I won 2000$ on Tuesday. I said this is it I’m up a bit and I wanna end it on a high note. Was happy the next day knowing I can’t make all my losses back (over 60k in the past 3 years) but can just stop now and be ok. Literally 2 days later I don’t know how but I ended up back at a bar and blew 1100$.
Next day got home around 8pm (yesterday) said I’ll play 200$… ended up losing another 1200. I feel like a hopeless lost case and like I can’t just stop. Wtf is wrong with me

I 21f met this girl 21f around 2 years ago at uni, we didn't vibe at all but she kept trying so hard to befriend me, and I couldn't find a way to express that I don't want to bc I'm honestly a week person, for 2 years we never vibed at all, talking to her felt like talking to a child, she doesn't understand or see things the way other ppl our age do, for example if someone wasn't extremely nice to her she'd burst out, hating on them, keep praying they die or get a terminal illness and spreading rumours about them and stuff. And if someone from the opposite gender was slightly nice to her she'd assume they're in love with her, for example, she fell in love with someone bc he gave her extra pen, another example, she keeps saying a professor is in love with her bc when she says good morning to him he say it back, one time she went to his office for sth and he wasnt there, she checked pictures he's putting for his daughter, she took a pic and kept saying his daughter is ugly (she's like 8 years old) and therefore his wife and that it's a matter of time before he dump his wife for her -???-, (nothing happened and I found out he doesn't even say good morning back back he just look towards her) I found all the above to be very disturbing, but I didn't find a real personal reason to break the friendship. So, I'm the top among my colleagues in grades, her grades are usually below average, one time a couple of months ago, for the first time she got a grade higher than me (turned out doc didn't get my handwriting and he corrected it to be higher but still), when that happened she didn't talk to me for a week even though she used to talk to me 24/7 in uni and text me non stop, to the extend that when I'm talking to her she just walk away in the middle of the conversation, eventually I got really upset and she apologized, then she cried for a full hour saying it took me a while to accept her apology (a while=10 minutes btw)and didn't talk to me for the rest of the day. We got over that, then she asked me when our exams are and i told her to check it at uni website, she burst in tears bc it's so hard to check and she can't do it herself and didn't talk to me for a week. (It's one click i swear) I wanna find a way to cut her off completely, every time she sees no reaction for her over sensitivity she start begging, but honestly I can't do this anymore, but I keep feeling sorry for her when she begs

I’ve been testing these on and off since I first received them back in mid-April - I will note that ⅚ of these have remained consistent since I first sampled them a day after receiving them.
As a short note, I prefer fresh and clean scents and tend to dislike “darker” (smoke, incense, leather, etc.) and heavier (extreme florals, extreme gourmands, anything headache inducing) scents. My skin tends to hella amp sweet notes (BR540 is straight candy on me) so what’s too sweet on me may be fine for you!
Aelfscyne – White amber, Meadowsweet, Wood hyacinth, Lonicera, Cashmere wood, Green Tea

• This is the only one that changed with aging - initially, this opened with extremely heady white florals (reminiscent of Amouage Honour Woman) with some stanky/muskiness that reminds me of an older designer fragrance that escapes me at the moment. After 2 weeks, the florals are nowhere to be seen in the opening - instead, I get softly musky (and kinda funky) woods that give way to a softer version of the earlier white florals. I think it’s super cool how the top and mid notes swapped with aging! I will put a “Headache Warning” for this one - the florals can be a bit overwhelming if you’re sensitive to that. Above average projection, average longevity (3-4 hours)
• 🌼 3.5/5, while this is well crafted and one is my favorite out of the sample pack, the white florals are a teeny bit too generic for me to fullsize.

Fireflies in the Garden - Honeysuckle, Buttonbush, Summersweet, Holboellia, Fresh cut clovergrass

• If someone made a hard candy that was grass and red flavored, this is what it would taste like. Red is a flavor, right?? There’s an overwhelming sweetness (from the honeysuckle?) that mingles with a green, sweet grassiness. It feels like a perfumer’s interpretation of the sweetness of freshly cut grass. Average projection, shorter-than-average (2-3 hours) longevity.
• 🍬 2/5, I was hoping for a more realistic grassiness but got candy instead!

Lilacs Along the Winding Drive Perfume - Fresh Lilacs, Spring Rain, Late Violets, Dry Stone

• This has the same “red hard candy” sweetness from Fireflies in the Garden - not sure if this is Alkemia’s “sweet floral” note? I don’t get any lilacs, rain, or stone, just vaguely floral sweetness.
• 🍭1.5/5, while not outright offensive, where are the lilacs?? While this was the free sample in my order, I considered including this in my pack because it sounds right up my alley.

