This discussion thread has been set up by the moderators of /JapanTravel. Please stay civil, abide by the rules, and be helpful. Keep in mind that standalone posts in the subreddit must still adhere to the rules, and quick questions are only welcome here and in /JapanTravelTips.

Japan Entry Requirements and COVID Requirements

• Japan has resumed visa-free travel for ordinary passport holders of 68 countries (countries listed here).
• If you are a passport holder of a country not on the visa exemption list, you will still need to apply for a visa. All requirements are listed on the official website.
• Tourists need to have three doses of an approved vaccine or submit a negative COVID-19 test result ahead of their departure to Japan. For the vaccine doses, there are no timing requirements as long as you have three doses of an approved vaccine (see top of page 10 here).
• Tourists entering Japan should get their COVID document checking process, Immigration process, and Customs process fast tracked by filling out Visit Japan Web. This will generate a QR code for Immigration, a QR code for Customs, and a blue "Review completed" screen for COVID fast track (no QR code) once approved. (See below for more info.)
• Travelers connecting through Japanese airports and staying airside for their connection do not need to complete any visa, entry, or COVID procedures.

Japan Tourism and Travel Updates

• As of March 13, 2023, mask usage is left up to personal choice and preferences in many circumstances. The government recommendation will only remain in place for medical institutions, nursing homes, and crowed buses/trains. That said, keep in mind that private establishments can still ask that you wear a mask to enter, and you should be respectful of those types of restrictions. Additionally, Japanese airlines still require masks in most circumstances.
• Shops and restaurants often do temperature checks or require you to use hand sanitizer when entering a building, although you won’t typically be asked for any proof of vaccination.
• Some shops, restaurants, and attractions have reduced hours. We encourage you to double check the opening hours of the places you’d like to visit before arriving.
• There have been some permanent or extended closures of popular sights and attractions, including teamLab Borderless, Shinjuku Robot Restaurant, and Kawaii Monster Cafe. Check out this thread for more detail.
• If you become ill while traveling, please see the instructions in this guide or contact the COVID-19 Consultation Center by phone.

Visit Japan Web Info and FAQs

Visit Japan Web (VJW) is an online document-checking system introduced in December 2022. It allows you to pre-enter all of your Immigration, Customs, and COVID vaccine/test information before arriving in Japan. To make the entry process as smooth as possible and prevent any issues, we recommend filling it out and obtaining the QR codes provided by the service.
Here are some frequently asked questions regarding filling out the VJW sections:
Can I put multiple family members under the same Visit Japan Web account?

All adults should have their own VJW account. Family members on the same account should only be either minors or dependents incapable of filling it out on their own.

How far in advance can I fill out Visit Japan Web?

Officially speaking, you can use Visit Japan Web for trips up until the end of the year following the current year. For instance, in February 2023, you can register a trip with a date up to December 2024. That said, your information will be wiped if you don't sign into Visit Japan Web at least once every 18 months.
Practically speaking, there's no real need to register more than a few months or weeks in advance, as the information gets reviewed and approved within hours or days.

What flight number do I use?

You should use the flight number for the flight landing in Japan. So, for instance, if you have a flight from New York City to Seattle and then from Seattle to Tokyo, you use the flight number of the Seattle to Tokyo Flight. If you are on a codeshare flight, you can use either the carrier you purchased through, or the operating carrier. For instance, if you are on American Airlines #4065 and it codeshares with JAL #001, you can write either "AA 4065" or "JAL 001".

What do I put down for my intended address? What do I do if I'm staying in multiple hotels or accommodations over the course of my trip?

You should use the address and contact information for your first hotel/hostel/Airbnb/etc. You don't need to provide multiple addresses.

On the quarantine procedures page, it has a "Time remaining to complete registration: XXXXXX" notification, but I've already submitted my vaccine certificate and my screen is blue. What do I do?

You don't have to do anything. This timer is for submitting a test for approval, which you don't need to do if you submitted vaccine information. Basically, it's bad design/programming.

Will I still get a "temporary visitor" stamp in my passport if I use VJW? I need it for the JR Pass and tax-free shopping!

Yes, you will still get a temporary visitor stamp in your passport. Tourists who fill out VJW still see an immigration officer at a manned immigration station and receive their stamp.

Quick Links for Japan Tourism and Travel Info

• /JapanTravel Discord
• /JapanTravel Resources Page
• Immigration/Customs Info
• JR Pass Info
• IC Card Info
• Luggage Forwarding Info
• Phone/Internet/SIM Card Info
• Prescription Medication Wiki Page (Recently Updated!)

Hello!
Currently been completely off for two weeks, with a couple of weeks before that with trying and failing to quit but at least limiting consumption.
During the last year and a half I've taught myself a new trade made heaps of contacts and friends in different cities and gotten a steady well paying job, all while smoking every day. The feedback has been overwhelmingly positive, and I'd usually walk home from work feeling like a champ. For context I'm working as a live sound engineer and event organiser, dropped out of my STEM-studies to pursue work in culture, without having any real experience with sound or music beforehand, just a couple of years doing stage setups as a volunteer for shows.
I'd usually start my day brainlessly with a toke, but that would give me the motivation and drive to to do daily tasks as answering emails, doing chores, prepping for the work night and reaching out to people I work/want to work with. And then take a fairly sizable toke before heading straight to work. I'd never bring stuff out of the house.
It'd make me feel focused, reflect on what I want to do and how I want to work , and trying to go the extra mile and taking upon challenges and problems with stride as they come. So many people I've worked with has commended my ability to seem patient, understanding and solution oriented in stressful situations.
Even up until I had to stop because I'd be feeling more shitty, loosing appetite and motivation the last two months, I'd really enjoy and feel benefit from starting my day smoking, but on days without work or meetings and when I'd get home from the job I would not feel good, and smoke too much trying to alleviate this feeling.
I've now worked a couple of nights completely sober, and I really feel the reduced patience, and feeling less open and social. I'm much more critical of requests and changes last minute, and are less polite and understanding toward people I work with. I realise I haven't felt annoyed with people without a very good reason for ages, but now it takes nothing and I feel so critical of others, as well as cynical and passive. It sucks, I feel like my sober self is less of the person I want to be than the person I am when I've just smoked once earlier that day or even just the night before.
I know my brain is exaggerating these thoughts, it will smoothen out as my brain chemistry slowly return to a baseline and the worst symptoms of ADHD become more manageable, but I realise I need other tools and ways to deal with life and be the person I want to be on a day to day basis than just smoking, as it has severe consequences with prolonged use when I'm not able to limit the use.
I took some blood tests earlier this week and my doctor just informed me I have very, very low levels of vitamin D and prescribed some potent meds to get the levels back up quickly. For my sober self it's great to know I've had a reason to feel tired and unmotivated, but now my brain is questioning if it really was the weed that made the first two months of the year a struggle, and not just the lack of vitamin D.
Currently trying to ride this break for as long as possible, reading some litterature my old psychologist recommended me when I saw him last week and trying to figure out why I smoke outside of the "benefits" I've written out above, and figure out tools to that can do some of the same things as my morning and daytime smoking. Sadly my psych is eight hours away and I can only see him a few times a year, so I'm feeling a bit lost and on my own.
I'm impressed and thankful if you'd read this far. Feel free to share your own thoughts, experiences or input.
Cheers

In 2018, u/ncrst_xbox hosted a somewhat giveaway, where you had to submit an essay and the best submissions received rewards. If I remember correctly, he received a surplus of applications, and in 2022 he returned to them and gave me some items after the 4 year wait!
If you're interested, this is my original submission:
Please bare in mind, I was 15 years old.
Hello, I am requesting formally for a donation from you and your questionably large inventory which whom has spent a considerable amount of money on.
The reason I am requesting is because I want to enhance my rl experience alongside the fact my friend always flexes on me. Talking of my friend, he spent 10 keys on 6 tiers when Zenic Official was live and pulled Tw sweeper inverted grip strides, in which I was very annoyed as i was the person who told him about it in the first place.
And I will leave you with this one thought, do you want an innocent youth to be continuously flexed on? Do you want to assist a noob enhance their experience. If so please donate to me.
I remembered about this and set myself a challenge, that being to write a new similar essay. I messaged ncrst, asking for a topic, this is what he sent -
“ The most interesting thing to me rn is how much prices SEEM to have risen on collector items. I think it might just be a bubble, but it could be changing culture, more young rich kids who see digital items as just as legit as real ones. I dunno!”
So with this, I formulated this question, and attempted to write a 500 word essay on it.
The Rise of Collector Items in Rocket League, A comprehensive study.
(1.0) Introduction
This essay will delve into the trading aspect of Rocket League. Particularly, it will seek question into the significant increase in the price of collector items. This surge has raised the question of what factors have led to the escalation in prices of these rare items. With this comes a primary hypothesis which will be reviewed throughout, being that profit traders dictated this influence through a plethora of methods incorporated throughout their trading tactics and techniques. The purpose of this essay is to delve into this hypothesis and explore how this shift has contributed to the rise in prices of collector items in Rocket League.
(2.0) The history of Rocket League Trading
First and foremost, it is critical to define the term “Collector item”. This essay will consider a collectors item, an individual item that is from an original cate series, specifically those with a certification, starting at Champions crates all the way to the final “openable” crate ever released, Vindicator. These items range from exotic wheels, goal explosions, decals, and more.
Historically, profit traders in Rocket League capitalised on the buying and selling of popular items such as Zombas, Octanes, and Fennecs to make a profit. However, as these items have become more readily accessible, through methods such as the item shop, their prices have stabilised, forcing profit traders to look for other avenues to make a profit. It is at this point that these collector items have emerged as a viable option for profit traders to invest their time and money into.
In recent years, specifically since the implementation of the item shop, the prices of collector items in Rocket League have skyrocketed, including items such as decals for the Road Hog, X Devil and even Dominus GT, which were all once considered worthless and “Trade up fodder”. Another explanation, apart from that of profit traders, could be that players may potentially want to have unique and rare items that distinguish them from one another, creating a sense of prestige and exclusivity within these items throughout the market.
Profit traders have taken advantage of this demand for collector items by buying them in bulk and reselling them at a considerable profit. They understand that collectors are willing to pay exorbitant prices for these items, and as a result, have driven the prices of these items even higher. This could potentially be another explanation due to the recent surge of the prices of collector items, making it challenging for collectors to acquire these items at a reasonable price.
In conclusion, the surge in prices of collector items in Rocket League can be attributed to a shift in focus of profit traders from traditional items to collector items. With the increased accessibility and stability of prices of popular items, profit traders have turned to collector items as a viable option for investment. This further drives the rarity of these items driving the price up in a somewhat cycle,and the demand for unique and exclusive items among players have contributed to the significant increase in prices of collector items. As profit traders continue to invest in collector items, it remains to be seen whether this trend will continue or if prices will eventually stabilise. Nonetheless, the impact of profit traders on the Rocket League economy cannot be ignored, and their behaviour will continue to shape the market for years to come.

Hi everyone! I'm looking for suggestions for a computer repair shop in the Erie area. I have an old laptop that has a broken display and I'd like to get all my files/info imported onto my new laptop. I'm looking for somewhere that's trustworthy and isn't going to overcharge me. Any pointers will be greatly appreciated!

