Italics = advisor feedback

1. Congratulations Don Jr., after a contentious primary with Matt Rosendale and Greg Gianforte, you have emerged victorious in the Republican primary. What will be your opening statement as you pivot towards the general Montana senate election with Jon Tester?

• Why screw up this thing. I’ll run a low-risk campaign and cruise to victory. After all, my dad is the Republican nominee for president, so I can certainly ride his coattails to victory “This might work but don’t underestimate Jon Tester, he’s quite popular in Montana”
• I want to nationalize this race as much as possible and attack Jon Tester relentlessly, Tester has voted in lockstep with Biden and Pelosi “This might work, but most Montanans are more focused on state issues rather than national issues”
• I want to appear with my dad, Donald Trump, as much as possible as I campaign “People want to see you differentiate yourself from dad occasionally, and this doesn’t help much”
• I want to denationalize this race as much as possible. I want to take pictures of myself on my Montana ranch and focus on the farmers and workers in this state “nationalizing this race is your best chance, considering that your father is the Republican nominee for president”

​

1. Due to the rural nature of Montana, the average Montanan spends more on gas than almost any other state in the country, and as gas prices continue to rise, what would you do to lower them?

• I would work with Senator John Thune to construct the Dakota Access Pipeline, which will transport gas faster and thus drop the price of gas, unlike Biden and the Democrats who want to shut down the construction of the Dakota Access Pipeline “This is good in that it criticizes the Democrats while also offering a different solution.”
• The way you lower gas prices is by getting Biden and the Democrats out of the office and putting in Trump and the Republicans, as gas prices were nowhere near as high as they were when Trump was president “This attack somewhat damaged Biden, but the damage is limited because people want to know what you would do differently from him.”
• One thing we could do to lower gas prices is to switch sides in the Russia-Ukraine war and side with an oil-rich Russia, rather than siding with oil-poor Ukraine, and we could get more oil through deals with Russia “Are you insane?”

​

1. RNG. Your father, who is running for president from within a prison cell, has asked if you could attend one of his rallies that are being held from just outside his prison cell where he will be visible to the large crowd through the window of his prison cell in New York. Would you like to attend this rally outside the prison?

• Yes, I would “Good news, the rally outside of Trump’s prison cell was just the right size, in that it was large enough to fire up Trump’s base in Montana, but not so large that it would grab the attention of the liberal media. Good job”
• Yes, I would. “Bad news, the rally outside of Trump’s prison cell had a lot of both trump supporters and protestors and the two groups quickly turned violent and it drew an enormous amount of media attention and you are getting badly hurt by the controversy.”
• No, I wouldn’t “Good news, the Montana people respected your ability to be removed from national politics of a rally outside of Trump’s prison cell.”
• No, I wouldn't “Bad news, Trump’s base is furious at you for not showing up to your father’s rally from outside of Trump’s prison cell.”

​

1. Inflation continues to ravage the nation. How will you put an end to it?

• We’re gonna stop handing out money and stop all this nonsense spending. “This has fired up your core supporters, but most independents are worried about this kind of messaging.”
• I would like to reduce tariffs and remove regulatory barriers “Trump’s tariffs are popular with the Trump wing of the Republican party, but this answer should win over more libertarian-minded Republicans”

​

1. The destructive conflict between Ukraine and Russia continues to go on. How will you put an end to it if at all?

• I will urge for American neutrality in the Ukraine-Russia war “You’ve pleased your diehard base, but most independents want America to side with Ukraine during this destructive conflict”
• I will keep the current path of issuing sanctions against Russia “This is probably the best answer to please the majority of Montanans.”
• I will urge America to get involved on Ukraine’s side against Russia “This wins over independents at the expense of winning over your base.”
• I will urge the UN to create a demilitarized zone on the Ukraine-Russia border and urge Ukraine and Russia to come to a comprehensive peace treaty “This wins over the neocons in your party at the expense of the Trump wing of your party.”

​

1. China has repeatedly made threats against Taiwan, and there have been fears that China might invade Taiwan. How will you prevent this from happening?

• This is Taiwan’s problem, not ours “This wins over the hardcore isolationists in your party at the expense of mainstream Americans”
• We will issue sanctions against China if they choose to invade Taiwan “This is probably the best answer to please the majority of Montanans”
• I urge America to intervene in this conflict against China “Are you insane, no one wants war with China!”
• I will urge China and Taiwan to create a demilitarized zone between them and a comprehensive peace treaty “This might be a good strategy”

​

1. There continue to be migrants and drugs that are flowing across the southern border. What would you do to stop this from happening?

• We need to strengthen our border security and build a wall “This is a good solution to win over the hard-core Trumpsits in your party”
• Look, this is Montana, we are nowhere near the southern border. Do we need to campaign on this issue? “Fair enough”
• We need a compromise solution of granting the illegals in this country a pathway to citizenship in return for building a stronger immigration enforcement system “This is a good way to win over independent voters”

​
8. Jon Tester, despite being a senator from Montana, one of the most pro-gun states in America, strongly came out in favor of gun control after the Uvalde shooting. What is your opinion on gun control?

• The Democrats are using school shootings as an excuse to take away our 2nd amendment rights “This attack is mildly successful, but the damage is limited because people want to know what you would do differently to stop school shootings”
• We need more armed guards at the front of schools to prevent these shootings, not to take away guns “This is an interesting solution”
• We need to spend more money on mental health clinics to treat these dangerous individuals “This wins over the Trump wing of social conservatives, but many fiscal conservatives are uncomfortable talking about this much government spending”

​

1. Abortion has become an increasingly important issue throughout America, how will you deal with this issue

• I will pass a law that will ban abortion nationwide “This fires up your base at the expense of independents”
• This isn’t our problem. We will let the people of each state decide that for ourselves “This fires up independents at the expense of the base”
• We should pass a law that bans travel from one state to another or traveling from one country to another to receive an abortion “This should meet the fine line of appealing to your base while also winning over independents.”

​

1. Now onto more state-centered issues. The state of Montana has an enormous amount of agriculture, farms, and ranches, and the amount they make has been decreasing. How will you plan to deal with this

• I will fight for Montana exports in trade deals “ an unusual position for a Republican to take, but this could work”
• This isn’t a problem we can solve, this is for the free market “This is a more traditional platform to run on as a Republican, but not a popular one amongst the Montana people.”

​

1. RNG Will you agree to debate Jon Tester?

• Yes I will “You won”
• Yes I will “You and Tester tied”
• Yes I will “You lost”
• No, we have a massive lead “People don’t trust you if you don’t debate, expect this to hurt you badly”

​

1. RNG You are meeting with Libertarian candidate Rick Breckenridge, to see if you can convince him to drop out and endorse you.

• I hope he drops out "Good news. He dropped out."
• I hope he drops out "Bad news. He doesn't drop out."

​

1. There's no way around it. Although you own a ranch in Montana, Montana is not your state of permanent residence and many view you as a carpet bagger. How do you plan to respond?

• I will counter-attack by showing Tester as a DC insider who is out of touch with Montanan values "This doesn't work well, as Tester routinely tours the state"
• I will tout my outsider credentials as an advantage, as I can reform Montana from the outside to Make Montana Great Again “MMGA”

​

1. Which Montana Republican would you like to go on tour with today?

• I would like to go on tour with Montana’s governor, Greg Gianforte “Well this didn’t work out well, as many are still angry about the incident that Greg Gianforte caused in 2017 when he ran for the house and bragged on social media about how he was so far ahead in the polls that he could beat up a reporter and still win, then proceeded to beat up a reporter and still narrowly won. Expect to take a dip in the polls.”
• I would like to go on tour with Montana’s incumbent Republican senator, Steve Daines “This worked out well, as Steve Daines is broadly popular amongst conservatives and independents”
• I would like to go on tour with Matt Rosendale, who ran for the Montana senate seat in 2018 and lost “Campaigning with Matt Rosendale offends no one, but pleases no one either”

​

1. News has broken out about how your girlfriend, Kimberly Gilfoyle, has been fired from Fox News for sexual harassment. How do you want to do damage control?

