn’t believe in abortions (I live in a red state). I felt alone and embarrassed, so I quit in September.
In October, I downloaded tinder to get my mind off of things and met my current boyfriend, Blake. We instantly hit it off. We met mid-October and I haven’t left his apartment since. We said our first “I love you” a week in, and I officially moved in two weeks after meeting. We had discussed marriage and children almost immediately into the relationship, and agreed that we both would compromise and be fine with waiting 5 years, as he wanted to have children in about ten years and I wanted them asap. A few weeks into living together, I got on the pill. Around December I thought I was having pregnancy symptoms, but all of my tests were coming out negative. I recall taking like 10 in the span of 2-3 months, but all came back negative. By March, I had begun an automotive technician job and was taking a wheel off of a vehicle while it was in the air above my head. The moment I grabbed it, I had the worst cramps I had ever gotten in my life. I sat down for a while and had my coworkers finish the job while I took a breather and eventually went home early. I had the absolute worst cramps for the next 24 hours. The next morning, I was having contractions and after a couple of hours on the toilet, had a miscarriage.
I spent the next few months not talking about it or laughing it off, but it stung. Medication helped for a bit, but as time has progressed, the worst I feel about it. I keep thinking about how life would’ve been if I kept my first child. How old he/she would be. I have two dogs to fill the void, and I love them very much but it obviously is not the same. It’s going on three years since the abortion and it’s still painful and I don’t want to keep bringing it up to Blake. I guess I don’t know what to do about these feelings.

I think “my simple pleasure” is the best prompt. If used right it’s a good way to say things you like. For example mine was- thrift stores, new tattoos, Philly sports and R&B. Really depends how you write it
As a woman, I’d advise men not to use “I won’t shut up about,” as a prompt.
Woman constantly complain about men dominating verbal conversations. Saying you “won’t shut up about…” just reinforces that you might be one of those guys.
I think if you actually have a good travel story, that prompt can work. That is to say, I think that the "tiers" really fluctuate a lot from person to person, and your qualifiers ("this works if you're funny") are kind of proof of that.
For example, I have two pretty good stories about coming face to face with sharks, and one less good story about coming face to face with a shark. I think that the shark thing is just crazy enough that it intrigues most people. But you have to have a genuinely good story for it to work.
Also, someone else said they need to get rid of prompts - I disagree. It's really annoying if you try a new prompt and then can't go back to your old one.
I think “my idea of a good Sunday” is a great prompt bc if guys include it and they say “church,” I’m 95% more likely to like them.
THERE'S AN ART to curating your Hinge profile. If you're looking for quality matches, don't be the guy with a barren profile who sends a mildly-enthused "hey, how's it going" to every potential partner. Hinge offers a feature called prompts: conversation starters that let you show yourself off and spark more substantive conversations—and you should use them to your advantage.
Choosing the right Hinge prompts—and writing good answers those prompts—will help you scan the many fish in the sea to find those most suited for you. It might sound like a daunting task to craft the perfect profile, but at least you're an expert in the subject matter: you.
Best Practices for Crafting Your Hinge Prompts
Having an air of mystery may seem hot in movies, but it's just a waste of time in real life—especially when it comes to dating apps, where determining what's real and what's not is so much more difficult than it is in person. "Being coy may seem like a safer way to interact on apps, but it doesn't yield fruitful results," Engle says. (No one's swiping right on a bio that says "I suck at writing bios.")
So nix those coy answers and get specific when you fill out your Hinge prompts. The more specific you get, the likelier you are to match with people that are similar to you. That means you'll really have to think about yourself and want you want.
Be specific when discussing what you're looking for, too. Vagueness won't help narrow your options. For example, don't just say you're looking for "someone with a lot of personality" (is anyone not looking for someone with a personality?); say you're looking for "someone with a lot of energy, and who enjoys being active and trying new things" (or whatever that personality looks like to you). Be honest, both with yourself and in your profile. Don't say you're "super into the gym" because you want someone with a six-pack, when in reality you haven't been to gym in six months and have no intention of starting again.
Add a variety of prompts to paint a full picture of yourself. If all of your prompts are jokes, that doesn't reveal a ton about you. But, if all your prompts are serious, you might come off as a little intense—and you won't be revealing much about your day-to-day life.
The 20 Best Hinge Prompts to Help You Get You a Response
Here are 20 Hinge prompts to get you off the apps and into real relationships.
I'll pick the topic if you start the conversation...
Starting a conversation isn't easy, and with this prompt, you're meeting them halfway. It creates less of a barrier to entry for the person doing the messaging. Pick a topic you're interested in or care about, and "be as specific as possible," Engle says.
What you can say:
The best bands to come out of the 90's.
The worst holiday traditions.
The best and worst concerts you've seen.
The last time I cried happy tears was...
"Consider the things that really make you YOU," Engle says. Mentioning things you care about "will allow you to engage with like-minded people who share similar likes and interests."
What you can say:
When they showed Jason Kelce ripping his shirt off at Travis's touchdown against the Bills.
At the closing scene of All of Us Strangers.
When I PR'ed my back squat (the boys didn't see).
The one thing I'd love to know about you is...
It's always nice to see someone on a dating app be interested in you, even if they haven't seen you yet. Put that energy out there with this prompt. People might feel more comfortable responding when it's something about them, since they know themselves the best. Find a topic that's important to you, and let your potential match take it from there.
What you can say:
What would you do for a living if money weren't a factor?
What's your go-to coffee shop order?
Were you a Nickelodeon or Disney kid?
Let's make sure we're on the same page about...
The great thing about this prompt is you can make your answer as lighthearted or as serious as you want. If you have something that's a deal-breaker for you (like wanting an open relationship), you can insert that here. It also works if you have something a little less serious that still plays a role in your life (like putting pineapple on pizza) and you want to get that out there.
What you can say:
Not wanting kids.
The ending of Game of Thrones.
The shape of Earth.
This year, I really want to...
This prompt is an excellent way to open up potential first date options, or show how you want to work on yourself in this upcoming year. Want to get more creative, more fit, or try something new? Maybe someone out there wants to do the same—and wants a partner to do it with.
What you can say:
Try a ceramics class.
Drink less.
Find the best burger in town.
I'm looking for...
If you already know what you're looking for, you may as well lay it all out there. That being said, don't nit-pick or be judgmental in your answer. Don't be too vague either, or you won't narrow down your options for people best suited to you.
What you can say:
Someone who will get along with my family.
Someone comfortable with being in an open relationship.
A good time, not a long time.
My simple pleasures...
You're probably looking for someone with similar interests as you (at least, we hope you are). "Prompts serve as conversation starters, so consider your interests, hobbies, and skills and lead with those," Engle says. Odds are someone shares them with you.
What you can say:
The smell of fresh cut grass.
When Debbie from marketing brings in banana bread.
Open sunroofs.
I go crazy for...
Another easy way into talking about the things you like—but make sure it's something you can carry conversation on. "Focus on answers that you can go into detail on," Engle says. "Talk about interests, hobbies, and goals outside of romantic relationships to give potential partners a full picture of the person you are."
What you can say:
Planning my next trip before the one I'm on has even ended.
Barry Keoghan. Obviously.
Reruns of Pimp My Ride.

