Hellooo guyss, Just popping in for a quick entitled family member story.
I (F21) was chatting with my uncle (31) the other day. More like complaining about his mom(my grandmother). We were exchanging stories about her absurdity and entitlement. My favorite was the time she looked at me and told me that I should be taking money out of my salary to give her. It was my first grown up job that I got almost a year ago. I would have understood if it was for bills or to help out with groceries but no! Just cause she helped my mom out with me as I grew up, she believes I should give her money as some kind of repayment. Not even my mother has this belief!
Just some context so you understand the depth of my grandmother’s audacity.
Anyways! So my mom passed across and reminded us of the time she was in labour with my sister. Normally my mother would style my grandmother’s hair every time she goes anywhere. To work, to church, to town etc. But picture it, it is 4am, my 9 months pregnant mother’s water breaks while sneaking an early snack. Her and my dad are now quickly gathering up the hospital bag and necessities. I am worried about my mom as the contractions hit, I was only 11 years old. My uncle and my father are helping my mom get through a contraction before she can walk again. The hospital is 30 minutes away and time isn’t on our side. In the mist of it all, without ever lifting a finger to help, my grandmother looks at my mother and says, “So, you going to curl my hair right?”. The gall! The audacity! The unrivaled arrogance and lack of humility!!!!
My mother between contractions standing up curling my grandmother’s hair as if none of my aunt can walk three houses up to do it. As we wouldn’t leave for the hospital for another 6 hours, what was your point? Lookkkkk!!!!!
Til this day, I have not met someone who has topped that.🤦🏽‍♀️
Sidenote: Im a still a little inexperienced with reddit so my story telling may not be the best. And yes the story is very real.

In our latest blog post, Lazarina Stoy split apart the data storytelling process into simple steps. She shared real-world examples and practical tips for avoiding common pitfalls and creating stories that resonate with your audience. We brought you key takeaways from the article, but don't hesitate to read the entire thing.
Key components of a data story include the setup, conflict, and resolution
The Setup paints a picture of the current situation. The Conflict comprises any event that changes this reality and disrupts the status quo. The Resolution is the new reality emerging from the conflict that you can derive actionable insights from.
Data storytelling is a technique that combines various skills
It includes data science, data visualization, relationship management, and narrative skills to communicate data insights and drive action.
Identify the perfect story by monitoring meaningful events
There is almost always a story to tell around the SEO data you work with. Major updates, Google’s new features, and other changes can all largely impact your website’s performance, providing interesting stories to discuss about your SEO data.
Know your audience and focus on the metrics they care about most
Different audiences require different reporting styles. Know who your audience is and tell stories with the metrics that matter most to them. For instance, team members or project managers generally need reports that are more detailed and packed with tactical insights. For C-level individuals, you should emphasize higher-level strategies, KPIs, and business impact.
Create an unbiased data story
Creating fact-based SEO reports is essential for gaining and retaining client trust. One common mistake is to craft narratives that are more appealing than factual. For instance, some companies have been too quick to integrate generative AI and ChatGPT into their SEO strategies. Some even made the mistake of replacing their content teams with AI without solid evidence of its effectiveness. Exaggerated assertions about the capabilities of generative AI led to subpar content quality.
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Focus on one key insight or "protagonist" metric that resonates with your client's emotions and goals to craft a story that captivates and motivates them to take action.
Deliver SEO data story effectively by providing context and benchmarks
SEO doesn't happen in a bubble. Context matters. Provide this context during one-on-one coaching sessions, in report documentation, and even in emails prior to your presentations.
Use clear language, choose the right visualizations and colors, suggest next steps, and encourage discussion through live story broadcasting
Simplify the data to make it easy for your audience to spot patterns and insights. Clarify, don’t confuse (or even worse – offend) your audience. Make your data actionable by assisting your audience in understanding how to use this information to achieve their goals.
Practice data storytelling skills with diverse resources
Becoming a data storytelling pro takes time and effort. That’s why we created this list full of helpful points.

