Hey everyone, I want to ask if for your opinion and what to do from here.
Yesterday I encountered a problem with a close friend of mine. I know i'm the one in the wrong but I don't understand why all the blame has been pushed on me.
So for context, the friend has broken up with her ex for 1 year they are still back and forth and she helps him out with his work although she found this new man recently and has been crying over him which we have kept it a secret from him and i didn't tell him anything at all. Me, single and I do appreciate all her efforts and help i have received from this friend in terms finding a place to stay (yes i paid the rent, bills, stuff for the house and bond) The ex did help me to pay for it first and i paid him back through labour and working for him. I really am grateful for everything that they have done for me especially been put through a financially bad position as I was scammed of my whole savings. I don't have a parking bay as there's only 1. So i have already accumulated parking fines over 3k this year alone and am very low on money from this. Sometimes i can't even park anywhere outside as all the spots has been taken.
Ok for starters i was asking her hey since you keep pushing me to date your ex (even though he still has feeling for her) why don't i send a nude to him for money in return? She said I can do it and she doesn't care. Which i have taken into much consideration and wasn't planning on doing. Up until the ex bf called me asked me how i was which i was normal and civil and then the financial comment came up and i told him yes i am very broke and don't have money (This guy is my boss as well). So he proceeded to send me $50 and i said he didn't have to and felt bad then he said its to help me out cause i have helped him alot and then i was like ok i'll send you a photo (Which wasn't a nude) and i told him how i asked my friend and she said go ahead she doesn't care. I didn't get the chance to tell her yet and he told her first then she blew up. Saying that I have betrayed her and i'm two faced and i should have asked her first which i told her that it wasn't my intention and i was going to tell her and that she said she doesn't care and go ahead. She then came back with how she does care and that i have broken the girls code and that i'm a hypocrite (This is because when she was crying and feeling depressed from him, i always supported her and told her he isn't a good man in a relationship which is true as he order her around and is very demanding and always changes his mind). I always tell everyone that he is a good friend but i do not wish to work for him further but i made a promise so i still am and he isn't good for a relationship for the way he treats her. Even with her new man when she's been crying over him, I have always comforted her and never said she was wrong or anything she did was wrong cause that's what friends do. She then proceeded to say i'm a hypocrite for talking shit about her ex then accept the money and send the photo and she has helped me find a place, to getting work (working for her ex which i receive very little and they finance it into the rent bond that i have already paid off through selling my laptop and bills) and accusing me of talking bad about her to my friends. I told her I haven't and always said good things about her despite the way i feel at times (there was a massive fight between her and her ex and physical stuff happened and i tried to calm both of them down and then i was yelled at for no reason although she did apologise afterwards and that i didn't deserve that). She has been a good friend listening to my complaints and knows that i get overwhelmed very easily and cooks and clean for me from time to time.
Moving forward, now i'm stuck and not sure what to do. I know i fucked up on our friendship and i apologised as well as asked her what does she want me to do now, ive already unsent the photo and said i will never do that again (even if she says she doesn't care and to go ahead)? Also she told me how i'm not really apologetic and that i am two faced which she hates and how i have betrayed her. I really care for her and we live together so it's a tough situation. What should i do? Am i deserving a name of a traitor?

Hey everyone, I want to ask if for your opinion and what to do from here.
Yesterday I encountered a problem with a close friend of mine. I know i'm the one in the wrong but I don't understand why all the blame has been pushed on me.
So for context, the friend has broken up with her ex for 1 year they are still back and forth and she helps him out with his work although she found this new man recently and has been crying over him which we have kept it a secret from him and i didn't tell him anything at all. Me, single and I do appreciate all her efforts and help i have received from this friend in terms finding a place to stay (yes i paid the rent, bills, stuff for the house and bond) The ex did help me to pay for it first and i paid him back through labour and working for him. I really am grateful for everything that they have done for me especially been put through a financially bad position as I was scammed of my whole savings. I don't have a parking bay as there's only 1. So i have already accumulated parking fines over 3k this year alone and am very low on money from this. Sometimes i can't even park anywhere outside as all the spots has been taken.
Ok for starters i was asking her hey since you keep pushing me to date your ex (even though he still has feeling for her) why don't i send a nude to him for money in return? She said I can do it and she doesn't care. Which i have taken into much consideration and wasn't planning on doing. Up until the ex bf called me asked me how i was which i was normal and civil and then the financial comment came up and i told him yes i am very broke and don't have money (This guy is my boss as well). So he proceeded to send me $50 and i said he didn't have to and felt bad then he said its to help me out cause i have helped him alot and then i was like ok i'll send you a photo (Which wasn't a nude) and i told him how i asked my friend and she said go ahead she doesn't care. I didn't get the chance to tell her yet and he told her first then she blew up. Saying that I have betrayed her and i'm two faced and i should have asked her first which i told her that it wasn't my intention and i was going to tell her and that she said she doesn't care and go ahead. She then came back with how she does care and that i have broken the girls code and that i'm a hypocrite (This is because when she was crying and feeling depressed from him, i always supported her and told her he isn't a good man in a relationship which is true as he order her around and is very demanding and always changes his mind). I always tell everyone that he is a good friend but i do not wish to work for him further but i made a promise so i still am and he isn't good for a relationship for the way he treats her. Even with her new man when she's been crying over him, I have always comforted her and never said she was wrong or anything she did was wrong cause that's what friends do. She then proceeded to say i'm a hypocrite for talking shit about her ex then accept the money and send the photo and she has helped me find a place, to getting work (working for her ex which i receive very little and they finance it into the rent bond that i have already paid off through selling my laptop and bills) and accusing me of talking bad about her to my friends. I told her I haven't and always said good things about her despite the way i feel at times (there was a massive fight between her and her ex and physical stuff happened and i tried to calm both of them down and then i was yelled at for no reason although she did apologise afterwards and that i didn't deserve that). She has been a good friend listening to my complaints and knows that i get overwhelmed very easily and cooks and clean for me from time to time.
Moving forward, now i'm stuck and not sure what to do. I know i fucked up on our friendship and i apologised as well as asked her what does she want me to do now, ive already unsent the photo and said i will never do that again (even if she says she doesn't care and to go ahead)? Also she told me how i'm not really apologetic and that i am two faced which she hates and how i have betrayed her. I really care for her and we live together so it's a tough situation. What should i do? Am i deserving a name of a traitor?

I’ll start by saying that I am undiagnosed, but I do have a referral in for a psych evaluation. I’ve had disturbing intrusive thoughts for as long as I can remember. I have also always had ruminating thoughts, mostly about things I should have done in the past instead of the embarrassing, terrifying, or awful thing that happened to me or that I actually did. I run scenarios through my mind like little movies. I have an inner monologue that is quite chatty. Sometimes they are things that I am preparing myself for- like watching a dress rehearsal for my day at work and working through every possible scenario. What am I going to do if I walk into my office and it’s all packed up and I’m fired? What if my boss finds out I did this or that, how many different ways can I explain myself? In case a client decides to yell at me that day, how many different ways could that scenario play out? And how many different ways can I respond that won’t get me in trouble? Sometimes they are things that could happen- like a loved one dying-and all the different ways that could happen, and every possible way that I would handle it. I think about myself dying, and how many different ways that could happen. Sometimes my “movies” are pretty out there. Like- What if someone comes into my house while I’m at work and steals my pets? Or someone poisons the pet food? What if my spouse is a secret serial killer? How many people have they cheated on me with or do they have a secret side family or secret fetish? And then they find out that I know about it. I think about how some people will randomly poison or put bodily fluids into random items in a grocery store. (Side note: I will not consume anything without a tight seal. If I open something, then forget that I opened it, I will throw it away in case it was tampered with.) I really have to tamp my thoughts down when eating outside of my home or I would never eat anything I haven’t made myself completely from scratch with dishes that I thoroughly washed myself AND ran through the dishwasher. But that’s a whole other story- besides ruminating and disturbing intrusive thoughts, I do have a moderate fear of germs, contamination and loud noises. (I am very jumpy)- and if my routine is uprooted or changed in any way, I can go from slightly disturbed to utterly devastated. I pick at my scalp so much that I have sores on my head and I am on level 14,000 of a sorting/matching game that I find soothing. I could go on and on but this post is already long enough. Back to tamping down my thoughts. My mind rarely “turns off” but when I’m at work, or engaging in things that I am hyper-fixated on (right now it is watching/listening to conspiracy theory and comedy podcasts along with sorting games/apps), It’s hard to explain, but I can “move” the thoughts to one side of my mind while simultaneously using the other side to go about my daily activities. But they are ALWAYS there. Sometimes they try to sneak to the other side of my mind and take over and sometimes I do indulge in those thoughts and spend a few moments watching my mind movies, but I can usually push them back to their own side. But how do I tamp them down when I can’t keep them corralled to their own side? Or maybe a better question would be: how can I turn those thoughts completely off so I can feel normal for once? I think I’m looking for support, advice, and reassurance that I am not alone- that there are others who feel the same way and struggle with the same things and how they cope with all of it. Thanks for reading.