You should leave a comment if...

This is another way to discuss what's important to you, with a call to action for the other person. You can pull in your hobbies, hopes for the future, or interests—the world is your oyster here. But remember: specifics, specifics, specifics (don't just put down "you like sports").

What you can say:

• You were hoping for a Ravens versus Bills Super Bowl.
• Your Spotify daylist often includes the term "mallgoth."
• You're on the dance floor all night at the club.

A shower thought I recently had...

Balance your prompts by throwing in a lighter option here and there. A shower thought is a great way to show off your humor and how your mind works. Get creative.

What you can say:

• Could really use a beer in here.
• Whose Line Is It Anyway needs a reboot.
• Is Punxsutawney Phil doing okay mentally?

Green flags I look for...

Get a little deeper into what you're looking for in your person by hinting at characteristics you want to see in someone. It's better to be open and honest about what you're looking for in a potential partner then have to do the dirty work of talking to a bunch of people only to find out you don't actually see a future with them.

What you can say:

• Funny conversation, but can get deep, too.
• Tipping 20 percent, always.
• Emotional support water bottles. Here for the hydration.

We're the same type of weird if...

Have some nuance interests that you want to get out there? Here's your chance.

What you can say:

• You're hitting up the Renaissance fair every time it comes to town.
• You're the person everyone wants on their trivia team.
• You enjoy 5Ks on Thanksgiving, too.

I hype myself up by...
Everyone gets nervous when it comes to online dating. Confidence is hot, but most of us aren't 100-percent confident all of the time, and that's okay. This shows you're nervous, too, but can hype yourself up when need be.

What you can say:

• Blaring some hard rap.
• Power posing.
• Hitting the gym.

I feel most supported when...

Dating app prompts aren't all about making the right joke or being overly funny. You'll want to layer in some real prompts, too, to show potential partners you can get deep. This prompt is a great way to do that without getting too vulnerable before you're ready. Plus, it reveals a little bit about what you want out of a relationship.

What you can say:

• My partner help around the house.
• There's healthy communication.
• My family and friends support my work.

A fun fact about me is...

An oldie but a goodie. To mix in a lighthearted prompt with some deeper ones, stick with what you know and toss in your go-to fun fact from freshman seminar in college. Don't over think the "fun" part—just pick something you think is unique about yourself!

What you can say:

• I've been cage diving with sharks.
• I speak four languages.
• I never lose in Mario Kart. Ever.

Teach me something about...

Want to learn something new and find a partner at the same time? This is also a great way to show an interest in potential partners by making your answer something related to them. Like we said, people are always more comfortable talking about themselves because it's the one thing they know everything about. People love talking about their passions... maybe someone out there has the same one as you. This is a great way to find out.

What you can say:

• The Roman Empire
• Your ick list
• What you want to see in a partner

I know the best spot in town for...

Hate the phase of online dating where you message back and forth forever and never actually get to a first date? Us, too. This prompt can help speed up that process by getting you out of the app, and meeting in person. Suggest something you'd want to do for a first date.
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What you can say:

• $5 happy hour Miller Lites.
• VPR watch parties.
• Live music.

First round is on me if...

Another prompt that gets you out of the app and right into the first date. Plus, you can pose a characteristic you really want to see in a partner: a win-win. PSA though: If it translates, you do actually have to pay for the first round.

What you can say:

• You love a Dadbod.
• You also cried when My Chemical Romance broke up.
• You're okay with my dog joining us.

My typical Sunday...

This gives a little snippet into your every day life. You're probably looking for someone who lives a similar lifestyle to you (if you're a "sleep until the afternoon every weekend" kind of guy, you're probably not looking for a "6 a.m. half marathon on a Saturday" kind of girl), and this is a great way to give them that insight.

What you can say:

• Rearranging all my furniture...again.
• Hitting the snooze button relentlessly.
• A walk with the dogs, football with the guys, and meal prep.

Give me travel tips for...

Have a trip coming up? Hit two birds with one stone: get some travel recommendations and start up a conversation with a potential special someone. It's an easy entry to talking, and you can quickly branch to "well, where else have you traveled to recently?" Even if you just put down your neighborhood—there's nothing like a little stay-cation.You should leave a comment if...
This is another way to discuss what's important to you, with a call to action for the other person. You can pull in your hobbies, hopes for the future, or interests—the world is your oyster here. But remember: specifics, specifics, specifics (don't just put down "you like sports").

What you can say:

• You were hoping for a Ravens versus Bills Super Bowl.
• Your Spotify daylist often includes the term "mallgoth."
• You're on the dance floor all night at the club.

A shower thought I recently had...

Balance your prompts by throwing in a lighter option here and there. A shower thought is a great way to show off your humor and how your mind works. Get creative.

What you can say:

• Could really use a beer in here.
• Whose Line Is It Anyway needs a reboot.
• Is Punxsutawney Phil doing okay mentally?

Green flags I look for...

Get a little deeper into what you're looking for in your person by hinting at characteristics you want to see in someone. It's better to be open and honest about what you're looking for in a potential partner then have to do the dirty work of talking to a bunch of people only to find out you don't actually see a future with them.

What you can say:

• Funny conversation, but can get deep, too.
• Tipping 20 percent, always.
• Emotional support water bottles. Here for the hydration.

We're the same type of weird if...

Have some nuance interests that you want to get out there? Here's your chance.