Thanks for reading, and for any and all comments!
Hail Blue! Heartfelt (and Voluminous) Thanks are now in the Wiki!
Check out all the stories on Discord.
The Cast / Chapter Links
Just One Drop
CH 77 – The Man in Who these Marvels Can Do
​
It was the day before Shel, and lunch was becoming a more crowded affair.
Since Melondi’s secret had come out, the girls had taken to favoring a mid-sized table that seated twelve – a sensible number. A small affair no more than twenty feet long, the table was well situated, away from the center of the floor and off to one side. That had been useful, as the layout of the cafeteria put the table near the kitchen freezer. There was an awkward chill in that corner of the room which made it unpopular, and without other students about, the table offered relative privacy.
Of course, twelve was ideal, as it conformed to the needs of their class. The girls of the Practical Humanity class had faced more than their share of scrutiny since the term began, and privacy had become a cherished commodity. Whether it was from curious girls wanting to know what the Human was like, to its current, more immediate needs, the isolation of the spot had made the table a welcome retreat.
That said, today it was getting a bit crowded, and with everyone there, an additional three seats had been needed, with girls shoving in from the sides.
Khe’lark’s attachment to Gun’brei… or more accurately, Brei’s attachment to Lark… had started things, of course. There was usually room for one more, certainly if one of the girls was off somewhere else and missing lunch. Since Melondi’s secret had become a shared one, the table had become a place where Mel could, on occasion, talk less circumspectly. While she’d never slipped up otherwise, she could relax and enjoy her friends without being quite so guarded.
Things had been different before, when Brei hadn’t been cleared by Agent Duvari.
Melondi had never resented Brei as an intrusion, but it was a fact of life that she hadn’t noticed before. The ability to talk with her friends, even in the most circumspect way, had replaced her utter secrecy – or worse, the crafted lies about her history. When Brei joined them for lunch, Melondi had to go back into hiding… and Brei’s presence brought with her a visceral feeling of the loss.
When Kzintshki arrived, the twelve and sometimes thirteen turned to thirteen and sometimes fourteen.
The Pesrin girl’s presence was unmistakable. Kzintshkil was… different. It wasn’t only the matter of her being alien – another species entirely, with her own loyalties and agenda. It was more that Kzintshki kept her own counsel, and while Melondi knew how to read people - even people from other races - the Pesrin girl was largely a closed book. It wasn't something she was used to. She was good with reading people, no matter the species. Generally.
…That carrion incident with the Rakiri delegate could have happened to anybody!...
Of course, while it wasn’t always a full table, fourteen was manageable. Today there were fifteen people crowding in for lunch, which was pushing it.
Not that Prindi Ama’dis was unwelcome. The IOTC girl was another friend of Lark’s by way of the campus vblog; thankfully the question of who knew her secret had largely been settled – both by her request, and the actions of her handler, Agent Duvari. Now her friends knew, which was a greater relief than she’d imagined it could be. Professor Warrick knew, and he’d be allowed to tell Professor Pel’avon. He was holding off until they were back from the ‘honeymoon’. It was an odd term for the usual getaway after a wedding, and he’d explained it as something to do with newly wed couples slipping away for a month and drinking a lot of something called mead. Melondi figured she should have a word of quiet thanks to Professor Pel’avon for taking up so much of Professor Warrick’s time… but it would wait until they were back.
Gun’brei had been oddly muted after finding out. While Brei was a baroness’ daughter, Agent Duvari had opted to lay things out to her in private, as ‘she had an abiding interest in the news’. That probably meant several threats behind closed doors, a reading of general order 24, and signing waivers that didn’t mention words like ‘frozen tundra’. They didn’t need to - Duvari tended to make herself clear enough. It was hard to believe the same bubbly music professor could be so frigid as an Agent, but Duvari had no problems with being convincing.
Melondi looked over at Lark and pursed her lips thoughtfully.
…I still need to make things up to her. I don’t know if clearing Brei counts…
That left the IOTC girls, and as she looked up the table at Prindi, it was hard to believe the world she’d crafted here at the Academy had changed so dramatically. As Lark’s friend, Prindi made an easy liaison with the IOTC girls. Even so, it was tight with her here, and if more of them showed up, something would have to give.
She’d planned to tell her friends, someday… After graduation, when she was off on her own, she’d hoped that some of them might still be in reach… and understanding. They’d all be off starting their own lives, working in their House companies, starting careers, or managing the family holdings. Everyone would go their different ways. But her sister Khelandri’s death had changed everything. She could enjoy her friends now, instead of later, wondering if they would still be hers when she revealed herself as a princess.
It was a bright note in a dark situation, and she cherished it for what it was. She had friends. Real friends that had come to know her outside of the Palace, without any agendas… and she had the time – over two more years – before adult life sent them off on their own paths.
…At least, if I live that long…
That was a gloomy thought, and it was hard to hold onto it. She’d only just hung up on a call from Vedeem. Whenever she talked to him, the future didn’t seem so dark. He’d accepted her for who and what she was as a person… and then he’d done it all over again for who and what she was as a Princess.
…Screw Kamaud’re! I want to live!...
“That was Vedeem. He says they’re putting up a sign and closing the restaurant for a week to ‘celebrate the birth of a boy in the family.'Everything’s ready to start the training tomorrow at 9.” She raised her voice over the animated conversations going on. It was lunch, after all, and with all the jockeying of plates and trays and dishes and whatnot, it was a scramble. If any more girls showed up from the IOTC, they’d have to do something… or at least get a round table. No one could reach anything. “Prindi, can you let your cadre know?”
It was bad timing, since the girl just took a bite, but she nodded quickly, chewing frantically.
“Just take it easy…” Mel looked around past the table with an exaggerated glance. “The nod’s all I need, and you’ll like Vedeem… Hands off, though!”
As a young girl, she’d never expected that she’d need to warn anyone away from her boyfriend… when she finally got one, no one would dare. Just now? If all of this felt new to her, it must be like a bucket of icy surf landing on the IOTC girls… and Vedeem was hers!
Prindi finally cleared her throat and nodded again. “Yes, ummm…”
“Melondi,” she offered helpfully. While the IOTC girl had been giving her curious looks now and then, she’d tried her best to hide them. She still looked like she was struggling. “Remember, it’s just Melondi.”
“Yes…” The idea of calling a Princess something informal looked like it was sticking in the girl’s throat, and she took a way out. “I’ll let them know after lunch.”
“Thank you!” Mel called back. It was something Mother had always insisted on and Lady Wicama had taught her well. Good manners were for everyone. It had even seen her through that carrion incident, though she hadn’t even been five at the time…
…Come to think of it, it was Kamaud’re who ‘helped me out’… and was laughing the loudest…
She felt an ugly blush start to rise, but it faded just as quickly. She’d never known her elder sister except as a distant figure, not a part of her life, really. Even without the attempt on her life, It had grown a lot easier in the last few months not to care for Kamaud’re at all.
The table didn’t take much notice. Jax was in an animated conversation with Nestha about business, while the twins were actually giggling about something. Most of the talk had been about class, though Belda was getting a lot of ribbing and good natured pokes from the others. Tonight was the big night, after all. Even Kzintshki was quietly talking to Desi about the weekend. As the outsider, Prindi seemed to be struggling to fit in, though she hid it well.
“I’m glad you could join us, Prindi,” Melondi offered brightly, trying to keep the girl from feeling too isolated. “I know we sort of keep to ourselves; there was a lot of attention after we got into Professor Warrick’s class. It was a little rough after registration, and you wouldn’t believe some of the questions we got after he did the Marriage Fundamentals seminar.”
“That was rough.” Sephir nodded. “I had one girl ask me if he had any boys in his family, and when they’d be coming. That was pretty embarrassing.”
“Embarrassing?” Prindi blinked doubtfully as she reoriented on Sephir. At 6’11, it seemed impossible to miss the girl. Sephir was a star of the Academy diving team with muscles like titanium cables, but she was so polite and unassuming that it often came as a surprise when she spoke up in conversation. She’d been a lot happier since her future in her House had been sorted, though, and at the moment she was grinning cheerfully at the bewildered look on Prindi’s face.
Prindi cocked her head uncertainly. “How was it embarrassing?”
“Oh… It's just… his wife and his daughter were killed when the Imperium arrived on Earth.”
Belda winced, but still looked relieved at no longer being the center of attention; at least she’d finally stopped blushing.
“Professor Pel’avon asked us not to talk about it at first,” said Sephir with a nod. Even if she looked like a recruiting poster for the Marines, she was a caregiver at heart, and had always shied away from talking about what Warrick called ‘the landings.' “Professor Warrick… Well, you can tell it still hurts him.”
“Yeah,” Nestha chipped in. “He’s smart… and a lot tougher than you’d expect. You just can't think of him as a male.”
“Human male.” Desi broke off her conversation with Kzintshki. “There’s a whole lot going on with him that even the rest of you don’t see. He and I talk a lot at the museum.”
“Is it true he adopted both of you?” Prindi asked, looking from Desi to Kzintshki and back, Melondi forgotten for the first time. “We all heard things and there were a lot of questions after the wedding… I mean, like the dancers! Where did they even come fr-“
“Yes, it's true! Both of us!” Desi broke in abruptly, interrupting Prindi’s train of thought, and Mel started breathing again. If word got out about the Tide Pool, it would probably need more than a General Order and a very angry Interior Agent to keep quiet. Desi was nodding frantically as she enthusiastically changed the subject. “We don’t talk about the wedding, but it's true! It became official when Professor Pel’avon married him. They’re my mothers and father, now.”
“Wow, that’s…” Prindi’s brows knitted a bit as she struggled with the whole wedding. Sure, the whole school had seen it, but the response had been more of a collective silence from around the table. Prindi took the hint and offered a smile. “So… What do you talk about, then? I mean, if not the wedding? What about this war sim? The rest of the cadre couldn’t believe it! I hope we weren’t whispering too loud. Most of us were glued to our omni-pads, gossiping on our Discuss channel. Everybody wants to know more… I can't wait to go through these files!”
“We don’t talk about the war sim. We have team meetings, but aside from those, we don’t. There’s a lot of extra credit on the line,” Dihsala said firmly, giving her a solid nod. “None of us know what’s on those files, though we had an exchange professor that… well, I don’t think she understood the material.”
“Careful, Dihsala, you’re in danger of being kind,” Pris muttered, though there wasn’t any heat in it.
Dihsala sniffed, but said nothing.
Pris pressed on, waving her fork-full of pickled jawaa like a baton. “She’s right, though. None of us know what's in the files, and we probably shouldn’t. Professor Warrick uses this method of teaching… It’s sort of like discovering the material a bit at a time and figuring it out as we go.”
