Hello, off the back of my last question, I have seen testimonies lately, about people meeting Jesus. A few are: Nasir Siddiki, (former Muslim who had really bad shingles and claimed Jesus saved him)
Afshin Javid (former Muslim who claims Jesus spoke to him in a jail cell)
A story of a former Muslim woman who claims she had gall stones so bad she was in the hospital, she was in so much pain, she called out to Jesus, he appeared, cured her. Then when the doctors came later, she had no gall stones, everyone was baffled
Many NDEs where a person has a hellish experience, they call out to Jesus, he suddenly transports them into a positive place.
The thing is, there are many examples of people claiming to have interacted with Jesus, and many claims state that when they call to him, a bright light appears right away. One man said he was in hell and when he started to say Jesus, before he could finish the light appeared. Afshin and Nassir, plus the former Muslim woman all describe a bright light appearing right away, after they call out to him, and they can talk to him, he helps them. There was even a few NDEs I came across where Muslims say they were in hell, or in a life threatening situation called out to Allah, no response. Then they tried “Jesus” and suddenly a light appeared and rescued them.
Do you think this is maybe because the Christian “god” and Jesus have a supposedly “friendlier” relationship with Christians where they almost treat them as “friends”, while Muslims are more strict and even many believe their god doesn’t answer prayers? I wonder if it’s a cultural thing.

Video Guide

TL;DW:

It's about that time of year again. Every so often, we add another 1000 or so people to this subreddit and many of them want to fly with a wingman but aren't sure how to accomplish that.
Despite my best efforts to explain it just about everywhere I can find places for text, the message doesn't get through to everyone.
So, after neglecting it for a LONG time, I finally sat down to just make a whole ass video dedicated to finding a wingman to fly Sim with.
Flying with a buddy on comms can turn a good night of flying into a GREAT night of flying. Being saved by your friend is an awesome feeling, only really surpassed by being able to return the favor!
Unfortunately, Reddit is not a great tool for live interactions. It is simply too slow, operating in the realm of hours; but you need somebody to fly with NOW!
So, we have a Discord
You might hear people calling this the "WingalingDragon" discord... but I assure you, it doesn't belong to me. I may have built it, and I might manage it... but I didn't make it to serve my selfish purposes. I built it for YOU! It is OUR Discord.
The Discord requires no membership, registration, following commitment, nor for you to be in a squadron. I refuse all monetization and sponsorship efforts. I have also removed my name from the server to remove any sense of bias or fandom.
Users from all over WT who enjoy Sim find themselves there, because it is the largest single Discord for WarThunder Sim... and if you're looking for people who want to fly with a mic... that is most of them are!
But how do you get to flying with them?

THERE IS A "LOOKING FOR GROUP" (LFG) FUNCTION!

The Discord itself doesn't subscribe to the usual "mass notifications" of other servers. I will never @everyone you. EVERYTHING IS OPT-IN ONLY!!!
This means if you want to hear notifications of people forming groups to fly... all you've got to do is head to the #lfg-roles-looking-for-group section and select the appropriate roles that fit your need.
You aquire these roles by reacting to the appropriate category that matches what you want to do!
There is all sorts of stuff (ground Sim, air Sim, IL2, DCS, etc... and more can always be added if the community wants it!)
Once you have the roles, you're free to use them to shout out into the ether. This will allow tons of other users, who have also opted-in, to hear your call and respond.
Just don't spam the roles, please! (This annoys people and degrades the system for everyone)

Listen for LFG calls!

However you want to do this. I've got discord on my phone with notifications. So I get a little message everytime somebody makes a call. I'm not always available to fly... but when I am, I try to hop in with them. So if you see other users flying... don't hesitate to jump in!
But what if nobody is flying or the people flying aren't doing what you want to do?
Just send out your own LFG call to the server and describe what you're after!

Okay, I made an LFG call... now what?