Im looking for someone who’ll love me. All I ever wanted is to feel loved and cared about, And I want to reciprocate all those things too. I want to love for real and be serious about it, no games but real love.I’ve been out of my previous relationship last month and I never had luck with ppl in this app.
Swear this aint rebound. Im shooting my last chance at this. Please dont dm me if you’re not serious hahaha, i dont want to waste some time. (Only SFW)Let’s swap pictures bef everything else and share an intro.You can direct to my T.G freshprinxe
About me -24 -5’9 -kinda chubby but athletic (active in sports🏀) -Gradwaiting ✨ -loves friends, marvel, and bbt -loves to explore new things and food -loves to sing (specially niall’s songs) -i can be a kadamay in everything, willing to listen and hang out with u -call person 🥹 -fragile -loves cuddles

Personally, they make me feel extremely uneasy and uncomfortable, but I’ve always felt uncomfortable admitting this because then I’ll be accused of being a judgemental bitch. But it would be ludicrous to deny that it isn’t a sexual thing for like 90% of them. The reason people are repulsed by them is because they assume they’re all zoophiles. Most of them do not outright say they want to fuck real four-legged animals, but then they draw a shitton of anthropomorphic furry porn. Do they think it doesn’t count because the animals walk on their hind legs? Yeah no you’re totally not a zoophile you just like to draw pictures of humans with dog-like features fucking each either yeah no totally different. The fact they have animal features isn’t relevant at all. There’s clearly a sexual element. A lot of them seem to be pedophiles too for some reason. I like to be open minded about people that are different, I don’t think there’s anything that strange about creating a little character and making a costume of them but it just really seems like it’s sexual 90% of the time.

I have been long aware that bombarding my brain with unrealistic beauty standards through social media is a straightforward path to developing anxieties surrounding my appearance, and I conciously chose to limit such exposure, but I did not realize just how much such perfected images had seeped into my mind when it comes to… boobs. In our culture, big natural boobs are the beauty standard… as long as they look like fake boobs - round, impossibly perky, always standing up and saying „hello!”. I had unconsiously internalized this image, and as a result, felt very insecure about the way my boobs looked naturally, without any support. Logically, I knew they looked perfectly normal for their size and some hang was to be expected; but at a much more visceral, unconscious level my image of what big boobs „should” look like was more of a „two round implants bolted onto my chest at a 90 degree angle”. So when I looked into the mirror, and my actual boobs did not meet my unconscious expectations, I felt like there was something aesthetically wrong with my body. And I felt ashamed.
This feeling was only excarbeted by never getting to see boobs my size without support in real life. I’d compare my 30J chest sans bra to chests of my friends rocking much smaller sizes, and beat myself up because while their breasts did not seem to be affected by gravity, mine definitely were. Due to the lack of real life representation, I’d turn to social media, and see red carpet pictures of Christina Hendricks or Sydney Sweeney. And, again, even though I was logically aware that their gravity-defying bosoms were probably a result of many feats of modern engineering tucked away under their beautiful red carpet dresses, the reptile part of my brain would somehow go „see - this is what they look braless - this is what you should look like braless. Why don’t you look like this braless? What is wrong with you?”.
It got to the point where I felt like I had to wear a bra all the time to not demoralize people with my horrible tits. Sleeping over at a friend’s? Will wear a bra to bed so she’s not shocked by my tits. Going to my dorm’s kitchen at 2 am to make a late night stack? Will put on a bra to not offend anyone with my gravity compliant boobs. It was like I was hiding some sort of deformity.
That is, until I randomly watched „Immaculate” last night and saw Sydney Sweeney running around braless in an old fashioned nightgown and, to my shock, her boobs looked just like mine, with a natural hang and all. And my reptile brain finally went „wait… so if a movie star’s boobs look like this, maybe you are not deformed and just… normal?”. And it felt like a huge weight being lifted off my shoulders.
What I truly want to emphasize here is the difference between what your logical mind knows and what your unconscious, reptile brain believes / internalizes. Logically, I knew my boobs were perfectly normal and images I was being spoon-fed were curated and fake. That did not stop me from unconsciously internalizing those images as a standard I’d compare myself to. Despite all my awareness, my reptile brain would take over. It can be probably likened to how one can be fully aware of how the cycle of trauma works and still repeat it over and over again, or how knowledge that one’s OCD is senseless does not stop the individual from feeling the need to fulfill their compulsions.
For anyone out there struggling with their body image, what I can recommend is bombarding your mind with images of what real boobs look like, to reverse the social media induced damage. The Normal Breasts Gallery (or Sweeney in „Immaculate”) may be good places to start.