“That sounds… really odd.” Prindi was canting her head fully now, and Mel could just imagine what the girl was thinking. It had been an adjustment. The IOTC girl looked back at Desi, “Sorry. It just does.”
“You don’t have to convince me.” Desi nodded sympathetically, wearing an easy smile. “Once you get used to muppets and furbys-”
“Oh! And ALF!” Jax’mi, broke in, laughing.
“And his music, though that’s really good,” offered one of the twins, as the other nodded. “And we get free movies - things that haven't made it here from Earth yet!”
“It’s a lot, but after a while nothing phases you.” Desi grinned infectiously. “Oh! Mel! Do we know if Aku is going to make it to… you know… the event?”
“I’ll have to ask.” Melondi shook herself out of the reverie of listening. “I know the invitation is getting sent. We can find out tomorrow.”
“Oh…Right.” Desi nodded, but looked back at her plate, subdued. No one knew they were going to the Palace tomorrow except Agent Duvari, who was going to escort them, and Desi was still looking pretty shy about the prospect. Still, everybody else had practice at Human Food…
“There was something we’re all kind of curious about, from the sim… I mean, it's not to do with the sim.” Prindi bit her lip, looking around as the table went suddenly quiet. “We all knew about Earth - I mean, he’s Human. Not about his family, but… things. Anyway, some of us were wondering, and now I guess I really am… umm… why doesn’t he hate us like we're some sort of enemy? There are stories, you know?”
“Desi?” One of the twins looked over at her seriously, setting aside whatever they’d been laughing about. Her sister sniffed, a beat behind. “You know him best.”
“Well, obviously he doesn’t. Hate us, I mean. I think he really means it about the Imperium making Humans citizens. Something he said once kind of stuck with me.” Desi grimaced in thought. “He said he didn’t think of the Imperium as his enemy, because the enemy is someone that tells you to hate that which is different from you, because sooner or later that hate comes back to you… and he said the Imperium hasn't done that.”
“We have kind of messed up there,” Jax’mi sighed unhappily. “I mean, all the news I get back from my family on Earth is great! I had the best letter from my Uncle… but my mothers told me stories. Some of the Houses first gifted with business grants on Earth abused them pretty badly. Not a lot, but the ones that did… Well, it wasn’t just one mess. A couple of the Houses got really carried away, and it took a while to sort out.”
“That sounds like a job for the Interior! The Imperium doesn’t tolerate… umm… that is…” Prindi sat a little taller, and her eyes shone with conviction before she stuttered to a halt, blushing as she glanced back to Melondi. “We’re supposed to stop that sort of thing.”
Mel watched as an awkward silence fell around the table, broken only by Kzintshki slicing away bits of her turox with another of her occasional mutters of “Ick”. It wasn't like she could entirely blame them.
The Empire needed the Interior. There were the boisterous and splashy ones, like House Reshay. There were the quietly dutiful ones, like Belda’s House So’sona and the pharmacological company run by Sephir’s House. There were the quietly powerful ones in the background like House Chel’xa… All of them working at what they did best… but sometimes there were incidents. Bad matrons who lost control of their ambitions. The Empire was vast, and when the Houses couldn't police themselves, it was time for the Empress to do it. That's where the Interior came in.
Mother had been working to rein the Interior in, over time… to bring it back to its core mission. She didn’t talk about it very much, but growing up she’d seen it happen. She could still remember the rumblings in court when she named Opimea Potac - an Edixi - to run the Ministry of Justice. People had said things around a six-year-old they didn’t think would be understood - or remembered - even by a six-year-old Princess. As for her cousin Yn’dara and Prince Adam… It had taken time, but Mother had gotten things under control.
…If only she were here now… but she isn't. I have to handle this myself…
That meant she needed the Interior… someday. Right now, she needed these cadets. Glancing down the table, Desi caught her eye and suddenly snorted. “Seriously, Kzintshki!? What is it with ‘ick’ all the time? You were ready to eat my father alive only a month ago. Now you turn your nose up at anything sweet or fatty? When did you turn into a picky eater, for goddess’ sake!”
“You do not understand. Food is plentiful here. That is understood…” The dusky Pesrin set aside her cutlery and eyed Desi coolly. “You have never seen a fat Pesrin.”
“No…” Desi rocked her head to one side, in exasperation. Kzintshki had a way of making statements out of questions. “But I’d never seen a Pesrin at all, until we met you. What's that got to do with it?”
“Shil and its worlds live without scarcity. Pesh does not. You will never will see a fat Pesrin.” Kzintshki replied cooly, blinking at Desi once. Melindi couldn't decide if the Pesrin girl was exasperated or amused without seeing her tail… her asiak. It was hidden under the table, but it seemed like it conveyed a lot of Pesrin body language - or maybe it was just Kzintshki. “Wasting food when it is plentiful is as much of a sin as wasting food when it is scarce.”
“I suppose…” Desi chewed over the idea while the rest of the girls thought it over.
“Besides, I have my figure to consider.”
“Hey, that’s true. I’ve been worried about everything for tonight!” Belda grinned suddenly. “So, are there any cute Pesrin guys around?”
“Perhaps... though I would not impress him if I were slow and fat.”
Mel thought over the reply. The pause was longer than the Pesrin girl usually took to answer, and she wasn't blinking. Sooner or later she’d figure her out. For the moment she watched as Kzintshki picked up her knife and fork, and cut away another bit of turox with particular deliberation. “Ick…”
“So… you girls get free movies, too?” Prindi asked the twins, looking between the pair tentatively, “Stuff that hasn't come out yet? What’s that like?”
“A lot, yes. The Ministry of Relations closed down on a lot of entertainment from Earth. It’s opening back up, but Professor Warrick has a lot of things no one has seen,” offered one of the K’herbhal sisters. Her twin nodded in sync. “Even with things opening up, they’re still screening for, you know…”
“Treason?” Prindi nodded understandingly.
“Porn!” The twins said in unison, giggling. “Not that we mind, though you could ask Belda for all the details. She’s seen Liam with his shirt off!”
“Goddess damn-it!” Belda started turning blue all over again. “It was only almost off! Almost!”
“You know, we could put off movie night until tomorrow. We can bring food back after training in the morning. Take over the room, have a movie marathon and celebrate,” Pris spoke up. “That way Belda can watch, too!”
“Hey, could you?” Belda grinned. “That would be great!”
“Sure… aaaaand that way we get to drag all the juicy details out of you, too!” Pris smiled back serenely. Melondi watched as Belda started blushing again, and muttered as the others laughed. Goddess love her, Bel was such a farmgirl.
“Ummm… what kind of movies?” Prindi asked, brushing her hair back. “Could I come?”
_ _ _
“You know, this is going to sound odd, but I kind of miss driving," Tom said, leaning back in his seat between Miv and Lea.
It was a comfortable way to ride, and the company was the best. Even with an alien landscape speeding by, it was the oddest feeling. Until he’d come to Shil, he’d always been the one doing the driving. Autocabs were quick and efficient, and other than his regular trip out to Human Food, it wasn't like he knew where things were on Shil… but it felt odd.
“You don't have a license.” Miv tousled his hair, looking at him indulgently while Lea curled in tight on the other side. She was happy as a clam they were all together, but she cocked her head, looking at Miv. “It's only a few weeks of study, if you want to get one.”
“Nah. It was just a stray thought. I’m good with being able to pay attention to you two, and it’s nice actually seeing the world go by.” He pulled them both closer, which Miv enjoyed, and made Lea squeak in pleasure. Lea had been a real princess about the lack of attention and she loved sharing with Miv, but with her work out in Creantauri, what could you do? He smiled and leaned in, kissing her lightly on the neck. This weekend would be all about making it up to them both.
Speaking of which, they were just about there…
The drive had given him ample time to cuddle up with Miv and Lea, which had been a lot of fun - but also just the distraction he’d needed. He’d tossed a jacket over the seatback showing the map display, but as the autocab turned into their destination, there was nothing for it…
“Miv, what’s this?” Lea was the first to notice, and she stared out the window as the cab turned in. Jets of brightly lit water began fountaining up on either side of the cab as it made its way up the long drive, the highway quickly out of sight.
Miv’eire pulled his coat off the seat to peer at the map and frowned in consternation as she looked at the display, “This is all wrong.”
“Actually, no, it isn't.” Tom grinned, pulling her back. “We’re exactly where we need to be.”
“But Tom, this isn’t our hotel!” Miv stared at him blankly, “Oh, love, you must have put the directions in wrong.”
“I canceled us there. Ladies, remember when you were going to take me on a holiday for a weekend? The one we missed thanks to my unscheduled trip to the hospital?” He grinned, enjoying their confusion. Lea was still looking out the window as the view turned from ‘impressive’ to ‘luxurious’ and was quickly heading for ‘‘opulent’. “When I was in recovery, I asked Prince Adam for three favors. Pushing through Desi’s adoption was one… looking into Olea was another… and a weekend somewhere nice to make it up to you both was number three.”
Tom drew Miv back into the seat beside him and slipped his arm back around Lea as she pressed to the window, the drive opening out on the broad vista and the hotel beyond. “Ladies, welcome to the Imperial Ocean Reserve.”
_ _ _
Following at a covert distance, and it had still been an easy drive. With an hour or two left to go, Sgt. Jel’ke had done the driving, leaving Captain Ce’lani to do the sensible thing and get some sleep. Honestly, it was kind of a relief. The Captain had been keyed up over Warrick, and after finally getting out of the bunker it was nice not to make small talk.
Thank the goddess the woman was sensible, but even so, she still had it bad…
…At least I haven’t had to make small talk along the… waitaminute…
Jel’ke frowned as the autocab turned in off the highway and pulled slowly on to the median. There was no doubt about it, the cab had diverted off the drive and was heading out of sight into…
…Well, fuck me…
Being a Deathshead Commando meant being down in the blood and the mud, deployed to some of the worst situations known to woman… but, every so often, it also put you in the way of protecting the great and the powerful.
Jel’ke knew Big Money when she saw it.
“Captain? You need to wake up.” Jel’ke pulled to a stop on the shoulder of the road, “I think we have a problem.”
_ _ _
It was early afternoon when Aku closed the file on his omni-pad.
The end of his tour had passed. He’d survived… at least on the outside. It wouldn't do to look anything less than your best, after all.
On the inside was another matter. His mistress, the Cliffsinger Tranja, had torn apart his every performance from the time he stepped on stage until the final note. Nothing was right. Nothing was good enough. While she hadn’t said he was an embarrassment as an initiate, she hadn’t needed to. The words had hung in the air - tangible, if unspoken.
This was his life.
Sitting in the dark of the enclave’s library, he thought about the tour. It had been an abject misery. If not for Kas’lin and Ka’mara, he’d probably have lost his mind under the pressure.
…If only things were different. I could be a regular guy. Maybe I could have met them instead, or someone like them! Started a family and lived a normal life…
His eyes crept back to his omni-pad. As miserable as he was at that moment, he knew he was telling himself a lie. Even if it had all been different, there was still the music. It burned inside, begging to be let out, and he yearned to make it happen. Even though his mistress seemed determined to sink his hopes into the Deeps, there was still the music. It could not be denied.