• As much as I love my girlfriend, I have no control over her behavior and I condemn this incident of behavior completely “This is probably the best you could do given this bad situation”
• Who cares, this is my girlfriend’s sexual harassment case, not mine “Well, you’re the one who’s dating her, so this makes you look bad.”
• I condemn my girlfriend completely for this behavior and I am breaking up with her for it “This is a strong answer which could win over women voters, but this only draws more attention to an incident that already looks incredibly ugly”

​

1. How would you like to attack Jon Tester if at all?

• We need to emphasize that Jon Tester has voted with Joe Biden 91% of the time. Jon Tester pretends to distance himself from Biden, but Tester is just one of Biden’s puppets who happens to be in a Trump +16 state “That’s it, hit Tester where it hurts!”
• We need to emphasize that Jon Tester is out of touch with Montana values lives in Washington DC and constantly votes in lockstep with Nancy Pelosi and votes for drag queens and transing the kids “This attack doesn’t win over independents, but it sure does fire up the base”
• We should run compare and contrast ads between Kyrsten Sinema and Jon Tester, showing how Sinema is in a bluish-purple state and constantly stabs Biden in the back while Jon Tester is from a deep red state and constantly votes lock step with Biden “This ad was incredibly effective”
• We should run ads of gas prices soaring under Tester and Biden, while gas prices were falling under Trump Sr. and will continue to fall under Trump Jr. “This ad was mild to moderately effective, but voters want to know what specific policy you will implement to lower gas prices

​

1. One interesting idea that has been proposed by many Democrats is to put abortion clinics on Native American reservations, as their lands aren’t governed by the US. Montana has some of the most native reservations in the country. What are your thoughts on this?

• This is an abhorrent practice that will lead to more children being killed as a loophole around the Dobbs .vs. Jackson's case allowed each state to choose whether or not to allow abortion “This answer fires up the base but hurts you with independents”
• I don’t care either way, this is up for the leaders of the native reservations to decide themselves “This might be the best you can do with a difficult question like this”
• Small government means small government, therefore lands that are not on American soil should be allowed to build abortion clinics to serve the public, as we are the party of small government that favors bodily autonomy “This answer helps with independents and hurts with the base”

​

1. Not to talk too much about abortion, but a new bill has been proposed in the Montana State House that would criminalize pregnant Montanans for traveling out of state or out of the country to receive an abortion elsewhere. What are your thoughts on this bill?

• I think Montana should ban all abortions within its borders, but banning Montana residents from traveling out of state or out of the country to receive an abortion elsewhere is too harsh “No one loves this answer, but no one hates it either”
• Being pro-life means being all the way pro-life, which means that we should criminalize out-of-state and out-of-country travel to receive an abortion elsewhere “Your base eats this up, but this stance makes independents gag”
• As a Republican, I naturally believe in making government as small as possible, meaning that native american reservations should be allowed to have abortion clinics and that people should be allowed to travel out of state and out of the country to receive abortions “Independents are lining up behind you, but your base is threatening to stay home”

​

1. RNG. The Montana state legislature has just passed new laws banning Tribal ID cards and requiring you to present your address to vote, which Native Americans on reservations don’t have as a way to stop Native Americans, who disproportionately vote Democrat, from voting. What are your thoughts on this?

• This should help me win “Good news, Native Americans aren’t getting the new IDs and addresses necessary for voting for Tester, so this will help you.”
• This should help me win “Bad news, Native Americans are now turning out in higher numbers than ever before and are getting the new IDs and licenses necessary to vote. Expect this to hurt you.”

​
20. You have talked about reducing the amount of money that we spend to reduce inflation. Where would you like to make cuts in spending

• I don’t know, everywhere maybe “This is not specific enough, and Jon Tester’s mediscare strategy is working eerily well”
• First, cuts will be made to foreign aid “In general, if you have to cut anything, cut foreign aid first, then again, most Americans are supportive of Ukraine in their war against Russia, so this might also backfire”
• We should cut farming subsidies and allow farmers to properly partake in the free market “Montana is a very agricultural state, so this doesn’t play well”

​

1. Jon Tester has attacked you with an attack ad of you speaking with your father and Rudi Giuliani at the Save America rally on January 6th where you tell the crowd to stand up and fight as they proceed to walk towards the capital and invade it. How will you react

• This was a poor choice of words for me. Although I said the word fight in a physical sense, what I meant to say was fought in a metaphorical stance by protesting the certification of the 2020 election “This might be the best thing you can say to keep your base on your side while not angering independents”
• I played no role in causing the violence that most people did on January 6th as I meant to fight in a metaphorical sense, not in a literal sense. It should be noted that only a small portion of people that attended that rally on January 6th broke into the capital “Most voters believe that you played a role on January 6th, and this answer doesn’t help”
• These people who entered the capital were brain-dead idiots who thought this would be a good idea. Why should I be responsible for their actions “You were the one who encouraged them to do it.”

​

1. Montana has one of the slowest internet speeds in the country due to its rural location. Would you be willing to spend government money to increase the internet speed in Montana?

• I understand the urge to help Montanans with slow internet, but this is a function best served by private companies, not the government “This helps with the base, but hurts with independents”
• We need to spend government money to help Montanans with slow internet “This helps with independents but hurts the base”

​

1. Do you plan to pass more laws to engage in culture wars and ban drag story hour, and critical race theory

• No, these culture wars about drag story hour just distract from the main issues at hand “Some sense a missed opportunity to win points amongst the base, but others appreciate you for not constantly attacking”
• Yes, we need to protect our children from drag story hour and critical race theory “This will win you points amongst your base but hurt you with independents and libertarian-minded voters.”

​

1. What will be your ending message as this campaign draws to a close?

• Don’t let Jon Tester fool you, he’s no moderate and he votes for Biden 91% of the time. Tester is Biden, and Biden is bad. Tester is Biden’s puppet. Make sure to vote for my dad for president and me for the senate. “This is probably a good strategy considering how Tester votes for Biden 91% of the time, and although Tester is somewhat popular in the state, Biden is not.”
• I want to hold a big rally in a field in Billings with a jumbotron where my dad is presented on the big screen from prison. My dad Trump Sr. will carry Montana by double digits, so all I have to do is ride his coattails to victory “Your dad is popular in Montana, so tying yourself to him as closely as possible might be a good idea.”
• I want to nationalize this race as much as possible. A vote for me is a vote for my dad who is running for president, while a vote for Tester is a vote for Biden “This is a good strategy, as you will need your dad’s momentum to gain victory in this senate race.”

​

1. Where in Montana will you spend your last days campaigning

• I will campaign in the Helena area around Lewis and Clark and Cascade counties. Tester may have won them in 2018, but Trump won them in 2020, so with one last push, we should flip them red
• I will campaign in the rural eastern parts of the state to maximize conservative turnout such as in Custer and Prairie counties
• I will expand my appeal by campaigning in the rural northern parts of the state with Native American reservations such as Glacier County
• I will campaign in the Missoula area, a traditionally liberal area and college town in Missoula County

Hey guys! I've been seeing a lot of "how do I pick a school" related posts and thought I'd drop some advice, as someone who didn't know any of this stuff when picking a med school (first gen in med woohoo)

