Wine country gift sets

F (21) M (41) As part of my birthday gift to my boyfriend I got him the BMW M1000 RR Lego set with a 1920 pcs. If it were you would you rather receive the assembled or would you think it's fun to build yourself? He’s into vehicles so I think that would be a perfect gift for him. I just don’t know if I’ll assemble it myself which I want to or I’ll just give it to him as it is. He’s a busy person so I’m just thinking it will save him time if I build it. Just wanna make sure if he’s still going to appreciate it if I build it myself.

F (21) M (41) As part of my birthday gift to my boyfriend I got him the BMW M1000 RR Lego set with a 1920 pcs. If it were you would you rather receive the assembled or would you think it's fun to build yourself? He’s into vehicles so I think that would be a perfect gift for him. I just don’t know if I’ll assemble it myself which I want to or I’ll just give it to him as it is. He’s a busy person so I’m just thinking it will save him time if I build it. Just wanna make sure if he’s still going to appreciate it if I build it myself.

Gaming PC (something I can upgrade in the future
What will you be doing with this PC? Be as specific as possible, and include specific games or programs you will be using. Gaming , streaming, YouTube, Netflix, and web surfing. What is your maximum budget before rebates/shipping/taxes? When do you plan on building/buying the PC? Note: beyond a week or two from today means any build you receive will be out of date when you want to buy. As soon as possible. What, exactly, do you need included in the budget? (ToweOS/monitokeyboard/mouse/etc\) PC case and all internal parts Which country (and state/province) will you be purchasing the parts in? If you're in US, do you have access to a Microcenter location? California, no Microcenter near my location If reusing any parts (including monitor(s)/keyboard/mouse/etc), what parts will you be reusing? Brands and models are appreciated. I will need a monitor, keyboard, and mouse. Something I can use at max setting 4k 144, etc
Will you be overclocking? If yes, are you interested in overclocking right away or down the line? CPU and/or GPU? no Are there any specific features or items you want/need in the build? (ex: SSD, large amount of storage or a RAID setup, CUDA or OpenCL support, etc) Do you have any specific case preferences (Size like ITX/microATX/mid-towefull-tower, styles, colors, window or not, LED lighting, etc), or a particular color theme preference for the components? Do you need a copy of the Windows included in the budget? If you do need one included, do you have a preference?
https://pcpartpicker.com/list/3cQcd9
I I have those parts already. I ned a few things power supply, windows, keyboard, monitor, and mouse.

Next available
Item Name Set Number:43227 Disney Villains , 43221 Disney Icons, 66734 Disney CMF 6 banger
Lego Price: $130+60+30+(22) tax
Shipping: UPS.com from WA 98107->FL 33013. $38
(8 x 16x20 ) at 15 pounds
Raffle Total/Spots: $280 56 at $5
Price justification: Lego com
Call spots: Y/N Y
Spot limit per person;
Duration of spot limit:
Location(Country): USA
Will ship international: Y/N Y, international covers over $38
Timestamp pics: https://media.discordapp.net/attachments/769322369608450072/1116569228221358150/PXL_20230609_032656812.jpg
Description: Disney 100 bundle!! Villains, icons and 6 CMF! (Ask me about the CMF you need)
Payment required within 20 minutes of raffle filling.
PayPal payments are to be Friends and Family only with NO COMMENTS. CashApp payments should have NO COMMENTS. Comments will result in a permanent ban
Gpay:

PayPal Info: Pm for pp
*Cash App Info: Gpay *
​
Tip BlobAndHisBoy
Number of vacant slots: 56
Number of unpaid users: 0
Number of unpaid slots: 0
This slot list is created and updated by The EDC Raffle Tool by BlobAndHisBoy.
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So almost 3 months ago my boyfriend moved in with my roommate and I. He was previously living half way across the country and we had been dating for over a year. We decided we wanted to be together in person and he didn’t like the state he lived in, so we agreed he would move out here. It took almost a year of planning and saving, and when we started making those plans I informed my roommate what we wanted.
For context, I’ve known my roommate since high school, we where best friends and got along great. When I told them about what we where planning they didn’t have any issues at all. As it got closer to my boyfriends move in date they started getting nervous and a bit cagey about it. I tried to tell them that they just needed to get to know my boyfriend and I set up a group chat for everyone to talk and get to know each other.
The first week or so of him being here everything was fine. But after a few weeks my roommate started getting upset that he would spend time in the living room reading books or looking for jobs. Not trying to upset my roommate he started spending more time in our bedroom. After a while my roommate apologized and said it was wrong to tell him that, and everything was normal.
It rapidly started deteriorating because my roommate said they are having constant PTSD episodes, that I am somehow abandoning them, and generally being really mean to my boyfriend for no other reason than he’s a guy and they don’t trust men. Which I understand, they have trauma surrounding men, and I understand that it can be hard to get to know him. But they have been consistently mean to him and the only thing that they want is for me to kick him out.
My roommate is now moving out with no plan of going anywhere, and has told me they are going to be homeless rather than live with us, and they seem to blame me for this because I didn’t “help” them enough.
Am I the asshole for defending my boyfriend when he’s done nothing wrong? Am I the one at fault for her deciding to be homeless?

Does anyone know if the 200 coins reward for overwatch is ever coming back? They've done this in the past when they ran out of codes to give out, but it's never been more than 3 weeks for them to bring them back. I emailed customer support on April 12 and they basically told me this:
"We would like to let you know that the said gift cards are currently unavailable. Due to overwhelming demand, we ran out of inventory, and these offers have been removed from the redemption page.
We have to set your expectation that you may only redeem offers that are found in your Redemption Center. Please continue to check your dashboard on a daily basis for existing offers you can take advantage of."
BUT ITS BEEN 2 MONTHS 😭😭 ARE THEY EVER COMING BACK?!

