Hi all,
Just looking for some advice for anything at all that might help our situation other than divorce.
I've been with my husband for almost 13 years, married 10. We are both 35. Have three wonderful kids 5-9 years that we both love so much. We are through all the toddler phase and sleep deprivation.
Our marriage is in a dire place, which both of us contributed to by not prioritising the other and essentially just aiming to survive through parenting. We have no family close by / breaks so it is full on.
For several years I've felt lonely in the marriage and things have come to a head the last 18 months. He's acknowledged the issues and says he doesn't find me sexually attractive, doesn't have any romantic feelings for me. Going on dates is like time filling for him. He says he finds other women attractive, but there's no specific woman he wants to have sex with. He has no desire for sex with me and will occasionally have sex after a lot of work on my end. He thinks his libido is normal But he is not seeking out sex with other women and masturbates only on occasion to porn. He wants more time for himself (which is hard in the constraints of a family, but I have worked hard to provide for him by doing as much household stuff as possible, taking kids out so he has house to himself, he stays up very late). He thinks his current needs and behaviour are selfish, but doesn't want to compromise on that.
He has had bloods done with GP. Normal testosterone level. We've done marriage counseling. She says he's got a severe dismissive avoidant attachment style, which I can see now, but I can't understand how he wasn't acting like that pre-kids. Our best sex was actually post- last kid but dried up a few years ago. We still have sex maybe once every 1-2 months but it's not enough for me and I feel like he's fulfilling an obligation rather than any actual desire to be with me so it reduces my pleasure. He says he doesn't want a longterm romantic relationship with anyone currently. But he loves me. We are still together currently as both our ideal outcomes would be for a happy fulfilling marriage and intact family unit. But it's at the point he doesn't even want to have to greet me or ask about my day and I've always prided us on having a great underpinning friendship and don't want to lose that too. I am also aware of the example we are setting for our children for their future relationships.
We've gone on regular dates in the last year, I try flirting with him, he's sharing a bit more of some aspects of the household work, although I have the majority mental load. We've tackled identified areas of resentment from both sides (although I feel like this has been a lot of him doing what is best for him and me doing a lot of what is best for him). He does not feel he is depressed and happy on other aspects of his life. His mum Is asexual and has never had another partner after separating from his dad 32 years ago, his brother lives with his mother at 37 years old and has never had a partner, his maternal uncle lived with his mum until she died and I wondered if there was a genetic component to things. But maybe I'm grasping at straws and that doesn't offer a solution.
I'm fit and attractive to the general population haha. He says he can see I'm attractive to others so it's not like I've "let myself go" in any sense since having kids, and actually have a better body than pre-kids.
I have talked a lot with various people and some had suggested having an affair to give me what I need, but I would never disrespect him In that way. However we have talked about a "one-sided" open marriage for me to essentially Have a sexual relationship +_ some emotional connection with someone else, in the hope that in the future, my husband would want those aspects again and hopefully pursue them with me... I had thought this might relieve him Of his guilt / make our interactions not an obligation for him. I had hoped we could go on dates and have the rare sex when he wants in the interim also. He is supposedly agreeable to this. I'm scared to do something (ie sex with someone else) that I can't take back though.
I guess I always have a sliver of hope, he's the dad of my children and I committed to spent my life with him and that's what I ultimately want. But currently, every day is like I lose a part of myself with the constant microrejections and while I know you are the one responsible for your own happiness, my self-worth, confidence and happiness are slowly being eroded by feelings of inadequacy and why I am so unattractive / undesirable to him on so many levels (sexual / non-sexual gestures / romantic / friendship) etc. If it was just one area, perhaps I could be more accepting / patient.
Other context, I have the primary career / income earner / drive in where we have ended up. I've always asked his opinion and been mutual decision making for big decisions, and despite my best efforts to support him to find himself, he has never shown much drive for anything other than computer gaming (which he would easily spend 5+ hours a day most days doing, at a cost of sleep). He doesn't particularly enjoy his job and has changed industries constantly when working. There's a Netflix special for a show called Jigsaw and that resonates a lot with him, he didn't have a complete self-identity before he met me and was happy to follow me along the way in life and got to where we are (which on paper is the most amazing life) and he's realised he's not happy within it. I've tried to support him in trying new things and exploring himself, but I can't be his motivation and really the only thing he is showing motivation for currently is increasing his level on DOTA2! We did have sex droughts during pregnancy due to me being incredibly sick and having zero libido, but we got through that and I guess I didn't feel it was a big issue at the time as we loved each other and every other aspect of the relationship was solid, but potentially that was a contributing factor to marriage demise. Although at the time, I felt we would never get back to an amazing sex life, we did and it was very fulfilling until twoish years ago.
Any advice is much appreciated. I am guessing a lot of people will think we are non-compatible / he doesn't want a relationship and I can't change that so divorce is the best option, but I'm willing to try anything at this stage.
Ps we have both seen a personal counsellor as well as the marriage counsellor. I am seeing mine next week and will ask about the open marriage concept.
Thanks for your thoughts!

Swiatek vs Potapova :

Swiatek had to have been happy with her third round matchup after waking up from the nightmare that Naomi Osaka presented. She made quick work of Bouzkova, who was outmatched in every department. Bouzkova did manage to battle back in the first and make the set close, and she served surprisingly well, but she just doesn’t hit hard enough to beat Swiatek. It was one of those matches where Swiatek looks a bit impatient because she’s supplying all the offense, and it seems like when it takes 3-4 shots to get an opportunity to hit a winner, she tries to just infuse extra pace or spin instead and unforced errors appear. Trying to make the ball explode doesn’t really work, and extra force applied tends to fall short when compared to smooth technique. I watched Rune and Zverev have similar trouble today against their opponents. Players wind up pushing because they hit bigger than their opponent, but don’t want to make errors. It’s accuracy that’s missing, and it’s something for Swiatek to work on in the off-season. I would say that accuracy is the main problem with her serve as well. It has plenty of pace and spin, but the ball lands towards the center of the box way too often. Less pace, and more location will go a long way.
If it feels like I’m levying criticism today, yes. Your turn, Potapova and Wang. Potapova was down 5-0 in the first set, and won 7 games in a row. Wang has a tendency to just go big on her forehand, and she doesn’t stop when she misses. Potapova was an uphill battle, but Wang doesn’t actually need to hit clean winners to score. Her forehand is one of the biggest in the game, and once she locks into a cross-court rally she usually can win provided the ball lands inside the court. Landing the ball inside the court proved difficult, and it felt a bit like watching Struff. All the ability in the world but a sense of urgency that doesn’t really match the moment. Yes you want to stay aggressive, but the weight of shot buys you time in the rally, you don’t need to escape a rally you’re in control of.
Potapova wound up losing the second, and down a break in the third. She dug in admirably, but there were some really poor decisions late in the match. After getting to triple break point by rallying with Wang and keeping the ball deep until Wang missed, she got a simple backhand return off a serve. She went for a clean winner down the line for some reason, and then suddenly the next point mattered. She lost it, and suddenly the “oh F I had it and now it’s gone” fears rose. The game ended up at duece, and she went to tactic B : screaming on every shot. You can’t scream your opponent off the court, so this didn’t really work. In the end, Wang coughed up errors and Potapova won, but it was a match that was managed poorly by both. Potapova was very reactive to misses and makes, which is fine but wastes a bunch of energy and tends to affect your decisionmaking in a readable way. You want to maintain some mystery, and at a minimum not give your opponent any inspiration or hope to work off of while you’re out there.
Swiatek Potapova should be another safe match for Swiatek, but Potapova has good power off both wings and she hits her backhand down the line decent. Swiatek will need more than she brought against Bouzkova, and chances are this won’t be a blowout. Potapova won their last meeting 6-0 in the third on clay, but it was in 2016 at the juniors. Swiatek in 2.

Danilovic vs Vondrousova :

Olga Danilovic has made the 4th round of a major. This changes her career in a major way. Tons of points, at least $250k, and a chance to win more. It’s even sweeter I would imagine because she probably shouldn’t be there. Her match against Donna Vekic was filled with many fumbles. Both players have enough power to hit past the other. Vekic was able to hit inside out forehands to great effect. Danilovic’s pendulum swing on her backhand was able to force errors from Vekic quite often. Her forehand down the line was almost a clean winner anytime she made it. In between all that though, they missed constantly.
The first set was a 6-0 beatdown from Vekic. She played excellent, and likely should have won the second. In the third, she went up a quick break. She gave that back, but broke to serve for the match. Immediately, she threw in a handful of forced dropshots and errors. Luckily, she broke again to serve for the match at 6-5. This gave her the opportunity to come up with a few more bailout dropshots and errors. If you watch highlights, this was an incredible match. If you watched the match, you saw two players whose games were affected by the situation. Vekic forced the issue and missed anytime she got control of the scoreboard, and Danilovic went through bouts of not missing at all followed by sending every ball wide. The tiebreaker was vaguely like watching a junior match. Every miss brought a huge reaction from the player. There were constant gestures and faces made to their boxes, and it was a little difficult to watch two great players struggle to focus and execute. Vekic managed to go up again 6-2 in the tiebreaker, but froze at that point and began hitting most of her shots long. She had trouble serving first serves in for the second half of the entire third set, but she really was unable to respond defensively once Danilovic got a full swing in.
After watching Danilovic down Collins and sort of defeat Vekic, it’s hard to count her out against Vondrousova. Marketa is a clear favorite against most players on clay, but the scorelines of her matches can be hard to predict. Against Paquet she was up a set and cruising up a double break in the second, and wound up back on serve. She closed out, but Vondrousova doesn’t hit that big and mostly thrives by defending and earning errors, so Danilovic will be able to compete. They played in the BJK cup and Vondrousova won in 3, and I’m guessing slower clay will give Vondrousova more of an edge. Vekic’s lack of speed really hurt her, and I think Vondrousova being able to put extra ball consistently in play will make Danilovic’s rough patches more of an issue. The emotional and physical output of Danilovic over the last few rounds has to take a toll, and I think she’ll fall a game or two short here. Vondrousova in 3.

Gauff vs Cocciaretto :

This is an excellent draw for Gauff so far. She’s playing great players, but stylistically they’re not a lot of trouble for her. This round is another good spot. Elisabetta Cocciaretto is a good server and has nice power, but she’s not the fastest around the court and she can make some unforced errors if she’s rushed. This means Gauff’s defense and power give her a great shot to win without trouble. Cocciaretto beating Samsonova was a surprise to me, but Samsonova doesn’t have the speed that Gauff does nor the consistency. This is a criminally short analysis but Gauff in 2.

Tauson vs Jabeur :

Great champions are able to elevate their games. This round, Ons will need to elevate hers. Clara Tauson is playing some great tennis, and coming into this match hers is the higher level. Jabeur was projected to have trouble against Fernandez and she did. It was another match where I felt like a good coach could have gotten their player across the finish line. Fernandez didn’t have a great chance in the first, but Jabeur was very willing to give the second away. Fernandez was able to dig in on defense and rally with Jabeur until she made errors or gave Leylah opportunities. Rather than keep rallying and really punish Jabeur, Fernandez went for winners … and missed them all. I’m not exaggerating here, in the second set she missed almost every offensive shot she went for, and it didn’t feel like she had to go for them. Jabeur hits bigger than Fernandez, so on the court it may have felt like she needed to do a lot, but most of her points come from consistency, so Leylah’s team will want to focus on having her focus on the mental battle going on in her opponent’s head rather than trying to be a big hitter. Physically, it’s just not in the cards for her to be slinging offense. Maybe she landed those same shots in an earlier round, so going for them was fine, but awareness on court is important, and Jabeur was trying to give the set away. After winning, Jabeur celebrated a bit which left me puzzled. It’s natural to be happy when you win, but I feel a little odd about these matches sometimes. Fernandez didn’t land a first serve for the last 20 minutes, threw in a ton of errors, and tried to hit an overhand winner for some reason off a return at 5-5 in the tiebreaker. It was a nice win, but Jabeur made this match hard on herself. I might be in hater mode today and I apologize, but it feels like sometimes players tap their head or pump their fist after overcoming challenges that they themselves created.
Positives for Jabeur were the times she put one extra ball back. She has had a middling season, and seeing her dig in is great. Her racquet skill is some of the best on tour as well, so the gets aren’t just a boost, they’re downright effective. She has the ability to stretch to her forehand and put squash gets back extremely low, and to flick cross-court forehands that seem impossible from how extended her arm is. Jabeur’s depth of talent is why she is still slightly favored in this match, because again, Clara Tauson is coming in at a high level. Tauson beat Ostapenko, and followed it up by putting Kenin through the ringer. Kenin had no chance in the first, but in the second she was able to reel back a break of serve and apply some decent pressure. Frustratingly, she just wasn’t able to execute in the big moments. At 15-30 5-5, Tauson hit a lob that was going a few feet out (to the side). While running backwards, Kenin seemed unaware of where she was in the court. She tried to play it overhead and missed. It was a momentum killer, and she ended up missing the remainder of her offensive opportunities.
Throughout the match, the big difference in the two was Tauson’s ability to score quickly. When she lands first serves, or if you give her a moment to get a full swing anywhere inside the baseline, you are toast. She has the type of power that Anisimova/Collins generate on their backhand, and she has a heavy forehand. That is why I suspect Jabeur will have a tough time winning this quickly. Jabeur has the endurance and variety to frustrate Tauson, but this feels like a battle of two big offenses, and Jabeur’s is a bit less consistent at this point. I want to believe Jabeur wins in 3, but she will need to step up her game and avoid the type of letdown she had in the second against Fernandez. Tauson is several tiers above Leylah and Osorio in terms of offensive opportunities, and both those players were able to get in winning position in at least one set. I’m still going to go with Jabeur in 3. Tauson has beaten some offenses, and some defenses, but Ons is the most complete player she’s faced so it feels very much like “prove it” territory for me.

Arnaldi vs Tsitsipas :

The story in Arnaldi’s match seems to be Rublev’s temper, but don’t let that overshadow Arnaldi’s performance. For me, Rublev’s temper is partially his fault, and partially his team’s. I’m especially sensitive to this after watching the last round, but being reactive to the outcome of points is a bit of a leak. If you are easily moved by events, then you are always able to be moved. It compounds, because if you are really good at something, there is no reason to believe that minor failures will continue, or even matter. It gives your opponent motivation, it wastes your valuable reserves of adrenaline and dopamine (depending on good/bad outcomes), and it’s honestly fairly distracting for an opponent. Just generally speaking, if my opponent is smashing his head with a racquet, I don’t really want to beat him. I’m still going to, but I want to compete and win, I don’t really want to add suffering to someone else. It’s unprofessional, it’s a detriment to his game, and it puts his opponents and umpires in an uncomfortable spot. Of course, he knows this, but it should hit home in this moment that he lost this match because of his lack of composure, and lost it to a player who thrives because of his composure.
Matteo Arnaldi plays steady consistent tennis. He works hard, he constantly works on his game, and he isn’t reactive out there aside from hyping himself up. He beat Fils because of deviations in his level of play and because he made it clear he wouldn’t miss. Fils forced shots and missed because he was unwilling to do the work. He beat Rublev because despite Rublev opening the match hitting clean and crushing winners, he just stayed the course and kept competing. When Christmas disappeared, Rublev noticed, and he did not like it. The crux of the issue is, he did not accept it. If I am upset about the way things are, that is natural. If I grit against the way they are, I suffer. If I accept the way things are, I am (counterintuitively) instantly free to begin working on changing them. It doesn’t mean we celebrate errors or loss, but resetting to the present moment is a major key to winning in professional sports and tennis players in particular have a difficulty with this.
I’m not trying to dump on all these players or attack them here either. All of them are tremendous athletes and are mostly excellent ambassadors and competitors. All of these struggles are natural and we all experiences the highs and lows of competition, but Rublev wants to win and this is something he needs to work on to do that consistently. If his coaches aren’t working on this with him, they’re doing him a disservice. If they are and he isn’t buying into it, he’s doing them a disservice. Everything is fine with Rublev’s game but the holes are clear. He needs more reps at net, he needs to develop dropshots, and he needs to not smash racquets.
For now, it’s Arnaldi vs Tsitsipas. Stefanos has been excellent this event, and he opens as the favorite for a reason. Zhang played solid in round 3, but he was helpless against Tsitsipas. Stef is holding serving quickly, and the speed with which he’s finding a forehand to the open court off of players’ returns is the catalyst of this. His stamina is a major weapon in these conditions and in this format, and his serve/forehand is one of the best left in the event. If Arnaldi wants to win, the plot is simple. Isolate Tsitsipas’ backhand, and get deep in sets. In the late stages of a close set, Tsitsipas is still prone to some shanks. I really do think Arnaldi needs to win the first set to have a shot here, but had Rublev been playing Tsitsipas I think we’d be expecting a somewhat close match so there’s no real argument for Arnaldi to get blown out here. He has a complete game, and he has good discipline. He’s lanky so he might be able to return well, and he can send his backhand down the line so Tsitsipas can’t just camp in his backhand corner. Forehand to forehand though, I think Tsitsipas wins. Losses to Ruud, Jarry, Medvedev make me think that Arnaldi has a bit of a ceiling, but all those were close affairs so Tsitsipas should have his hands full here. Tsitsipas in 4-5.

Alcaraz vs Auger-Aliassume :

Shelton and FAA was fairly hyped, but only Felix delivered. Shelton wasn’t really that bad, but FAA just showed he’s more comfortable on the surface. He faced no break points, and won comfortably in straight sets. His next match will be a lot more difficult, as he plays a version of Carlos Alcaraz that is cruising through the draw without really playing his best tennis. Alcaraz vs Korda was a strange contest. It reminded me a bit of Zverev or Rune playing matches they know they’re going to win. They don’t want to play extra sets, so they play a bit more carefully and just make sure to outlast their opponent. What ends up happening is the score stays close, and the stronger players needs to win a tense tiebreaker or break late in the set. Sure, they still win, but I think that an all-out assault from an earlier moment would allow them to fatigue their opponent.
These guys are all in tremendous shape (even Kotov), but there are levels/paces that they can’t hang at for long. Someone like Alcaraz can push the pace and wear Korda down, and once he breaks from that level, the odds of him winning the next sets easily are more likely. We watched Nadal and Djokovic do this to opponents for a long time, and the late sets were almost always blowouts after frantic openers. We watched Federer do the same thing mentally to opponents with a constant onslaught of offensive shots and tricky slices. If you don’t push the pace to a level your lower-tier opponent can’t hang at, they end up playing at a pace they’re comfortable with and then you play the same level of Korda in set 1 as you do in set 3.
Hater mode continues, but in this case I think it’s all assuming that Alcaraz is totally healthy. If he’s saving his arm for later, he played Korda perfectly. Sebastian continues to battle even with the best players on tour, and in the big moments he doesn’t change his game. 4-4 in a tiebreaker isn’t the time to force anything, but if you’re the underdog and have nothing to lose, it might be a good choice to ratchet up the pace a little, or take some chances. Instead, he seems to throw in rally ball errors. The two forehand misses he had in the tiebreaker were rough, but worse was that they weren’t even shots that were going to score. He was just guiding the ball in straight over the net. I guess in the end, beating Alcaraz, or even playing him even for a time, is a huge ask. It was a great match.
FAA will have his best chance to beat Alcaraz here. Alcaraz’s arm is potentially not 100%, and Korda probably should have won a set. I think the pace alone that Felix brings will wake Carlitos up a bit, and he has beaten FAA the last few times they’ve played so he’ll know which shots to employ and when. Even with his arm a question mark, Alcaraz’s speed around the court and ability to extend rallies are the right assets to score on FAA. Auger-Aliassime’s main issue on tour is that he can overhit forehands and cough up unforced errors. It should be noted also that FAA Shelton was played under a closed roof, which helps Felix’s serve a bit. The weather in Paris looks pretty nice for the rest of the tournament, so it’ll be warm and ideal for Alcaraz to wear him down and isolate his backhand when he can. FAA is good enough to compete at this level, but hasn’t been doing it regularly enough for me to think he can do so here for 3 whole sets. Alcaraz in 4.