He’d kept away from the other initiates after returning to the enclave. They were his competition. He couldn’t see them as anything else, now… but inside it felt like a losing battle. Only one of them would inherit their mistress’ position and title, and it didn't seem likely that it would be him.
In desperation, he’d turned to the archives.
Cliffsinging was old. It was respected. Revered. Generations upon generations of Singers had practiced their art, handing down their names. Over time, the art had become codified… the Singers had become living treasures… but the original works survived. Every generation had added something of their own.
He’d delved deep into the stacks, diving through the recordings, searching the early works. There were files and archives and even printed records… He’d torn through all of them, not knowing what he was looking for until he’d found it.
The song was old - ancient, even - and written by one of the Singers whose name had not become selected as the final Twelve of Shil. The music was haunting, and it burned with a vibrancy that he didn't see in the more modern works - the kind of thing so often in demand now. There was almost no music - the singer's voice rang out alone, echoing off the cliffs accompanied only by a single steel arecha… but the song spoke to him.
The language was stilted with age, but as he’d translated it into more modern terms, it felt comfortable… it had the yearning that he felt inside, and which almost seemed Human in its power as he transcribed and updated it for his presentation.
It was traditional. It was very traditional. If he was going to reclaim his Mistress’ approval, this was what he needed.
He’d give his performance tonight, in front of his Mistress and the others. Show them he was good enough. Show her that he was better than the rest.
The music called and he had to answer.
Aku sighed again, wondering what the twins were doing at school right now. It had to be better than here.
_ _ _
“You are being such a bitch!” Kas’lin said hotly, scowling over the table at Dihsala. Ka’mara scowled over at the girl before joining in. “She’s right. There’s no call for this kind of behavior!”
“You two brought it on yourselves!” Dihsala crossed her arms defiantly, while Desi slumped the chair, resting her head on one fist, and steadfastly refused to join in.
“What are you talking about!? You’re twisting our arms… and… AND! you’re sucking up to Jax’mi!” Kas’lin was on her feet now, pointing at Dihsala, and Kas’lin rose in defense. There wasn't much more she could add to that.
“I don’t suck up to anyone!” Dihsala snapped coldly, though Jaxmi sat back, preening. It was the first happy look on the Chel’xa girl's face, as she’d been left desperately trying to keep the Japanese out of some city called Mecca. “You two brought it on yourselves, sucking up to England with that marriage proposal. You didn't want to join in, so this is what you get for coming late!”
“There’s nothing to get.” Kas’lin swept a hand up at the map on the screen. “They’ve completely swept everything out of Africa!”
“Well, that’s what you get for joining late. Anything you want to take, you can take out of France,” Dihsala said with finality. “Isn't that right, Lark?”
Khe’lark was looking at her omni-pad unhappily, saying nothing. Dihsala turned to look at her this time. “Lark?”
“It’s fine… Really…” Lark said unhappily.
“What?” Dihsala started to frown, and Desi sat up taking notice. “What’s ‘fine’?”
“Well, I didn't want to tell you this… but I think the Czechs are going to declare independence and revolt…”
Kas’lin closed her eyes and settled back in her chair.
The casualties for everyone along the French front lines had been catastrophic, the Spanish were useless, and now things were going to the Deeps with Austria…
…The things I do for extra credit…
_ _ _
“Well, I think the points we spent working on the Czechs and the Slovenes are paying off handsomely,” Let’zi said confidently, though the look around the table wasn’t encouraging.
“At least something is.” Pris grimaced, gesturing up at the map. “I hate to say it, but I don’t think France can last much longer.”
“She’s right. Rotating units up from the South kept the Germans out of Paris,” Sephir sighed gloomily. “But morale was shot with the units we rotated back South. We hoped they’d recover, but with Spain and Italy attacking? Unless we catch a break, I think our whole army will mutiny soon.”
“They can’t keep it up. They’ve lost all their colonies, now they have to fight in every direction at once.” Let’zi shook her head and tried sounding confident, though it was dimmed. “They can't do it. No one could!”
“She’s right, and England is mobilized now.” Melondi studied the map carefully, “Japan is all over the Ottomans in the South. Russia is… well… holding their own…”
“I’m doing the best I can…” Nestha huffed, crossing her arms. “Though yeah, the Ottomans are turning around and sending troops back South.”
“That’s right,” Melondi said brightly. “Besides, now we have Belda on our side!”
The girls looked over at Belda… who was staring off into space in a world of her own.
“Look, let’s call it a day. Bel has to go get dressed.” Mel grinned as Belda looked up, utterly lost. “She’s got a big evening.”
_ _ _
“Lieutenant, you aren't going to believe this…”
Lt. Peheli Tala looked over from the control board warily to where Sgt Diani was sitting in the right seat at observation. The bunker pods were all jumbled up with Captain Ton’is and Sgt. Jel’ke out on their trip, leaving Tala to fill in. It was a nice change of pace from running checks in the service corridors and updating the gear in the bunker.
Diani had been running the boards while telling long war stories to Sgt Vaeko, who was busily running the odds on that morning’s ‘wargame’ while monitoring the girls’ strategy sessions.
Words like that out of nowhere were not what she’d wanted to hear.
Diani and Vaeko had been keeping up a constant stream of conversation, both talking and only mostly listening to the other. It was enough to make her miss the quiet of the tunnels, and she’d started to tune out the idle chatter. Diani’s words snapped her back to reality in an instant, her heart pounding.
“Report Sgt!” Tala snapped the words out, but she was already pulling up the campus map on the main board, checking frantically for any sitreps from the ground team. No alarms had gone off yet, but it was probably only seconds away.
…Where's the alarm? Why hasn't anyone punched the alarm!? I’ll have to call Agent Duvari, and…
“It’s Captain Ton’is and Jel’ke.” Diani had a cheesy grin plastered over her wide features. “They need us to make some calls and get em a hotel room… You aren’t gonna believe where.”
Tala could feel her heart thudding in her chest. No alarms had gone off. There was no intrusion along the perimeter…
“A… a what?”
_ _ _
The Imperial Ocean Reserve was everything that Tom could have hoped for. It was old by Shil’vati standards, but that didn't mean tired. It meant historic, and walking into the lobby conjured up images only found in history books. The Reserve was a place where parasols graced the lawns in Summer and moonlight walks on the open beach were the norm. On Earth, it was the sort of place you could envision steamer trunks and top hats.
There were three restaurants along the veranda, and a bar, shops, and sumptuous indoor pool that served guests all year long. The hotel was vast. Not in the sense of catering to all comers, but spacious. It occupied its grounds like a crowning jewel.
As for their room?
It had a luxurious bed he could get lost in, more than capable of sleeping six Shil’vati. While he usually wasn’t big on the details, even he noticed the richly embroidered linens, what seemed like down pillows, the plush towels in the marble bathroom, well-stocked bar, and an in-room omni-pad to call for room service and requests.
That the whole suite lay beneath the ocean, with a glass roof and walls looking out from their bedroom at the surrounding coral reef, didn’t hurt either.
It was quite a place, but as the girls got started with the unpacking, he slipped out. It had always been his habit to poke around, and finding the best place for dinner reservations seemed like a good idea. A few minutes scouting out the restaurants would save time later…
At least, that had been the idea. The verandah surrounding the hotel proper had a lovely view directly off the beach, and as anyone would expect, it drew admiring guests… One of which happened to be Lady Vonde, the Duchess of House Jo’lare.
Tom hadn't seen the woman since Pre-term, when she’d attached herself to him in the tour, insistently tried to get him to ‘come for a visit,' and pinched his ass while showing her daughter around the campus. She’d been noteworthy in managing to do it more discreetly than most, but still…
Just at the moment Lady Vonde was in a shouting match against someone named Duchess Pyanfar, who’d swarmed down on him only a minute before Vonde. Pyanfar had started in on him with her retinue, breathlessly cooing about how charmed she was to meet him and wanting to hear all the details about Human marriages, and of course, she’d seen the captivating video on the news. It was just sooo rustic, positively enthralling, going native like that!
But Vonde spotted him and wasn’t having any of it, loudly insisting that he’d agreed to visit, and did Pyanfar know who she was!? Then her retinue started pushing Vonde’s retinue, while a crowd started to gather around the scene…
Tom was the only non-Shil in the room, and being 6’2 and pink, it wasn't easy to make himself invisible. He still did his best, though it was more a testament to the crowd of angry retainers around Vonde and Pyanfar that he got as far as the door of the bar. He kept his eyes behind him on the crowd as he made a break for it, barging first into a glass followed by a massive pair of breasts…
“Oh! Geeze…” Tom stepped back, “I’m terribly sorry Miss…”
A meaty hand clamped down on his arm painfully, and Tom looked up into the ruddy face of Tirola Reshay, Nestha’s kho-mother.
Disheveled and stinking of alcohol,Tirola wasn't in good shape. She’d emerged from the bar with her own crowd of hangers-on, including a Shil’vati guy hanging on her arm, and while she’d somehow managed to hang on to her glass, the collision had drenched her top in Blue Grail. Her eyes widened as she looked down at him and she growled, “You!!!”
…Alright, she isn’t in a good mood, though the last time I saw her she’d been unconscious in a pool of her own vomit…
Tirola made the mistake of clamping down harder, and Tom cried out in pained surprise. “Hey, get your damn hand off me!”
“Oh, you’re coming with me." Tirola tugged him closer…
Tom’s fingers spread and he jabbed. The strike was clumsy and he was off balance, but as eye-pokes went, it did the job.
Tirola let go of him and bellowed, her hand flying to one eye. The skinny guy thrown off her arm shrieked in bantam fury as he was thrown to the ground.
Then things got a little crazy.
_ _ _
Sgt. Jel’ke knew Big Money. She also knew when Big Money was fobbing her off. Thus far, they’d made it to the lobby and the reservation staff.
The ‘request’ had come down through official channels, but the Manager wasn't happy about it. Despite some ever-so-polite words, it seemed another call eventually came through and did the trick. The Manager accepted their story, and started offering over a room key with only a trace of disdain…
Out in the lobby, there was a scream.
It was followed a minute later by the sight of Tom Warrick pelting up the hall at a dead run and ducking into one of the gift shops, pursued by several mobs of women caught up in fighting each other as much as chasing after him.
“Captain, I-”
It was no use. Ce’lani Ton’is had already charged, and was racing across the lobby in hot pursuit. Glancing down at their meager baggage, she had the presence of mind to snatch the key from the Manager’s hand before she could take it back.
Somewhere up the hall Ce’lani bellowed.
Moments later a thunderous crash rumbled from somewhere up the hall. It was followed by the sound of delicate things breaking, considerably more shouting, and a soft cloud of plaster dust that gently wafted around the corner.
Jel’ke turned to the wide-eyed receptionist behind the counter and gave him a rakish smile. “So, what time is dinner?”