Dear reddit admins and the FUDD that keeps reporting my post. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF) defines a firearm accessory as a device or attachment that is used in conjunction with or mounted on a firearm, but is not essential to the firearm's basic function. Per the ATF braces are NOT a firearm and this post does not break your rule 7. Braces are an accessory and NOT a prohibited item.
05/21 Inventory: Black, FDE, & ODG SBA3 Clones in hand. Down to three ODG but have more otw
Please Read These Instructions a: Send me a chat stating color, quantity, and preferred payment type. I prefer chat instead message so I can send you a picture of the shipping label to verify address is correct. Check out the common question section at the end!
Pictures
SBA3 Clones fit, feel, function perfectly! QDs work great watch this VIDEO 1 & VIDEO 2 of the brace. They are adjustable position, come with a strap, and feel legit. They are good to go and are $25 for one and $20 for additional ones shipped together, shipping included. You send me PM!
I have cashapp, zelle, venmo, and paypal. Buyer pays G&S fee if you want to go that route.
Common Questions:

1. Am I scammer, how to guarantee you get your purchase? I am not a scammer and the best way I know how to insure I am not a scammer is to accept PayPal goods and services as form of payment. I you get buyers protection.
2. How do the braces fit on the buffer tube? I test these on milspec buffer tubes. They fit tighter than real braces but still easily adjust position.
3. The flexible rubber part of the stock, is it flimsy or stiff? The rubber part is not flimsy and provides the support you need
4. How quickly will you ship? Can I get faster shipping? I usually ship the next business day unless I am busy. I buy prepaid labels on pirateship.com and go with the cheapest option which is usually USPS. If you want a faster option or UPS its usually just $3-4 more and I have no problem doing that if you pay the additional cost

Started a feedback post! Please post feedback here after purchasing: FEEDBACK
To the person that keeps reporting this post. I am going to repost every day just for you.