Opening**
A security guard is seen running from foxy the guard runs into Freddy and Bonnie and chica in the dining. Foxy raises his hook and slices the guards arm off and the guard is knocked down. He wakes up in a chair it is a torture chair with sharp saws going to his face he sees a screw and tries to unscrew it doesn't work. The sharp saws go threw his face as his skin and meat and blood scattered on the floor and you see his bone they get cutting so wide the cupcake sees this and bites his meat and eats it.
Scene 1**
Mike wakes up in his bed staring at the clock reading 6:00 AM. He goes to his job as a cashier getting paid 3.29 a hour he is planning to quit but he needs rent money. He sees a guy stealing something so he runs and tries to tell him to give it back but sees a child and he realizes he should let them go because they could be hungry. Mike gets called to his boss. The boss tells Mike you are fired pack up your things or we will call 911. Mike packs up and goes home. He calls number for a job council he finds one. 2 weeks later (4/8/2000).
Scene 2**
Number 27, number 27. Mike realizes he heard his number and goes to a office. Hello my name is Dave Miller I am ur councilor today so what is your deal Mike letting people just go after stealing something is just bad you know that right? said Dave Miller. Mike said I did the right thing mr.Miller. I know but you can't be doing that ok Mr.Michael Schmidt also do you want coffee for ur job. What job? Said Mike. Security at Freddy's said Dave. Mike said how is the pay. Not good but hours are worst said Dave Miller. I will take it ok said Mike. Okay said Dave Miller.
Scene 3**
[1 day later]
I am at Freddy's Mike tells Dave on the phone. Ok remember check the place top to bottom but do not look in the suits said the owner and no parts and service also the owner said Dave. Ok I said Mike. (20 minutes later) I am in my office goodbye said Mike. goodbye said Dave Miller. Mike saw a tape with his name he played it and it was the year 1987 of the tape. Hello and welcome to Freddy fazbear pizza place our wonderful staff will love you and if you cook good so will chica and beware of one thing FUN!!! And remember the animatronics should be taken with care ain't that right Henry said the staff. Yes said Henry. Let's see th- th- video tape ends. Mike hears a call from the phone and answers. Uhm hello hello hello and welcome to Freddy fazbear pizza place it is for fancy and fun come to life and remember do not like do anything bad that would get you an illegal trouble I know I know why am I reading this well our last night girl let's just say was terrible at his job and I mean it just make sure to not do anything bad and hopefully not like the last last last night guard he was a train wreck oh yeah guess what he did on his cameras he wrote he nobody like drew the middle finger on every single camera lens that's all I got to say is don't do that and take my warning animatronics are alive and remember close the door and check the lights I'm not going to tell you again because if you ever mess with them they will harm you or worse the last night card sadly passed away because of a glitch at least that's what we think basically we have to reopen this place so we need another car to clean up it and make sure to keep it clean that's all I have to say goodbye said phone guy. Mike said okay and proceeded to look around the place. And before he knew it it was 6:00 a.m. and he could leave ending his shift for night one.
Scene 4**
Mike drove home and he saw a card taped to his door it said that he could get evicted in the next two weeks or else he would have to pay a lot of rent and if he didn't pay it by that time he would lose his house and be forced to live on the streets. So Mike just went to bed waited for 11:30 so he can drive off to Freddy's and get started with his night. He woke up and it was 11: 37 he was 7 minutes late and it was a 30 minute drive so he's so he went a little over the speed limit for the start of it and then calm her down but luckily he knows on the road or else they could have gotten hurt or even killed and but by the time he slowed down those traffic so he got the place at 12:03 and well he just went to his office and checked on everything and cleaned and made sure nothing bad would happen but he heard a phone call. hello hello oh yeah it is me again I tried giving you that warning the last time but you're not going to take it so I'm going to tell you in the hardest way I can and that is damn electronics will try to forcefully stuff you into a Freddy suit but pretty much saw in your face and pretty much that's what happened to the last guard so just be careful I guess but yeah I'm finishing my last week cuz a matter of fact yeah the last card was the one before mine yeah I don't know I'm calling it your last one but it's a awkward just trust me with this I know you probably say I was crazy last time but I'm going to redeem myself but I'm going to send the VHS tapes the company said not to to prove to you that those animatronics are nothing but bad and they always will be so I recommend you just stop messing with them or else they will mess with you in the most Gory way possible they will make sure they rip you live from when they will make sure you do not survive trust me well that's the end of the call goodbye. I thought the guy was crazy. Mike continued his night and well he got curious and he went by the animatronics they smelled disgusting and he saw a drip of blood fall out Mike just cleaned it up thinking it was just water pipes or something but cuz he got Mike just cleaned it up thinking it was just water pipes or something but cuz he Mike just cleaned it up thinking it was just water pipes or something but he got told not to look in the animatronic so he just ignored him and just cleaned he cleaned up the place and finished his night and then he just left thinking that exact drop of blood he realized something was deadly wrong so hey just text again and again and again he couldn't find anything so he heard a knock on the door it was 2:00 a.m. so he didn't care he saw on the cameras it was a police officer her named is Vanessa Mike learned when she told him when he opened the door Vanessa walked in. Mike showed her to her office and he was told about kids went missing in 1987. They never found the bodies. She asked Mike why did you choose this job is this something you think of yourself being at 10-20 years. Mike said no. She told Mike I have to go. Mike said okay cuz it was 5:59 a.m. Mike had to go anyways and he did he went in his car and left and went home and disgust on the phone with his own with the house on her he lives in and they talked about if they can postpone his rent to be later the owner agreed and said we will but if you do this again I will charge you extra.
**Scene 5
It was 7:38 pm and teenagers thought Freddy's place would be a good place to party they went inside and set up everything at 9:54 pm a kid went in the kitchen and saw chica and laughed because he didn't think chica was alive and went by her mouth and chica opened her mouth and peeled his head skin the boy screamed but the speakers where loud. Chica pickled at his meat as she went more and more deep as the cupcake jumped at the boys stomach and ripped his guts and blood on the ground as the blood was gory and one of the girls went to check on him and the cupcake jumped at her biting her face open. One teen went behind the stage with her boyfriend and saw Freddy put his microphone down her throat deep and ripped it out of her neck inside her and he stomped on her face. The boyfriend got scared but Freddy put his arm in his eye holes as he rips his head from there. Another group of friends went in the janitor closet to tell each other the scary horror story of Freddy fazbear pizza place and the light went off and the door opens and closed and the light was back on and they saw Bonnie in there with them as he uses his guitar in one put it in thee boys mouth and putting it out of his back ripping his torso open the teens tried to escape but the doors where locked and bonnie toookk them out one by one. In the dining room foxy ran at them using his hook to kill them slicing there brains out and golden Freddy desposes the bodies.
Scene 6**
Mike went to his office and cleaned the pizza place but phone guy called. Hello hello yeah as you can see I'm back from the call I know you're probably thinking right now and this guy talking about where you found out either way I'm going to help you no matter what even if I am dead right now and probably am I get that because they don't like me they will get to know you and they will like you I will give you hints that I found out on the way they are ghosts children I mean if I was forced to sing songs for decades I would be mad too because that is kind of bad basically no one caught who did I found it out because I'm not dumb and I am actually very smart at least I think but probably not I know exactly will have the bite of 87 happen that's what we call it basically Mike it was dangerous basically this child got bit in the forehead by foxy yeah pretty crazy stuff foxy but the kid raising his suck at him yeah the kid at least yeah the kids did not survive sadly imagine having to write that note to the parents or the parents right now basically they gave him a discount to me that's pretty messed up in the brain like if your child I would you want to do that no I'm not saying that you don't have kids or if you do I don't know anything about you probably know you can be the owner's child right right yeah you probably are knowing your name and that's the same name that's his and he did change his name and it will be new in the public is a start with an s because someone tried leaking the full name I'll ask is if you are him do not try killing me do not be like your father because I found out he's the one and as soon as I get going with this job you know what I'm going to do I'm going to report it to the police station and they're going to find out all the evidence cuz I found the bodies but I didn't remove them because that's disgusting their children dead in the suits I know you I'm guessing you're only doing this because your father told you to let me tell you something why you can stop right now you can at least I mean you were 6 years old when you accidentally killed your brother and dwell changes your name and everything all I ask I don't remember what happened and the year 1983 that's all I have to say goodbye. What Mike said. As he thinks I don't even remember being a child before I was 12. Mike was confused it was 2:00 a.m. he realized Bonnie moved and moved and he got scared Mike right now if his office try to get the exit the exit doors lock so you run back to his office went underneath Bonnie's legs as Barney tried trapping him with his kneecap almost freaking Mike got loose and ran to his office door and closed it and he started realizing phone guy was crazy as he thought Mike knew he was wrong the whole time Mike thought he knew they where not alive but he was wrong bonnie slamed the door trying to get in but left. He closed all doors at 5:00 a.m. and waited it was 6:00 a.m. he left. Mike found Vanessa and told her their alive Vanessa. She said I know they are they are just kids you shouldn't mess with them like do not harm them in any way just quit your job and leave every one you know that is a child out of this place or else they will get dangerously hurt said vanessa mike went to bed.. to be continued next week
Up for part 2

Hi guys, I'm kinda new in this subreddit. I am not from US or UK but I'm a Law School student in my country. Now, I have recently been given the chance to be an intern at a kinda big firm here. But, the thing is I have a disability, I can't move half of my body as a normal person would, that inconvinience has taken a toll in all my activities thoughout my life, but especially now that i have this internship, since my work consists of delivering papers to certain state offices and I can't take public transport: 1) is too dificult for me since i have problems with balance and 2)buses here are too dangerous because of the criminality. So I have to either walk, use the subway o take a cab.
The thing is, I spend too much on cabs and walking takes so much time that I can't do many diligences. Yesterday I had to deliver 3 papers on different places, I barely made it and I had to pay several cabs since the subway was too far and walking would have been impossible to achieve.
It's my third day, I know I'm getting paid but I will be expending all of that money just in transport, and I don't have that ecomomic stability to lose money while working.
Anyways, I'm looking for advice on what to say at the office, I have already told the main boss and my supervisor but not in much detail to the latter. I am really stressing out about this, it has taken a toll on my student life as well. I know Law School might be diffrerent where you're reading this from but I would really appreciate if you gave me some advice.
Ps: -Sorry about the grammar, English is not my main language. -I told the main boss about my disability at the interview, however, I could have exaggerated a bit about not having many issues, being kind of a normal person, you know. But since I don't work with him my main priority is my supervisor.

The phase two summons. I used it on the phase two summons. The little hourglass guys that Chronos spawns like sixty of.
I have died in this phase so many times because of how busy the screen gets. The floor hazards and swarm of fifty orbiting projectiles from these things makes the fight a decently challenging bullet hell. Add in Chronos chunking a third of your health bar down every hit and an instakill attack for good measure, and you have my tightest bottleneck on a challenging boss fight.
Dropping Twilight Curse and turning the hourglasses into sheep drastically reduces the amount of clutter on screen and allowed me to focus on bursting down the last of Chronos's health before they change back.
And while most hexes have a slow windup which Chronos won't wait for, there is till plenty of downtime in his fight: Summoning his light orbs and time stop bubbles, the instakill attack after you reach the safe zone, hell, even moving across the screen takes him a hot second.
Bottom line, there are times where it is safe for you to pop a hex if you need to.
Now, is it good enough to set out to build a run around it? No. That's not even possible, given that hex offerings are pure luck of the draw. Would I recommend trying it out if you happen to pick it up? Absolutely.