Kintsurukoi – Japanese musk, silk tree flowers, Kyoto roses, yuzu, white floral aldehydes

• This is purely powdery florals on me that is very reminiscent of bathroom air freshener in the opening, no yuzu in sight. Eventually it settles into an elegant woman’s pressing powder and gives me a fairly vintage/mature vibe. Fairly low projection, shorter-than-average (2-3 hours) longevity.
• 💅 2/5, I think it’s a well-done powder fragrance, just not my thing.

Koi no Yokan – Plum Blossom, Lotus, Lily of the Valley, Cedar, Black Currant, and Tamarind

• Verrrry soft yellow florals - for some reason it feels like a “fall florals” vibe if that makes sense? Not fall in the Halloween/witchy sense, but they're not as bright/vibrant as spring/summer florals tend to be. The tamarind adds a very faint tangy note for interest. If Kintsurukoi is an elegant woman’s pressing powder, Koi no Yokan would be an elegant woman’s shampoo (without being soapy). Again, fairly low projection and shorter-than-average longevity.
• 🍂 3/5, I wouldn’t FS it but I’ll save my sample for when the weather cools.

Taste of Rain – Vernal chypre, Silver rain, Green ivy, Holy basil, Lilacs, Moss, Wisteria

• I don’t get any of the chypre, lilacs, or wisteria – this opens with a cool cucumber melon-like aquatic with short-lived minty herbal hit from the holy basil. As it dries, it turns into a heavy aquatic note for a fleeting moment but lapses back into the lighter cucumber melon-y aquatic note afterwards with a few hints of greenness. Average projection and medium (3-4 hours) longevity.
• ☔3/5, I’m not big on aquatics but I think this is well done, if not generic.

Overall, I’m impressed with Alkemia - I’ve placed a second order of samples because while I didn’t love any of my initial choices, I still liked them. I understand now why many people recommend them to indie newbies coming from the designeniche world - many of these have the same perfumey feel!
TL;DR - many likes, no loves 😔 but not giving up

Honkai star rail was like a breath of fresh air to me who has only played genshin impact. The deep story, stats, combat style really made me feel great.
However, this current museum event seems to be some what legit boring. I dunno if I am the only one who think like this but this system of uhh point collection doing same task over and over again without much else going on, just managing stats trying to get S tier and every time randomly get interrupted by new quests really bore me out.
I have rarely experienced burnouts in genshin till now but Honkai Star rail has already made me feel the closest to that state.
May be its just me but man I feel tired of it

Wait, it just clicked for me.
I’ve been watching Mollystars video about Deltarune and the forth wall: https://youtu.be/bSyaeIUrznQ
And it hit me….
If we follow the idea proposed in the video, it would explain a part of the chapter 2 goner code:
“I swear I hear something... Something like... scratching?”
The “something like scratching”…
It’s from the data miners. The ones looking into the code to read the text document. Scratching the surface to take a look inside.
If you wanna get even more literal: something like scratching. Maybe like… The picking of pickaxes?

I usually pride myself in reviewing almost everything I read on here. I've been on vacation in Japan for a few weeks and finished multiple books during that time though, so a summary will have to do. Please enjoy:

Binti, by Nnedi Okorafor

Recommended if you like: afrofuturism, himba people, alien creatures, sci fi horror, novellas, math is magic
Bingo Square(s): POC Author Hard Mode
I don't have much to say on this one, I enjoyed it and found the main character and her cultural background fresh and interesting. A lot happens in not so many words, which is nice, but it also went by too fast for me to really get into it.

A House With Good Bones by T. Kingfisher

Recommended if you like: mild horror, haunted houses, suburban fantasy, mother-daughter dynamics, family matters and generational mess, chubby main character representation, vultures, ladybugs and roses being creepy, childlike monster, scientist main character, witty and fun writing
Bingo Square(s): Mundane Jobs, Horror HM, Published in 2023
I really enjoyed the style and voice of this one, and found it quite a change from the other Kingfisher book I've read (Paladin's Grace), though the dry humor is a shared attribute. I found the MC really likeable and her reactions to the increasing weirdness around her believable. It's also fun to have a bug expert MC. It was perhaps 'less horror' than I necessarily expected, but still had some really quality creepy elements towards the end.

The Art Collector by Katelyn Brehm

Recommended if you like: art history main character, paranormal romance, incubus main character, demon romance, old mansions, romance with mature heroines (late 30s iirc)
*Bingo Square(s):Novella HM, Mundane Jobs, Published in 2023 HM, Angels and Demons HM*
I really enjoyed the lively descriptions of art and styles that made appearances in this book. As a result, the romance between the two characters who obviously shared this passion felt very natural. If I had any issue with it it's that I already often find Romance moving too fast for my taste, and that is of course exacerbated in form of a Novella. I can still definitely recommend it for a well written and fun romance with a demon MMC and an older FMC, which is somewhat rare.