This will be wordy and complicated so you may only wish to read it if you’ve found yourself as inexplicably captivated by this entire mess as I am. This is my current working theory, and I don’t claim that it’s entirely accurate or factual It’s just my theory and I am open to corrections, additions, or counter arguments. (No, I am not overly proud of how I know some of these things. I reactivated Instagram and rejoined Reddit after years of abstaining from social media just to further this little investigation/obsession. Hyperfixation is a real bitch sometimes.)
Taylor’s team would’ve been aware of her impending breakup with Joe and relationship with Matty Healy long before those things were public knowledge. With the Eras tour set to start up in March of 2023, her team would’ve been actively, aggressively plotting to address any potential negativity or fallout from the situation, especially with so much riding on this tour. Preemptive damage control would’ve been in absolute overdrive because of the timing of it all. Speaking of timing, the early months of 2023 were a big moment for Travis Kelce. The Kelce brothers were about to face off in the Super Bowl and the media was saturated with them. All the Kelces have mentioned the attention and opportunities they were receiving during that time, including Donna. Scott Swift is a huge football fan, especially of the Eagles, and he was already at least acquainted with or had a casual friendship with Andy Reid. It's very likely that Taylor "dating" Travis Kelce was Scott Swift’s idea. During my “research” on this entire situation, I’ve come across multiple remarks about Taylor’s team traveling to/having meetings in KC in March of 2023. I am guessing that Taylor was so in love with Matty that she put her foot down with her team (including Scott) and wouldn’t participate in their plans regarding Travis at that time. Instead, she likely insisted on the April 8^th announcement of the breakup with Joe and doubled down on her relationship with Matty, mouthing loving messages to him and making her speech on stage about how happy she was and how her life finally made sense, being seen with him repeatedly and allowing him to be seen carrying bags into her apartment, etc.
I don’t know if Taylor or her team anticipated exactly how bad the publicity surrounding Matty would be or how intensely negative the response would be from a very vocal portion of her fanbase. I feel like most of us know about the narratives that ramped up against Matty, the SpeakUpNow letter, Swifties threatening to sell their concert tickets, Matty and his people receiving death threats, just all the BAD MESS, so I won’t make this even longer by going too deep into it. I have no doubt Taylor and Matty were experiencing a ton of pressure and emotional whiplash during all of that, which ultimately led to a painful and traumatic breakup for them. And that brings us right back to the suspended Travis Kelce plan. Taylor had shows in KC on July 7^th and 8^th of 2023. A couple weeks after that we get the cute little story from Travis on his podcast about trying to give Taylor a friendship bracelet with his number on it at her show (I have never and will never believe that bs for a single moment, no matter what). According to them, they start hanging out shortly after that, which is likely true. Ryan Reynolds apparently started following Travis on Instagram in early August so that timing checks out. (I could go off into a whole thing about Travis Kelce and Patrick Mahomes joining Ryan in the F1 Alpine deal, but this is already just SO MUCH). Next thing you know, we get Taylor appearing at a Chiefs game on September 24^th and it’s on from there. According to some Chiefs players, Taylor had already attended a game or two unnoticed and unmentioned (supposedly in the owners’ suite) prior to that September 24^th game. That’s interesting to note because of all it implies, such as how much the Chiefs/Hunts may have had to do with this whole deal between Taylor and Travis or just how it was clearly a choice with big motivations behind it for her to be seen at that 9/24 game.
Everything then goes AS PLANNED AND ORCHESTRATED for a few months. The public is captivated by the Taylor and Travis showmance and not even thinking much about Joe Alwyn or Matty Healy or any of the negative publicity surrounding Taylor anymore, the Chiefs and the entire NFL are profiting enormously, the popularity of the New Heights podcast is skyrocketing and catching the attention of major networks, every member of the Kelce family and Travis’ inner circle sees their public profile rising and more and more opportunities coming their way, the Eras tour is a history making success and so is the movie, the Chiefs pull off another Super Bowl win…it’s just a glorious, fantastic time when the whole plan is coming together and everyone remotely involved or connected to Taylor and Travis is benefiting and profiting beyond their wildest dreams. During all of this, Taylor is obviously working on TTPD, and everything connected to it, but I guess no one on Taylor’s team is too concerned about that because it keeps her motivated and pacified and it’s only going to make them all even more money so everything is just great, great, great. BUT THEN Taylor shows up at the Grammys drunk, making an ass of herself and announces the release. Now everyone is maybe back to thinking and talking about Taylor and Joe a bit, but it’s still ok because at least they aren’t talking about Matty and the Taylor and Travis show is still getting tons of attention, Travis is getting acting opportunities, all the Kelces are still benefiting in various ways; it’s all still good.
Then TTPD is released, and everything starts to take a turn. People are still talking, but now it’s mostly about Taylor and Matty or about Taylor and Travis, but only about what a great boyfriend Travis is to Taylor and what a perfect couple they are and their hypothetical impending nuptials and future potential offspring, etc. It probably doesn’t help that it’s off-season and there are no Chiefs games where Travis can shine with his football skills to try to bring some of the spotlight back to anything other than him maybe being the future Mr. Taylor Swift. Despite what many Swifties theorize about Travis, I do not for one moment think that’s his aim in life. This man wants FAME. His own mother repeatedly states how much he loves being the center of attention. And sure, he gets a lot of attention right now, but I have a feeling this is not panning out to be what he was hoping for when he signed up for all of this. His podcast is doing great, but its enormous surge in popularity is largely due to Swifties tuning in, hoping to hear a mention of Taylor (yes, I know it was already a very popular podcast – we wouldn’t be here if Travis Kelce had been an unsuccessful nobody, obviously). Everywhere he goes, everything he does, it’s all about Taylor now. Even at KELCE Jam, he was inundated with questions about Taylor. That might not be an issue except this is a man who already had a very big ego and desire to be hyper famous before Taylor Swift entered the picture. It may have seemed like a golden opportunity initially, but I think reality may be setting in for Travis and Co. and this may not have been the best deal for them in the long run. But the Chiefs and the NFL are deep into it now as well and l bet Travis has pressures on him that I would not even want to imagine coming from that side.
Meanwhile we have Taylor out here messing up the plans again, sending secret messages and singing surprise songs to Matty Healy during her sold-out concert tour where she’s added an entire set to imitate Matty and heighten the speculation and discussion surrounding their big “cosmic, tortured romance.” I feel sure she’s still in love with Matty and is absolutely in contact with him. Logically, their friendships and professional circles are far too intertwined for me to believe they would not be in any form of contact throughout all of this. I wouldn’t be at all surprised if they were already back together. I think it’s highly possible they’ve even been back together since shortly after their breakup last summer and that likely helped fuel the big push to launch the “relationship” between her and Travis the world. That’s another post for another time though and I still haven’t fully drawn my conclusions about that. Very long story short, I think they are all in a great big mess right now and things are taking a toll, and cracks are showing. I think this may all come crashing down around a lot of people very soon, but I’m betting Taylor Swift comes out on top no matter what somehow. Some people are just lucky like that.

