I know this question has been asked in the past as I saw when I was googling this question, but saw a lot of mixed answers from a long time ago. I wanted to get some fresh answers on how you guys got through these books.
Did you take notes while going through these books if so what was your note taking strategy? I always take too many notes and end up taking hours getting through one chapter and it is extremely inefficient.
If you did not use the Kaplan books, what resource(s) did you use? for someone with ADHD (im pretty sure) staying focused through these dense chapters is an ordeal of its own.
I dont really want to skim or rush content review because I know I need it, my current diagnostic is very low and is visible that there are major gaps in my mastery over concept. I know for the Psych/Soc section, I will be using the 86 pg guide that is available online.
I am also trying to incorporate Upangea + Anki.
I would love any and all insight, thank you!

Thursday was family dinner night. Blegh.
Brenda didn't hate her family but putting them all in one place and having a normal conversation was like counting to infinity, it simply could not be done.
Mrs. Benson ( Brenda's mom) had prepared four seats for dinner as per usual. Mr. Benson (Brenda's uncle) had fallen asleep during jeopardy again and it was Josh's turn to wake him, a grueling undertaking.
"Uncle Ben."
"Who the f@ck are you?
"Josh."
"oh you again. whats up." Uncle Benson smiled at Josh. ( he liked Josh quite more than the other Benson children and wasn't exactly afraid to say it either. They were both football stars and both always looked like some one had asked them a question they didn't know the answer to.)
"Dinner." Josh said yawning.
"Again?" Uncle Benson asked yawning. "Didn't we do this yesterday?" Josh pondered.
"I reckon we did huh, I'll go ask mom what she's on about."
Brenda helped her mother set the table and explain to the boys the concept of dinner. They all sat down and Mrs. Benson began grace.
"Lord bless my doctor and nurses for-"
"Did you guys start without me again?" it was Charlie who had been listening to music in his room again.
"Well theres only four seats and I didn't want you to have to sit in the corner again." Mrs. Benson defended herself this way every thursday.
"I can stand next to the table or somethi-"
"NO! we would not want that because it would incourage Mr.s Benson Jr to sit next to the table while we are eating."
Charlie took a seat in the corner next to Mr.s Benson Jr. ( the 'Families' dog) in the corner of the dinning room where the two always sat together.
"What did you all learn today at school?" Mrs. Benson asked. Before any of the children could say anything Uncle Benson Blurted out his news.
"Today on uhh.. Jepoda I saw that the average burn v-victim.." he was so exited he could hardly form a basic sentence." The average burn victim dies twice a year to milk incidents."
"Thats nice." Mrs. Benson said smiling fakely "and you Brenda?" Every one in the family assumed that Brenda was some sort of 'school genuis person thing' because she was the only one who didn't fail test regularly.
"Well I'm writing a paper in english class titled 'If my Stumach could speak'.
"Well if my stumach talked," Josh said smiling "It would say 'I don't like mustard' but the little f*ck would be lying because I love mustard."
"Today in school I learned that 33% of American children are treated with some form of neglect during there early years." Said Charlie cooly chewing on his uncooked piece of bread in the corner of the room.
"Who the f*ck are you?" asked uncle Benson.
"No one has thirty three children honey." Replied Mrs. Benson.
Charlie immedianlty left the room, stole his uncles motorcycle and thirty-two years later he was the worlds richest proffesianal Money-Haver.
" Alright kids help me clean up." said Mrs. Benson as if her son had never existed the same as she had her husband those three years earlier. She hated him for leaving and she hated charlie for him leaving too. If he had just left the damn cabinent alone they would still be a normal happy family. So they washed the dirt and memories away again. Down the drain they wouldn't ever need to be dealt with again.

Hello! Returning mid-level player here looking for new friends and/or a clan to chat and just enjoy the game with altogether. Preferably with people who understand that life is priority. I've never been good with PVP so I'd rather not join PVP-oriented clans. I would love to be a good PVMer at some point but I do need to work on my combat skills.
More about myself - I'm one of those 90's kid who used to play RS every night during my grade school days. Played during high school as well but slowly lost interest after grand exchange was introduced. Also, all my real life and online friends I knew slowly stopped playing one by one which eventually caused me to stop playing. After a lengthy break, I decided to give OSRS a chance once more and re-ignited my love for the game. However, as with the passage of time, my priorities and responsibilities changed and increased making it difficult to find time to play (aka adulting).
Now, as I have finally settled in a good spot once again in life, I would like to return and play the one game that I absolutely love and hate at the same time. Some may say it's for nostalgia, which might be the case, but I see no fault in reminiscing and feeding the forever child in me with new memories from the game that taught him so many valuable lessons and things along the way.
P.S. Message me if you're down to be friends in-game!

I am in a relationship with the man of my dreams. He’s smart and funny and kind. He has a great family, a great career and he hot as hell. He treats me better than anyone has ever treated me before and I am head over heels in love it him.
The only problem in our relationship is that he has trust issues and has them for a very valid reason.
My boyfriend was married before he met me and his wife cheated on him with her older married boss. And he caught them in the act. He didn’t suspect a thing until he got an email Amazon with a picture confirming a package delivery that tipped him off that his wife’s car was home in the middle of the day. She didn’t answer her phone when he called so he went home to check and found them in their bed.
She apologized, begged him to forgive her but he just couldn’t get that image out of his head. He could never be with her again after seeing that.
He told me all of this rather early on in our relationship because he wanted to be open about the trust issues that he has. I was cocky at first. I said to myself that I am going to treat him so well that he isn’t going to be able to remember her name. But it’s been harder than I anticipated. He’s had trouble opening his heart up to me. It’s been very slow.
When I go out with my friends he’s on edge. He doesn’t say anything but he’s tense and distant before I go. I offer not to go but he insists that I live my life. He won’t put his issues on me and I love him for that. But I still decline invitations often and don’t tell him that I do.
Another issue is that his ex wife is constantly trying to get in touch with him even though he blocked her number. She fucked up, my boyfriend is a catch and she knows it. My boyfriend ignores her but every time she slips through he’s not right for the rest of the day.
I need some advice on how to manage this. He’s the one for me if he can just get over these issues. I’m not a cheater. I’ve never cheated on anyone I’ve ever been with and sure as hell would never cheat on someone I love. How can I make him see that? What can I do?
TLDR: My boyfriend has trust issues from being cheated on. How do I help him get over them?

I am in a relationship with the man of my dreams. He’s smart and funny and kind. He has a great family, a great career and he hot as hell. He treats me better than anyone has ever treated me before and I am head over heels in love it him.
The only problem in our relationship is that he has trust issues and has them for a very valid reason.
My boyfriend was married before he met me and his wife cheated on him with her older married boss. And he caught them in the act. He didn’t suspect a thing until he got an email Amazon with a picture confirming a package delivery that tipped him off that his wife’s car was home in the middle of the day. She didn’t answer her phone when he called so he went home to check and found them in their bed.
She apologized, begged him to forgive her but he just couldn’t get that image out of his head. He could never be with her again after seeing that.
He told me all of this rather early on in our relationship because he wanted to be open about the trust issues that he has. I was cocky at first. I said to myself that I am going to treat him so well that he isn’t going to be able to remember her name. But it’s been harder than I anticipated. He’s had trouble opening his heart up to me. It’s been very slow.
When I go out with my friends he’s on edge. He doesn’t say anything but he’s tense and distant before I go. I offer not to go but he insists that I live my life. He won’t put his issues on me and I love him for that. But I still decline invitations often and don’t tell him that I do.
Another issue is that his ex wife is constantly trying to get in touch with him even though he blocked her number. She fucked up, my boyfriend is a catch and she knows it. My boyfriend ignores her but every time she slips through he’s not right for the rest of the day.
I need some advice on how to manage this. He’s the one for me if he can just get over these issues. I’m not a cheater. I’ve never cheated on anyone I’ve ever been with and sure as hell would never cheat on someone I love. How can I make him see that? What can I do?
TLDR: My boyfriend has trust issues from being cheated on. How do I help him get over them?