Daughter of No Worlds by Carissa Broadbent

Recommended if you like: *New Adult, Fantasy Romance, MCs with a traumatic past (escaped from slavery/abuse), very determined and disciplined main characters, mentostudent relationship, *
Bingo Square(s): Elemental Magic (sort of, if you squint, unsure if it really counts)
I picked this up because it's so often recommended in /fantasyromance and I was curious. Unsure if it really counts for Bingo to be honest. One MC is a fire mage, but magic isn't really limited to the classic elements otherwise. Thoughts?
All in all, the book felt fresh and well written, more so than I necessarily expected going in. I enjoyed the additional POV added halfway through the book, and despite what some reviews say was absolutely not bothered by the audiobook's narrator. This book has a few wonderful moments of ridiculous badassery that were well built to and satisfying to read.
I also have to appreciate this one for a really well executed balance of plot/action to romance, which I always seek and find super rare.

The Inheritance of Orquídea Divina by Zoraida Córdova

Recommended if you like: magical realism, latino main characters, US and Central American setting, mundane magic, mother and grandmother main character, messy family dynamics, understated magic, wonderful prose
Bingo Square(s): Magical Realism HM, POC Author
I really enjoyed this one, it's something completely different from what I usually read. This book has a tendency to make the mundane seem magical and the magical seem mundane, there's so much stuff that just happens without really being fully questioned... It's also very prettily and poetically written. I love Orquídea's names and monikers: "Orquídea Divina Montoya, Bastard Daugher of the Waves", come on that just slaps. Marimar and Ray were also really likeable and entertaining 'present day' protagonists.
If I had any issue with it, it's that the book becomes a bit more conventional towards the end, when it's initially so fresh and completely unfamiliar. I wish a few things (like some of the explanations from the living star) had been a bit less literal. There were also some scenes (like when they resurrect their dead great grandma) that are hilarious, but toeing the line of being too goofy for the rest of the book.
The whole thing has a certain haunting (or haunted?) air that I really liked. I was also reminded of The Haunting of Hill House at a few points in a really cool way, though this book is far less horror-y than the show.
I haven't read a lot of magical realism, but this is everything I'd want it to be.

The Last Unicorn by Peter S. Beagle

Recommended if you like: fairytales, unicorns, poetic writing, bittersweet stories
Bingo Square(s): Bottom of the TBR (for me), Mythical Beasts HM
Thought this was a fun pick for bottom of the TBR because I had it recommended to me literally in my first ever post on this subreddit, over 7 years ago.
I had seen the animated movie as a kid and want to rewatch it now that I've read its basis. The writing is utterly gorgeous, the characterization evocative and believable. Definitely a classic that holds up for good reason.
There we go, that's a wrap!
Some of these would definitely have deserved some more discussion space than I gave them here, but writing detailed individual reviews for several books at once felt overwhelming, so this works instead. I am 100% happy to chat about each of these books some more though, so I hugely appreciate comments, your thoughts, things you liked about them, questions you have etc etc.
I see myself picking up the sequel of Daughter of No Worlds sometime, but want to complete my bingo card first - it's my first time participating, despite spending 7+ years on here as mentioned above.
Thank you very much for reading, find my other reviews here.

Hey, lately I've been really into fake dating and thought why not mix it with my favorite trope, enemies to lovers? So today that’s what I’m searching for, a Romance RP with those two tropes.
My main idea for the RP is for our characters to be famous but they both need something to get their name out there again, so their managers decide to have them fake date. From there they plan when are to be seen together and from their encounters, a relationship starts to blossom. The RP itself will be a romance and a bit of a slice of life. I’d like it to be a bit of a slow burn but I’m ok with skipping some more boring moments, though the RP will start with the meeting between the two characters and respective managers.
My character is an actress and writer who had to stop acting for a bit and is now wanting to get her name back out there. I’m ok with your character being anything (no NSFW though).
Writing-wise, I’m not too picky but at least a decently sized paragraph would be appreciated and no one-liners. I RP on discord and use characters sheets and face claims, the latter isn’t a requirement but is appreciated the first is a must even if done in the moment (I have a template if necessary)
If interested message me. Please include the following in your message: ideas you have for the RP; favorite animal; info about your character, such as name, age and profession; a bit about your writing style (or a sample). Hope to hear from you :) I WON'T RESPOND TO JUST "HI" OR "WANNA RP"