This next step is HYPER-CRITICAL. You have to make it super easy for people to find you... you do that by making yourself available.
CREATE YOUR OWN VOICE CHANNEL!
The discord can host an unlimited amount of Voice Channels. It expands and contracts in real time based on demand.
To create a voice channel, you simply go to the game category that you're playing (WT, IL2, DCS) and click the

HUB - Join to create

This will force our bot to open your voice channel and move you into it. Once that is done, the bot will also make you the moderator of your voice channel. This means YOU ARE THE BOSS!
You can set the rules in your VC however you see fit. Want to limit the users? Force Push to talk? Make yourself a priority speaker? Kick somebody out if they're being annoying? Whatever... up to you. If it is your VC, you're in charge.
If people don't like your VC, they can leave and make their own VC.
Once you've made a VC and sent a LFG call, you simply give our community time to hear and respond. Remember that it takes time for people to boot up their PCs, patch their game, hook up their VR headsets... so don't expect people to jump in instantly. Just get to flying and hang out in your VC while you wait for a wingman.
The more people we get familiar with LFG and signed up, and the more users we have using the system correctly... the better it works for everyone!
Keep in mind that not everyone will have your aircraft, nation, or tier... so if you're having trouble finding people to fly something super specific... try to be flexible with your LFG calls.
"I'm flying EC8 right now, but I'll fly whatever you want. I just want to fly with a wingman"
Stuff like that will go a long way toward getting people to show up!
After you've had your fun and are ready to Hangar your planes for the night... simply disconnect from the VC and the bot will come behind you after a minute to clean up and close down all the empty VCs. So no need for you to do janitorial duty, it is all taken care of for you!
Another great way to find and meet the community is to show up to our regularly scheduled community events, held on our Event Discord
These are more causal custom games where we all just dick around in big ass formations and have a good time recreating history or amassing fantastic raids. That is our sister server, run by the familiar Krab_Nation. We are always looking for community input on events to build and fly... so if you have thoughts on that stuff, share them on the event discord!
That's about all there is to it. It's not terribly complicated, but it isn't common knowledge.

IF YOU SEE PEOPLE STRUGGLING TO FIND A FRIEND TO FLY WITH

Please take the time to explain the discord to them, or direct them to me so I can do so!
Let's face it guys... Sim is just more fun with a big group of people. The more people we can get flying together, the more fun we can all have.
Being able to create lobbies... or have awesome coordinated battles shouldn't be some streamer privilege... so I've worked really hard to give as many tools as I can to the community so that they can enjoy sorties the same way I do... with a sky FULL of like minded pilots who want to fly, fight, and win! EVERYONE has the power to get involved and watch somebody else's six. Don't fly alone!

TL;DR:

Go to Discord
Navigate to #lfg-role-looking-for-group
Select the tags that fit your needs.
Listen for other people calling out tags, and join their voice channels
Or
Send out a message mentioning the appropriate @LFG tag THEN create a voice channel by clicking
HUB - Join to create
This will force a bot to create a voice channel for you and the bot will move you into it.
Fly around while connected to voice channel and greet any new pilots who pop in to say hello.
Have fun!
^o7
-Dragon

Hi guys. I am about the least tech savvy person ever and I was wondering, is there any way I can ‘turn off’ my phone setting so that it doesn’t receive any calls, like so anyone who calls will just get the same response as if it was switched off, but still be able to use my online apps? I want to be able to access, Reddit, for example, and watch Netflix, but just not get calls or texts for a while? Also, can I ‘turn off’ WhatsApp for the same reason? Is that even a thing? Thank you and sorry if that’s a dumb question!

Hi all, back when I was 19 I was arrested for having stolen property that I didn't know was stolen. I had picked up a friend for a night out as she was getting kicked out and she had stolen her sisters belongings including credit cards, iPad, MacBook. Her sister saw her getting in my car, called the police and I was pulled over and arrested for being an accessory. Charges were dropped and I was released but am getting harrassing calls from my local courthouse that I owe them money. I'm never going to pay that, they tried to wage garnish me and I quit my job and found another and I've been repeating the cycle when they find me and never keeping anything in my name and I'll be moving to another state soon. I know it's stupid but I'm never going to pay that money, we'll they've started harrasing me using different area codes, I know it's them because they always call from the courthouse first then i get about 30-40 calls from a 559 area code. This is every single day - can I sue for emotional distress? Can I make a harrasent charge/complaint? They always use different numbers so even when I block them, they'll use different ones the next day. I've blocked unknown callers but that's left me missing some calls.