I thought this game looked pretty generic at first. I saw a few youtube videos propping up the game up but I was still sceptical. I was also tired of roguelikes in general by this point and was convinced that it is a mediocre genre that is plagued with fodder mobs and repetition. But a week ago I saw that it was on sale for only about £4 so I thought "sure why not?".
The introduction at the museum felt slow. Then I started my first few runs. I wasn't used to the lack of inviniciblity frames when you get hit for one. I also found it a bit uncomfortable how scarce gold was. But then I played again and again until the newness wore off and I finally adjusted and got into a flow state with this game.
And all I can say is....
HOLY FUCKING SHIT. I was NOT expecting this level of peak. This game has singlehandedly rejuvenated my faith in the entire genre. Heck, in video games as an entire medium. Video games like this are why I live. This game is objectively a 10/10 and I will eat anyone who says otherwise.
Why?
First off, the difficulty feels brutally honest. Fair but honest. Unlike 99% of games you can't just abuse invincibility frames to back away from enemies when you get hit. You have to make sure you don't put yourself into a situation where you can get hit. This move alone was extremely bold on the devs part but it made all the difference in making the combat feel exciting and difficult to players who enjoy a challenge.
Mobs are very smart, strong, fast and all around ruthless. The basic enemies aren't much of a problem but the beefier realm exclusive soldiers usually have a trick up their sleeve like the wind knights evading your attacks and instantly teleporting behind you or the earth knights unexpectedly guarding your attack. Or enemies with reflect shields. Or that asshole cyclops enemy who can stunlock you into losing like half your health with his laser. You have to constantly stay on top of them and be aware of your surroundings(nearest escape route, positioning yourself away from pits, etc) and your cooldowns because one slip up can lead to you being stunlocked into losing half your health. Mobs move very fast and can even teleport around you, forcing you to stay on the move and make quick decisions on the fly. The fact that you do not always have access to any given spell in your arsenal due to the cooldown system makes you hyper cautious of every decision you make during combat as well as you might need access to a certain spell if you get cornered, further reinforcing this intense, razors edge feel to the combat. Mobs are brutal but at the same time they aren't damage sponges. This is probably the biggest problem I have with some other roguelikes like Warm Snow, Astral Ascent and to an extent Hades. In order to compensate for how busted your damage output can get due to the chaotically unrestrained progression in those games, they design the mobs to get exponentially tankier(without as much of a buff to the aggressiveness and damage output) as the run progresses to the point where most fights you're just mashing the same attack buttons and going through the motions until you reach the next boss. This game nailed mob design and other games should take note.
The bosses are phenomenal. I think the wind and lightning boss were kind of cheap but still very enjoyable. What really sets the bosses apart in this game from other bosses is similar to what makes the mobs great. They have relatively low health but have relentless attack patterns that are hard to dodge and move fast, making battles feel exciting rather than just drawn out and tedious. You can clear out each boss in about a dozen seconds if you're skilled enough but you risk losing a lot of health if you go on the offensive more.
I think part of what allows the combat to be so great is how "controlled" the progression is, both in and out of runs. This is by far the most balaThis isn't one of those roguelikes where you can easily come across broken upgrades or string together broken synergies and just steamroll everything. It's almost impossible to do that with how low the stat buffs are across the board for relics. For example, if you choose the relic which increases max health, you get 50 points of health, increasing it from 500 to merely 550. In Hades(which in all due respect, is relatively balanced for roguelike standards), your health increasing keepsake increases your health by about 50%. There's also the fact that your average damage buff relic only increases by about 10%, sometimes even lower. At most during any given run you can expect about 30-50% of a damage buff maximum whereas that percentage increase number escalates into the hundreds if not thousands(Warm Snow, i'm looking at you!) in other roguelikes. The currency(Gold) is also handed out very scarcely, pushing the player to make careful decisions with how they spend their money. These are just a few examples, I could spend all day comparing how balanced WOL is with other roguelikes.
As for meta progression, it's basically just collect new spells and relics to equip for your run. You don't level up your health, damage, speed or anything like that. The way I see meta progression in roguelikes is a two edged sword. On one hand there is a feel of instant gratification to using points acquired during your run to make yourself overpowered, allowing you to sweep through encounters that were difficult beforehand. But on the other hand this sort of undermines the point of playing roguelikes. You aren't really getting any better that way. You aren't getting more skilled at the game and making use of trial and error to overcome obstacles that once seemed insurmountable. This is what I love about WOL. It doesn't spoil you. It doesn't let you just "cheat" through the campaign. You have to EARN your victories through blood, sweat and tears and it feels ever so rewarding when you finally make a breakthrough with your own skill and hard work, nothing more. That type of satisfaction is far greater than the cheap, visceral thrill of activating nodes on a skill tree.
Also last thing, I think the level design is great. It feels like the perfect blend of arena and exploration style roguelikes, it seamlessly blends between these two modes with little to no hangup. One second you're fighting off a horde of knights and within the next dozen seconds you're in a shop carefully deciding which relic or arcana to buy with the limited amount of gold you have. There are certain areas in a stage which gets walled off and you are trapped with a horde of enemies but the gate opens and closes in about a split second so it feels so seamless. I also think stages are just about the right length. Long enough to get yourself immersed in, but short enough so that they don't seem to be endlessly dragging on. I like that you can challenge the stage end miniboss as soon as you find the "gate" and just progress to the next stage, even if you only clear out like 20% of the stage. This adds somewhat of a risk/reward element to the game where you may miss out on gold, gems and arcana/relics from shops but you dont risk losing health. Players can engage with the levels as they see fit. Lastly, I think the fact that the order in which you tackle each dungeon is randomized between 5 different dungeons(3 of which are present in a run) which cuts out some of the mundane repetition that as I mentioned above, can sour the experience of roguelike games.
The only major flaws I can see with the game is the balancing between arcana spells(signature lightning orb completely overshadows any other single target spell) and how being rewarded with enhanced arcanas after defeating each boss disincentivises you to buy arcanas(which are usually non enhanced) instead of relics. But these issues can easily be overlooked.
I've rambled a lot here but anyway, my overall point is this game is unashamedly nintendo oldschool brutal and I am all here for it! It just shows that roguelites can be god tier games when they don't coddle the player with pathetically weak mobs, broken synergies and meta-progression that trivialises the need to actually git gud and learn how to beat the game through trial and error.
This game is undoubtedly the king of roguelikes. As much as I love Hades, Rogue Legacy 2 or Dead Cells as the next person, this game is just undeniably the GOAT and it is criminal how obscure it is and how it isn't mentioned in the same conversation as those aforementioned roguelike hits.

Hey Everyone! I came to realize pretty quickly that I did not have as much of this chapter planned out as I thought I did. Which explains why it took a little long to come out, but in the end I managed to create something that I was satisfied with. You may notice one key change, being that Oukirii’s Companion no longer has a defined name! You’re free to name it whatever you wish.
(Masterpost Link coming soon)
(Completed Chapter 2s: Thearnt, Taland, Pascal, Harmony, Crowson, Asherah, Oukirii)
Next Chapter 2: Orlando the Starseer
Oukirii the Hunter, Chapter 2: Recommended Level 26
——————
(The Journey So Far…)
Events along Oukirii’s first hunt created damage in her family.
Her father came to realize that she had no intention of become a strong hunter on her own.
Even if she knew that, Oukirii couldn’t answer the question “Then what do you want to be?”
One evening, she had a dream of world’s destruction. A prophet came by the following day and told her of the beasts she saw that night.
Oukirii volunteered to hunt the beasts down, in hopes that this journey would reveal her true purpose to her…
Oukirii and Her Companion set foot in Evercold. The first thing Oukirii notes is the cold air of the snowy region. “You alright boy?” She crouches down and pets her companion on the head. It makes a joyful cry. “Hansel should be around here right?” Oukirii continues “He probably knows where we should go to look for Snow Gem!”
She takes a few steps forward, “This town is— very different from Oakbright…” Oukirii looks down. “Alright, Let’s go find Hansel!”
You’d be prompted to look for Hansel

• Travel Banter: My Nickname (Oukirii and Orlando) “Hey Kirie.” Orlando tries to get her attention. Oukirii freaks out and Orlando apologizes. Oukirii goes on to explain that her dad always called her Kirie. “That Dimitrius man, right?” Orlando asks. Oukirii tells Orlando a bit more about her father, before finally saying to him “You can call me Kirie if you want to.” Orlando makes sure that’s alright with her, and Oukirii says that it’s perfectly fine.
  
• Travel Banter: A Roaring Sword (Oukirii and Crowson) Oukirii notices Crowson and asks “What are you doing Mr. Crowson!?” He tells her that he’s just giving his sword a polish. Oukirii says “It’s shinier now, you did a good job!” Crowson goes quiet. “I’ve heard it roar through the air when you swing it!” Oukirii continues. He replies “It does do that. Now let us proceed.” Oukirii wonders what the hurry is for, Crowson tries to come up with an excuse, and settles on using the cold weather.
  

“Heave Ho Suzie!” Someone’s voice calls out. Blanche, the owner of the Beast Ranch would be pulling on a large wagon filled with heavy crates. She’d look over at Oukirii.
(Blanche’s Dialogue will change depending on if you’ve visited the ranch prior. “You look familiar”/”Who’re you? A hunter?”)
Blanche would go on to explain that she’s here to pick up supplies. She notices Oukirii’s companion and hands her a bag of food before grabbing onto the wagon again. Suzie would give Oukirii a nod as they leave.
As Oukirii puts away the bag, She notices Hansel standing near the path that Blanche and Suzie went along. Oukirii runs over to Hansel and tells him that she’s ready to take on Snow Gem.
Hansel is glad to hear it. He would tell Oukirii that this beast has been terrorizing the citizens of Evercold for a long time. “Hunting Snow Gem is not only important for our own sun-saving mission. It’s for the relief of all these people right here.”
“Well I’ll have to do my best then!”
“I believe in you Oukirii. I really do.”
Oukirii would walk away from Hansel and you’d head further into town. Oukirii suddenly hears the sound of someone shouting “No, Not again!” Her companion points his nose in the direction of the shouting and a curious Oukirii runs over to find a girl standing outside of her home. She asks if something’s wrong and the girl tells her that she lost a book she borrowed from the town’s library.
Oukirii volunteers to help look, the girl just laughs loudly “It’s nowhere I can find, best of luck to you kid!”
“Hey!” Oukirii shouts. “I’ll find that book… Just you wait…”
Before leaving, she asks for the girl’s name. She answers “Valerie, why do you need to know?” Oukirii says that it’s just in case she wrote her name in the book. “Suppose I– Fair point?” Valerie responds.
You’d Entreat Valerie’s Book from a customer by Evercold’s Night Market.

• Travel Banter: Valerie’s Missing Book (Oukirii and Asherah) Asherah remarks that Valerie must be extremely forgetful. But it’s hard not to feel bad for her. Oukirii says that it’s a good thing they showed up when they did, “Right, Helping people.” Asherah says. “Let’s just hope this pays off somehow.” Oukirii tells her that it will pay off in some way, Asherah asks “Do you believe in that sort of thing?” Oukirii says “Of course I do! Well— not if you don’t believe enough with me!”

Oukirii returns to Valerie and hands her the book. Valerie acts surprised as she flips through the pages. She sighs and puts the book away, saying she needs a tea break, she invites Oukirii to join. Sheaccepts and the two would enter Valerie’s home.
Oukirii’s companion lies down on the floor. Valerie apologizes for acting like she did, and Oukirii forgives her immediately. She notices some tools on the wall and asks what those are for. Valerie says those are for her toolsmithing job. However, she wonders if that job is something even worth continuing. “Just doesn’t feel like my ‘right thing’.”
Oukirii gets to thinking. Being so young, she doesn’t fully understand what Valerie is saying. But she gets a better understanding by connecting it to finding her own purpose. It's hard to tell if she did the “right thing” by fleeing to complete this mission…
A Flashback occurs, A young Oukirii sits waiting in the living room while her mother and father try to make her look her best. The door opens, and somebody walks inside. Antànor Solana, Oukirii’s Grandfather. Dimitrius happily greets him, Antànor doesn’t say anything, But does the same to his son. He shakes Catalina’s hand and pats Oukirii on the head while facing away from her. He and Dimitrius walk forward, chatting about their hunts. Oukirii tries to shout something to her grandfather, but he doesn’t hear her…
After she and Valerie finish talking, Oukirii says that she’s off to hunt a beast. She describes Snow Gem to Valerie, who says “I’ve never heard of anything like that before…” Valerie tells Oukirii to wait up and grabs a hatchet from the wall, she says that she’ll be coming to hunt this thing too. She won’t let someone like her fight a beast unsupervised.

• Travel Banter: Dance Lessons (Oukirii and Harmony) Oukirii is lost in thought, Harmony gets her attention and offers to let her try out something new, Dancing! Wondering if it will help her find something to be passionate about. Oukirii doesn’t know what to think, Harmony talks with her about what it would be like to be a dancer. Oukirii says that stardom doesn’t sound like something she wants to strive for, but thanks Harmony for talking to her about her purpose in an uplifting way.