Hurkacz vs Dimitrov :

Dimitrov leads this h2h 5-0. All the matches have been close, but you don’t get to 5-0 against Hurkacz unless you can reliably return serve. If you can reliably return serve, you can beat Hurkacz, and on clay it should be even more beneficial. Hurkacz has played excellent in this clay swing considering his status as a servebot, and leading into Wimbledon and the North American swing I think his baseline improves have him primed for some titles. He had a hard test with Shapovalov in round 3, and the new and sort of decent Shapovalov put up a good fight. Dimitrov had an easier time with Zizou Bergs, despite dropping a set. Bergs broke Dimitrov a bunch in this match, but Dimitrov’s slice gave him a lot of trouble. Grigor was content to just keep hitting the court, and it was enough in the end. Bergs had trouble lifting his forehand inside in off of the slice, and it meant going mostly inside out which Dimitrov was only too comfortable with. The quick turnaround is a concern here, but I don’t think the Bergs match was as labor intensive as it could have been. There were numerous rain delays, and the scores were close but only because Dimitrov didn’t redline. He served with control, he hit to big targets, and he secured the bag.
I don’t think Hurkacz gets beaten quickly here, and I don’t think Dimitrov is automatic just because of the h2h. He should win, but Dimitrov lost to Rune/Mensik/Fritz recently and those are all players right around Hurkacz level. If this goes to a 5th, I’d be pretty worried for Dimitrov’s chances. Picking Dimitrov in 4 feels tough, because Bergs got to a 4th and he wasn’t really playing his best today. The h2h is hard to ignore, so I’ll go with Dimitrov in 5. The quick turnaround might leave him tired but he should be able to outduel Hurkacz in most volleys and the low slices will be tough for the big dude to get down on.

Sinner vs Moutet :

Nothing like a seemingly simple one to end a full day of criticizing professional athletes for not being perfect <3. Moutet has been the most entertaining player in this event. He has won and lost lopsided sets, he has gone for every shot possible, he is chatting with the crowd, and he is giving the home country something to believe in. Considering he couldn’t even hit a two-handed backhand for a good chunk of the past year due to wrist surgery, it’s pretty impressive for him to get his game back to a really high level. Ofner was beating him early in the third round, but he was also sweating profusely. The workload of defending against Moutet’s big forehand strokes and his clever dropshots is exhausting, and Ofner’s game dipped as the match went on. It’ll be fun to see Sinner trading with Moutet, and it’ll be another look at his physical ability to see how quickly he moves to the frontcourt and how he defends Moutet’s forehand inside out. Generally with a hip injury, it’s sprinting forward and leaning wide to that side that becomes an issue.
Sinner has sort of entered a big however many group in terms of his results. He is able to beat the lower tier players for the entire match, and is consistently able to do so. There are no holes in his game, and aside from his hip issue there is no reason to think he loses here. Moutet has the game to make this the match of the day, but it feels like he’s spent a lot more time and energy on court and that’ll cost him. Sinner in 3.

HUGtto Precure is the season that marks the fifteenth anniversary of Precure. It's main theme was the past, present and future. Was it a good season of Precure? ...Yeah I'd say so. Did it have flaws? Sadly a lot. So let's look at both of them:
THE CURES
While they're not the best as a group compared to other teams, like sometimes Macherie and Amour feel like their own thing, I can at least think of some pretty good dynamics between each character this season, obviously Macherie and Amour are one, but then you have Yell + Ange, Yell + Amour, Ange + Etoile, etc, overall they're all pretty solid dynamics.
Cure Yell/Hana Nono - I LOVE HANA NONO, like I may be biased because she's my favorite pink lead in all of Precure, but putting that aside, she had really amiable traits, an endearing personality (she's such a clutz), and had flaws that made her pretty relatable. Now, do I think her backstory was kind of random and she was tad bit too much of a genki girl towards the second half? ...As much as I want to deny that, yes. But she was still done right. Bonus points for having one of the healthiest families in all of Precure (this could go for other cures but I just really love the Nono's).
Cure Ange/Saaya Yakushiji - I really loved Saaya... and then by the end she was kind of decent. Her episodes started out really well and by the end they were kinda a chore to get through, it also doesn't help that her development was in the background at a point in time. Still, I like that she's a bit more of a geek for a blue, and I kind of wish her arc of being an actress to a doctor made a bit more sense because realistically... what is that job transition.
Cure Etoile/Homare Kagayaki - ALL OF HOMARE'S EPISODES WERE ANIMATED SO WELL, like I rewatch Episode 4 and Episode 16 specifically because... well duh. Homare had one of my favourite introduction arcs to a Precure and was really cool... but by the second half... her arc became a tad bit... missing when Harry and Bicine got involved and I think her episodes, from a writing perspective, became a bit of a chore though not as much as Saaya's. Still, I like her and she's pretty solid
Cure Macherie - Macherie was silly, I initially thought she was a tad annoying, but then Amour appeared and she became pretty enjoyable. Like imo she's genuinely pretty entertaining and, while she isn't the most... deep Cure ever, she at least had a pretty good presence throughout the show even if she was overused. I thought she was pretty good.
Cure Amour - I WISH SHE WAS STILL MONOTONE, like she peaked really well at the first half of the season because she was monotone as freak and then by the second half she became... creepily like a human pretty fast. Still, I really love Amour and I do think she's really great, though I do think she was misused a lot.
THE FAIRIES
Hugtan - Hugtan is Elle-chan one right, I love Hugtan and the connection between her and Hana. Hugtan really endeared me as a fairy. Hugtan was cute, fun, never really spoke any lines. I wish more baby fairies were like this.
Harry - Harry is really competent, he's like Tarte 2.0 for me. While the stuff involving Homare was a tad... I actually don't remember if it brought down his character at all or if it brought him up, he was still very fun and I always enjoyed his onscreen presence.
THE SIDE-CHARACTERS
These are some really good side characters in Precure... though sometimes they can get overused, some notable standouts I can remember are... the dude from the first episode who was the first monster of the week, the band dude who had a crush on Hana, Hana's grandma, Hana's whole family, those two characters in Episode 16 who were besties, Macherie's older brother... these people I actually take note of (despite not remembering their names but I do know their personalities so shhh) so props to that HUGtto
Henri - I have positive opinions on him and I do think he is one of the best side characters in Precure. He may have been overused like seriously a side character shouldn't be used THIS much, he was still pretty good.
THE VILLAINS
Charaleet - He was fun and pretty intimidating at times but that's really it for his character. I did like him enough but he never necessarily left that much of an impact on me. I did like the stuff they did with him in the second half but maybe that's because I treat villains as an afterthought compared to side-characters.
Papple - I like Papple a little less then Charaleet, I do think she had a bit more interesting stuff going on involving Gelos or Kurai, and I will say she was fun when redeemed but she was kinda there at the second half for the most part
Diagan - Diagan was so... he was a bit forgettable... sometimes he was unintentionally hilarious but other then that... he was meh
Gelos (+ those butlers) - Gelos was honestly pretty fine until... she got dragged down by HUGtto's second half... and then she was kind of... forgettable by the end but she was at least somewhat decent... her butlers were not good though
Bicine - BICINE HAD SO MUCH GOING FOR THEM. Like the yandere they had, their rivalry with Homare, the backstory with Listol... and then they became an afterthought in the finale which really hurt because I enjoyed them... and then they became a bit... meh me personally.
Dr. Traum - Ok... hot take... while I do like Dr. Traum and how he plays into Amour's arc. I'd honestly remove him from the show if I potentially got to rewrite it. HEAR ME OUT. While I think Dr. Traum was entertaining, he was also kind of misused a LOT in the show, like how his final battle was overshadowed with a crossover. Like, I think Amour finding her own identity (and thus adding to how she'll get over her monotone tendencies later in the show) would make for a good arc on her own
Listol - He was intimidating... and he still kind of is... I don't know. Most of his stuff was kind of related to Bicine... and Listol had some good moments but he's the one I kind of forget the most out of the villains.
George Kurai - Kurai was pretty great, he was mysterious at first and was kinda creepy but as the show went on I did feel empathetic towards him... even if his backstory, to me, was just a tad bit vague. Dude might be one of my picks for a top 10's list of best Precure final villains ever.
MISCELLANEOUS (Fights, Music, Character Design, etc)

• I want to live in the city HUGtto takes place in like it's so casual
• THESE ARE SOME OF MY FAVORITE PRECURE DESIGNS EVER
• ok so maybe this is a mild take but the music was a bit forgettable... though that second ending theme and LOVE & LOVE is so good
• The transformations were lowkey forgettable but Macherie + Amour carried
• I loved the fights sometimes, LIKE THERE IS SOME REALLY GOOD ANIMATION IN SOME EPISODES ...but most of the time they were kind of forgettable
• The all stars movie with all the cures was carried by the villain and Hana, everything else was mostly good, I definitely recommend it.

OVERALL
HUGtto Precure could've been good... and it kind of was? It just had many flaws holding it back from being one of the best of all time. Still, for what it's worth, I will take HUGtto any day over some other seasons, and points for HUGtto for always being consistent with it's main theme of time, some of the characters, and somewhat keeping up the spirit of old and new Precure.
I'm giving this season a really high B+ (7/10)

First off want to start that this is not a shit post. I’m not looking to piss people off by making a post that isn’t remotely close to being highly strange however I do and would very much appreciate some insight into what has been going on in my life.
First, I want to add this has been happening to me since I was a child.
Second, perhaps this is a form of deja vu but it truly doesn’t feel like it.
Third, here’s the story:
A few months ago I had a dream that I would start work at a new place. My dream included the name of the place, where it was located, and how it looked. Whenever I have oddly specific dreams I write them down. I understand that this seems completely normal. However 2 weeks ago I applied to my company’s internal job posting application. You don’t necessarily get a say on which location you are assigned to as it’s based on where they need you. Whatever, no big deal, nothing to think twice about. 1 week ago, I get an email and you guessed it I got offered a job at the same place I dreamt about.
I have never EVER been to this location before. Never seen it, never even went near it. You could imagine how I felt when I crossed reference with my journal. Anyway, I’ve been there now a few days and every minute I’m there I’m constantly feeling like I’m in a haze like state, like I can’t think straight, I’m really dizzy, feel nauseous and have a headache. The building is on the older side but doesn’t have asbestos because no joke I thought I was experiencing symptoms and I even spoke to the health inspector of the property (they looked at me like I was crazy).
Like I mentioned, things like this have happened to me many times since childhood. It’s nothing MAJOR though like I know the winning lottery numbers. I’m shaken up about it because it’s starting to mess with me when I’m trying to sleep. I become worried that I’m going to have one of these dreams and maybe it’ll be a bad one. I don’t see apparitions and I can’t communicate with anything other worldly but I do experience things like this and lately always feel like somethings staring at me. EVERYWHERE I GO.
Does anyone have or care to share some insight? Do you REALLY think it’s Deja vu? Like I said I’ve never ever been to this location, truthfully didn’t know this building existed, don’t know anyone who went, is, or has ever been here and am not even extremely familiar with its geographical location aside from a few main roads in the town. Again, I know you may not deem this post highly strange but this is a very real thing that is happening to me. I have seen mental health professionals and have been evaluated in my life and do not have a diagnosis either. If you are about to leave a nasty comment about this being a shit post please don’t. I’m truly looking for guidance or advice.
Thank you.

30 weeks tomorrow. I basically can’t sleep at night time. At all. I stayed up for 28 hours to fix it. Slept a normal 8 hours at the end of that long stretch only to wake up the next day and not be able to sleep that night. Some days I sleep for 12 hours straight, but I’m never getting good sleep or wake up fully rested. Sometimes I sleep for 3 hours and feel great, or like crap. There’s almost no rhyme or reason to my sleep patterns/lack thereof.
I’m terrified I still won’t be able to sleep once she’s born. I know newborn exhaustion is a thing, and a different kind of tired. But right now all I have to worry about is her growth and my nutrition intake and getting enough rest, not WHEN I rest. Day/night time doesn’t matter too much. Right now I dont have another person who solely depends on me for survival(outside of the womb) who needs a schedule. I guess I’m just scared of having this same viscous (and lonely) cycle going once she’s here too. It’s like I myself am a newborn who has day/night confusion.
People in my circle tell me it’s common but it’s so lonely that I’ve become depressed from it. I realize hormones change after birth and I’ll be so tired from the newborn routine, but I’m so scared of being a failure of a mom because of this depression I’m dealing with and that it won’t go away when postpartum hormones come through.
All I do every day is sleep and wake up a few hours before my husband gets home from work. I get about 2 1/2 3 hours max with him and then he’s sleeping. And I have sleep anxiety. It’s like he’s leaving me for the day again? Because of this and the loneliness/depression it’s caused it’s been difficult to regulate my emotions on top of the typical irritability and irrationality that comes with pregnancy. If anything my body hasn’t suffered from this pregnancy. It’s nearly a flawless pregnancy. But my mind… is suffering in a way that’s hard to explain. this is the least like myself I’ve ever been in my life. I can’t control any of my emotions/feelings/hysterical bouts. And so many people tell me it just gets worse postpartum. If I’m struggling this bad to the point of wanting to bang my head against the doorframe and crying for no reason until my eyes are swollen now how will I ever get better once she’s here? I’m genuinely terrified for my mental health and my baby’s, she can feel what I’m feeling. I’m so scared that she will have a horrible anxious attachment to me from what she’s already experiencing.
I take pregnancy approved medication for these mental struggles that are a side affect of my insufficient sleep/lack of it/too much of it. I’m also working closely with a psychiatrist. Has anyone else experienced this specifically? Did it change after birth? For the better? Or worse?

This is kind of a small win for me in the worst way. My(f23) bf (m22) have been together for 5 1/2 years. He's been struggling with drinking for many years but I've dealt with it quietly until it started coming out in public situations and in front of his family. The first time in front of his family was October last year (I should have left him then but I was in a vulnerable place and couldn't) where he shoved his middle fingers in my face and screamed at me repeatedly that he'll never marry me, fuck getting married, etc. (he had a ring he was supposed to propose to me in march last year with but GLAD he didn't). This incidence was in front of his mom's side of the family.
Today was in front of his dad's side of the family. They've seen his problem but doesn't realize the extent of it. My boyfriend usually filters himself in front of family where he's not yelling at me, calling me names, etc.
We went to one of the largest car shows in California today where he got belligerent drunk. We got separated from the group and he started raising his voice at me and belittling me where the food vendors are. I find his father because when I find at least one family member, he calms down a bit and I'm not alone. Even then, he's being an asshole to his family members. We start making our way back to the car to leave and he runs to the liquor store!!!!! At that point, I gave up. His sister just moved back to town and it's her 2nd day here and she took care of it. She knows NOTHING of how bad he gets and only thinks he's just partying with her but it's not her fault she doesn't understand. She babysits him and I leave with his dad and his girlfriend. His dad's girlfriend (who left an abusive relationship with her ex husband) who is also drunk sees me and knows what I'm going through. She literally takes my hand and we start leaving before I could even chase him down. He eventually makes it to the car, is being a jerk to everyoneeee. We stop and get food and he's yelling and being a jerk to everyoneeee but not like how he is to me. I'm always the one that deals with the most aggression when he puts it out. He passes out in the car while we get food. He's calling me and other family members and he's going off and yelling at me on the phone. His family is starting to say that "this isn't okay." etc.
His dad starts asking more questions about what he's like and if this happens every time and I try to keep my cool because I've been doing it for years but it's definitly coming to a head now. My boyfriend gets up and starts walking home on the highway and his dad had to drive out 15 min away to pick him up before an officer does and takes him to the drunk tank.
They come back, he won't eat except be an asshole to everyone and spill his water everywhere. We get back to the car and he crawls into the trunk and is mocking me in the trunk and just being an asshole because he wanted to go home.
I'm his ride home from his father's house. When we get home, he's slamming doors and being a jerk again. He's raising his voice but now since he's been sobering up, the cursing is less but he's still aggressive. His mom comes to pick up some mail, as he's renting from one of her properties and I'm alone in the living room almost beside myself because I know deep down, this is not what I want. His mom asks if he's being abusive and I just couldn't muster up anything. I just said, "he's doing his thing" but she told me that I need to stick up for myself.
I am sticking up for myself but my time with him is decreasing rapidly. I'm graduating college with my B.S. in 2 weeks and starting a new government job and I just don't know what to do. He's pressuring me into moving in with him after graduation but I know I can't trap myself like that.
So after today and his family getting a small taste of the treatment that I've been receiving, they should understand why I'm going to leave him. It's not a thought of if I leave him, it's a when. Timing it right is what I'm trying to do but there never is a right time. I'm graduating and all his family members are coming to my party and I feel that if I broke up with him today, things would just be an even bigger mess. I just want to leave quietly and be on my way.