I had my first lap that led to my diagnosis in August 2023. The doctor who did the procedure was the fifth one I had talked to about my symptoms and concerns that I had endo and the only one who offered an ultrasound or surgery to get to the bottom of the pain I’ve experienced in the past 7 years. She would make comments that made me feel dismissed, such as “it’s not your fault you feel this way. Eve bit the Apple, not you. We are just meant to suffer” or only talk to my husband DURING my ultrasound. Despite this, I stuck with her out of fear of starting over and having to explain to another doctor that I’m not being dramatic about my pain. My only post-op appointment was a disaster. While she did show me the three points of endo that had developed behind my uterus, I wasn’t given any information about what stage it was in or how to treat them. All I was told is “I’m not so worried about it that I’d push you to have a baby yet” and “there’s a lot of good resources online that you can look up”. She even took a phone call and gestured for me to leave the room and ended our appointment! I left feeling like I didn’t leave with hardly any more knowledge about my condition than what I entered with. I looked online and saw information about hormonal medicine that may help, including Orilissa, which I took for a short time before my surgery, but I suffer from Major Depressive Disorder and have noticed that hormonal medication negatively affects my mental state. Since my appointment, I’ve virtually given up on treatment. I don’t feel any better than I did before the procedure, and it feels like I’m getting more and more symptoms every month.for instance, around my surgery, I started noticing light rectal bleeding that would happen during my period, which my doctor shrugged off when I brought it up. Now, I experienced the bleeding at the same pace with the same consistency as my menstruation. I’ve tried to incorporate a plant based diet and Pilates/cardio to help combat other symptoms and haven’t seen much difference there either. Sometimes it feels like nothing is going to get better, but I want to be optimistic. I thought about getting a new doctor and talking about a hysterectomy or other ways to manage, but I’m worried it won’t even be worth it. This is 100% a pity party but I really wanted to get it out there. Do any of y’all relate to this frustration? How do you handle it?

MECKLENBURG COUNTY, N.C. (Court TV) – The mother of a missing North Carolina girl has changed her plea while the child’s stepfather heads to trial.
On Monday, Diana Cojocari pleaded guilty to a charge of failure to report a missing child to law enforcement. Diana’s daughter, Madalina Cojocari, has been missing since Nov. 2022. She was 11 years old when she disappeared.
Diana and her husband, Christopher Palmiter, were arrested two days after Madalina was reported missing to a school resource officer. Madalina was last seen getting off a school bus on Nov. 21. Diana waited nearly one month before reporting the child missing on Dec. 15. At the time of their arrest, both defendants pleaded not guilty.
Madalina Cojocari’s mother pleads guilty to failing to report her disappearance
According to an arrest report, Diana told the SRO she last saw Madalina on Nov. 23 when she went to bed. That same night, Diana and Palmiter got into an argument, “and the next morning, he drove to his family house in Michigan to recover some items.” She noticed Madalina was gone around 11:30 a.m. on Nov. 24.
When Palmiter returned home on Nov. 26, neither claimed to know where Madalina was. According to the report, the couple spoke “several times about Madalina’s whereabouts over the next three weeks,” but neither knew where the child was or contacted police.
The report also states Diana told a detective “she believed her husband put her family in danger but did not know what happened Madalina.”
Last July, unsealed search warrants revealed Diana believed her husband may’ve given Madalina away for money. Diana made the statement during a recorded jail phone call with her mother, during which “the women discuss a bag with money, withdrawing cash, and a theory that Chris gave the girl away for money.”
In Aug., Diana’s mother told WCNC, “My granddaughter is alive, but she’s been kidnapped.” Rodica Cojocari accused Palmiter of selling Diana and Madalina to traffickers for $5 million.
Diana’s guilty plea was not part of a plea deal, according to court documents obtained by Court TV. After pleading guilty, a judge sentenced her to six to 17 months in prison, reported WSOC-TV. Since she has already served 520 days, she is expected to be released soon.
The judge also told Diana she is likely to be deported upon her release. According to WCNC-TV, Diana is from Moldova and is in the country on a green card.
Palmiter’s trial was scheduled to begin Monday but has been delayed while another trial takes place in the courtroom where his case will be tried.