Why do they 'go for a talk' with food sitting on plates? What a waste of good tucker. Maybe it's fake food for cameras? Joe isnt totally in love. Can relate to that. Is that her apt or a hotel room? Pretty swanky. But what good is having a beautiful place if no one special to share with? Almost as bad as being with wrong person to share it with. Can relate to that. Sarah’s probably a deeper thinker than Joe. Can relate to that too. I could see Keely was too lively for him. She wants to get a Masters? Not his dream. You don't need a Masters for farm life.
Keely’s parents have a yacht? They served some fancy vittles. Did you see the size of those shrimp? She does seem like the more fun of the two girls. How can they go on 'Adventures' when he is tied to Farm? Sarah may be more content to watch the hay grow. She may have an older soul.
Andrew/Jess wedding! He filled out a bit since he was on the show. She must be a good cook. People were talking about it & I finally got to see it. Watching from US, this episode was late in arriving on SoHemi where I view from. Lovely wedding & Joe cleaned up nice, being in the ceremony & all. Couldn't help but think why was Sarah not coming? It must have been important to Joe. Are they on the rocks already? Makes you wonder if some are not together by reunion show. We shall see next week.
PS - I may have given a wrong impression on review of Anna's home visit. Big fan of Anna. She was never unkind to anyone. To me (I see things differently than others) she had an 'exotic look'. She had an upturned eye or something that catches your attention. I have a 1/2-Vietnamese grandchild & you see a lot of the more exotic looks these days than when I was coming up as a Baby Boomer. But at Anna's home visit, I felt she was the Family Standout. I guess she took after her mom. Saw some of her look in her sis. But it's just amazing how genetics come to play. How some families can all look so similar & some so dissimilar. My son has blue eyes & neither of us do. Think he got them from my birth father. And his MH problems.
Thanks for putting up with my musings. I spend a lot of my day sitting or laying down due to lack of mobility & this writing keeps my mind sharp. Plus a daily crossword puzzle.