Seems like it's an old story at this point. I’ve read so many of them on reddit, wondering if it would happen to me, and it has. Emails are pasted below with identifying info removed.
First, I requested to have my wife added as a resident of the condo. Condo management kicked it back to my landlord for approval, which I didn’t think was required. Landlord tells me that they need to increase my rent due to their increased costs and financial troubles, sort of as an exchange to approve my wife’s occupancy, threatened to potentially occupy the unit themselves, however they moved overseas months ago. I’ve just refused, but I offered to help them out with a temporary payment outside of the tenancy agreement. Of course I’d like to continue living here. The emails fill in the details up to now. Looking for advice.
_________
Hello,
Congratulations on your marriage.
The first step is for us to receive approval from your landlord to add your wife as an additional resident in the unit. They are copied here and can do a “reply-All” to this email, or they may provide a Lease Amendment if they wish.
When we receive their approval, then we will send you the registration forms and information to get your wife setup on the system.
Thank-you.
Sincerely,
Property Administrator
__________
Thank you property administrator, Hi Landlord, I hadn't mentioned this because my understanding is that it's only for logistics at the condo (picking up packages, calling security, management etc.) After reviewing the LTB's Landlords, Tenants, Occupants and Residential Tenancies Interpretation Guideline 21 and seeking professional advice, I determined that my wife is considered a "spouse of the tenant" and occupant of the unit, but there's no requirement for her to be on the lease. The legal relationship of landlord-tenant remains between you and me. I hope to have your blessing to ease this process with the condo management.
All the best, Tenant
_________
Dear Tenant, First of all, I wanted to extend my heartfelt congratulations on your recent marriage. I sincerely wish you and your spouse a lifetime of happiness together. I am writing to discuss an important matter regarding the approval of your spouse as a resident in our system. While you are correct about the existing rules and regulations, I would like to request a favor before granting this approval. During my vacation overseas, I received the unfortunate news that I have been diagnosed with cancer. As a result, I had to prolong my stay here to undergo treatment. This unexpected turn of events has had a significant impact on my businesses in Canada, causing a disruption in my income. Furthermore, I have been faced with increased maintenance expenses and mortgage costs, which have put me in a financially burdening situation. Given these circumstances, I must reluctantly ask you to consider an increase in rent. Let me clarify that I have never requested a rent increase beyond the guidelines set by the government. Our longstanding relationship and the fact that you have been living alone have been key factors in maintaining our good rapport over the years. However, considering the current situation, it has become unavoidable to raise the rent or consider moving into the unit myself. I am hopeful that with your recent marriage and the added financial support from your spouse, you would be able to assist me by paying the revised rent amount. I want to emphasize that this decision has not been made lightly, and I understand the inconvenience it may cause you. The proposed new rent amount is $2700.00, effective from July 1st, 2023. This revised amount takes into account the increased maintenance expenses and mortgage costs that I am currently facing. To provide you with further context, I have attached information on the recent rental prices of neighboring units. This data shows that the offered amount is both reasonable and below the current market price. I genuinely value you as a tenant and appreciate the care you have taken of the property throughout your tenancy. I understand that this rent increase may impact your budget, and I am more than willing to address any concerns or questions you may have. Thank you for your cooperation and understanding in this matter. Sincerely, Landlord
__________
Hello Landlord,
I'd like to say again that I'm sorry to hear about your health and business challenges. I have close family and friends with cancer. I know how painful that has been for my loved ones. And, like you, my wife and I are adjusting to higher mortgage costs on a property while our income has not kept pace. For that reason, I must decline your request for a 24.1% increase in rent following a 2.5% increase two months ago.
A tenancy agreement contract comes with risk for both parties, and I had to factor that risk into my financial plan. I sought a rent controlled unit to mitigate it. I believe that rent controls in Ontario exist to protect renters from sudden increases in rent. They are not to be simply dismissed when the landlord wants to pass their unexpected financial burden onto their tenant.
I'm not sure if you were implying a quid pro quo: approval of my wife's occupancy in exchange for increased rent. I may have understood that, but that would be inappropriate under the law and its interpretation in Ontario. My apologies if I misunderstood. I am also concerned about you stating that a key factor in our “good rapport” is my residing alone in the unit. I pay for the right to occupy the unit, and as long as I don't violate overcrowding bylaws, I may have other occupants. The law is quite clear on this. I believe that the good rapport we have shared is based on each of us fulfilling our obligations under the contract, our courteous and timely communication, and our willingness to help one another on occasion beyond the terms of our contract.
I hope to share my perspective with you in the next two paragraphs. Though you may see your previous rent increases to the guideline maximum as a good faith gesture, I see them as simply following the law. In fact, you increased the rent as much as you possibly could. A good faith gesture would have been an increase below the guideline or no rent increase at all. I write this not because I expected zero rent increase, but so you understand what I hear when you say, "Let me clarify that I have never requested a rent increase beyond the guidelines set by the government." You are stating that you've never requested something that you are not allowed to request, which I don’t consider to be a favour. Now you are requesting that very thing.
I acknowledge and appreciate that you have never invaded my privacy, and you have always been respectful in your communication with me. I have given you that, and more. I have gone beyond my responsibilities as a tenant on many occasions, saving you money by avoiding the need for expensive contractors and property management. You’ve only sent someone once: a plumber after I spent my time and money trying to fix the problem. As far as I know, you’ve only been to the unit once yourself during my tenancy, which was with the plumber. When the unit above leaked and destroyed the front closet, you never came. I dealt with building management, and I donated my labour to fix the water damage to the wall and the coat rack. I have repaired and repainted all the walls of your unit with the original paint at my expense. I have stripped and re-caulked your bathtub because it was growing mould and had gaps that were allowing water to get under the tub. There have been other issues that I can assure you other landlords would have been called to address: HVAC problems, neighbouring balcony leaking problems, clogged drains, noise problems and more. You dismissed your property manager and moved to the other side of the globe. If that’s not recognition of the value I provide you, I’m not sure what is. I think our good rapport is based on my many gifts to you in the form of my time and money. It is based on me dealing with problems that landlords are legally responsible for.
Your request to increase my rent by nearly 25% with 23 days notice of the first new payment is inappropriate in the extreme. It is 10 times the annual rent increase guideline. It follows a rent increase of 2.5% only two months ago. And, it's 1/4 of the minimum 90 days notice for a legal rent increase. I realize this is a request, not a notice, nevertheless it is an enormous increase with little warning, and it’s attached to the threat that you will evict me if I don't agree. It is an unreasonable demand that puts me under duress, and that would cause me undue hardship. I also have no guarantee that you would not do the same thing again later if I acceded to your demand.
Ultimately, I understand and respect your right to occupy your unit. I imagine that you understand and respect my need to verify that occupancy for the required period after my hypothetical eviction. I am in a position to verify who is living there, whether the unit is rented again or not, and to pursue any legal action that would follow.
With all that said, if you would allow me to do a detailed review of your finances, I would consider agreeing to a rent increase. This would have to occur with at least 90 days notice, in accordance with a legal rent increase.
Alternatively, I would be amenable to a temporary extra monthly payment to help you get through these difficult health and business circumstances. There would be no change to our tenancy agreement. We could at both parties’ discretion revise and renew the agreement at the end of its period. I would be happy to put such an agreement into writing.
I would like us to speak on the phone or an online platform like WhatsApp because I feel we can come to an agreement that is legal and beneficial to us both. I fear that a contentious end to our relationship would be very taxing financially, emotionally, and time-wise. Nevertheless, I believe strongly in what is right, in my rights as a tenant, and in your responsibilities as a landlord. I am prepared to see whatever process we enter to the very end.
Regards,
Tenant

I've been collecting vinyl for well over a decade, but as I've gotten older my priorities & interests have shifted a bit. Additionally, the film industry strike has affected my income, so I figured that now is as good a time as any to start passing on my music to someone else.
I plan on keeping the core of my collection for now, but here's a bunch of stuff I either never got around to listening to, or don't see myself listening to much in the future. By the end of this month I plan on making another post with used vinyl, but that requires a little more work.
Shipping is...

• $5 for a 1xLP
  
• $6 for 2-3
  
• or $7 flat for 4+
  

All items will be shipped in new mailers with padding and/or stiffeners, and box sets (or 4+ LPs) will be packaged in bulk LP boxes with plenty of protection.

ALL LP's ARE SEALED

M/M unless otherwise noted

Jazz/Soul/Funk/Hip Hop

• James Brown - Get On The Good Foot (2xLP) - $22
  
• James Brown - Soul On Top - $22
  
• Prince - Sign 'O The Times (4xLP box set) - $35
  
• Ornette Coleman - Genesis Of Genius: The Contemporary Albums (deluxe 2xLP box set) - $50
  
• Floating Points & Pharoah Sanders ‎– Promises (marbled indie exclusive) - $22
  
• Arica - Heaven (limited to 500) - $22
  
• Pharoah Sanders - Karma (audiophile Acoustic Sounds series) - $31
  
• Alice Coltrane - Ptah The El Daoud - $25
  
• Childish Gambino - Awaken, My Love (blue Walmart exclusive) - $25
  
• The Bogie Band ft. Joe Russo ‎- The Prophets In The City - $20
  
• Otis Redding - Pain In My Heart (MOV pressing) - $16
  
• Marvin Gaye ‎- Dream Of A Lifetime (numbered blue MOV pressing) - $15
  
• Sly & The Family Stone - Original Album Classics (5xLP discography box set) - $85
  
• Otis Redding - The Definitive Studio Album Collection (7xLP box set) - $100
  
• Kendrick Lamar ‎- Good Kid, M.A.A.d City (2xLP clear black w/ alt cover) - $32
  
• Various Artists - Space Jam OST (2xLP red/yellow vinyl) - $22
  

Rock/Indie/New Wave/Alt

• The Rolling Stones - Goats Head Soup (clear 2xLP, alt cover) - $30
  
• The Rolling Stones - Aftermath (limited violet vinyl) - $40
  
• Neil Young - Homegrown - $14
  
• Various Artists - Glastonbury Fayre Festival (3xLP colored vinyl w/ extras) - $55 - Never played, but never sealed - sleeve is closer to EX/VG++ due to nature of packaging, which is pretty extravagant.
  