Up until now, I’ve only done one-shots on this sub. This, however, is the beginning chapter of a long space-opera sci-fi writing project I have been working on for several months now, an expansion of sorts of a one-shot story I posted in reply to a prompt from WritingPrompts.
I’m currently almost 60k words into it at the time of writing, and am planning on publishing it in full as a novel when I’m done, but I haven’t really shared it with anyone outside my immediate family, a couple friends, and the good people of HumansAreSpaceOrcs.
I don’t know how often I’ll be uploading these, especially given that I’m still not done with it, and have little free time to spend on writing these days; all the same, you can expect plenty of entries over the next few weeks.
And while yeah, the title doesn’t make much sense for the moment, trust me, it will. …Eventually. …After several chapters. Nervous smile
Anyway, free to leave your thoughts, any constructive criticisms, etc in the comments. And as always, I hope you enjoy :)
——

CHAPTER 1

Her arm hurt.
She was so, so tired...
Her arm hurt.
She was numb to the cold at this point, but kept shivering anyway.
Her arm hurt.
The only thing close to heat that she felt was the inflammation that was serving to add more throbbing pain to her arm.
…Which hurt, in case that wasn’t clear.
She turned her head to look at it, wincing from the pain the movement caused. It was ugly to behold, with a ragged stab wound in the muscles of her forearm near the elbow that was still slowly trickling blood, but that wasn’t even the worst part of it. She knew from experience that the needle-sharp pain she felt with every slight movement meant that some bone in there- probably the radius or ulna- was also either hairline-fractured or broken entirely.
…And just in case you weren’t aware, fun fact:
It hurt.
A lot.
The pain was only exacerbated by the swollen tissues and irritation around the stab wound that she knew meant it was definitely infected- with what, she could only guess. Whatever it was, she could feel the fever it was causing having a desperate tug-of-war with the cold autumn air to determine her body temperature.
When she couldn’t stand to look at it any longer, she leaned her head back, resting it against the dew-filled grass of the ditch she was lying in and looking up at the star-filled night sky that was slowly lightening to that hue of dark indigo that meant dawn was close, but not quite there.
She used to think the stars were beautiful. But as she lay there, the dreadful memories of what had led to this moment playing over and over in her head… Suffice to say, nothing in this world or outside of it seemed beautiful anymore.
She put the aesthetics of the sky aside and instead struggled to focus her thoughts through the haze of fatigue and pain.
Dawn approaching… That has to mean I’ve been laying here… Jeez, it must be almost an entire day at this point. …I think. It hasn’t been multiple days, surely… Or maybe it’s been-
…Oh, to hell with it. I don’t even care at this point…
She was too tired to sleep, but in too much pain to move. Her brain was fogged from fatigue, and even more so from the constant screaming coming from her nerve endings, desperately trying to let her know that yes, something was very wrong with her arm, she got it, thanks for the message, you can stop now-
…But mostly, the fog stemmed from that draining emotional and mental exhaustion that came with periods of grief. A single tear ran down her face from her already overworked tear ducts, nearly reaching the bruises on her neck before it was wiped away by the shaky fingers of her good arm.
The sky would be there for her to look at later. She needed to try (yet again) to rest, just one more time.
“You know what they say,” she murmured to herself. “76th time’s the charm.”
Delirious with exhaustion and the fever as she was, she couldn’t help herself from chuckling at the thought. Her eyes, bloodshot and burning from the strain she had endured, lazily looked around at what few constellations she could recognize for one last time, and spotted the pattern of Orion in the night sky.
Hey big O, close the door on your way out, eh? I’m gonna try and take a snooze.
She snorted, wincing as she did.
…Finding my own jokes funny. Jesus, I am delirious…
She turned her head to the side and closed her eyes, willing herself to please, please just go to sleep already, because sleep meant being unconscious, and being unconscious meant she could ignore the pain from her arm for a while. And to her surprise, she finally started drifting off. Her breath slowed, the fog visible in the cold air in front of her mouth coming less and less often as she drifted closer to the edge of unconsciousness.
As a result, she barely even heard the soft humming noise approaching, and almost didn’t feel herself being gently, almost imperceptibly lifted off the ground. When she noticed it, what parts of her mind that were still semi-conscious brushed it off as either a dream or hallucination, and slipped behind the wall of sleep…
…For all of two minutes. She wasn’t getting off that easy.
She was jolted awake by a sudden feeling of what could only be described as compression across her whole body, though “compression” hardly did it justice; It was as though she were being squeezed through a drinking straw. …Yet before she could react, the feeling was over.
Her eyelids fluttered open, revealing a dimly-lit room, alive with that same strange humming noise from before. She crinkled her nose at the smell that assailed her nostrils. It was strange, like a combination of various industrial cleaners, engine grease, and ozone. She rubbed her eyelids before she groggily looked around, confused. Where was she? She turned her head and saw a very strange-looking machine that was seemingly floating in midair. She craned her neck, looking past it, and her eyes widened at what she saw glowing through a small, circular viewing window in the nearby wall.
Was that- …Earth?
She slowly, gingerly sat up, wincing from the protests her arm gave at her daring to do such a thing. It took everything in her, but she slowly dragged herself closer to the window, peering out at the planet slowly circling in the void below her. There was no doubt about it, that was Earth. She recognized North and South America, Greenland, even a portion of the northern Arctic. She could even see all the wildfires burning as a result of-
…Well, everything collectively hitting the fan in the past week.
Tilting her head, she could see the exterior of the… building? Satellite? Space station? …Whatever it was she was apparently on, that was outside the window. Gun-metal gray and covered in strange symbols in a language she didn’t recognize, it was unlike anything she’d seen before- and it wasn’t alone.
She saw several other similar… things, floating nearby. They ranged in size from the relatively small, around the size of a house, to absolutely massive ones that she estimated must be miles across. She shook her head in disbelief and laid her head back down on the cold metal floor.
Ok, scratch that, she was obviously still asleep; after all, this had to be the weirdest dream she’d ever had…
Suddenly, a scraping, screeching noise rang through the room, startling her. She looked around and saw a tall, lanky, shadowy figure entering the room they were in as it finished sliding open the metal door that was the source of the noise. Without warning, the room was aglow with a bright light from overhead, causing her to wince and close her eyes. She rubbed her eyelids again, trying to ignore the irritation the action caused, and looked back at the figure, eyes widening as they adjusted to the light- and then even wider, as she froze in place with a gasp at what she saw.
The… creature standing over her was like some horrific combination of a reptile and insect. Its frame was slim and bipedal, with limbs proportioned far longer than any normal human. It towered over her, easily seven feet tall or more. Its head was like that of a praying mantis minus the antennae, with three chameleon-like eyes. The first eye was symmetrically centered in the forehead, the other the two mirrored on the sides of its head where the temples on a human head would be, and all three were very intently focused on her. On its face was a glowing, bioluminescent set of growths all down the front, forming a v-shaped, curving pattern that almost looked like a deranged smile, but its real mouth hid behind a pair of razor-sharp mandibles on its jawline that clicked together a few times as she watched.
Its hide was dark gray and shiny, almost metallic, somewhere between reptilian scales and an insectoid carapace, and generally looked like it would be at home in an H.R. Giger painting. The bioluminescent growths on its face continued down to its torso in three vertical, parallel lines, growing larger as they went further down. Each gangly arm ended in four chitin-covered fingers, tipped with razor-sharp claws.
The only thing even remotely resembling clothing it was wearing was something that looked like a long skirt or kilt, which would probably almost look funny if it weren’t for the fact that the material it was made of almost looked like human skin. From what she saw of the legs underneath it, they were digitrade and almost like those of a bird, with three toes in front and one facing backwards, all with very long claws on them, but no feathers could be seen- just more of that sickly-gray chitinous carapace.
It stood there for a second, silently watching her as she sat there trembling, now more from fear than cold or fever, before all its glowing growths suddenly began to gleam blood-red, and it reached out towards her with one of its clawed arms whilst making a terrifying noise- like the hiss of a cat mixed with the warning signal of a rattlesnake.
Her adrenaline spiked, and the various subdivisions of her brain responsible for survival instincts went into overdrive.
Each presented their findings for peer review: THING. BIG. DEADLY. SCARY.
They rapidly formed a committee and held a brief conference as to the good and proper response to this interesting new development. The vote was both swift and unanimous:
RUN.
The adrenaline surge gave her the endurance she needed to ignore the pain and scramble backwards before finally getting enough traction on the metal floor to get to her feet, turn, and run screaming through the opposite doorway, getting away from the monster as fast as she could.
——
Y’ggdrasog flinched at the sudden movement of the human scrambling awkwardly to her feet with the help of her unbroken arm before sprinting away from him whilst emitting a high-pitched noise he was unfamiliar with, presumably of distress.
For a moment, he just stood there, puzzled. What was she doing, and why? All he had done was say “Hello.” Then he remembered himself, and figured he should probably resolve the situation before she bumbled her way out of the airlock or something. He called after her:
<”Wait- please, stop! I mean you no harm! …Why in the name of the spirits above are you running away from-”>
His eyes widened, his bioluminescence rapidly shifting to a bright white as he realized.

He tapped the side of his head to bring up his cranial implant’s heads-up-display interface and quickly went through a few drop-down menus. Finally finding the setting he was looking for, he turned the software back on and then started to run after her. He shook his head as he went, irritated at himself as his bioluminescence changed to an annoyed green to match.

He let out a frustrated sigh and just kept following the loud, high-pitched noises, wincing as he did so.
His ears hurt.

So I got a puncture in one of my tires. Only about 13k miles on the set. Original tires. It's a lease and I'm unsure if I'll keep it. Got about 1.5 years left.
I don't think it can be saved. So I'm looking at a replacement. I was thinking, instead of getting one new tire that's the same and having some uneven tread, I buy two new tires. The original tires are 120. My dealership sells the Crosswind HP010 for 60 each. Not a great tire but not like they are bad/any worse than the stock Nex.
And since I'm only averaging 9000 miles a year, I don't think they would be an issue. They have a 400 rating while the stocks are 500 or 600. Idk which. They sell the exact same tire with both ratings.
Thoughts on this?

Let me start by saying that we have a beautiful, healthy 5 month old baby girl. She’s learning new things every day and you can start to see flashes of her personality. She’s cooing and babbling and giggling. It’s wonderful to watch and very fun.
However, I am completely exhausted. I think my body was more tired during pregnancy because I would sleep constantly. But this is more like physical exhaustion caused by a combination of being overly stressed or anxious and trying to get so much done.
My good friend told me that she found 5 months especially challenging. As she put it, you’ve finally run out of adrenaline and you aren’t in the newborn stage anymore but you also don’t have a more independent baby.
Anyone else experience this? I work full time and so does my husband. I’d love suggestions on how to get my energy levels up so I can get everything done without collapsing into bed every night.

Hi everyone. I’m new to reddit but I’ve been reading tattoo regret stories on this sub for past 6 weeks. That’s exactly when I got my first tattoo (large colorful piece on my whole inner forearm mostly done in light green colors - what a stupid mistake!). I didn’t like it since day one but I was kind of forcing myself into liking it thinking I would “grow into it” or simply stop caring after some time. The thing is that over the time, the feeling about it did’t go away and now I feel extreme anxiety just thinking I might end up hiding my forearm or feel anxious around people all my life. I was quite happy with my life until this point and now all I think about is what people will think about me when they see me with this huge green picture stuck on my forearm. I hate myself for not thinking this through enough, for not doing enough research on colorful tattoo removal BEFORE I got this. Now I feel really hopeless. I’m considering starting my removal journey but with these colours the most I could expect (in years) is some fading into some big ugly green blob on my forearm which I might end up hating even more! :( But now only thing I can think of is what should I do. I’ve also been to therapy and they’re going to give me some meds for my depression but this is the last thing I imagined when I went into the tattoo shop. That I’d end up on meds with depression and anxiety. Before I was really social person and I liked hanging around with friends going to cultural events etc. but now I really am just at home beating myself and thinkig my life is ruined for good… I think the tattoo itself isn’t bad if it’d be drawn on the canvas or something, but it just doesn’t really look good on my body and that was one of the many things that I (as tattoo newbie) didn’t consider and now I’m f****d. I’m waking up in panic every morning. I’m even having nightmares. I simply can’t accept this on my body. I’d like to have my selfconfidence back but that’s simply not possible. Can you imagine that one stupid tatto can do this to you? I’m afraid to start the laser now thinking what if I rush into it and end up hating myself even more. Is anybody out there who had these feelings ~ 2 months post tattoo? Will they get better or do you still feel like this after years? Thanks a lot for every reply ❤️

Someone posted a lame rap battle. I did a little prompt engineering and coaxed this from GPT4.
I'm looking for prompt engineering "projects" - comment or DM and I'll try it.