Hey, lately I've been really into fake dating and thought why not mix it with my favorite trope, enemies to lovers? So today that’s what I’m searching for, a Romance RP with those two tropes.
My main idea for the RP is for our characters to be famous but they both need something to get their name out there again, so their managers decide to have them fake date. From there they plan when are to be seen together and from their encounters, a relationship starts to blossom. The RP itself will be a romance and a bit of a slice of life. I’d like it to be a bit of a slow burn but I’m ok with skipping some more boring moments, though the RP will start with the meeting between the two characters and respective managers.
My character is an actress and writer who had to stop acting for a bit and is now wanting to get her name back out there. I’m ok with your character being anything (no NSFW though).
Writing-wise, I’m not too picky but at least a decently sized paragraph would be appreciated and no one-liners. I RP on discord and use characters sheets and face claims, the latter isn’t a requirement but is appreciated the first is a must even if done in the moment (I have a template if necessary)
If interested message me. Please include the following in your message: ideas you have for the RP; favorite animal; info about your character, such as name, age and profession; a bit about your writing style (or a sample). Hope to hear from you :) I WON'T RESPOND TO JUST "HI" OR "WANNA RP"

I (m) am with my girlfriend now for around 9 months now, we've been very open and straight forward to eachother. She loves me more than anything else to the point she cant live a day without talking to me. We have a long distance relationship. She told me one day that she had a dream where another guy held her her, tho she didnt feel good about it, she didnt stop him, because just before she talked about how our relationship doesn't feel the same anymore. She told him that she doesn't get the same feeling as she did before, i dont make her feel the same pleasure, butterflies, loving, out of this world anymore. Its like she says that he has gotten used to me or he has taken me for granted. Now she told me she had two more dreams of the same manner as that one. She doesn't feel good at all over having these dreams, she always told me how im enough and i satisfy her in every manner, but she still kept having these dreams. Today when i told her to actually say her true feelings she said you've changed, you dont feel the same anymore, you dont give any efforts to our relationship. I know how hard im trying to keep this relationship because of my fucked up mental health, and she knows this, but she's tired about having these dreams too. I dont know what to do at this point, i dont know how to revert back to who i was when i made her feel like she's the queen. I dont know how to be better i would love for someone to help me over this. I know she wont ever cheat on me because she actually truly loves me. And i love her too much that i wanna change so bad just so i could make her happy. Please help me.

Hey, lately I've been really into fake dating and thought why not mix it with my favorite trope, enemies to lovers? So today that’s what I’m searching for, a Romance RP with those two tropes.
My main idea for the RP is for our characters to be famous but they both need something to get their name out there again, so their managers decide to have them fake date. From there they plan when are to be seen together and from their encounters, a relationship starts to blossom. The RP itself will be a romance and a bit of a slice of life. I’d like it to be a bit of a slow burn but I’m ok with skipping some more boring moments, though the RP will start with the meeting between the two characters and respective managers.
My character is an actress and writer who had to stop acting for a bit and is now wanting to get her name back out there. I’m ok with your character being anything (no NSFW though).
Writing-wise, I’m not too picky but at least a decently sized paragraph would be appreciated and no one-liners. I RP on discord and use characters sheets and face claims, the latter isn’t a requirement but is appreciated the first is a must even if done in the moment (I have a template if necessary)
If interested message me. Please include the following in your message: ideas you have for the RP; favorite animal; info about your character, such as name, age and profession; a bit about your writing style (or a sample). Hope to hear from you :) I WON'T RESPOND TO JUST "HI" OR "WANNA RP"

This might be an unpopular opinion due to it being cal, but I honestly feel like this love story was one of the best things to come out of euphoria season 2. And maybe even euphoria as a whole. I cried nearly every time watching that part of the episode honestly. I sometimes go back to it, and other times I completely skip it if I'm watching the whole episode due to how much the story affects me. It isn't perfect, theres some things i could complain about it, and I'm sure you can too, however I feel like they should've completely ditched this and just kept the script for a movie or TV show, made it where the characters werent inherently problematic, and got rid of the ending where cal got Marsha pregnant, since that just ruins the whole experience for me and we have enough tragic gay love stories. But I really wanna emphasize how much wasted potential this was, like we don't get many male gay love stories in media, and the fact Sam decided to throw practically a work of art next to all the insanity he created (the Jacob's) is absolutely insane to me. Like if Sam went and wrote an entire show or movie based on what he gave with that and maybe had 1 or more Co writers that actually knew how to tell a story like that I would without a shadow of a doubt watch that immediately, and I'm positive many other gay people would watch it too. I'm just so mad that this will likely never happen, but I could dream.