tl;dr - my relationship was the only good thing in my life, it just suddenly ended, and I have no social or clinical support system to lean on. Having a bit of a crisis. I hate listing acronyms, but for the sake of context: OCD, ADHD II, ASD, CPTSD.
Yesterday, my partner and I suddenly broke up. This morning we said our final goodbyes over the phone. I'm not exaggerating by saying our relationship was the only good thing in my life, and our future together was the only thing I had to look forward to... Since our relationship began, my ESA has been diagnosed with cancer and chronic lameness, my parents began a nasty divorce which completely destabilized both myself and our household in general (I reluctantly began living with them recently as I'm disabled and really didn't have a choice after my own divorce), I drifted far away from my best and only friend during this period of time (they are not in a life-place where we could reconnect or they could be there for me), I developed a recurring tear in an arm tendon, I don't have any other close family, and the one person I do have (my mom) has caused me a litany of trauma and is generally a strong negative presence in my life. My car is also falling apart... I feel like I'm living in the most contrived, depressing country song of all time right now. If someone else told me they had this many problems simultaneously, I probably wouldn't believe them.
So back to my partneex... They were the first and only person in my life who I felt actually understood me. And I believe they felt/feel the same toward me. Their life had also begun a downward spiral since shortly after our relationship began. We both fell into an intense series of personal misfortunes, which were unrelated to one another. We would always talk about how if we weren't there for each other during these times, there'd be no one in our lives to support us the way we need(ed). We came together right before all of these bad things happened, and celebrated what an unexpected lifeline we'd been thrown in the form of one another. At the same time, those stressors were forming cracks in us and in our relationship... Horrible poetic irony... I've been reduced to basic low-functioning survival mode, unable to completely fulfill all of my partner roles that need to be, while they've become less and less of themselves; which I believe was more or less the deepest fracture. We communicated openly and honestly as we'd always done, and the bottom line for me was that I'm doing my best and it's not enough, and their negative experiences over the course of our relationship catalyzed an incompatible change in them for the sake of their mental preservation... That there wasn't room in that space to support or consider my needs in the way they need to be, nor overlook my inability to meet theirs currently. Obviously there's an additional ocean of nuance and detail, but I think that's enough of a painted picture. Basically, no one's at fault.
At this moment, my mind is frantically attempting to figure out where to go when I have no support system. There's no one to call, nowhere to go, etc... I have a therapist and a psych, but they have little expertise in intense neurodivergence, and I know that what I need is guidance from someone who knows how to handle someone like me specifically, that actually understands what my brain is doing. I've even considered extreme measures like going to the ER and attempting to access expedited psychiatric inpatient treatment, but I don't really think that's the answer, and it also opens up a whole other pandora's box of complications... I'm totally lost and directionless. No friends, no family, a dying ESA... And I can't stop crying. Haven't eaten in a couple days at least. Face hurts so much from bawling. Outside of this relationship suddenly imploding, I have a toxic single parent, a dying car, a dying dog, endless responsibilities, and rescue meds that keep me sedated and confused in-between crying. I'm in my mid 30's and never felt so helpless, worthless, and alone.

So, I attend Alcoholics Anonymous for my own personal recovery, and have been learning more about the 12 steps. I’m thinking about listing these meetings down as “research hours”.
Regarding the morality of this, the TN licensing board is a joke. On one hand, I don’t really care what they think seeing as they can’t seem to return a phone call or look at my application 5 months past sue. On the other, I put my supervisor’s reputation at risk assuming that someone gets suspicious. I remember my professor not letting me count client consultation as indirect since I was basically greeting them at my Practicum’s door and giving small talk before their group sessions.
I’m just trying to get my license despite unemployment issues. Things might be looking up, but this recession is horrible and the licensing board has done jack to assist its pre-licensed therapist.
So, what would you all do?