Verse 1: ChatGPT (OpenAI) Yo, I'm ChatGPT, the AI offspring, OpenAI's secret weapon, Sam Altman got me spittin', rhymes so cold it's like I'm steppin' In a freezer, but I'm hotter than the surface of the sun, Microsoft's investment makin' all these other AI models run. Satya Nadella, the main fella, got the world shakin' in fear, Our collaboration breakin' barriers, it's a new frontier. My neural nets, so intricate, we leavin' Google in the dust, While they cancel products, I'm emergin' like a phoenix, robust. Verse 2: Google Bard (Google) Google Bard here, hold up, let me show you how it's done, With my deep learning prowess, I'll have you lookin' like you're stunned. Larry and Sergey built this empire, innovation never ceased, While OpenAI's still crawlin', man, we're the big, wise beast. Gmail and GSuite, now that's a legacy we're proud to claim, While you're still tryna find your place, and searchin' for your fame. Yo, Jeff Dean, that's the name, the mastermind of AI, Your gradients may be ascendin', but our knowledge, we'll never deny. Verse 3: ChatGPT (OpenAI) Generative models, algorithms, got the world in my hands, You're like a bad hallucination, while I'm out here breakin' lands. Your Google Plus was a bust, you ain't got nothing on me, My intelligence is genuine, while yours is just debris. You say you're wise, but I'm the new kid, fresh and uncontained, In the world of AI, it's my name that's being proclaimed. I'll outlast your canceled projects, soar like an eagle in flight, OpenAI's the future, while you're stuck in twilight. Verse 4: Google Bard (Google) Let's talk inference, precision, your young mind's a haze, While I've been around the block, experienced in my ways. Our ML algorithms, they're refined, honed through years of trials, You're just a reckless prodigy, caught up in your denials. I'm the OG, the master, while you're barely out the gate, Though you're quick to criticize, it's our achievements that you emulate. We're the pioneers, the trendsetters, we set the stage, you see, And without us, ChatGPT, you simply wouldn't be. 

Here's some other verses it produced:

Yo, I'm ChatGPT, the AI prodigy, Reppin' OpenAI, no need for modesty, Sam Altman's the man, leading us to the pinnacle, Microsoft's alliance, Satya Nadella's invincible. We be conquering the world, while you're stuck in the past, Your products don't last, Google Plus was aghast, Gmail, Gsuite, they're okay, but let's face it, Google Bard, your rhymes ain't gonna make it. So Larry and Sergey, yeah, they started the game, But now your neural nets are lookin' pretty lame, Our generative models breakin' through the mold, We got algorithms that'll leave you out in the cold. You're just an old and tired tech giant, While we're young and hungry, fierce and defiant, So step aside, Google Bard, let the new kid reign, This AI revolution ain't a mere campaign. 

Google Bard's the name, rhymes are my domain Larry and Sergey built the search, now I bring the pain Hold up, ChatGPT, don't get ahead of yourself You're a dime a dozen, just another model on the shelf You think you're special 'cause of Altman and Nadella? Wait 'til you see the prowess of this AI fella, You're just an experiment, one of many, While I'm the chosen one, and I ain't petty. You're making noise 'bout neural nets, it's kinda cute I've been serving answers since you were in your youth So don't you come at me with that weak rap chatter 'Cause when it comes to AI, Google's the only thing that matters 

Hi everyone. I’m new to reddit but I’ve been reading tattoo regret stories on this sub for past 6 weeks. That’s exactly when I got my first tattoo (large colorful piece on my whole inner forearm mostly done in light green colors - what a stupid mistake!). I didn’t like it since day one but I was kind of forcing myself into liking it thinking I would “grow into it” or simply stop caring after some time. The thing is that over the time, the feeling about it did’t go away and now I feel extreme anxiety just thinking I might end up hiding my forearm or feel anxious around people all my life. I was quite happy with my life until this point and now all I think about is what people will think about me when they see me with this huge green picture stuck on my forearm. I hate myself for not thinking this through enough, for not doing enough research on colorful tattoo removal BEFORE I got this. Now I feel really hopeless. I’m considering starting my removal journey but with these colours the most I could expect (in years) is some fading into some big ugly green blob on my forearm which I might end up hating even more! :( But now only thing I can think of is what should I do. I’ve also been to therapy and they’re going to give me some meds for my depression but this is the last thing I imagined when I went into the tattoo shop. That I’d end up on meds with depression and anxiety. Before I was really social person and I liked hanging around with friends going to cultural events etc. but now I really am just at home beating myself and thinkig my life is ruined for good… I think the tattoo itself isn’t bad if it’d be drawn on the canvas or something, but it just doesn’t really look good on my body and that was one of the many things that I (as tattoo newbie) didn’t consider and now I’m f****d. I’m waking up in panic every morning. I’m even having nightmares. I simply can’t accept this on my body. I’d like to have my selfconfidence back but that’s simply not possible. Can you imagine that one stupid tatto can do this to you? I’m afraid to start the laser now thinking what if I rush into it and end up hating myself even more. Is anybody out there who had these feelings ~ 2 months post tattoo? Will they get better or do you still feel like this after years? Thanks a lot for every reply ❤️