What you can say:

• You're hitting up the Renaissance fair every time it comes to town.
• You're the person everyone wants on their trivia team.
• You enjoy 5Ks on Thanksgiving, too.

Basically title.
I wanted to describe my path from being in various ops roles since college and finally making it into trading; hopefully will inspire others who are trying as well to make it through this arduous process.
Straight out of college, I landed a gig at a big asset management firm, diving headfirst into the world of operations. But man, that place was like a political minefield—it felt like climbing Mount Everest just to get noticed for a promotion. Huge teams, bosses who play favorites, it just wasn't in the cards.
After a stint on the west coast trying out treasury, which turned out to be a total flop, I found myself back in operations at a buy-side firm. Three years in that role, and while I busted my butt and networked like crazy, I felt like I was spinning my wheels.
Then, out of the blue, an opportunity to transition into trading appeared on the horizon. The process was 10-weeks, about 7 different interviews (I thought it would never end). I learned I didn't get the role, but before I was dispositioned, another trading desk (also internally) swooped in and offered me a position. I was very fortunate with this timing and it was a team I work with very closely.
In just a month, I'll be starting derivatives trading. Let me tell you, after seeing countless operations layoffs and roles outsourced to Mumbai, I couldn't be more thrilled to make the switch.
To anyone else out there grinding away in operations, just know that there's light at the end of the tunnel. Keep hustling, keep networking, hang in there!

Hello, I hope you're having a good time! I'm looking for someone whom I can have conversations with in the long term but if you want to have a short conversation, that's okay as well. Who knows if we get along well and end up being in touch for years? I prefer talking to people within the age range of 18–25 as I have talked to older people all my life but it's fine if you're a bit older than the specified range.
Please read the post entirely before you decide to send a chat request or message. It will take about five minutes or more depending on your reading speed. You may skip this post if you can't bother reading it. This is only for people who love reading and typing lengthy messages, because that's the only way we can communicate with each other when we don't get enough time to have real-time conversations. I am mentioning this only to save your time; I don't mean to come off as rude. The messages I send can be way longer than this post if we happen to click, and people who can't read the post entirely won't bother reading my messages properly either, and that would be a waste of time and energy for both individuals. You might have seen my posts very often in case you visit this subreddit on a regular basis, but I assure you that I only post so frequently because I don't receive any responses—and when I do, they're from people who either can't hold a conversation for long or message me without reading the post at all.
A bit about me:
I'm interested in all types of visual and aural arts. Writing, drawing, listening and composing music, watching movies and photography (I'm an amateur though) are my interests and hobbies. I'm broke so I'm not a gamer. I do have a fairly powerful PC but with a low-end graphics card I play older games on. Nothing online though.
Speaking of music, I'm mostly interested in Jazz, Funk, Hip-Hop, R&B/Soul (both classic and modern). I like listening to The Weeknd, Prince, Michael Jackson, Bruno Mars, Sade, Aaliyah, The Isley Brothers and various artists from the 70s to late 2000s generally. I'm a movie buff so I can recommend you movies too if you're looking for something to watch. And yeah, I LOVE MEMES! Keep sending them all day and I won't complain!
I'm an ambivert (more of an introvert though). My MBTI is INFP-T if that matters. I'm looking for people who are willing to share the events which occur in everyday life, joy and sorrow, secrets, deepest fears, and build a genuine connection over the course of time. I'll be there for you throughout the good and bad times; I expect the same from you too. I am active on most social media platforms. We can move on to other platforms once you feel comfortable with me.
Now here's the important stuff:
I would appreciate it if you don't just send me a "Hi/Hello/Hey." Introduce yourself; the longer the introduction is, the better. Makes room for questions. Instead of simply stating that you like movies/music, mention what genres you prefer. Makes the conversation more interesting. Please put effort into maintaining the conversation. Ask plenty of questions with the data I have provided in this post so I know that you're actually interested in getting to know me as well rather than simply talking about yourself. I feel like an interviewer if the conversation is one-sided. Don't bother messaging me if you're not naturally inquisitive and just want to talk about yourself all the time. I won't respond to any short messages (4-8 lines). If you want to leave, don't ghost me without stating a reason if we've been talking for longer than two weeks. Just tell me that we can't get along if you think the conversation isn't going anywhere. I won't get offended.
Your gender, race, sexuality don't matter at all, but tell me your age and gender just so that I know who I am talking to and follow social etiquette. I absolutely love lengthy messages; I don't feel overwhelmed by them. So bonus points if you're capable of typing lengthy messages. I'm a person who would spend an hour(s) typing a well-thought lengthy message rather than having small talk in real time. I type as if I'm writing a letter. I can chat in real time as well, it's just that I don't get much time throughout the day and I'm active at odd hours. And time zones exist, unfortunately. Short messages or long messages, the amount of time and energy you have to spend will be the same anyway.
Please don't message me if you're just looking for people to kill your boredom and later abandon them. No, I'm not being rude. I have had enough. Those one word or one sentence responses lead nowhere. Also, if you're someone who wishes to stay anonymous forever even after talking for a considerable amount of time, I'm not the person you're looking for. This is an important thing to keep in mind. I am open to revealing my identity if we get along well so I would appreciate it if you're open minded as well. But that doesn't mean I want you to reveal your identity in the very beginning itself. However, I won't wait more than three months just for you to reveal your identity if we communicate regularly. In fact, it's a great feat to converse for longer than a month on the internet. I personally think that anonymity acts as a barrier in any kind of relationship. I would love to meet you in real life at some point in the future if we get along and stay in touch for a considerable amount of time.
In the past 12 years, I have talked to several people around the globe on different platforms who wished to stay anonymous. I had conversations with them for months and years, but they always considered me as a stranger and eventually left. I'm tired of being a disposable person. What's the point of having a friend without a name and a face? I have no reason to trust someone who doesn't trust me. You can call me picky; I indeed am. I don't want to have conversations where both parties only ask each other about hobbies and interests and leave once they feel there's nothing in common. That's the reason why I asked you to cover those topics when introducing yourself. And just because I have already talked about my interests and hobbies doesn't mean there's nothing more to know about me. Human connection is a lot more than mere interests and hobbies.
I would love to interact with someone who doesn't treat me like an AI chatbot and acknowledges the fact that I'm an actual human being with feelings and emotions beyond the digital screen who spends his valuable time and energy to communicate with people—precious time and energy that I'll never be able to get back. I understand that these connections over the internet are very fragile and I can't control things the way I want so if you're interested feel free to send me a message anyway. I enjoy having conversations with people even if only for a while. Sometimes people you expect to be in touch for years leave you while the ones you don't expect to be in touch for long end up staying for a long time. Nothing is set in stone. All I ask you is to not leave without notifying me. Yes, I know whatever I have expressed so far sounds contradictory, but that's how life works, right? Reminds me of this quote by Japanese author Haruki Murakami:
"Is it possible, in the final analysis, for one human being to achieve perfect understanding of another? We can invest enormous time and energy in serious efforts to know another person, but in the end, how close can we come to that person's essence? We convince ourselves that we know the other person well, but do we really know anything important about anyone?"
While I agree with the fact that it's not possible to get to know a person entirely, I think connecting with another human being is a beautiful experience in itself. In the end, we are just lost souls yearning for human connection; searching for people who will provide attention and affection and accept us as we are. If you're still reading this, it means you are a good listener and reader. Message me if we have similar interests or ideals and if you think we can be potential friends. It doesn't really matter whether we have similar interests or not though, I would love to have you as a friend.
There's a lot more to learn about me but I would rather tell you all that when we begin interacting with each rather than typing it all here. Feel free to ask me any questions. I'm open to having a conversation with people around the globe any time. I'm also very patient so I don't mind waiting for weeks or a month if the messages are lengthy. I understand that you might find all of this intimidating, but there's nothing about me to be afraid of. My messages can be lengthy, but only if you reciprocate my efforts and keep on adding stuff to the text. I know that this post sounds like a contract. I know I sound very serious but that's not entirely true. In fact, I can crack jokes sooo bad that will make you laugh. Thank you for spending your precious time reading this post. What are you waiting for? Text me right now! Feel free to message me even if you're seeing this several hours or days later.
Have a nice day/night and I hope you find someone to develop a strong bond with in case I'm not the person you're looking for. Take care of yourself and always stay hydrated!