Soulmage

"Do you have a physical reminder of the memories I have extracted?" Zhytln asked.
I didn't exactly feel drunk, but the aftereffects of Zhytln's memory meddling were definitely something in that zone. "The fuck would I want a reminder of that shit for? Do I look like I kept a souvenir from that—that—" I tried to recall what, exactly, it was that I had come to The Whispered Secret running from, but it was like scrabbling at an oil-slicked slope. If I concentrated on it, I could feel the perfectly normal and unobtrusive area where Zhytln's magic had done absolutely nothing worth thinking about. The completely ordinary way my memories had always been. The smooth, linear, and uninterrupted experience of an unmodified life.
The way my thoughts swerved away from the weeks where nothing traumatic or painful had occurred was mildly disturbing, but... I could think without jagged shards of memory digging into my soul. I didn't freeze up or flinch at the thought of casting another spell.
"Thank you," I muttered. "You—You—You're not so bad after all."
Zhytln gave me a bland look. "As much as I appreciate the compliment, that is not an answer to my question."
Oh, right, Zhytln had a... a thing... about questions. I poked at the blurriness in my brain, but that wasn't something Zhytln had wiped or fucked with, as far as I could tell—I was just exhausted and quasi-drunk and really didn't care what Zhytln's deal was. "Why? Do you want a souvenir?"
"In a way." Zhytln held up an empty palm; in soulspace, one of the memories she'd extracted glimmered like freshly fallen snow. "The memories I've taken from you will seek to form a body to match their mind. The simplest way to mitigate this is to store them within a physical token that a sapient mind perceives as connected tightly enough to that memory that it serves as a body. So yes, in a word: I request a souvenir."
I squinted at her. "Want a chunk of my flesh?"
She tilted her head, and I got the sense she was scanning something beyond what my eyes could see. "...I believe you have misunderstood what I have meant by 'body.' Are you not an academy-trained witch?"
"You've dug through my memories; you know I am."
"It is often polite to pretend that I do not have awareness of the sum life experience of my clients," Zhytln replied. "By a body, I mean a vessel capable of holding memories, whether that be in a metaphorical capacity—as I would like it to remain—or a physical one."
Though my mind was still swimming through mud, I managed to look down at the bar stool I sat at. At the boots I was wearing that had... that had crushed a man to gore beneath them.
I had requested that that memory be kept, so that I would never repeat those mistakes again. At the nausea that swelled through me, I almost wanted to vomit that memory out too.
But I unlaced my boots and handed them to her. Their soles were heavy and bloodied. "...Take them."
She stared at my boots, then swept them beneath the counter with a single, fluid motion, slipping the memories inside. "A fitting vessel. Unless you have further business with me, I believe I have other clients to see to."
I hesitated. There was... more. More that she could do for me.
But not now. I shouldn't decide while I was still addled and dizzy-souled from her magics.
I stood, my bare feet scraping against the stone of her bar floor, and nodded once towards Zhytln. Bartender, witch, soul manipulator.
Then I stumbled out the door, mind muddled and clear all at once.
A.N.
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Table of Contents
A Book I Wrote
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I apologise in advance for this being long, I want to include all details as I experienced them.
A bit of background: I (33f) lead a department of five people. We are mostly similar in age and through shared moral convictions and humour, we’ve become quite close and also spend time with each other outside of work. We have had a great balance from the start. We make decisions as a team, but regardless of our friendship, it is clear that I could overrule them if I deem it necessary. Since they are all smart and motivated people with strong work ethics, I’ve had to do that maybe two or three times since I started 1 1/2 years ago and it’s never been a problem. I absolutely enjoy when I have an opinion on something and they change my mind with well thought out arguments. We work really well together and I adore them all.
Now to the situation. I told one of the team members, let’s call her Lila(f32), about a concert in a different country I was going to with my brother. She expressed how much she loves the band and would love to go as well, so we (the team and I) gifted her the ticket for her birthday in December. Lila was super excited and we agreed to book travel and accommodations soon. The next few months I kept asking about the trip and that we should book soon, but she always said things like “oh yes, soon, next time we see each other” etc. I have to mention that Lila in general is a rather scatterbrained person, it is not unusual for her to do things last minute or forget about stuff all together, so this didn’t worry me at first. 3 weeks before the concert when we were both in the office, I told her I was gonna book now, since flights were only gonna get more expensive. She agreed and said she’ll do it at home. I sent her my flight and hotel data, where I booked, etc. Then followed days of back and forth from her with her saying she’ll take the train, stay at a friends house who lived there, then again flight, and then the final idea to make the 8 hour drive with a friend by car (Lila doesn’t drive). I told her twice that if she didn’t wanna come or if it was too expensive that it was okay to tell me, but that I just wanted to know, so I could find someone else to go with me. Lila said she really wanted to go, and that she already had booked a room in the same hotel I was gonna stay in. She then purchased a ticket to the concert from me for her friend (I had one extra since my brother cancelled). The day of the concert, they were supposed to start driving at 8 am. When I boarded my flight at 1pm, I got a text from Lila saying her friend cancelled due to her child being ill and that she wouldn’t come. I texted her “oh no that really sucks :(“ but with all the back and forth I didn’t really believe her. So when I checked in, I told the hotel clerk that my friend asked me to see if she could cancel her reservation and if he could check. There was no reservation under her name. I was pissed and disappointed, but I haven’t said anything to Lila yet.
This was a few days ago so I have calmed down and now I am mostly worried what I could have to done to create an environment where she didn’t feel comfortable to tell me the truth. In general, the team knows that Lila doesn’t always tell the truth, but it’s mostly smaller lies. She also is the only one of the team who repeatedly has shown issues with admitting to mistakes. I try to lead by example and immediately admit when I was wrong, and during one-on-one’s with everyone in the team I asked them separately if they felt they could do the same and trust me to react appropriately. Everyone said yes, and that they felt comfortable coming to me with anything, and all except Lila regularly do. I have never once yelled at them (and never ever will! Managers who do that fucking suck!) and actively try to educate myself on how to become a better manager through books and workshops. I’ve also been in therapy for years to improve how I handle my feelings and biases and become more self-reflective. Lilas behaviour makes me very worried that despite all of my effort I am doing something wrong and creating an environment that breeds dishonesty. I also don’t know how to handle this situation because it is not work related and I don’t know how to address it and if I even SHOULD address it. I’m also reconsidering the closeness in our team and if i should refrain from hanging out with them privately, because no matter how close we are, the dynamic of “hanging out with the boss” could lead to problems again in the future. On the other hand I don’t want to stop spending time with them because they are amazing human beings who have enriched my life a great deal.
Thanks to anyone who made it through my short novel! I guess my question is: should I talk to Lila about the situation and why she felt the need to lie, or should I try to distance myself from my team members?
Thank you in advance.
TL;DR: coworkefriend lied about coming on a trip with me, and I’m not sure if it’s my fault and how I should deal with it.