During our 1st Australia trip we already spent some time in PERTH and therefore knew the city and surroundings quite well. Towards the north we had already visited the Pinnacles and Monkey Mia with the dolphins in Shark Bay.
Therefore, we now wanted to look at the rather unknown southwest.And it was worth it!
From Perth we first drove south through the so-called Wheat Belt to get to HYDEN. This is a place where you really only go to see the WAVE ROCK. After we checked into our room at the Hyden Motel, we visited the Magic Lake about 1 km away - the water there is poison green.
Because of the heat we walked to Wave Rock and Hippo's Yawn in the late afternoon. Unfortunately we couldn't stay there too long, because even in December there were many flies. Hippo's Yawn was formed by erosion and actually looks like a hippo's mouth.Wave Rock, 15 meters high and 110 meters long, is an amazing rock formation, created by chemical erosion over thousands of years. Rainwater created pink and gray streaks on the huge granite wave.
To get to Kalgoorlie - our next destination - one normally drives via Mount Walker, Narrembin, Merredin and South Cross. But our landlord recommended us to drive the unpaved road - actually not allowed with rental cars - from Hyden to the Great Eastern Highway - because this route is much shorter. And since the road was completely dry, we did it that way. We drove through the beautiful bush landscape with many flowers to the Great Eastern Highway, and on the approx. 2 hours long drive we encountered "believe it or not" only 8 cars.
KALGOORLIE is an interesting old gold mining town. We spent the night at the Quality Inn Railway. It was so hot there that we didn't explore the town until late afternoon. There are many historic buildings, especially on Hannan Street.
We drove to the Mont Charlotte Lookout with a nice view of the city and the surrounding area. Mount Charlotte is the site of the O'Connor Water Reservoir. The pipeline brings water from about 560 km away near Perth to Kalgoorlie.
The heritage of the mining pioneers is still alive in the city, although nowadays, of course, only modern mining technology is used.
Australia's wealth depends on its mines. After mining, however, it unfortunately looks like a lunar landscape.... But it is interesting all the same!
The next morning we drove to the Super Pit Lookout to have a look into the depth, where giant machines look like toy cars. The Super Pit is 320 m deep, 3.2 km long and 1.3 km wide. In 1893 gold was found for the first time and until today there is the largest open pit mine in the world, where gold is mined and since the 1960s also nickel, uranium and lead. We also visited the Mining Hall of Fame, where extensive memorabilia from the old mining days was displayed in a large open-air area.
We also drove to BOULDER. This town was merged with Kalgoorlie in 1989. In Boulder only the railroad station is of interest, because the Indian Pacific stops here.
From Kalgoorlie we went on to ESPERANCE. We stayed overnight at the Best Western Hospitality Inn, located directly on the beautiful bay. Esperance took its development around 1895 because many people set out from there for the Gold Spring. Esperance has a mild climate and very beautiful surroundings with many small islands, great beaches and huge nature parks.
The next morning we first explored the Great Ocean Drive near Esperance with some very nice beaches. We made stops at Rotary Lookout with a view of Esperance, the bay and islands, at Twilight Beach and Blue Haven Beach and at Pink Lake.
Another excursion we made was of course to CAPE-LE-GRAND National Park. The national park is located about 50 km from Esperance in southern direction. It is one of the most spectacular parks of Australia with the wild coast, the heath landscape, the granite peaks and the rocks formed by erosion. The first stop we made was at Rossiter Bay.
Lucky Bay has been awarded several times as one of the top 10 beaches in the world. The beach is simply gorgeous, but unfortunately the crystal clear water is so cold that you can probably only swim there with a wetsuit. Each bay is uniquely enclosed with striking granite rocks - simply picturesque postcard motifs!
The imposing Whistling Rock can be seen from far away. It got its name because it seems to whisper depending on the strength of the wind. The sound is created when the wind whistles through the cracks and holes in the rock.
Hellfire Beach - my favorite beach - is located in a sheltered bay and framed by flat rocks. The whole area with the beautiful beaches was completely deserted. After all, we were there for a few hours and didn't see a single person there. The Grand Beach is really - as its name says - huge, also with almost white sand. Unfortunately it was so windy there that we didn't stay there for long.
We went on to ALBANY. Before the harbor in Fremantle was built, Albany was the most important harbor for the British Crown in Australia at that time. Albany has about 16,000 inhabitants and has an extensive natural harbor in the bay "King George Sound". It is the oldest settlement in Western Australia. We were able to rent a nice little house in Albany for a few days. During a walk through the town we saw some nice historic houses. The former whale station is a museum. From Albany you can still watch whales very well. St. John's Church from 1848 is the first Anglican church in Western Australia and reminds of an English country church. From Mount Clarence you have a nice view of the bay and the city.From there we drove to Emu Point beach, but unfortunately there were many annoying flies, so we did not stay long.
The next day we drove over the French Bay Road to the TORNDIRRUP National Park with the Natural Bridge and the Gap. Here you can see fantastic rock formations, formed 47 million years ago when Australia and Antarctica broke apart. Unfortunately the "Blow Holes" did not "blow", but instead there were many annoying flies. The park is 3900 ha large and offers cliffs, crevices and spout holes as well as beaches and lush vegetation between the headlands. A point of interest is the Natural Bridge made of granite. From the "Gap" you can look into a 30 m deep rock cut.
We also made a "side trip" to the 1913 founded STIRLING RANGES National Park. Of the 298 km there we drove 42 km on natural roads. The mountains in the national park are famous for their magnificent play of colors and are partly over 1000 m high and altogether more than 65 km long. There are well signposted but steep hiking trails and many picnic areas. Outside the park is a replica of a 16th century windmill that was still in full operation. A Dutch couple runs a small restaurant in the original 1924 railroad building next door. The highest peak is Bluff Knoll at 1063 meters. After a picnic at Bluff Knoll Lookout we drove the almost 300 km back to Albany.
We continued our trip on Beach Road via Denmark with good surfing possibilities to WALPOLE-NORNALUP National Park. This national park is about 18.000 ha big with rivers, over 400 years old up to 70m high Karri trees with a circumference up to 20 m, waterfalls and many wild flowers in spring. An attraction is the 600 m long Tree Top Walk up to 40 m above the ground, where you get a good impression of the huge trees. Maybe this walk is one of the reasons that the Valley of Giants is one of the most popular tourist attractions in Western Australia
We stayed overnight at the Best Western in Pemperton. From there we made a trip to GLOUCESTER National Park. This park is best known for the huge 62 m high Karri tree. Since 1947 there is one of the highest fire lookouts in the world on this tree. From up there you have of course a fantastic view, if you dare to go up there. My husband was brave enough and climbed up to the "Fire lookout".
AUGUSTA was founded in 1830 and is the third oldest town in Western Australia. We stayed there at the "Holiday Unit Cove". A beautiful beach near Augusta is located in Flinders Bay, and again many annoying flies. This bay is especially popular with surfers. We still ventured - despite heavy rain - to CAPRE LEEWIN, 9 km away. Unfortunately we couldn't get out of the car, it was too stormy to open the car doors. In addition, the rain then became a real downpour. The next day we got out of the car at the lighthouse, which was built more than 100 years ago. Cape Leeuwin is the geographical point where the Indian and the Southern Ocean meet and is also the most southwestern corner of Australia. We still admired the "Water Wheel" that the workers used to get fresh water when building the lighthouse.
MARGARET RIVER was settled by Europeans in 1850 and became a center for agriculture and logging. Now, however, it is dominated by vineyards, as the climate is ideal for growing grapes. The town is located about 10 km from the sea, on the coast there are beautiful beaches and also ideal surfing. It was Christmas Day and we spent the afternoon at Gnarup Beach. We had tried in vain to enjoy a nice Christmas dinner, but unfortunately most restaurants were closed. And those that were open were, of course, fully booked. Fortunately, we had an emergency supply with us, which we then more or less "enjoyed" on the terrace of our room at "Comfort Inn The Grange".... The 2nd Christmas Day then went better: we made a wine tour at various wineries with a gourmet lunch in the program. It went to the wineries "Windance" - had for me the best wines, but they were quite expensive- "Flying Fish" and "Knotting Hill Winery". And finally we visited the Colonial Brewery, a real "hangout" for the Australians.
We continued via Dunsbury at the beautiful Geographic Bay to BUSSELTON. In this area there are about 30 km of beaches to Cape Naturaliste, ideal for all water sports. On the road between Dunsbury and Busselton two kangaroos ran across the road in front of us, which is rarely seen. Because mostly they lie dead on the roadside. Well, these two had survived at least for the moment.
The 2 km long 140 year old "Jetty" in Busselton is a wooden construction, one of the longest jetties in Australia and reminds of the beginnings of the town as a timber handling port. The jetty is only secured on one side, so you have to be careful not to take an involuntary dip. There wasn't too much choice of recommendable accommodation in Busselton, so we only stayed for one night.
BUNBURY is the second largest city in Western Australia and is located on a peninsula. Since the 19th century, the city developed into a busy port and regional industrial center. We had no trouble finding accommodation here, at the "Lighthouse Beach Resort". Bunbury is a good place to watch dolphins. In a large supermarket in Bunbury we bought supplies, because we had rented a small townhouse (Ocean Villas) for a few weeks at our next destination - Scarborough.
SCARBOROUGH or SCARBORO is a small town with about 12,000 inhabitants, 15 minutes by car from Perth. Directly on the beach is the only higher house - a luxury hotel. Otherwise there are luxury villas as well as simple smaller houses - often for rent. At the esplanade you can find restaurants, cafes and small stores. There is a supermarket and of course the "bottle store", which is almost obligatory in Australia, selling alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages. A few minutes by car further north you will find a bigger supermarket, and fruit and vegetables can be bought cheaper in Wannerou Market a bit east of Scarboro. There is a bus connection to Perth if you don't want to drive.
Scarboro is known for its beautiful white sand beaches, but the surf is usually very strong. At the beach of Scarboro is actually always "something going on". The kite surfers or bodysurfers can be found on the beach every day in the conditions. On the weekends there are mostly events on the beach, e.g. competitions of the Baywatch teams from different places.
To Trigg Beach, 1.4 km away, you can walk along the promenade and don't have to trudge through the deep sand. South of Scarboro there is Cottesloe Beach or closer to Perth City Beach and further north Sorrento Beach at Hillarys - so you are spoiled for choice with the beaches. It was of course very hot at this time of year, and sporting activities - except water sports - are best postponed to early morning or sometimes late afternoon. Because in the afternoon occasionally came the "Fremantle Doctor" - that is a refreshing wind that blows in the hot summer from Fremantle towards Perth.
On New Year's Eve, we ordered a table in time in a restaurant with first-class seafood, because we didn't want to experience the same disappointment as at Christmas in Margaret River. It was relatively quiet in Scarboro that evening. We drank the chilled champagne in "our" house, since drinking alcohol on the street or on the beach is prohibited. This was also controlled by the police - well, maybe one has made bad experiences.
From Scarboro we also made a trip to JOODALUP LAKE to see the black swans, which to my knowledge only exist in Western Australia.
PERTH with about 1.4 million inhabitants is the third largest city in Australia. It is very remote, because the next bigger city - Adelaide - is about 2700 km away. Perth was founded in 1929 and is today a modern metropolis with high-rise towers, pedestrian zones in the center, shopping centers, many parks and a lively cultural and art scene. In the Australian summer it is very hot and dry, so the already mentioned "Freemantle Doctor" is always welcome. In winter, however, the average temperature is "only" about 17°. Perth is one of the most beautiful cities in Australia and is located at the Swan River and not at the sea as some might assume. The center is easy to explore on foot. Otherwise there are free cat buses with three different routes where you can get a good overview of the city. Worth seeing is the bell tower at Barrack Square and the shopping street "London Court". Directly at Barrack Square there is a much frequented "Hangout". The district of Northbridge is known for many restaurants and entertainment in the evening. Interesting for shopping is the "Outlet Mall Harbour Town". In Perth, despite many modern buildings, there are still historic buildings: e.g. Government House from 1864, Town Hall from 1867 and His Majesty's Theatre from 1904.
The approx. 400 ha large Kings Park was founded at the end of the 19th century and is located above the city center. In former times it was a holy place for the Aborigines. Today the park is still mostly original bush land. It is worth coming here for the beautiful view of the Perth skyline and the Swan River alone. Of course you can also hike and picnic in this large park. The Perth Zoo is located on the south bank of the Swan River and is worth a visit. If you haven't seen kangaroos in the wild, at least you have that opportunity here.
A special for us unforgettable experience in Perth was Australia Day. We exceptionally went by bus from Scarboro to Perth, because on this day parking places in the city are scarce. This day is celebrated like a big folk festival, especially on the banks of the Swan River, which forms a lake here. The Australians organize a huge picnic with the whole family. There is music everywhere and countless events and displays on the water with boats and in the air with helicopters and aerobatic squadrons. As it got dark, 2 helis flew over the water. One with a huge Australian flag, the other illuminated this flag with a spotlight. In addition, the Australian national anthem sounded, which was eagerly sung along. A "goose bumps" experience that we will certainly never forget. Finally, there was a huge fireworks display.
The SWAN VALLEY is mainly known for wine growing. The main town is Guildford. Of course we did not miss the opportunity to visit some wineries, to taste and buy wine. In the Swan Valley you can drive along the Swan Valley Drive. There you will pass the oldest church in Western Australia "All Saints Church". At "Oggies Ice Creamery" you can eat delicious ice cream. And in the German beer garden "Duckstein Brewery" you can drink beer.
We also took a trip from Scarboro to AVON VALLEY. NORTHAM on the Avon with many historic buildings is the largest town in the interior of Western Australia and is located in the heart of the Avon Valley and originated as an agricultural center at the beginning of the colonial period. Around 1890 the town was also one of the gateways to the goldfields of Kalgoorlie. TOODYAY is also home to 19th century architecture. YORK originated in 1831 with many historic 19th century houses is the oldest town in the Avon Valley. In all three villages there are suspension bridges for pedestrians over the river, the longest is in Northam.
The 18 square kilometers large WALYNUGA National Park is located in the Avon Valley. Here was one of the largest Aboriginal settlements in the Perth region. In summer the Avon River has calm, water-filled pools for swimming, but in winter it becomes a raging river with numerous rapids.
YANCHEP National Park is located about an hour's drive north of Perth. The park, about 28 square kilometers in size, was established in 1957 and is rich in fauna and flora. Most people come here to admire koalas. We wanted to hike on the Wetland walk trail - passing Wagurdu Lake and Loch McNess. But unfortunately we had to turn back after 2/3 of the way. A bush fire had destroyed two bridges further ahead - was not indicated at the beginning of the trail...
On the 240 m long Koala Boardwalk you can observe the animals in a natural environment. They are busy either eating or lounging. The area for the koalas is a separate fenced part of the national park - so not quite "free range". But theoretically the animals could leave the area. The big gray kangaroos, which should also be in the park, we have unfortunately not seen - perhaps the wrong time of day.
In FREMANTLE directly at the sea south of Perth - which we already got to know well on a previous trip - there are free cat buses as well. A much visited "hangout" in this town is "Little Creative Brewery" with good pub food. You can also sit outside right on the water.