1. Prestige - yeah it matters, it's not a nice thing to hear but thats the truth. The days of "pick whatever school you like and get a high Step 1 score" are gone. Names matter. Connections matter. This is not fun to hear but its way less fun to find that out the hard way when you're applying to residency.
2. "But I want to do IM/Neuro/Path" - A LOT of people change their mind in med school, to the point where doing what you decided to do in Undergrad has become the exception not the rule. Do not close doors for yourself based on something that is so subject to change. And keep in mind that if you decided to do a competitive IM field (cardiology or something) down the line, name/prestige will definitely matter. Hell I would say even if you would like to land in a certain location for residency, being competitive matters - people with more competitive apps get more options.
3. Research opportunities - goes along with name. The bigger names institutions usually have more and better developed research opportunities and more connections, better mentorship etc.
4. NBME exams in preclinical - If you have no clue what this means - NBME is the company that makes Step 1 (and the other steps). This means that the curriculum and exams in M1 and M2 would teach you based on Step 1 material and your block exams will be Step 1 style questions. The alternative is called "in-house" curriculum and its not NBME. This is significantly worse for quality of life IMO because your schools curriculum may or may not overlap with Step 1, so you're left to prepare for that somewhat on your own while having to waste time memorizing whatever random molecule and antibody your teachers think is cool for the in house exam. Not fun.
5. P/F - exams in preclinical are pass/fail, usually have to hit some predetermined score like 65 or 70 and you're good. I think it definitely makes the environment less competitive and helpful. Some say it reduces the pressure to prepare for Step 1, but I think the type of people getting into med school already have enough internal panic about the repercussions of failing step 1 that they will have the drive to prepare for it.
6. Curriculum - this doesnt matter that much because the vast majority of med students sit at home and study from the same 4-5 resources on their own in preclinical. The only thing that could matter is preclinical length which many schools are cutting from 2 years to 1.5 years to increase clinical time which could be a bonus. Other than that, the best thing you can do is pick a med school with minimal mandatory bullshit. PBL/TBL/whatever sounds great in paper but usually ends up being a colossal waste of time in practice. They will take 3 hours to teach something that can be covered in a 30 minute video at 2x speed. Less intrusive curriculums allow for more flexibility in studying methods and in personal life in general.
7. On site rotations - This means clinical years will mostly happen at the med schools hospital or on the med schools campus. This means you don't have to drive far away in clinical years which saves you time. Schools that don't have this will send you to farther away places to do rotations and that takes your time up in commuting. I've seen some bad cases where clinical sites are like over an hour away and students need to spend money on temp accommodations because the commute is undoable. Not fun to deal with I'll bet.
8. Location - My advice is that unless it's SUPER inflictive on your quality of life (eg: you get depressed if not in the sun, area is extremely racist) this isn't super important (see exception below). Maybe I am biased but I think the factors above in relation to free time are more important than location itself.
9. Family/Spouse/SO - exception to the above. If you have your own spouse/kids you want to remain near that will have to be prioritized over the other things in this list. Same with if you want to remain near your parents. That one's up to the individual person. I'd be wary basing school choice off a boyfriend/girlfriend, med school is hard and SO many relationships ended in the first year at my school. IMO if you're not at the point of stating relationship permanency is guaranteed, it's not worth it. Or try doing long distance. But maybe I'm biased since my marriage is long distance.
10. Tuition/COL - Obviously this is very much up to the individual how much they want to prioritize this. I'd say up to a point its not worth penny pinching but seeing some schools with a 6-figure tuition...looking at you Illinois OOS. Also very much dependent on how much outside financial support you have coming in and all that.
11. Vibes/get along with class - This seems to be emphasized heavily but I think its not as important as the things at the top of this list. Every class is different from the previous one, so its tough to predict this. Med school changes people anyway, nice people can turn not nice under the pressure. Unless you make a concerted effort not to, you can probably find 2-3 good friends at any school. There will be gunners and toxic people at every school, just avoid them if you don't like them.

How do I find all this information out? IMO unless you know someone personally who goes to that school, internet/reddit/SDN is your best bet. Current students are hesitant to say negative things about their school in front of the admins during those meet and greet things.

My stbx husband and I have been together for 5 years, and married for just over 1. To put it lightly, things have been tumultuous. We were in this horrendous cycle of bickering, resentment, big blow up fight and seperating, trying to give it another chance and breathe “life” into the relationship by making a big change (moving, new job, etc) and repeat.
For the past year in particular, we’ve led completely separate lives. For several months now I’ve been telling him that things felt bad, that I didn’t feel seen or valued, and that we lacked meaningful communication. This was repeatedly met with being told I was overthinking things and overreacting to his behavior.
He finally agreed to try couples therapy about six weeks ago, after I told him I was at the end of my rope and feeling so lonely and exhausted by our relationship.
We started sessions and I really tried to engage with him more outside of therapy, including doing activities the therapist suggested. I felt he was… uninterested in doing anything other than simply showing up to our sessions. Finally last week, he told me he wasn’t interested in continuing therapy.
I’ve been contemplating separation for some time, and felt that this was the final nail in the coffin. I really realized how one sided the effort in this relationship felt, and how I’ve lost myself and fallen out of love with this person over time. It’s really just devastating.
So, a few days ago, I told him I was done. I was so strangely calm throughout the conversation. He however, completely broke down. He’s now going back and forth between sobbing and begging me to give him a chance, and calling me a quitter and saying I didn’t take our marriage seriously. I feel so bad that I’m hurting him but also so frustrated that he’s behaving this way after everything that’s happened.
I just need advice. Ending this relationship was such a difficult decision and now I feel like the villain, or like I’ve gone about this the wrong way. What can I do from here?

The global Hydroprocessing Catalysts (HPC) market size is projected to grow from US$ 1808.5 million in 2022 to US$ 2365.6 million in 2029; it is expected to grow at a CAGR of 3.9% from 2023 to 2029.
Global key producers of hydrogenation catalysts (HPC) include Advanced Refining Technologies (ART), Albemarle, Shell Catalysts & Technologies, Haldor Topsoe, and others. The top three producers together hold 45% of the market share, with Albemarle being the largest producer with over 20%. Global origins are mainly located in North America, Europe, China, Japan, Southeast Asia, etc., with North America being the largest production region, occupying more than 50% of the market share. In terms of product categories, hydrotreating holds the main market with 80% market share and hydrocracking with 20%. In terms of applications, diesel hydrotreat is the number one application with 27% market share, followed by naphtha and lube oils.
Hydrogenation catalyst is a type of catalyst that is to treat with hydrogen – is a chemical reaction between molecular hydrogen (H2) and another compound or element, usually in the presence of a catalyst such as nickel, palladium or platinum. The process is commonly employed to reduce or saturate organic compounds. Hydrogenation typically constitutes the addition of pairs of hydrogen atoms to a molecule, often an alkene. Catalysts are required for the reaction to be usable; non-catalytic hydrogenation takes place only at very high temperatures. Hydrogenation reduces double and triple bonds in hydrocarbons.
LPI (LP Information)' newest research report, the “Hydroprocessing Catalysts (HPC) Industry Forecast” looks at past sales and reviews total world Hydroprocessing Catalysts (HPC) sales in 2022, providing a comprehensive analysis by region and market sector of projected Hydroprocessing Catalysts (HPC) sales for 2023 through 2029. With Hydroprocessing Catalysts (HPC) sales broken down by region, market sector and sub-sector, this report provides a detailed analysis in US$ millions of the world Hydroprocessing Catalysts (HPC) industry.
This Insight Report provides a comprehensive analysis of the global Hydroprocessing Catalysts (HPC) landscape and highlights key trends related to product segmentation, company formation, revenue, and market share, latest development, and M&A activity. This report also analyzes the strategies of leading global companies with a focus on Hydroprocessing Catalysts (HPC) portfolios and capabilities, market entry strategies, market positions, and geographic footprints, to better understand these firms' unique position in an accelerating global Hydroprocessing Catalysts (HPC) market.
This Insight Report evaluates the key market trends, drivers, and affecting factors shaping the global outlook for Hydroprocessing Catalysts (HPC) and breaks down the forecast by type, by application, geography, and market size to highlight emerging pockets of opportunity. With a transparent methodology based on hundreds of bottom-up qualitative and quantitative market inputs, this study forecast offers a highly nuanced view of the current state and future trajectory in the global Hydroprocessing Catalysts (HPC).
This report presents a comprehensive overview, market shares, and growth opportunities of Hydroprocessing Catalysts (HPC) market by product type, application, key manufacturers and key regions and countries.
Top Manufactures in Global Hydroprocessing Catalysts (HPC) Includes:
Advanced Refining Technologies (ART)
Albemarle
Shell Catalysts & Technologies
Haldor Topsoe
UOP
Axens
Johnson Matthey
Sinopec
CNPC
SJEP
Market Segment by Type, covers:
Hydrotreating
Hydrocracking
Market Segment by Applications, can be divided into:
Diesel Hydrotreat
Lube Oils
Naphtha
Residue Upgrading
Others
Key Questions Addressed in this Report
What is the 10-year outlook for the global Hydroprocessing Catalysts (HPC) market?
What factors are driving Hydroprocessing Catalysts (HPC) market growth, globally and by region?
Which technologies are poised for the fastest growth by market and region?
How do Hydroprocessing Catalysts (HPC) market opportunities vary by end market size?
How does Hydroprocessing Catalysts (HPC) break out type, application?
What are the influences of COVID-19 and Russia-Ukraine war?
Request Sample Report and Full Report TOC:
https://www.lpinformationdata.com/reports/449728/hydroprocessing-catalysts-hpc-2029
LP INFORMATION (LPI) is a professional market report publisher based in America, providing high quality market research reports with competitive prices to help decision makers make informed decisions and take strategic actions to achieve excellent outcomes.We have an extensive library of reports on hundreds of technologies.Search for a specific term, or click on an industry to browse our reports by subject. Narrow down your results using our filters or sort by what’s important to you, such as publication date, price, or name.
LP INFORMATION
E-mail: [email protected]
Add: 17890 Castleton St. Suite 369 City of Industry, CA 91748 US
Website: https://www.lpinformationdata.com