Logan the bounty hunter was in a really bad mood.
It all started when the coffee machine stopped working. This wasn’t a rare occurrence; in fact, it was the third time this cycle, but this time his go-to solution (taking out and reinserting the star powder battery) didn’t fix it, and he was all out of ideas.
It’s not that the caffeine even did anything for him. The nanomachines in his system filtered out many sorts of potentially addictive or harmful substances, and for some reason this included caffeine, which is a fact he only realized after the seven-cycle refund period had passed.
Still, it was an old habit and an act of comfort that he sorely felt the absence of.
That was the first thing. The second thing was that his tracker had stopped working. In fact, his entire connection to the galactic wide web (gww) had gone down. Without the tracker, he couldn’t pinpoint the exact location of his current bounty—a low-class deathworlder wanted for kidnapping and trafficking—which kind of made his whole bounty hunting business difficult to do.
Oh, and his ship had crashed.
Damn thing was overdue for maintenance, and the autopilot had started malfunctioning while flying over a small dusty-brown planet. It had taken some careful manual maneuvering and some buffeting about in the planet’s whirlwind atmosphere, but eventually he had managed the miracle of walking away from a smoking and unsalvageable wreckage with only minor cuts and bruises.
Here he was now, trudging through the sandy windswept dunes of a planet that hadn’t even showed up on the map. Armed with little more than a spacesuit, a blaster, and an undying will. And wishing he’d had that cup of coffee (and wasn’t immune to caffeine).
Logan raised a hand to his eyes, peering through the thick glass of his visor. There was so much dust and sand swirling around that it made it quite hard to see where he was going, not that there were any landmarks in sight anyway. It looked scorching hot outside, though his spacesuit registered a cool 286 Kelvin for some reason. Likely another malfunction, one that he’d rather not put to the test.
On a planet like this, he supposed, everyone (if anyone was even here) probably lived under the surface where it was probably cooler and probably free from sandstorms. All he had to do was find the entrance to their underground tunnels among all this shifting sand.
The chance of that happening was, unfortunately, not very high. Still, Logan wasn’t panicking yet; he’d been through worse, he thought. He’d been through jungles teeming with 8-foot beetles. Survived massive hiveminds circling to entrap him, faced slippery slimes that reformed their bodies to resemble those he held dearest. Horrible learning experiences, those.
That being said, sometimes it’s the mundane problems that pose the greatest threats of all. Starvation, aching thirst, and a dwindling oxygen supply while wandering a barren desert. It wouldn’t be a glamorous way to go out, and Logan was wracking his brain for ideas.
Now would’ve been a good time to use his rescue beacon, if he had one. This would be his, what, 127th bounty? And until now, he’d never had to use a beacon. Stopped carrying one a dozen bounties ago. Maybe it was just luck, but things had always gone pretty smoothly, and maybe he’d gotten a little overconfident.
Logan knelt down and grasped at the ground, watching the little grains of sand sift through his gloved fingers. Those little specks seemed to shimmer and flicker, like a low quality hologram call. Otherwise, though, they seemed normal; surprisingly similar to the sand he remembered from Earth. It made sense that some things remained the same throughout the universe; it’s not like every planet could re-invent the periodic table, after all. Even aliens had to remain grounded in reality, however loosely.
He looked down. According to his suit’s display, he had a few hours of oxygen left. He’d been walking for a while now with nothing but the sands to show for it. He also had to pee. It was really going quite terribly.
“It looks like you’re doing quite terribly,” a voice said, velvety and welcoming. Logan jerked his head up, blinking rapidly in surprise.
Standing before him, with crossed arms and a smoldering look, was a lithe, dusky-furred humanoid. They—or she, judging by the feminine face—was wearing a long, thin shawl translucent enough to reveal a pair of twitching, swiveling ears and a questioningly arced tail, swaying in the wind.
The feline features were unmistakable. It was, by all accounts, a catgirl.
Mentally, Logan pumped his arm and jumped for joy. Just wait until the guys back at Earth heard about this! Many a novice pilot first set out for the stars with dreams of catgirls and other alien babes in mind, but thus far, most alien species had been decidedly strange and eerily-shaped, though this didn’t stop everyone from pursuing them. Outwardly, though, he nodded, and rasped, “I could use some help. Do you know about this thing called ‘oxygen’?”
The catgirl frowned. “Great way to say hi to a girl. But yes, you aren’t the first traveler to crash-land on Shaw Prime. Follow me.”
“Oh, great,” Logan said. How convenient. “Where to?”
“My people live underground, hidden from the elements within a complex system of—”
“Tunnels? I knew it.”
The catgirl turned around and whipped her tail against Logan’s leg. It kind of stung for a moment. “I don’t know what culture you come from, traveler, but in mine, it’s rude to interrupt someone while they’re speaking. Especially if they’re the host and you, the guest.”
Logan rubbed the back of his head (or tried to, but the spacesuit got in the way). “Sorry. Just got excited. Interrupting someone speaking is actually considered rude in my culture, too.”
“So you should’ve known better.” The catgirl harrumphed and started marching forward, waving her tail to signal him to follow. He shrugged and started trudging along behind her.
“So where am I, exactly? ‘Shoe Prime’ you said earlier, I think?”
“Shaw Prime,” she corrected. “A small sand planet on the outermost reaches of the nearest solar system. Quite uninhabitable for most, and all our visitors arrive unwillingly.”
“I see. It certainly feels inhospitable. And,” Logan said, jumping in place a couple times, “you’ve got decently strong gravity, though less than where I come from. You know, this feels like at least a minor deathworld to me.”
“The term ‘deathworld’ is new to me, but it does seem fitting enough.”
“Right. I’m guessing the Galactic Federation hasn’t gotten around to marking your planet yet. Actually, your planet didn’t even show up on my map; people might not even know that civilization exists here. Huh.” It would be the first time for Logan to discover a new species. He could report this back home, and hopefully get handsomely rewarded for it.
“The ‘Galactic Federation’? I haven’t heard that term before. What does it mean?”
“That’s the big alliance formed by all the space-faring species of the known universe. They’re basically responsible for everything, including first official contact with new species like yours.” Logan paused a moment. “Wait, you said I’m not the first traveler to land here, right? How have you not heard of the Galactic Federation before?”
The catgirl’s ears twitched, but she didn’t look back. “They must have neglected to mention it.”
“Weird. Surely someone must’ve mentioned it. The Federation’s got these rules for first contact, see, and—”
“We’re almost there.” The catgirl interrupted, glancing back at him with those smoky eyes. “The hidden entrance to the tunnels lies just ahead.”
Logan peered through his visor. Ahead of his guide’s slim figure, he saw nothing but more of the same brown hues. A sudden uneasiness prickled his skin. “Where? I don’t see anything.”
“If you could see it, it wouldn’t be very hidden, would it? Come on.”
She beckoned him forward, and a few paces later, stopped entirely. She crouched down and scrabbled at the sand a few times, revealing a circular wooden hatch buried under a thin layer of sand. It didn’t look that heavy, but she grunted and strained to lift it up with her paws, revealing a dark cavern down inside.
“In you go,” she said, pointing her tail at the hole.
Something about this didn’t sit right with Logan. Maybe it was the way her fur stood warily on end, the way her ears shivered every so often. Maybe it was the fact that his guide didn’t know about the Galactic Federation, yet seemed familiar enough with travelers to communicate with ease. Sure his universal translator helped, but that was only supposed to work with discovered species, not ones that had yet to be contacted and researched. Or maybe it was just that he didn’t like jumping into suspiciously dark holes in the ground.
There was also the fact that the temperature gauge in his suit was now measuring a chilly 270 Kelvin. A far cry from the heat suggested by the sun-baked sands he saw.
He had a guess where this was going, and he didn’t like it, not one bit.
“Say,” he said, conversationally. “I noticed your hologram flickering earlier. Think you need some maintenance.”
“What?” The catgirl said, raising a dusky eyebrow. “I don’t know what that is. Won’t you go inside?”
“I’m just saying. It’s a convincing show and all, promise, but once you’ve been in the biz long enough, you start noticing small details like flickering sand and mismatched temps.”
“Look at you. All the heat must’ve gone to your head.” She said, sidling up to him. There was a sudden yet subtle shift in her demeanor, so quick that he almost didn’t notice. Her eyes lowered, her tongue darted out to lick her nose, and she placed one foot in front of the other gracefully, retracing her own steps perfectly. She approached him, casually curling her tail around his leg, sending tingles up his spine.
“Poor, weary traveler. It must’ve been tough, sailing through space all on your own. Won’t you come inside and rest a while?” She purred, tugging him gently towards the open hatch. “Quickly, before the sand covers it again.”
He inched a hand towards the blaster hanging at his side, unmoved by the obvious act. “Does the word ‘gelatinous’ mean anything to you?”
Her eyes locked onto his hand, her tail going stiff behind her. “Not as such, no. Why don’t we discuss this inside? After you, of course.”
“Of course. I’ll be on my way, then.”
Logan said, shoving her away, leaping back, and unholstering his blaster, all in one practiced motion. She landed softly on all fours, hissed, then sprang at him, fast as lightning. He raised an arm to block, pulling up his blaster and aiming it at her center mass. At the same time, she skidded to an abrupt halt before him, half-crouching as one hand darted past his arm without a sound.
They both froze. Logan’s blaster trained on her torso, her claws nearly piercing his neck. It seemed they were at a deadlock.
Wait, Logan thought to himself. I have a spacesuit.
His fingers itched on the trigger, but in that same instant, he heard a small tearing sound as a single claw slipped through several layers of synthetic polymers, Kevlar, and silica fiber to rest itself pointedly against the actual skin of his neck. A small hissing sound indicated the oxygen leaking from the new hole in his suit.
“That’’s a sharp knife you’ve got.” He said, feeling his mouth drying up.
“It’s not a knife,” she said smugly, though her raised fur betrayed her wariness.
“Enough of these illusions, okay? I’ve seen through ‘em. We’re not in a desert, and you’re not a catgirl. I’ve met your kind before—shape-shifting, amorphous slimes, always taking the form of something I love. Usually it’s my late wife or a dear friend, but pretending to be a catgirl is taking it too far.” He sniffed.
She hmphed, and said, “You’re only half-right, outworlder.” She let out a trilling sound, and a moment later, the world flickered out of existence.
With the veil lifted, Logan could see the world for what it really was. Gone were the tan-brown desert and the shifting sands. In their place was a world of ash. White and grey specks drifted through a sunless sky, cold and desolate. Looking down, he saw that his feet were buried ankle-deep in the stuff. So the feeling of sand had been real, sort of. He wondered what it was made of.
Dreading what he would see, he raised his eyes once more, only to see the same catgirl shivering in her shawl before him.
“This is what I actually look like,” she said, pricking her claw against his neck. “Now how about dropping that gun and sticking your hands in the air?”
“So catgirls are real.” Logan wondered aloud, feeling hope swelling in his chest.
“I… guess?” She seemed uneasy about the way he looked at her. “So about that gun—"
“What is this place?” He asked, prodding his blaster against her stomach. “I’m pretty sure it looked like a desert world from outside. Don’t tell me you have some, some kind of planet-wide hologram going on. That would be… I don’t know, prohibitively expensive, and very concerning.”
“Yes,” she said, straight-faced. “The hologram covers the whole solar system, in fact. We are at the center of a powerful criminal empire spanning the galaxy. The white ash is made from cremating the corpses of all who have dared to oppose us, and soon you will join their ranks.”
“Woah, really?” Logan said, raising an eyebrow. They must deal in trafficking, then.
“No, I lied. Although, usually that gets a bigger reaction out of outworlders. Now come on, you can surrender now or wait until my backup gets here, and then it’ll get messy. You choose.”
“I think I’ll wait for more catgirls to show up, thanks.”
She hissed. “It’s your lucky day. Here they are now, actually.”
From behind mountains of ash, they plodded forwards. All varieties of colors, from dusky to snow-white to calico, but all sporting the same unmistakable ears and tails. Logan’s heart beat with excitement, until he noticed the strange metal tubes being pointed at him from all angles.
“Ah, am I correct in assuming that those are your planet’s version of blasters?”
The catgirl retracted her claw from his neck and nodded in confirmation. “They’ll blast a big hole right through you.” She stretched her arms and yawned wide, letting herself relax now that her reinforcements were here.
Logan dropped the blaster to his side. “Well, shit.” Surrounded by armed enemies on all sides, he had no choice but to obey.
It was then that he had a really stupid idea. One that would probably get him killed, but which would be really funny if it worked.
His blaster had a laser scope that shined a visible red dot on his target when toggled on. An attached laser pointer, in other words. If these catgirls were anything like the felines he knew on Earth…
Hell, it was worth a shot.
[To be continued? Or maybe not. I didn’t know how to end this, and I felt pretty silly writing it :c]

This time last year my boyfriend was head over heels for me. I managed to take things fairly slow and definitely took longer until I felt the same way about him... I thought I was so cautious but now it almost feels like he's grossed out that I like him back??
I thought I was fairly secure but now I'm a mess. I don't know how I went from the girl of his dreams to someone he barely even communicates with and can easily be cold to. I keep replaying our entire relationship in my head to try and figure out what I did that was so wrong. Which I know is unhealthy, but I can't stop. I asked him if I was overwhelming him or annoying him and he said "You are never annoying" but I just can't believe he means that! I just want to be calm and not care so much!!!
I know I need to work on self-soothing, I know I shouldn't text paragraphs or even a short "hope you had a good day!" or even call him because I'm supposed to let him come to me, but I can barely sleep. I just rotted and got nothing done and wasted my whole Saturday again. I hate that my entire day hinges on whether or not he's said even one remotely kind thing to me, I feel like such a fool. I just feel like we have such similar issues like two sides of the same coin. I want to help him learn to co-regulate while I learn to self-regulate better.
I wish I could detach and be calm until he sorts through his mess a bit and inevitably comes back around, I know he needs to miss me a little. I just have no security in any other area of life except for my friendships, even most of my family relationships are unhealthy, so I am very very very grateful for my friends.
I have access to at least one friend at all times, which is the benefit of different timezones I guess, but I don't want to just get in an equally unhealthy habit of relying on them too much either, I know which friends will drop everything and talk me through my anxiety with no issue, they know I do the same for them, but I can't use that as a crutch.
I should have cleaned my room, I have so many chores to do because my mom makes me pay $1400 a month and do EVERYTHING, I have such little life left for myself, but I still should have done something today. I just watched Bridgerton and scrolled TikTok and saw other women getting attention and romance and consistency that I don't have. Then I stressed about my finances and how doomed I feel and how that's part of why my boyfriend is unsure about me now. I don't want this to make me feel worthless and hopeless but it is. I'm in so much pain. I don't want to feel like this desperate loser.

I am NOT OOP, OOP is u/Capable_Goal_6116
Originally posted to TrueOffMyChest
My husband got a vasectomy and didn’t tell me
Trigger Warnings: accusations of infidelity, emotional abuse and manipulation, betrayal
Original Post: May 18, 2024
Throwaway bc my husband knows my main. I don’t know what to do. My (31F) husband (32M) - fake name Chris, and I have been married for four years, together for six. When we first got together we had several long talks about how we both wanted a big family. I wanted to be very upfront that child free is not an option, and I said I wanted to have at least four kids. I’m an only child and know how lonely it is, I also said I wanted to have them about a yeayear and a half apart so they could grow up close.
He always wholeheartedly agreed to this and often made jokes like “whether we have 4 or 6, have as many as we want, it’s your call since you pretty much have to do all the work” and on our wedding day before we left the reception for our honeymoon he whispered “can we get outta here and get started on baby #1?” I loved how excited he seemed. To be clear I didn’t go off my BC until about two months after we were married and I got pregnant soon after with our first daughter Joy.
Joy was a happy pregnancy, long birth, but she was a beautiful, healthy baby. She went through colic which was trying, but other than that she was a happy first addition according to me. I noticed Chris became distant during my first pregnancy, but when I asked him about it he just said he had a lot in his mind being a new father. He said he was still excited, but something changed. For reference, we both work full time, I make about 20K more a year than him, and the five bedroom house that we live in was a gift from my mom who was very excited to be a grandma to many. My job is fully remote, but still offers maternity leave, and I have a nest egg savings for emergencies, and feel it’s important to mention this because I know finances can be a major stress factor when it comes to having kids, but not for me and Chris.
Then Joy came out perfectly, Chris had three months of paternity leave and was home with us for majority of that time. My mom visited a lot, and paid to have cleaners come. There were still a lot of long nights and it was tough for me to breastfeed, but overall nothing unexpected. Chris still seemed distant, but always helped with Joy. We have an agreed open phone policy, so I did check his phone quite often but didn’t find any sign of cheating. He goes through my phone whenever he wants too. I asked if he found me unattractive while pregnant and he assured me no, he loves me and he’s excited for our family.
Fast forward a year after, we’re sleeping through the night and I am back to work, saw my doctor and was cleared to try for bundle of joy #2, and Chris seemed very enthusiastic at this point. He even downloaded an app to track my fertility cycle so we could make the most of my ovulation times.
We had a lot of fun and he was always very passionate, but six months of trying with no pregnancy I started to worry. I’d voice my concerns and Chris would brush them off, so I tried to be patient, but then almost two years passed and Joy is growing up by herself.
I broke down to my mother crying and she agreed to come with me to the doctor to get checked out. I was very emotional and scared, but the doctor assured me everything is fine and that I should be able to conceive without any issues.
I went to Chris with this knowledge and he was very upset I went to a fertility specialist. I explained I thought something might have gone wrong during my last pregnancy, concerned that I was maybe blocked or infertile somehow. He said why not wait and “just let nature take its course” and I said “our little girl is almost three, and growing up by herself.” I reminded him of our plans and he just nodded and said all we can do is try. I asked if he would see a fertility specialist and he got angry, saying there’s nothing wrong with him and we don’t have the money for fertility treatments anyway. This confused me since we do have money, we have my savings and are doing pretty well.
When he went to sleep I decided to go through his phone again and went back through his calendar and call logs. I noticed about eight months after Joy was born there was a blocked day indicating he’d taken off from work, but it was in the middle of the week and I don’t remember any sort of special occasions behind why he’d take this random day off. I went through the call logs and found an office number about a week before and when I googled the number a local business where you could get a vasectomy appeared! I couldn’t believe what I was looking at. I instantly felt cold all over then started to panic.
I woke him up and confronted him. He just stared at me while I went off and admitted babies were harder than he thought and he felt like my first pregnancy took forever.
I couldn’t believe it. I packed my things, Joy and her things and drove to my mom’s house. She is in distress with my sudden appearance and my inability to stop crying. I finally told her yesterday morning what happened and she’s just beside herself. I don’t know what to do, but every time I think about how during sex Chris would talk to me about giving me a baby and he’d had the vasectomy the entire time. I feel so disgusted and stupid. I can’t believe my little girl is going to grow up alone. Chris has been blowing up my phone, but I just keep letting it ring and haven’t read any of his texts.
Edit: to those saying I “coerced” my “poor husband” into agreeing to a big family, nope. I was always open and honest about my dreams, told him it’s okay if he wanted different things, and he not only repetitively agreed and accepted, he also helped me plan, nest, put together the nursery and enthusiastically participated in conversations regarding having multiple children around friends and family, and always said we’d have at least 4. That was our number. Him getting a vasectomy behind my back was a complete shock.
Also, we’ve both always agreed to the open phone policy. I never “betrayed his trust” by going through his phone since I always had his consent to do so and he has mine. We even have the same phone pass code. I never wanted to be in a relationship where we kept secrets from each other. I know other couples feel different, but this is another thing he always 100% claimed he agreed with me on.
I vaguely remember one week where he actually turned me down for sex claiming he had a “head cold” and he didn’t join me in the shower like usual during that time, but I didn’t think anything about it. And no, men never need a wife’s signature to get vasectomy.
Comments
FantasticAnus: There's nothing wrong with child number one changing his mind, but he should have been open and honest about that and said that he wouldn't be having any more children, and then it would have been up to you as to whether you could live with that, or move on from him.
What he did, however, was duplicitous and manipulative. I don't think I could stay with a man who was so willing to keep such an enormous lie from me, one which impacts me, my daughter and my future enormously.
MyUsernameIsMehh: He has every right to not want more kids, you have every right to want more.
What he did not have the right to do was fool you for years. Men who have had vasectomies but hide it and "try for a baby" are beyond disgusting. Their wives think something is wrong with them, they go to specialists and sometimes spend a LOT of money on fertility treatments.
He's a spineless little shit (pardon my words, but it's true) who pushed you to have breakdowns over this.
He had every right to get a vasectomy, he didn't need your permission, but he had NO RIGHT to hide it and pretend you two were trying for another child.
 
Update: May 24, 2024
Some of you made some comments about my mom gifting my husband and I a house, paying for occasional cleaning services implying that Chris feels somehow emasculated by this, also implying I am “too financially dependent on my mom.” I make very good money, I have a sizable savings and don’t need any help, my mom was excited to buy this house for us as a wedding present. My dad passed away when I was young, he was wealthy and left my mom everything, so she shares his love since I’m her only kid. I make more money than Chris and always have. Yes his name is on the house, so yeah I’m gonna get screwed over in the divorce.
Some of you complained I “broke his trust” by going through his phone. He goes through my phone too. We have the same passcode. Some comments called this agreement between us unhinged, which to me is bizarre. Chris, I thought, was my soulmate, my husband and best friend. We don’t have secrets. I thought. Isn’t that the whole point of marriage? To finally have one person in the whole world you can tell everything to? To always be on the same team? Obviously I was wrong, and as many of you pointed out, that kind of love, trust and openness doesn’t really exist, and none of that matters now.
Chris and Joy seemed fine to me, but in hindsight there’s always been a hesitation on his part. I always thought it was just typical since the short while my dad was alive in my life I don’t really remember him being affectionate or warm. He was nice and played with me sometimes, but I don’t remember being held by him very much. I asked Chris many times if everything was okay when I noticed he was distant. He always said things were great, and give an excuse; just tired, work is draining, no big deal.
We’re in the US, and here a man can go get a vasectomy at any time. I don’t know what Chris told his doctor. For all I know he took his wedding ring off and gave a sob story, or probably just walked in and asked for the procedure. It doesn’t matter.
I’m really thankful for my mother. She’s heartbroken for me, and like many of you, she already knows my marriage is over. There’s been a lot of long nights of me crying that she’s endured.
I’m numb when I’m not crying, and keep getting this creepy feeling that nothing matters. We’re getting a divorce. I finally called Chris and he sobbed he was sorry, said he might be able to get it reversed. I’ve read a lot about vasectomies since my last post, and sometimes it can’t be reversed. It’s always a risk.
Again, it doesn’t matter. It’s not actually about the vasectomy. It’s that the person who I thought was the one person in the world that I could trust, that I was on the same page as, literally writing the book together, made this decision without me and kept it from me and the lied for years. I really thought what we had was true love. Now I’m pretty certain that doesn’t even exist.
Chris has not offered any explanation. He cried, begged my forgiveness and said again that he could get it reversed. Even if he can, the rest is irreversible. He never once answered my question. It’s really painful to talk to him, so after three times of asking and him each time dodging answering, and begging forgiveness, I finally just said to please leave the house and told him he’d hear from my lawyer.
He texted that he’s packed and left, and I haven’t heard from him since. He never once asked about Joy.
My lawyer says I might wind up paying alimony, but I might be able to get the house since it was a gift from my mother and Chris has never made any financial contribution. He also says Chris committed a kind of infidelity since he went behind my back to have this life altering procedure and admitted it, so that might help me.
To everyone telling me it’s gonna be okay, and I can still have more children…all of that seems impossible right now. My heart is broken. I’ve never experienced such sadness and the only relief is when I’m playing with my daughter. Her happiness is infectious. She is blissfully unaware, having the time of her life at grandma’s, but unlike her father she actually asks where’s da da?
I called work and took a medical leave of absence. I found a therapist.
My mom has offered to stay with me for a while, as well as hire a nanny.
Comments
BrightAd306: I agree with you. It’s not the vasectomy. It’s lying about it and defrauding you. Wanting your money, but not being a true partner.
Listen to your lawyer. Do what he says, and you’ll come out the other side. Even if you pay alimony, it won’t be forever
DangerNoodleDandy: I agree. The vasectomy and the fact that he hid it are a symptom of a greater issue.
 