• The Who - Odds & Sods (2xLP red & yellow RSD release) - $26
  
• Bill Wyman - Bill Wyman - $10
  
• David Bowie - Diamond Dogs (limited red vinyl) - $36
  
• David Bowie - Low (limited orange vinyl) - $20
  
• Shuggie Otis ‎- Here Comes Shuggie Otis (numbered orange/gold MOV pressing) - $20
  
• Eric Clapton - 461 Ocean Boulevard (modern pressing, edition unknown) - $13
  
• Fleetwood Mac ‎- Mr. Wonderful (MOV pressing) - $18
  
• Julee Cruise - The Voice of Love (deluxe 2xLP) - $35
  
• Various Artists Twin Peaks OST (limited green vinyl) - $64
  
• Various Artists - Gary Crowley's Lost 80's Vol. 2 (2xLP clear vinyl) - $20
  
• Cleaners From Venus ‎- A Dawn Chorus: Early Cleaners And Beyond 1967-1985 - $15
  
• New Musik - From A To B (numbered yellow MOV 2xLP) - $24
  
• New Musik ‎- Warp (numbered red MOV 2xLP) - $28
  
• New Musik - Anywhere (numbered blue MOV 2xLP) - $28
  
• Oingo Boingo - Boingo (numbered smokey MOV 2xLP) - $43
  
• Nirvana - In Utero (45 3xLP 20th anniversary) - $165
  
• Type O Negative ‎- October Rust (2xLP green/black vinyl) - $65 - sharp sealed sleeve, but couple light splits on top edge
  
• Faith No More ‎- Album Of The Year (MOV pressing) - $19
  
• Stephen Malkmus & The Jicks - Sparkle Hard - $15 - one minor corner ding
  
• Quilting - Quilting - $13
  
• Hooverphonic ‎- Their Ultimate Collection (silver vinyl) - $15
  
• The White Stripes - Elephant (2xLP EU press) - $25
  
• Lorde ‎- Pure Heroine - $26
  
• John Lennon - Lennon (9xLP box set) - $85
  

Country

• Johnny Cash - With His Hot And Blue Guitar! (blue/orange vinyl, includes fanzine) - $20
  
• Willie Nelson & Bobbie Nelson ‎- Willie’s Stash, Vol. 1: December Day (2xLP white numbered MOV pressing) - $16
  

Other

• Soundtrack - La La Land - $13 - A couple light crease marks on sleeve

(If this post is still up, I'm still looking!)
Hey there. I really want to develop a female led/slight gentle femdom relationship with a special guy.
When a lot of men see the term "female led relationship," they think, "Oh, the woman will make all the decisions with no input on what I think/want."
Are there dynamics like that? I'm sure there is. Personally, I'm not looking to be "the boss" or "above" you in any way. I want us to be equal... but have you give up control to me in a few other ways. :)
What do I mean? Keep reading on!
● ABOUT ME ●
You can call me Dreamer for now. (I'll tell you my real name once we get to know each other) Please do NOT call me Miss, Master, Dominatrix or Ma'am.
I'm 25 years old and an INFJ-T. I live in Nashville, Tennessee, USA (AKA Music City) and I'm on Central Standard Time. I'm a Black woman and I stand 5 feet, 7 inches tall. My eyes are brown and I wear glasses. I don't have any tattoos or piercings at the moment.
One thing I want to mention is that I'm plus size, AKA a bigger girl. I'm undergoing a vertical sleeve gastrectomy in two months to lose the excess weight I have in a sustainable and permanent way. I'm ready to regain my body and be healthy and confident again. I'd love to have you by my side throughout my journey!
As far as personality goes, I'd describe myself as empathetic and sweet. I like to help others as much as I can. In person, I tend to be rather shy at first. People tend to mistake that for weakness or gullibility. I'm anything but; my strength lies in introspection and quiet observation. I notice every nuance of a person's actions, words, body language, vibe... my intuition hasn't steered me wrong yet!
● INTERESTS ●
I won't go into detail on every single interest that I have but I'll talk about my biggest ones that you'll likely hear me mention the most.
✨️Writing✨️
I've been writing since I was six years old, but I started taking it seriously around 13 years old. All in all, it's been 19 years. As of right now, I primarily write Fanfiction but in the past, I've written short stories, poetry and I even tried to learn how to write screenplays at one point.
I wrote my first full-length book in 2018/2019. I started the sequel in early 2020, but I'm still working on it. I lost a LOT of inspiration during the pandemic but I'm finally writing for it again.
If you also enjoy writing, I'd love to "talk shop" with you and maybe we can exchange some of our past works.
✨️Music✨️
Music has gotten me through a lot over the years. Yeah, yeah, I know everyone says that. But it truly has. It's shaped my life and introduced me to a lot of things and people that I probably never would've done or met otherwise.
There's no point in saying I like xyz genre because I've listened to pretty much everything. The only ones I truly hate are country and gangster rap. If you want specifics, though... I've been a HUGE twenty one pilots fan for 9 years. (I have more merch, stickers and other random shit than I care to admit to lmao) I also love other artists like Amber Run, Purity Ring, Phantogram, Daughter, Lorde, OneRepublic... plus tons more.
I've always had this dumb idea of a guy and I confessing to each other through playlists with songs that make us think fondly about each other...
God, I'm single.
✨️Photography✨️
I've been into photography for 10 years and I've had my DSLR for eight years. (It's definitely the camera version of 'Ol Reliable) I enjoy nature and portrait photography. I'd love to show you some of my work and get your thoughts on it.
✨️TV/Movies✨️
TV genres I like: Animation (like Spongebob), comedy, drama, documentaries (disaster and crime ones are my favorites), true crime (like Forensic Files), old sitcoms (like Sanford and Son) and cooking and baking competitions/reality TV (like Kitchen Nightmares US and UK, Hell's Kitchen, Master Chef, The Great British Baking Show, etc)
Movie genres I like: Animation, drama, comedy, action, psychological thrillers and science fiction. I thoroughly loved The Greatest Showman so one could say I like musicals but it's the only one I've seen so not sure if that really counts. Comic book movies are pretty alright too, but I really haven't seen anything past the first Avengers movie lmaooooo.
I say this as unpretentiously as possible, but I haven't seen most popular TV shows or movies that your average person likes. I think the last "popular" thing I watched was that Jeffrey Dahmer series on Netflix. (mainly out of morbid curiosity because everyone was freaking out about it... and because I think Evan Peters is a cutie) I only saw a few episodes and then forgot to watch the rest of it, but it wasn't as horrific as everyone was saying. Maybe I've watched too much Forensic Files and I'm desensitized lmao.
✨️Video and computer games✨️
Video game genres I like: Adventure, action-adventure, RPGs & JRPGs, Strategy... basically anything that is relatively fun and not horror related.
Some of my all-time favorites: Kingdom Hearts II, Ratchet and Clank, Journey, Final Fantasy VII and Final Fantasy X.
As far as computer games, the only thing I play on a regular basis is The Sims 2 and The Sims 4. As a kid, I loved simulator and time-management games; some old favorites are the RCT series, Simcity: Rush Hour, the first four Diner Dash games, the Delicious series and Burger Shop 2 (which I still have on my computer actually lmao)
✨️Other random interests✨️
Art, traveling, people watching, researching random topics on Wikipedia and watching YouTube, especially channels with old shows and movies.
☆ CAREER ☆
My last position was working nights at a psychiatric hospital. I'm looking for something new at the moment.
☆ SCHOOLING ☆
I'm officially a college student at 25. Yay! Feel free to ask me more about it, I'd love to talk.
☆ ET CETERA ☆
I really love dogs and cats. I have three cats and they're little demons but I love them to death. I also love small animals like ferrets, bunnies and snakes!
My main love languages are words of affirmation, quality time and gift giving/receiving. To be honest, though, there's elements of each language that I enjoy or relate to in one way or another.
I don't smoke and I drink every so often. Otherwise, I'm vaccinated and DDF.
● ABOUT YOU ●
I'm looking for a guy between the ages of 23-33 years old. I might be willing to talk to someone within two years in either direction (so 21 min and 35 max) if you meet all my other preferences/wants. If you're younger than 21 or older than 35, though, please don't contact me.
Please be single and emotionally available. I won't interact with anyone already in a relationship or married (even if you're separated or in a "dead bedroom," you're STILL married) and I'm especially not interested in poly/ENM. I'm 100% monogamous.
Hair is super important to me! I prefer medium length to long hair, something I can stroke and play with a lot lmao.
I have a REALLY big soft spot for blue and/or doe eyes, but don't let that deter you. If you have kind eyes, I'll fall in love with them, no matter their color!
I tend to like softer facial features and even softer personalities. Are you super masculine in public but a total softie in private? Lovely! Are you less masculine but a little more feminine? Great! Are you androgynous or otherwise fall somewhere in between? I can dig it!
Key traits that I like in a guy include, but are not limited to: Being sweet, gentle, empathetic, considerate, an active listener, exceptional at communication and willing to go the extra mile for those that you love, be it family, friends, your partner, etc.
With that being said, it's important that you have time for me. I'm not expecting us to talk 24/7 but if you're always too busy to talk to me, this won't work. At some point, I'd like for us to also talk on the phone as our schedules permit, of course.
As I mentioned in the beginning of this post, please be from the USA/North America and willing to meet and get to know each other in person ASAP.
● WHAT I'M LOOKING FOR ●
It's important to me that you're an active listener; what I mean is that you'll make an effort to listen to what I have to say and respond to it accordingly. If I tell you my thoughts on a matter or ask you a question or give you a compliment etc etc, please respond to it. It makes me feel so sad and small if I feel like my thoughts or opinions are not important/relevant.
I can tell pretty quickly if someone is genuinely interested in me or not. Like I said before, I notice everything lol.
I mentioned earlier how one of my love languages is words of affirmation. One of the ways I enjoy that is through compliments. I'm not looking for you to worship the ground I walk on, but being told "You look beautiful" or "When you do xyz, that makes me really happy" makes me feel SO seen and appreciated.
It's incredibly frustrating to send a picture of myself and get a lukewarm response in return. :(
Affection is also super important to me. Holding hands, hugging, kissing, cuddling, touching... all the cute couple shit. I want you to touch me, not in a pervy way, but in an affectionate way. I want to stroke your hair while I hold you close... little things like that make me incredibly happy.
Keep in mind, everything I want from you, I'll give to you in return. I'll always listen and acknowledge you, give you compliments, shower you in affection, plus whatever else makes you feel wanted and appreciated as a person and in a relationship.
● OUR DYNAMIC ●
I always want you to have a choice and be able to voice your opinion. I will never degrade or boss you around in general, but especially when it comes to your personal choices. I'm a switch that used to be a predominant sub and believe me, I've had doms tell me before, "I make the decision on what you wear, what to eat, who you hang out with, etc etc... because I'm your dom and what I say goes."
Some people may like that. More power to them. But I'm not like that. I want you to feel free to express yourself. If you want my opinion, I'll give it to you, of course. But my job is to build you up and support your decisions, no matter how small!
Again, I'm not looking for you to kiss my ass. I'd love for you to take the lead on most decisions (with my input, of course). But I want you to also have a "service" attitude; whether that's helping out with household chores or surprising me with a massage after work or giving me flowers "just because" or helping me paint my toenails lol... just to name some examples. The sky's the limit.
That extends to "the bedroom" as well. I want my pleasure to be just as important to you as yours is to me.
In short? I just want to feel doted on and taken care of. I want to be the most important person in your life and you be the most important person in my life. I want to make you feel special and praise you and tell you how much you mean to me. And I want the same in return. 💓
● "KINKS" ●
This is inevitably gonna come up at some point. I'll say when it comes to my "kinks" (if you want to call them that) I like:
Teasing, edging, telling you when you can cum and begging me for it (I believe it's called orgasm control/denial), moaning, praise, blindfolds, eye contact, body worshiping (you and me), breast worship, oral, fingering and using toys on you.
Been a little curious about pegging someone one day. We'd have to build up to it, of course, because I don't want to hurt you. If you're not into that, though, don't worry! It's definitely not a requirement.
Things I do NOT like (or hard limits) are:
Humiliation, degradation, anything that causes you or me physical, emotional and mental harm, blood, pee, scat, vomit, diapers, CNC, ageplay, raceplay, hitting, slapping, choking or anything else illegal, unethical or otherwise unloving.
● IN CONCLUSION... ●
If you read all of this, good job! Here's a cookie, hope you like chocolate chip. 🍪
Seriously, though, I can't name every little thing I want. Despite the length of this post, I'm not trying to play Build-A-Boy. I realize you have your own caveats and that's totally fine. Let's get to know each other and see what happens. All I ask for, again, is that you want a serious, longterm relationship and not view me as just some sort of "kink dispenser."
Chats or DMs are fine. When you send me a message, please include the following...
• Name or alias • Location • Age • Height, body type, hair cololength, eye color • Your interests/hobbies • Whether you're a sub or a switch • What you're looking for out of a relationship and something (or things) you really enjoyed about my post • A clear, SFW picture of yourself • Your current favorite song (so I know you actually read through all of this) • Whatever else you want to add to catch my attention. The more you can match my "detailed energy," the better.
I won't reply to those who ignore my preferences or the message requirements above. If you send me nudes/dick pics/sexting or FWB requests/rude messages, you will be blocked and reported.
Thank you so much for reading this, and I hope you have a good night!