Good morning ☀️ from not the so sunny west coast! Not complaining! Loving the gloom and little breeze all week long. Got up way too early to get ready for this big game today; Champions League Final, if you are too curious to know lol! Yeah! It’s a big day for me! Still don’t know why I got up at 5:00am on a Saturday… excitement, or just a bad hangover? Well, to be fair, slightly bad hangover! Having said that, if you’re up and had your coffee or breakfast fix already, in the mood to chat with a complete stranger but super cool one, you might wanna give me a holler! 😆 Yeah! I do use emojis on Reddit, so what! Until then, I’m gonna enjoy more of this delicious Italian coffee and contemplate making some blueberry 🫐 pancakes 🥞… anything to keep me super busy until the game is live! Cheers ☕️ haha

In the last few months, I started getting into AM, and I absolutely love them. I've been listening to them non stop, and of course I've had The Last Shadow Puppets in heavy rotation as well. Out of curiosity, since I know the fan base is pretty diverse on their opinions of favorite tracks/albums, what's your favorite track on every album? If that's too hard then what's your favorite three track run? I'll start:

• WPSIATWIN: When The Sun Goes Down, From The Ritz To The Rubble*, A Certain Romance
• FWN: Fluorescent Adolescent, Only Ones Who Know, Do Me a Favour*
• Humbug: Crying Lightning*, Dangerous Animals, Secret Door
• Suck It and See: Piledriver Waltz*, Love is a Laserquest, Suck It and See
• AM: Do I Wanna Know?*, R U Mine?, One For The Road (I'm not a huge fan of One For The Road, but my other couplings of favorite tracks also have a track next to them that I'm not huge on, so I picked this one since the first two are amazing, but Fireside and WYOCMWYH are a close second)
• TBHC: Star Treatment*, One Point Perspective, American Sports
• The Car: Body Paint, The Car, Big Ideas (favorite track is There'd Better Be A Mirrorball)
  
• An asterisk denotes my favorite song on the album
  

I've been living with generalized anxiety and OCD for over a decade, and I often found myself in a cycle of constant overthinking. Grappling with my own experiences sparked the inspiration to create something for those who might be sharing a similar situation.
Balance is a web app that employs GPT-4 to provide a novel way to tackle acute anxiety. All you need to do is tell it what's bothering you, and Balance crafts three unique interpretations of your situation. It's not here to diminish your feelings but rather to cast them in a different, less intimidating light.
It's by no means intended to supersede professional assistance. If you're ever feeling overwhelmed or in distress, seeking professional help is paramount.
I designed Balance with the aspiration to bring a little respite and fresh perspective for anyone grappling with acute anxiety situations.
I'm releasing it as a completely free app (I currently have some free OpenAI credits that are paying for the AI side of it) with the hopes that it can help you like it's helping me.
If you want even more information, including on privacy, click on "More info" on the website.
https://balance.dvy.io/
❤️