I have some issues I am scared to bring up. Mainly these 2 things- we don’t go on dates, and we don’t take photos together. I’m a bigger girl (300 pounds, down 30 pounds since we met, and planning on losing more), and the last one has been a point of contention. I’ve had boyfriends who were embarrassed of me, I’ve seen how people actually think of me. I wouldn’t blame him for not wanting pictures with me, frankly I’m not pretty. But my problem is him saying he’ll try. It’s been half a year, nothing. If he was just honest, I wouldn’t be nearly as hurt. I understand that attraction is important; that’s why I been trying to lose the weight, regardless of how much he says he loves how I look.
We eat out- but we’ve had one real date. I paid for it, took us out to a Chinese buffet and a movie. I don’t want a big date/bill, it doesn’t have to be dinner and a movie. I’d be happy if he asked me to make sandwiches for a picnic and we just ate at a park as a date. It’s the lack of effort, or seeming to care. I’m too scared to ask to go out, because he just doesn’t seem interested. We’re both introverts, but he’s much more so.
I love this man so much. He and I align with everything else, our sex is absolutely fantastic, we’re big stoners and it’s nice to have a partner who also enjoys it. But I find myself crying nearly every night, I’ve never hated my body or my appearance more than I do now, even at 350LBS. Every part of my brain is telling me I’m just hidden. He appears completely single online, despite me asking him to fix his fb status. We have one picture together, and it was a month into our relationship. We’ve had the one date.
I’m tired. I feel like I’m making myself small (literally and figuratively) for him. He’s amazing, and so sweet. But I’m worried if I bring any of this up, he’ll get upset and leave me. But I can’t keep doing this. I’ve cried so much over this man, I’ve cried a couple times after sex over how disgusting I felt after. I feel like I’m not the one for him, and vice versa. He wants privacy and to not go out- I want privacy, but I don’t want to be a secret. I’m not asking to be his pfp, us to make tik toks, us to be completely public. I just want some acknowledgment.
Am I letting my head go too much, or do I have a valid reason to be upset? I can hardly ever tell, hence why I’m hesitant to bring things up
Edit to add: For some context of my thought process- I have BPD: not an official diagnosis, but my previous therapist and psychiatrist thought I was, but didn’t want to give me the diagnosis so young. Haven’t gone back since. I try and keep myself in check, I don’t bring up every time I’m insecure or overthinking, I try and let his words speak for his feelings rather than my brain take over. I read a lot on properly processing feelings, and how to communicate properly- I’m trying to be better and be a good girlfriend. I want to know if I’m asking too much. Most of our weekends are just sex and getting high. And while that was fine for a while- I want more