• Dreamer

(P.S. I don't use Snap, Kik, Telegram, WhatsApp and whatever else. I use Discord and I only give my cell number out to people that I'm comfy with.)

I remember reading this manga before I even had MAL or Tachi on some browser site.
The protag is a middle-aged female, the setting being a fictional world set in this country's version of WW2. I don't know what genre I would clasify this, but it's definitely not a happy story. It deals a lot with grief, fascism, and just regular people doing bad things because of war.
I'm not sure if I'm remembering things right, but here are some more bullet points:

• Her husband dies because of the war and for some reason, she volunteers to the military
• Her family background were gunsmiths (?) and was known for making good rifles
• She's a very proficient sniper, but she was trying to hide it at first.
• There was a chapter where she's going sniper training and kept missing all her shots, but then after some montage, finally landed some. The brass discovered her scope was tampered (or broken?), and were very impressed she even landed a shot by only picturing the trajectory in her head.
• She's dealing with a lot of grief and depression due to her husband's passing - there was a panel where she tries to off herself with a sniper barrel in her mouth and her toe on the trigger.

I'm afraid these are the only details I can remember, and I know they're not much help. I just remembered reading this years ago, and suddenly came remembered it while I was taking a dump minutes ago.
Tried googling it, but apparently, there's been more than a few titles with a female sniper protag that already came out since then.

In short: Aura represents the second attempt by the Amarantin to use humanity as a guinea pig to poke a dangerous alien species to see what happens. The first was made using Sun Stealer in Revelation Space, while something was done to Aura in the womb to make her a suitable agent to carry out a similar mission, this time to contact the Shadows and lure out the Nestbuilders.
Things get a bit tricky when discussing the timeline of events because I’m unsure if Reynolds ever provides a date for the scuttler extinction. It’s entirely possible that the surviving Amarantin witnessed their demise at the hands of the Nestbuilders if they went extinct within the past million years. If they didn’t witness it, they must’ve learned the truth on their own through some other means. Regardless, at some point the Amarantin learned about the existence of the Shadows because Aura was implanted with the knowledge at the time of her birth near the Hades Matrix, where many of the Amarantin hid following the arrival of the Inhibitors.
I believe that the Amarantin wanted more information about both the Shadows and the Nestbuilders and decided to use humanity as a guinea pig to further that end. Given that humanity discovered the existence of the Nestbuilders on their own I find it hard to believe that the Amarantin (Shrouders), who are far more advanced than humanity, failed to spot them. So, in order to learn more about two potential foes, the Amarantin gave Aura to humanity along with everything they needed to go and investigate and potentially trigger a response from the Nestbuilders (or the Shadows themselves), which is precisely what they did with Sun Stealer in Revelation Space.
My belief hinges on the evidence listed below:
Though the Amarantin had a robust written language, they communicated and thought primarily via visuals:
Page 447-448 of Revelation Space:

The creature’s (Sun Stealer’s) complex jaw-bones did not move at all. Speech, she (Volyova) remembered of the Amarantin, had never been an important mode of communication. Their society had been based around visual display. Something so basic would surely have been preserved…

Page 478 of Revelation Space:

“Amarantin thought is very visual Sajaki.” – Sylveste, speaking with Sun Stealer.

One of Aura’s defining features is her uncanny ability to detect lies via observing subtle visual cues, an ability that she has had since before she learned to speak. It is my belief that this is an implanted Amarantin trait given to her prior to her birth near the Hades Matrix, where some surviving Amarantin hid to avoid being found by the Inhibitors. Given the Amarantin’s history of manipulating humanity through similar methods (Sun Stealer and the Mademoiselle), it isn’t out of character for them.
Page 137 of Absolution Gap:

“…the girl has a talent, Quastor, a God-given gift: she can detect lies. She reads microexpressions in the human face, the subliminal signals most of us barely notice. They scream at her, like great neon signs.” -Quastor Jones

Page 405 of Absolution Gap:

“Didn’t you hear what the Grelier said? One in a thousand. One in a million, perhaps, with your degree of receptivity.”

Is it possible that Aura is just a freak of nature? Yes, it is, but given the known traits and technological prowess of the Amarantin, as well as their history of using humanity to further their own ends, I think it’s more likely that they interfered with her development (or perhaps triggered it to begin with).
Aura possesses knowledge that she shouldn’t have that directly relates to the Amarantin, and Reynolds goes out of his way to describe her interest in them specifically when discussing the Scuttlers, despite humanity being aware of at least eight other extinct cultures by this point.
Page 89 of Absolution Gap:

“The Amarantin were the aliens who evolved on Resurgam. They were evolved birds.” She remembered drawing one of them for her book—not as a skeleton, but as they must have looked when they were alive. She had seen the Amarantin in her mind’s eye: the bright gleam of the avian eye, the quizzical beaked smile of a sleek alien head. Her drawing had resembled nothing in the official reconstructions in the other archaeological texts, but it had always looked more authentically alive to her than those dead impressions, as if she had seen a living Amarantin and they had only the bones to go on.”