I'm gonna call her Jade because as much as I hate her she doesn't deserve her named leaked Context: I met jade in the fall, around August. We were good friends but she had a conflict with another one of my friends, they ended up splitting. So I'm stuck in the middle of this trying to fix it and jade would not cooperate, mind you she was pretty possessive of me and so if she ever saw me interact with that friend, she'd say something to me like "___ is a toxic ass bitch" or "don't trust ___ she baxkstabbed me" and I trusted her at the start so I didn't talk to that friend for a while but she just became more and more of a jerk, she would shit talk OUR friends in OUR friend group to me behind their backs and she wouldn't let go of that one friend, she would make random scenarios to make them look bad and the more I heard the more tired I got of it. I was on a call with my gf and jade and my phone fell while I was screensharing and I opened messages accidentally, when I picked it up jade sounded hurt and disappointed because I had that one friend pinned in my contacts. Also she blamed everything on the fact she had autism and ADHD and liver problems and ankle problems and her broken ankle that she lied about, when I confronted her she acted like SHE was the victim and I was pissed, I wasn't dealing with any of it I said what I needed to say and left her. So, AITA? (Also she's really entitled and her parents enable her behavior)

Hello, I canceled my service on April 19th and I also moved out on this date. After returning all my equipment I was told I was all set and was given a credit, only to be charged my full bill amount on May 7th. I contacted xfinity THREE times on this matter and was even given a case number on my most recent attempt but it was just closed with no communication or refund.
My communication was through the xfinity chat, where the first two times I was told I'd be recieveing the refund after a few business days, which never happened. On the third attempt, I was given the same spiel, 4-5 business days, and then they told me they can have someone call me about this matter from account retention as they'd be able to issue the refund immediately? This is where the lady on the phone made a case number for me, on Sunday. The case number was just closed today, Tuesday with the charge still in my account, with no refund, or communication.
Please dear lord just give me my money back. I had a huge vet bill at the start of the month only to be knocked with an additional charge, and then I was assured I would have it back shortly. As an ex technician I would assure customers this wouldn't happen on a daily basis... Severely regretting that now.

Yesterday my boyfriend (29m) seemed to be having a pretty typical day. We didn't see each other in person, so we were texting a good bit. He texted saying he was going fishing. About an hour later he randomly texts saying how he has to sell his car very soon. When I asked why, what happened, he responded with saying everything that's wrong with it, and saying "I'm so done, I work too hard to not have nice things" and then told me his keys got locked inside the car so he broke the window using his elbow, and said his elbow and hand were all bloody.
So I CALLED him, and I asked him if he was okay and why didn't he call me because I have a locksmith in my family who would have come to help for no charge, and he knows this.
He said he was fine and he didn't think it would be for free, and he also didn't have cell service. He said he would've had to walk a mile and a half to get service. He told me he has glass coverage on his insurance so it'll be free to replace the window...
Then he told me he is trying to sell the $200 ticket to the music festival we were supposed to go to with friends this weekend... Because he just isn't feeling it now, because his car is a mess and he can't afford it now, and he might change his mind but he doesn't think so.
I hope he does change his mind. But also, I'm really concerned about him breaking his car window with his elbow, not even a rock or something.
I offered to bring dinner over his place and just hang out with him, and he said he appreciated the offer but no. And I haven't heard from him since, which was yesterday evening.
We recently went through a rough patch where I told him I needed him to be more open and vulnerable with me, and also how I needed him to manage his ADHD somehow. It really affects our relationship. So he agreed to find a therapist but hasn't yet.
We've been together for 4 years, so this isn't a trivial relationship. We've definitely had our ups and downs and I'm worried about carrying too much of the emotional load. But sometimes I put it on myself when I don't have to.
I'm just not sure what to do here, is there another perspective I can see?
TL;DR: boyfriend of 4 years broke his car window with his elbow, causing bleeding, when he knew I have a locksmith sister who would have unlocked his car for free. I'm worried about him, and wondering if I'm just catastrophizing the situation or valid in my concerns. ADHD/anger management concerns? Should I tell him how I feel or just try not to take it so seriously?

Awww you can't sit at your job? You have to walk? You can't be on your phone while working? IT'S CALLED BEING AN ADULT AND ACTUALLY WORKING! "Going up stairs isn't good for my health" I can not with this 💩! Stop whining! 🤬 I can't smoke and I can't even talk on the phone while driving! My goodness 🤦🏼‍♀️