The necropolis was gorgeous, for what it was. Its white outer walls hiding the darker Victorian Gothic interior. The tech that was hidden in the walls though was able to move bodies in their caskets from a designated place in the necropolis to the "viewing area" as the necropolians called it. This was where I waited for my, for lack of a better term, escort to take me to the mortuary. Since science has grown surprisingly fast our abilities for forensic sciences have also grown, and that's to whom I was headed. (S)He was an, unusual (wo)man to say the least. An expert in their field and about as learned as a doctor, if not multi-doctorate. If you ever asked them why they never pursued an actual doctorate, they would get angry and act all prissy while saying that going to school would've slowed them down and all they needed were the basic certificates for their work. The reality though, revealed to me during a drunken bout, they just never liked school and believed that it ultimately stunted a person's growth and ability to question the reality around them, that everything that you need to learn is already in books and in some form or another in digital content online. They were brilliant, if a little wacky. About five minutes after I had arrived and was sitting down in the viewing area, a little box rolled up to me making a couple of beeps to let me know to follow it and immediately started rolling towards the wall opposite of where it came from. When it looked like it was about to hit the wall, a hidden door opened up by the casket viewer, inside was a set of stairs leading down into the darkness. Stepping through the doorway I became acutely aware of sounds seemingly coming from all around me suddenly. It really is impressive, as though I just stepped from a tomb to a busy workshop, the sounds of gas escaping pistons, whirring, and clanking chains flooded my ears. I continued down the stairs following my helpful little box, which despite its size and shape would suggest was actually quite nimble on the stairs. It seemed to have wheels that would extend down to the next step as the edge rolled over it and once the back of the box was clear of the step it would drop back into its squat position, hiding its wheels as quickly as possible. It continued to do so the entire way. The box seemed to notice me watching it and made a kinda shrill whistle and its undercarriage light went from a comfortable yellow to a, is that... Peach? Is it blushing? My god I think it is! I let out a small chuckle and my little blushing box stopped dead in its tracks mid-step, its light suddenly going white, almost blinding me from behind and lighting up the hallway for a split second. Luckily both of my feet were solidly on a step so I didn't take a tumble or anything, but I couldn't help doing anything but laughing harder. After a second the little box crept up behind me and continued down, its status light continuing to show pinkish. I followed it slowly, the chuckle slowly dying in my throat as we reached Ceriths office. Well "office" was being nice. Morgue, mortuary, both of these fit just as well. Cerith was, for the most part, a recluse. We reached the door and the little robot continued through a little hole in the wall. I waited a second and knocked. "Enter!" Came the voice on the other side. I opened the door and stepped through. Along one wall set doors that normally housed the dead waiting to be processed. One out of dozens were open, its occupant missing from its silver slab. The middle of the room was brightly lit from a single overhead light. In the middle of the circle of light stood a figure, long Raven colored hair bound in a single braided ponytail, the rest of them bound in medical examination garb. They seemed to be engrossed in the corpse in front of them. The little robot rolled up next to Ceriths feet and made a little chiming noise. "Thank you Tabitha. That'll be all," said a voice that was neither male nor female from beneath the mask. Just sort of in the middle. "Tabitha? Never knew you to be sentimental," I said gently, the chuckle in my voice making itself clear. "I see you still find even the darkest things funny," Cerith quipped back. "My line of work Cer, you take the laughs where you get them. Look who's talking anyway, you're usually elbows deep inside someone 25/8. Even you have a seriously fucked up sense of humor." That got Cerith laughing, sounding like thunder and the whip crack of lightning at the same time. "You've got me there Julius," Cerith said after his laughter subsided. I think he suits him today. Which is both a good and bad sign. When Cerith is acting like a man, it usually means some grim news, but they are going to try to make it seem like not a big deal and laugh a lot. Plus they almost never call me Julius. Something was wrong. Very seriously wrong. As this realization hit me I got this odd tingle in the small of my back. Like someone had put several freezing needles under the skin and into my spine, something I'm familiar with from the anima-games from the cyber sphere. Halos: Divine Retribution If I remember right. Those Angels were sadistic bastards. I shuddered at both the memories from the game and the shockingly similar feeling I was experiencing. Dread, that feeling is dread my friend, the quiet part of my mind whispered to me. "Cer, what's wrong bud," I asked. He didn't say anything. For a long time. After a few minutes I was about to ask again, but then he spoke. And what came out will haunt me, quite possibly till the day I die . "This ones temporal lobes are gray matter. Nothing even close to being coherent. Just. Dead neurons. And he's not the first." Gone was the jovialness of the past ten minutes. This was Cerith the whisperer. In an almost dead tone they continued, "the others didn't fare nearly as well as this one. Most of the brain is intact here, which means that if they didn't deliver a massive shock or something similar to fully kill him he would have possibly lived as a vegetable with memory issues, but that's not what I'm looking for in this one here now. Now I'm trying to figure out what else the others had in common with him, and so far that's brought up all but naught. Well this one has a bit of liver damage. But that's about it. So Mr John was a drinker. Not much there." When Cerith is "whispering" the best thing to do is just let him be. But I couldn't help but prick my ears up at mentions of others with similar wounds, and the fact that this one had liver issues.... "Cer. You said... CERITH," I finally snapped out and caught his attention mid ramble. "Thank you. You said liver problems. But nothing similar to the others? No drugs? Alcohol? Not even a synth brain-pattern? You checked Everything?" "Well let's see, John here was a drinker that's for sure," Cerith said his hands never ceasing their work as he started to put 'John' back together seemingly satisfied that he found nothing else, " Mr Lombardo in chest 3 had cocaine mostly, and Mr Lei in chest 9 had opium. Although to tell you where it came from for both I'd have to do a molecular analysis and see what it compares to. Other than that, no. Absolutely nothing connecting any of them. As far as I can tell they are all unique cases completely separate from each other except for the damages to the brain. And I only found this by accident. During a routine scan I happened to look at the screen as it passed through the brain and noticed an odd density in his temporal lobes. Just slightly higher than normal. Hell to be honest with you it had the density of a fresh cutie, you know those little oranges?" I nodded, and he continued, "Right of course you do, who hasn't? Anyways it's just super dense compared to the surrounding tissues, and I take a sliver probe and drop it in like you do. And when I turn the damn thing on to look at the neurons the area all I see are dead cells packed on top of one another. Not natural decay death, but forced to die. Most of the cell walls were torn open like they had blown up from the INSIDE. That's when I called you." He finished up with 'John' putting the final few perfect stitches in place and sealing him up for good. Once he seemed happy with his work he called out to his seemingly empty morgue, "Grom I'm done! Can you put Mr John Doe here back in his room? Number 11 if you please." He turned away from the body on the table and removed the giant rubber gloves that went to his elbows. He walked into the dark calling out over his shoulder, "I'll be back in a sec I gotta scrub out, want a drink? I have beer, whiskey, vodka, I might have some Cognac somewhere, and bourbon. Your choice, just call out what you want and Tabitha will be there with it. Also have a seat! We have much to discuss." With that he disappeared from both sight and sound in the dark. It was a neat trick I have to admit, and it had something to do with how he had his morgue set up. Even the giant war machine that was Grom was absolutely quiet unless you managed to catch him through the gloom. I thought for the longest time the reason why I could never catch him sneaking around was from some sort of stealth program put into place, but when he goes up and down those stairs he's as loud as can be. So it was definitely not his program but the way the morgue was built. I'm confident in saying that because when I turned back to look at the table, or rather where it was, there was now a chair that looked like it had just grown out of the floor and the body was gone. Also the thought of something as big as a fridge just sneaking up on some poor combatants and snapping their necks as quietly as he walks in the morgue just gives me the heebies. As I sat in the chair a thought occurred to me. Considering how advanced the morgue seemed to be it would make sense that it had some sort of AI or integrated computer. "Computer?" I had been here a million times but I'd never had a chance to think about it nor try anything. But not even a second after I had said anything a response came. "Yes Detective Julius. My name is DANNA. Or Dynamically Actualized Neural Net AI. How can I be of service?" The voice seemed to come from everywhere and nowhere, slightly feminine and breathy, all service but no sex. Honestly I was just surprised that it worked. "DANNA, I was just wondering if I could take a look at the files that Cerith had mentioned? If it is as bad as they claim I think I might need to know anyway. Also if you can get those blood works done for me I'd appreciate it. Also something with whiskey or rum would be amazing." "Of course Detective. I will have Tabitha bring it shortly. And how would you like the information to be displayed? Desktop or dynamic?" That piqued my interest. "Dynamic please." No sooner than I had said a series of screens blinked into existence in front of me. It was some sort of Holographic display. I reached out and touched the display and was surprised that I got stopped by something. It was hard but surprisingly I found that I could push into the screen with my finger if I pushed hard enough. It kinda felt like... Oobleck. I also found that by pinching the corner I could pull the screens closer or further from me. I even found that I could grab individual pages of the reports off the screen and hold it. It felt like a thin sheet of plastic and responded like both a tablet and a singular document. If I switched pages the old one would appear back onto the screen and the next would pop onto it. This was about as slick a set up as I had ever seen and whistled my appreciation under my breath, I'm definitely going to have to ask Cerith about where they got DANNA from. "See something you like, big boy?" A very DEFINITELY female voice said in my ear from behind, soft and throaty, screaming come hither. I felt small dainty hands gently caress the tops of my shoulders before slipping down the front of my chest, pulling me back into the chair that I didn't realize I had been slouching in. "You know better than that, Jules. Your back is important and slouching will destroy the muscles and cause some to atrophy." The voice left no room for argument, and left me more than a little bit flushed. I closed my eyes and dropped my head back as far as it would go, the back of my head hitting something soft and warm, stretching my neck and back out. "Damnit Cer I thought you were scrubbing out, not completely changing." I hadn't realized it, but at least an hour had passed from when I started playing with the computer and working with the files if the clock on the computer was to be believed. "You looked like you were pretty into it so I decided not to disturb you. Plus you know how much fun it is for me to tease you like this. Especially after, well these..." One hand waved at the screens in front of me. The small hands' nails were painted the darkest black and almost made them blend into the void that existed outside of the screens. "I do Cer, and that's part of the problem, we both know that it's never going to happen. Least of all for you." She laughed a little, a clear beautiful sound and the body beneath my head bounced slightly telling me I was against her stomach. "Still I know you enjoy these little moments," she said, the pressure on the back of my head disappearing and was replaced by the voice right by my ear again as she whispered, "especially when we both know that's not at all true." At the last words she nibbled my ear gently. I couldn't help but roll my eyes at her, in spite of my baser instinct rising to meet her VERY juicy insinuations. But for as long as I've known Cerith and as many times as we have both been VERY drunk, they have NEVER cashed in. I just assumed that it was a quirk of theirs. "Anyways," she said standing back up, "what are you thinking so far about the files? Spooky, right? Like I said, nothing that I can see connects them." Her hands gestured in front of me in an approximation of a shrug. She then clasped them together, wringing the knuckles and effectively trapping me in the chair and back against her abdomen. I scrubbed my eyes with my fingertips acutely aware of the growing headache that suddenly made itself known. "Your right from the medical side. I can't see everything you can, of course. I don't have near the knowledge that you have," which is true being that Cerith is at least 200 years old. I never asked directly, the old adage still holding about women and their age. Still though her answers to certain questions would lead one to believe her being her first adult car was a Bing Cherry 2201 Firebird GT with white walled hover trim and chrome accents. From pictures that I could find it looked like a slick piece. Looking back to the screens I couldn't help but feel that itch again. I couldn't explain it. That prickly feeling of ice needles again, this time in the back of my skull. As much as I'd hate to admit it. I think Cerith is right. I sighed heavily before saying "send me everything. I'll open a new case file and have the team start working on it first thing." She made a happy noise and bounced slightly, clearly satisfied with my decision to take it on. I reached out and to my left and a glass was placed gently into my hand by Tabitha. I hadn't even realized she had come over while I was working and was now ready for that drink. Room temperature rum and cola. The drink went down smoothly enough considering I drained the glass in one gulp, during which time I finally got a good eyeful of Ceriths current form. Or rather the underside of part of it. From what I could tell she was wearing a black T-shirt. That was it. I put the glass back down, it's job done without moving my head and said, "What a lovely view Cerith. I'm guessing you chose this to try to get a rise out of me?" I couldn't lie though it was affecting me, but I couldn't let her know that. Not when she's like this. Otherwise she'll continue to tease me till she leaves me with the absolute worst case of blue balls this side of the City. Her hands came up and cupped my chin almost lovingly, and her voice said "Of course Detective. Do you not approve? Or would you rather I change back to my medical examination form? Or something else?" Her words dripped with implied sex. I groaned, loudly, and said, "This is fine. Jesus Cer." Before we could continue our most scintillating of conversations there was a sudden PING! And DANNA said, "I'm sorry to interrupt, but there's a message for you Cerith. It says 'If you can get to the department Cerith, do so. We need you to explain your paperwork. And if Detective Julius is still with you have him come in too.' signed the Chief. Would you like to reply?" 'shit, I forgot the morgue kills all signals,' I thought to myself as I stood up gently (regretfully) prying myself from Ceriths grasp with a, "duty calls. Need a lift?" I stretched gently, the scales in between my shoulders clicking appreciatively for the stretch, and turned around to notice she was indeed, just wearing a black T-shirt that hugged her voluptuous figure closely. The scales in my back clicked shut in surprise. Cerith let out a small cute chuckle, "I see after all this time I can still surprise you," she said blowing a kiss my way, reminding me of a little Gothic pixy. I rolled my eyes away from her and willed my scales to relax. I grabbed my jacket off the back of the chair, slinging it on and clicking the neck clasp shut under the cord that connected my scales to the unit in my head. I was awarded the cybernetics upon completing my training and getting all my licenses to have them. The force had allowed me to customize it, I had chosen top of the line. A dual unit with custom built AI. The individual scales were ceracoated titanium microprocessors all running in both series and parallel, and could move to expel heat or react. The main unit was the same except it was one solid unit that replaced a chunk of skull. Once that was done I zipped up the front of the leathers and ran the scales through the racer setting. They clicked and flattened against the outside of the jacket, securing it to my back. I shrugged making sure it was comfortable. "I'll take the fact that you're only in a t-shirt you'll be along shortly?" "Certainly detective." Her voice was filled with dismissive submission... And sadness? I looked back at her and noticed her makeup was gone. Or had she had any on in the first place? I gave myself a mental shake. There's no way. This was Cerith, veritable goddess of the necropolis. I put the last few minutes away for review later. Chief called. I have to go. On an instinct I thought long dead, I reached out and squeezed her hand. I felt a slight squeeze back. And then she let go with a, "Go on, be a good detective. I'll be along shortly." I left with Tabitha as my guide. Before Cerith disappeared into the darkness I thought I heard her whisper, "please don't leave." My scales raised in a saddened response. I couldn't be sure I heard her right though. If I heard her at all. I reached back and stroked them, knowing my ai probably heard her, and knowing it could feel me touch the scales. After a few seconds the scales settled down. 'I know buddy,' I thought to the AI. It couldn't respond like usual AI. The force thought that was too dangerous. What if it went rogue? What if it tried to kill the host and take over? The list went on and eventually they decided the basics were ok. When I got my unit one of the first things I did was jack it into a diagnostic to see what kind of hardware I was dealing with exactly because manufacturer specs from real use are sometimes different with AI if the bits and bobs are in place. When I did, all I got on the screen was 'Hello?'