Page 423 of Absolution Gap:

“That’s not how they (the Inhibitors) work. I know what they did to the Amarantin. Nothing survived on Resurgam unless it was under metres of bedrock, deliberately entombed. I know what it was like, Dean: I was there."
The light flared off his (Quaiche’s) eye-opener as her turned towards her. "You were there?"
"I meant," she said hastily, "that I’ve read so much about it, spent so much time thinking about it, it’s as if I was there." She shivered: it was easy to gloss over the statement in retrospect, but when she had said it she had felt a burning conviction that it was completely true.

Page 235 of Absolution Gap:

“She,” Khouri insisted. “Aura isn’t an ‘it,’ you heartless piece of shit.”
“She isn’t human either,” Skade said, “no matter what you might think.”

Reynolds goes out of his way to describe Aura’s eyes being birdlike on several different occasions, something he doesn’t do for other characters. He also references birds on occasion during her passages.
Page 425 of Absolution Gap:

Scorpio still found her (Aura) frighteningly small, like a doll designed to sit inside a cabinet rather than be subjected to the damaging rough-and-tumble of the outside world. But there was something else, too: a quiet sense of invulnerability that made the back of his neck tingle. He only felt it now that her eyes were fully open. Focused and bright, like the eyes of some hunting bird, she absorbed everything that took place around her. Her eyes were golden-brown, flecked with glints of gold and bronze and some colour closer to electric blue. They didn’t simply look around. They probed and extracted.

Page 445 of Absolution Gap:

He (Scorpio) didn’t want to believe it was her, but there was no mistaking those golden-brown eyes.

Page 456 of Absolution Gap:

“Destroy it now,” Aura said, golden-brown eyes aflame with authority.

One of the issues I often see readers have with Absolution Gap is that it seems detached from the first two books in the series, and while I agree with that to some degree, I firmly believe that the masterminds have been the birds all along.
I haven't read Inhibitor Phase yet or the new Dreyfus novels, but I'm really hoping the Amarantin get some more love at some point. I'd love a book from their perspective of things set in the distant past detailing events surrounding the departure of the Banished, or their return and the arrival of the Inhibitors. I loved Galactic North, but I really wish Reynolds had mentioned whether or not Greenfly took an interest in the shrouds. I must know the fate of the birds.
Bonus: Given that the Mademoiselle was manipulating the Conjoiners via the fake "Night Council", I'm led to believe that their abandonment of humanity was also the design of the Amarantin in a way.

In short: Aura represents the second attempt by the Amarantin to use humanity as a guinea pig to poke a dangerous alien species to see what happens. The first was made using Sun Stealer in Revelation Space, while something was done to Aura in the womb to make her a suitable agent to carry out a similar mission, this time to contact the Shadows and lure out the Nestbuilders.
Things get a bit tricky when discussing the timeline of events because I’m unsure if Reynolds ever provides a date for the scuttler extinction. It’s entirely possible that the surviving Amarantin witnessed their demise at the hands of the Nestbuilders if they went extinct within the past million years. If they didn’t witness it, they must’ve learned the truth on their own through some other means. Regardless, at some point the Amarantin learned about the existence of the Shadows because Aura was implanted with the knowledge at the time of her birth near the Hades Matrix, where many of the Amarantin hid following the arrival of the Inhibitors.
I believe that the Amarantin wanted more information about both the Shadows and the Nestbuilders and decided to use humanity as a guinea pig to further that end. Given that humanity discovered the existence of the Nestbuilders on their own I find it hard to believe that the Amarantin (Shrouders), who are far more advanced than humanity, failed to spot them. So, in order to learn more about two potential foes, the Amarantin gave Aura to humanity along with everything they needed to go and investigate and potentially trigger a response from the Nestbuilders (or the Shadows themselves), which is precisely what they did with Sun Stealer in Revelation Space.
My belief hinges on the evidence listed below:
Though the Amarantin had a robust written language, they communicated and thought primarily via visuals:
Page 447-448 of Revelation Space:

The creature’s (Sun Stealer’s) complex jaw-bones did not move at all. Speech, she (Volyova) remembered of the Amarantin, had never been an important mode of communication. Their society had been based around visual display. Something so basic would surely have been preserved…

Page 478 of Revelation Space:

“Amarantin thought is very visual Sajaki.” – Sylveste, speaking with Sun Stealer.

One of Aura’s defining features is her uncanny ability to detect lies via observing subtle visual cues, an ability that she has had since before she learned to speak. It is my belief that this is an implanted Amarantin trait given to her prior to her birth near the Hades Matrix, where some surviving Amarantin hid to avoid being found by the Inhibitors. Given the Amarantin’s history of manipulating humanity through similar methods (Sun Stealer and the Mademoiselle), it isn’t out of character for them.
Page 137 of Absolution Gap:

“…the girl has a talent, Quastor, a God-given gift: she can detect lies. She reads microexpressions in the human face, the subliminal signals most of us barely notice. They scream at her, like great neon signs.” -Quastor Jones

Page 405 of Absolution Gap:

“Didn’t you hear what the Grelier said? One in a thousand. One in a million, perhaps, with your degree of receptivity.”

Is it possible that Aura is just a freak of nature? Yes, it is, but given the known traits and technological prowess of the Amarantin, as well as their history of using humanity to further their own ends, I think it’s more likely that they interfered with her development (or perhaps triggered it to begin with).
Aura possesses knowledge that she shouldn’t have that directly relates to the Amarantin, and Reynolds goes out of his way to describe her interest in them specifically when discussing the Scuttlers, despite humanity being aware of at least eight other extinct cultures by this point.
Page 89 of Absolution Gap:

“The Amarantin were the aliens who evolved on Resurgam. They were evolved birds.” She remembered drawing one of them for her book—not as a skeleton, but as they must have looked when they were alive. She had seen the Amarantin in her mind’s eye: the bright gleam of the avian eye, the quizzical beaked smile of a sleek alien head. Her drawing had resembled nothing in the official reconstructions in the other archaeological texts, but it had always looked more authentically alive to her than those dead impressions, as if she had seen a living Amarantin and they had only the bones to go on.”

Page 423 of Absolution Gap:

“That’s not how they (the Inhibitors) work. I know what they did to the Amarantin. Nothing survived on Resurgam unless it was under metres of bedrock, deliberately entombed. I know what it was like, Dean: I was there."
The light flared off his (Quaiche’s) eye-opener as her turned towards her. "You were there?"
"I meant," she said hastily, "that I’ve read so much about it, spent so much time thinking about it, it’s as if I was there." She shivered: it was easy to gloss over the statement in retrospect, but when she had said it she had felt a burning conviction that it was completely true.

Page 235 of Absolution Gap:

“She,” Khouri insisted. “Aura isn’t an ‘it,’ you heartless piece of shit.”
“She isn’t human either,” Skade said, “no matter what you might think.”

Reynolds goes out of his way to describe Aura’s eyes being birdlike on several different occasions, something he doesn’t do for other characters. He also references birds on occasion during her passages.
Page 425 of Absolution Gap:

Scorpio still found her (Aura) frighteningly small, like a doll designed to sit inside a cabinet rather than be subjected to the damaging rough-and-tumble of the outside world. But there was something else, too: a quiet sense of invulnerability that made the back of his neck tingle. He only felt it now that her eyes were fully open. Focused and bright, like the eyes of some hunting bird, she absorbed everything that took place around her. Her eyes were golden-brown, flecked with glints of gold and bronze and some colour closer to electric blue. They didn’t simply look around. They probed and extracted.

Page 445 of Absolution Gap:

He (Scorpio) didn’t want to believe it was her, but there was no mistaking those golden-brown eyes.

Page 456 of Absolution Gap:

“Destroy it now,” Aura said, golden-brown eyes aflame with authority.

One of the issues I often see readers have with Absolution Gap is that it seems detached from the first two books in the series, and while I agree with that to some degree, I firmly believe that the masterminds have been the birds all along.
I haven't read Inhibitor Phase yet or the new Dreyfus novels, but I'm really hoping the Amarantin get some more love at some point. I'd love a book from their perspective of things set in the distant past detailing events surrounding the departure of the Banished, or their return and the arrival of the Inhibitors. I loved Galactic North, but I really wish Reynolds had mentioned whether or not Greenfly took an interest in the shrouds. I must know the fate of the birds.
Bonus: Given that the Mademoiselle was manipulating the Conjoiners via the fake "Night Council", I'm led to believe that their abandonment of humanity was also the design of the Amarantin in a way.