Road to Deepshiver Cave, Danger Level 26
As Oukirii and Valerie walk, The ground begins to shake. They stop and stand still, Valerie asks “Did you feel that?” Oukirii wonders if the rumbling came from Snow Gem. Suddenly, the ground cracks underneath them. Sending Oukirii and her companion falling underground.
Oukirii is lying on the ground in a patch of snow. Her companion tries to wake her, Oukirii jolts up and looks around. “Thank the sun! Where’s Valerie?” Oukirii stands up after petting her companion. “This… Snow Gem… It must be…” She shakes her head.
Deepshiver Cave, Danger Level 27

• Travel Banter: Rough Landing! (Oukirii and Taland) “Agh…” Taland sounds in pain. Oukirii asks if he’s hurt. He replies “Who, Me? Not at all. It was like landing on a pillow! I did pull a muscle, but I’m more worried about you little sis.” Oukirii wonders “Huh? I’m not hurt.” Taland is ready to accept the answer until he points out her shivering. “You must have snow on ya still.” He teaches Oukirii to shake the snow out. Before they’re both ready to continue on.

Further into the cave, Oukirii would run into Valerie. Who is revealed to have taken the normal way in. Slightly further to the end of the tunnels, They get their first look at the “Snow Gem” beast. A large quadruped creature with blank eyes and a strong shell covered in ice and snow. Oukirii is shaken at the sight of it. Valerie calls out “What is that thing!?”
“Stand back Valerie!” Oukirii and her companion step up, ready to confront the beast. “This is what I was made for… I won’t let you bring destruction to this world! Come on Snow Gem– It’s all over now!!”
BOSS: Snowradillo
(Boost Dialogue: “Here goes nothing!”)
Valerie dashes in and finishes off the beast with a large chop. It creates a strong wind as it fades away into nothing… “We did it!” Oukirii quietly says “That’s one down…” Valerie asks if Oukirii is alright, She says that she doesn’t know and explains that “I… I wish I could have known more about it. They say a hunter is supposed to read the hearts of all creatures they hunt. Is there something wrong with me?”
“Read the heart of it or not, you hunted that thing like a champion! Maybe you’re not looking in the right place kid, you could consider the idea of being a traveling hunter…”
“A traveling hunter?” Oukirii asks. She gives it some thought, before her companion reminds them that they need to head back to the town.

• Travel Banter: Church of the Sacred Sun (Oukirii and Thearnt) Oukirii asks Thearnt how different the Sacred Flame religion is compared to her own. Thearnt says that she was wondering the same thing. The two of them would have a long discussion about differences in their beliefs and customs. Draefendi being a god in one and a legendary hunter in the other, The Sun is believed as a spiritual concept while Aelfric is believed as an actual being, and how both religions have different things the followers shall and shall not do.
  
• Travel Banter: My Bedtime (Oukirii and Pascal) Oukirii is proud of her victory against the beast. “You did great.” Pascal congratulates her. Oukirii excitedly asks him if she can stay up later than usual now. Pascal tells her that he isn’t the one in the position to decide that, “Most of the time you’re knocked out early anyway.” He says, followed by silently thinking ”That’s when we usually go drink…” Oukirii pleads that she can stay up longer if she tries. Pascal tells her that he can talk about removing her suggested bedtime.
  

In Evercold, Oukirii and Valerie run into Hansel again. Oukirii tells him of the good news, and asks “Does it matter now if we take down the other two? That dream had three of them together, if one is gone then–”
“It doesn’t work that way Oukirii…” Hansel replies “Destruction could still spell even if only one was still around… Our mission was to take down all three. The next target will be Red Spirit, I’ve found this creature to be in Redwater.”
Oukirii accepts to continue the mission and keep seeking her purpose. She and her companion excitedly leave town towards the next adventure.
Hansel and Valerie watch as they leave. Valerie says “I hope she finds her purpose out there. But there’s something I don’t quite understand. She seems like she doesn’t want to be strong. But then, why accept a mission that requires her to fight powerful monsters?”
“She wants to prove herself capable, and it’s a job only she can do. I’m grateful that she did accept, Otherwise the fate of the world might still be uncertain…”
(Ending Text)
Oukirii succeeds in her hunting of the first beast. Snowradillo of Evercold.
Two monsters remain as a threat to the world.
She keeps her heart optimistic, yet still finds herself troubled. With no definite answer to the question of her purpose…
With the guidance of the sun, Oukirii sets out to Redwater.
And prepares for a confrontation with Red Spirit…
——————
Oukirii the Hunter: Chapter 2, End.

If you do not have the immortal sword, do not attack the boss, you'll just get in the way of whoever is carrying you and you're less likely to avoid the attacks.
When the lasers spawn, they always spawn through the corners of the room. Don't panic and jump around, just step out of them, you'll be fine. Don't run along the wall, keep close to the center so you are walking within the lasers. They rotate clockwise/left first, pause, then rotate counterclockwise/right, then go away. There is a visual glitch sometimes where the lasers rotate right from the start, but it's strictly visual, just move left first and then right until the lasers go away and you should survive as long as you have enough health.
Pay attention to where the boss is facing and avoid the line of sight as best as you can. Especially when the boss is doing the 3 drop attack that stuns you.
When avoiding the balls, don't run backwards, they're too fast. Just run to the side.
And PRACTICE surviving on your own. Make sure you can survive the attacks for a minimum of 7 minutes. This is not a boss that you can sit still and AFK in. Don't be looking at your phone or any other distractions. It's frustrating for those of us that are carrying you when you die multiple times because you either didn't practice or weren't paying attention.
Thank you! Feel free to add me if you'd like to be carried. Lee-uhh93
Good luck on your grind ✌🏻

There’s this one TikTok/Shorts cartoon called “Chikn Nuggit.” I’ve been watching it ever since it was brand new. It’s basically about a group of cute cartoon animals named after fast food products (e.g. Cheezborger, Cofi, Iscream, Fwench Fwy, etc.).
In earlier shorts, the characters just do silly things and occasionally break the fourth wall to spread positive messages to the audience (e.g. Happy Pride Month, you’re valid, things will get better, etc.).
At a certain point, however, the creators started making the cartoon more serial than episodic. This would’ve been fine if it weren’t for the fact that the “lore” is incredibly dark, disturbing, and existential.
This is the gist of what happened:

• A character named “Bezel” was added.
• Chikn (the titular character) is revealed to be a god with world-ending abilities.
• Bezel is hinted to take an interest in pushing Chikn to his breaking point and destroying everything.
• Bezel influences Chikn’s closest friend into a relationship with someone else. This causes the two friends to separate and Chikn falls into a depression.
• The latest short (as of typing this) shows Bezel looking over a depressed Chikn as his clock head ticks to midnight, hinting that something terrible is about to happen.

I discovered this cartoon at a dark time in my life. I don't want to go over any specifics, but I was feeling depressed and hopeless because of my doomscrolling habits and learning about how awful the world can be. The earlier episodes of this cartoon brought light into my dark mind. What made Chikn Nugit special compared to other "wholesome" cartoons is that it was openly queer. It's very rare to find openly queer cartoons that aren't serial dramas with depressing content (e.g. The Owl House, Helluva Boss (I'm not slandering those shows, btw. I love Helluva Boss. I've never seen TOH, but I've heard it's good), so seeing a queer cartoon that wasn't depressing was a breath of fresh air. Emphasis on "was" here, considering what Chikn Nuggit became...
When the cartoon started shifting directions and turned into a serial psychological horror drama, it affected me in weird ways. I know it sounds silly, but I honestly became more depressed. I got really angry. I've never felt this way with other cartoons. I just felt awful.
Around this time, I abandoned Chikn Nuggit and moved on to Bluey, a show that gave me the same amount of joy early Chikn Nuggit brought me. Unfortunately, Bluey has entered an indefinite hiatus recently, and Chikn Nuggit's "lore" has only gotten darker.
I often try to cope with my feelings by making a joke out of it online to make it sound ironic, but I unironically feel nothing but rage when I see Chikn Nuggit nowadays, especially the later episodes.
Am I alone here? Am I the only person who feels this way about a "silly" cartoon? Is it because I'm autistic? Is there a scientific explanation to my feelings? Are my feelings valid? Are there any other openly queer cartoons out there that aren't depressing and dark?

i appreciate whoever reads this.
i had been with my ex for 3 years and some change. towards the end we took a break due to mental health issues on both of our ends, but things really were not great for about 6 months before the breakup. i kept noticing behaviors in him that showed me he didn’t care about me as a person, a partner, or a friend. i kept bringing it up, getting “sorry” and nothing ever changed. i was at my breaking point but loved him a lot and he ended up doing the deed over the phone .
honestly, it’s whatever. i still get upset sometimes and think about him/my old life at least once a day but i really am happier. i know im better off and im excited to explore life at my own pace and on my own whims, not someone else’s. i do not want another relationship anytime soon, though i miss the affection and companionship, among other spicier things. it gets difficult and clouds my judgment sometimes.
that brings me to my point. i started working somewhere new, as my ex’s mom was my boss at the time of the breakup. i started seeing this guy (22m) around who also works there and told my friend working with me that he was cute. that was that, i would just admire him for a second when he wasn’t looking because it’s fun! no harm done. the man is attractive. it became kind of a funny thing between us but word did not spread. a couple of days later, a coworker who’s name i did not even know told me that he was talking to everyone in his department about me, saying he would stare at me too and was very interested. i was and still am absolutely in shock and SUPER excited about this! eventually i had people i’ve never met telling me the stuff he was saying about me and telling me to go for it. i did think it was a prank or something at first but we bumped into each other today and he was adorably awkward :)
we have barely even said hi to each other at this point but i am already worried about what i should do when either of us decides to make a move. i know for sure i am not ready for anything and will probably get hurt but i tend to make poorly thought out decisions after big bad things happen. i just want to at least be friendly with him or keep the door open for when i am ready, but its so early to talk about that anyway, and i don’t know how to even be casual with someone i like anymore. so what’s my next move?