Kimchi: Hey, you there. Yeah, you reading this. If you want to know about boring human stuff, go here An Introduction To The Book That Is Me : ASMRScriptHaven (reddit.com) . If you want to know about more fun cat stuff... and... I guess... other fun human kinds of stuff... even though humans aren't nearly as fun as cats, go here Masterlist for edgiscript : ASMRScriptHaven (reddit.com)
Edgiscript: Kimchi.
Kimchi: What? This is what you said to do.
Edgiscript: Not like that. Now they're going to think this is actually part of the script.
Kimchi: Whaaaaaaat? No. Humans can't be that dumb, can they?
Edgiscript: They're not dumb. But your format is all wrong.
Kimchi: Pfft. Whatever. It gets the job done and it's more fun that your boring-ass method.
Edgiscript: Hey!!!
Kimchi: Well, it is. You can't blame me for that.
Edgiscript: Look, you... all right, fine. The intros are usually pretty boring. So then, just get everybody to the script.
Kimchi: Ooh, yeah, yeah, yeah. This is really cool, because it stars me and my cute, little, adorable hubby. It starts out all spooky like because he doesn't know what's going on, but come on, nobody could be scared of me for too long, now could they? I mean, look at these cute little ears and tail.
Edgiscript: Kimchi, it's a script. They can't see you.
Kimchi: Maybe you can't. Anyway, the really, really, really, super-cool thing about this series is that each piece was written to work completely on its own. Well, maybe you need the 1st one to set things up. But then it doesn't matter. You can do any pieces you want after that in any order you want. And you don't even have to mark them as being a part 2 or part 3 or anything like that. You can just treat them as one-offs and see if your listeners make the connection. Each chapter is its own self-contained story. Some require multiple voices, but each one is its own thing.
Edgiscript: So, if you think series don't do that well, you can do any of these chapters without treating them as a series.
Kimchi: Duh. That's what I just said.
Edgiscript: I know, but... (shuffling his feet in the ground.) I just wanted to be a part of what you were doing.
Kimchi: Awww, edgi, you're so cute. Come here and sit beside me.
Edgiscript: But, I....
Kimchi: I SAID SIT DOWN!
Edgiscript: Yes, ma'am.
Kimchi: And now, on to part 1. Enjoy.
-------------------------------------------------------------
(And now, the Real Script.)
Title: Play Time

Part 1

(Slow footsteps. Sounds of night time.)
Kimchi: (From nearby. Spooky and mysterious. Singsong voice calling out.) Where aaaaaare you, human? Come oooooouuuut.
(Still spooky and haunting, but no longer singsong.) I know you’re here. I can smell you. I’ve been hunting you for a while now. Did you know that? Did you know I’ve been stalking you for weeks?
I’ve never had the opportunity to catch you until now. You’ve never been alone before. Is that because you knew I was watching? I wonder.
But this time you chose to wander through the woods back to your house. Is that because somebody slashed your tires? I wonder who could have done that? (Giggles creepily.) Maybe someone that wanted you out here all alone so she could have you all to herself. And now you’re aaaaaaaaaalllllll mine.
(Singsong.) So come on ooooooooooooouuuuut.
(Footsteps pick up the pace a little.)
You’re walking faster now. I can hear you. I see you like to play. Good, that makes this more fun. It’s so satisfying to catch prey that’s actually trying. When your prey knows there’s no chance and gives up, it takes away all of the thrill of the hunt, and I looooooove the hunt.
Your smell is so intoxicating. I’m going to love sinking my teeth into your neck.
I was hoping you wouldn’t bother calling for an Uber. After all, your apartment was so close, and you’ve walked these woods so many times during the day. You know every branch, every rock. Don’t you? You felt so safe walking this way. In fact, you even avoided possibly running into some very bad people in town by going this way.
I wonder if you thought they might have slashed your tires and were fooling them by taking this route. Bet you didn’t know that something else haunted these woods. But now you do. And now you’re beginning to realize that you can’t get away from me.
(Footsteps begin running.)
Ah hah. Now you’re finally running. Yes! Gooooood. That gets me so excited. The chase is on.
You know you’re fast. You run regularly. You work out. You’re healthy and strong. You believe you can make it. Go on, little prey. You can do it.
(Giggles creepily.) The thing that’s chasing you can’t be faster than you, can it? It’s not racing towards you right now drawn by your breathtaking aroma and your delightful sound, and now…
...your beautiful sight. Yes. There you are. You can’t see me, but I can see you.
Now, the real fun begins. Should I just take you, or let the chase go on? I want you so badly, but I also love the chase, and I never get to chase anything anymore. Nothing comes through here at night. I think they’re afraid of me. Nobody wants to play.
But you do. You came into my woods because you love to play, don’t you? Admit it. The chase thrills you too. Your blood is pumping. Your heart is racing. You feel so alive.
But not for very much longer now. No, not very long now. You know the end is near. Your home is so close, isn’t it? You have only a little further to go and you’ll be out of the woods and close enough to other people that I won’t be able to catch you. There’s hope. Hope you’ll make it. So, I guess this game is finally over. You’re MINE!!!
(Sounds of a tackle.)
Hello, little human. You’ve made for such an exhilarating prey. I loved this game very much and I want to thank you for your part.
(Pause.)
Yes, I said, “human.” You see what I am now. You see my teeth. You see my ears. I’m a cat-girl. Or rather, I am the hunter and you are my prey. But now the chase is over and you’re mine. Any last words before I finally… heh heh, finalize our… courtship?
(From now on Kimchi is sweet and endearing, not creepy and menacing.)
(Confused.) Whoa, whoa, whoaaaaaaaa!. Human, what are you doing? When I asked if you had any last words, I didn’t think you’d scream for help. What’s that all about?
(Pause.)
WHAT!?! Eat you? Of course I’m not going to eat you. Why would I eat you?
(Pause.)
Yes, I said I was going to sink my teeth into your neck, but not like that. Humans taste… well, I don’t know what humans taste like, because I’ve never eaten a human. But I’m sure they taste disgusting. Blech.
Do human girls eat their men when they catch them? I suppose that would explain why the number of marriages is dropping.
(Pause.)
Yes, marriages. That’s what I said.
(Pause.)
What do you mean, what’s that got to do with this? That’s got everything to do with this. I’m marrying you.
(Pause.)
No, I’m not proposing marriage.
(Speaking slowly as if the listener is stupid.) I’m ma-rry-ing you.
(Normal.) Right now. That’s what cat-girls do. We find ourselves a hubby, (Smiling.) that’s you, (Normal.) we catch them, and we make them ours. I’ve caught you. You’re mine. That’s how it works.
(Pause.)
Of course you have a say in this. That’s why I asked you if you had any last words. Isn’t that what the humans do? As the ceremony is wrapping up, they like to say, “I do.” Right? I was letting you say, “I do.”
(Pause.)
What do you mean I made it sound like I was going to kill you? Who says, “Any last words” before killing somebody?
Oh, come to think of it, you may have a point. I didn’t think of it that way.
(Pause.)
And I also said, “The end is near.” I meant the end of the chase, not your life.
Sorry about that, but whatever. It’s irrelevant because I’ve caught you and you’re mine. All I have left to do is attach this collar and tie you up and then I bring you back to my place for all of the love and affection I can provide.
(Giggles.) There’s your collar attached. Now, the humans will see that you’re mine. I still have to mark you with my scent when we get home so other cat-girls will know to keep their grubby little hands or paws off of you. That’s where biting your neck comes in.
(Pause.)
Yeah, I’ve got human looking hands. Some cat-girls have paws. It’s kind of like how some humans have black hair and some are blonde or red. It just happens that way.
Now, do you mind putting your hands together for me? That would make it easier on me to tie you up.
Thank you. Keep them like that.
(Pause.)
Am I worried somebody will stop me? You can’t be serious. Why would I be worried about that?
Wait. You don’t already have a mate, do you? I was certain you didn’t. I told you I’ve been stalking you for weeks now.
(Sniffs all over him.) And I don’t detect any scent of girl on you.
(Sweetly.) I just smell cuteness. (Giggles.) And Cheetos.
Ok, I’m done with your hands. Now turn around please so I can wrap this around you and finish these knots.
(Pause.)
What? You meant I might be doing something illegal? Of course I’m not. This was voted in by you humans several years ago. By a wide margin, I might add.
Cat people just decide on who they want and they take them. According to your human laws, I only can’t take you if another girl has made you hers. Those are your rules, not mine. Personally, I might fight a girl for you if I thought she wasn’t good enough for you.
We used to chase only other cat people, but you humans are the ones that said it was ok if we included you as potential mates. And I’m so glad they did, because you are the cutest, most adorable little man I have ever seen, and I’ve just made you mine.
There, I’ve got your legs all tied too.
(Pause.)
Yes, yes, I know I keep calling you “little” and I’m actually smaller than you, but it was supposed to be affectionate. A term of endearment. You’re my cute little baby. See? Like that.
But us cat people are so much stronger than you humans and so much more athletic. I can pick you up easily like this without a struggle. And now I can carry you back to my place. It’s not far. See, it’s right over there.
(Pause.)
Right. It’s that pile of leaves. It’s very cozy. I gathered all of the leaves myself.
Let me just put you down so I can finally shower my new little hubby with all of my love and affection. Let me start right back here on your neck.
(Kisses and nibbles.)
Yes, I told you I have to mark you so the other cat-girls will know to keep away from you. I’ve got to kiss you and nibble you back here too in order to really get my scent on you.
(Pause.)
Yes, now you get it. That’s what I meant earlier when I said I couldn’t wait to sink my teeth into your neck.
(Pause.)
Yes, I thought you’d like that.
(Pause.)
I didn’t know you thought I was going to eat you. I thought all humans knew about cat people mating rituals. No wonder you screamed when I caught you.
I’m sorry, hubby. Can you forgive me for scaring you?
(Pause.)
Oh, that’s right. I haven’t told you who I am yet. Sorry. I was just so excited with the hunt and finally catching you that I forgot.
My name is Kimchi.
(Pause.)
Yes, I know what it means. A nice, old Korean lady gave me the name after she took me in when I was very small. She was wonderful to me. I called her mom. She fed me and gave me a nice place to sleep.
(Pause.)
Yes, I liked staying at her place. She was a magic lady.
(Pause.)
Uh huh, there are too magic ladies. Did you know that she could make it rain inside her house with warm water. Can you believe it?
(Pause.)
Yes, a shower. That’s what she called it.
(Pause.)
What? You have one too? Are you magic too?
(Pause.)
What do mean, that’s common among humans? Really? You say you have a shower at your apartment? And a stove where we can heat our food? And a bed like the one I used to sleep in at mom’s house? That sounds wonderful.
I’m so sorry. All I have are these leaves. But at least I have a beautiful night sky to sleep under. It’s very romantic, don’t you think?
(Pause.)
Wait, you’re saying we could live in your apartment? You’d really let me stay there?
(Pause.)
Well, yeah, you’re my hubby and I’m your wife. Awwww, I love hearing you say that. Say it again.
(Pause, then squeals with glee.)
Ok, I’ll carry you to your apartment.
(Pause.)
Of course I have to carry you. How else will you get there all tied up?
(Pause.)
Oh, no. I couldn’t untie you. You might get away from me.
(Pause.)
What do you mean, “Exactly.”
(Sad.) You want to get away from me?
(Pause.)
(Understanding.) Oh, you think I sounded sorry that the hunt was over so soon. You’d like to let me do it again.
(Suddenly very excited.) Wait, WHAT!?! You’d… you’d let me hunt you again? Really, really, really, really, really? I get to chase you and catch you all over?
(Concerned.) But wait. You were scared the first time. Why do you want me to chase you again.
(Pause.)
Well, yeah, you probably would enjoy it more if you knew ahead of time that I wasn’t going to eat you.
(Pause.)
(Excited again.) And you say you’re really good at hide-and-seek? Oh, ho, ho, hoooooo. Challenge accepted.
(Flustered from her excitement.) Now… I just need to undo… these knots… and… Oh, screw it. I’ll just bite the ropes apart. There. They’re off.
(Realizing.) Oh, wait. I just cut my ropes. Now I’ll have no ropes to tie you up.
(Pause.)
That’s ok? When I catch you, you’ll just come with me. And you’ll never take off your collar so everybody else knows what’s going on because I am your wife, after all?
(Squeals.) I love it, I love it, I love it. I knew you were beautiful, but I didn’t know you’d love to be chased.
Ok, are you ready? Then, ready, set… no, wait, wait, wait.
(Kisses. Giggles.) Ok, now you’re ready.
(Pause.) No, I’m not cheating by marking you up with my scent. I’m just so excited.
I’ll give you a five minute head start to make it fair. And when I catch you, we’ll go to your apartment and have showers, and hot food, and a bed.
(Pause.)
(Ecstatic.) And you also have more string to play with? GO! Go, go, go, go, GO! Hurry! Run! Now! The quicker you run, the quicker I can catch you and we can go back to your place. Now run.
(Pause.)
Oh, I caught the best mate in the world. I’m going to love him sooooooo so much.
(Pause.)
Has it been five minutes? I don’t know. I never figured out how to tell time. It’s been long enough. Oooooooh, look out, hubby. Here I come.
Part 2 coming soon.