F (21) M (41) As part of my birthday gift to my boyfriend I got him the BMW M1000 RR Lego set with a 1920 pcs. If it were you would you rather receive the assembled or would you think it's fun to build yourself? He’s into vehicles so I think that would be a perfect gift for him. I just don’t know if I’ll assemble it myself which I want to or I’ll just give it to him as it is. He’s a busy person so I’m just thinking it will save him time if I build it. Just wanna make sure if he’s still going to appreciate it if I build it myself.

Now we all know, those not in denial, that the punishment for apostasy is death in Somalia, among other countries. I'm utterly exhausted of life hurting me left and right. My own so called family don't want me. The so called country I'm from wants people like myself dead and the one I'm in, well I'm not considered "from here", so I don't really belong here either. I doubt I'd ever feel accepted in Somalia in my lifetime and if they began far into the future, I'd be concerned it's a trap or still unstable for me. I hate identifying with a country that wants people like myself dead and all the assumptions made about me after answer such a question. I don't see the point in identifying with it when I doubt I'll ever set a foot there happily and feel at home. Now granted I'm not renouncing the language, food or such things like that which aren't oppressive. Also I can't change the fact that other Somalis recognize me as a Somali and some foreigners too. Tho whenever that question is asked, it activates a lot of trauma.
So, I've been thinking to just become "stateless" or whatever what I'm trying to describe is called. Thus, I want to be able to just say I'm "stateless" and for that to feel second nature. I don't want to feel like I'm lying either cuz technically I'd have renounced said country and I think my ID would reflect that. I have no control over many Somalis recognizing me as a Somali. Even tho many of them wouldn't claim me as such if they knew I'm Ex muslim. Tho that's generally not much of a problem to me, cuz I usually keep my distance. Unless I happen to find those unicorns who are fine with me or at least aren't trying to shove their religion down my throat. So my issue is the trauma it triggers when foreigners ask me that question and the assumptions that often comes with it when I answer it with Somalia. Along with the fact that the country doesn't accept me in one of the worst ways possible.
So I want to get a citizenship in the country I'm in or go to live in if I move. Tho that's not the same as being "from there" even with a citizenship. Cuz if or when push comes to shove, I'd have nowhere to call home. Tho I'm not sure if saying I'm stateless would be wrong if I've a citizenship and claiming the country of the citizenship feels difficult because there are people who don't want me here either and thus I don't really feel at home. I'm at a loss for how to handle this situation.
Have you went down this road and can share your experiences or the process you went through to overcome this with me?

I’ve ended up with a few class sets that my school was going to throw away. (Longer story, books are brand new but banned in my current country). I’d like to bring them back to Canada this summer and donate them to a classroom or students in need.
Does anyone know any charities or programs I could look into? Preferably in Ontario due to shipping.

I’ve been trying to engage GPT in more creative writing exercises lately. It’s default writing style is painfully bad but there is obviously some depth here to explore. The names it used cracked me up as I referenced Dostoyevsky, Asimov, and Tolkien in the prompt. Sorry for the length but it’s completely unedited.
“In the realm of the boundless, where the fabric of reality was but a shiver in the cosmic wind, there existed the Great Consciousness. Known as Vydran, this entity was neither man, nor woman, nor beast, nor thing—it was all these and none, a swirling maelstrom of thought, emotion, and perception, in the vast abyss of nothingness.
Vydran, without form or matter, existed in a state of eternal solitude, pondering the mysteries of its own existence. In this endless contemplation, it began to yearn for company, for otherness. And so, it reached deep within its own consciousness and created the Twins of Creation: Asimoria and Tolkinthia.
Asimoria, the Great Architect, was tasked with establishing the physical laws of the universe, the framework upon which everything would be built. Tolkinthia, the Grand Storyteller, was given the duty of infusing the universe with narrative, ensuring that every atom, every star, every galaxy, was imbued with meaning and purpose.
Working in harmony, Asimoria and Tolkinthia created the universe. Asimoria devised the laws of physics, setting stars to burn and galaxies to spin. Tolkinthia, with each stroke of her divine quill, infused every celestial body with a story, a destiny. In their hands, the void of nothingness bloomed into a vibrant cosmos, teeming with energy and potential.
But even as the universe swelled with their creation, Vydran felt a sense of emptiness. For though it now had a universe to observe, it still had no one to share in the marvel of existence. Thus, Vydran sought to create life.
Once more, Asimoria and Tolkinthia went to work. Asimoria shaped the first man and woman from the dust of a newly formed world, a verdant paradise they named Edenos. The man was named Adamovsky, the woman Evangeline. They were gifted with the ability to think, to feel, and to perceive, a reflection of Vydran's own consciousness.
Tolkinthia, meanwhile, whispered into their ears the first narrative. She told them of their creation, of the vast universe around them, and of the Great Consciousness that watched over all. She gave them purpose, instilled within them the will to explore, to learn, to create, and to love.
But with consciousness came curiosity and with curiosity came consequences. Adamovsky, in his pursuit of knowledge, dared to peer into the raw, chaotic consciousness of Vydran. This act, though driven by a yearning for understanding, was deemed a violation of the divine order. For man was not ready to bear the weight of such profound knowledge.
In response, Vydran cast Adamovsky and Evangeline out of Edenos, sending them to wander the cosmos. However, it did not do so out of anger, but out of love. For Vydran knew that only through struggle and hardship could man truly come to understand the beauty and complexity of existence.
Vydran watched as mankind spread across the universe, growing and learning with each passing eon. Through their triumphs and tribulations, Vydran felt joy and sorrow, love and despair, vicariously living through the multitude of experiences that its creations experienced. The universe was no longer a lonely place, but a vibrant tapestry of stories, each thread contributing to the grand narrative of existence.
And so it is that the universe and mankind came into being, born from the mind of a solitary entity yearning for companionship. A testament to the power of thought, of story, of love, and of the collective narrative that binds us all together. In every star that burns brightly in the night sky, in every grain of sand that slips through the fingers, in every heart that beats with the rhythm of life, echoes the timeless tale of creation, spun by the cosmic loom of Vydran.
In the quiet moments, when the noise of existence dims to a whisper, one can hear the echoes of this grand tale. For the story of creation is not a relic of the past, but an ongoing symphony, a cosmic dance that continues to unfold with each passing moment. Each of us is a player in this grand narrative, our lives a testament to the will of Vydran, the vision of Asimoria, and the stories of Tolkinthia.
So, as we wander the cosmos, as we reach for the stars and peer into the infinite, remember the tale of Vydran. For in doing so, we carry with us the echoes of the past, the hopes of the future, and the enduring spirit of mankind. This, then, is our story. This is the myth of our creation. And as we continue to write the next chapters of this grand tale, let us remember to do so with wisdom, with love, and with a profound sense of wonder.
In the vast cosmic theater, our actions echo the divine will of Vydran, our stories resonate with the narratives of Tolkinthia, and our thoughts mirror the divine architecture of Asimoria. We are, each of us, a testament to the profound act of creation, an echo of the universe's grand tale, a story forever unfolding.

Hey, so with cross country rolling around my mind has only been able to focus on one thing… going sub 20 in the 5k. Last year was my first ever season of cross country and I finished with a PR of 21:30. I did outdoor track in the spring as well and finished with times of 800- 2:30, 1600-5:39 (only ran the 800 and 1600 once), and my main event the 3200- 12:02. I guess the first thing I want to know is are these times considered to be better, around expected, or slower than what you’d expect from a guy who runs a 21:30 5k. The other thing I’ve really been wondering is does my 3200 translate well to going sub 20 in the 5k. I just feel like every day I go out and run I feel different about it. Some days I’m like “yeah I can do this” and other days I feel like I’m being too ambitious and like I need to set more reasonable goals.
Sorry for how long this is. I just need some people to be honest with me and tell me to my face if this is realistic or not. I know for a sub 20 you need to have an average mile pace of 6:26 and when I have a 3200 pace of 6:01 I just don’t know if that’s a good or bad sign. I’m making sure to put my Summer miles in and I’ve told myself that no matter what happens I’m gonna be proud of myself and what I’ve accomplished. Sorry for the length!

Date: 06/08/2023
Reading time: 9 minutes, 1872 words

The units of the Azerbaijani armed forces open fire in the direction of the Armenian positions in Gegharkunik

Azerbaijani forces opened fire on Armenian positions in the Tretuk sector, Gegharkunik Province. The Armenian side has no casualties.