DO NOT COMMENT IN LINKED POSTS OR MESSAGE OOPs – BoRU Rule #7

THIS IS A REPOST SUB - I AM NOT OOP

(kind of a rant, kind of a confession. I didn’t know where to put it so I put it here. FYI, this is very long and it’s not funny like my other posts, but it is heartfelt and meaningful and I desperately want somebody to hear me.)
I suck at video games, there’s only a few games I can actually play. I can play Skyrim. I tried playing Oblivion and I gave up after 15 minutes because it was too complicated. I started playing it because my cousin liked it and I wanted to understand him.
I can play certain titles of Legend of Zelda; Ocarina, Twilight Princess, and Skyward Sword. But the minute I picked up Majora‘s Mask I tried for two days and couldn’t get past the second boss. My brothers played these games when I was a kid and I wanted to at least relate to them about something as an adult. I figured if I struggle through Zelda game, they could guide me through it and we could start talking.
The only board game that I truly enjoy is Settlers of Catan, and the only reason I enjoy it is because I actually know how to play it. I have learned how to play Castles. My entire family loves playing board games for hours and hours and hours and hours on end, so if I want to connect to them, I have to learn board games.
I’m also pretty sick at checkers…although I lose to my nine-year-old nephew very frequently (he’s very nice to me about it, he also likes to help me with algebra). I don’t mind checkers because my nephew is so much fun to play with and absolutely adorable. (Me: * genuinely trying my hardest and I lose again*. Him: “It’s OK auntie I’ll play for you next time!” Me: “… but we’re playing together.” Him: “ I know I’ll move your pieces for you but you’ll still be playing your side.”)
I can play poker .. JK no I can’t. I played it for a couple weeks one summer with my coworkers in my early 20s. I had some good memories with my coworkers sitting in the shade outside for four hours every afternoon, just playing poker and cracking jokes. But after that summer I never played it again until last summer when my brother and I had a rare moment of connection when he tried to teach it to me and I played dumb because I just was so happy to be sitting and talking with him without a screen between us and just wanted to prolong the moment.
So I’m gonna learn poker. I want to play with my brother.
In middle school I thought I could take a shot of playing basketball because I’m tall. My coach thought I would be a natural. The only thing I’m natural at is being clumsy. (Imagine that 6 feet tall in seventh grade and the worst player in the B team). Plus all the girls on the team were the popular tough girls and I was definitely not that. I tried again with the softball team, which was slightly better because I was forever in the left field and I never touched the ball. I actually had a couple good times with that, because the team girls were actually fun.
I think my parents thought that I just needed a confidence boost so they signed me up for the churches summer water ski team. Five years. It was absolute torture. I got up the first time that I skied and then fell over. Because the water scared me and I didn’t wanna do it. I refused to get up on the skis for the next five years, but my mother still forced me to do it thinking that I just needed to try harder. My parents both believed in the “throw the kid in the water to teach them how to swim” method of teaching, but for some reason that didn’t work with me like it did my brothers. They found me annoying, stubborn and baffling. I didn’t relate to any of the people there because they were all different than me, plus my two popular brothers either ignored or bullied the fuck out of me to make themselves look good , and I only got along with the few “slutty, poor non-Church kids” that were sponsored on the team 🤣.
I’ve tried watching football and hockey and baseball and basketball and golf with my roommates and all I do is just talk the entire time and piss them off so I end up staying in the basement like a troll. Because I don’t get it. Why are we watching this?
My sister-in-law who is a popular book smart blonde pretty girl from the country tried to “cure me” of my disdain for sports by forcing me to sit down and watch the Super Bowl with her 10 years ago. She never tried again.
I live in Minnesota and people talk about the twins games, and my roommate took me to the twins game a couple months ago … I enjoyed it because it’s a new experience and it’s a very nice arena. Still, Kind of boring though. I ended up cracking jokes the entire game to pass the time. I randomly ran into a friend of mine though so that was OK. But I do think my roommate was kind of annoyed. Apparently, I talk too much. The only reason I went is because I feel like I need to try and connect more with my roommate. (And also to check out the players butts (God bless baseball pants).)
You get it right you see what I’m trying to say here? Competition in general just is not my thing. I don’t feel competitive. I don’t like competing. I think it’s pointless and stupid. I don’t see the point of trying to learn a game for no reason. It’s a waste of time unless the goal is social togetherness and closeness, but so far in my experience, the only thing that’s accomplished socially is rage and hats being thrown on the grass, fights happening left and right. The only other reason competition is OK is if you’re trying to save somebody or you have to accomplish a job.
So for me, I like to sit around and talk to people, but I’m socially awkward because of the family I grew up in so I feel like I’m learning how to talk again. I find that I desperately need my introvert time simply because of the way I was raised, even though I’m naturally an extrovert. But a lot of people find me to be too much. That’s why I love crazy wild insane people who don’t fit in. I understand them. I’m comfortable around the ones that nobody else understands. I see the ones people don’t want. I serve the ones the world looks over. I find it’s possible to relate to the ones everyone else says is impossible to relate to.
I also am the one who is always doing whatever everybody else wants to do in order to just relate to them because sometimes conversations are difficult for me because I’m not interested in most stuff that other people are interested in. I’m only interested in the arts really. I always thought I was autistic because of this, but I don’t think I am. I’m getting tested on Tuesday lol.
(honestly if the test results come back and I turned out to be autistic, it’s not gonna comfort me. I’m going to cry for days. I’ve worked so hard to fit in, but I’ve never belonged. It would be just a confirmation that I’m just an incurable weirdo like I was told my whole life).
But just once I would like to stop being that person whom is always reaching out and doing whatever everybody else wants. You know what I like to do? I like to dance. I want somebody to go to the club with me. I like to entertain on stage and perform for people. I like to teach and help guide young people and those with special needs. Even though the entertainment industry is going down the drain and movies are no longer special…I still love the idea of making movies. I have stories to tell. I like to go to the art museum and just walk around for the entire day and draw. I like studying psychology, anthropology, and religion. I believe strongly in women’s rights, and think that it’s important to raise up the poor and marginalized. I want to go to the homeless shelter and serve there. I fucking fucking fucking love writing stories, and want to draw a graphic novel someday. I want to teach kids how to make art write their stories, and bridge gaps between the disciplines, especially the ones with sports and art. I’m passionate about teaching people to relate to each other instead of bullying each other.
Siderant: I have deep compassion for those with special needs because they are so ignored by so many people. They’re so so so so so DEEPLY valuable to the health of a society. So incredibly valuable. I’ve seen crime people give up murderous intentions for the sake of caring for somebody with special needs. I’ve seen shy people come out of their shells because somebody with special needs brought it out of them. I’ve seen broken people heal through service and relationships with people with special needs. I’ve seen arrogant and proud people humble themselves through loving and serving somebody with special needs, and I’ve seen humble people build up their confidence and strength by working and loving those special needs. I’ve seen self-conscious high school students go from ignoring and mocking the sped kids to becoming selfless and hard-working friends with them. Service of sped people can literally cure wars, I work in a gang-ridden ghetto community and I’ve seen it firsthand. They honestly should be at the forefront of much of society. Not greed and money and power. The people who no one else wants to see needs to be the ones everyone sees. I really really, really believe that.
But how many people want to do what I want to do I’ve always had to do what they want. I don’t really know how to do human.

When it comes to weight loss, many people hope for targeted solutions—like losing excess weight, specifically from their feet. However, the concept of spot reduction, or losing fat in one targeted area, is largely debunked by scientific evidence(1).
Here's why the idea of losing weight in your feet doesn't hold up and what you can actually do to manage weight effectively.
❓Is spot reduction real?
Experts say that it is impossible to lose weight in one particular spot, as it is not how that process works. Numerous studies show that performing local exercises focused on one particular part of the body is not effective at reducing the fat in that area but is successful as an overall weight loss tool (7,3,5). Health experts and dietitians universally agree that spot reduction is a myth. Effective weight loss occurs uniformly across the body, depending on one's genetic predisposition and overall body composition.
⁉️ How do you lose weight effectively?
If you're looking to reduce the size of your feet by losing weight, focusing on overall body health is key. Here are some strategies that can help:

• To lose weight, consume fewer calories than you burn. This can be achieved through diet, exercise, or a combination of both (8).
• Incorporate a mix of cardio, strength training, and flexibility exercises to maximize fat loss and muscle gain, leading to a more toned body.
• Drinking plenty of water is essential for metabolism and helps prevent overeating.

❗Some practical tips on exercising

• Even if you lead a sedentary lifestyle, increasing daily activities like walking for 30 minutes can make a significant difference (4).
• Find physical activities you enjoy to ensure consistency. Whether it’s swimming, cycling, or group sports, enjoying your workouts is key to long-term success.
• Establishing a routine helps maintain a regular exercise schedule, which is crucial for sustained weight loss.

So, while you cannot lose weight specifically in your feet alone, focusing on general weight loss and maintaining a healthy lifestyle will lead to noticeable changes across your entire body, including possibly slimmer feet as part of an overall reduction in body fat. By adopting comprehensive, sustainable lifestyle changes, you're more likely to see lasting results not just in one area but body-wide.
Have you ever tried losing weight in one area? Share your experience in the comments!👇

I can only speak about Japan, it's getting bad in regards to over-tourism. For instance in Kyoto, there was a tourist acting like a some sort of papparazzi bothering the Geisha walking around, she was reprimanded by another tourist saying that it's rude (rightly so) as the Geisha was just trying her best to not interfere as she's working. You can't do that, as Geisha are humans like everybody else, they don't like to be bothered by unruly tourists up close.

(Plus Japan has strict privacy laws about posting a photo portrait someone's face up close without permission on social media, as you can get sued for breaching their right to privacy.)

The thing is that Japan has unspoken rules (even for the slightest ones) including etiquette that may not cross over to Western culture, which is why Western tourists often fail to understand or completely disregard it, since they think "It's Asia, who cares!" but that kind of mentality is wrong! Thinking it's okay to do stuff Japan deems inappropriate or act like idiots is just crazy.

(A traveler has to be culturally aware of where they are in the world regardless of the country they are currently in, there are mannerisms that are acceptable in their home country but frowned upon in foreign land.)
Apart from Westerners, tourists from both China and South Korea frequently travel to Japan, due to their geographical proximity to their home countries. However there are mannerisms from their own country that aren't tolerated in Japan. (i.e. spitting on the floor)
I swear, what attracts tourists is: video games, anime & pokemon! It's one of the biggest reasons why they end up bringing a empty suitcase to only fill it with nothing but snacks, games, QoL items from Japan.

It's disgusting when tourists in Kyoto (especially in Gion or the Geisha district) are acting like paparazzi whenever they spot a Geisha or Maiko, constantly invading their space approaching right in their faces, that is so rude! pretending as if they are celebrities or actresses, they ask the question on "can I take photo of you" with the attitude of "I want your autograph!" Its ridiculous!
[The thing with Kyoto is that it's a living exhibit, rather than the "typical" art museum vibe.] There are even cases of tourists harassing them, pulling their hair, putting out cigarette butts on their kimonos or tearing their attire, it's bad! (That's disrespectful, since they put a lot of effort on applying that make up and dressing themselves for what they do for a living!) To the point the local government in Kyoto restricted (but didn't ban) tourist presence within private roadways.
[Japanese news segment talking about trash (or food scraps) left on the floor by tourists after visiting Gion and Kyoto despite bins present in the area!] with some of them eating while walking, which is frowned upon in Japan. As a manager from one of the stores showed photos from the last time tourists were present, a 3 bins shown are full and clogged, thus giving tourists an incentive to litter.

Even in other parts of the city, tourists leave empty bottles of soju including other beverages out in the street and pavement! Not being bothered to clean up after themselves.

They are now deterring tourists from entering private roads where Geisha's hang out with a penality of ¥10000 (59€) for trespassing, this applies to everyone - not just tourists. They should not be trespassing on private property, like at all!
Just recently, there are tourists caught trespassing on those private roads. (However the signage is working as a deterent for most, due to the fine imposed.) but like anywhere else there will be bad apples in the bunch who will of course, trespass on private property.

I mean, you can still go to Kyoto, but please... have some manners, that is what they are asking from visitors, as it's a living art museum that has been preserved for centuries to this day, which what makes Kyoto fascinating to visit in the first place.
Even though there are public streets, some of the surrounding ones are deemed private property (which tourists are unaware of.) I also hate the misinformation from "Western" media regarding a "Tourist Ban" - it's not true, you can still go there, but just comply with the rules.

A tourist was caught on video ringing a bell at Yasaka Shrine (which is used for ceremonial purposes) not for playing around, they actually barred off the rope attached to the bell since that happened. (Just because Japan is not a "Christian" country, doesn't mean you get to disrespect their culture and relgion, it's gross!)
For example, in Japan: there was news coverage about tourists being careless on the roadway despite orange traffic cones and a barrier visible on the side of the road intended to dissuade them, tourists either halted incoming vehicles & traffic standing in the middle of the road (MEANT FOR CARS!) just to take a picture of Mt. Fuji. [It's reckless and dangerous if you ask me.]
Some tourists STAND or SIT on the barrier, which is just like, why? Japan has a habit on indirectly solving any problem rather than confronting it head on, so they would rather install a fence to deter tourists rather than closing the road entirely to redirect incoming traffic, like instead of improving the infrastructre Kawaguchiko near Fuji, they just want to barricade the view.
You're probably thinking "Why can't they just close the road and redirect the cars elsewhere? So the tourists can happy." It's because confrontation is frowned upon in Japan, in order to not tarnish their reputation, they instead come up with indirect and descrete approaches on providing solutions to the issue at hand i.e. such as over-tourism, it's nothing new.
For example, they would put signage in Kyoto to deter or convince tourists rather than actually confronting them. Due to Japan being a collectivist society where social harmony reigns, where you need an unanimous vote to rule in your favor without any objections from all parties in regards to decision making when talking about matters like this from a governmental or societal standpoint.

(As opposed to Europe & The West where individualism is valued, Japan is more of "We have to do this as a team" mentality rather than "I want to do this for myself only")

There's more from that clip: (Mainly in Shizuoka)

• Tourists standing in the middle of the traffic lane divider to pose and snap pictures [Mind you - There's incoming vehicles while they are doing all of this!]
• Even the news reporter covering the story advised a tourist against taking a photo / selfie while standing on the road divider also treading on it.
• Tourists in Kawaguchiko were partially obstructing the road (not moving out of the way!) to let an INCOMING TRUCK pass, so the driver had to swerve to the right to avoid running them over.
• Tourists flooded another spot「夢の大橋」("Pont de rêve") for taking pictures of the mountain, walking up the stairway for the "instagrammable" picture.
• [4:41] They even caught tourists JAYWALKING in the middle of the roadway even though there's incoming traffic. (Despite the cones and barriers present.)
• There's a group of tourists who were standing on the side of the road divider with incoming traffic loitering there. (Even a van drove right past them, as it's a ROAD - NOT A SIDEWALK!)
• [6:33-6:52] A tourist was standing behind a vehicle then approached the driver. (You can't halt vehicles in the middle of the road and distract the driver! - It's insane!)
• [6:59] Tourists posing in the middle of the lane divider for their "instagram" pics. (You are not allowed to loiter in the road divider!)
• [8:30] A mother and daughter who were tourists TRESPASSED on private property, as there was a sign displaying「立入禁止」("INTERDICTION D'ENTRER!") treading on the premises.
• Of course, tourists litter and leave trash on the street, since Japan has no bins available at public places. (only at designated spots.)
• Even the locals in that area are starting to complain and getting fed up with tourists constantly populating the area - violating the rules, being a 迷惑 ("Nuisances")

Tourists standing on the barrier with their own two feet, which again is not allowed. Even the ministry of transportation put out a clear statement regarding implmenting countermeasures on a location you are not meant to tread on (or be jaywalking) so their solution is to "install a barrier" to deter them. But we know how that will end up, tourists still disregard the fact there's an barrier installed.
There's another spot where tourists now can take a picture of Fuji, it's some stairway of an overhead bridge, but people again cross the road (or jaywalk) just to reach it. Not long ago, a female tourist from Tunisia was run over by an incoming vehicle (due to her standing in the MIDDLE OF THE ROAD) for the "instagrammable" picture of the mountain. [in Kawaguchiko this happened.]
Speaking of Kawaguchiko (which is not originally a tourist destination until now), the Lawsons there including Mt. Fuji are always featured on as the backdrop of every TikTok talking about tourism in Japan (alongside Kyoto) Yep, there were even 2 tourists caught jaywalking disregarding the ACTUAL pedestrian crossing. Some tourists are standing on the store's sign posts positioned nearby (that have running electricity and LEDs.) using that as a makeshift tripod for their iPhones!
In regards to Mt. Fuji, from TikTok there are so many "copy cat" itinerary submissions, even the thumbnails are basically the 'same' you can literally see the similarities [down below]. (hence why there are so many tourists flooding the area), like this:
These are just a few examples, but for the most part they are similar to one another the further you scroll down. They all want that \"instagrammability\" of that particular spot, in front of a Lawson. (It's ridiculous.)
Like what was happening in Kawaguchiko, the same is now happening in Fujiyoshida, at a pedestrian crossing, despite a security guard being present, people still disregarded rules about crossing the road, at around [3:00] from the video, the driver of an incoming vehicle had to honk at the tourist standing in the middle of the road so they can pass. (It's stupid.) Of course they were honked at by the driver (He's probably like: "What the hell is this idiot doing here standing in the middle of the road for cars!"), as you're not meant to loiter there halting traffic!

• [0:29-0:40] In Kawaguchiko, a Lawson store employee scolded a tourist to step off a strangers vehicle. (As he was posing for a selfie for instagram.)
• [0:42-0:48] Groups of tourists jaywalk again, when it is ill-advised, even a car just drove past. Even some are stalling traffic!
• [2:49] There's a female tourist posing for a selfie in the middle of the road (while the main traffic light is green!) meaning that cars are still driving past, not the pedestrians turn to cross.
• [3:41] The news reporter even warned a Chinese tourist to not stand in the middle of the road, regardless he didn't listen until an incoming vehicle was about to approach them as the reporter warned him that it's dangerous to stand on the road!
• [4:05] A tourist again, standing in the middle of the pedestrian crossing! The vehicle in red had to honk since that tourist refused to move out of the way! (It's insane! How can you not simply just move so the car can pass!?)
• [5:30] Carvings of [who's here] or their [instagram account] are found etched on the stone walls of the tea plantation (at Obuchi Sasaba) insribed in many languages. (You can't be doing that! That's still vandalism, as it's still within the plantation grounds.)

Since Japan started installing a black tarp obstructing the view of Mt. Fuji, tourists still poked holes through it. It's not opaque as you can partially see through it, or walk to the otherside where a Lawson stands, but some still jaywalk disregarding the actual pedestrian crossing even when there's a cop or security guard present.
From this video, a complaint filed by a dental clinic within the area, stating that tourists are leaving trash or left over food scraps near their premises, loitering on the steps approaching their clinic (only patients are allowed to enter) the clinic. Here, there are even complaints from the clinic mentioning about tourists parking their bikes on bike racks only designated for patients entering their clinic, along with trespassing on their premises. Even the dentist himself took photos regarding tourists loitering outside the clinic, patients are having a hard time getting inside because of this.
Not forgetting that they are trespassing on the rooftop, to the point the dentist (or the staff) resorted to calling the police multiple times due to this! Again, tourists were told to move out of the way or move their belongings to let incoming vehicles pass to park their cars at a Lawson. (Even the driver of a incoming truck had to honk at them! so they can move.)
Just last year, Mt. Fuji itself was suffering from an over-tourism problem on its own since tourists are dying to climb to the summit, but some were ill equipped for the journey. (There was even girl caught wearing shorts and sandals upon the trip to the summit - not suitable for climbing!) Some climbers show up shirtless creating a makeshift bonfire.

Public facilities are vandalized or damaged due to over-tourism, now they are enforcing an entry fee of ¥2000 (11,70€) to enter Mt. Fuji because of this! Tourists leave trash everywhere, crowds of them wanting to head to the summit in large gatherings, which causes problems such as overcapacity. (Some climbers even started arguing / causing a scene towards guides!)
Don't get me wrong, tourists do show up with proper gear (i.e. spiked shoes, ice axes, etc.) and attire heading for the summit, but there are bad apples who literally show up with shorts or singlet, which is not advised on a place like this since it's cold up there! You're climbing up a mountain after all. (Heading to the top is their main objective, with stop overs.)

There was a female tourist who literally by passed the fence / yellow line (like the one you stand behind upon waiting for a incoming train) went on the tracks just to take a selfie with her boyfriend! (Disregarding that she's at the station in Kyoto were other commuters are present, a train is going to show up eventually.) Stupid, reckless and dangerous if you ask me, it's like as if she wants to be hit by an incoming train.
In December 2023: In Tokyo, tourists where holding up incoming traffic on a pedestrian crossing, despite cops being present, most of them want a selfie with the Tokyo Tower but holding up traffic with vehicles is just bad, as the security guards / police are telling people to just cross, to keep the flow, not stall incoming cars & traffic (in a busy city - mind you), but tourists were just loitering there (or walking on the road meant for cars) until they were scolded for jaywalking.
There were a group of tourists caught shaking a sakura tree during cherry blossom season causing outrage, they're basically damaging the tree as the leaves were falling prematurely. The intended way the leaves are meant to fall is when they've matured, since the trees are considered part of public property, Japan deemed that as an act of vandalism and destruction of property.
Plus the trees are sacred to the Japanese (its even part of their cultural identity), as they believe it to represent a symbolism of life and death, those who tamper or mess with it are met with misfortune. Also, in the Daikoku Parking Area (in Yokohama) where it's a hangout for car enthusiasts, but the issue is that tourists trespass on the premises, such as climbing the fence breaking inside. (Despite signage forbidding pedestrians to enter, due to it being an area designed for vehicles.)
Earlier this year on January, there was an American livestreamer who was fined ¥200000 (1,171€) for blasting his music way TOO LOUD, as it was disturbing the peace inside a restaurant somewhere in Osaka, it shows that Western streamers (who act like this) have ZERO respect for the customs upon their visit, ruining the reputation of foreigners (and tourists alike) in Japan, which is already causing some Japanese people to hate them.
In hindsight:

• Do you think social media is part of the blame as to why places like Paris or Lyon are suffering from overtourism? (As influencers are constantly posting it on Tiktok or Instagram, for example.)
• Ascending the French Alps: are the facilities reaching max capacity due to the influx of tourists? Also, how many show up ill-equipped? (as in not having adequate gear beforehand.)
• The French Alps: how many tourists show up wearing inappropriate clothing for this type of activity? such as skirts, shorts, sandals or singlets.)
• In terms of tourist attractions located in smaller towns: are there complaints from non-tourism related private businesses in regards to trespassing and bad behavior coming from tourists?
• Have there been cases within France, where tourists actually sustained injuries all because of their recklessness and disregarding the rules?
• Restaurants in Paris: How often are they crowded with tourists making it difficult for regular customers (locals) to dine there resulting in longer waiting times or queues?
• Have there been instances of tourists defacing historical monuments or religious sites (i.e. Churches / Parishes) vital to French culture that it's outright disrespectful?
• Are there times when tourists violated France's laws that they end up getting arrested or fined due to their actions and bad conduct?
• How common is it for tourists visiting France ending up leaving trash on the floor despite the country having bins available at public places & establishments?
• Are there tourists who ignore social etiquette & customs while visiting France along with displaying bad manners eventually upsetting the locals due to how rude these visitors are?
• In terms of social media, have you spotted the "same" posts (on TikTok & Instagram) featuring places like Paris or Lyon to the point all the thumbnails are the same?
• How many tourists ignore traffic laws in France when dealing with pedestrian crossings, as in jaywalking when the light is red with incoming vehicles driving on the road?