Hi everyone, I’m feeling a little hurt over something my partner said. He unapologetically eats a lot, or so it seems. And farts more than anyone I’ve ever known, seriously. He’s not fat, just a little belly. I’m 4’11 and was right at 100lbs before getting pregnant. I’ve gained 10 lbs and am in week 20. I clean houses for a living and often miss lunch because clients like me to come midday. I usually eat a late light breakfast and a big early dinner, no lunch. Same thing today, except we were taking our friend out for dinner which meant I had to hold off two extra hours while starving until we went out for dinner. So when we got to the restaurant, I was starving. And I scarfed down a fried mushroom and coleslaw sandwich which sounds gross, but it was delicious. Afterwards, he commented that I ate a lot when he ate all almost all of my fries and some of my friends fries, no joke. We have this happen a lot where he judges what I eat and he will happily eat like a pig, which I don’t judge him because like he can do him, it’s fine. I don’t care but when I get upset is when he judges my eating habits. One time we went on an 11 mile hike that gained a lot of elevation. We were out there all day and all I had was an avocado cheese wrap, and trail mix. At the end of the day he had eaten so many Cliff bars that he wasn’t hungry at all. He didn’t understand that I was hungry and I needed to eat before our 2 hour drive home. He almost refused to stop to get me food, which ended up being pizza from a gas station that they were minutes away from throwing away that was barely edible. This was before I was pregnant and generally he’s a really sweet guy, but this food thing is really getting on my nerves. I don’t mention how he chews with his mouth open and kind of eats like a pig, because I love him and it’s whatever, but if he would just let me eat when I’m hungry without commenting. I’m a recovering bulimic and, it really upsets me to come this far with my relationship with food and have him comment on my eating and make me feel guilty and self conscious. I literally ate a sandwich for dinner, a vegetarian sandwich, and he told me I ate a lot after I cleaned for four hours, didn’t eat lunch and being pregnant. Anyway, sorry just a little rant. Thanks for listening.

im almost at the end of my all rememberances rl1 no summons run (weapon upgrades are fine), and i can’t for the love of god figure out how to dodge or strafe horah loux’s attack. i am using scavenger’s cursed sword and i can hitless godfrey almost every time but i really do not know how to get past horah loux. i tried once to use glintblade phalanx and run away from most attacks and just stance break him, but i do really want to learn him properly as i have avoided trying to cheese most bosses (except duo). i tried seeing YouTube videos of RL1 runs and everyone recommends strafing or rolling to his left, but somehow one of his kicks or claw attacks always roll catches me. i struggle to play unlocked, so i don’t know if that’s a factor. i really want to learn this fight and finish my first souls series challenge, so i would really recommend any suggestions for dodging or avoiding his attacks rather than running away and only going to punish the grab attacks. I really want to get good with the second part of this fight 😭😭