Oh, my daughter, Florinda, or as the family calls her simply Flor or Pain-In-The-Ass. She's the most beautiful stress ever.
Now she may be 38, but most people just see essentially a 5'4" 140 pound, gray haired 1st grader. She's got severe autism. She doesn't talk much but when she does you can't shut her up.
I love her so much, she's my entire world. I would do anything to protect Florinda of course. However, my gosh she is turning my hair about as gray as hers is. We found her first gray hair when she was only twelve! She's completely gray now at 38 and has been since 27.
Of course I make her some breakfast, usually at the table but if she's especially gripy I'll make her breakfast in bed. Always comes with some coffee of course!
Now as for Florinda's first visit from Auntie Flo... ;) That happened when she was 14 if my memory is still good. She's had to be put through that pain for 24 years. I can't believe we didn't get her on the pill any sooner. She just started 3 weeks ago and her periods have stopped. They were already irregular since she has PCOS but whatever. They're gone now. Also helps prevent unwanted pregnancies if she were to run off.
Florinda hates pills. Actually hate is an understatement. I literally have to crush up pills and put them in a drink for her to take them. She hated taking the birth control at first and still does. I have to mix her pill into her morning coffee.
It sucks because she doesn't understand why she needs to take the birth control. She can get quite impatient and irritable if there's any sudden change in her routine. Florinda was using the Keurig and making her coffee as she pulled the creamer out from the fridge.
As she was pouring it in I dropped her birth control in there since we do that every morning now. She gave me the most confused look and then just walked off doing her "angry" voice. That's when she starts going "AAAARGHHH!!" over and over angrily until someone comes in to hug her. It's quite strange to watch and it often confuses people but I understand it well.
Hubby comes in wondering why Florinda is mad and why I'm over here stirring fully creamed coffee. Then he wants me over there... I have to say, "Hold on, I have to mix the birth control in there!"
Wow, this woman can be crazy sometimes... I still love her so much.

This is a fantastic app, the recent updates - not so much.

1. Slower The app is slower, takes longer to load and seems to refresh more.
   
2. Custom Sort - what happened I’d like to be able to sort Author (surname) then alphabetical by title.
   
3. Tags - no longer in alphabetical order I have my tags numbered so they appear in the order I want them, now there seems to no system at all. This is very important to me.
   
4. Covers - covers added from file gone I have covers I’ve added from file and they keep disappearing but not consistently. This was happening before the update, but I lost almost all of them after.
   
5. Print - don’t want to choose from Paperback or Hardback I appreciate that some people want to be more specific, but I would prefer to have a plain print option as well.
   
6. Statistics Box - won’t stay collapsed Every time the app refreshes, the statistics box un-collapses. I’m not particularly interested in the granular information and I’d like it to stay collapsed. Or better yet a hide option.
   
7. Icon - two different colours I changed the app icon to pink 🙂 but when it’s in the dock it’s still blue since the update.
   

I was introduced to a guy about 3.5 months ago, and we started texting but took things very slowly and healthily, meaning that we didn’t text each other 24/7 or during work hours. Then, we started texting more and more and finally met up. I thought the date went well, and he expressed the same. We started actually texting even more so. Then, we had a second date. Same thing, and our texts got even more intimate. Third date was a bit awkward because I got really nervous but I was pretty open about it. I ended up sleeping over but we didn’t sleep with each other. We continued to text a lot and started having more calls and FaceTime talks. Honestly, our convos made it seem like we were dating dating (e.g., telling me he misses me and how he wants to explore so many places with me and even making plans with me in the future). We then had a fourth date and he ended up sleeping over afterwards/still we didn’t sleep with each other. After this date, the warmth and frequency of his texts changed. I finally asked him about the energy shift and he said that he really likes me and that, being honest, he bumped into someone from his past a couple of months ago and they then reached out at the time. He said he never responded and didn’t think it would impact him talking to me but then it kept weighing on him and leaving him with mixed emotions. He said that he thinks that the mixed emotions have kept him from fully connecting with me and he realizes now it’s not fair to me and that I deserve someone who can reciprocate from the get go and he isn’t sure when or if he could get to that point with how he’s feeling in the moment. We continued to talk where expressed that he has seen a future with us and just couldn’t understand why he couldn’t give me his all wholeheartedly towards the end despite me having everything and he thinks his hesitation stems from the mixed emotions.
To take a step back, while we were seeing each other, I asked him about the timeline of his past relationship, and he said he had never been in one and has dated around but never been in anything serious because he was in school and couldn’t really commit. I explained that I only asked to make sure he was emotionally available and to see if he was still in contact with anyone from his past, and that I ultimately think the past is the past. He asked about mine and then we moved on from the convo.
We both ended on a good note and told each other that we liked each other and blah blah lol. I told him that I’d be removing him off of socials and keeping no contact and didn’t want him to think it was out of spite and I do think very highly of him. And that I was only removing him so I could fully heal and move forward. I’ve also told him that I usually move forward and don’t look back. He told me that he’s always there for me if I ever need him and that I’m truly special to him.
Granted it’s only been 3 days, I really miss him, and I sort of want to reach out. As cheesy as it sounds and even if he wasn’t able to feel the same right now, I really haven’t felt what I felt for him for anyone else. Also, we have never had any other issue. I obviously don’t think that there is anything to work out here like immediately because he needs time to figure out his headspace but I do wonder if like maybe there is any room to talk about it. Like if he does take time to think about what he feels about the past situation and doesn’t end up contacting her, if we could try again if I haven’t fully moved on. Or another thing is I understand his POV like I understand that it is even harder when you’re starting something new and it reminds you of how like things were past that new stage and just like 100 percent comfortable.
Any advice? If the advice isn’t just move on and leave it alone, how would you approach a convo with him again about all of this?

for some background i M19 have been diagnosed with bipolar 2, ADHD and epilepsy for which im currently on 7 prescribed medications which are vraylar, vyvanse, guanfacine, epidiolex (cbd oil) topirimate, ingrezza and ritalin. 4 days ago my doctor, the one who diagnosed me with bipolar put me on klonopin a decision that i was at first really hesitant about, because i’ve heard horror stories about benzos and have had friends who have died from fent, but after talking to my parents who assured me it would be fine i decided to give it a try.
i was given a dosage of 0.5 mg twice a day by my doctor 20 pills to start with because i had been having anger issues and some other problems, since taking it, i’ve been feeling so much nicer, i’ve never really been much of a stressed person, despite the havoc my disorder has wrecked on my life, it usually manifests in more personal ways.
Me and my girlfriend have been having some issues lately and it’s due mostly to my bipolar and my rapid cycling mood swings, she’s autistic but doesn’t understand the stuff that i go through despite her trying her best to, and i’ve caused her a lot of grief.
We’ve almost broken up 3 times out of nowhere due to my rapid cycling even on all the medication i’m on, our relationship was struggling, until-
TLDgetting to the point About 4 days ago my doctor decided to prescribe me klonopin and the side effects i’ve been having have been weird but welcomed nonetheless (for the most part, except for that voice in the back of my head) Ever since i started taking it i’ve had almost endless energy, i’ve been a much better boyfriend i’ve been almost non stop in the gym, which is a place i haven’t been in a very long time, i’ve felt more carefree and less caring about what other people think (until today) i’ve been able to sleep but i don’t feel like i need it.
The problem is starting a couple hours ago after taking the medicine i just felt like a little off, my head feels foggy but i feel content in the foggyness if that makes sense. that scares me because i don’t like feeling that way, i’m scared i’m gonna abuse this med. i can feel the fog enveloping me as i type this and i keep grinding my teeth and basically i’m worried. i don’t want damage what do i do?