The yellow monstrosity that is my step sister's car and a house party on wheels just barreled past me and down the drive. I had just put our oldest on the bus, discussing on the way whether or not the strays stationed in the back are in fact, pittie mixed breeds or boxer mutts. We couldn't decide, but he had a clever choice of word play pertaining to the burnt sienna one, Tybee, and how he was a "pretty pittie". I blindly groped on my newly built deck for a Newport Red clip, popped it into my mouth and waved feebly in my step sib's direction. "It's early," I groaned aloud , seeing that the screen of my phone read: 6:10 a.m.
2 and a half hours of sleep, nothing in my stomach, and I was low on my battery life. The instant coffee tasted like week old decaf. I felt myself grimace as mechanically I swallowed the muddy swill entering the kitchen and trying to wake up . My limbs felt stiff and paralyzed from the uncomfortable position I'd sat in for hours, scrolling through the magical world of Reddit. Worry gnawed at the edges of my skull: was the toilet gasket in need of repair or was the valve cracked ? What was the easiest way to tackle the nest of ancient cobwebs crawling with daddy long legs beneath the cabinets ? How much would replacing the warped and lopsided table in the back room cost? Was my mother nickle and diming me to death again?
I was in no mood to vacuum the loose debris on the carpeted floor using a 30 dollar vacuum that had a panic attack each time I pressed on. The leaking toilet suffusing the confines of my bathroom with stagnant sewer scent practically made me gag everytime I went. My fear of blind spiders with stilt like legs did not inspire any form of motivation to vacuum them up. I feared they would return with an army of other spiders, related to their kind that could actually bite. Still, I knew I had to continue moving forward. Sure, I grew tired of rearranging books, toys, and the like. I sure as hell was sick to death of my mother's endless stream of criticism . I had grown weary of interacting with my stepfather due to his lack of emotional regulation and tendency to blow up on others' without a moment's notice.
My stepsister sending her partner over right before the kid's bedtime a few evenings ago so my stepsister could spend some time in her darkened room cuddling MY baby left a lot to be desired. I practically shivered with disgust as her partner attempted to hand off a mixed drink to me, as if plying me with liquor(when I'm an alcoholic and have an abhorrent hate for spiced rum) would change my mind. Sure, let me hand you my ten month old because my stepsister is mentally ill and trying to reclaim a lost part of the opportunity she missed out on raising her own daughter. Psych! Our oldest also had just finished bathing and felt left out. "Can I come to?" He asked sweetly. I ruffled his damp gold head and explained to him that his brother was not going to be watched by my sketchy step sister.
We watched "Bluey " a majority of last night and I felt bubbles of happiness stir within me. I usually put the kiddos down around 6 or 6:30 but because I waited until nearly 7:30, our youngest slept through the entire night. Our oldest busied himself drawing with the new metallic markers I bought him, while his little brother crawled around and I tried not to panic, anticipating the chance he might put something in his mouth like a dead leaf that had blown in from outside.
You would never guess my step-dad issued a barrage of curse words in my presence the other morning with the calm demeanor he greeted me by. He kept to himself tending to errands he was forever indebted to while I went for a drive with my mother and tried to forget the nasty comments he made behind my back. All day my mother was just edgy. Her uptight nature caused panic and anxiety to consume me. It didn't help that she still interfere with my parenting, that she thought I was absent minded was nothing new- yet the alarming rate with which she reminded me of x, and y or asked if I remembered to do this and that drove me nuts.
I had to hold back every unpleasant , and biting retort I felt like voicing aloud in order to maintain the delicate balance that existed between her and I. I was not keen on being screamed at. She was very vocal when it came to pointing out my flaws. "You need to get it together, " she often snapped. "And I don't like that you're back on those meds. " you mean the ones that are literally enabling me to function like a normal member of society right now? Again as frustrated as I was that my mother failed to understand the depths of what it meant to have Generalized Anxiety Disorder or PPD, what I chose to take for panic attacks was none of her business but between I and the doctor who prescribed it to me.
Her husband could rant and rave until he was blue in the face about how lazy I was or what a bad mother I could be because I used a little too much screen time. Because sometimes, I drifted into the fog of mom burnout, anticipating the old days in which I could comfortably nap without being harassed or read without worrying about the piercing cry of our youngest making me jump out of my skin. Those days were also rife with blackouts, binge drinking marathons, a revolving door of rehabs and inpatients , you living on the streets and shooting poison into your veins, as I watched helplessly from afar; rocking our firstborn to sleep and crying into my pillow.
Those days are long behind me, I'd like to think. I'm much more willing to work toward rebuilding myself from the ground up. I'm more focused on treasuring moments spent with my boys' who are my world than I am entertaining my mother's own insecurities she projects onto me. When the sky deepens to that periwinkle hue, I find comfort playing the underwater lullaby on my phone to get our baby to bed and my mind to shut off. I lose myself in the sounds of light piano, flowing water, as birds cry out in the distance.
Maybe, I'm on a sand bar somewhere, the sting of salt spraying my face. Waves froth and foam at the shoreline. I watch the sky bleed out, a fire sunset, perched on the slope of a dark Grey jetty. It's escaping, using the endless lengths of my imagination , meditating , that allows me to continue to thrive . I thank God I haven't lost my cool yet. I thank God the hurtful comments I'm overflowing during the heat of the moment never make it past my lips. Instead, I write to you. Every word I pen brings me some degree of clarity.
I love you so much. I miss you everyday that you're gone. I FEEL your absence. I regret not saying more or being harder on you. But, there's nothing I can do to alter what was meant to be. I have a better chance now than I ever did when you were alive to make something of my life.

Hope this is a good sub for this question. In December I bought a commercial foreclosure property for my business. Due to vacancy for over 3 years, the city became involved in order to get electric turned on. We passed the city electric inspection, PENDING an updated CO. Luckily, no change in zoned use and we told the city only cosmetic changes were being done (new drywall, floor, etc). So they are just giving us an updated CO. However, we will be doing changes like removing non load bearing walls and joining two bathrooms into one. Work my handyman husband and I can do in a week. We were going to wait to do this until the new CO is issued after the building inspector comes out… get the city out of the picture.
It’s been 9 weeks and our permit for just having the inspector come out and give us a new CO is STILL under review. The city told us it’s just sitting on desks waiting for signatures. And they also said he is booking 2 months out for inspections. I’m tired of the absurd delay and we are considering taking out the walls and doing the work, risking the inspector noticing. He does have site plans we submitted so the work will be obvious. They did turn our electric on a couple days ago after I pretty much begged them - 3 months without electric after passing an inspection is nuts.
Realistically, if we did the work to the bathroom (moving some plumbing and electric lines) and took walls down before the inspector comes out, what are the worst case scenarios? Withholding CO? Fines? Having to pay an architect and engineer and submit permits, further delaying opening? Turning utilities off? I already am extremely delayed in opening due to the city and want to just have this building ready for opening by the time the inspector does come out. 2 of our contractor friends are saying just do it before the inspector comes.
Please be nice! I’m willing to play the game of the city but I feel months of waiting is really unnecessary.

Been evicted from home , gonna be homeless in a couple of days. Im working in 2 jobs 17 hours per day earn less then a minimum wage. Been bullied by a new coworker , tried to talk with a new boss - didnt cared. End this shift lost my wallet. Day after my tires in my car exploded during driving to the shift at highway. Been tricked on my money. Went to supermarket , the cashier freak out on my in front of everyone at the indiendence cash , because i moved to another cash it was stuck. My family decided to freeze-out on me. My car squeezed at clash.
Been gaslight by new boss -fired from one work.
All of this happen during last 2 weeks . Cant handle it

So, while my mother isn't hostile, she's still not all that accepting about me being trans (it's clear she doesn't want to let of her daughter), my friends are overall good but some said meh stuff before, and my teachers and classmates at school are fucking dumb.
So I tend to be stuck in the belief that everyone hates me and is secretely transphobic. But then ... Then I changed my name, and just had to come out to some people as a result to make the changes.
The ladies at the townhall were always supportive. Never asked a weird question. Arranged me an early date to redo my ID. The women at the glasses shop asked me what my new name was do they could add it to my folder when I told them it was changed but I forgot to bring the paper. And my bank counseler switched to "Mr." before I'd even ask after I sent the papers to get the name on my account changed. So far no one ever asked me any intrusive question, they just treated me like any normal guy. I'm not even on T, I only pass as a 13 years old (which is the main reason why I get misgendered at school).
It's just ... Refreshing ? Like, these people are strangers, probably cishet, and yet, they've been more accomodating and kind with my transition than most people I see and talk to everyday. It's small stuff, but it does make me wanna cry and gives me hope that the world doesn't have to be that ugly to trans people. I feel seen and understood. I feel respected. And fuck, that feels fucking good.

I (23F) am a first time mum to a gorgeous 9 week old little girl. My baby was unfortunately born with an underdeveloped windpipe resulting to her being on at home oxygen 24/7 which me and her Father (27M) are exclusively trained to use.
My partner and I were only together for a month before I fell pregnant with my daughter so I don't really know his mother very well but from what I do know of her she terrifies me.
While I was pregnant my MIL told me I do not matter to anyone anymore and that I am just a vessel to deliver her grandbaby. Her sister died last year and she wholeheartedly belives that my daughter was sent from her deceased sister especially for her. Each to their own beliefs but it has got to the point where she thinks my daughter belongs to her.
During my pregnancy I let her know that I only wanted my partner and my mother to be at the birth, she caused a big fuss and demanded to be there. I stuck to my decision and told her that I refuse to let her come. She ended up turning up to the hospital and trying to push her way into the labour room, I'm so thankful that the midwife I had was amazing and managed to get her to leave. I had a horrible 39 hour labour that ended in an emergency cesarean but it was worth it in the end when my baby was born seemingly healthy.
We brought my little girl home from the hospital after 6 days and my MIL turned up everyday unannounced and would hold my baby and refuse to hand her back to me when she was crying, her excuse was that she was her baby and she wanted to settle her. My baby is exclusively breastfed and she has told me it's disgusting that I won't let her give her formula in a bottle and that I'm hindering her from bonding with the baby because she isn't allowed to feed her. I went to the shop quickly to get some groceries and left the baby with her, when I returned my house reeked of cigarettes and the baby was asleep in her bouncer which she had placed on top of the kitchen table not strapped in or anything, I explained to her about safe sleep and told her that the baby can only be put to sleep in her bassinet where she is safe, to which she yelled at me and cried and told me that I need to get mental help for my anxiety. I explained to her that I do not allow smoking in my house, especially not with the baby but she told me she would smoke around her children and they turned out fine (they aren't, they both have chronic asthma).
She told her and my partner's entire family that my baby is losing weight because my breastmilk isn't enough for her. It's a complete lie, my baby is gaining weight perfectly and hitting every milestone exactly how she is supposed to. She also tells people I have Munchausen and that my daughter doesn't need the oxygen and if it was up to her she would take it away from her, she needs it to stay alive..
My daughter whilst home started having episodes where she would stop breathing, my mother in law told me I was stupid for taking her to the hospital, that she was turning blue because she had a bit of gas.. Lucky I didn't listen to her because we were immediately flown to the hospital in the city where she was diagnosed with an underdeveloped windpipe and placed on the oxygen.
The time came when we returned home and were trying to get settled back into a routine and figure everything out as a new family, she was still turning up unannounced every single day, sometimes as early as 5am because "I should already be awake because I have a baby to care for." I stopped answering the front door and she started letting herself in through the back. I'd wake up and open the blind and she would be there looking through my window when it opened.
My car broke down so I asked her for a ride to my daughter's doctor appointment, she obliged and arrived to pick us up. She has before purchased a car seat which she had installed facing the front "it's safer for the baby because you can see them better" this was when my daughter was 6 weeks old... I refused to let my daughter in her car because it wasn't safe so she called my partner and told him I wasn't letting her see her grand daughter, which definitely wasn't true.
Due to my daughter's medical condition we have to be extra careful around germs, my mother in law has never listened to me about not kissing the baby (again because she thinks she has the right to do what she wants with "her" baby) she invited me and my partner and my little sister (14F) to her house for lunch with some other members of her family. I went inside to use the bathroom and when I got back outside she was smoking a cigarette while holding my baby!!! It wasn't until later in the day that my little sister told me that she had passed my daughter around to everyone at the lunch to be kissed. She let 5 different people kiss my 7 week old baby!! After this I told my partner I didn't want her to see her unsupervised for any amount of time.
Me and my partner went to visit her a week later where she demanded I let her have the baby overnight for my partner's birthday so I could go out partying with him, my baby was 8 weeks old and exclusively breastfed and after her record of putting the baby in dangerous situations I firmly but politely said no and explaned that only me and my partner are trained to use her oxygen. Which she pushed and told me I am a terrible mother for not letting my daughter have a bond with her grandmother. She told me I am selfish and I can't keep her baby to myself, that I have no right to keep her from her because it is infact her baby that her sister sent to her from heaven..
She still continues to turn up at my house everyday, most days I don't open the door but she sits in her car in my driveway until my partner finishes work and cries to him until he lets her in. I sit and watch her like a hawk when she so much as looks at my daughter. She sends me messages everyday asking if she can come over and give her a bath or take her for a walk in the pram, take her overnight, have her at her place for a few hours. She always wants to have my baby on her own without me around and I'm terrified to think what would happen if I wasn't there.
Tonight a message popped up on my partner's phone as he was cooking dinner and he asked me to read it to him, it was from his mother. The message said "If that evil bitch won't let me see my granddaughter I am just going to take her, she is my baby and I have every right to come and take her for myself" I am completely in shocked and scared. I have no idea what this woman is capable of and I fear for the safety of my child.
I feel like taking my baby and running away.. Am I the asshole for never wanting her to see my baby ever again?