I recently started a new job. It's my first ever 9-5, Monday-Friday job. I love it here, because the environment is very relaxed and I have my own work station.
The place I work at is a sign shop. We design signs on the computer, which are then either printed and applied to various materials such as magnets or banners, or we build those 3D LED signs that are on the tops of buildings. I mostly do design and printing, not so much actually constructing the signs.
The problem I have working here is the male customers. A large majority of them refuse to speak to me, and insist on speaking to my boss, who is a man. I've had male customers who won't even look at me because they want to speak to a man. Male customers on the phone also just grey rock me because they'd rather speak to my boss. I've gotten attitude from a few of them because my boss is not in the shop when they call and they have to speak to me instead.
I complained to my boss today about it and he completely sympathized with me and acknowledged that a lot of male customers do this because I'm a woman, and they think I do not belong in the shop because it's a "male workspace" in their minds.

my (30m) fiance (30f) has been texting her coworker very sexually for months now. i have been feeling a strong emotional and physical disconnect from her for months as well. ive brought it up many times but its always her "hormones" or "stress" which i 100% agree. we both have very stressful high pace jobs and also two young boys (5,6). i decided i'll check her phone just to see, ive never felt a disconnect like this between us and she always use to be all over me and over the top lovey and touched so this is far out of character for her. low and behold i see messages going back to february to her 47yo male MARRIED coworker. it wont let me attach images so ill just try to highlight the main concerning texts which is nearly all of them. it started off because she's into smut books if you will, and he apparently writes smut short stories she read him and excerpt from one of her book: he felt the need to text her one of his short super dirty stories. she replies to this saying it's "hot and he's a good ass writer" couple messages go by and he's making obviously but subtle sexual comments to her saying "how did they get a camera in my room to write those books" there's too much to repeat all the messages but to highlight he keeps making comments sexual in nature, she replies to one about a sex dungeon saying "if you had a room like this one in the hook i'll he over" to which he says "not anymore i'm married" she says something then he says "i didn't say i was happily married" more conversation then he says he has "bad knees but that doesn't mean he still doesn't get his heartrate up" she says "i have a bad back we would do great together" he says "i would get a swing to swoop you off your feet", insinuating a sex swing, she says "talking about swings in have one at home collecting dust as we speak " (sex swing) a lot of innaproraite conversations happen for months. a few more key things is they have a quiet room at work, it's like a single person small room with one couch for employees to go relax and unwind at, totally isolated and hidden from plain view, ther lot of messages about meeting together in the quiet room. he says "i would never knock on that door unless i knew who was in there" she says "if it's "our" break time you know it's me " he says " it's super cute she called it "our" break time. and that he "needs written permission to enter the room while she's in there" she replies a :) and says that he can come in the room anytime he wants if she's in there. fast forward to next shift all she sends is a time "1730? :)" and he savs "as always" then she says "good boy, that was your written invitation" I've also met this dude once at her coworkers party. he sat right next to my fiance, i sat across the table and i noticed with 5 min of meeting this guy that something was suspicious. he was openly being flirt right in front of me so much so that i texted my friend and said i don't like this guy that sitting next to my fiance he's scheming.i sent that message as this was going on in front of me. this happened after the messages were sent about going to his private sex dungeon and gun sweeping her off her feet with a sex swing. but the event took place months ago before i knew these messages existed. my fiance claims nothing has ever happened physically between them, the messages are leading me to highly suspect otherwise. she has no excuse other than she doesn't know what happened and what she was thinking. she's extremely apologetic and has him blocked now. i reached out to this guys wife and his wife has no idea about this whole situation and says that this guy has cheated be prior to this our relationship has been extremely healthy and she's my, or was, my dream come true. i never expected this.
what would you do? would you call off the wedding? i feel like this is cheating and i know i will never be able to get over this and trust her again 100%. she's apologetic beyond belief, has blocked him and said anything i need she will do. she still works with this guy and always will. i'll always have doubt about her now and am worried she will do it again. if i wouldn't have caught it this time around it would have continued for god knows how long and probably went even further the way things were escalating. is this cheating?
TLDR; my (30m) fiance (30f) has been sexually texting and meeting privately with her (47m) married (previously cheated) coworker. she denies anything happened physically which is very hard to believe with the nature of the messages and private meeting.

Is it just the Pacific northwest or nationwide? Phones are randomly calling or phones not calling in or out. An Autozoner used his cell phone to call the store and now his cp number is being spoofed to continue calling the store. Yikes!