Heya. Title pretty much explains it all. Looking for something long term and someone I could spend my days with playing video games and just be excited about all things nerdy. Especially the video games parts as it is a big passion for me and it would allow us to spend time together doing something we love. Not much of a traveler or adventurer. Might go grilling(am vegan btw) or something during summer. Although I wanna visit Japan someday, so travelling isn't out of the question I guess, hmmm..
I jump from game to game, and try to play a nice variety of them. Haven't done that much recently tho, but would like to get back to it. Would like to start some singleplayer games, hopefully not Skyrim again, heh
I like watching a lot of youtube videos of various topics. Fun science videos from Kyle Hill, SciShow, Brew, or gaming videos by NerdCubed and Jesse Cox are some of them. Also just found Bricky and his 40k podcasts which is really dopePretty sure I'm an introvert. I've recently taken daily walks so I get through all the audiobooks I have stashed away, or to listen to old co-optional podcasts episodes, or youtube stuff.
Currently I'm working as a programmer. Not much to add there tbhA bit autistic and bi-polar, so if I get less talkative that might be it lol, Also let's trade pics asap to get it over with x)
That's all from me, hoping someone will read and be somewhat interested xD
Have a good day!

Good morning ☀️ from not the so sunny west coast! Not complaining! Loving the gloom and little breeze all week long. Got up way too early to get ready for this big game today; Champions League Final, if you are too curious to know lol! Yeah! It’s a big day for me! Still don’t know why I got up at 5:00am on a Saturday… excitement, or just a bad hangover? Well, to be fair, slightly bad hangover! Having said that, if you’re up and had your coffee or breakfast fix already, in the mood to chat with a complete stranger but super cool one, you might wanna give me a holler! 😆 Yeah! I do use emojis on Reddit, so what! Until then, I’m gonna enjoy more of this delicious Italian coffee and contemplate making some blueberry 🫐 pancakes 🥞… anything to keep me super busy until the game is live! Cheers ☕️ haha

For context I’m in a group chat with some friends, ages range in 20s. There’s like the main group and a few other people on there who don’t interact much, the main group organised going out today and tomorrow night and didn’t invite this girl (I’ll call her Casey) but we were talking about it in the chat, she asked what we were talking about and I told her but we didn’t invite her. Now today at dinner we were talking about how Casey is a little annoying and they added their friend who was with us to the chat and he kicked Casey out. They are fine with it because they don’t wanna hang out with her but she is asking me why she was kicked and I feel really bad. The group is saying how is kicking her different from making plans in the chat and not including her and I was like yeah true, that’s a shorty thing to do. Now I’m debating inviting casey out with us tomorrow because I feel really bad but the others are telling me not too because it would “ruin the whole night” should I invite her? She might not even come but I feel like it would be the nice thing to do, but would I be being an a**hole to the others in the group if I did that? TLDR annoying girl was kicked from group chat where we make plans and don’t include her, I feel bad and want to invite her to our plans tomorrow but I don’t want the group to be angry at me