Sorry for the long post. TLDR: Was delivered used laptop from Amazon and since the day of delivery I have been chasing them for pickup of my item and my refund of my money with no progress at all. So questioning whether we should stop purchasing costly electronics online? Details: I think now is the time to go back to old school electronics stores instead of Amazon for buying expensive electronics. I will tell my story. So I ordered a gaming laptop from Amazon and the same was delivered within 2 days (although was promised next day delivery for being a prime member, but that's okay). Amazon doesn't have any Open Box Delivery so we did made a unboxing video of the packaging to find what we ordered. But when I checked few other details on HP's website I found I have been delivered a used laptop whose warranty is already in progress and it is already registered by someone around 1 month back. So I didn't want to keep the product but there is no return on Amazon now. So I reached out to customer support team then they asked me for images and said they will have to register an incident which would require to be verified and it will take 3 days. I gave them photos and understood the incident was cancelled as photos were not as per their requirements so I sent photos again, this time the incident was resolved in my favour and a return was created. Now my nightmare started, no one is coming to pickup the item and after each pickup deadline I have to reach out to them and they schedule it for next day or sometimes a window of 3-4 days. We have done this 6-7 times with no progress. I was fed up and asked for my money so I was promised advance refund and asked to keep the product ready for pickup within a week. After being promised for refund in 24 hrs I still didn't get my money back so I reached out again and again they said we can't do it because pickup is active and asked me to reach out on 31st May again (I had to reach out twice as the first time the executive disconnected the call), when I did, they said nothing can be done connect again on 1st June. So I connected on June 2nd but no response, the executive ghosted and didn't respond for more than 30 minutes. I am more frustrated by the communication channels and the way they are making me beg for my money and that I have to reach out to them when clearly they are failing me.
Can a lawyer here help me with this case or guide me? The product was delivered in Delhi to my house but I currently live in Bangalore for work but my parents can attend the matter in Delhi. The cost of item is INR 54990.

A radio broadcast begins for everyone to listen. Coming from the outskirts of what used to be Colorado, and Wyoming.
"Lakehdu.."
A cough is heard before the radio begins to clear up however there is still static.
"Hey this is Robert John's speaking here, I've been noticing cyrstalized mutated wild life begining to show up..and these crystals as well that appear to be growing out of the ground in certian areas."
He says with a hard cough that sounds like hes coughing up something.
"Don't eat them..I learned the hard way to not to eat them as I got mutated after eating one of them as I was so damn hungry...not smart I know but I was starving at the time as my crops were dieing or either mutating with these weird growths."
Some more coughing.
"I'll be warning everyone to stay back away from my area for a time being as this mutatations are pretty quick to happen if you manage to breath in crystalized air and eat infected wildlife. Thankfully it appears that the location they are coming from inside the forest is isolated from the rest of the world for the time being."
"At least my dogs are still around and with me..thats something at least.."
Some more coughing.
"..I and a couple of others will be dealing with the mutated wildlife as much as possible so they don't escape containment and spread this crystal infection to other areas.."
"Again this is Robert johns and this is a message to stay out of these areas as we noticed some sort of storms begining to forming in these states..ion storms that overload electronics we weren't able to get this message out earlier as we wanted to due to these ionstorms disturbing communication equipment.*
"It's heavily reccomended you stay out of these states unless you are willing to be infected by crystals..as we noticed more dense mutated wildlife going further into Wyoming and Colorado..and reports that we have seen some infected ponies as well...as other infected beings too. We don't know how bad things are but are getting a better idea on how bad these 2 states are as it appears that these crystals are being heavily contained by these beings. And...some weird looking ones too."
"Their systems of containment looks to have failed over time....so keep your eyes out for any crystalized wild life in your areas. As it means you may have to deal with crystals of sorts..we don't have the ability to study these things as we are just scavangers ya know?"