Warning: no real spoilers, but I will talk about the atmosphere and perspective of the film, for those who are looking to watch this and want to go in as blind as possible. I will not mention any real specifics.
I absolutely loved it. I’m not the biggest fan of many slashers that get put out but this intrigued me the moment a trailer released. I started seeing negative reviews on this thread but ignored them and went in optimistically. To be pretentious for a moment, I think I’m very good at letting a movie suck me into the atmosphere and take me where it wants to, with no expectations of how the movie will progress. I think that’s important with this movie, as it really does take things very slow.
You’re watching things from the killers perspective, and similar to his slasher-peers, he doesn’t run, surprise, so you’re going to have to watch him trudge around a bit. Because of the setting in the woods, I took it as opportunity to bask in the beautiful shots, nature sounds, film style, and general atmosphere. For others, this can be boring, and I can absolutely understand that. Because the killer is the protagonist, and the main victim isn’t, I appreciated the long moments of silence that are replacing what is normally cheesy dialogue and overdrawn backstory from the victims, side characters etc.
The kills were fucking great, one in particular is possibly my favorite kill of all time, some occasional moments of silent humor, it was beautifully shot and I had a great time. Felt like a respectful nod to the classics while giving it a twist. Just wanted to share my thoughts and recommend it to those who are looking for not your typical slasher.
If Sasquatch Sunset were a horror slasher movie, this would be it. (That’s a compliment , forget I said anything if you didn’t like Sasquatch Sunset).
Go see it
Edit: ^ go see it IN THEATRES - there are some movies that really are a way better experience at the cinema and I think this really is one of them. I would be hesitant to recommend it someone who I know is watching it at home because the wrong setting and atmosphere can leave a lot on the table that you won’t get otherwise

My ex and I were together for 6 years. I've caught him on dating apps many times before that, but he always played it off as that he was bisexual and that he had urges, but he would never cheat on me. I wanted to be sympathetic to his situation because he wasn't out and I didn't know what he was going through. I was obviously uncomfortable with the situation, but I loved him and wanted to help him. He asked me about being in an open relationship and said that he couldn't marry me unless we were open. I agreed, but we didn't open the relationship yet. Shortly after he proposed and shortly after he asked about opening up the relationship. We set up the ground rules, such as him only being able to see men, we can't get emotionally attached, we needed to communicate when we were seeing someone, andwhen the other is uncomfortable with who the other is seeing, we needed to cut it off.
For the first month, he was on dating apps and I wasn't. He was able to find someone to hook up with easily. I wasn't too comfortable with it yet, until he hooked up with someone. So, I finally downloaded a dating app. It took me awhile to find someone that understood the situation, but I finally did. I told my ex about it, I first met up with him, and then we decided to hook up a week later. When I got home, my ex didn't talk to me. He finally opened up the next day that he was really jealous and didn't like that I did that. That it's different because I slept with someone of the opposite sex. We got into a long winded argument. We decided to close the relationship again, but might open it again in the future, but after a few days, I found out he was talking to people still. I told him, that I thought we were closed. He said, it's for when we open the relationship back up. I was upset.
After a couple of weeks, we opened up the relationship again. I found another person to hookup with. And again, my ex did not talk to me after. When he finally did, we argued a lot. After awhile, he suggested that he could only open it on his side, since he gets so jealous. I told him no, that's not okay. It's either open on both sides or it's closed on both sides. I thought for a long time. I told him, I don't want this. I wanted a typical monogomous relationship. He said that he couldn't give me that. I said that I was done then.
The next day, he said that he'll be monogomous. That he'll change, he just needs to go to therapy. He didn't want to lose me. I told him that I didn't feel like our relationship was strong anymore, but I'd try couples therapy.
The first therapist we found did not work out for us. We argued more and I still had uneasy feelings about the relationship. After a couple of sessions, I told him that I still feel uneasy about the relationship. He got extremely angry and told me that he's trying so hard. I told him that we've only had two sessions, it's going to take a lot more time. I planned to go visit my friend during the weekend because I haven't seen her in years, but she had been emotionally supportive the whole time. She lived a few hours away. My ex jokingly asked me, how do I know that you won't cheat on me while you are there. I said, how do I know that you won't when I'm gone.
While visiting my friend, my friend wanted to me to meet with a couple that just left long term relationships, and found each other. We talked for hours and it made me feel more comfortable breaking up with my ex. On the drive home, I thought a lot. I thought that I needed to do it. I needed to break up with him. When I got home, I talked to him, and I broke up with him. He was mad, he started packing his things. He threw things, and banged on the wall. Threw our photos away. Threatened suicide.
I knew that I needed to leave, we didn't want the same things. He even mentioned wanting kids with me, but I knew that if that happened, I would be close to a single mom because in my heart I felt like he would not help me out. Our personalities are so different from each other's, but I felt a strong feeling come over me. That night, I wanted him back. I didn't know why, but I did. I called him and he came home and we got back together.
We decided to get another therapist and it worked out for awhile. Then, we had another argument about something that bothered me, he slammed on the table and yelled, everything bothers you! And walked away. In that moment, I felt like I made a mistake.
A few days later, he left his phone charging in the bedroom and I had a strong urge to check it. I looked through his messages and maps history. I found a blocked conversation of him talking to someone asking to meet up, but it wasn't incriminating. I also found him being at certain locations in the middle of the night and while I was at work. I finally had a little proof that he was cheating on me, I just needed to get him to admit it to me. I sat on the evidence for a day or two. I needed to make sure he couldn't lie his way out of it. Finally, I confronted him. It turns out, he was cheating on me for the past year. He cheated on me during our open relationship because he was seeing someone more than he was telling me. He also cheated on me while I was visiting my friend. He also admitted to cheating on me, three years into our relationship with someone that he knew I wasn't comfortable with him talking to.
I don't know why I checked his phone. I think I needed a strong reason to break up with him. I do know that if I didn't, I wouldn't have left and that's a scary thing.
Tldr: Found out my ex was cheating because he wanted an open relationship and it snowballed from there.

CONCLUSION
And finally, here’s the final part! If you have any thoughts, or any disagreements, comment down below! I’d love to discuss the game’s lore with you all!
At its heart, Indigo Park is a tragedy, one that would make both Shakespeare and the ancient Greeks proud. It starts off with the creator wanting nothing but good, but slowly devolves into a horrifying, downward spiral. After all, the road to Hell is paved with good intentions.
Isaac Indigo has a dream of bringing his imagination to life, for people everywhere. The beginning of the twentieth century began horrendously, World War 1 being the deadliest conflict at the time. Wanting to help everyone and bring at least a spark of joy into their lives, Isaac Indigo launches headfirst into the media of his choice: cartoons.
Indigo comes up with his first permanent Mascot, Lloydford L. Lion. A loud, booming, rambunctious character, Lloyd sought to be the spark of happiness that Indigo hoped he would be. Lloyd would the very best actor, showman, and orator. He’s arrogant, but not pompous. He’s loud, but not with ill will. He’s the beginning of the cast that Indigo envisions, a character whose sole purpose is to please the world. It’s not a surprise that Lloyd is an actor, after all. He seeks to distract the world from its woes, at least for a bit, and make everyone have a good time.
Indigo, emboldened by his sudden fame and success, proceeds to churn out four more individuals: Rambley the Raccoon, Mollie the Macaw, Salem the Skunk, and, eventually, Finley the Sea Serpent, though he comes in separate from the other three.
Rambley Raccoon, a quick thinking, sharp tongued, cheeky little gremlin, is an instant hit with the people, becoming the second most popular character out of the five. Mollie Macaw, a happy-go-lucky bird with a love for the open skies, acts as Rambley’s best friend, the two practically glued together. Together, alongside Lloyd, these three represent the ‘good guys’, a trio that want nothing but the best for the people.
However, every hero needs a villain, and thus, Salem the Skunk was born, a snappy, malevolent little critter that wished for the world to revolve around herself. She has a knack for potion making, a capable chemist who uses her concoctions to bend the wills of others to herself, only for herself.
Rambley and Salem end up becoming fated rivals, nemeses who dislike each other the most, out of every character that Indigo created. Using Salem, Indigo would spread the message of peace, of friendship and everlasting bonds that always triumph against evil, and Salem.
This continuity continues for a period of time, Indigo eventually adding one more character to his roster: the melancholy sea dragon, Finley. Finley’s main goal was to be the educator, to explain the natural world around people and share the fascinating and the beautiful, especially in regard to the ocean, a concept still so unexplored, while also trying to appeal to an older crowd alongside Lloyd.
However, poor Finley wouldn’t ever be that popular amongst his peers. Perhaps it was his gloomy, exhausted aura that pushed people away, or perhaps it was his towering, and frankly scary, size, or even maybe because he was deemed boring by the youngest, who were more keen on Rambley, the character that appealed to them the most. Even the other characters, whether Indigo intended for this or not, seemed a bit annoyed by Finley, and often left him to his devices.
And, for a while, Indigo’s plan succeeded. His popularity and notoriety only increased as time went on, gaining him influence, money, and prestige. His plans were working! He was making a difference, making smiles appear on the faces of people who would otherwise be swept away by the woes of the world!
Everything started to crumble, however, when yet another horrifying conflict arose: World War II. The Old World was thrown into chaos, Europe, Africa, and Asia becoming the bloodiest battleground in human history, surpassing even the Great War that came before it.
So, Indigo concocted a scheme, a way to raise the spirits of those he could currently help, his fellow Americans. Indigo Park was to be his magnus opus, his monument that would transcend his lifetime. Here, all of his creations would gather, all of them having their own attractions, bringing a level of access that had never yet been realized before. Costumed people would walk around during operational hours, bringing his characters into the real world to interact with those that needed refuge from the outside horrors.
However, while his park became a success, spearheaded by Lloyd the Lion, the very first, there was something that bothered Indigo. These costumed performers, while certainly a stroke of genius, underperformed. Besides that, they sometimes broke character, and destroyed the immersion of the guests, and were quite costly to keep around, alongside the engineers, the logistics division, and the Ranglers that helped run Indigo Park. Not to mention, the cost of custom costumes, of fabric and materials, rose higher and higher as quotas began to be placed and maintained in the USA, due to the resources it sent to its allies overseas, before eventually joining their allies in the fight against evil.
If he couldn’t simulate his characters, why not make them? Animals that would be living, breathing creatures that would merely need care, compassion, and basic necessities? Hiring a bunch of the best scientists, he gave them a special role: The Royal Ranglers, those that would be entrusted with this secret project.
Indigo, while a creative man, didn’t understand science as well as these individuals, and likely never would, but he would make them keep logs, records of their successes and failures, of their many experiments. And eventually, their labor paid off: One of each character, Mascots, came to life. They breathed air, had red blood flowing through their veins, were real, physical creatures, but also remained gentle with the guests. Once they were unveiled, there was no longer a need for costumed performers to roam around Indigo Park. They could also be trained to perform shows of their own, such as Finley and Lloyd, while the others could supervise their respective districts! It was a win win!
However, not everyone was so pleased with the results. The performers that once roamed the streets found themselves without jobs, only some kept around to care for the new Mascots, their betters, their replacements. And that made them furious. Why should these abominations, these stupid, ugly freaks replace them? Behind Indigo’s back, these disgruntled employees would begin their revenge slowly, minimally. Withholding a small amount of the supplies the Mascots needed, occasional cruel words. As time went on, this turned into a coping mechanism, the treatment of the Mascots progressing into physical violence, vile, cutting words on the regular basis.
Sometime before this Lloyd would end up giving up the title of main character to Rambley, who had gained immense popularity, even more than Lloyd himself. While it annoyed the proud Lloyd to be first mate, he would hand over the title graciously, partially because Rambley had always been jealous of Lloyd’s popularity and fame, and maybe, just maybe, this change would do them all good. Their abuse had been escalating, much worse than any thought possible. Salem was the only one to oppose this decision, thinking that it was all only to the benefit of Rambley. Mollie was the opposite, supportive of her best friend. And Finley … well, there was no way to consistently speak with the reptile. He was always kept in Oceanic Odyssey, far away from their cages underneath Jetsream Junction. And besides, none of the four particularly … liked Finley. Sure, Rambley had befriended the sea serpent, but that was done moreso to have some rapport and sway over the gentle giant, who was much too shy, like, ~obnoxiously~ ~shy.~ He was always so gloomy, so pessimistic, so willing to accept whatever came his way. No, Finley was definitely not an agent of change, but of pitiful complacence, locked away with his prized shell collection.
However, things did not improve at all. In fact, it only got worse. Tension between the Mascots was at an all time high, Rambley having become hurtful to even his best friend Mollie. He was still suspicious of Lloyd, convinced the lion would steal back his position as ringleader. Salem and Rambley, and thus with Mollie, also began to sour drastically. Salem was convinced that Rambley wasn’t doing anything to help the five. After all, he and Mollie practically abandoned Finley, someone who they claimed was a ‘friend’. Lloyd too became frustrated with the raccoon, Salem whispering in his ears, convincing him that Rambley had only pushed for Lloyd’s demotion to finally be the one above Lloyd, to have more power.
Mollie was soon caught in the crossfire of a particularly intense feud, Salem and Lloyd on one side, Rambley by himself on the other. Rambley, her best friend in the whole wide world. Rambley, that same friend who would sometimes be mean to Mollie for no apparent reason. However, no matter what Rambley had done to their relationship, it wasn’t Rambley’s fault. It was one time when Lloyd became particularly aggressive that Mollie had to finally end this.
The fault does not belong to Rambley! “Not Rambley! He hurts Lloyd! He hurts Lloyd!”
And suddenly, it clicked for the Mascots. No matter how much some of the Mascots didn’t like each other, there was one person they all could agree to hate: Isaac Indigo. Their creator who had left the newborn animals to the mercy of vengeful, spiteful, horrible people who did nothing but spit upon and abuse the Mascots. It was decided that they would fight back. They would show those humans that they were not muzzled dogs, but barely contained predators.
The next time the Mascots were in the presence of these Ranglers, Lloyd finally snapped. It was a particularly brutal day, and Lloyd would suffer no longer. With a crippling roar, Lloyd launched himself at the Ranglers, the other Mascots following suit.
Isaac Indigo had walked into work expecting the day to be like usual, but it was to his horror that he learned of the Mascots attack upon their Ranglers. Calling a hasty evacuation, guests were shoved outside of the park with no explanation, no answers. Even the authorities would not be able to provide answers. No, they couldn’t learn of such a thing; it would ruin Isaac Indigo and all that he had worked for.
Temporarily, the entire park fell under the control of the Mascots, who were a bit shocked with how easy it was to win their freedom. However, their victory would not last. They all would suffer the consequences.
Lloyd was deemed the biggest threat to Indigo’s plans, so he had to be the one dealt with first. But how? The scientists that Indigo had hired came up with a plan; repurpose the Critter Cuffs to make a high enough pitch to incapacitate the lion, before locking him up for good in his theater. Alongside this, in order to better guarantee the safety of their people, a resuscitation feature had been added to potentially save an employee's life, if it came down to it.
Luring the beast to his stage area, the humans spring their trap, their Critter Cuffs wailing, racking Lloyd with so much pain that he couldn’t do anything but curl up into a ball. With the help of some engineers, they lock Lloyd in his own theater, a special clearance required to even access the area. This is where they toss most of the assets Indigo Park does not wish anyone see. Research papers, binders, notebooks, it’s all scattered here. And while here, Indigo decides to deal with Mollie Macaw as well.
Mollie is dangerous in that she knows planes and how to use them. They’re massive weapons, so, the way to disarm the bomb that is Mollie is to lock Jetstream Junction behind the Critter Cuffs, as well as a massive lock and key. The key itself would be stored at the very back of Lloyd’s theater, a place where only they would know to look. And once they seal the doors one final time, Mollie, Rambley, and Salem would have no access to it.
Finley would be left to his own devices; he’s contained in his attraction and as long as they don’t approach, they’ll be fine. The remaining Mascots can’t hide there forever either, and the humans know that. Even if Finley is a deterrent, the humans would eventually invent a way to deal with the serpent, who would be unwilling to resist for too long.
And thus, two Mascots were dealt with, one Mascot crippled. Only Salem and Rambley remained threats with their rides and arsenals, though Mollie is still dangerous with her sharp beak and claws.
After some time, Mascot Rambley and Salem decide to retreat further into Indigo Park, further away from the entrance. Their movements were too easy to track with that blasted Artificial Intelligence system watching through the bountiful cameras. Mollie, however, can’t bear to leave her home, her hangar. She tries to reason with the two others, but ultimately, no agreement can be reached. Salem and Rambley would withdrawn, and Mollie would come, if she wanted to.
Eventually, the two sneakiest Mascots, once sworn enemies, were now the only one the other could rely on. Now brother and sister, they tried their best to weather the storm, but were ultimately dealt with. Mollie, grief-stricken with the loss of her home and being abandoned by the ones she called friend, had no will to fight anymore.
This entire process took almost ten years, finally ending in 2015, while the park had been closed in 2006. Outside, people slowly forgot about the enigmatic end to the once beloved park, distracted by the rapid expansion of other sources of fun and media. Indigo, saddened by the fate of what he once thought of as his greatest achievement, didn’t have the heart to tear the place down. It was too dangerous, so he merely bribed the local authorities to close it off from curious onlookers. He would command the AI Rambley to have most of his files wiped concerning the fate of the park, wiping all data concerning the back and forth between humans and their experiments brought to life. He’d be restricted to the Registration Center, cut off from the actual park, and only present in one computer until Indigo found a way to salvage the situation. And that’s where Isaac Indigo left Indigo Park.
Mascot Mollie is left alone to wander the park, all her friends gone, missing. She stumbles into Rambley Railroad, the only place that she can see all her friends, before she stops at Salem’s exhibit. Eyes narrowing in hate, Mollie remembers that it was Salem that pushed and manipulated them all to fight back. If Salem hadn’t been there, none of this would have happened. This leads Mascot Mollie on a destructive rampage, wrecking the whole area as much as she could. She eventually stumbles upon an animatronic version of herself, which shocks her when it repeats Mollie’s own words, almost like snidely trying to hurt Mollie with her own words. “Not Rambley! He hurts Lloyd! He hurts Lloyd!” Once again angered, Mascot Mollie pounds upon the robot until the lights fade from its painted eyes, slumped in a pile of metal rods and broken brick. From there, Mascot Mollie leaves, vowing to stay away from the place.
However, what Indigo did not account for was an urban explorer duo that made it their life mission to explore a wide variety of places. Laura and Ed made quite the dynamic duo, always exploring what they wanted, where they wanted, how they wanted. Though they trespassed and sometimes even burgled, they were never caught by the authorities, and their concealed presences on their channel was enough for the two to not be charged and arrested.
However, the two found themselves in a weird limbo. All of their newest explorations lacked a certain ‘oomph’, with even their viewers noticing the lack of excitement and passion of the two. So, Ed decides to set his sights on a big fish: Indigo Park.
Laura, his partner, is instantly worried by Ed’s choice. All the places they went to before were practically abandoned, the maximum they had to worry about were old motion detectors and an occasional camera or two. Indigo Park, however, would most likely be very secure, swarming with cops, even, so she tries to dissuade Ed, but Ed only becomes more pumped to break inside. Resigned, Laura promised assistance if Ed could find a way inside. Ed finally goes to this famed Indigo Park, home of so many of his treasured memories as a child, intent on having all of his personal questions answered.
It is to his surprise that the place is so easy to slip into. All he had to do was avoid the occasional patrol car, climb a fence, and viola, he was there. The entrance gates being locked up, however, was a bummer, but maybe the Registration Center would have some information. It would be even more of a shock to discover an AI Rambley, the same that Indigo had locked there.
AI Rambley would guide Ed, the first visitor in exactly eight years, inside, Ed collecting all sorts of goodies, such as plushies, ears, drinking containers, and even a vintage Rambley costume mask. However, Ed is disappointed by the way the AI practically ignores the state of disrepair Indigo Park has fallen into.
Lured by the sudden sound of Rambley speaking Mascot Mollie rushes over; Rambley came back for her! But it is to her horror that it’s merely a mockery of Mascot Rambley, that old AI speaking to a human! Mollie, wary and frightened of the implications of this, decides to merely follow cautiously.
Following the directions of the AI, Ed travels through Rambley Railroad, fixing the ride when in breaks in the wrecked zone of Salem the Skunk, her cutout and props left in broken pieces. It is during this ride that Ed senses he’s not alone, and notices Mollie Macaw stalking him. However, she’s not threatening in any way, so he leaves her be. Why antagonize this … Mascot? Person? Ed doesn’t know what to think of her, but maybe, if he’s careful, he won’t have to deal with her.
Ed is then directed to Jetsream Junction, but is disappointed to find it locked away, not only by Critter Cuff, but also by lock and key. The AI mentions a key in Lloyd’s theater, though, so he heads that way. What Ed does not expect to find is Mascot Lloyd himself, dozing on the stage. Quickly noticing Ed’s presence, however, Lloyd flees, remembering all too well of the danger that humans posed to him.
Unfortunately, Ed is left without AI Rambley’s presence, and Lloyd is slowly but surely pushed farther back into his domain. Lloyd at one point tries to attack, but the lion is clumsy. Though he can’t die of thirst or hunger, he still suffers from their effects, his body weak and dirty. Lloyd then leaves and lets this man do whatever he wants. Maybe if Lloyd hides in a corner, the scary human won’t come for him.
However, he is soon consumed by anger when he realizes that Ed takes the keys to Jetstream Junction. He can’t let this human escape, he might try to go and hurt Mollie! She’s probably locked in there like he’s locked in here!
Lloyd attacks, or tries to, at least. The accursed Critter Cuff wails, its high-pitched waves causing Lloyd to be paralyzed with pain. Once the sound stops, Lloyd runs away, his fears of torture reignited as he is subjected to pain he had not faced for almost twenty years.
Mascot Mollie, always lurking, heard the Critter Cuff go off, and she draws her conclusions well; Lloyd tried to fight the human, but was driven back, hurt and embarrassed in his own territory. From here, Mollie’s old, unresolved anger begins to build, following Ed as he opens up Jetstream Junction, much to her surprise. At first, she’s delighted. Finally, her old domain is open! She explores the place, running into Ed as they both take notice of one another. Perhaps she’ll let Ed go; he did do her a favor, after all.
But that notion is soon dissolved as she watched Ed run about the place like he owns it, Mollie’s anger mounting as he goes deeper into her home. Finally, she has enough. She attacks Ed, chasing him through the halls and tunnels Mollie so loves. Unfortunately, this final act turns out to be Mascot Mollie’s last. Just as she lunges for him, her head gets severed from her body by a metal door, her blood coating it and the surrounding environment bright red.
It is from here that AI Rambley is forced to acknowledge that this is not his familiar Indigo Park; it’s old and worn, the Mascots that once made people laugh now try to hunt them down. He forgets that they were abused because those files were wiped from him, and Mascot Mollie’s cries are very hard to discern as the echoes and Mascot Mollie’s own voice is ruined by age.
AI Rambley decides his best course of action is to enlist Ed’s help to repair the whole theme park. After all, he has all the information on how to go about it in his database, it just requires a physical body to do, something that the AI sorely lacks. And so, AI Rambley directs Ed toward the first place they need to kick back up: Oceanic Odyssey, home of the Mascot Finley. Perhaps this shy, reclusive sea snake won’t be trying to kill Ed.
On the way, though, Ed nearly stumbles upon the laboratories where the Mascots were made, so the AI makes sure to block that avenue. Ed was AI Rambley’s only hope of success, he wasn’t risking the man run away in terror from the sights and notes that likely were down there.
Ed finally reaches the Oceanic Odyssey attraction, pushing open the doors and following AI Rambley inside, catching a glimpse of a long, green, sea dragon in one of the aquariums …
END
Well, that’s about it! 12k words and 24 pages in, and I only covered the first chapter. Hoo boy …
I don’t think I need to reiterate that this is what I think happened, canonically. There will obviously be some wrong information due to the limited evidence I have to work with, and I intentionally remained vague during certain parts.
Despite that, I am very confident in a few ideas, such as the Mascot uprising, the weaponization of the Critter Cuff specifically against Lloyd the Lion, and the secret laboratories hidden behind that Royal Ranger Room area.
If you have any ideas of your own, let me know as well! I would love to theorize about some things that all of you think as well!
Also a huge shoutout and thank you to the creator of Indigo Park, Mason Myers, or UniqueGeese. The guy is insanely talented, considering this took him only one year to do. ONE! I can’t want to see the twists and turns he has to offer.
See you all later in Chapter 2! - Maddy