A few years ago, I tried playing Hollow Knight for the first time. After about 30 minutes of playing, I decided it didn't click with me and so I moved on to other things. This is one of the biggest mistakes I've ever made in my life.
About a week or two ago, I began seeing more things related to the game and wanted to give it another try. With encouragement from people on this subreddit, I dove back into Hollow Knight and gave it another try to see if it would click.
I want to preface this by saying that while I've tried some other metroidvanias before, none of them ever clicked with me. I found certain aspects of them to be really annoying and tedious and so walking into Hollow Knight again, I was admittedly a bit worried because I wanted to like this game. I was always drawn to the art style of this game specifically so I wanted to really get into the hang of it and enjoy the game. Thankfully, that is exactly what happened.
The best way I can describe playing this game for the first time is like that scene in Ratatouille where the food critic eats the dish and is transported to being a kid again. That's exactly like how I felt when I played this game because it brought out my inner kid, wanting to run around this enormous kingdom and explore to my heart's content.
One of my absolutely favorite things about this game was the movement. I never knew that a game's movement could feel so clean and smooth and just perfect, and yet this game exceeded those expectations. Starting off, I didn't have access to any movement abilities, but as I progressed and got better movement options, it felt like the entire game opened up to me and made me so excited to continue and see what I would get next.
This leads me to my other favorite aspect of this game which was the exploration. I would never have guessed that a $15 game made by 3 people would be this incredibly vast and have quite literally hundreds of hidden rooms and treasures for me to find and yet it did. I walked into this game expecting it to be a pretty average sized map, but I was just blown away by the scale of this game. I know for a fact that there is a boatload of stuff that I missed or wasn't able to find in my first playthrough, and I deliberately didn't go looking for some stuff or do certain things so I have stuff to look forward to in my next playthrough down the road.
As I said earlier, the art style was what originally got me interested in this game and it again delivered and exceeded my expectations. The different areas and regions were absolutely breathtaking and seeing all new creatures around every corner was so amazing. The art style is one that's so simple but yet has a lot of depth and impact and it resonated with me very well. Along with the art, the music was incredible too and I thought all of the scores felt very well done.
I'll admit that there were a lot of times where I got really mad or frustrated at a certain parkour section or boss, but one thing I love is that whenever I died, it was because of my fault and not the games. It never felt like I died because there was a glitch in the game or it was poorly made, but it just me making mistakes which is something that looking back on, I really love. It just goes again to show you how much time and dedication Team Cherry put into this game to make it perfect.
The last thing I want to mention was the story/lore and the NPCs, both of which I really enjoyed. It was admittedly a bit hard to follow the story at times while playing, but after I finished the game, I watched a video on the lore of Hollow Knight and realized that the story and lore presented were incredibly deep and there were so many things that started to click with me. All the NPCs made the game feel alive and really made it feel like there was this large piece of lore there for me to explore and unravel. My favorite NPCs are probably Hornet and Jiji.
I have a list of the top ten greatest games I've ever played, of which I've played hundreds, and I honestly thought nothing would be able to top the number 1 game on my list. However, Hollow Knight has managed to do what I deemed impossible and became my favorite game ever.
I could go on for ages about how much I love this game, but I'm sure whatever I say is what the large portion of you all feel as well. I'm so grateful everyone encouraged me to give it another try! This game is truly a masterpiece in every sense of the word.
Looking onward to Silksong, I've heard some bits about it and seen the trailers and it looks absolutely incredible. While it is a little later than we expected, I know that Team Cherry is hard at work with this sequel and I've no doubt it will be masterful as well. Let's all hope for some news in the coming few weeks at SGF and the Xbox Showcase!
Thank you all for reading if you got this far!
TL;DR: I liked it!
​

Hi Everyone,
I hope you are all managing well with your own battles and struggles. I was in a two-year relationship with a wonderful girl who was a significant part of my life. Our relationship had a deep understanding and we communicated very well, always understanding each other and things were going smoothest.
Back in November, My girl saw a story with one of my friend (Anna) in which Me and Anna had a funny chat which she put up on her story and my gf saw it and she started her "uninteresting" behavior with me even though she accepted my apology numerous times.
Recently, since few months, she started ignoring my texts and often went out for hours, claiming she was busy with various chores and work. When I finally asked her about it, she admitted that she was no longer interested in me and had been trying to figure out her feelings without hurting me. She also accepted on my birthday recently that she had lost interest in me after that story thing but she got interest in me back 100% and she loves me a more than ever.
She has left me anyways and I am feeling unwanted but still wanting her presence in my life, I agreed to remain friends with her, as her absence would affect my mental well-being. She didn't block me and sends me me a few reels to check up on me, and I do the same.
I later found out from one of her friends (Sara) that she had developed an interest in one of her best friend named Sherry, whom I also knew. According to her friend (Sara) , my girl used to say goodnight to me and then talk to him (her best friend, Sherry) for hours. Today, I learned from her closest friend that they are now in a relationship.
In a moment of weakness, I congratulated her on her new relationship without considering the consequences. She initially denied it, though her friend (Sara) had sent me screenshots confirming it. Eventually, she calmed down, and we are back to being friends. However, she has become very distant and cold, as if I never meant anything to her.
I am struggling to understand how someone who was genuinely in love with me for two years could suddenly "unlove" me and move on so quickly, despite reassuring me of her happiness and commitment every day. This was my first and only relationship, and I have no idea how to handle this situation. Should I continue being friends with her and pretend everything is fine? How do i cope up with my worsening mental health? Did that story incident made her "unlove" me and couldn't recover?
Thank you in advance for your responses. Have a great day!

Hey everyone, I want to ask if for your opinion and what to do from here.
Yesterday I encountered a problem with a close friend of mine. I know i'm the one in the wrong but I don't understand why all the blame has been pushed on me.
So for context, the friend has broken up with her ex for 1 year they are still back and forth and she helps him out with his work although she found this new man recently and has been crying over him which we have kept it a secret from him and i didn't tell him anything at all. Me, single and I do appreciate all her efforts and help i have received from this friend in terms finding a place to stay (yes i paid the rent, bills, stuff for the house and bond) The ex did help me to pay for it first and i paid him back through labour and working for him. I really am grateful for everything that they have done for me especially been put through a financially bad position as I was scammed of my whole savings. I don't have a parking bay as there's only 1. So i have already accumulated parking fines over 3k this year alone and am very low on money from this. Sometimes i can't even park anywhere outside as all the spots has been taken.
Ok for starters i was asking her hey since you keep pushing me to date your ex (even though he still has feeling for her) why don't i send a nude to him for money in return? She said I can do it and she doesn't care. Which i have taken into much consideration and wasn't planning on doing. Up until the ex bf called me asked me how i was which i was normal and civil and then the financial comment came up and i told him yes i am very broke and don't have money (This guy is my boss as well). So he proceeded to send me $50 and i said he didn't have to and felt bad then he said its to help me out cause i have helped him alot and then i was like ok i'll send you a photo (Which wasn't a nude) and i told him how i asked my friend and she said go ahead she doesn't care. I didn't get the chance to tell her yet and he told her first then she blew up. Saying that I have betrayed her and i'm two faced and i should have asked her first which i told her that it wasn't my intention and i was going to tell her and that she said she doesn't care and go ahead. She then came back with how she does care and that i have broken the girls code and that i'm a hypocrite (This is because when she was crying and feeling depressed from him, i always supported her and told her he isn't a good man in a relationship which is true as he order her around and is very demanding and always changes his mind). I always tell everyone that he is a good friend but i do not wish to work for him further but i made a promise so i still am and he isn't good for a relationship for the way he treats her. Even with her new man when she's been crying over him, I have always comforted her and never said she was wrong or anything she did was wrong cause that's what friends do. She then proceeded to say i'm a hypocrite for talking shit about her ex then accept the money and send the photo and she has helped me find a place, to getting work (working for her ex which i receive very little and they finance it into the rent bond that i have already paid off through selling my laptop and bills) and accusing me of talking bad about her to my friends. I told her I haven't and always said good things about her despite the way i feel at times (there was a massive fight between her and her ex and physical stuff happened and i tried to calm both of them down and then i was yelled at for no reason although she did apologise afterwards and that i didn't deserve that). She has been a good friend listening to my complaints and knows that i get overwhelmed very easily and cooks and clean for me from time to time.
Moving forward, now i'm stuck and not sure what to do. I know i fucked up on our friendship and i apologised as well as asked her what does she want me to do now, ive already unsent the photo and said i will never do that again (even if she says she doesn't care and to go ahead)? Also she told me how i'm not really apologetic and that i am two faced which she hates and how i have betrayed her. I really care for her and we live together so it's a tough situation. What should i do? Am i deserving a name of a traitor?

Hello fellow Chiari survivors. I (31f) was diagnosed about a year ago, after having more severe headaches more often and finding it in my MRI. I've had headaches my whole life, as well as ringing in my ears. I thought it was normal, and no one believed it was as bad as I said it was. I've learned as I got older, and especially after having kids, that I actually have a pretty high tolerance for pain, but this pain is starting to really weigh on my mental health.
My neurologist (and the one I saw before him) says surgery (of any kind) is out of the question. "No one wants to play around with your brain and leave it unprotected," is what I was told. I've had butalbital/caffeine/aspirin medication in the past that use to work, then stopped working, and my neurologist work prescribe it anymore anyway. I've done three rounds of botox three months apart each. It relieved about 50% of the pain the first two times. The third time I had to wait an additional month because of an insurance issue. This last round about a month ago didn't help AT ALL.
I'm in severe pain again with absolutely NO RELIEF. Over the counter pain meds don't work obviously, or none of us would be here, and my neurologist won't give me anything until my next appointment. Luckily, I have an appointment with the clinical pharmacist in a few days to discuss my next options with medication. I think the next thing they'll have me try is the shots I give myself at home every month, no idea what this is.
This is extremely frustrating being a "married, single mom" with two children under 10, in sports, and a full-time job where I have no help and feel like our small business is resting on my shoulders. Without going further into my pity party, I am EXHAUSTED AND DONE with everything. I feel like no one believes me because I HAVE to keep moving forward for my children. I haven'tbeen nice to be atound lately, but I'm trying as hard as I can to be "normal." I've taken at least one day off per week for the last two months because of the pain. But I also feel like I'm being a wimp, and the guilt makes the depression worse. I feel so guilty when I have to take time off for my head. My boss is very understanding, but I feel like she can only take so much.
Anyway sorry for the rant. Like I said I feel like no one believes me, that everyone around me thinks this isn't as bad as I think it is. And I know that there are so many people going through so much worse than me. I just need someone who's walking this same line as me to give me something.
I guess I just want to know, has anyone else been told surgery is NOT an option what has helped you, if anything? I appreciate you all!
https://preview.redd.it/d7mhlmgy234d1.jpg?width=2608&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=c4c443aac00854f76694988ef036da1d1b7165f0
https://preview.redd.it/13wnxcjz234d1.jpg?width=2634&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=bb189878ca5b929890b99f44424ec1015cb7fa2a

I just graduated today and I know that many more schools will follow in the coming month of June as our class officially sheds this adolescent coil known as high school and we move on to our future prospects. I would like to make this post in acknowledgment of this significant achievement in many of our lives and to discuss some of the things that makes our class so unique! Some significant things about our class (2005-2006 babies) generationology-wise:
Notable firsts:

1. First alumni to have entered high school in the 2020s decade.
2. First high school class to attend high school entirely in the 2020’s.
3. First High School class to indisputably graduate in the mid 2020’s.
4. First alumni to have entered Pre-Kindergarten in the 2010s decade.
5. First alumni to have completed elementary school in the late 2010s (2017).
6. First alumni to have entered middle school in the late 2010s (2017).
7. First alumni to have completed middle school in the 2020s decade.
8. First High School class that was not already in High School when the Covid Pandemic hit to graduate.