Hi, so I’m from Europe and my bf is from Mexico, we been together for 9 months,and we been living together in Mexico for 6 months.
I’m going back to Europe very soon and he is staying here in Mexico without any job and he is not planning to find any job he wants me if I start work when I’m back in Europe and send him some money after he wants if I come back to Mexico for a marriage and move to Europe together. Now, he is planning everything only with my salary to pay the rent, to fly to Mexico everything with only my salary while he is staying here doing nothing. Also, he don’t want if I post any pictures of myself on social media otherwise he will get upset with me. He also deleted some pictures of me on my own phone saying to “sexy” but he wants if I send this pictures to him. I feel he is trying to control me.
I need some advice guys please 🙏🏽
Thank you for your time, and reading my thoughts! 💕

I was born in 2001, so I'm in the older side of gen z. I've also been online ever since I got my first phone at 13 years old in 2014. It's been a decade already and I've noticed a huge difference in how the internet is used.
I was online pretty much everyday and during my high school years I didn't really have any friends, so I would go online and chat/engage with strangers. None of the content I was seeing online was from people I knew irl. I used to follow random kids my age that popped up and I thought were cool, fan pages, update accounts, celebrities, etc. It was all pretty normal stuff, but there was a clear distinction back then with people who were online and those who weren't.
I was online a lot and most of my interests (music, movies, books, shows) stemmed from that. As I said, I didn't have friends irl and it was really hard for me to connect with anyone, because none of my peers were online like I was. They weren't watching the same shows, movies, they didn't know about the trends, etc. I vividly remember thinking about how there were no "internet people" in my class. This was a time where social media trends only existed within social media. Apart from the super popular challenges from the 2010's, the internet didn't exist once you got off your phone.
Things that were very popular online were lame to like irl (some of my personal examples include Dan and Phil, marvel before it got big, one direction, etc). These were very very popular online at the time, and whether you liked them or not, you couldn't scape them if you were online. Yet, I knew admitting to liking these offline was lame.
There was just a very clear distinction between people who were online and those who weren't. Between the online world and the offline (real) world.
Now, I feel everyone is online. Like even the kind of people who made fun of me back then for being online, they are online too. And idk. To me being online was like an scape from my life and the real world. I knew I could go online and meet up with people who were just like me. But now that everyone is online that's become so hard to do. Trends also have gotten out of control and you can quote stuff from online irl and people will get it. That's just something that wouldn't have happened back then (not to this extent).
This is gonna be lame but back then the only people who were truly online were the loser kids, the loners, the ones who didn't have any friends. The popular kids would only ever get online to like each other's pics on ig and that's it. But now, all the popular kids are online too and I know this isn't high school and that's so lame but this used to be a safe space and now it's changed so much.

Some background information: I (18F) live with my mom. My father (45M) lives with my grandparents and aunt. Back in March, my dad passed a blood clot and later that night ended up having a stroke. He was in the hospital for a few weeks in bad condition, as he had a brain bleed and had to get part of his scull removed before he went to rehab, and he was released at the end of April.
Now, I flew up to stay and help care for him, as my grandparents are rather old and sickly, and I wanted to help them since I know this is a bad situation they’ve been put in. Over the course of the last month, I’ve been helping with my dad’s physical therapy and his exercises to help him regain control in his left side. I’ve been helping around the house, doing chores, helping with the animals, and making sure that my grandparents are alright since I know this is hard on them.
The conflict started when I found out that my father has been in contact with his ex fiancée, who had stolen over $22k from him and had sent him to prison after filing a false report after some petty argument. She’s a horrible person, and my grandparents have made it clear that she is not allowed near him or their house, and she has repeatedly violated that rule and he has hours and hours of conversations with her on the phone. Because of this, we have tried to talk to him and explain why he shouldn’t speak to her, and each attempt has been ended up with him yelling about how everybody is trying to control his life, when all we want is to keep him safe due to his condition. My aunt has gone low-contact with him because of his behavior.
Yesterday, after he took a shower he disappeared for well over 6 hours and nobody knew where he went, he wouldn’t answer calls. When he came home, we found out he had been with his ex the entire time. He took her shopping, he took her out to eat, and he completely ignored all of us and my grandmother was close to reporting him missing.
When he finally came home, I had a long conversation with him, telling him that I wanted to go back home to my mom, as she lives on the opposite side of the country, because no matter how much effort I have put into trying to be here for him and help him, he will always go back to the one person who wants his money and nothing else. He has done nothing but sit on his phone, all day every day, talking to her and when I do try and help and my family tries to help, he gets mad and starts name calling everyone. His argument was that he doesn’t do that to me, but he does to everyone else. His mother is terminally ill, and he has done nothing but be rude to her. My aunt who lives with them gets treated as if she’s worthless by him and all he does is name call her and talk trash about her 24/7 when all she wants to do is help.
I have spent so much time and afford trying to care for him and he wants nothing to do with me even though he begged for me to be here and to help him and to see him when he was in the hospital. All of my effort has gone dow the drain. He begged and pleaded for me to stay but what is the point if he’s just going to ignore me and his family for someone who doesn’t even care about him or his well-being. Now he’s saying that he’s disappointed that I don’t want to be here anymore but it’s taking a toll on me mentally and physically and I can’t handle it anymore, it’s taking a major toll on me.
I’m currently at my aunts house, staying the weekend until my mom can book me a plane ticket back home.
So, am I wrong for wanting to leave him and go back home?

My whole world stopped when you left, mom. I had just spoken to you two days before. Everything was fine. That morning, I was irritable about trivial, meaningless things. I should have enjoyed my last few hours of normalcy and peace before I got the call that you were gone.
The thing is, I had already lost you before. Probably more times than I even know of, for how much of my childhood was lost to me, no memories, nothing. I do remember you leaving at the height of your addiction, leaving me behind at 14 with people we barely knew for more than a few months. Was that the height of your addiction? I don't know. There's no one else to turn to with these questions. It was just you and me.
I forgave you, it was so easy. You got sober, and of course, I forgave you. I watched you work so hard on your sobriety, claw your way out of that place, hit milestones and share the excitement. Like when you financed the Camry, all by yourself. When you got into nursing school, and then when you'd call to tell me you passed exams you were doubtful about. When it was hard to get ahold of you while you were working two jobs and doing Lyft between, I trusted you.
When you let your ex move back in to make rent easier, I trusted you.
When I needed someone, I had you. Now I can't turn to anyone. You know dad's side of the family. And our side is so small. Without you, it feels exponentially smaller. I didn't ever stop to think of how much space you held in our family. In the weeks after you died, a couple of times I accidentally got called your name. It felt crazy because I will never live up to the presence you had. You were... well, you. And I am not.
So I've spent the last 361 days not really experiencing life. It's like I am on autopilot. I thought I was doing better for a while, but I realized it was just that I made myself shut it all off. I can't look at my bookshelf, because my eyes might stray to your urn, and that can't happen. I can't look at it because I'll start thinking about how you're in it and that is an indescribable pain. I tried dusting off your urn a while back, it felt disrespectful that it was so dusty. I ended up in bed all day sobbing hysterically. I guess I'm not making as much progress as I thought I was.
Everything just feels so empty, except for the moments when I feel like I am drowning, and my throat gets all tight like I need to scream but I can't. Then I get anxious and feel like I need to run, run far away, like if I run fast enough and far enough I'll eventually find you and everything will make sense. I can ask you the questions, and I can keep mending the broken childhood.
That's the thing that keeps getting me, I mean I can't feel angry at you, but I almost do when I think about how I wasn't ready. The fact is that your addiction impacted my childhood and we were untangling things. I forgave you, but we had work to do. We were mending the bridge.
And then you overdosed.
It feels like some sort of sick joke - after you got sober, whenever I asked myself what the worst thing that could happen was, it was always losing you again. And now I am 24 and you are gone. I feel so disconnected. I go to work, I feed myself, I shower, I brush my teeth, I even go see my friend. But I am not experiencing it. I feel like I am watching myself go through the motions. I'm just so tired. I miss you. I don't know how to be without you, mom. I needed you here.