Hello,
I am 19 years old and was first diagnosed with ADD but as of late its become much clearer that the ADD symptoms are part of a larger autistic whole. 1½ years ago I was still undiagnosed and was in my last year of school, when due to too much stress and other factors, the symptoms I was facing daily started getting worse. An overwhelming lack of focus, this made even thinking hard, since I wasn't able to string together thoughts much longer than 3-4 thought chains before not knowing where I was coming from initially (That was at my worst). In tandem It got more and more difficult to understand someone talking, when anything else was making a noise, like other people, cars, birds, most things and especially together. This was accompanied by a hypersensitivity to sound, the louder and higher the worse. When an always lowering stress threshold was reached I entered a fight or flight state, which meant going home, sitting in my bed, becoming non verbal and letting tears run from my eyes for about and hour until this melt down/break down was over(idk what to call it). I dont call it crying because I associate that with emotional upheaval, which can also happen more easily in these states, but at that time it was an automatic reaction of my body and the only thing that could help me. I ofc had to drop out.. and so my journey to recovery began, the thing is due to a nice psychiatrist, time and effort, the whole focus problem was overcome mostly (Vyvanse my beloved<3). And the specific hypersensitivity to sound and problem with filtering it have also gotten easier. I can now even take walks outside without my earplugs:D
the thing is... I didn't just become normil, I was faced with heightend symptoms that didn't just conform to ADD. And piecing things together, I reevaluated my behaviour throughout all my life and together with my psychiatrist found that I am most likely on the spectrum. Which ig explains the melt downs better? Argh I don't wanna go intoo too much detail, but I also don't want to leave important parts out... I'll just get to what's been bothering me recently. I've always had certain sensory issues, food, sound, touch, smell sight. They've gotten quite a bit worse after the main break down, but we're manageable. I was figuring out how to adress them by seeing what other people on the spectrum do about drying off after showers for example (thank you to the person who suggested micro fiber towels🧎‍♂️ now I don't feel like I'm grating my skin raw on cliffs each time I shower).
But about 2 weeks ago, not clearly corresponding to an event, my sense of touch got so intelligent heightend, that my feet hands and scalp hurt non stop, just existing. It's not a specific kind of pain, It feels constantly raw, if that makes sense and if I were to touch something to my body and especially those sensitive areas, it will sort of echoe after the main sensation is gone. I am just way too aware. I still suffer from very poor introception tho... I dont feel hunger, thirst or when I need to vomit. After a while it manifest at something that is as much a sensation as an emotion, I'd like it to ig how very slowly and somewhat painfully dying would be like, it's more of a scream of help from my body tho and since I have been trying to keep a routine those sensations have been more rare and I haven't gotten too the actually dangerous area in a bit.
I need to carefully and delicately plan my life, which I do anyway (and God forbid something would mess up a plan 💀🙅) so as to avoid overexerting myself. I still suffer from these Melt downs. Not regularly, but since I want to not live in my room for the rest of my life, they become a problem when I try to do something outside of my comfort zone. That there is such a low and knowable limit and that the reaching of said limit ends in a tear melt down is unpleasant and limiting. I meet this limit much easier when in the company of people. Being alone for most of the 1½ year taught me to love myself more and live with myself in satisfaction with what I have. But I can't deny my loneliness and want to rejoin my friends in activity, most importantly my best friend that has helped me better my condition so much and grow as a person. I feel so lucky to know her and I love every part of her existence. I dont want to be a bed ridden victorian child anymore, I want to live God damn it. I can't deny, I am slowly making strides but I really want to do something about those meltdowns, since in the company of people it just makes everyone sad including me:/// maybe an alternative would work wonders but I have no clue how I'd do that. My main strategy is, very carefully, pushing my limits and accompanying that with an increase of my Vyvanse Dosage, which at least helps to focus. Perhaps I need to more closely examine how I lessend my auditory sensitivity... too apply that too the others... but the whole tears running down my face thing needs to change as well.
Crpyitc Metaphor: I call it stress that reaches a limit, but idk if that's accurate.. its more pressure building up in a container technically able to self seal. When too much sensor and emotional input is reached the pressure is too high to contain, but instead of exploding, depressurizes slowly to a point where the overall pressure decreases but not until its empty. Then it's resealed but the fresh seals aren't yet tight, so the maximum pressure is lower and they risk bursting again, perhaps more drastically, making it harder to reseal. Over time and with undisturbed rest the seals will tighten and when the container is at rest proper maintenance and draining of pressure can take place.
If anyone has similar experiences and/or unique ways of dealing with theirs I would love to hear it. I want to understand better, who I am, to become the best person I can be, that's why I want to desperately finally connect with others that share my experiences. To learn from them and help wherever I can.
TL;DR: Went undiagnosed for 18 years (my mom finds my behavior quite normal just like hers really👨‍🦯) culminating in a major breakdown mere months before being done with school. Dealt with the ADD side of things, but struggling with recently heightend sensory issues that just make existing painful and with intense meltdowns that hinder me from progressing with my life.

I did not see a weekly thread so I hope it's okay to ask some question directly.
So, I played this ALL the way back when the console ports got released but never even finished the base story. I'm interested in trying it out again but I had a few questions that are kinda all over the place.

1. Does race/class combo matter for high end content? I'm the type of nerd that will want to try the most difficult content (I do those in other MMOs and enjoy minmaxing rotations etc.). I don't particularly care if my combo is meta or optimal, but rather if I, as an example, wanna play a magicka Warden dps Bosmer (I'm assuming this is bad, at least) would that simply be "Not ideal" or would that straight up not be acceptable to clear whatever the toughest content is?
   
2. What exactly is the difference between stam/mag builds? Like, for example, Stam Sorc vs. Mag Sorc. I assume they both still use somewhat visually and effectually similar looking skills. Is it more like a flavour of "I get skills for my staff" vs. "I get skills for my claymore" etc.? For example, for me, I love classes where I have a weapon to actually hit people with and then use cool looking abilities that are "magical". I assume sorcerer covers the latter part either way, so should I go stam sorc so I have a weapon to (auto?) attack with instead of flashing my spell staff to attack?
   
3. Are vampires any good? I remember loving how they looked but also remember they had some sucky drawbacks and I'm wondering if that'd make my experience worse.
   
4. How exactly does gearing work? I know after level 50 you get CP, so in a way you're always playing level cap. Does gear drop with such and such high CP stats? Or could a piece of gear I get at 50 CPs still be useful later when I'm at 1k CPs?
   
5. I would prefer not to pay for ESO+ right away, maybe later if I get really hooked. Should I just sell off crafting stuff? It seems not really feasible to manage inventory in a meaningful way. Do you need crafting to be okay in this game, or can I get by with buying stuff?
   

Thanks a bunch in advance!