I'll try and keep this as brief as possible to avoid writing a novel. Apologies, I know this post is all over the place.
Ultimately I'm struggling with 2 aspects of my life right now: deciding which direction to take my career and deciding what to do with my current finances / properties.
34M, working a high paying remote tech job in a HCOL city. Nearing the end of my rope working a high stress job that I don't enjoy, but that I am naturally good at and have made decent money doing it. Currently renting a 1br apartment in the city for $1500 a month with my girlfriend and life partner of 15 years with plans to get married in the future.
In terms of finances, I have been able to save $240k liquid cash (currently sitting in a HYSA), $65k RSU, and $60k 401k.
Have been fortunate enough to acquire 4 vacant land properties that all need attention to bring out their full potential. Working my current job, I haven't been in a place mentally to give them the attention they need.
Property summary:

1 - located in the city, has a driveway and parking area but no other utilities. Comps show value at $80-100k.

2 - located in small mountain town, needs a lot of work, has a small older cabin (total teardown, not salvageable), a few large dangerous trees, and needs work on the driveway. Comps @ $80-110k.

3 - lot in the woods. Has a cleared area with gravelled driveway. Comps @ $90-120k.

4 - another lot in the woods, needs driveway and clearing to be usable in any way.

2-4 are all located in a small mountain community about 1.5-2.5 hrs away depending on traffic. The area is very near a ski area and has a lot of potential for either short term or long term rentals. Ultimately while my partner and I love this area and could see spending a few months a year out here, we probably wouldn't be happy spending all our time out here because we do enjoy being in the city and being within walking/biking distance to activities.

Options with properties that I see:
-Build or buy a tiny house on wheels and move it between these properties. My jurisdiction officially allows you to stay for 2 months without issue, and could probably fudge the numbers on some of the more rural properties.
-Go all-in and build on either property #1 or property #2. Property #2 probably doesn't make the most sense because we know we wouldn't want to live there full time, but if I were to change careers and do something much lower paying I could qualify for a specific construction loan type (USDA Rural Home loan) that has very low subsidized interest rates and would allow me to hold on to more of my savings which I could then invest to help make up the difference going from a high paying to lower paying job.
-Sell some or all of the properties to buy a real house that's already built
I also really want to build things, but have no experience doing this. I do have multiple friends working in various aspects of residential construction, so I could see a path where I work for them and develop the skills needed to build things myself and with their help. If I went this route, I could see myself doing something like starting with one tiny house on wheels and living in that while I complete tiny house #2 which I would then place on one of the properties and rent either short term or to a friend, and then start building tiny house #3, etc. Ideally this path would allow me to build the skills necessary to eventually try to tackle building my own legitimate home on property #1.
Just kind of stuck here. I know I can't keep working this high stress job forever (or atleast I need a few years break, in which case AI might have taken over and made my job obsolete). If I could paint my ideal picture of a life, it would be working a job where I am actually part of a community and I get to interact with people. I would make enough money to survive, and income from investments would enable me to take 2-6 months a year to travel to LCOL areas like rural Mexico or Southeast Asia while having time to enjoy outdoor activities like motorcycle travel, snow sports, and backpacking while on the home turf. I've had these properties for a few years now and haven't taken action on them, and it's weighing on me heavier every day so I could really use all of your input to help figure out my life.

This is my first real relationship I’m in my 20’s I have been with my bf almost 4 years. I have been previously SA multiple times by a family member from age 11 until 16. I have been having these thoughts for almost 3 years they started when I was 1.5 year into my relationship when he left me on a 3 week vacation I started getting what if thoughts and then they turned into statements. However the rocd has not gone away in a year and a half. However now I get thoughts my bf is “ugly” and it feels like I purposely think it… it hurts me it makes me google and freak out as Ik he is perfect this all started when my family called him fat and ugly when they were mad at me and it’s like all I can think abt. Idk if my gut is telling me to leave and I’m so scared I feel like I’m going to throw up, I don’t want to leave him but I don’t care a future as easy as I used to:( I’m so fucking scared as I don’t wanna hurt him ever and I also do not wanna leave him I couldn’t picture my life without him. But the thoughts don’t feel intrusive anymore it feels like I’m thinking these mean things. Please don’t tell me to leave him as I don’t want to.