Hi thanks for clicking in, I appreciate your time. My gf and I have been together for around 6 months and we are long distance. This is my first relationship but not hers (not that it matters how many she's been in, I just want to say that I don't really know the best way to handle this because its my first time) There really hasn't been any large issues until quite recently and we've gotten together really well with frequent calling if not texting. I'm talking more than reasonable response times and prolonged conversations about any topic really.
However, there has been a reoccurring issue in which I need some help. You see, there has been a lack of communication - yes the bane of all relationships.
To be specific over the past two months:

• I will usually have to wait anywhere from 12-24h to receive a text
• calls are non-existent anymore, we used to call as much as possible but now when I ask she does not want to.
• I am not informed about things I would consider important - ie that she is not going to senior skip day with me as we had planned before and will instead go to a prom afterparty with her friends as she will not see them all together probably (I only found out because I asked her randomly after she said she would go home early after prom) or when we needed to get some forms in for university (we are going to the same uni) however there is crucial information that needs to go on it so that we are placed in the correct time slots. However she did not inform me she did not put that information on there and I keep having to ask with her pushing it every day closer to the deadlines.
• Recently I decided to go just one day without texting her first and she did not respond for the entire day, like usually she responds to my texts a few hours after the school day, but there was no response and I was genuinely really sad. it seems that I am talking to chatgpt instead of my girlfriend as she only responds when prompted, but instead of chatgpt 3.5, its chatgpt beta because of the response times.

YES, I have told her about how I felt. I expressed how I felt abandoned and left out recently and how I would appreciate it if she could take just 2 minutes out of her school day maybe during lunch to shoot me a quick text or in the morning and tell me about the important events.
The time in which she will not respond to me is from 12:00 am to around 6:00 p.m. as she says that during school time she would like to spend her time with friends rather than call me, which tbf is a valid thing to want. I get it you can lose your bf/gf but your friends will always be there for you. But since school ends around 2:30, there is still a lot of time before she even checks to see if I said anything, which is odd because I know she doesn't have anything currently.
the reasoning she has used for the lack of communication is that she is very busy catching up on school work as she was away for around 2 days and thus she needs time to focus and lock-in. However, when school work was 'important' as it counted for university she still found a lot of time to text me back then. Right now the school work doesn't even count for anything besides not failing (she has good grades so she won't fail) but can't find the time to tell me anything. In addition, there is just no shot that it has taken her nearly 2 months to 'catch up' but she still isn't. Like it doesn't even make sense, I know she goes out to hang out with her friends late into the night as well, but you're telling me she doesn't have the time to take 2 minutes to text me? throughout any point of the day?
Sorry, I realize I was rambling on right at the end and saying more about my feelings than facts. I had told her a few weeks ago about this communication issue, but really nothing has changed and it might have gotten worse.
I have talked to my friend (guy) about it and honestly it makes me feel so much better as I feel supported by him. He is a good friend for listening to me ramble on. I appreciate you man <3.
If you have any advice for me, please let me know :)) I'm sure there are things I can improve on as well and I thank you for reading my yapping session.

I have been wanting to get into voice acting for years and just watched a webinar from Wendy Shapero from Such a Voice which I did enjoy.
After the webinar, I got an email from them about someone named Guy Arledge and his VIP Masterclass package which is a very steep $5895. I am on a serious budget so that definitely won't work for me. I booked an appointment for this coming Friday June 6th for Wendy to do an assessment but I am on the fence about if all she will do is try to sell me on an expensive coach. I have read that they may be a "demo mill" which I want to avoid.
I already have the recording space and equipment but looking for an inexpensive way to start. I know I will definitely need a coach and/or take classes so that's not an issue.
Any info and opinions would be great!

Hi, so I’m from Europe and my bf is from Mexico, we been together for 9 months,and we been living together in Mexico for 6 months. I’m 26 he is 37 years old.
I’m going back to Europe very soon and he is staying here in Mexico without any job and he is not planning to find any job he wants me if I start work when I’m back in Europe and send him some money after he wants if I come back to Mexico for a marriage and move to Europe together. Now, he is planning everything only with my salary to pay the rent, to fly to Mexico everything with only my salary while he is staying here doing nothing. Also, he don’t want if I post any pictures of myself on social media otherwise he will get upset with me. He also deleted some pictures of me on my own phone saying to “sexy” but he wants if I send this pictures to him. I feel he is trying to control me.
I need some advice guys please 🙏🏽
Thank you for your time, and reading my thoughts! 💕