Notable lasts: 1. Last class to attend high school during the peak of Covid (2020-2021 school year) and all that this entailed (remote learning, masks, social distancing, ect.) 2. Last alumni to be fully composed of mid 2000s borns (2005-2006). 3. Last Class to be in High School during Donald Trump’s presidency. (For Americans) 4. Last alumni to enter the 12th grade senior year in the early 2020s (2023).
If anyone has more please feel free to add! I am so proud of all my fellow peers who have persevered and overcame so much despite having our freshman year robbed from us! Congratulations and good luck to all of you with your future endeavors!

asking here bc this sub was suggested, idk I don't think he's actually abusive- I argue back alot too, but I just need someone's input on what to make of this behaviour
my (24f) bf (29m) pays for everything, how much mistreatment is the normal amount to tolerate?
for background My (24f) long distance boyfriend (29m) of 4 years has paid for every flight and outing we've been on. he is not well off, he just manages his moneh and spends it on alcohol and visiting me.
I'm a full time student and don't work, we were both aware of the financial situation going in, and I do buy him gifts and financially contribute when I can, it's just to a lesser degree.
we argue excessively often. we are very obviously both sick of it. and yet he keep doing the same things that cause fights (drunk and dropping shitty comments, flirting/ sexting other women, threatening to tell on me to my family/ send pictures of me, spending literally no time with me). the plan was to get married this december- but the man doesn't ever want to do anything with me. once I finally begged enough, he started agreeing to silently streaming on discord.
it would make sense if this was because he wants to end the relationship- but when I move to do that, there is lots of protest, and the reminder that we are getting married in December. there is no apology or explination, but today during the subsequent argument briefly mentioned in my previous post, I mention that I am getting nothing out of this relationship aside the dessimation of my mental health. to which his response was that I lose nothing with the relationship ending but he put alot of money into it.
I mention that I stayed involved far longer than I should have on account of sunk cost fallacy and it'd be dumb for us both to stick around if we're both doing that. he then says no that's not it .
none of his behaviour makes sense to me, when I ask him to explain things I am told to stop starting fights or he just ignores me. so someone else please explain to me- why would someone who does not have a fetish for spending, waste a significant portion of his income on a woman he is just going to mistreat?
I don't understand at all. like the only explination I can come up with for him keeping this up is he must be at lest getting some kind of ego trip out of my constant attention and how easy it is to upset me and know I won't leave but he genuinely looks and sounds so decent and innocent sober I actually can't comprehend that he is actually just devoid of any empathy.
we're at the point where it is just toxic; I can't cope with the way he treats me when he's drunk anymore. I actually only just realized how fucked up it is that he was here in december, I learnt about the year long emotional affair he was having with another woman (for which he expects me to congratulate him for blocking her after I asked), tried to Kms, and ended uo comong back home from the hospital with him.
and since, I have repeatedly asked him to stop fighting with me over nothing - because fights are alwyas him.drunk and then resolving to talk to another woman after deciding I am too mean, having another year long emotionl affair because of how often we fight because of me being upset about the lady time he did the same thing. and me actually having ruined my skin and eyesight with how much I've cried and rotted these past few months.
I don't understand why he wants to stay together when this is what it's like. i even questioned if it's just so he has somewhere to stay when he visits for a little holiday and he insists that's not it either, since he wouldn't really bother travelling here if it weren't to visit me.
so what is he actually doing here?

WARNING: this is very long so if you don't want to read a wall of text feel free to skip!
It’s always been like that for me. For some reason it takes me a LOT longer than my peers to find employment. I often find myself chronically unemployed (even though I have years of experience) for a year or more. To top it off I’m autistic and suffer from severe ADHD with anxiety and depression on top of it.
After I graduated university it took me a year to find a job. Had consistent employment for almost 4 years straight until 2018. During this period I actually had a job lined up before quitting.
Fast forward to 2018. Had a job as a software developer for a well known company (no it’s not FAANG) and they paid pretty well. It was the most money I ever made in my life. Unfortunately things didn’t work out there and the work environment and culture wasn’t for me. I was placed on a team as a new dev and they barely gave me any work. After awhile I hated going to work everyday cause everyone basically just ignored me and I spent most of my time self studying on my own. I found this job through their autism to work program. Before accepting the job I was told that I’d get support and accommodations with a mentor.
My “mentor” was basically useless. She didn’t do a damn thing and would cancel our one on one meetings half the time. Sometimes she wouldn’t even tell me at the last minute. She just never showed up. All she did was report negative feedback from my manager and provided no solutions or recommendations to improve. I was let go cause they felt like I “needed a lot of hand holding” lol. They barely gave me work to do. I would finish my assignments in a day or two max. They made some other bullshit complaints too. I showed up on time and did what I had to do every time. It was awful. I was far far away from home and lived out of state at the time also.
Lost my apartment and had to move back home with my family. Long term unemployment stint #1 begins here (if you don’t count how long it took me to find my first job you can say 2)
Fast forward to September 2019 and a friend recommended me a job as a software developer and I finally moved out again. I taught myself HTML, CSS, JavaScript and PHP to the best of my ability. I was not only learning on the job but maintained their website, ran chron jobs, and troubleshooted issues with site functionality and even the web server. I was literally a one man show. To top it off I was working for $15/hour. To top it off my boss was a prick and would sometimes short my coworker and I money on our checks. My coworker handled all the marketing and promotion. I handled everything related to the website.
Fast forward to June 2020. Of the two of us unfortunately I was the one laid off for whatever reason. My boss just called me and said that they’re laying me off right in the middle of COVID. Since I wasn’t working I could no longer afford rent so I had to move back home. I became super depressed and it took me a little over a year to find a job.
Fast forward to August 2021 and I found a job at a call center. Ended up getting fired and it was my fault sadly. I got fired for yelling and hanging up on a customer. That day I was in a really bad mood and the person on the other line started cursing me out and getting real disrespectful with me. I was happy to be fired. Worked there for only two weeks.
Four months later in December 2021 I landed a job that was closer to home but another shitty call center. Surprisingly I lasted there a year and a half. My mental health was already in the toilet and I was doing everything I could to hold onto this job for dear life. So I sucked it up until I found another job. I wanted to get out that call center so badly since it was nothing but micromanagement and back to back calls.
June 2023 rolls around and I finally started my job in desktop support as a contractor. Offer letter said 6 month contract then when I read it found out it was a 3 month contract to hire and also found out that they shorted me a dollar on the agreed pay rate. I asked for $30/hour and they agreed to it only to find out they changed things last minute. Spoke to the recruiter about the discrepancies and was told that’s the best they can do so I said screw it and took it.
My recruiter told me that they would “definitely” be converting me at the end of the three months but sadly that never happened. I showed up on time everyday and did a good job according to my manager and everyone else (so they said). I even got good reviews from a number of clients I worked with. About two months in I noticed things began to go south. Had a small disagreement and misunderstanding with my manager on a ticket she said I messed up on for whatever reason. Long story short she said the ticket was urgent when nowhere on the ticket said there was a deadline and she made a huge stink about it. Not only did I receive few tickets to begin with but I had to share the one or two tickets I had with a bunch of interns so I barely had anything to do. My other coworkers had more tickets than me yet would rarely put the interns with them. It was always with me which in my head made no sense. I get a call from the recruiter saying that they’re ending my contract early. I asked why and they said it was due to “performance reasons”. At that point I had two weeks left. I worked one of those weeks then one morning left the building during a meltdown. Left my badge, laptop and all their property on the desk and didn’t say a word to anyone. Been looking for work ever since. Sent out hundreds of resumes and so far only had 2 interviews which led to nothing despite both of them saying I did well and they liked me.
Hundreds of applications later and here I am with no job. I’m still looking for work and decided to also start a small business in the meantime. I started a month ago and only had 2 clients so far. Still no luck with applications. I’m 35 now and had to move back home during the pandemic and been here ever since after living on my own for years.
I’m very thankful and grateful for my mother. She’s the only reason why I’m not homeless. Everyday I think about suicide and I’m reaching a point where I might actually go through with it.
I’ve always been behind in life and feel like I progress slower than my peers. Deleted my social media cause I found myself comparing myself to my former classmates and friends achieving the things I tried so hard for and failed miserably.
I also suck at everything I do. After 1300 hours in valorant I only peaked at Gold 2. I’m the worst in my friend group like with every video game and sport. At one point I even paid for a few Valorant coaching lessons which IMO didn’t think were that great. I was always picked last in gym class. At my first job I was the last one to receive an offer to convert full time and the people that joined way after surpassed me despite having good metrics and being top of the leaderboard several times for several weeks.
Honestly at this point I’m ready to give up on life. Feels like I was destined to be a failure. I always felt like my efforts don’t pay off for anything. I failed my career. I failed in dating. I failed in my hobbies. Now I know you shouldn’t compare yourself to others but when I’m the only one I know of in my situation it’s damn near impossible not to. I’m not gonna act like I have the worst life ever but I don’t know of ANYONE my age struggling like this.
Every time I think I’m building momentum some bullshit always happens and every time it feels like I’m knocked back to square one. Feels like building a house that’s in a tornado zone only for my foundation to be knocked to pieces every time and cant afford to move.
I’m just frustrated with life and everything at this point. I hate everything about myself and seriously can’t wait to die. I’d pay someone to kill me. I’m crying while writing this thesis paper of a post. Maybe there’s something very wrong with me. I think I’m slow and stupid. Maybe even borderline retarded. I’m the failure of all failures. Nothing but a talentless garbage can loser bum.
Don’t know what to do. I don’t wanna go back to the hospital but I may have to. Thanks for reading my rant. I needed to get this out since I have no one to talk to.

I am NOT OOP, OOP is u/EffectiveRepair8231
Originally posted to AmIOverreacting
AIO: I feel like a Dad a the daycare I work at is hitting on me (20f)
Trigger Warning: sexual assault, stalking, sexual harassment, mentions of CSA
Original Post: May 20, 2024
Hi! I work at a daycare, and I’ve noticed that one of the children's parents always makes inappropriate comments to me. At first, I thought he was just one of those people who always compliment others or that he just wanted to have a friendly relationship with his kids' educators, but now I think it’s more than that.
During my first weeks there, I was always assigned to his younger daughter’s group (the babies), so I would see him often. At first, it was brief friendly talk, but it really escalated when I started working with the older kids (4-year-olds). His other daughter, let’s call her Emmy, and I clicked right away when we found out we’re birthday twins. She always wants me to play with her and asks for hugs literally every two minutes. Whenever her dad comes to pick up his kids, she always makes sure to give me a big hug and tells her dad that we’re best friends.
Last month, Emmy’s dad and I ran into each other at the grocery store and started small talk. We were mostly talking about Emmy, and he just kept saying how much she loves me and that she wants me to come over to their house. I said something like, “Oh, she’s so cute. I love spending time with her too,” and tried to end the conversation, but he just kept talking. I noticed him looking at my chest a couple of times, which was one of the reasons I wanted to leave. He then offered me a ride, and although I initially declined, he kept pushing it, so I accepted. I didn’t let him see my house; I told him to drop me off downtown.
Since then, I keep running into him, but to the point where I don’t think it’s a coincidence. He doesn’t live in the same neighborhood as me (I live near downtown). In fact, when he dropped me off the first time, he kept going on and on about how he could never live somewhere as far away as I do. So why do I keep seeing him? In our conversations, he always makes sure to compliment my physical appearance or mention my age and how “young and smart” I am. It obviously makes me uncomfortable, but for the sake of his daughters, especially Emmy, I don’t really say anything. I have tried to set some boundaries, but it’s really uncomfortable. I jokingly said once, “Well, if I were your age, I don’t think I’d date someone as young as me,” and he was like, “Well, good thing I would,” and he laughed.
I casually mentioned this in a conversation with one of my colleagues, and she said something like, “Oh, he’s a flirt; that’s what he does.” She kept talking about how handsome he is (he is handsome but also a married dad of two). I asked if there’s anything we, as educators, could do if, hypothetically, a parent is being too friendly/flirty with us, and she basically said no.
Anyway, it’s gotten hot outside, so I’ve started wearing sundresses, shorts, and crop tops, and he always compliments my outfits when he sees me and says he likes seeing my bellybutton piercing out (EW). Also, Emmy has told me that her dad said I’ll be their nanny for the weekends when the daycare is closed. I don’t know if he actually said that because she’s 4, but I don’t even want to ask because I don’t want to give him ideas if he didn’t actually say it.
He has tried multiple times to give me his phone number to “call him if there’s anything,” and I always gently reminded him that we can communicate through the daycare app. He always says that he would rather call me directly than through the app. He was being super pushy, and I felt a little trapped, so I gave him my phone number. He texts me all the time, asking what I’m doing, etc. I have FaceTimed his daughters a couple of times, but it just feels wrong. I briefly talked about this to a friend, and she said that she would’ve told his wife. I don’t even think I have the guts to do that. Ever since my friend told me that, I started casually bringing up his wife in conversations. He would always change the subject or say she’s not here.
Anyway, all this is to ask: what should I do? Am I imagining things? I feel trapped. I can’t lose my job; I’m scared that it’ll take me forever to find another one. Also, all the kids love me, and I love them. I’ve really gotten attached to them. I love Emmy too, and I mostly feel bad for her. What would you do in this situation? I’ve asked, and you can’t ban a family from attending a daycare, so that option is out of the window. Also, we can’t be on our phones 24/7, so it’s extremely hard to get “evidence.” Anything helps. Thank you!
I don’t know i’m I’m posting this on the right subs, if not sorry about that
Edit: I’ve never seen his wife, he’s the one who does everything. Emmy has mentioned her a few times (saying things like “Mommy got me this shirt” or something) but I don’t even know what she looks like. He doesn’t talk about her unless I bring her up.
Edit 2: About the crop tops, we are allowed to wear them at work with long pants. Same thing with shorts, we can wear them with a non-cropped shirt. 90% of his comments about my piercing were outside of work, when I would run into him. Also, I blocked him. I don’t know if he noticed, but he’s blocked.
Edit 3: A lot of people are asking me why/what I am scared of. I don’t have an exact answer. I’ve had a lot of traumatizing experiences with men so I don’t feel comfortable around any man in general. I don’t have any guy friends. It’s like I think of all the things they could do to me if they wanted to, then I get scared/uncomfortable. I know I have a fawn trauma response and I am working on it, I really am. Also, I have work on Friday (or Wednesday maybe) and I will talk to my supervisors and update.
Relevant Comments
Commenter: “That wouldn’t be appropriate” seems like a good response to 90% of his requests. I would get used to being comfortable saying that to pushy male customers.