I, 29, female, married my 32, male, husband 3 years ago.
I met my husband about 6 years ago while I was in my last year in university and he was in the workforce. I attended university in my home state. I lived on campus and had an on-campus job working as a barista. During my last year, I met a new co-worker named Alex, male, who I quickly became friends with. Alex was one year below me and lived 30 minutes away from my hometown. Most of my coworkers were pretty close so it was not unusual for us to spend in between class time together, or even spend the night at each others dorm rooms. Nothing sexual, just movies, junk food, and good vibes.
Prior to meeting my now husband, I was pretty deep into the online dating scene but was growing very tired of the charades. I frequently told Alex about my endeavors and he would often offer me good advice on the dating scene. Alex had recently broken up with his girlfriend of 4 years so we kind of understood each other in that way. Early on in our friendship, we both established that we were not interested in each other, and only liked each other as friends.
Alex and I told each other everything. We talked about of pasts, about our dreams, and everything in between. We spent countless shifts together and spent many hours binge-watching our favorite tv shows.
At the beginning of the spring semester, my 6- month long situationship broke it off with me, and I was devastated. I confided in Alex and cried all night long in his dorm room. For some reason, his attitude and tone were different that night. He was judging me for online dating and being sexually active outside of a relationship. He told me, "this is the reason that I don't have sex with a girl I'm not dating, because then they become attached." I was so devastated at the break up and even more with Alex's words. I did not have the courage to tell him that his words were hurting me.
Fast forward to a few weeks later, I met my now husband online. Things were great, and as my relationship with my husband grew, I slowly stepped away from my university friendships and with Alex. Alex never met my husband while we were in university as my husband lived about an hour away, but he heard all of the stories, and followed along on social media. Alex was very supportive the whole way through.
As the school year came to an end, I prepared myself for the usual end of school year rituals. Since Alex was not graduating with me and our other friends, I did not see him much. But since we lived only 30 minutes away from each other, I knew we would stay in touch. Right before graduation, Alex congratulated me on finishing my studies and finding a great man. This was the first time of the many times he would remind me of "the night you cried all night in my dorm room." I was shocked to say the least. Again, I did not have the courage to speak up about how his actions then, and now, were hurtful.
I graduated and began my first job soon after. Alex and I met for lunch a few times that year before he told me he would be moving to the other side of the country with his best friend after graduation. We said our good byes and he promised he would be back.
That year I moved in with my husband, and the next year we got engaged. Alex and I occasionally video called and messaged each other. When Alex finally came back into town, he made it a point to come see us in our new home and to celebrate us. At this point, it had been two years since Alex and I were baristas together in university. Naturally we drifted apart, but we were still friends. It was really nice to see him, but I no longer felt the same companionship I felt with him in university. Alex had mentioned that when my husband and I would get married, he would love to attend as my "brother." I found this title to be very odd as I do have three older brothers, all of whom I am very close to. But Alex explained that his relationship with his sisters was very strained, and he saw me as a sister. So I let it slide even though I was not so comfortable with calling him my brother.
Over the next two years, Alex and I really drifted apart. We rarely talked and when we did, it was usually just when he complimented my outfit or makeup on a picture I'd post. I did think it was a bit flirtatious, but I did not pay too much mind to it. After all we were friends, and I was his "sister."
Soon enough my husband and I picked a wedding date and announced our bridal party. One day, Alex calls me up and asks for the wedding details so he can fly in for our wedding. At this time, I really did not want to invite Alex to the wedding as I did not view Alex in the same way anymore. I could only invite such few friends as my husband and I both have large families and it felt like inviting him was cutting into our guest list. I invited some friends from university but none of our mutual barista friends. I could not gain the courage to tell him the truth, so I invited Alex to the wedding and the rehearsal dinner. I did state that he was not allowed a plus-one due to the aforementioned guest-list restraints; a decision I live to regret.
Since Alex still had relatives close by to my hometown (where the wedding was to be held), I knew him coming for the wedding would not be a big deal since his lodging and day-to-day schedule would most likely be with his family. Alex flew in 5 days before the wedding and insisted on spending atleast two nights at my house. That was the last thing I wanted to do during the week of my wedding. I convinced myself that Alex flew all the way across the country for my wedding, and the least I could do was spend some extra time with him. I was able to bring Alex down to one night as I had a very busy week scheduled with the rehearsal dinner on Friday night and the wedding on Saturday. Alex spent Wednesday night at my house where he, my husband, and I spent the night sharing two bottles of wine and playing board games. Alex was visibly more drunk than we were. Before the end of the night, Alex started falling over and tossing around some vintage collectibles I kept in my dining room as decor. I quickly brought him to our guest room, where I asked him to stay put for the rest of the evening. Alex left early the next morning without saying much. I was relieved to have him gone.
The rehearsal dinner came and went and Alex was a great guest. He did not have too much to drink and mingled with our families. I introduced him to everyone as, Alex, a friend from university. However, he would quickly interject with, "her brother." I think most of our families saw I was uncomfortable with the term, and only referred to him as Alex. Wedding day came and my husband and I were happily wed before our families and friends. Only our bridal party and closest relatives were invited to the photoshopt following the ceremony, but somehow Alex also came along. I did not pay too much mind, and figured, he did not want to arrive to the reception alone.
At the time I did not know, but my husband's best man, Bryan, brought a bottle of liquor to share amongst the groomsmen. In an effort to not have Alex be alone, Bryan asked him to join them.
By the time we got to the reception, everything went well. We all had a great time and Alex and I danced a song. He was very emotional during the dance and again, reminded me about the night I cried in his dorm room. He told me how happy he was that I can go from that night, to my wedding night. At this point I was very annoyed as I could tell he was visibly drunk. Again, I would later find out that Bryan and Alex would sneak off during the reception to do shots.
At the end of the night I was fed up with Alex and planned on heading back to the hotel where the rest of the bridal party was staying. I said my goodbyes to Alex and thanked him for flying out to my wedding. During our goodbye, my bridesmaid, Jess, surprised me with the news of a surprise after party at her and her sister, Kim's place just 10 minutes away. Alex immediately insisted on coming along as my "brother." I absolutely did not want Alex to come to the after-party but I could not get him to go home. I also could not give him to someone else to take care of as he really did not know anyone else. I told Alex he could only come if someone came to pick him up and take him to the party as he was too drunk to drive his car. Alex agreed and called a relative to pick him up.
My husband and I arrived at the after-party hosted by Jess. I was so happy that the party was low-key with only a few drinks, food, and a light crowd. After all, I spent the past day and a half hosting. We were all enjoying ourselves when Alex walks through the front door. Alex appears even more drunk and is slurring his words. I am immediately embarrassed and even more so that I could not put my foot down and tell him to go home. I welcome Alex in to the main room of the house and sit him on a chair and bring him some water. I am watching Alex from a distance making sure he's not getting into trouble. Jess approaches me a little while into the party stating that Alex is making Kim, her sister, uncomfortable. She told me that Alex asked Kim to dance, but she respectfully declined citing she has a boyfriend and he is in the other room. Alex did not accept that answer and insisted she dance with him. I angrily approach Alex and told him to leave Kim alone.
I bring Alex to a seat close to me so I can keep a closer eye on him. At this point, my feet are swollen from a whole day's activities and I had a hard time unlacing the straps on my heels. I asked Bryan to help me loosen my heel straps as my husband was in another room. Once Bryan unloosens my heel straps, Alex immediately crawls up to me and starts massaging my feet. I am horrified as is Bryan and everyone else in the room. I immediately pull my feet back and Bryan helps Alex up and puts him back in the chair. My husband comes back into the room and I tell him I want to go back to the hotel. I ask my husband to call a ride share for Alex, when Bryan tells me he saw Alex pull up in his own car. I am immediately angered at Alex's decision to drive his car while drunk, but also mad at myself for not standing up to him. I tell Alex I am leaving and he needs to leave his car at Jess' and pick it up in the morning. Alex insists he will be leaving soon and not to worry. Jess looked at me in my distress and told me not to worry, and that she would make sure he gets in a rideshare. As my husband grabbed my coat, Alex looked at me and said, "when the love of your life gets married to someone else." I was so incredibly angry with Alex. I was embarrassed, I was shocked, and I was so disappointed. I don't know if Alex meant what he said, or if he was just drunk, but I had enough of Alex. I left Alex at the part and went home with my husband.
The next day, I woke up around noon to a text message from Alex, thanking me for a great party, and wishing to extend gratitude to Jess and Kim for their hospitality. I immediately phoned Jess to recap the rest of the party. Jess informed me that Alex did not take a ride share the night before. He spent the night at Jess' as he passed out on the living room floor. Jess, to not further distress me, ended the night early, and cleaned up the house. In the morning, Jess and Kim woke up to find Alex had left the house very early in the morning, but not without leaving behind a surprise for them. Alex had vomited all over the bathroom; missed the toilet as he went #2; had 💩 smeared on the bathroom rug; and to top it off, Alex left his 💩 stained boxers on the bathroom floor.
My jaw hit the floor. I could not process the level of disgust that I felt for Alex. I apologized profusely to Jess and Kim and offered to come clean up immediately. They knew it was not fault, but I felt absolutely horrible for inviting this man into their home.
From that moment on, I decided to ghost Alex. No matter how much anger I felt towards him, I did not feel it was worth my time. I wanted nothing to do with him. I didn't block him initially, I just ignored his calls and texts. He eventually reached out to my husband, and that's when I blocked him and asked my husband to do the same. I still feel bad about ghosting Alex, because a part of me feels he does not remember what happened, and I should give him some closure. The other part of me realizes he's a drunk and ruined parts of my wedding and did horrible things at my bridesmaid's house. I want to reach out sometimes, but then I remember that Jess and Kim had to clean up his 💩 smears. Idk, AITA for ghosting my "brother" after my wedding?

Most people think attraction has to do with sun sign. Everyone’s heard: “If you’re an Aquarius, date a Gemini or a Libra!” This is due to the fact that mainstream astrology does not consider other factors besides your sun sign, and most people believe this. But actually, this is not true, because most of the time sun-sun compatibility has little importance - no more than giving a general vibe that the relationship would give off. Instead, we should really focus on connecting energies between two charts.
SUN/MOON - 1st person’s sun in the same sign as the 2nd person’s moon:

• both people feel like they’ve found their other half
• the moon person looks up to the sun person
• the sun person helps the moon person shine
• there is an ease with each other that is very natural
• both people “make sense” to each other
• both have a similar attitude towards life

SUN/ASCENDANT - 1st person’s sun in the same sign as the 2nd person’s ascendant:

• the two people are very similar
• there are many common interests
• they both view life in a similar way
• the sun person likes the energy that the ascendant person naturally gives off
• the ascendant person feels like they can be themselves with the sun person
• self-expression is easy and harmonious together

MOON/MOON - having the same moon sign:

• this is a powerful, soulmate-like relationship
• both people feel a sense of security
• the other person feels “familiar” somehow
• sharing feelings is easy and natural
• both are very sensitive to each other’s feelings and needs
• there is an intense emotional bond, sometimes overwhelmingly powerful
• one can read the other like a book

MOON/ASCENDANT - 1st person’s moon in the same sign as the 2nd person’s ascendant:

• both people feel understood by each other
• the moon person feels at ease expressing their feelings
• the ascendant person feels understood by the moon person
• there is a natural emotional connection
• both are aware of and receptive to the other’s feelings

ASCENDANT/ASCENDANT - having the same ascendant sign:

• both people feel very comfortable with each other
• both people sense a similarity in the way that they project themselves to the world
• both have many shared values and similar attitudes
• both are attracted to the other’s self-expression

SUN/VENUS - 1st person’s sun in the same sign as the 2nd person’s venus:

• the sun person is the venus person’s “type”
• the sun person feeds off of the venus person’s love
• both people give and receive much affection
• the venus person values everything the sun person represents
• the sun person appreciates the venus person’s expression

MOON/VENUS - 1st person’s moon in the same sign as the 2nd person’s venus:

• the venus person makes the moon person feel comfortable
• both care a lot for each other
• both share a lot of values when it comes to a relationship

ASCENDANT/VENUS - 1st person’s ascendant in the same sign as the 2nd person’s venus:

• the ascendant person embodies what the venus person finds attractive
• the ascendant person appreciates the love the venus person gives
• both are sensitives to each other’s needs and want to please each other

VENUS/VENUS - having the same venus sign:

• both people are magnetically drawn to each other
• there is an appreciation for each other’s personal style/aesthetic
• both sense a similarity in each other’s romantic expression
• both naturally understand each other’s romantic needs and satisfy them

VENUS/MARS - 1st person’s venus in the same sign as the 2nd person’s mars:

• there is a sense of romantic chemistry
• the venus person is attracted to how the mars person asserts him/herself
• the mars person is attracted to the venus person’s charm and style

These are not the only indicators of attraction (there are many more involving asteroids or other points), but they are the most common ones involving personal planets. And also, having any of these connections does not guarantee a relationship will work out - they just give an indication of a strong connection between two people. There are both good AND bad sides to each of these connections, but here I’m showing the more positive side (meaning the reasons WHY you would feel the attraction in the first place). Having too many of these could potentially make a relationship overwhelming, while having only one might not be enough to keep a relationship going. It’s all about balance. :)
Credits : geministereo on tumblr

https://jwwreviews.blogspot.com/2024/06/in-violent-nature.html
7/10
In a Violent Nature, undead Jason Vorhees-esque killer Johnny (played by Ry Barrett) goes on a killing spree in the woods as he purses a golden locket that was taken from his resting place. This is a twist on the slasher genre in which instead of focusing on the final girl and future victims the movie follows the silent killer for 90% of the film.
This is definitely an interesting idea. People crack jokes about what the killers in these films are up to between kills and how they transport from place to place. Well, here we get it, and it's an interesting concept. I've heard complaints online (and from one random stranger at the movie theater) that the movie is too much of Johnny walking around the woods. Personally, I didn't find this to be a deal breaker (and I honestly didn't think there was THAT much walking), because the cinematography and sound are excellent. The movie is short like a nature documentary kinda in that a lot is silent observation of a being in the woods. I don't think I've seen a forest-set horror movie that truly one hundred percent felt like it was filmed in a natural park. There are so many excellent captures of foliage and the natural landscape. Except for a couple moments at night, the lighting feels natural. There's no soundtrack in this. My congrats to the sound guy or guys because they make the environment feel so natural like you're actually outdoors.
The movie should be particularly congratulated for using pieces of dialogue overhead by Johnny as he stalks and the general conventions of slasher flicks that we are easily able to piece together what's happening on the victims' side of the story without spending much time on them.
Also, there are some great uses of angles and reveals. Given that Johnny is the main subject, there is an interesting use of focus where often he'll be in the foreground and his victims a little out of focus when he's observing or pursuing others.
Going back to the "movie is a lot of walking" criticism, when we get to the actual kills, they are worth the wait. This is up with Thanksgiving as one of the most violent slashers of recent years. IaVN has two of the most memorable, over-the-top kills I've seen in quite a while. Also, the movie doesn't waste time with the pursuit of the victims. It's all about the violence.
Whereas the pacing didn't feel like that big a problem, there are a weak spots. Admittedly, Johnny is a little too derivative of Jason Vorhees. The killer's mask, which is an old time firefighter's hood is a unique idea, but it looks a little too much like a mosquito and doesn't feel like it quite lands.
The dialogue for the regular people is mostly bad. The script goes with the regular tropes of horror movies, but with less effort. I know a lot of the victims in these movies die because of being jerks or being too carefree, but these guys just a rub you the wrong way a little too much.
Remember that line about the movie being 90% Johnny? Those who like the concept may not love that the movie doesn't go that extra 10% to commit to the concept. Lastly, people are going to have mixed feelings about the ending. I'm honestly unsure how I feel about it.
Kinda recommended. The pacing and offbeat nature may not be for everyone (also, if you don't like gruesome violence, you won't like this), but others amongst you will find this interesting. Worth giving a chance. Even if you're not a fan, this isn't painfully bad.