I (early 20s F) have a chronic health condition which means I am immunocompromised, when I get sick it’s often more severe and lasts twice as long as other people. It also aggravates my health condition more so it’s a pretty bad feedback loop.
My partner (early 20s M) is aware of this and does try to do stuff like get covid vaccine boosters and such but can’t help but get sick constantly and “not notice” before passing it onto me. So far this year he had two pretty prominent warts on one of his fingers that I had to point out and ask him to deal with (I had persistent warts years ago and broke records at the clinic which treated them for the treatment duration, it took years of effort and painful intense treatments, being constantly vigilant to get rid of them). He told me he’d sort of noticed them but didn’t want to tell me because I’d “freak out”. Needless to say, his went away in a month or so with over the counter treatments and I’ve of course caught them, they’ve spread to almost half of my fingers and I’m back to sustaining really invasive treatment as they seem to only spread and grow over 4 months or so.
He also has chronic allergies which he doesn’t really take his prescribed medication for. This sort of bothers me because he sniffles every day and spreads snot with stuff like snotty tissues that he leaves everywhere. This is kind of gross already but means that when he has a cold he “can’t distinguish between it and the allergies” even though the first sign of a cold is usually a sore throat which I would imagine is sort of easy to notice as standing out from other hayfever symptoms? Usually he’ll complain of a sore throat offhand and I will have to explain to him that he’s sick and needs to take this more seriously and be more on top of his symptoms so I know to avoid him for a few days and avoid getting sick myself. Because when I inevitably always do, already 2-3 times this year, I’m impacted for closer to 3-4 weeks.
The most recent incident has been him coming down with gastro which he initially put down to food poisoning (as he isn’t great with food safety either). I get that it can be hard to distinguish, and that he doesn’t want to make me sick. But yesterday he told me that he he was better and wanted to hang out so we spent the day together. Only for him to be visibly sick the whole time, offended when I didn’t want to eat something his cutlery had touched, and for me to be invited to his home without the knowledge that his parents had caught his “food poisoning” and were both throwing up, and had still invited a guest over to dinner?? I only found out when I got there and immediately left. If I come down with something like gastro and can’t keep food/fluids down I will need to go to the emergency room immediately as it is dangerous for me.
I asked him today if he washed his hands properly and he said yes but when not sick he doesn’t even always use soap. I’m starting to get really tired of his bad hygiene/self-care practices which keep becoming my problem and I’m not warned about before it’s too late (and often I have to pick up on it myself and tell him to deal with it and be more careful next time).
Even if he does genuinely makes a mistake each time, I’m starting to feel like he doesn’t care enough. And I know that my condition sounds bad and that I should be more vigilant/expect to be sick sometimes which of course I understand. But why can’t he be bothered to notice something is up/why does he avoid telling me every time! I’m starting to really resent him for this

My cousin’s boyfriend is a POS drunk who had started emotionally abusing my lovely hardworking cousin who has 3 kids she’s taking care of from her previous super toxic relationship with a psychotic ex-husband.
This man has brought multiple of his shady ass friends into her home only to bring drugs and weapons around my little cousins. One of his friends even pulled a knife on his own gf at my cousin’s home after we had been drinking. Her BF has also called my cousin a whore in front of everyone while exhibiting super controlling behavior about anything possible like her social media. One night I had to pull out a baseball bat to kick him and his friends out and after having to stay up all night in the living room. I previously called the police on the BF but they ended up not being able to find him due to him running and hiding.
Well, one day I was curious if he had any active warrants and lo and behold he had a DUI he failed to take care of when I searched across our state’s database. I knew he was at my cousin’s place so I emailed an anonymous tip in to the local police department pinpointing her address and stating he was there now. Let me tell you they reacted fast and went over there to investigate a couple hours after I sent it in. My cousin has some ties to the local pd so she immediately gave up her BF to not jeopardize her future career. She was upset and everyone had started blaming her two estranged daughters she’s been having tons of issues with over the past few months.
I think I will fess up at one point because I feel terrible for the flak my other little cousins are getting right now. But she may excommunicate me from the young ones I have been bonding with and doing my best to be there for since they have no positive male role models in their lives due to a deadbeat father who is probably going to prison.
So should I just keep this secret or maybe fess up in a couple months when things calm down? I seriously want my cousin to just drop her POS BF, but it’s like she’s addicted to the drama this guy has brought into her life!

I (18F) am about to graduate from high school, with two weeks left in the year. To be honest, I’m kind of done with all of my friends. One of them, Kayla (19F) ditched me at prom the whole time even though she invited me and promised me we would be able to stay together, and the other friend this is concerning is Lila (18F), who only acknowledges my existence when her other friends aren’t around, and I always have to support her through every crisis and she never helps me with anything. They aren’t bad people, I’m just tired of them ignoring me and being their last choice friend, and I recently heard Kayla letting a girl insult me behind my back so idk. I don’t want to cut them off entirely or be mean to them, just distance myself. However, we sit next to each other in class and we are in a club together that we have been in since we were in kindergarten.
This club (the three of us and one other girl) is traveling to Europe this summer. We already paid and everything, so I will at least need to interact with them until then. I would loose a lot of money if I backed out, and the club leaders (53F and 61F) are very sweet and excited for this trip, and I would be letting them down if I didn’t come.
I’m not really sure how to approach removing myself from my friends lives. I’ve tried to talk to them about how they make me feel, but they either imply I’m being overdramatic or apologize in the moment but then talk bad about me behind my back. Also, Kayla and I text a lot, and giving her dry answers until the trip would probably result in her being confused and then we might fight and it would make it awkward for the the whole club.
Cutting them off cold turkey just isn’t reasonable for our lives together but I don’t want to keep existing as their friend when they treat me like I only exist to sometimes make them laugh.
So, how do I distance myself from my friends while still allowing us to remain amicable until our class and trip end?
TL; DR: I’m tired of being my friend’s last choice, so I want to distance myself. But how do I accomplish this when we have classes together and go to Europe together in the summer?