idk if i really should say this but i'm pretty sus of her psychologist. I AM NOT A PSYCHOLOGIST, but it's a field i want to go into, and have been in therapy myself for like a decade. so take all of this with a grain of salt, but i do have some amount of familiarity with how therapists and psychologists are expected to act and the shit she's supposedly doing and being told in therapy has me giving side eye.
one more thing before i get started-- i want to stress that i am not trying to say this psychologist is bad at his job. obey rule 2 + leave bro alone and out of this. he's just some dude, and he may not be saying any of what amber says he does. hell, he might not even exist. this post is PURELY to discuss, subjectively, the qualms i have with how amber's therapy is being handled (on both ends) exclusively using word of mouth from amber's very warped videos. heaps of salt (and decency) all around.
okay enough preamble, we're starting with the PTSD.
i'm currently being treated myself for PTSD (this is not to debate whether she has that though), and i think the test she referenced a bit ago was the PCL-5. the PCL-5 is NOT to diagnose PTSD*. the PCL-5 is to measure symptoms associated with PTSD. if you have not yet been diagnosed or treated for PTSD and your score is a 33 or higher, it does not inherently mean that you have PTSD, but rather, means the possibility of PTSD is present and should be looked into by your mental healthcare provider. this is not what amber said. amber said 33+ = PTSD and she had SOOOO much more than 33 so she's the PTSD queen of the world.
*the PCL-5 is a tool used IN PTSD diagnosis. it on its own cannot diagnose anything, but this does not negate its importance as a factor in diagnosis.
so either her psychologist told her that the PCL-5 was essentially a magic diagnose-er, or he told her what it actually is and she warped it (but it might also have been something in between, which is still not good). amber is amber and she will always find a way to blow something out of proportion, but the fact that she felt inclined or was able to present it the way she did tells me that her psych may not have stressed what these things actually are, which in my own experience, is an issue. as a therapist you need to accurately present things to your patients, and you shouldn't throw diagnostic language around willy nilly or pin diagnosis on literal inanimate objects (ie, this test diagnoses disorders). that is not appropriate, and can give patients a warped idea of themselves, their mental health, and the wider mental health sphere (i also think it's a little odd that, if this is the PCL-5, that amber may not have been told as much. sure, her psychologist absolutely could have introduced it correctly, but amber has basically only called it "this test" or "a worksheet" as though she isn't sure what she's talking about. the ambiguity there, while also presenting it as this inanimate wizard of diagnosis, feels very off to me).
PTSD, like any other disorder, also takes some time to diagnose completely. you don't just walk in there, do one or two sessions with a therapist, and BOOM diagnosis. that's not appropriate. for most diagnoses, a therapist needs to (or at least should...):

1. actually get to understand the patient, who they are, any conditions they may have already been diagnosed with, the medication they're on, at least a rough idea of the lifestyle they have, the symptoms they're dealing with, etc
2. know of the specific incident (because generally, PTSD is caused by one major moment of trauma) that would have caused the disorder (not necessarily in detail, but just know what it was, e.g., a car crash, a fire, an assault, etc)
3. evaluate whether hearing "you most likely/do have PTSD" will actually be helpful to the patient, AND if they're completely ready to be treated. not everyone does well with diagnoses. some people freak out at the idea of being 'broken' in some way, some people think that once they get a diagnosis it means that's their identity now and they can't be fixed, some people hear a diagnostic term and take it as a scapegoat, many people experience a combo of these things. personally were i amberlynn's therapist i would be extremely hesitant to offer up concrete diagnoses unless i thought she may need to talk to her PCP/psychiatrist about medication, because she mistreats her diagnoses. with PTSD it's not something you can really treat without any form of PTSD diagnosis, but also, PTSD is not something people are always ready to conquer treatment for when they first present to you. i'll expand upon this below, but for the sake of this bullet, someone who will treat their PTSD diagnosis the way amber does imo (i.e., her quirky identity and something to be quantified in numbers) may not yet be ready to hear the diagnosis, and likely isn't ready to treat it either.

amber effectively was diagnosed with PTSD on her, what, second appointment? third? first? either way, that just doesn't spell fantastic therapy work to me. i've been seeing my current therapist for 4-ish years and was just diagnosed with PTSD this year (after around 2 years of lightly discussing my trauma). when i was diagnosed my therapist already knew me very well. she at that point was familiar with my trauma, familiar with my life, with my symptoms, with how my mental health impacts me, and knew that i was finally ready to actually deal with it. they were interested in tackling it a year or two ago, but at the time, recognized i just wasn't ready and we've saved it for now. on top of that, my therapist waited until i showed them that i was comfortable with the situation + was prepared to hear it to refer to my condition as PTSD in order to avoid creating any anxiety before we even got started with treatment.
i think it's very strange that, at least by the sound of it, her therapist jumped on the opportunity to diagnose her with this very serious disorder (though entirely curable-- let's all be reminded that it is not an identity. if amber starts treating this/talking about it like it's part of her that can't be fixed or changed that'll be yet ANOTHER red flag, PTSD is absolutely curable and that's the whole point of treatment).
what i also find inappropriate as someone being treated for PTSD is that he has her write physical essays recounting major traumatic moments. maybe this is something some therapists do, but to ME it's a little problematic. why would you instruct your patient to keep a physical log, that any other person could access and read, of the worst moment(s) of their life?!? i've already gone into enough detail about myself and my treatment, but TLDR, i have to do something slightly similar but it's in a way that is completely private and confidential (i.e., behind a passcode only i know, not physical, and digitally stored in a way that literally cannot be breached and is DESIGNED for use in this kind of therapy). confidentiality is a big part of this and amber should understand that. why does she find it appropriate to record herself immediately before and immediately after therapy, share what she's going to do, what she did as homework, etc, and why does her therapist find it okay that she's writing these extremely personal accounts on physical sheets of paper (or even recommended it) when she has every resource in the world to keep things confidential?
but speaking of weird diagnostic shit, let's talk about how he addressed the BED that she suddenly, officially doesn't have.
idk about any of you, but not once have i had a therapist say "y disorder is when z. that is the definition of that disorder and it cannot be experienced in any other way". i sound like a broken record but i find it pretty damn inappropriate that a mental health professional would tell her "bingeing is when you eat 3x what you normally would. if you don't eat 3x what you ordinarily would when you binge, then you simply don't binge", partly because it's just not good practice to speak about mental disorders with such strict absolutes, but also because it's just... wrong? Mayo Clinic defines binge eating disorder as follows: "Binge-eating disorder is a serious eating disorder in which you frequently consume unusually large amounts of food and feel unable to stop eating." these are the symptoms they list (but they are not limited to the following):

• Eating unusually large amounts of food in a specific amount of time, such as over a two-hour period
• Feeling that your eating behavior is out of control
• Eating even when you're full or not hungry
• Eating rapidly during binge episodes
• Eating until you're uncomfortably full
• Frequently eating alone or in secret
• Feeling depressed, disgusted, ashamed, guilty or upset about your eating
• Frequently dieting, possibly without weight loss