I hit 600 hours yesterday and figured I should post about my experience thus far - hopefully it will be helpful for all of you, but also will be fun to look back on myself, later on.
Background: I took a couple semesters of Spanish in high school as well as university over a decade ago, but never gave more effort than just trying to get a decent grade. A year ago, I decided to try and learn Spanish for real. I went down the normal Duolingo track, then found Paul Noble audiobooks and Language Transfer. I became really interested at this point, and eventually came across Dreaming Spanish. At first, I would do like 15 min a day of Dreaming Spanish while “studying” with my other time, until sometime around July 2023 when I realized I was getting more out of DS, and went “all in”. I put 70 hours as my total input up to that point (although since then even though I’ve had other sources, I haven’t added any more “outside hours” along the way, so technically I have 530 hours of pure DS now).
Reasons for learning Spanish: - It’s simply something I’ve always wanted to do, but never really committed to it - My family and I love to travel, and want to be able to communicate much better - We spent 6 weeks in Spain late last year which was partially why I dove in, but even before the trip I realized I would for sure keep going after the trip (I now wish I had started DS way before that trip, of course!) - I have two young daughters, who will be going through the Spanish Immersion program (100% spanish through elementary and then it gradually balances between Spanish and English into middle and high school) in our district! My older gal starts kindergarten in the fall. - There is a hosting program within the immersion program where families can host a teacher assistant (someone completing Uni or just graduated) from a spanish speaking country. It would be a semester of hosting the TA at our house. We’ve talked to others who’ve hosted and they had a great experience. Some have since visited the TA in their home country. We aren’t signed up to do this for the coming year, but my wife and I would love to in the next couple years potentially.
Listening: 90% input from DS. Half the time I go from just the easiest Intermediate/Advanced video remaining (around level 58) and half the time I just pick a video that looks Interesting (BeginneIntermediate/Advanced). Sometimes I’ll speed up the easier videos. In general, I understand anything 60 and below very well, 60-70 is comprehensible and enjoyable but challenging, 70+ varies. I find Pablo, Sandra and Alma, and Agus much easier. I find Tomás and Edwin difficult, for example. But overall I’m still really enjoying DS. Currently half the time Im watching, and half the time I’m listening with headphones. A few times a week I’ll watch some super beginner / beginner videos with my daughter - she loves Calcetín videos and the Michelle cooking videos. Ive seen the “Find Wally” videos about 8 times…haha
I also have listened to a lot of Español Con Juan, which I enjoy too. I mix in YouTube videos sometimes as well. I’ve watched some native Ted Talks and found some of them too hard, but also found some that I’ve almost fully understood, which was encouraging. On the other end of the spectrum I put on the movie Society of the Snow in Spanish without subtitles and I was completely lost haha. No huge surprise. Overall, I’m happy with progress but have days where I’m frustrated too. Loving the journey though.
Reading: I haven’t done a ton of reading but doing more now. I read a handful of Olly Richards books around 300 hours and enjoyed overall. I read Harry Potter book 1 at 400 hours. I really liked it, although it was a bit too difficult, but having read them in English many times it was often still comprehensible. I’m now reading a bunch of the “Diario de Greg” books and they are great haha. Love being mid 30’s guy at the coffee shop posting up with one of those books. Challenging but comprehensible and fun. I also read a bunch of picture books in Spanish to my girls. My older gal is picking up a decent amount of words.
Writing/Speaking: Haven’t done a ton of writing other than occasionally texting a buddy who knows Spanish. But found it to be not too bad.
We were in Spain as a family when I had around 300-350 hours I think. It was super helpful to have that under my belt but also I generally couldn’t follow conversations between native speakers. I had conversations with people at the park or elsewhere if people were patient or spoke slower, and it was super rewarding. I made a lot of mistakes (including mistaking a verb and asking a guy at the beach in front of his family if he wanted “to touch me” instead of me taking a photo for him haha. He silently walked away). But also talked to an old woman about having kids etc and she talked about being envious of my parents as she never had grandkids and was very sad about it. I tried to comfort her. Moments like that make the whole journey worth it.
Also I should note that between 100-300 hours I was doing Baselang speaking lesssons. It is expensive, but I really liked the platform and had some great recurring teachers. I may re-sign up after 1000 hours. I would’ve held off but I also wanted to be able to communicate a bit better in Spain. Maybe it will have end up harming my progress, I’m not sure.
TLDR: hit 600 hours. Have a long way to go but seeing progress and loving the journey. Averaging around 2 hours per day now. Will re-start speaking around 1000-1500 hours. AMA.
Thanks!