Yesterday, I had my graduation ceremony. After years of university with absolutely no help besides occasional rides to the bus stop and, very rarely, to campus, I finally graduated. Here's what my parents have done in the lead-up to graduation and the day after instead of supporting me.
My parents spent months leading up to the graduation freaking out about how I'll get a job, trying to control my hair and clothing (even implying I'm ugly when I choose my own hair and clothing), harassing me to hand out business cards to everyone I meet (especially if the situation would be an immense faux pas), grilling me on if my grades are good, lecturing me relentlessly about how I need to keep in contact with people in my class and it's soooo important and would I like to hear about how my dad got a job through nepotism for the eightieth time, asking me questions they already know the answers to (Yes, I'm still talking to my former classmates. Yes, I know that you worked in the Yukon when you were 18. Yes, I know about your friend who worked in a weather station. Yes, I know you had to move to find a job in the 1980s. Yes, I am aware that it is a possibility I might have to move too. Yes, I know that it's okay to invite people over to the house, you've only "informed" me about a hundred times. Yes, I know that school is important.) Every single thing that they "inform" me about is something I have very clearly expressed that I understand, and is just thinly veiled criticism. But my dad needs to lecture more than he needs oxygen.
Just constant nitpicking, criticism, and nothing I ever did was enough. I couldn't even focus on grades, because they would in their own words "put pressure on" me to do what they wanted. To handle their emotions for them. They're obsessed with the idea that I would have to move to a tiny town or work in a coal mine to find a job, because I'm more highly educated than my dad (who dropped out of university despite having all expenses paid by his father), and because my dad worked in the Yukon for two summers. He will never shut up about that, and he even goes so far as to hold us hostage with implicit threat of a massive tantrum to listen to him tell us the story again and again and again and to show us pictures of the place he worked on Google maps and point to everything he remembers. Sometimes he can go on for half an hour just repeating himself over and over.
Last summer, my parents even went and took action without my knowledge or approval to try and get a job set up for me cleaning up a mine contaminated with arsenic in the middle of nowhere, NWT. They tried to guilt and shame me into it ("What are your plans instead? Do you have another job lined up? Because you need to have a job. You can't sit around all day." This coming almost literally one week into summer vacation after my second-last year of university, when I could be using my energy to find interesting co-ops or explore hobbies or travel, instead dealing with their harassment and obsession with trying to literally trap me in a fucking arsenic mine.) They went on and on, lectured me over and over, implied that I would be embarrassing my grandfather if I didn't go, and so on. Eventually they said "You can go work or get a certification", and I picked the certification, but then they got grumpy anyways, and every week for the entire summer they would ask "Are you still working on the certification?". Of course, dipsh*t. I've told you fifty times how long the program lasts.
They don't care about what I'm learning in class, don't care about my hobbies or interests, only care about my friends as either a means to get backdoored into a job or a "nice French Canadian woman" to have babies with. They don't care if I'm struggling, and are completely unavailable to help in any regard. Any request for help would result in a guilt trip. Even if I actually couldn't eat dinner with the family for one day because I had a test, my father would get raw emotions and I'd have to walk on eggshells for a few days. The one time I mentioned I was having trouble studying, instead of shutting up and no longer ranting in the main floor where I could hear him or turning the TV off, he just dragged a table into the unfurnished boiler room (without asking me) and then told me that I would have to study there. I wasn't allowed to choose not to, because he'd already set it up. Ironically, my anger at him did let me study pretty well for the one day that I was forced there. He tried to keep me there long-term because he thought it was just such a great idea, but I managed to trick him into thinking I didn't need help studying anymore, so I got to study at a desk with a light on it and flooring that wasn't bare cement. Hooray for the most minor victory imaginable.
In the months leading up to graduation, did they care about how hard I was working at my capstone project and offer support? Absolutely not! Did they care about how well my sleep quality was, how many times the cat woke me up because they didn't play with her enough or give her enough attention? Nope! Did they care about how exhausting it was to deal with their constant lectures on the same topics, and to have to give them affirmations ("Yes, you're right, that's right, good job, nice, very tasty, good work, oh really?, neat, that's cool, how'd you make that?, mhm, I agree, you're being reasonable, they're being ridiculous, that's crazy") a hundred times a day? Not even in the slightest!
We spend more time talking about my dad's college friends than about anything I or my brother care about.
Then, leading up to graduation. all I've gotten are the most humiliating, infuriating, insulting messages and lectures from my parents. I get almost daily emails and texts saying "You need to get a job, it's important to look for a job" despite the fact I've told them I am looking probably fifty times. Too cowardly to say it to my face. I've been texted literal links to a Google search for "[degree name] jobs [city]" more than once. Both my parents treat me like I don't listen, when I do. They treat me like I'm lazy, when I've put myself through university with no help even after they lied to me about giving me financial aid and made me out to be a bully demanding more money when all I did was say "alright" and then pay for it myself. They must have sternly given me a talking to about how "I'm not going to pay for university, you know that, right? You need to pay. Don't expect us to pay. Because we paid for your first semesters, you know that, right? We've already paid for enough." thirty times, even after I'd made the final payment. They treat me like I'm stupid when I have expressed understanding before. They treat me like I'm a bully while I always bend over backwards for them, just because I don't play my role as "surrogate mommy but this time I get to tell her what to do" well enough.
It feels like they're almost raising me into a replacement or surrogate parent. Like my dad wants me to be his mom or dad, except this time he gets to be in charge. And my mom wants me to be her mom, except this time when she freaks out or has her deer in headlights look, she'll get someone to step up and take care of everything for her. I distinctly remember having to comfort her even for things she did to me, like tell me that a pair of comfortable shoes I picked out was good and she'd get them, and then immediately scream "take it out, take it out!" after it was scanned at the register. I could not have been older than twelve. And for my dad, he always rants and raves to me exactly like he does to his parents, except without including blame for them sending him to boarding school and instead having tons of old "life updates" like where he worked when he was 18 and what music he liked to listen to in high school, stuff like that. Then he expects me to praise him or be interested like his parents never were (he always tells me that his parents only cared about his car when they called).
So now I graduated. All they had to say in the days coming up to it was to grill me on the time I'd have to be at the venue and the time I was planning to leave the house to get there on time, with a distinct air of "you're too lazy to think of this in advance and too stupid to figure it out without a plan". Of course, I had to answer this question probably five times, because they don't care to ever listen to me. Before the ceremony I got text messages showing they were way more excited about themselves being here than anything relating to me, with multiple messages expressing how they arrived and it was exciting, then they asked me how the atmosphere was and their only reply was a one-word "nice" with no punctuation, because they don't care about me and only ask droll questions to segue into their next bit.
After grad, there was two generic sentences spoken with no emotion about how it was nice I graduated, and then they made a whole song and dance about the amazing gifts they got me. It was a degree frame I picked out myself that my dad presented as new and exciting (because he never pays attention to me, of course, when I told him I had picked one out and ordered it with my mother. Also she had another freakout about price and acted like I was holding her hostage by taking her unforced offer to buy me the second-cheapest degree frame on offer.). Then he presented the free gift small frame they got with it as though I should praise him for it, then a congratulation card that was alright I suppose if only because my brother drew a little creature in it that made me smile (my parents did not add anything special or meaningful to it). There was also a cap, which I genuinely enjoy and is nice, and a cheap ballpoint pen for some reason. He said there was more gifts at home, which okay, I don't care about gifts but I'd like him to at least be as excited for my graduation as he was for the picture frame. I didn't get any souvenirs from the bookstore because I knew if I got something he'd also gotten he'd freak out and accuse me of not listening to him or whatever, so I waited. When I got home my gift was Skittles. I don't know why I thought me might have gone to the bookstore and gotten me something special related to my actual interests. He doesn't care to know what those are anyways. I guess I hoped that at least this one day would be different.
Today, the day after graduation, all I've gotten from my parents is:
- Involved in a lecture and manufactured drama about my brother not using my car to drive to his job, even though my dad had the exact opposite position the entire rest of the year, because "what if you need to drive somewhere?", trying to manufacture a fight between my brother and me while also guilting and shaming me for not driving as a hobby like he does.
- A text message from my mother asking me if I'm awake because she wants more ammo to paint me as lazy. Nevermind that I barely slept the night before to make it to grad (of course neither of my parents would care enough about me to come with me as a family. I was literally the only person I saw who went on my own and without their family showing up early too, to support them. I walked past so many families in the parking lot knowing my mother couldn't be bothered to change out of her pajamas for me.) Nevermind I had a huge day that day, and that I was taking care of the cat's energy all that night too because attending my grad is apparently soooo draining my parents can't look after their own pet, and somehow it falls to me. All that matters is she woke up early and I didn't (after I handled all her inconveniences for her, funny how that works).
- Rapid knocks on my door because my dad is making bread as a hobby and apparently "needs" me there to help him with it, and then also "needed" me to stay and make cookies with him.
- A lecture about someone I never knew who apparently once threw something at another kid on my street when I was about 5, and about how he died and how his wife's hobby was really expensive or whatever and if I really don't remember him?
- I went to a showhome for fun and brought back the brochure. My dad jabbed his finger at the pictures on it to explain the house to me like I wasn't the one who literally brought the brochure back. Never asked if I cared or anything, just immediate launch into lecture and expecting me to stay and listen and praise him for being so smart or whatever.
- A lecture about D Day for some fucking reason. My dad is obsessed with history, and he doesn't have any friends to talk to (wonder why) so his lectures always fall on my ears.
- An email from my mother explaining in an extremely condescending way how important it is to have a cover letter when applying for jobs (just completely assuming I don't write them and also am too lazy or stupid to think about having them) including copy-pasted text from a sample cover letter that is no doubt one of the first results on google for "cover letter example"
- An angry email from my mother including a job she found on google
But, contrast that to my neighbors across the street. I was friends them in grade school, haven't seen them in like ten years, and just on my way past to the showhome we said hi and chatted in a genuinely nice conversation that wasn't a one-sided lecture like usual in my house. They could sense my emotions and didn't try to keep me there longer than I wanted to rant, they were genuinely interested in me and gave me space and interest to express myself, their mother even hugged me for graduating and it was the most genuine hug and congratulations I've ever received in person. Every other hug was my family members forcing me to hug them for their own sole benefit. I admit I cried a bit later on my walk thinking about it.
Compared to my parents, the parents of old friends care more about me, trust me more, believe in me more, have more hope for my future, are more interested in me, and understand me better. It's tremendously sad that all throughout my graduation ceremony I was worried about my parents becoming upset for some random reason and blowing up at me. I'm glad I at least focused and made myself feel some pride and joy in myself for graduating.
Even the random people I met who were also taking part in the open house were nicer and better conversationalists than my parents. A random elderly couple I have never seen in my life can have a better interaction with me than my own parents. The realtor was more chill and less perfectionistic than my parents by a mile. His million-dollar house sale was something he was less stressed and perfectionistic about and something he beat himself up over less than my parents are about my hairstyle when I'm going to class because "What if you meet someone in industry and they see you're not professional".
It's absurd.

I, 30F, moved into a trailer in my home town with two guys whom i thought were friends 35M, and 27M. For simplicity 27M will be Bum, and 35M will be Fool. The three of us agreed to move in and split the bills 3 ways. Shortly after moving in, Bum quit his job and refused to get another one. Instead, he sat at the house, playing video games all night and generating a mess. I had spoken to Fool many time about this and it seemed like he was on my side. After living with Bum for a while, I noticed a drastic change in my dog's, 6M large breed, behavior. He would run from Bum as if he were about to be beaten. To the point he would slip and fall on the wood laminate floor. He was also confined to my bedroom at all times as was my cat. I confronted Bum about it when I noticed a hole in my bathroom wall that hadn't been there when I left for work. He fed me some cock and bull story about how my dog must have launched my full conditioner bottle that had been sitting in my shower caddy at the wall. Throughout the entire 8 months of living with these two I have paid half of the rent and all of the utilities. I have had to take out payday loans every 2 weeks to make the basic household ends meet while my own personal bills have gone on the back burner. Eventually, Bum ended up getting a baby sitting job. Thinking that the struggle was finally over and we could finally split the bills, I did the math for the rent and posted it in our group chat. In layman's terms, he said no that his bills had to come first and that the rent was staying the way it was. This pissed me off and I finally decided enough was enough and spoke to a different friend about getting into a new place. Everything came to a head this passed Monday. In short, Bum said he hadn't slept in 34 hours, was sick, and went to "work". He was angry that I hadn't cleaned up the giant mess that he had made or did the dishes while on the phone with people who I had thought were friends. He kept comparing me to his ex and said how living with me as a roommate made him want to "unalive himself". I called my mom and asked her to come and get me after he had gone into his room. I sent Fool a message telling him that Bum could stay and that I would leave since I am the problem. He called us both soon after in a group call and demanded to know what was going on. Bum gave his side first and then interrupted as I tried to give mine. He said again that living with me made him want to unalive himself. He knows that Suic*de is a trigger of mine and he uses it often. I yelled at him not to say that and he began to scream at me. I ju g ip from the call and began speed packing essentials while calling my mom. She and a friend helped get my essentials and pets out and back to my moms place. Today, I went back over and finished packing my things, only to discover that my vr headset and controllers are missing. Last I had seen them they had been in the entertainment center that is now empty. I confronted Bum about it and he denied having them. I went through all of my stuff 5 times and couldn't find them. I told him he had 15 minutes to produce my vr setup ir I'd call the cops. He began to yell at me again. My mother stepped in and told me to just call, so I did and made a report. He tried to kick my mother out of "his" house but she refused stating that it wasn't his house but mine. He went and hid in his room after that. About an hour after the ordeal, I recieved messages from Fool. He stated that since I willingly broke the lease that I had until june 9th to pack up my things and get out, otherwise theyd throw everything out and take me to court for damages to the room. I told him that my things were already out and that I was going back tomorrow to clean the room and repair the damages. He stated that I couldn't go into the house without one of them there. I know for a fact that they haven't spoken with the office yet about taking me off the lease so I know I still have a right to go inside and that by law that they have to give me 30 days since I recieve mail at the address. I intend on going anyway and cleaning the room and removing the last of my things and the trash and giving the key back to the manager in the office. I have stopped respoding to Fool's messages and I have blocked Bum on all platforms. I simply cannot take the mental, financial, and amimal abuse any longer. Please tell me, AITAH here?