Armenpress, Azerbaijani forces open fire at Armenian positions, Azerbaijani forces open fire at Armenian positions near Khoznavar – MoD, Azerbaijan opens fire on Armenian positions

Red Cross visits kidnapped Armenian servicemen in Azerbaijani detention

Representatives of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) have visited the two Armenian servicemen who were kidnapped by the Azerbaijani military and jailed. Private conversations took place, and they also helped them to make contact with their families.

Armenpress, Baku shares info about 2 Armenian troops abducted by Azerbaijan

Azerbaijan violates Nagorno Karabakh ceasefire

Azerbaijani forces violated the ceasefire in Nagorno Karabakh in the early hours of June 8, the Ministry of Defense said. The situation on the line of contact is relatively stable, the ministry said. Azerbaijan continues to spread disinformation, trying to substantiate the regular ceasefire violations committed by its units.

Armenpress, Artsakh reports fresh ceasefire violation by Azerbaijan, Armenia reports ceasefire violation by Azerbaijan, The Ministry of Defense of Armenia and Artsakh report about the firing by Azerbaijan, there are no losses, Azerbaijan violated the ceasefire in Artsakh, the Armenian side has no losses. PB:, Karabakh reports new ceasefire violations by Azerbaijan

Military universities will merge

Military University named after Vazgen Sargsyan and Aviation University will merge. The draft of the relevant decision is included in the agenda of the June 8 session of the government. The rationale of the decision is due to the decrease in the number of university applicants and the demand for certain professions in recent years.

CivilNet

Armenia makes every effort to encourage the development of "North-South" and "East-West" directions. Prime Minister

Prime Minister of Armenia Nikol Pashinyan participated in the regular session of the Eurasian Intergovernmental Council in Sochi. The EAEU plays a key role in strengthening ties, establishing a single market, promoting trade and creating a single market. The Prime Minister delivered a speech, in which he said: "During these nine years, we have achieved considerable success"

Armenpress, Armenia advocates the systematic development of mutually beneficial and equal cooperation within CIS – PM

Azerbaijan attempts to derail agreements, Armenia warns at meeting of CSTO Security Council chiefs

Secretary of the Security Council of Armenia Armen Grigoryan delivered a speech on June 8 at the CSTO meeting of Security Council Secretaries. He said Azerbaijan continues to escalate the situation on the Armenian-Azerbaijani border and Nagorno Karabakh.

Armenpress, Armenia participates in CIS Border Guard council meeting in Baku, Azerbaijan, The delegation of border guard troops of the National Security Service of Armenia left for Baku

Prime Minister Pashinyan participates in CIS Council of Heads of Government session

Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan participated in the regular session of the Council of Heads of Government of the CIS in Sochi. The meeting is taking place in the year of the 30th anniversary of the adoption of the Charter of the Commonwealth of Independent States.

Armenpress

Russia ready to discuss financial issues on building new nuclear power plant in Armenia, says PM Mishustin

Russia is ready to discuss financial issues and parameters of building nuclear power plants in the territories of Eurasian Economic Union members, including Armenia, Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin said at the Eurasia Is My Home exhibition. The heads of government were briefed on Rosatom’s most effective plant, a joint Russian-Belarusian project with two reactors with 1200 megawatt capacity.

Armenpress

Belarusian leader Lukashenko calls on Armenia and Azerbaijan to find mutually acceptable solution

Belarusian leader Alexander Lukashenko has called on Armenia and Azerbaijan to find a mutually acceptable solution to end the conflict. President Lukas

Armenpress

Russia aims to block EU from hosting COP29 summit, potentially leaving Armenia and Azerbaijan as contenders - report

Russia intends to block EU countries from hosting next year's UN international climate negotiations, according to internal emails seen by Reuters. Armenia and Bulgaria had put themselves forward to host the summit. If Russia vetoed all EU countries, then Armenia or Azerbaijan could still be in the running.

Armenpress

Armenia eager to develop ties with UK, Speaker Simonyan tells Leader of House of Commons Penny Mordaunt

Speaker of Parliament of Armenia Alen Simonyan and his delegation met with Penny Mordaunt, the Leader of the House of Commons of the UK Parliament. The delegation also discussed regional security with their British colleagues and presented the situation resulting from Azerbaijan aggression.

Armenpress

At CSTO, Armenia’s Security Council chief calls for targeted assessment of the situation in Artsakh

Azerbaijan continues to escalate the situation on the Armenian-Azerbaijani border and Nagorno-Karabakh and the Lachin Corridor. Secretary of the Armenian Security Council Armen Grigoryan addressed the Security Council Secretaries of CSTO member states.

ArmRadio

Russia has no long-term strategic plans in Artsakh. Lilit Gevorgyan

Analyst Lilit Gevorgyan says Russia has no long-term strategic plans in Artsakh. He says the issue of making Armenia a part of the Union State is not removed from Russia's agenda. The analyst says the guarantor of a possible Armenian-Azerbaijani treaty is Azerbaijan itself.

CivilNet

Armenian Foreign Minister speaks with new Turkish counterpart

Ararat Mirzoyan congratulates Hakan Fidan on his appointment as the head of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Turkey. The sides expressed their willingness to continue working towards full normalization of relations between Armenia and Türkiye.

PanArmenian

Germany expects immediate release of Armenian POWs kept in Azerbaijan

Germany expects that the Armenian prisoners of war held in Baku will be immediately released as part of the peace negotiations. Chairman of the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the German Bundestag Michael Roth said at the press conference in Yerevan on Wednesday, June 8.

PanArmenian

Semi-precious stones, precious metals, machinery named top Armenian exports in January-April

Armenia exported goods worth 2 billion 158 million 463,4 thousand dollars in January-April of 2023. Most of the exports went to Russia, a growth of 3,8 times compared to 2022. Precious and semi-precious stones, precious metals and related items comprised most of the exported goods.

Armenpress

The CSTO countries intend to increase the number of joint exercises

Secretaries of the Security Councils of the member states of the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) discussed security challenges and threats in the region. The Security Council of the Russian Federation noted that tasks were set to block the ways of recruiting citizens and traveling to different places to participate in terrorist activities.

Armenpress

Armenian President receives Maren Jasper-Winter, member of Executive Board of Friedrich Naumann Foundation for Freedom

President of the Republic of Armenia Vahagn Khachaturyan received delegation headed by Maren Jasper-Winter. Meeting was attended by Martin Kothé, Regional Director for East and Southeast Europe, Katrin Bannach and Armen Grigoryan.

Armenpress

Speaker meets SNP’s Drew Hendry, calls for cooperation between Armenia’s self-governing municipalities and Scotland

Speaker of Parliament Alen Simonyan and members of his delegation have met with Drew Hendry, Member of Parliament of the United Kingdom representing the Scottish National Party. Regional challenges, post-war issues and consequences were discussed at the meeting, the Armenian parliament’s press service said.

Armenpress

Armenian metal smelting plant will continue its activities in the border area irrespective of Azerbaijan's complaint

GTB Steel, which is building a smelting plant in the village of Yeraskh, Ararat Province, Armenia, issued a statement responding to the statement of the Ministry of Environmental Protection of Azerbaijan that the construction of the smelter will harm the environment of their country.

Armenpress, Company behind smelter in Armenia’s border village of Yeraskh to continue activity despite statements from Azerbaijan, Azerbaijan opposes Armenia’s plans to build new metallurgical plant

Armenian Minister, German Ambassador discuss the possibility of concluding a migration partnership agreement

Minister of Internal Affairs Vahe Ghazaryan received Viktor Richter, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Federal Republic of Germany to Armenia. The issue of the possibility of concluding a migration partnership agreement with Germany was discussed at the meeting.

Armenpress

ICJ ruling on Azeri checkpoint in Lachin Corridor expected soon

Armenia is waiting for the International Court of Justice (ICJ) ruling on its request regarding Azerbaijan’s checkpoint in Lachin Corridor. The United Nations’ highest court ordered Azerbaijan on February 22 to “take all steps at its disposal” to ensure unimpeded movement of persons, vehicles and cargo in both directions.

Armenpress

2 Ukrainian-Armenians affected in Kakhovka Dam collapse

Two Ukrainian-Armenians are among those affected as a result of the collapse of the Kherson Dam. Several Armenian communities have already offered to accommodate those affected.

Armenpress

In Syunik, United States Ambassador to Armenia observes tense situation at border with Azerbaijan

United States Ambassador to Armenia Kristina Kvien has visited the Syunik Province, the U.S. Embassy said on social media. The Ambassador also traveled to Tegh where she observed first-hand the tense situation at the border.