One of my favourite things about part 1 was its commentary on toxic masculinity. It was done in such a perfect way, made even more fitting by the fact that some people have actually missed it. Just like so many people unfortunately overlook, or deny, its existence in today's society.
On one side we have the Featherington son-in-laws who represent soft men. And on the other we have the lord squad who very much represent toxic masculinity.
And then there is Colin who has always been a soft, sensitive boy and was made fun of and even taken advantage of because of it. Nobody cared to listen what he had to say. His interests were dismissed, and every time he tried to find himself a purpose, be it marriage in S1 or investing in a business in S2, he ended up feeling like a foolish boy in the end. Never a man. Then he confronted Jack Featherington and finally got to be a hero. He felt confident and that's when he attracted the notice of the lord squad and fell prey to their toxic ways of being a man.
When he comes back from his second tour with his new bravado everyone suddenly takes him seriously, even his brothers. It is glaringly obvious that his swagger is fake, so much so that the audience can immediately see it, Penelope sees it, Eloise and Violet see it. But what is interesting is that none of the men seem to be able to see it. Anthony and Benedict do tease him about his swagger but even that could be seen more as a rite for finally being accepted as one of the men in the family rather than being paired up with little Greg like in the previous seasons. I don't wish to be too harsh on Anthony and Benedict though as we don't yet know how aware they actually are of Colin's struggles.
Which brings us back to the lord squad and how Colin's journey is to finish what he started in 208 and finally be able to stand up for himself in front of his peers. It is important that in that moment, he doesn't do it to defend anyone else but himself. He likes to be a hero because it's his way of getting attention and praise. He is a people pleaser because that makes people like him. But when he confronts the lord squad, he is doing it to defend himself, not another person, but himself, and that is what his arc is about. It's got nothing to do with Penelope, it's his own personal journey to find his way back to who he really is and embrace his sensitivity instead of hiding it even if that means losing some people in the prosess. It's the opposite of what he's done until now, he so desparately wanted to fit in and be one of the lads that he lost the sight of himself.
Naturally it shouldn't matter what others think of you but it's easier said than done. It's hard to resist peer pressure if the alternative is to end up being left out.
It's easy to judge characters for the mistakes they make because we as an audience can see the big picture. But it's important to note that the characters cannot, just like we cannot in real life. We have to allow them to mess up and be flawed and even annoying because that's what real people are like too. It only makes it more satisfying when they finally get it right.
Colin started as a soft boy but it was important for his arc to fall prey to peer pressure and society's expectations which turned him into a regency f*ck boy. If he didn't then how would we be able to see and feel the pressure that is the rules of their society. We can see the pressure in female characters more easily because they are more oppressed. But it doesn't mean that the men are not too, and we can see it clearly in Colin. Had he stood up against his peers in 208 it would have implied that resisting peer pressure and going against social expectations is easy. That would have taken the impact away from his arc. If it was so easy to just be yourself then why do we struggle so much in real life?
He did, eventually, end up in a similar situation than he was in 208 and this time he made a different choice and walked away from his peers. He did get it right in the end but it was necessary for him to make all those mistakes in order to finally be the person who is able to make the right choice. He's finally ready to join in the softie Featherington brother-in-law gang and be proud of it.
Sorry about the long essey. I just found the topic interesting :)