(CW: abuse, suicide)
I hope I’m doing this right!
FMIL, but DH and I have been engaged and owned a home together for a decade and we have a 9 year old—just aren’t planning a wedding until I am done school and start earning money again.
Two years ago I was going to throw DH a surprise party, but FMIL and FSIL have planned a vacation during DH’s birthday the past two years, so I wasn’t able to. We are the only ones with a school aged child and these trips are always planned for a full week during my kid’s 1st full month of the school year, so we can only go for the weekend while everyone else (FMIL, FSIL & boyfriend and little kids, FBIL & girlfriend) is there the whole time.
For some background: the first year of the birthday/vacation was unpleasant, FMIL gaslighted DH the first time he ever had the nerve to bring up FFIL abusing him as a child, saying that it didn’t happen. FMIL didn’t like that I was insisting on keeping LO on his regular bedtime schedule on Saturday since he stayed up very late Friday and was returning to his 3rd week of kindergarten on Monday and we needed to drive back Sunday. On Sunday, I woke up to a very long email from FMIL explaining that saying no to a later bedtime on Saturday was unreasonable because this was family time, and that in the movie Dead Poet’s Society one character completes suicide because his parents said no too often. Yeah.
Anyway, last year DH wanted a cookout in our backyard with all his friends for his birthday. He’s never hosted a cookout with his friends. Once again they booked the vacation then so he didn’t. This year I planned to do the cookout, but it’s still months away, so of course I haven’t started.
I get a text today saying FMIL wants to plan a surprise party for DH’s birthday this year with me and FSIL, she wants me to pick a hall, she will make food, that my family will make food, “some” of his buddies can be invited, and it will be BYOB (halls here have bars and don’t allow BYOB, but whatever) and I will have to make an excuse to get him there. She asked what did I think.
Side note: I am a full time student expediting a degree in STEM (a totally new field for me), I was recently diagnosed with ADHD, I have many chronic illnesses, and I am still doing all the SAHM domestic duties I took on when I left the workforce to raise my kid because daycare was commensurate with my salary. I went back to school when LO started kindergarten (so that first vacation was entirely me studying). I finish my degree in December(!) but the months leading up to that are going to be SO busy for me.
I told FMIL that I was planning the cookout, what he wants, for this year. She said he should have surprise party because he doesn’t expect anything fancy and he deserves it and that I should pick a date the month before his birthday or the month after (this is the month I have to plan LO’s huge birthday party) for a surprise party and just have both parties, and if it’s the month after it can also be my graduation party (I won’t graduate for a couple months after that time, still). I don’t want a graduation party, and neither of us should have to split a party, especially if he deserves this surprise party. I do not have time to plan three parties in the final months of my degree, and I probably wouldn’t even have time to attend a second birthday party for him if she threw it all by herself!
I haven’t responded again. I have therapy in the morning and will respond after. I have never thrown him a birthday party, and it seems like she’s just trying to be in control of his birthday for three years in a row, and she doesn’t do this with her other children. I am so tired.

I feel so stuck on what to do. I met my friend in college back in 2019. When I met her we became friends instantly. But with that I learned about her horrible childhood trauma. Her parents came to the U.S. illegally and they are still here without status and how her uncle r*ped her until she as the age of 17. As her friend my heart was so broken for her and I knew life isn’t easy on her.
Both her and I changed a lot since college as one does. I met my fiancé and she has a boyfriend. Her and the boyfriend are a match made in hell. The stuff she tells me makes me really not like this guy. She would tell me how they always argue, she claimed he cheated numerous of times, how he is forcing her not to take birth control and they have unsafe intimacy, when they argue he always screams at her to “shut the f*ck up”. The guy seems like a complete loser. Even with all their issues she always looks past it or just forgives him. There are many times that I would plead for her to break up with him and it just never happen. Then she would say something like “you know I’m just learning from this all”.
She has also spent $2,500 on his birthday and Christmas gifts. She always just buys him stuff. Whenever we’re out she ends up buying him expensive clothes or food. I do buy clothes for my fiancé if I find something affordable that I know he’ll like. But most of this girls paycheck goes to buying her boyfriend stuff. She is in constant financial hardships because of it. She even sends DoorDash over to his job every time it comes time for lunch.
With all of the horrible stuff she has told me. She asked me if he can come to my wedding. I’m only having 50-60 people it’s going to be very cute and intimate. Plus the times I’ve tried to meet him it never happens. My friend would always say she wants to double date just for her to back out when I try to make it happen. The one time I almost met him she was dropping off food for him. She insisted on parking a block away from his house and keeping me in the car. I told her it seems weird to park a block away from the house and she decided to move the car closer. But she made me stay in the car and it was very awkward to say the least. So I don’t know how I can invite someone to my wedding that I’m not allowed to meet.
I also feel like she’s so self observed. I was going through a rough patch. My fiancé and I had to do long distance for a bit due to having to apply for a K1 fiancé visa. It was really hard on me not being with him and I went to such a dark place. Luckily I’m doing better now and we got approved! So my fiancé comes back in late August. I tried telling my friend how hard it’s been on me but somehow the conversation always goes back to her and her life.
I don’t know what else to do. I feel like my friend is just going down a dark hole. I tried suggesting therapy to her and she told me “it’s white people shit” so she wants no part in it. I feel so frustrated and upset with myself that I can’t help her. But I don’t know what else to do. I get so disgusted whenever she mentions the boyfriend and the relationship. Even if they are doing well (she reminds me constantly how well they are doing) I can’t be happy for her because of how horrible this man is. I don’t know what else to do to help her and I just feel myself growing apart from her. I miss the friend I had back in 2019 and I don’t know how else to get her back.

Hi one question I work in CMH4 I started September last year and now I’m doing amnesty, I still do stow once or twice a week but since January I been recive totally 4 warnings write ups because of my rate, and the manager talk to me and said it’s because if I do stow one day and my rate it’s bad that day it’s gonna be a write up for sure, I’m scared to lose this job because right now it’s everything to expensive and the job it’s no too bad and it’s 3 min from my house which I love Any advice?

I enjoy finding games that mess with my husband’s head and having him play them. He enjoys it too…..yeah….
So his biggest fears are bears, water, and being chased/stalked. He also gets really really brave if he gets a weapon for protection…..so let’s avoid that completely. He’s more scared of physical threats over ghosts but we will play a good ghost story.
With bears they have to be real. Not a teddy bear or Freddy. He has a reoccurring nightmare that he’s being chased though the woods by a grizzly. Sometimes he runs though a playground with a slide of that helps paint a picture.
Water can’t take place solely under water. If he can breath while under water or is in some sort of container, it’s going to be a no go. The water doesn’t need to play a big part in the game, for example when he had to put out the fire in fears to fathom episode 4 Ironbark Lookout, he really really freaked out. It would be best if the game just had a small swimming part, maybe involved with a chase, just not what the whole game is about. Pools will not scare him, has to be water that he can’t see though to know what’s near him.
Chasing and stalking is a given, we recently played a game called “The Stalked” where you play as a woman who broke up with her boyfriend who now wants to, I assume, kill her, and every single man she runs into also wants to kill her…..it had us both on edge!! But he also hates being chased in general. We played Horrors Inside The Forest and loved it! Well, I loved it. If there’s chasing, I would love if he also had stamina.
Neither of us are great with puzzle. I try to avoid them but we can tackle one or two easy ones(I’m the one who looks up spoilers to get us unstuck sometimes so if there’s a scare involved he’ll still get scared good).
Games that are 2 hours long are not going to be picked. He gets done with the game at around that point and normally isn’t being scared any more.
20-40 minute long games so far have held his attention best while also being great storires and scares. Will look at shorter games or longer games that are under 2 hours.
Please don’t say games that give him a weapon for protection like a gun. He feels so so brave with one and that’s not really what I’m going for.
Jump scares. I just like them, a lot. He…..reacts to them. So the more the better. Perfect when the jump scares are not only associated with dying.
Thank you so much for any suggestions!!