The Injustice Initiative and Megaverse Council did not grieve with their former leader for too long, due to the combined forces of Venessa and Velocity making swift progress in uniting dozens of Omniverses under their heroic banner. Velocity used her direct and demanding demeanor to influence the defenders of each Omniverse to join the Council and was brutally honest in her meetings with the current situation. She stressed that if they refuse to join then they will face extinction and the Council will not help them when they are attacked due to them only having priorities for attacking the demons head on. Venessa on the other hand focused her attention in strengthening the Injustice Initiative with rigorous training and firing incompetent people in leadership positions and swiftly replacing them with those that were far more competent and understood the severity of the situation. In the span of 16 days, the combined efforts of these two feminine leaders made great leaps in progress that equaled or surpassed Diamond's own work in the past three months.
While these two were on a mission together, The Researcher contacted them regarding a very important matter. When the two heroines arrived at the Council's headquarters The Researcher revealed to them two enormous discoveries. "We finally found them. The place where our foes call home, Omniverse 6,666,666. We do not know much of this Omniverse other than the Diamond from Omniverse 8 being aware of its potential and became paranoid of its existence leading him nearly wiping all traces of it from the Council's database. I happen to uncover the last fragments of his report that failed to be deleted. Furthermore, the Core of that Omniverse is deeply fractured, completely drained of all power. We can deduce with sound reasoning that the landscape of that Omniverse is something out of an apocalypse with everything that could have gone wrong, definitely went wrong. In addition, it is a very wide and vast Omniverse similar to the Main Omniverse. In fact, before its current miserable state, it was a near copy of the Main Omniverse. We are trying to scout and analyze the area as best as we can, but it is blocking all of our scanners. Our supernatural sensors can barely last four seconds before frying when they sense the amount of dark negative energy that shrouds that Omniverse." Velocity, "And the other news?" "We also found a very promising Omniverse that was elusive to our map, but just appeared and is surging with radiant energy from the Light." Venessa abruptly, "Light? Like The Light......... not just colorful lights?" "Correct. Would you care to guess what this Omniverse's number is?" "I would assume it would be the polar opposite of the other, so Omniverse 7,777,777?" "Bingo. Apparently, they have a hierarchy over there and their King requests your presence. His words not mine were King Alexander humbly requests the presence of Empress Venessa of the Main Omniverse and any companions she wishes to bring for a formal meeting in regards to the future protection of the Megaverse."
"Alright, message King Alexander and tell him I will adhere to his request. She accessed her communication com and ordered Tray and Cross to join her on the mission. She then turned to Velocity. I would have you join me on this mission, but I do not want to delay the progress you are making in convincing more Omniverses to join our cause." A short time passed as the three members arrived for their briefing with Venessa. After their meeting, they used their watches and traveled to Omniverse 7,777,777. Their eyes were blinded by the bright rays of the sun, before they could tell where they were at. At last, their eyes adjusted to their environment, which resulted in them being astonished at the shining city that was before them. They observed trains similar to bullet trains zipping back and forth through wind tubes and the residents there in very intricate clothing. The residents either had high collar jackets, dazzling shirts, and most importantly, Venessa could sense all of them having unusual levels of the Light inside of them. A loud voice could be heard behind them. "Are these the people who the King wishes to speak with?" The group turns around and sees two men standing a few feet behind them. One appears six foot and a few inches, he did not wear a shirt but was surrounded with gold and red armor, a long red cape, black pants, and long flowing blonde hair. The other was a little shorter around five feet and possibly 11 inches with black and purple hair, a black and purple cape, purple pants, and purple armor in the exact areas as the first man. The second one responded to his companion in a soft-spoken manner,"Yes, these are the three we were assigned to escort back to the castle." Venessa, "Hey, are you two like siblings or something? You two kind of look alike." The purple one, "That assumption is correct. I am Lucrest and this is my older obnoxious brother Leoped." Leoped, "We are two in a handful of select individuals, who serve the King by carrying out special assignments and investigations." Lucrest, "If you will please follow us, the King is eager to greet you."
The three heroes followed the two guards to the castle, during their walk Venessa teased her sibling, Tray. "It appears those two brothers have larger swords than you. I think they are far superior swordsmen if they can handle large blades like that. It fails to even compare your toothpick of a sword." "Shush! I don't want to hear it. I choose elegance and gracefulness over something flashy." The group finally reached the castle as several guards in colorful shining full body armor saluted the group as they stepped inside the large white crystal doors of the castle. Leoped and Lucrest led the trio right towards the throne room; no sooner than when the doors opened, King Alexander leaped from his throne and welcomed his guests. The King's outfit was composed of expensive black cloth with silver and blue crystals creating his unique armor with gold outlining around the edges and his crown. His hair was white as snow with a cape flowing from his waist with two metallic angelic wings attached to his back. He appeared as someone who was no older than their early 20's, much less muscular than Leoped, while possessing a staggering height of 6,7. "Greetings Empress Venessa, first adopted child of Diamond! A pleasure to finally meet you. Greetings to you Tray, second adopted child of Diamond! And a very warm welcome to Cross, the last member and headmaster of the Royal Guard!" Cross' attitude changed from being standoffish to one of utter shock. No one has addressed him as headmaster since the days of the Clone War. Tray whispered to Venessa, "Headmaster of the Royal Guard? I never knew that about Cross." "Yes, many years in Cross' realm he was headmaster of the Royal Guard, an elite group of warriors who protected his realm from malevolent threats under the orders of a man named the Keeper. This was brought to an end when.........Alastor manipulated him to massacre all of his fellow friends and the Keeper towards the end of the Clone War, mere days before order Kingdom Come was initiated."
King Alexander, "Empress Venessa please accept these gifts as a sign of good will. He signaled for four servants to step forward with bundles of technology and scrolls. The Alphaverse is more than ready to work closely alongside the Megaverse Council to defeat the fallen angels and corrupted souls of the Demonic Council! Please follow me to our war chambers." King Alexander led the heroes down several steps to a room that was protected by several guards. They were granted access and upon entering, the heroes were stunned to see holographic displays of plans and projects that were scattered as two male figures were debating with a female. The figures turned to the doors and quickly turned off the scattered plans and pulled up a file that said, "Propositions and explanation for the Megaverse Council." One unique hologram Venessa saw before it disappeared was a hologram of the Matrix of Eternity with a subject line under it labeled "Restore the Matrix to its former power?" As Venessa was deep in thought, King Alexander spoke to his guests who the other three figures were, "The lanky one with grey hair and a gas mask is our lead chemist, Lorenzo. The other one with him with the crimson operator hat, black and red hair, and basically black and red from his natural wings to his armor adored with many medals is our head of homeland security, Viciate. Last but not least is our lead scientist of technology, and weapons, whose brilliance I cannot put into words, Malissia." Malissia had medium length jet black hair that only left her left eye visible, yet it appeared she had unique facial marks that were long black lines leading up to her eyelids. She wore a long black coat that went just above her ankles with boots in the shape of heels. Nearly everything she wore was black except her shirt which was white with print that resembles computer chips. Malissia, "I prefer to go by M." Tray in a playful manner, "A little gothic in your appearance compared to everyone we've seen today!" "Simply a matter of taste and perception." Tray then noticed Malissia had white irises as the rest of her eyes were black, which created a sense of mystery behind them.
Lorenzo, "The disgraced Royal Guard is here......." King Alexander disappointingly, "Lorenzo......we talked about this." Venessa, "Hey what was that project regarding the Matrix of Eternity about? How would any of you be able to reload it?" King Alexander, "We have the source that originally fueled the Matrix. We were the ones who originally created it." Cross and Tray were shocked to hear such a revelation. Was the king bluffing or legitimately telling the truth? Malissia, "The reason you saw so many other projects scattered was due to these two knuckleheads trying to push these loose ideas my way, knowing full well we had a meeting today." Viciate, "Then Lorenzo and I should be going." Viciate and Lorenzo leave the room as King Alexander and Malissia start speaking with Venessa, Tray, and Cross. Lorenzo and Viciate journeyed far from the castle's boundaries and into the outskirts of the gorgeous city into a dark alleyway where a female was waiting for them. "Have you two finally reached a decision?" Lorenzo, "Yes, we have, Paradox." Paradox in a feminine form smiled while twirling their hair, with a snap of their fingers a contract appeared before Lorenzo and Viciate. "Both of you sign there. Viciate tried to sign with a pen, but Paradox stopped him. Nuh uh uh, in blood!" Viciate pulled a dagger and cut a piece of flesh off him and Lorenzo as they signed the contract that bonded them to Black Hat. See that wasn't so hard. Now I sense you have something to tell me?" Viciate, "The Empress, playboy, and ex-harbinger of darkness are here. They learned of the plans to restore the Matrix of Eternity." A sadistic smile appeared on Paradox's face, "Wonderful! Wonderful! Things could not be better! With your help we can kill those three now and you two will rule this Omniverse as the new kings only in service to Black Hat and the Council. Let them retrieve the remains of the Matrix, and we can either strike before or after they restore the Matrix, then steal it and place it within the treasury with the other dangerous objects that could pose a threat to our reign. Run along now and continue to play your parts like good little errand boys." Paradox gave them a wink. Lorenzo, "Freak! When it comes to your services, we work with you, not for you!" The two then leave as Paradox continues to smile in the shadows.
Back in the war chamber. Venessa, "Impressive. All that you are proposing will greatly benefit us. I can see your offers are sincere, but I must ask, why it took you this long to reveal yourselves?" King Alexander, "That is........simply because of an old law......that had been in effect for thousands of years. I wanted to honor my father and his father, but eventually my consciousness allowed me to overturn that old silly law." Loud footsteps could be running through the halls as a young teenage girl open the doors to the room with pieces of paper in her arms. She began to speak clearly out of breath, "I'm here sister. The documents you wanted." Mallisa, "A few minutes late like usual, Joan." "It's not my fault, military class went on longer than normal! Gosh, how many times do I have to tell you I hate it that mom and dad forced me to become a soldier!" "Everyone, this is my younger sister, Joan. Joan this is Empress Venessa and her two colleagues, Tray and Cross." Everyone exchanged friendly greetings except for Tray who stared at Joan. There was something about Joan that captivated him, it was either the childish way she speaks or the fact she had navy hair like he did. Instead of a handshake, he wrapped both his hands around hers and knelt down, "My fair lady, it is with great honor to meet you. I pray that you will accept my greeting as one of humbleness and may good health and prosperity follow you all the days of your life, my dearest madam." Everyone in the room stared dumbfounded at Tray's speech. Cross, "Where the crap did that come from Shakespeare?" Joan stood there blushing as she stuttered while addressing Tray, "Th....thank y...yo.....you." King Alexander, "Well this meeting is nearing its end, so why don't Tray and Joan spend some time with each other while the rest of us handle the closing logistics?" Mallisa, "WHAT THE?" "Alright it's settled then. Tray and Joan, you two are dismissed."
Joan and Tray stared at each other before she offered Tray some lunch, which he readily agreed to. Alexander turned back to Venessa, "Venessa, if you don't mind, I will like you and your party to stay here the next four days. The first two can be used to handle business regarding our technology and battle tactics as I introduce you to our greatest soldiers, warriors, and fighters. The last two days can be a sort of mini vacation." "Well..........I don't think such an offer will hurt. You have yourself a deal King Alexander!" At lunch Tray and Joan were deep in conversation. Tray, "You look much different than your sister. Your eyes are normal, you are much more cheerful, and just overall livelier." "My sister takes all the stress and responsibilities of the family upon her. That and her role in the kingdom just adds more stress to her. As for her eyes and facial markings, those came when she felt called to the Spring of Restoration." "What now?" "The Spring of Restoration grants those worthy unique properties or powers. Only a select few experience a change from the spring. It is not heavily protected because the spring prevents anyone unworthy from stepping foot in its waters." "Radical." "Mhm!" "So, I heard you fighting with your sister about you hating being trained as a soldier. Why is that?" "It freaking sucks! My parents do not want me to be an astronomer or engineer! They want me to become a Celestial Crusader. On top of that, I don't even get to choose what I want to do or what I want to eat a majority of the time! Eating lunch with you right now is a rare occurrence." "Have you brought your problems to the king?" "Yes, but I don't know if he is hearing my pleas or not. If he's not, I don't blame him, he has a lot on his mind and considering my parents are very influential in terms of politics, if the king makes a brash move, my parents will give him political turmoil." Tray abruptly received a message from Venessa stating their four day stay. He was excited and already made up his mind that he will spend these four days showing Joan the freedom she is missing out on.
The next two days, King Alexander did everything he said he would to Venessa and Cross. Among the strongest warriors and fighters were Ezekiel with his four angelic wings and star saber, Phonix with his ability to control time and fire, Ian with the ability to create things out of metal at will and his large sword in the shape of a key, Vivi with her ability of harnessing animal souls and acquiring their powers and abilities to her disposal, and with several other notable fighters. Yet, the group was slowly stalked by Lorenzo who reported all of their movements to Paradox. The next two days arrived where Venessa and Cross briefly parted ways in order to find some way to relax before returning to base. On the fourth day, Venessa contacted her adoptive mother, Selena, for a special request. She wanted Selena to travel to the Alphaverse with the Matrix of Eternity in order to restore it with wisdom capable of changing the tide of the war. As for Joan and Tray, the two traveled all across the kingdom from going to the beach, kayaking, visiting the aquarium, and art museum. Tray taught Joan how to properly duel and was deeply proud when she complimented him on his elegant sword. Unknown to them Viciate was also reporting their activities to Paradox. On one of their stops, Joan brought Tray to the Spring of Restoration just for them to sight see. Yet, she was startled when Tray stopped responding to her. His eyes were affixed at the spring as he slowly started to step towards it. Joan tried to stop him, but her petite body could not stop him.
Suddenly, he stopped on the edge of the spring and bent down scooping up the water as he started to drink it from his hands. Joan was confused at Tray's behavior, "Are you......alright?" Before Tray could turn around, he collapsed on the ground. "TRAY!" She ran to him, but when she arrived, his eyes opened wildly as his body started to glow with an unearthly light. Tray's body started to transform with his pupils becoming white similar to Mallisa but instead of the other part of his eye becoming black, it became a bright cyan color. His navy hair became white with a few streaks of cyan along with his olive skin changing to being white as quartz. His outfit even started to change around him with his clothes glowing with a clear like cyan substance with a hood gently resting on his hair. Gold embroidered his collar as a unique glowing cyan halo appearing over his head. "Joan.....please tell me I'm not dead." "I uhhhh you mmmmmmm I guess not? Here let me show you what you look like." Joan opened her camera and took a photo of him in order for Tray to see the photo. "Oh my gosh I became even more handsome." "Seriously, that's what you think about after looking like you just died on me!" "Hey, I'm sorry for zoning out on you like that. I just heard a soothing voice calling me from the Spring and I could not help but follow it." "The voice was more than soothing than mine?!" "Well yes...CRAP NO NOT LIKE THAT I SWEAR!" Joan started punching Tray as he let out a hearty laugh. From the shadows Viciate contacted Paradox on what happened and for Paradox to arrive swiftly to exterminate the couple.
The two continued on their walk after having their emotions die down. Yet, there was a sort of tension in the air between the two as one waited for the other to speak first. At last, Tray was the one to break the tension as he stopped Joan and decided to finally reveal to her the thoughts that had been plaguing his mind the past few days. "Joan, I don't know how to say this but, whenever I am around you, I just feel warm inside and what I could only describe as butterflies, erupt in my stomach." Joan blushed deeply before responding, "Oh Tray!" "Joan, if you do not want to enlist in the Celestial Crusaders, you don't have to. I'm offering you a choice. I see how much you care for your older sister and your eagerness for freedom. I encourage you to follow your heart and join me. I promise with every fiber in my being that my family and I will protect you and support you with whatever decision you make." Joan with tears in her eyes. "Oh Tray! Thank you! I want to briefly stay here so I can help my sister with any last assignments and join you on exploring the Megaverse and you taking me back to the Omniverse you call home! Thank you, thank you for being such a wonderful person to me these past four days. Truthfully, I can say I feel the same when I am around you. Your outgoing free-spirited nature is very cute and contagious." Tray extends his hand towards Joan, "Then what are we waiting for? Take my hand and I will show you all the wonderful places in my Omniverse! Obviously after you are done helping your sister of course." He gave her a big comforting smile as he waited for her to wipe the tears of gratitude off her face. However, just before she could place her hand in his, a gunshot went off as a singular bullet went through the right side of Joan's head and exited out of the left. Tray opened his eyes and was horrified at the pool of blood emerging from Joan's body as she lay lifeless on the ground. He was shaken as he heard a sickening laugh. He hastily turned his head to the direction of the laughter.
Tray's eyes widened in confusion as he saw Gadget Bandito emerge from the shadows. "What.....what are you doing here? How did you get here? Why have you done this after being a loyal member of the Initiative for many years?!" "Doesn't matter. Any last words kid?" Tray thought inwardly, "Wait......no......there is no way he is the real Gadget Bandito. The real one does not even know a lot of the Megaverse, much less keep up with any news from the Initiative." He finally spoke out loud. "My powers and senses are telling me you are Gadget Bandito. But my heart, mind, and soul tell me otherwise! WHO ARE YOU?" Paradox finally revealed himself to Tray as he morphed into his mechanical appearance. Tray finally spoke after being at a loss for words, "I know you. I know who you are. No, you are not even a person anymore. You have turned yourself into something unrecognizable. I KNOW WHAT YOU ARE! YOU ARE THE CREATURE WHO MURDERED MY FATHER'S PARENTS ON THE NIGHT OF HOLY THURSDAY!" Paradox had a twisted malicious grin on his mechanical face as he spoke, "Aren't you a smart one." Tray began to channel his new powers granted to him from the Spring of Restoration. "I WILL NOT ONLY AVENGE THE DEATH OF DIAMOND'S PARENTS! BUT FOR JOAN WHO YOU SHOT IN COLD BLOOD! DIE YOU BODY MORPHING BASTARD!"
Filled with pure rage, Tray could not control his powers as Paradox merely toyed with him before using Tray's disorientation to his advantage. Paradox was able to overpower the young hero, but briefly underestimated his new power buff when Tray's halo pierced itself into Paradox's chest. This comeback was shortly lived due to the intervention of Viciate who incapacitated Tray and tied him up. Elsewhere, Venessa felt a disturbance in her gut and thus gathered Cross and met with King Alexander to ask where Tray and Joan were at. The King did not know of their location much to the dismay of Venessa, but suddenly in the throne room a thick green mist entered the room which knocked the guards and the heroes unconscious. Lorenzo did his best to pick up the bodies of the heroes and tie them up, "Now we just wait for the Queen of Asteria to arrive and snatch the Matrix from her by ransoming these hostages."
Meanwhile Selena took care of Diamond and would not allow him out of her sight. If he had to leave her house, she would go with him wherever he went, due to the public opinion on him fiercely divided. There were some who believed the attacks were caused by him while others knew that he would never do such a thing and it had to be an imposter. She would fiercely criticize any bystander who booed or tried to assault Diamond. Diamond on the other hand did not like how Selena was being overprotective of him, and her reasoning was that his mental state was not in a good place. Truthfully, it felt like he was on house arrest. One day the two of them took a nap on Selena's couch, when Selena was notified to embark on the mission to Omniverse 7,777,777. She did not have Diamond know what mission it was, but said it was important. "Don't do anything stupid or silly while I'm gone. And do not go on any adventures either! If I find out you left the town, you won't hear the end of it!" "Alright sheesh I got it."
Selena traveled to Sanctuary and entered one of the passwords a few of the elite members possessed in order to gain access to the broken remains of the Matrix of Eternity. She grabbed the pieces and created a portal to the Alphaverse. Once Selena teleported off to her mission, Diamond took advantage of this opportunity and decided to venture into town. He grabbed his Bluetooth earbuds and walked outside to his favorite coffee shop. While walking, he played Have You Ever Seen The Rain, by Creedence Clearwater Revival, one of his father's favorite bands. He could not resist but sing along with the lyrics, "When it's over so they say it'll rain a sunny day, I know, shining down like water. I wanna know, have you ever seen the rain? I wanna know, have you ever seen the rain? Coming down on a sunny day." During his stroll a handful of protestors spotted him and began to yell, "Murderer! Thief! Crook! Liar!" One such protestor threw a pot of hot water at him, which nearly resulted in Diamond retaliated, but he bore these wrongs patiently and continued on his way. He turned a corner into an alleyway and started to dance and jump in the puddles. On the other side were a set of stairs where he slowly danced his way down each step to the closing parts of the song still singing with raw emotion. "Yeaaaaahhhhhhhh I wanna know have you seen the rain? I wanna know have you ever seen the rain? Coming down on a sunny day."
He turned off his music when he entered the doors of the small shop and waited patiently in line. After he finished placing his order and pulled out his wallet to pay, the cashier whispered to him, "It's on the house. You are still a hero to us who work here." "Are you sure ma'am?" "Yes. It'll be out shortly." He took a seat near a window and started reading the local newspaper in silence. Just then a little boy who was with his parents came to his side and started to speak with him. "Excuse me sir, but are you, Diamond?" Diamond chuckled to himself, "Well there is no use in hiding my identity. Yes, I am." "Can you tell me what it was like during the year I was born?" "Uh, odd request but yeah I can tell you, first I have to ask how old are you?" "I just turned four!" "Well happy birthday! Let's see four years ago was 2016.....wait no it was 2020. Gosh was 2020 four years ago? Man, all these adventures all start flowing together kid. So, around this time an old enemy of mine named......" Diamond abruptly stopped speaking as he felt a disturbance. "Named who, sir?" Diamond stood up and slowly walked to the doors as a giant explosion went off in the center of town. Everyone started screaming, running in all directions from the blast, as Diamond signaled his AI using his nanotech vision glasses. "HONEY what are we looking at? HONEY? Crap I never turned you back on." Diamond hastily had his nanotech grow on his left arm as he turned on the setting to activate HONEY. "I'm back! Are you ok boss, did you do anything brash when I was gone?" "We can catch up later HONEY, right now I need you to prevent traffic from entering this street and alert the local authorities." "Yes sir!"
While all of this was happening on Earth, Selena's portal finally brought her to the Alphaverse. She begins to mutter to herself, "Alright Venessa I'm here. Hopefully we can get this done quickly, because I don't trust Diamond being by himself." Selena was cautious of her surroundings, due to being greeted with an eerie vacant throne room. She suddenly heard a quiet "help me," this prompted her to locate the source of the voice which resulted in her finding Lorenzo lying next to a pillar. "Please help me." "Who did this to you, where are they now, and have you seen a young girl with pink and blue hair go by?" Selena used her powers to silently read the injured person's mind, but before her powers could alert her of it being a trap, she heard another voice which caused her pupils to shrink with fear. "Hello my precious doll." Selena turned to face the new voice and to her horror, she saw Paradox standing behind her, appearing the same way he looked the day before he died. The trauma from the mistreatment and terror she received from him overridden her senses and caused her to stand completely motionless. Behind her Lorenzo leaped and took off his mask expelling a strong toxin into her lungs causing her to faint and drop the pieces of the Matrix. Lorenzo, "Why did you change the plan to capture her instead of bargaining with her?" Paradox, "Because I want the last thing, they see is me holding the reloaded Matrix and handing it over to my masters." Paradox then switched back to his mechanical body and wrapped Selena in thick pairs of chains. He then took her body along with the rest of the heroes to the depths of the castle.
Simultaneously on Earth, Diamond slowly made his way to the source of the blast as he yelled at the pedestrians to head southbound. When he reached the center of the blast three figures emerged. A hulking lizard creature, a humanoid squid, and a tall figure wrapped in black cloth with piercing red goggles. "HEY! THIS TOWN IS CLOSED TO THUGS LIKE YOU TODAY!" The man in black cloth responded back, "We were wishing for a fight with Selena, but facing you is even better!" "I suggest you stand down before I rip a tentacle from your friend Squidward!" "Grok shut his mouth." The hulking creature lifted his axe from his back and started charging at Diamond. Diamond tapped his chest as his nanotech started to form around him as he created several large blasters from his back and fired at Grok. The blasts sent Grok flying backwards to his two other companions, but the man in black simply waved his hand to the right which sent Grok crashing into a local store. Diamond flew towards the humanoid squid and started punching him with unrelenting force that caused the squid to vomit quantities of ink. The man in black teleported behind Diamond and used his mystic powers to gain the upper hand by distorting the reality around them. The squid shaped his head into a spear and tried to pierce Diamond with his poison, but Diamond dodged it and sent him hurdling towards the man in black, breaking the reality illusion. He then had his suit create a sticky net which he shot to capture both the man in black and squid. Grok finally managed to get back up, but upon seeing his comrades captured, he clicked a button on his belt that resulted in him exploding creating a blast deadlier than the first. Diamond noticed there were a few people that were in the blast radius of this second explosion and flew towards them using his strength to hold the falling debris from the tall business building. The debris piled the streets with dust and papers, until the sound of sirens broke the silence. Law enforcement arrested the two other villains while Diamond was barely holding large portions of fallen walls, glass, and stone from crushing him and the civilians under him. The leading officer noticed Diamond struggling in the debris, but decided not to help him, he thought to himself, "Let's see if he can truly save others and be the hero the weak minded believe him to be." The crushing weight began to take a toll on Diamond as he slowly began to lose his footing until he was on his knees holding the debris up.
"I promise.....I will get all of you out alive!" Negative thoughts began to enter his mind as various voices began to call out. "You are not good enough. You couldn't save your own parents; how can you save these unfortunate souls? You are playing a fool's game. See how the law enforcement refuses to acknowledge your existence. Face it your story is over. Finished. You are nothing but a weak boy who thought he could have been a great hero." Diamond tried to block out these voices, but they began to take a toll on him, nearly causing him to give up, but then a quiet voice entered his mind. A voice smooth like honey but strong as thunder echoed in his mind. "You are something more. Look inside yourself, you are something far more than when you started all those years ago as a small-town hero. Do not listen to their empty words, listen to me. Do you renounce sin?" "I do." "Do you renounce the Devil, the sin whisperer, and all his empty promises?" "I do!" "Do you believe in the Faith of your fathers, the Resurrection, and life everlasting?" "I do!" "Arise my child." At that very moment Diamond felt the power of the Light course through him at greater quantities than before as his body began to glow with gold and white light. With a newfound access to the Light, Diamond felt it was only natural to change the wording when harnessing its power, "Through the power of Heaven's Light.......All things are possible!" Diamond effortlessly lifted the debris away from him as the civilians under his care ran to the rest of the crowd. The onlookers stared at Diamond's glowing gold and white body. They were baffled in amazement as a few murmured amongst themselves, "Truly this is the act of a selfless hero."
Diamond did not hear the crowd's cheers, whistles, and praises as he stood deep in contemplation. Deep within his soul, he was able to sense his family was in grave danger. With his connection to the Light restored, he made it his new mission to travel to the Omniverse where he sensed the disturbance. He quietly spoke to himself, "Oh yeah I'm ready to whip the person who is so bent on ruining my life! But first, I have to do it in style. He allowed his suit to create two large speakers; HONEY make sure the volume is on max. Time for us to go back into the Megaverse!"
To Be Continued In The Alphaverse Part 2