(cred. Mayo Clinic)
do we see "bingeing is when you eat 3x what you normally would" anywhere on there? no. idk where he even got that. not to mention, there IS no normal for amber. every meal she consumes is excessive and is what many of us would call binge eating or at the very least overeating. by this definition if she binges at every meal, well, she doesn't binge at all because it would all be the same amount, not 3x whatever. this whole concept is a crock of shit. the language is all kinds of bunk (why would you use the word "normally" when referring to behavior outside of the disordered behavior? not only can it be ableist in some context it's also just.. incredibly loose) and completely negates the actual symptoms of bingeing, ALL of which amber displays.
yes. i understand that amber could have (read: probably... definitely) lied about her symptoms for the sake of her WLS (allegedly, in my opinion, don't sue me please). however, that's irrelevant to what the psychologist supposedly told her. even if she told him she did all of the above, if he really believes in such a rigid (and ridiculous) definition, it wouldn't even matter.
i'm very curious and suspicious about the whole BED un-diagnosis. for years amber has said she binge eats, she's presented all of these symptoms, and IIRC she has been told by other therapists/psychologists/drs that she has it. i think most of us, even without being mental health professionals, have at least some level of understanding of binge eating. the fact that he has this definition in his mind (according to amber anyway) baffles me, but what baffles me more is that he so easily said "oh, you definitely don't have BED" just a few weeks in to therapy with a woman who would otherwise have had to see him for a full year because of BED. from what we've heard he's incredibly eager to pounce on diagnoses, which is a huge red flag. again. yes. she could have lied to him about her current symptoms but that wouldn't change the fact that she's BEEN saying, to the clinic with which he is affiliated, that she has BED for an extended period of time. that wouldn't change the fact that she's been told this by so many professionals. both of these, i would think he'd have some kind of awareness of. it also wouldn't change the fact that his supposed definition of BED is just literally wrong.
this whole situation type deal has me BEYOND suspicious. please tell me i'm not the only one who thinks this therapy sounds very strange...

I'm interested in IF with an eating window between 11 AM and 6 PM. (family dinner is typically 5 PM for us which is important to me) I have tried this approach a few times but the brain fog when I start working (at 7 AM) until the eating window starts at 11 AM is a real problem. Several of you suggested sodium, potassium and magnesium also I read about taking MCT oil. So newbie question....I can do both MCT oil and electrolytes together? Bad idea or good idea? I'd appreciate any insights!