Context: I love wicked, I saw it twice in the late 2000s, I’ve spent countless hours singing along in the car with friends, and like many ppl who love wicked I was a theater kid. Over the last decade and a half, my tastes have evolved and I enjoy media with a more critical eye. This is not the same as a negative or cynical eye. I have also gone from being *the* musical theater kid to being very much an ex-musical theater kid. And so with the movie coming out I was curious how wicked would hold up for me.
Last night I watched a bootleg. It was pretty good resolution considering, but I think it being a bootleg helped strip away the spectacle to lay bare its structure and quality. And its quality is very inconsistent, both in story and in songs.
For every soaring character moment like Elphie and Glinda grappling with their lives taking them in conflicting directions, there is moment of nauseating fan fiction cringe like the needless fate of the two male leads (a change from the source material that cheapens the show AND wiz of Oz by extension). For every interesting (if underdeveloped) political idea, whether Elphie’s life of underground sentient-rights/Animal advocacy or the the shift of Morrible and the Wizard seeing Glinda as a valuable political asset, there are countering moments where the characters and themes are uselessly undermined in favor of the absolute lamest of conveniences, like the green bottle reveal and the super unclear switch in power dynamics between Glinda and morrible. And why, at the end, must Glinda never know? She would be the perfect ally to them, it makes no sense why they’d keep it from her.
The story quality is truly like an upside down bell curve where it’s either transcendent or the most cringe cheugy bottom of the barrel storytelling.Structurally, act 1 is way better but is nearly back to back songs. It’s almost an opera. Act 2 has a better balance of dialogue but it’s so rushed and the story feels held together with twice used tape.
Same with the songs. Let’s be real y’all. A lot of these songs sound ugly. And so many of them are needless hindrances to the characters and story.
No One Mourns the Wicked - the crowd’s lines are weird and cringe, but glindas parts are very high quality. Could use a rewrite.
Dear old shiz - keep as is. (It’s lucky it’s short.)
Wizard and I - keep but cut the “unlimited” sections since nobody recognizes the reference to over the rainbow anyway unless it’s pointed out to you.
What is this feeling - it’s cute, but adds nothing to the story and is a time suck. Cut.
Something bad - cut. My god cut. Missed opportunity for a dialogue break + develop Dillomond as more than a plot device and have song-less scenes with Elphie and DD be a recurring more grounded storyline. It should also have been meaningfully continued in act 2 when they’re both on the other side of the law, not just the reveal in the palace.
Dancing through life - sorry yall but this song doesn’t cut it. Dancing as a metaphor for laziness? But Dancing isn’t something lazy people do? It doesn’t make any sense, it’s too vague but also too specific (“down at the ozdust”). And like… he sings about valuing his life (“because dust is what we come to”) but in fact it’s the opposite - he takes it for granted and is willing to waste his life until he falls in love with Elphie. The song doesn’t fit the character, or the analogy, and it’s also way too high-school-musical. CUT.
Popular - keep as is.I’m not that girl - keep as is.
One short day - cut and Make it a background score. Or at least Trim it down to the “dress salons and libraries” part, ending with “it’s all green.” Make it a more direct and concise counterpart to “merry old land of Oz”
Sentimental man - CUT.
Defying gravity - keep as is.
Thank goodness - keep as is.
(Missed opportunity for a reprise of popular here)
Wonderful - make it half as long.
As long as your mine - its fine but doesn’t add anything. Cut.
No good deed - keep but get rid of that truly stupid fiyero storyline I mentioned earlier. Would be way more interesting if this was restructured to her trying to save her sister pre-cyclone.
March of the witch hunters - CUT.
For good - keep as is…. But what the hell is a “sky bird”? Lame phrases like that hold it back a bit.
Finale - eh just parse it down to a for good reprise.
They’re not going to do this, but I wish they give Wicked the Grease treatment for the movie and replace all the weaker songs with better ones or fix with structural changes.
TLDR: upon rewatch, wicked is half soaring and half mega cringe, with far too many ugly songs.

Ok, as an elementary special education teacher (not teaching in my daughters’ district) I am in need of some advice to help my daughter, almost 10 in 4th grade, to deal with some mean girl behavior at her school. For background, my daughter gets straight A’s in school and always has, does her best to get along with everyone (at home can be a tad bossy with little sister at times), gets great marks in school for her behavior in class and towards others, and has quite a few close friends. She is constantly reading whenever she gets a chance and devours books. She is very musical, plays ukulele and takes lessons outside of the home, and plays cello in the school orchestra. She is super into theater and has done local theater since kindergarten as well as scored the role of the scarecrow in The Wizard of Oz in this years 4th and 5th grade drama club show at school. She loves to sing and is in many school clubs including inclusive ones like Best Buddies. I know, I know, she sounds like the perfect kid, but we’ve worked really hard to make sure we are raising her the right way. She is also a huge eco warrior and cares deeply about lots of things. She can give me a hard time at home because she’s a 10-year-old girl, but overall, I couldn’t be prouder of what an amazing person she is turning out to be.
She had casually mentioned to me about this one girl we will call Virginia. She said they were in gym and were practicing balancing tennis balls on racquets while walking and high fiving the other kids. Virginia gave her a high 5 and then immediately said, “Ew, I didn’t know that it was you.” I told her to ignore the behavior as some kids thrive off of making other people feel bad. I asked her if she had done anything to this girl to make her feel that way and she said she couldn’t think of anything because they’ve never even ever had a conversation other than having to work together in partner groups at school in math.
Last week, she mentioned that her, and this other girl, we will call McKenzie, were saying some mean things on the school bus, or else she thought they were talking about her. I again told her not to feed into it as she knows she hasn’t done anything to them, and she couldn’t be 100% sure they were whispering about her. Virginia is supposed to be her seat partner on the bus and has never sat with her. She told me she never said anything to her bus driver about it because she didn’t want to make it worse.
All week, I’ve asked her if things are continuing and she said no. But tonight, as she was getting ready for bed, she let it out that the girls overheard my daughter talking to her good friend “Addie” who lives up the street and is in 5th grade, about my daughters upcoming sleepover for her 10th birthday. They began to hound Addie and ask her if she was really going to go to go to her sleepover, if she was really friends with her, if it was just a pity thing, and if she really actually likes my daughter. I told her that that was crossing a line and they were dipping toes into mean girl behavior and maybe some light bullying.
She also said there was a strong perfume scent on the bus earlier this week. Some kids were complaining about it and the girls blamed my daughter and tried to get others to join in. She is really worried about looking like a tattletale and/or making it worse.
My advice was for her to go to her teacher who she trusts, and ask for time to talk to her about it alone away from the girls (Virginia is in her class). Then, when they talk, let her know what’s happening and how she has been trying to ignore it and deal with it herself but that it’s getting to be too big of a problem. I told her to explain how this has started awhile ago and that she doesn’t know why they’re targeting her as she has no relationship with them at all. They’ve never been in her class until last year. I told her to let her teacher know that she isn’t looking to get them into trouble, but that she wants the comments/mean behavior to stop and she needs help facilitating a girls circle to have the conversation.
My husband wants to have me reach out to the teachegirl’s parents, but I think my approach is a better first step as our daughter needs to advocate for herself and mean girls are something she’ll have to deal with her whole life. This way it’s at least documented if it continues.
Thoughts? Advice?

I work in interior design. My boss asked me to remodel our office expansion, and I put in probably 60 hours of unpaid work designing it because: 1) it was a great portfolio opportunity 2) I’m going to design school 3) my colleagues aren’t on the design side of things (they’re logistics, site managers, etc) 4) I’m the only person in the office who knows how to do CAD/floor plans etc and 5) I love design and wanted to make something beautiful for our office.
Anyway, the desk arrangement/assignment thing for a group is political. And we have a weird loft with inconvenient pillars dividing up the space. I agonized over the desk arrangements and considered everyone’s input. On one side, there were 2 corner desks and I randomly assigned one to my coworker “K” and the other corner desk to myself.
In our current smaller office, I hate how little natural light is at my desk, so I’m always bringing my personal laptop to the tiny lunch table by the window and working there. K literally remarks about how I’m “solar powered” when she walks by. I fall asleep without natural light and can’t focus.
Here’s the problem: now we’re allowed to see the new office space (lease just started) and all the natural light patterns through the day, and my corner is way darker than I thought, and the desk assigned to K is way way brighter. Inevitably, I will be dragging my damn laptop back to the damn lunch table and abandoning my desktop computer and long-awaited new office expansion desk. We haven’t moved all our belongings yet (ie files, desktop computers), but I proposed the plan to everyone with their own personal place, so there is still an attachment/expectation from everyone about where they sit.
Basically I feel entitled to this other desk of my choice because 1) I put in all this work in addition to my normal work, working late, working at home, through lunch, and she didn’t. And the solution here is not for my boss to compensate me for this work because I’d still be mad about where I’m sitting on a daily basis. The solution I want is to sit at the other desk. 2) I’ll fall asleep without natural light. 3) I’ll be resentful pretty much every day while falling asleep in my dark corner.
How can I approach this? My boss doesn’t care at all so it’s my responsibility to sort this out. Obviously I’m upset right now so i need some guidance on how to approach this reasonably—it’s not her fault that I arbitrarily wrote down names at desks. But I feel very strongly about this now with the understanding of the lighting.
Thanks.