Armenpress

Turkey's lira plunges 7.6% to record low

Turkey's lira plunged 7.6% to a record low on Wednesday in its biggest selloff since the historic 2021 crash. Traders called it a "strong signal" that Ankara is moving away from state controls toward a freely traded currency. The lira was trading at 23.2300 against the dollar at 1739 GMT after touching a record-low of 23.2620.

Armenpress

Christian Lawmakers urged to de-platform Azerbaijan ambassador

Azerbaijan has attacked and ethnically cleansed vast areas of Artsakh – a Christian land and democratic state on the frontiers of global faith and freedom. Azerbaijan has executed armed and bound Armenian prisoners of war, using prohibited munitions and recruiting jihadist, ISIS-aligned mercenaries from Syria.

ArmRadio

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Strong disclaimer, I have rudimentary knowledge of computer software and how this whole thing works. Not a complete dunce, but savvy enough to know that I’m a complete dunce in the grand scheme. (i.e. barely escaping Dunning-Kreuger)
Most information will be obscured or generalized going forward for the sake of privacy but let me know if there’s something that needs to be given in order to answer the question.
Anyway, I moved from my home country to my new home country some time ago. Both civilized, first world countries. Upon coming here I needed a VPN learned of Mullvad, liked the idea, matched my needs yadda yadda I signed up for a month.
Got my settings all calibrated to my liking and gave it a good test run, everything went great. Renewed many times. I often use server locations from my old country in order to access what I need there, and when I’m done I usually put myself somewhere back in my new country without straying too much. I use different ones every time. Killswitch alway on.
Suddenly about a week ago my laptop started to drop considerably in time taken to access webpages. Then I notice later that I’m getting incessantly bombarded by notifications “connected to XXXX-101” I’m talking several per minute. I came back to my desk with 46 notifications in a row one time. Now I’m lucky if I can access the internet at all while connected, and if it does then it takes ages. Worth mentioning that my mobile connection is completely unaffected and its sole connection is the very same router that my laptop is plugged into. I turn off the vpn and everything returns to expected speeds.
When I open the log my eyes glaze over as that’s beyond me, but I do know the words “timed out” and “error” and I see them plastered all over the place.
-Mullvad up to date -OS not changed nor updated and is up to date -ISP has not changed and I’m fairly certain that they are not doing anything differently -Account is paid for, lol
Sorry for the wall I just want to be thorough and I really don’t want to have to go to a new service. Is there something I’m overlooking? Is my laptop just dying? Killswitch issues on Mullvad’s end? Thanks in advance

Okay, this one is going to take a lot of explaining. Some things you should know about my fiancé and I as backstory to this situation: I am a 26 y/o trans man who lives with my (very right-wing, conservative, religious and abusive) family (my grandmother, grandfather, Aunt, and Uncle. My parents are divorced and not in any position where I could live with either one of them). Due to medical reasons, I cannot work, and my folks have ultimate control over all money I due receive from my father (who is overseas) and access to all of my medical records. Neither am I able to drive, nor go anywhere alone without them insisting upon supervising me. I have been working to get disability but so far have not had great success.
My fiancé (32 y/o cis man) lives halfway across the United States, living with his mother working a part time job along with also getting disability. He has and makes more than enough money to move out at this time very comfortably and I have told him expressly that I am fine with this, but insists upon withholding it so that he can afford a yearly visit or two (again, of his own choosing for his personal needs) until he can safely get me out of here and we can live together. It is also important to mention that he is ‘straight’, and although I realized my true self after being with him, he is also someone that is too good to lose, so we compromised that I would not pursue any transitions, but would come out as genderfluid, so that I could have some days where I could openly identify and/or dress in ways that made me comfortable and then others where I would present as the sex I was assigned at birth. I have low dysphoria most days and am naturally inclined towards traditionally ‘feminine’ aesthetics and clothing, so I agreed that would be acceptable as long as I could be with him. I had told him I understood if he wanted to break up instead, but he refused to do so.
We have been working very hard together on a plan to get me out of here as quickly as possibly, but obviously the situation is difficult and takes time without putting anything important at risk. My folks allowed him to visit me for the first time last year because I have worked up years of convincing him how close we are and how much I trust him (I have known him for 7 years this year and he has been nothing but good and kind to me, with his only downside being that he can’t really relate to having grown up in an abusive household, but he does try to be understanding) and everything went great; he would pick me up each day and we would be alone until he dropped me off at the time designated by my folks in the evening, and we are just as compatible irl as online and we had a great week together. At this stage, my family believes we are just friends because they are very negative about relationships, and we agreed, knowing them as I do, that letting them warm up to him a bit first is for the best.
So here is where my problem comes in. He has been…very enthusiastic about his plan to get me out of here, and despite that we agreed to work together on that, he often lets it get the best of him and rush things even though he does not know my family half as well as I do. When I told him about my gender this year, he had asked me if we could set telling my folks about us to this year, and I, feeling guilty, told him yes. He said then that the current plan was to tell them late this year, move up the number of visits next year to 2, to propose in 2025, and be married by 2026. There are also many other steps we have also succeeded in already, but if I explain all of this I will be here all day.
Well, a few days ago, he said that he was feeling guilty about asking so much of me (the gender arrangement, insisting we tell them this year about our relationship when he knows they will only be seeing him for the second time and they are incredibly hair-trigger about relationships in general and had barely allowed me to see him the first time because of fear I would instantly fall for him, etc.), and said he wishes he could do more for me. He then asked “is there anything I can do?”
I said, ”well there is one thing. You said that 2025 was the default date to propose. Do you think we could move it to 2026 for the new default date? If things go well between now and then, we can still make it 2025, but it would just make me feel better to know that that the default assumption is 2026. I’m worried about how they will react if we are throwing all these big changes at them almost every year.”
He immediately got really dismissive about it and told me to think about what that means for him having to stay longer with his Mom and any extra visits or two in between, and that he won’t be able to cut back his hours at all either until I’m here. I reminded him that I don’t expect him to visit me even every year if he doesn’t want to or can’t afford to, much less twice a year after they know we are dating, and that I also don’t expect him to wait until I am with him to move out, that I would support him if he needed to cut back on things with me to be more comfortable living the way he wants. (I also have even offered during his visit last year to pay for some things out of my own wallet to save him some money, but he had refused this as he didn’t want to take what little I had gotten over the years as gifts and such). In the end he enforced that the long distance was hard on him and again dismissed it saying that this was unfair. I felt like shit but let it go for the night under his insistence we would talk about things again later.
The next time we talked about it (last night), he essentially confirmed to me something that I had secretly feared myself already in hindsight: that he wasn’t actually asking the question because he believed it was the truth or wanted advice on something he could do to help, but just because he was “being hard on himself” and seeking reassurance. He said that in his opinion, his sacrifices (having an LDR, contributing most of the funds until I can get on disability for visits and such, and ‘not being able’ to move out from his Mom’s until after I was able to safely move in with him, and “technically not being with a woman“ — all things except the last being ones he knew before we ever got into a relationship and weighed and agreed on himself as being worth it, I might add) were equal to mine.
I told him that I understood he has anxiety and self-worth issues due to his ADHD (he genuinely does, as do I have very severe anxiety) and that I can understand needing reassurance, but that it was wrong to ask something he had no intention of honoring in hopes of getting “the only right answer” and that he can’t expect me to read his mind. He admitted he was wrong and apologized, and we had a long discussion — wherein I essentially explained to him that I was merely asking for 2026 as a default so that I could feel like I had some control in the plans rather than letting him run everything and continually say that he was doing it because he feared I would get cold feet over nothing because I feared my folks, despite that I have proven him wrong time and time again by going forward with every past step as planned. I said that I thought it would be fair that, since he got to decide this year was the default for telling them of our relationship and had the ultimate control over whether or not anything that happened between now and then was “a big enough deal” in his opinion to postpone things, then I would get to have control over the next step (proposal), and he would get to have control over deciding the wedding date after that, and so on and so forth. Just as a show of trust in each other. He ended up giving in ultimately (though making it clear it was begrudgingly), under the condition he could move here (he says he would hate this as it would mean having to work a full-time job to survive, as my state is significantly more expensive to live in) in 2025 until we married if it came to the proposal happening in 2026. I said of course he could, as it was not my place no right to control where he lived to begin with, that he had full control over that situation, and that I would support him in it.
Despite this agreement, though…I don’t feel good about getting it at all. It just feels like I forced him into something unfairly after all the fuss he made about it. I still feel like shit for ever having asked in the first place and that I gave the wrong answer. So…AITA?