i started talking to a guy I met on an app a few months ago, we got close very fast. he lives in Canada and I live in the US so we haven't been able to meet just yet, although we plan on meeting as soon as possible. we've had a little bit of a rocky road so far. to start, we are both trans males and recently he started hanging out with a guy, which he says is nothing more than a friend. he also said he's very transphobic so he didn't have any feelings towards him, but they have been drinking together, smoking 🍃 together, and hanging out until after 3 am. I found this extremely weird, and we talked about it and he reassured me everything was okay but it doesn't seem okay. two weeks ago, he slowly stopped talking to me. only sending a few texts a day, or maybe a snap or two although, nothing more. he said he was busy with exams and such which was understandable. he called me passive aggressive when I said "sure" when he asked to call, which is how our whole "communication" conversation started. he said that I also seemed "uninterested".
this is how this conversation went:
me: i just kinda assumed shit wasn't gonna work out bc everything was off so I stopped putting in effort, not just to you, to everyone. i didn't know I was being passive aggressive I was just trying to make shit work where I felt like shit wasn't working and it didn't seem to help a lot. I know you have stuff going on and it isn't your fault you've been busy but I just miss how we used to talk. maybe it's just me, but I felt like you pushed me away a little bit and it sorta has worn on me because I truthfully did like you so much and just wanted a little bit of time out of your day, but then I found out everything n I thought I was doing better at not being so off. I'm sorry about everything I'm sorry if that seemed like I was putting all of that off on you, it wasn't your fault, it was mine and I can recognize that and accept it. I'm just trying to communicate how I'm feeling
him: I’m sorry if I made you feel like I was pushing you away, I genuinely wasn’t. I just barely had time to talk to anyone anymore because of how much pressure school was putting on me. I haven’t even been working on commissions lately. I’ve been burnt out as fuck and have barely even had the motivation to do practically anything online and irl, so I’ve been struggling a lot with that. But I was honestly trying to make an effort to continue my conversations with you even with my lack of motivation. I care about you so much, I really do, which is why I was trying my best to keep up. When I noticed how little we were talking was when I decided I should try and let you know why I wasn’t talking as much, because I didn’t want you to feel like it was your fault. I wanted you to know that I was just busy but was still trying to make time for you as much as I possibly could. At the end of the day you were honestly one of the only people I was actually talking to, especially consistently. That’s why I was so excited that I had gotten all my school work done last night, because I knew I’d finally be able to talk consistently like we used to. But when you were really dry and disinterested I kinda just didn’t bother. I was put off by it and figured you maybe needed space or something. So I tried giving you that today and for the rest of the night last night. I was complaining to one of my friends about it because I missed talking to you so much but you just no longer seemed interested at all. So tonight I occupied myself by building shit in minecraft and I figured maybe we could call and I could show you around my world, kind of as a way to try and make things like they were before. I didn’t mean to miss your calls, but I rarely have my notifications on for anything, so I genuinely just didn’t get your calls. I’m so sorry I made you feel that way though, I never intended anything like that. I care about you a lot and I just want things to go back to how they were
me: I've just been so put off lately. I've been complaining about it to Ray for awhile now. i just seriously couldn't come to terms with things, in my eyes, "falling apart" which is most likely my mental illness speaking. i really didn't mean to seem like I was putting you off but when I realized that you were kinda distant, I decided that the best thing to do in the situation was to push you away and detach myself from you, which again is most likely my mental illnesses speaking. I've also just been stressing about how you turned off your location and I was kinda left in the dust when you hung out with Kory or whoever, which I will admit slightly made me jealous bc of how your family reacted to meeting him or what not. on top of all of that, I've tried to not make you feel like you were taking the parental role because I didn't want to ruin everything we've worked towards. i genuinely do care about you probably more than I should and I want nothing more than to have you around. i mean that with my whole being. you have made things so much better. I'm glad we were able to talk about this. it makes me feel a little better.
him: I’m sorry, I turned off my location because my brother was constantly watching me after I almost got abducted that other night, and it just made me irritated. If you ever want to check up on me you’re welcome to use Life360, idm. And I genuinely don’t care for Kory that way. He’s sweet, sure, but he’s lowkey transphobic and has no idea I’m trans. I kinda just hangout with him cause he gives me weed and lets me use his PS5. I’m sorry I made you jealous, I just shared those things with you cause I didn’t think it would bother you since you always brought up that Tommy chick. Again, I’m really sorry I made you feel like I was being distant. I swear I’ll try and communicate to you whenever I become busy again, that way you won’t think it’s anything to do with you. Exams, prom and grad are coming up soon, but that should be about the last time I get that busy for a while. I’ll tell you when that happens though, I promise. But I genuinely was just so fucking drained, I could barely even make up the motivation to do mondain tasks for the last few weeks, so I swear it had nothing to do with you. I’m feeling much better now though and I really do want to start spending more time talking to you again. I genuinely get so excited whenever I get messages from you, and I want that again. You’re the person I talk to the most and you mean a lot to me, so I really don’t want to lose that or ever make you feel like that’s not the case. Again, I’m so sorry I made you feel that way. I would never intentionally do that to you
with all that being said, my sister said he has started to love bomb me, as he started saying he loved me (ily) and all that type of stuff, but she also said he seemed narcissistic. I tried to talk to him today, and he said everything seemed fine to him, and he was confused on what I thought was "off". i explained that I want us both to be on the same page, and I didn't want to get the wrong idea, and he is hanging out with that guy right now and has left me on opened for the last twenty minutes. i don't know what to think and I really need advice.

How to start application as 26yo
Hi, I’m a 26 yo software engineer in Canada. Long story short, I went in for the money, never really cared about computers or tech. I’m starting to realize I can’t do this for a career.
I have a joint degree in molecular biology/biochem and computing science. I’ve done courses in general chem, OChem, physics, biology, all of that fun stuff. I actually originally went to uni to get into med school. It was the wrong time in my life though, I was too young, undisciplined, and I lost my path. I have zero clinical experience or volunteering right now. My gpa in uni was not great, 3.31. I did do an internship as a lab worker studying stem cells.
I’ve learned some life lessons in the meantime, now I feel a lot better equipped to handle the commitments/sacrifices I hear about med school, and also clearer about what I want from life.
I’m aware of the opportunity cost of lost income and student debt. I’m aware I would go through hell for 6 years at least.
So i have some questions: 1. How would someone like me get started on applying to med school? Do I need to do a post-bachelors i.e. to make up for my GPA? How do I start getting clinical experience or volunteering to make my application competitive? I want to aim for the top Canadian universities ideally. What’s the realistic timeline for this, will it take me 2-3 years to prep for even applying? 2. More importantly, how can I know if being a doctor is really what I want? I’ll be honest I’m attracted by the money and job stability. More-so the job stability tbh, i hate the lack of stability in my field. But also because I feel like the work doctors do matters. Can’t say that about software engineering, it’s mostly just soulless fluff that society doesn’t really need. I also find biology fascinating, not like computers. But I don’t want to go into this and find out I hate it too. Any advice here? Would some kind of volunteering help me find out if i truly would enjoy this field?