OOP: i say that sometimes and he’s like “oh well you’re best friends with emmy so we’re basically family” and i get scared so i just laugh it off or i try to end the conversations

OOP responds to multiple redditors on not accepting any more things from the father and speak with her supervisor about her concerns

OOP: i do say those things and he says that we’re like family because i’m “friends” with his daughter. i don’t always answer and he’ll sometimes bring it up when he drops off/picks up his kids and i say things oh i was busy or i didn’t see it. i keep telling myself that this time ill be direct and just say no but i just get so scared. it’s not like im full on flirting with him, i do reject him but not as firmly as i should i guess. whenever he brings up dating i say things like im not looking for a bf. and for the facetime thing, one time he was being really insistent and i said no and the text time i saw them at work, emmy asked me why i didn’t pick up the call and he said in front of her that i was being mean that day and that i didn’t wanna talk to her. she ended up crying. i tried telling my supervisor and she said that she never noticed any weird behaviour from him and he’s a very friendly man. she asked me if i had any proof which i didn’t. idk what else to do

~

i tried to talk to one of my supervisors about it but rn they’re always busy (they’re the new owners of the daycare so they’re trying to figure everything out) so it’s never a good time. i am alone with my group. i see him in the morning when he’s dropping off emmy and in the afternoon outside when he’s picking his kids up. our conversation in the morning are more brief bc all the parents are coming at the same time so there’s not much time. in the afternoon, he always tells emmy to keep playing with her friends just to buy more time and when i tell him i have to go back to watching everyone he says that there are plenty of other educators who are watching them and not to worry about it. i try to say things like hey i really have to go back to work/now’s not a right time but it’s like there’s nothing i can say to get through to him. im the one in charge of emmy i have to be the one to talk to him about emmy’s day etc

 
Update #1: May 23, 2024
Hello everyone,
I want to thank everyone who gave me advice. I tried to read every comment. Before I give you an update, I need to clarify a few things:

1. I don’t work at a school; it's a private, family-owned (i think) daycare. I have three managers—two women and one man. They became the new owners in January. I primarily interact with one of the female managers. I've tried to discuss this situation with her, but it’s never the right time. For example, I’d knock on her office door and say I needed to talk about Emmy’s dad. She’d say she’s busy and ask me to come back later. When I did, she’d apologize and ask to talk the next day. She also suggested texting, but I didn't feel comfortable telling her everything through text.
   
2. Some suggested having another teacher watch my group when he arrives, but that’s not possible. In the afternoon, after nap time, we take the kids outside until their parents pick them up. All educators need to stay outside to supervise. When parents arrive, I discuss their child's day and hand over their keychain. It’s difficult because he always approaches me when I’m distracted, so I can’t warn a coworker.
   
3. Rides: The first time I saw him outside of work was at the grocery store. He recognized me, we chatted briefly, and he offered me a ride. I declined, but he insisted, saying it was ungentlemanly to let me carry groceries alone. He paid for my groceries and drove me home, despite my discomfort. I sat in the backseat, but still. I shouldn’t have said yes. I was just so weirded out by the entire situation. The second time was at a gas station. After hanging out with a friend in his neighborhood, I stopped there for a drink. He saw me and again offered a ride. He was pushy, so I reluctantly agreed. That was the last time I accepted a ride from him.
   
4. Clothing: Most of his comments about my piercing happened outside of work. I don’t wear revealing clothes to work; I mostly wear sweats. Occasionally, I wear a long sleeve crop top with sweatpants, which my managers don’t mind. We’re allowed to wear mom shorts. But again, I most of the time I wear sweats.
   
5. Facetime: I’ve Facetimed his daughters three times, and each call lasted less than five minutes. I realize now that this was inappropriate, but yes it happened.
   
6. Texting: I don’t always respond to his texts. If he texts ten times, I might reply three times. The thing is, he often asks in person why I don’t respond, telling me he had something important to say. He’d sometimes say that in front of Emmy, then say, “You see that Emmy, she’s not nice to Daddy. She doesn’t want to talk to me.”
   
7. I live in Canada. Some suggested carrying pepper spray for protection, but it’s illegal here, so that’s not an option.
   
8. I don’t know his exact age, but I’d guess late 30s to mid-40s. I’ve never seen his wife; some suggested they might be separated. Maybe. Emmy has mentioned her mom before, but she seems closer to her dad.
   
9. The dating comment: I had ZERO idea my comment could be seen as flirting. I thought I was indirectly turning him down. When the topic of dating came up, I said I didn’t want a relationship. He joked that we’d get along great, and I responded by saying “Don’t you think you’re a little too old for me?” And he said, jokingly, “Oh, man. Dont say that. You’re very mature.” That’s when I said that I wouldn’t date someone my age if I were his age.
   

Update: I was only scheduled on Friday this week but ended up working today too. I texted my manager saying that I have something very important to tell her about a parent and that I'm afraid my safety could be compromised. She asked me to come to her office before work to talk about it.
I was very scared because reading the comments made me realize that I could lose my job because I gave him my number. But I still told her everything (looking back, I missed a few things, but I told her the most important things). I told her about how, in the beginning (when I was assigned to his 2-year-old daughter's group), he was very friendly and nice to me, but it escalated when I started caring for Emmy. I told her about the grocery incident, the gas station incident, and seeing him near my neighborhood.
She kind of "defended" him by saying that I live near downtown, so it’s not a miracle to run into someone there. I then brought up the fact that, yes, I understand that, but he’s told me that he enjoys staying in his neighborhood and that I live so far away, and he doesn’t understand how I'm able to work at a job so far away, so it was weird to see him so much. I think it made her understand more. I told her about the comments about my appearance. I asked her if it was possible to get assigned to another group, and she said yes.
I told her about me giving him my number after feeling pressured, and she said that I shouldn’t have done that, that it’s very dangerous to give out personal information like that. She also said that, especially with my job, all communication must be through the app. She said that she was a little more upset at the dad because he’s been attending that daycare for almost four years, and he knows that parents are not allowed to do that.
I then told her about how he makes Emmy play with her friends when it’s time to go just to talk to me longer. She said that since I won’t be assigned to Emmy’s group, I won’t even have to talk to him at all. She said that she’ll take care of it and let the other girls know to keep an eye on him.
I told her about the Facetimes and how he told Emmy that I was mean for not answering one time and how he made her cry. She only said that that was out of line. I asked if it was possible to “ban” him from attending, and she said maybe. She doesn’t have any solid proof (I showed her some text messages, but she said that he was being friendly in the messages and that there was nothing sexual). She said that most of this was basically hearsay, and she doesn’t have concrete proof of him being an actual predator.
As for Emmy, we played together on the playground as usual. I think the hardest part for me is to slowly distance myself from her. I did, however, encourage her to play with her friends, but she would always come back every five minutes to ask to play with me. When her dad arrived, he greeted me and asked me about Emmy’s day and her keychain. I said that I did not take care of her today and pointed to the girl that did. I then got up to get Emmy to tell her to leave. He tried to stop me, but I just kept walking. I didn’t really give him time to talk to me. When I got Emmy, I gave her a hug, then stayed on the other side of the playground, and they left. I know it’s not much, but at least I avoided an interaction with him today.
I think that’s it. I tried to answer everything.
Edit: He’s never driven me home, I would always ask to drop me off downtown. Typo sorry!
Comments
Commenter: If he texts you, tell him that you got a memo from work that says all interaction with parents must go through the app with no exceptions for legal and safety reasons and that you can't risk your job. Then block him.
Or just block him.
 