[First] [Previous] [Next]
Memory transcription subject: Illia, Federation Communications Technician
Date [standardized human time]: October 21, 2136
Kiran and I embraced for what seemed like forever, idly sitting on the rainbow grass that colored the forest floor while huddled together in the darkness. The campfire near us was still full of life somehow, and provided a good amount of illumination throughout the campsite.
It was quite difficult to sit on my haunches upright, with nothing supporting my back. Despite that, It was well worth it and I would sympathize with her for as long as was needed. I remained alert, with my weapon still in my grip in case the human decided to return for round two. I gently massaged the girl’s back with one of my forehooves, hoping that my attempts at soothing her would ward away the trauma she had experienced.
“Illia..” Kiran sobbed into my chest, drenching the fabric of my jumpsuit. “T-thank you, thank you. I was scared that you didn't m-make it.. I don’t know what I would do if you didn’t. P-please don’t leave me.” She pleaded.
“I’m not going anywhere, sweetheart, don’t worry.” I replied, my voice a faint whisper. “The only thing that matters now is that you’re safe. You don’t have to worry about that.. thing anymore. It’s gone.” I consoled her, wiping the still-wet tears off of her ruffled feathers. “More importantly, are you hurt?” I checked her over, examining her lithe body from multiple angles.
She thought about that for a little while, then sat up, stretching a wing. She let out a cry of pain once it was half-way extended and brought it back down gingerly, wrapping a wing around her upper shoulder. I reached forward out of sympathy, my maternal instincts moving me to comfort her.
“Oh, Jild.. L-Let me see, honey.” I crooned. She heavily reminded me of my eldest, only daughter, and it was amusing how alike they were, despite being of different species.
I tenderly prodded the dull side of my hoof-paw against her supposed injured appendage, trailing it up towards her shoulder, which earned a startled chirp from her, followed by a slight jump away from my touch. The area of where her wing met her shoulder was bruised a deep purple, visible even beneath her feathers from where she collided with the tree. I was beyond grateful that nothing had broken, or even shattered. That would require extensive care, and we were lightyears away from the nearest hospital.
“How d-does it look, Illia? W-Will I be ok?” She sniffled, caressing her discolored limb while being mindful of its positioning. Sadness etched itself across my face, but I forced a hopeful look in Kiran’s favor. Thankfully, the bruising was the extent of her injuries, none of which were life threatening, though were still in need of urgent medical attention. The most I would be able to do would be to give her painkillers and make a sling for her.
Our best option now is to find Orsik and the rest of the crew.
“It’s.. fine, honey. Don’t you worry. I’ll get you fixed up, and you’ll feel all better, ok?” I said while rummaging through my bag for my first aid kit. I had a thorough understanding of how to dress wounds, as well as the proper medical procedures that came with it. Kiran would need her arm immobilized so that any further injury could be avoided. We’d better find help soon, I can only help her so much. I internalized.
Pulling out the kit, I took out a bottle containing the painkillers and a small, square-shaped piece of cloth, which unfolded into a much longer strand of fabric. I cautiously draped the cloth along her shoulder, positioning her arm along her abdomen much to her discomfort, and tied it off. Her arm was now fully supported, and the risk of worsening the injury had decreased. Feeling satisfied with my work, I grabbed the vial of painkillers, urging her to take one. I then grabbed one of the large bottles of water from my pack, holding it a distance away from her beak. “Drink, sweetie.” She welcomed the fluid into her mouth, tilting her head back as I poured the bottle. She eagerly chugged down the substance in record time, unmistakably parched. It had probably been a while since her last drink of water.
I leaned back and returned the now empty bottle to my bag, and observed her checking out my handiwork. Her gaze met the ground suddenly, and she froze, her eyes glossing over. I waited for her to say something, anything. Her abrupt silence was starting to worry me.
“Sweetie?” She gazed off into the distance, no doubt reliving her near-death experience. “Are you alright?” I nudged her, snapping her attention back to me. Tears began to bubble in those wide eyes of hers again; her grip on my jumpsuit tightened, and her hackles raised. She was visibly shaking.
“It.. it came out of n-nowhere. I could feel it w-watching m-me, even before I s-saw it. It.. I knew it w-was there, and th-then.. She whimpered. T-there was so m-much blood, and I-I.. Her voice was hoarse, describing her contact with the predator. “I-I was.. Was so s-scared.. I-I’ve never been more scared b-before in my life..” She choked the words out. “I didn’t know what to do, I-I couldn’t m-move.”
I lay my head gently on top of her own. “That’s just your instincts kicking in, honey.” I assured her. “Everyone has them.” I felt her rapid heartbeat slow gradually as she listened to my words. “You’re safe. Relax, my sweet.” The corners of my mouth turned up in a smile. “I am very proud of you, setting up camp all by yourself. You’ve proven to be very strong and capable out on your own.” My smile died down a bit. “I’m sorry that I didn’t come sooner, but I didn’t forget our promise.”
She released her tight grip on me, reeling back and looking at me with one eye. She swallowed. “Neither did I. I-I knew you would come, so I w-waited.” There was a pause after that, the both of us glad to be in each other's presence. “Thank you, Illia.”
I flicked my ears toward her, and my grin grew wider. “Of course. Let’s get out of here.” I stood up on my hind hooves with a grunt, stretching out my tired muscles. I extended my paw downward towards her, and she took it with her uninjured wing. I helped the virtually weightless girl to her talons, and hefted my backpack over my shoulders. My poor spine ached in protest, practically begging for a break. “Ready?” I turned my head towards her.
“Illia?” She spoke after a moment, craning her neck up towards me.
“Yes, Kiran?”
“That thing, the h-human.. Did you k-kill it? Where did it go?” A worried look crossed her avian features, waiting for my response. I wouldn’t want to worry the poor girl, but I don’t want to lie to her, either.
I inhaled sharply after a moment, inadvertently giving away the answer to Kiran even before my admission. Her brows upturned slightly with worry. My own eyes latched onto hers, and I breathed a sigh, confirming her suspicion.
“Y-you.. You didn’t kill it?! It’s still out there?! Oh, Inatala..” Her feeble legs wobbled, and I kept her from falling over. “W-why? Illia.. Y-you should have killed it when you had the chance! How is it e-even here? Did it f-follow us?!” The distraught avian squawked in alarm, and my ears flattened in response from the sudden change in pitch.
The loud krakotl girl was likely to attract unwanted attention, with how boisterous she was currently. I gently clasped a hoof-paw around her beak, attempting to silence her. “Hey! Calm down, sweetie. Deep breaths. We’re not on Nishtal, or anywhere else. Remember? There’s bound to be predators around here, so we have to be quiet.” That silenced her instantly. “Please, for both of our sakes.” I concernedly whispered. Her frantic chirping died down, and I released my paw.
I inhaled deeply, my lungs pulling in the night’s chilly air. I’d have to answer the many questions that she has bombarded me with now, lest her little heart stops.
A long breath escaped my lips. “I hesitated. I.. I couldn’t pull the trigger, knowing that I would be ending the life of a sapient, living creature. Killing is wrong, regardless of whether it’s prey or predator. I refuse to stoop down to its level.” I explained my actions. “As to how it got here, we must have picked it up somewhere around the time when we boarded the bomber ship. I had a suspicion earlier, I’m sorry for not telling you sooner.” I was sorely tempted to put the murderous bastard out of its misery then and there, but it didn’t sit right with me.
She clicked silently to herself, the gears slowly turning in her head.
“I-I thought something was wrong, on the ship, with how you were staring at the door. I was w-worried..” She nervously fidgeted, her talons puncturing the surface she stood on. “Uhm, why.. W-why does the human want to k-kill me? What d-did I do?” She timidly met my gaze again, glancing up at me with watery eyes.
I snorted, raising a four-digit paw and setting it down gently on her uninjured shoulder.
“It isn’t you, Kiran. Killing is in a predator’s nature, their bloodlust drives them crazy. They can’t help it even if they tried, that’s why we can’t live in peace.” I snorted, angering myself over my own rant. “I just wish that we had finished the job.” I muttered, referring to erasing humanity from existence.
Something else was plastered on her face now, something not dissimilar to a look of betrayal. “Illia?” She gulped. “D-do.. do you have predator disease?” Her voice was unsteady, but at the same time, nothing but a faint whisper.
Those words rekindled a flame in me that I thought to be snuffed out a while ago. I snorted angrily, outraged that she would even ask me such a thing, after I had saved her life. She would be dead if I hadn’t intervened, but here she was, accusing me of being the very thing that I had saved her from.
The adrenaline in my system dissipated as I stared into her frightened eyes, and I restrained myself from throwing a fit. Kiran was young, and couldn’t comprehend that predator disease wasn’t an actual illness, but instead was a way for the Federation to retain its chokehold over its citizenry. Though, I wasn’t about to berate the girl over flawed conspiracy theories. She clearly knew nothing of the pain it caused, as naive as she was.
But I knew it well.
She was as stiff as the trees surrounding us, eyeing me expectantly. I felt a pang of sadness as I noticed that she even stepped back a few paces, away from my reach. The Federation had indoctrinated her far beyond the point of recovery with their nonsensical rhetoric. It was insane to think that one misguided accusation was all it took to break apart the bond between two people. There was no use reasoning with her, but I could try.
Is that how she saw me? A predator? That caused me more pain than any weapon could physically inflict, especially coming from her. Where did this even come from? I was nowhere close to matching the Humans’ brutality, or even the Arxurs’, and yet, she still regarded me as one of them.
I released a snort, dismissing the indirect insult. “No.” I said sternly, clearly heartbroken, as much as I tried to mask it. “Honey, we’ve known each other for quite a while. If I truly had.. ‘Predator disease’, don’t you think I would have shown signs of it by now?” I left the question in the air as Kiran attempted to make sense of my reasonable statement. “Well?”
“T-That makes sense..” Her voice cracked.
“Don’t you trust me, Kiran? Why would you ask such a thing?” My own voice wavered as my heart split down the middle, waiting for her reply. Although, I knew what it would be.
“I do.” She squawked a little while after, catching me completely off-guard. “It’s just.. I-I heard you, threatening the p-predator. Y-You were so b-brave, and instead of running the other way, you just.. held it at gunpoint, and shooed it away from me. You weren’t s-scared at all, even when it wanted to kill you.” She gulped.
“Of course I was scared. I was terrified.” I pleaded. “But I couldn’t just stand back and do nothing, not while your life was at stake. I had to be strong, whatever the cost. It would forever haunt me if I had left you to die, to save myself. I would n-never, I c-couldn’t..” I whimpered through ragged breaths, a dam of emotion bursting through my guise of strength. “I have known nothing but pain and anguish since I set hoof on this planet. I’ve already lost so much, and losing you would absolutely destroy me.” I sobbed, gasping for air. I felt embarrassed, having Kiran see me in my current state. I had tried so hard to be strong for her, but the events of this past week have finally caught up to me.
I wept, hiding my tears in the crook of my elbow. I felt a warm touch caress my upper arm, and I moved my arm away from my eyes. Looking down, Kiran had moved closer to me with a comforting smile on her face. It would seem that she had discarded the ‘sulean predator’ claim after witnessing the humiliating waterworks display in front of her.