I’ve been in the worst depressive episode I’ve ever had for the past 8 or 9 months. Lost my job and all my friends months ago. Could barely get out of bed for months. I had a really shitty childhood. My parents were very neglectful and abusive. They hit me all the time because I couldn’t behave. My mom disowned me when I was 12 and then I had to move with my dad who was arguably worse. He made my teenage years absolute hell. The worst part is cps and mental health professionals were involved in my life and every single one of them fell for my parents manipulation. In fact some therapist made things much worse. I wasn’t even a bad kid. I never snuck out or yelled or hit them back. I wanted to be good. I started working at 16 and never had motivation to go to college until recently. I became so burnt out working dead end jobs so I thought trying to get an education at least would help me feel like I had more purpose. I had/have dreams of becoming an epidemiologist. But I just can’t afford anything. I got into the university i want to go to but I can’t afford to move there. I also can’t afford my current home. I have a month to get out. I’m trying so fucking hard to prove my abusers wrong but I think I’m going to prove them right. My step mom used to love telling me I was going to end up dead in a ditch. Maybe it won’t be in a ditch but I’m probably as young as she thought I’d be. I just wanted to be good. That’s all I’ve ever wanted. I wanted to be good for the world and help and inspire people but it’s too hard. I can’t handle the stress. My poor traumatized mind and body can’t do anything good for the world no matter how bad I want it or how hard I try. I can’t afford it. I can’t navigate how difficult this is. Stupid investors bought all the apartments in the college town and now everyone is just fucked. It’s all so fucked I just want to rest forever now. I want to sink into nothingness. I can’t even help myself I was foolish to ever dream of helping the world. I want to be and school and try to get a job on campus and really start taking better care of myself but it’s so hard. I wish I could just get there. It feels so close, but just out of reach.

…or, subtitled, “My belated review of the Pittsburgh show”. 😄 I haven’t had time to relate everything that I wanted to say about this outstanding show until now, and I wanted to do it before this leg of the tour ends in a few hours.
I didn’t have a ticket for this show originally. I just bought a resale ticket last Monday (the 13th) on the floor just behind the GA area. It was a great ticket too - it was dead center, and the cost was very reasonable (in fact, even with all of the ridiculous fees, it was still only $116 altogether - I’m convinced the seller sold it for the same price they payed originally. Thank you, original ticket holder! 🙏)
So, why did I choose to go to this show in particular? Several reasons (one of which being that I was unfairly denied a chance at buying a GA ticket for this show originally because of the limited advance notice of the Ether Pass presale - I found out about it less than an hour after it started, but of course all the GA was sold already. 🙄 Powers-that-be-in-the-GVF-universe, give more advance notice for Ether Pass presales! They aren’t infected with scalpers like the Electric Tomb and Peaceful Army ones are - TELL US THE NIGHT BEFORE, NOT THE SAME DAY! Rant over.), but the main reason really was the chance to see Mirador in addition to GVF. I was very intrigued by this unexpected new band, and, since I couldn’t be certain that they were going to play live again past May, I had to jump at this opportunity. My parents’ families are also originally from Western PA, so this was a homecoming show of sorts for me as well. So, I secured the ticket and prepared to make my trek from Eastern PA to Western PA, a.k.a., driving almost the full extent of the Pennsylvania Turnpike. 😄
I planned my trip really well. I got up in plenty of time to make the trip leisurely to Pittsburgh, go to my hotel and relax before the show, have a meal, and then be entertained by wonderful bands all night. Well, plans and reality, tragically, don’t always match. I was reminded of that fact very painfully this past Saturday.
I’m driving in town, right at the beginning of my trip…and my car just completely dies about 2 miles from my house! 😩 I had no warning that this was about to occur. However, there was a silver lining to breaking down this early: if I could get the car to the garage somewhat quickly, I could borrow a car and still make it to Pittsburgh before the show started. I called AAA, got the tow truck arranged, and he showed up 2 hours later. Not good - but not so late that I couldn’t make the trip still. He, after much research, figured out how to get my car onto the truck (this was tricky because the car had no power at all, so it couldn’t be started), and he used to work at the garage that I wanted my car towed to! This was the first bit of good fortune - a sign that the Universe was still looking out for me. We were still good to go! I got the car to the garage, got back home to borrow another car, and still had time to make the cross-state drive in time to see the show!
Since I lost 2 hours that I didn’t know I’d be losing, that made taking rest stops along the way rather interesting. 😄 I thought I’d have plenty of time to eat, use the restroom occasionally, etc. - no, that’s not how it went down. I did manage two stops on this 5-hour drive that, miraculously, only took 4 hours and 15 minutes. (I’ll have to research whether or not cars can perform time warps at high speeds, but, based on this trip, I think they might be able to! 😄) Eating was a bit funny too - to save time, I had to eat while driving. While eating, I discovered that Burger King added mayonnaise to my Impossible Whopper when I asked them not to (I’m allergic to mayonnaise). So, I had to dispose of the top bun and attempt to consume the rest while somehow keeping my hands clean from the other condiments. This also stretched the boundaries of physics, but I somehow managed to do it without too much trouble (while traveling at Warp Speed, mind you).
I got to the hotel 30 minutes before Mirador (one of the two reasons I made the trip) was hitting the stage. I was checked-in ASAP (the clerk could see my sense of urgency bordering on panic), and told me how to walk to the arena (I chose this specific hotel so that I could walk to the arena). If you haven’t been to Pittsburgh before, the streets are arranged like a 3-dimensional chess board, as most cities are that are built on river valleys. One wrong turn and I would find out why Christopher Nolan shot the third “Batman” film here - and, with my luck, probably run into Bane. However, the Universe was looking out for me again, and I got to the arena and to my seat about 3 minutes before Mirador took the stage. Phew! 😅
Well, I loved Mirador, and I was happy that I got to see them. They were worth all the trouble. And, as an added bonus, GVF put on a blindingly good show! 😃 They were in great spirits all night, the “Saturday night” vibe had everyone in a good mood. I had more stress than I thought I would ever have before this show, but, when it was all said and done, the effort was totally worth it! I would have given up on the trip if it had been any other band - but there was no way I was missing this show unless it had been literally impossible to get there in time. Fortunately, it was merely highly inconvenient to get there in time! 😄
Thank you, Mirador and GVF, for making my trip worth it! 🙏 See you again in Uncasville (and from GA this time too)! Namaste. 🙏

As the title suggests, I shared with my mom and dad about some abuse I received as a child. Background. I am 28 (m) and currently living back with my parents to save for a home. This has been great for our relationship as I feel closer than I ever have. Today we discussed my struggles with some relationships in my life and how my brother and I’s relationship has been fractured recently. My mom brought up at one point about how she regrets telling her children about her abuse she suffered as a child at the hand of her step-father. She told us when we were young adults, she thinks this is why my brother has separated himself. She asked if this is why I also struggle with our family bond and I said no. She asked what struggles my past relationships have had on myself and why I am struggling at dating currently. I told her no and that I’ve been working on myself and addressing past trauma to move forward. (I’m focused on saving and building a life independently before pursing a relationship) She asked and I told her that my childhood friend abused me as a child and that it had really made physical contact tough. I have since addressed that and I am aware of how it has affected me. It was 20 years ago and I’ve spent the last 10 years focusing on understanding what that trauma means to me. It’s been brought up in my past relationships but never shared this information with my parents. The friend in question added me on the socials after 15 years of no contact and I haven’t responded. I felt I needed to talk with my family about my issues before talking with him.
I’m asking for advice because my mom is taking all the responsibility for me being abused. She says her whole life she wanted to avoid the cycle continuing and wishes she never told me. I’ve told her how much her opening up helped me and how much I respect and love her. She truly is one of my best friends. How can I make her understand she didn’t fail me and that it’s not her fault. She left 2 hours ago and I haven’t heard from her. I contacted my brother and we have discussed our tension and had a very meaningful conversation. I don’t want my mom to feel like a failure.