Update #2: May 24, 2024
Hi, I saw some comments asking for an update, so I wanted to share what happened because I am too ashamed to tell someone in real life. I had work from yesterday 8 AM to 5 PM, then went straight to the gym to work out with a friend. I got there around 6 PM and worked out until about 8:30 PM. I was walking home (I live about 10 minutes away from my gym) when I heard someone behind me. Looking back, I know I shouldn’t have walked home, but I didn’t think about it in the moment. I had music in my ears, so I didn’t know if someone was talking to me or on the phone, so I just kept walking. I felt the person getting closer and immediately thought, “Oh my God, what if it’s him?” I started walking a little faster.
After about 2 minutes, the person tapped me on the shoulder. When I turned around, it was him. My heart dropped. I immediately froze. I had practiced what to say if I ever got into this situation, but of course I had to forget everything. He acted like we ran into each other and said, “Hey, it’s nice seeing you.” I said, “Hi, nice seeing you, but I have to go.” He complimented my hair (I recently dyed it) and said it looked good on me. I said a quick thank you and tried to leave. He then grabbed my wrist and said, “I don’t like when you act like that.” I just froze up; I couldn’t move. He asked why I don’t take care of Emmy anymore. He said that she constantly asks about me at home and that I make her cry. I stuttered and said I didn’t know, that I’m not the one who decides. I said I have to go now, sorry. He then asked if I blocked him. I said I really can’t talk right now.
He then blurted out that he saw me working out. He was doing all of this while grabbing my wrist, mind you. I didn’t know what to say, so I repeated that I had to go. He started looking at me up and down in a disgusting way. He was staring at my boobs while smiling. He then started caressing my arms. One arm stopped at my waist, and the other one kept caressing my arm. He would sometimes move it to my chest and touch me there. I don’t know why I didn’t just punch him in the face. I just could. not. move. Before you ask, I wasn’t wearing anything revealing. I had on a hoodie and sweatpants. I even removed my belly piercing because I don’t like this type of attention.
I eventually quietly said, “Can you please stop?” He looked at me, smiled, and then left. I’ve been getting sexually assaulted by men since the age of 7. I promised myself after getting sexually assaulted at 18 by a friend that I would never let it happen again. Now this. I don’t know why this keeps happening. Most of the time, I feel like my body isn’t even mine, just for someone else to use whenever they feel like it, no matter if I want it or not. Maybe it was my fault because I shouldn’t have walked home knowing I had a “stalker”. Maybe it’s my fault because I didn’t tell him to leave me alone earlier. Maybe it’s my fault because I am 20 years old and I can’t fucking say no. I know he didn’t full-on grab my tits and squeeze them, but I feel so so violated. I am too ashamed to reveal this to anyone. I told my boss I was sick to avoid going to work for a couple of days.
I went to the police station, but they said there wasn’t anything they could do legally because he didn’t commit actual crimes and that I didn’t really have any proof. I just feel like they didn’t take me seriously. They gave me tips to be more careful like don’t walk late at night, change your number, don’t have the same routine, etc., but that’s it. They won’t give me a restraining order. I’ll be honest, I didn’t understand half of the terminology they were using. But from what I understood, we’re both adults so the texting and Facetimes aren’t incriminating enough. I guess I’ll just stay home. I feel so dirty. I thought I had everything under control because I found a way to avoid him at work, but I guess I was wrong. I genuinely thought that I found a way to make everything stop.
The worst part is I saw some comments saying that this whole situation could escalate if he finds out that I’m avoiding him and I didn’t believe them. Again, I was wrong. I don’t know if I’m looking for advice or sympathy, but I don’t have anyone in my life who could help. Maybe some friends, but I am just so ashamed and embarrassed to say that a man was “groping” me and I basically let it happen because I was scared. It’s just humiliating. As for my family, knowing my mom, she would most likely slut-shame me and say it’s my fault. But yeah, here’s the update I guess. I don’t know if I’ll update after this, mainly because I don’t know what else to do.
Edit: (copying and pasting this from one of my replies because I can see how it looks): i posted about him 4 days ago but i started having doubts about him stalking be like a month ago i think. i talked to my manager wednesday and i got assigned to another group. i didn’t interact with him wednesday and yesterday. HE is the one saying that his daughter is crying about not seeing me. i know it’s not true, he keeps saying stuff like this. saying things about his daughter to make me feel bad because he knows we’re close. when this incident happened, i went straight to the police station near my home to tell them what happened (bc it’s opened day and night). i asked if with what i have i can have a restraining order and they said no. i know im updating quick but i genuinely don’t have anyone i can talk to about this
Edit 2: Okay I think I’ll just quit my job stay with a friend for now. I’ll send an email explaining my situation with my boss and try to find a stay at home job. Thank you all
 

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.

“The surrounding terrain that he finds himself in, all laid in ruin, grand buildings turned into dust and rubble by a creature hellbent on destruction.
A being finds himself trapped under rubble of a tower that stood within a fine city.”
A pipe is currently in my leg… I say I can heal from it in a couple of minutes, but due to mana damage and adding the other factors of being reawakened, and basically being in a weaker state of being.
It’s not gonna be fully healed for two hours, and judging by the wind and noise it’s exactly 2:00 pm.
Okay….. I’m gonna have to rest here for now…. What to do, what to do when you find yourself trapped under rubble…..
I probably still have to do paperwork after this, also do I still have to clock out?
Like theres no way to clock out now, also actually since there hasn’t been the daily update to Scotch Inc. main database from this branch.
Kinda hoping they send a team to investigate, possibly find me…….
So now I’m just gonna wait…..
“Some time later, the dragon decided to pull out the pipe, taking some time, leaving behind a fleeting moment of pain before reliving no longer having a pipe lodged into your left leg.”
Jesus fucking Christ!…..
Oh man… guessing by the wind temperature, moisture in the air now….. it’s 8:00 pm….
And the daily reports are scheduled for 10:00 pm, and still in a weakened state………
Fuck, and I’m starving since I haven’t ate for a bit………
“Taking some time later, his leg fully healed now but yet still trapped under rubble of a collapsed building.”
It’s 11:00 pm…. Oh god who’s in charge of actually making a schedule for Scotch Inc……. And that’s my job…
Okay, escape plan and I can use the pipe to lodge that piece of brick and use it as a starting point for a chain reaction of creating an opening wide enough for me to crawl through.
Using the correct speed and strength, thinking as a straight line of one through ten.
Six is the weak point.
“A quick strike with the force of a train at full speed, creating a massive chain reaction of movement within the rubble creating a gap enough for the man to crawl through, with him eventually being able to breathe dusty air.
Allowing him to get a true grasp of what Asfelaeia had become, all to ruin, dust, rubble and some may say extinct.
The grand engine of a beautiful city finally ran out of its oil, exhausted and the flame within that engine has been extinguished and shattered.
Stumbling through eventually an arrow landed solidly into his right shoulder, letting out a scream of anguish.
Turning around to see some bandits.”
Bandit 1: Looks like we got some easy prey here BOYS!!
Bandit 2: So what’s the plan boss, gonna pick him off from here or go stabby stabby?
Bandit 3: I wanna do some nice stabbing.
Bandit 1: You, me and you let’s go stab a wounded animal!
Bandit 4: Staying back once again, looks like I’m gonna stab from a distance!
“Before Bandit 4 could realize something, they felt a small pinch on their chest, looking down realizing that the same arrow had been thrown right through their chest, directly taking out their heart.”
Bandit 4: I don’t feel so well….. “falling limp to the ground without a pulse.”
I would like to ask you of the remaining three, to simply give up this life and leave before I use any more of my abilities.
Bandit 2: George?….. no….. no….
“Without hesitation Bandit 3 rushes at the draconic man, wielding a butcher's knife attempting to slash at the man.”
An ability of mine makes an imaginary line of one through ten, with a weak point being assigned randomly to a point and the current weak points on your legs are five and two.
“A quick side step followed by a Russian leg sweep, disarming bandit 3 and using the butcher's knife hitting both weak points, causing a destabilizing effect stopping bandit 3 from getting back up.
And a quick guillotine speed chop, lunging bandits 3 head off.”
What about you two? Gonna do anything? Or now that I have proved my point of you being outclassed by a smarter opponent?
Bandit 2: I CAST DRAGON FIREBALL WRATH!!!
(Can’t dodge this, got 60% mana left, and the weak point on that wall is nine. Now with 2%, I can't use the ability anymore.)
“A quick nudge on the close rubble, causing it to collapse and absorb the dragon fireball wrath.
Creating a dust cloud allowing for the dragon to remain silent and moving closer.”
(The second is weakened from spending that much mana on that spell, while the leader probably took the crossbow from his dead companion, from assumption he’s not well versed in the crossbow and making sure he and the mage are from a safe distance of attack.
From the distance of trajectory of me lunging back that arrow, they bunked down on that rubble pile.
Still have the knife, can’t get a good hit on them though.”
“An arrow is lodged into the wall nearby”
(Okay my assumption was wrong, he got too close.)
“A quick glance around his surroundings, getting a glimpse of where the remaining two have bunkered down, with another arrow almost hitting his horn.
Picking up a rock, waiting till the next arrow is shot, the man decides to use another of his abilities.”
Wanna know who I am?
The names Mareluxus, or Lux for short.
I was alive for a couple of 100 years give or take, kinda been in an egg, too busy restoring myself after one of the greatest battles I ever participated in.
An ability of mine allows me to make an imaginary line of one through ten, a random weak point is selected from one of the points.
Bandit 1: What are you trying to accomplish here! I’m not writing your memoir!
“Another arrow is launched, almost hitting Lux.”
(Getting closer)
Lux : No I’m actually using another of my abilities here, I like to call it the “Open Hand Policy”.
Here’s the thing about the Line technique, it uses a good amount of my mana, and I currently have a small mana pool, basically I’m already drained and cannot use it again.
Also I don’t know the weak point right off the bat, actually having to use more mana to get the number.
Bandit 2: Why are you rambling on about? Scared of death are you!
Lux : I’m not actually scared of death, their ways to get around it, I’m actually scared of taxes but hey everyone else is scared of that.
Actually the Open Hand Policy quota has been fully reached.
With revealing my ability and weakness I can use a charged version of it, and now the pile your on weak point is 10.
“A quick movement and throwing the butchers at the weak point caused the pile to collapse, swallowing both of the remaining bandits under it.
Walking over to the trapped bandits.”
Lux : The hunters have been turned into the prey, how does it feel?
Bandit 1: Go to hell bastard!
Lux : Been there already and had a good time, huh wondering how Python is doing nowadays?
He’s working on the recovery team, and should catch up with him some time.
Now, I’m just gonna put both of you out of your misery.
“Picking up one of the bandit’s 2 daggers, and quickly plunging into his head, and using the butcher's knife and cutting off bandit’s 1’s head.”
Lux : Now I’m covered in blood, also dirty… also I don't have enough mana to open up a portal to my pocket dimension, dammit.
And my new shoes are ruined……

My story:
I have been working in this place for a year, and my boss is supportive, funny, kind and benevolent. While i was going through breakup - a pain unlike any other that i have dealt with before. Unbeknownst to her, she saved my life with kindness. And because of that I started having hope again, and looking forward to my job everyday. Note that I don't have friends or social support outside, and that's my issue too. I have deep rooted childhood trauma and intense fear of rejection.
Along the way, professionally many things happened. And things that no people would have cared about, I felt hurt intensively. Also, I felt that they were excluding me in social events, which my boss told me kindly that it was because we had to set boundaries, so that she could give me a fairer judgment in work. And on top of that, i developed a fear - fear of losing her (this is after hours of therapy session and be extremely raw with all my emotions). So i lashed out and kept lashing out for months. Also because, I instinctively knew that she was leaving, so i used all the negative experiences as my shield, disregarded all the good things that she has done to me even beyond her role, and hurt her back. It was a roller coaster ride of emotions between me and her for many months, mainly it's because of me. Sometimes I am full of positive energy, other times she complained that she had to walk on eggshells around me. And she even suffered a lot of accusations from me. To her, I showed that i have no respect and thought lowly of her.
Fast forward to now, i just learned that she got another position. It's an upgrade, and of course I am crazy happy for her. Working with her, I have always known that she is bigger than her current position and she deserves something so much better.
But i can't help to feel so heartbroken. I regret, i regret it so much that I hurt her. That i allowed my fear to take control over me and instead of sitting with the feelings because now i know that if i had reacted better; if only i had managed my fear and my emotions better. I kept going back to the tiny details when i could have handled it better. And supported the team better. We could have developed and build our professional relationship positively and even become friends after. And now all is loss. and i kept ruminating it, i felt so guilty and i am not sure what to do anymore. I am so so ashamed of myself. So damn ashamed of myself. And i just kept thinking that I am again pushing people away, i sabotaged the relationships that i value again.
Of course, like any good therapist, they suggest to practice gratitude (which i journal everyday), CBT. And now that I am aware of my mistakes and actions, i will be on the road to recovery. I can't change the past. But i keep feeling this intense heartache, and i fear that I am losing hope once again.
What should I do? How do i move forward? I still have to go back to the office to face her until official announcement, and i have no clue no clue what to do. I feel like running away.