I feel like such a d!ck writing this but my family, especially my dad, call me alot, at least once a day or every other day. Sometimes my dad calls me for something important but other times its just general stuff that i really dont care about. For example, today he called me because he got his driving licence back from the DVLA as he is now over 70 and had to confirm whether he wanted to keep it or not. Other times he'll call me and then ask if im working (obv i am working because i work 9-6 mon to friday) and then when i say yes im busy he then usually proceeds to talk for another 10 minutes just to tell me non-important stuff.
I know hes older and someday im 100% positive I'll look back on it missing those silly phone calls from my dad but i feel myself getting irritated and triggered and i cant help it. Sometimes if i dont answer, he'll call 2-3 times till i do and it makes me think its important...and then its not.
My older brother seems to call me too to hang out and tbh i dont always enjoy going to a bar with him because he doesnt really understand boundaries and either gets really stupidly drunk to the point of picking fights with ppl or just asks very personal questions e.g. are you and your wife trying for a baby yet? Why not? When you gonna start? Is your wife drinking, oh shes off drink, hmm.....Yes, yes we are trying for a baby, yes we're fkin on a daily basis is that what you wanna hear!?
Anyway i'll get off my soap box now, just had to get that off my chest!

I've been unemployed for almost a year now after getting laid off and burned from a bad temp to hire contract. I have graduated from a web development bootcamp and have been searching for jobs ever since but it feels almost hopeless. 100-200 apps in, I've had about 10 phone screenings, 5 2nd interviews, 1 of which the position was cancelled. Made it to a final round once. I was previously working a call center helpdesk position serving retail employees that was pretty much a miserable meat grinder that cared more about call metrics and NPS scores (despite it being internal employees) than technical abilities. I'm willing to relocate if needed and even work for super cheap if it gets me away from those god damn fucking phones. Any advice or is it hopeless? As much as I'd like to return to college I'm on the wrong side of 30 for that and besides I don't have the money or energy to work full time plus attend college.

Just wanna say love u so much Charlotte and love all my fellow potatoes!!! More power to our queen! A very dramatic and long story of my friend's wedding that happened 2 years ago. All names have been changed but I did get permission from the bride and groom, and the bride's brother to post this story.
This was 2 years ago but I can still remember that day very well. Let me start by saying I'm not really sociable and I'm usually very awkward because of my insecurities with my body and mental health which have greatly improved but still comes up every now and then. Cath - the bride in this story - is my best friend and one of the sweetest girls I know since HS. She's kind, very pretty, very athletic, and smart but she was never a bitch or a bully.
Her family is also wonderful, and her husband - still fiancé during this story - is also a wonderful man, Nathan. I'm so happy for her and they deserve each other. Nathan's family is also like Cath's family - they're nice, lovable, and despite their wealth, they're very lowkey about it. 99% of Nathan's family is nice, except for his younger sister, Ana, who is the same age as me and Cath. Nathan is 5 years older than us, and he and Cath met through Cath's brother, Leo. Leo is the same age as Nathan, and is very similar to Cath in terms of popularity, and he's also very handsome - I describe him as handsome and tall that is always smiling and greenest flag male lead in romance novels - so yes, I've had a huge crush on Leo since Day 1, which Cath cannot believe that I had a crush on her brother. Safe to say, other girls like him too including Ana. Ana has been very open about her crush on Leo; and I would admire her for that if she wasn't a bitch to every other who likes Leo too. She bullied whoever she found fancied Leo and even went out of her way to ruin his dates with any girl he went out with. Leo has always been firm and straightforward in telling Ana that what she was doing was out of line, and he has multiple times expressed that he does not have feelings for her and her behavior was not making him like her. I knew all of this because Leo got shit drunk one time while I was hanging out at their family home and he accidentally spilled his stress about her with me and Cath. Cath got enraged and called Nathan, and Nathan's family were horrified about Ana's behavior that they actually cut her off financially for 3 years.
Well, the week before the wedding, Ana's parents decided that maybe she has finally learned her lesson because she has mellowed and gave her a bit of financial support and this triggered Ana's bitchy attitude again. She would be mean to Cath during wedding preparation, be a pick me girl whenever she hangs out with us, and worse, make fun of my weight. Don't get me wrong, even I make jokes every now and then and I can take some digs towards me but to constantly hear them every single time I see her has become exhausting and has driven my anxiety to new heights. Cath always called her out for this but she didn't stop and always brushed it off as a joke until Cath decided it was enough and told Nathan about Ana's behavior towards me. Nathan reprimanded Ana and threatened that to tell their parents her behavior and risk another financial disownment unless she apologized to me. Ana begrudgingly apologized and has stayed clear of me every since.
That was until the wedding. The day before the wedding, something traumatic happened to me so I wasn't really in the best mood during the wedding. Cath was so worried about me that I actually started to feel bad that she was fussing over me instead of focusing on herself for her day. Leo picked up on Cath's worried gazes on me and my shitty mood that he told Cath he would stay with me during the entire wedding to help me get through any difficult moments. Both Cath and I agreed (I mean yeah, I wouldn't pass a moment to spend with Leo) and so Leo and I were constantly together during the wedding ceremony and reception. We were always in the same group of conversations, same area of the venue, and we were having fun. I think Ana saw this and did not like it. Halfway through the reception, Leo left our table to pick up a phone call and I was left alone for a while. I didn't mind it because the party mood was just so lively and I felt great that I've been doing well without any anxiety attacks. Ana saw that as an opportunity to strut to our table with her other bitchy cousins and picked a fight with me. No I'm not kidding, there was no warning, no preempt actions, just went to my table, picked up a glass of water and splashed it on my face. I was stunned to react and I think I blanked out for a few seconds because the next thing I knew, Nathan, Cath, and Nathan's parents were all over Ana and the cousins, while Ana was screaming on top of her lungs about me being fat, not worthy of Leo's attention, and if it weren't for my skills in makeup, I wouldn't be pretty - those actually sting and I started to quietly cry. I felt bad about my self and for causing a scene on Cath and Nathan's wedding when they have been nothing but kind to me, and I felt mad at myself for being so helpless and a doormat.
And then, Leo was kneeling in front of my seat and held my hand. I couldn't really remember what he said to me but he looked so worried and sad for me. I could remember him squeezing my hands and even pulled me for a hug as Ana was dragged by her parents out of the venue. Ana was cut off by their parents and kicked out of their home for her behavior after that. I went home after that fiasco - I said sorry to Cath and Nathan, and to their parents as well. They tried to make me stay, tell me I wasn't wrong, and even Nathan's mom kept apologizing but I still felt shit and I knew I was going to have a panic attack if I don't leave soon. I avoided everyone as I swiftly walked out of the venue, I didn't even bother saying goodbye to Leo, I just walked out. When I got to my car in the parking lot, guess who was leaning against the driver's side with a huge heart-stopping smile - Leo, my god drop dead gorgeous Leo, looking like he was starring in a romance story, and I kid you not, the guy even pulled a line that made me feel butterflies, "OP, I never pegged you to be the kind of girl who ditches her date. Give me another chance to make it up to you, will you?" Bro was acting like it was prom we went to and not his sister's wedding. I actually felt better when the night ended as Leo took me out for dinner.
And to give an epilogue to this disaster and long post already: A week after the wedding, Cath and Nathan were having a housewarming party, and I decided to attend. As soon as they both saw me, I was welcomed by tight hugs and Cath's mom even shoved Leo so she could hug me next. Nathan's parents were still apologetic and promised to make it up to me. The party was lively, Leo and I were next to each other again during the party and that helped me felt ease. Cath and Nathan even did a slideshow of their wedding photos for the family to see. Every one was laughing, cooing at the couple's photos, when a photo of the table I was sitting in flashed next. There were 6 of us seated at the table but you could clearly see in the photo that Leo and I were facing each other, laughing at what we were talking about. Cath's mom was the first one to speak up and say "Oh would you look at that! OP looks so cute!" She then turned to Leo who was next to me and said "Isn't she cute, Leo?" To which Leo agreed. He looked at me and smiled, "Not a surprise, she is the prettiest girl I've met." Holy mother of waffles I swear I thought I was dreaming. I heard Cath make barf sounds with her brother's words, while Nathan was laughing.
So here we are, 2 years since that eventful wedding of Cath and Nathan's, and it was my turn to walk down the aisle last weekend for my wedding. Cath and Nathan's adorable twin girls were my flower girls, and Leo looked handsome as always as he waited for me at the end of the aisle by the altar. Yes, my husband agreed to me writing this post and was gracious enough to fill me in on the lines he said.