“I believe you.” She smiled with her eyes. Relief washed through me instantly. She was the one person in the Federation who had wanted to be my friend, let alone even talk to me. Despite being on a mystery planet with a slim chance of escape, she was a light in the darkness. I hope she knows what she means to me.
I grew a smile of my own and latched onto her in another embrace, being careful not to disturb her shoulder. I snorted through my nose contentedly. “Thank you.” I sniffed. Although startled at first, she returned the hug, squeezing me tightly. While embraced, for a brief moment all of my worries had faded away, replaced by a feeling of adoration and hope. We departed from each other, our bond reinstated.
“See? I’m not foaming at the mouth, am I? Guess I’m not a predator after all.” I joked, hoping it would be well received. I gently tickled her side with my hooved manipulators, causing her to giggle.
“Ok, ok! I trust you! The little one laughed, wiping the remaining tears from her eyes. Her breathing returned to a calm pace. “So. Where to now?”
“What do you mean, little one?” I inquired. “It’s pitch black out there, surely you’re not thinking of heading out now, are you? The human is still out there, and it probably isn’t the only thing we have to worry about.” Wandering through the wilderness in the dead of night wasn’t the best idea, with the looming threat of predators. We’d have to make do here, where our chances of surviving the night were slim enough as it was.
“O-Oh, yeah, you’re right. I-I’m just.. scared that it may come back.” She sheepishly admitted.
“Listen to me.” I met her frightful gaze. “I will not let that thing hurt you ever again. Not while I’m still here.” A motherly tone painted my words, although sounding a bit too harsh.
“Promise?”
“Promise.” I smiled. “Is there only one tent?” I switched the subject.
“Uh, y-yeah, sorry. Is it ok if we share?” She asked while walking up to the circular formation, opening it up.
“Of course.” The exchange was awkward, but we had to make do with what little we had. I climbed inside of the tent after her after taking out my floodlight, switching it on and setting it down directly in front of the tent’s flap, facing towards the shadowy trees. That’d provide us extra security, I hoped. I set my bag down onto the tent’s floor, feeling much better now without it weighing me down.
I plopped down onto my natural state on all fours. I had been ambling on my hind hooves for most of my stay on this planet, and had forgotten the comfort of having my weight equally distributed throughout my body. The muscles in my back ached, and I slid down and rolled onto my side, being able to relax at long last. I scooted my backpack towards me, intending to use it as a makeshift pillow. I released a snort of contentment as I rested my skull on the surprisingly comfortable rucksack. , the tent floor being surprisingly comfortable. A tired yawn escaped me, and my tongue lolled out of my mouth on autopilot as I felt my eyelids droop.
As much as I had wanted to sleep, I wouldn’t be able to, not with the threat of danger still lurking in the forest. We were most vulnerable while sleeping, especially while it was still dark outside. The fire was still going and was fairly close to our tent, but I wouldn’t trust that it would completely protect us from predators. I groggily sat up from my makeshift restplace and shook myself awake, followed by a tired groan. I grasped my forehooves around the weapon that I had clumsily discarded onto the tent’s floor, checking the railgun’s ammunition. Dread hit me with the realization that I was down to a singular bolt. That didn’t make me feel entirely secure, but it was better than nothing at all.
I looked to Kiran, who was already tucked in and ready for the next day. She lay down on a blue sleeping bag, completely enveloped inside of it, except for her head. I chuckled to myself while watching the adorable child snuggle inside of the bag that was far too big for her size.
She caught me staring at her. “Illia?” She spoke, cutting out the crackling of burning wood for a moment.
“Yes, dear?” I yawned again, the tiredness taking over me became unbearable at this point.
“W-What’s the plan for tomorrow?” She asked me with an inquisitive inflection in her voice.
“Well, I would imagine that we’d try to find Orsik. That’s really the only option we have right now. That way, you can be treated by an actual doctor, and not a silly sulean.” I quipped.
“I-I don’t think you’re s-silly..” She admitted meekly.
I faced her, flattered by her comment. I smiled. “Thank you, sweetie. That is very nice of you to say.” A light in the darkness. I crawled over to her, resting on my side next to where she lay. I had my weapon at the ready with a forehoof resting on top of it. I looked down at her adoringly as she shuffled inside of her covers. “Sweet dreams. I’ll see you in the morning. We’ll go looking for everyone else tomorrow.”
“What about the ship? Shouldn’t we go there?” One of her blue eyes studied me.
“I came from there, it’s nothing but a smoking heap of metal now.” I yawned. “We shouldn’t move too far away, Orsik said he’ll come to us. Besides, we’re safer here than out in the dark, right?”
Kiran whimpered, not satisfied with my answer. “Remember our promise?” I asked.
Her deflated look withered away. “Y-yes, I do..” She breathed. “O-ok, only if that means that we can leave as soon as they f-find us.”
“Of course. We won’t stay here longer than is absolutely necessary. I’ll get a signal started in the morning.”
“A-Aren’t you worried about predators? What if they come while w-we’re sleeping?”
I lay my head down onto my satchel. “I am.” I admitted. “And I would prefer not to meet them anytime soon. I think it’s a great sign that we haven’t already.” I gave a dismissive snort, hoping that was the last of her questions. “They won’t bother us, at least not tonight. The floodlight should keep them away, no worries.” I reassured her.
“Oh, ok. Good night, Illia.” She chirped.
“Good night. Sweet dreams, little one.” I caressed her feathers, then committed myself to watching the tent’s opening for the rest of the night.
- - -
I awoke, cursing after realizing that I had been asleep. I didn’t expect myself to be awake for the entire duration of the night, but I was still upset with myself for giving in to my fatigue. Something could have happened, but I was glad nothing did. I was still tired, having stayed awake for most of the night watching over Kiran. I rubbed the sleep out of my eyes with a forepaw. My railgun was still grasped in my other forepaw, and I brought the gun up to my hip, holstering it.
Some of my worries over the human still being out there somewhere had faltered; perhaps it lost interest after witnessing my display of superior strength? Predators preferred a challenge when hunting, but their small brains understood when the odds were not in their favor. This human in particular probably saw our small group as easy pickings, and had developed a taste for krakotl flesh. That’d explain the blood spattered all over it, almost as if it were a trophy.
I looked at Kiran, who was still sound asleep. The beautiful orange of this planet’s sun filtered in through the translucent barrier surrounding us; its angelic rays permeated throughout the tent and casted a wondrous shine onto her dull blue feathers.
I yawned, standing up on all fours and leaned into a stretch. The soreness had worn off, and I was ready for another long journey, this time with the presence of my avian friend. I had another long day of strengthening my hind legs, no doubt. I just hope that the rest of the crew were close.
I unzipped my dirty jumpsuit, checking my small cuts. They seemed to be in relatively good shape and had scabbed over, leaving a soreness behind. After confirming that the wounds weren’t infected, I zipped my uniform back up.
I gently shook the sleeping Kiran awake. “Good morning, sleepy. It’s time to head out.” I whispered softly. She stirred and sat up. “Are you hungry? I have some rations.” I reached for my pack, snatching two cans of processed vegetable bars and handed one to her. “You need to eat to keep your strength up, honey.” I dug into my own helping quite quickly, stowing away the empty can. It wasn’t the best tasting thing in the galaxy as it was made specifically for the krakotls’ sophisticated palate. “How did you sleep?” I spoke between mouthfuls. She ate hers bit by bit, to the best of her ability. I imagine it would be difficult to eat something with a beak as narrow as hers was, so I patiently waited for her to finish.
“I slept well, actually.” She faced me, full of youthful vigor. It was almost as though her self confidence had drastically improved overnight. She stretched her good wing out, and checked the sling on the other. Once she was done with her helping, she got up, brushing her manipulators through her feathers. “How about you, Illia?”
“Good! I’m glad. Me, I slept like a fawn.” I fibbed, stifling another yawn. “Oh, let me take that from you, sweetheart.” I motioned to her empty vegetable bar container. I collected the tin from her, tossing it along with the other. I reached for my bag, leaving the heavy non-essentials inside the tent. I slugged it over my shoulder once more, my spine thanking me for lightening the load. The pack’s weight felt far more manageable than it did before. I might even be able to actually walk around with it this time. I wondered.
“Are we ready to go?” I stood in front of the tent, raising a forehoof to unzip us to freedom. The krakotl girl chirped her affirmative after checking herself over, and we both exited the tent, ready for another adventure. Upon leaving, I was extremely surprised to see that I didn’t even have to reignite the fire, as it was still burning, although not as strong as yesterday. The crimson tree that Kiran had made the campfire out of was highly flammable, if I had to guess. That would explain the randomly scorched trees throughout the landscape that I saw earlier. I was relieved that none of them combusted while we were asleep.
“Alright. Let’s head this way, shall we?” I plucked some of the damp yellow moss from a neighboring tree with a spare piece of fabric in between my hooves in case it was an irritant, which was smart thinking on my behalf. I chucked the large bundle into the blaze, smothering the few flames that remained. The fire choked for a moment, then began eating away at the moss, emitting a white column of smoke that snaked towards the light orange of the morning sky.
We checked if we had everything, then started on our expedition. I wasn’t sure where we’d go first, but it would have to be relatively close to where the campfire was in case anyone was nearby. I eyed the skyline before us, the mountains in the distance were a wonderful gradient of bright reds, purples, and yellows, perfectly blending together.
I breathed in the fresh morning air. This would have been a delightful trip, were we on a civilized planet. It still was, to an extent. The native organisms of this untouched wonder of a planet were truly a sight to behold, regardless of its many dangers. From the vivid colors of the flora to the deep red sky watching overhead, everything about this world was eye-catching.
We ventured throughout the crimson woods, encircling the campsite while keeping an eye on the smoke signal so that we wouldn’t veer off-course too much. I also was wary of the tall grass and dense shrubs around us, concentrating on even the slightest noise or movement. Today was particularly windy, so my efforts were in vain. We kept to the more open areas, even if that meant making sharp detours around areas where a predator could be concealed in.
Every now and then we would stop for a break, as I had done before. Kiran fared well during our hike, if not even better than I. We stopped underneath the shade of some crimson trees for another rest after a long while. I unpacked one of our water bottles, taking a small swig before handing it to Kiran. We rationed our supplies as best as we could, but we were quickly running out of food. We would soon have to resort to checking if the local flora were edible.
The smoke signal was still in my sight, and we only had a small distance to go in order to complete our full circle. I had thought about calling out into the woods, but decided against it, as it was likely that we would attract unwanted attention. I felt extremely uncomfortable within the dark woodland, despite having a firearm in my possession.
I lay on the grassy floor on my side, attempting to cool myself off. Kiran was doing much of the same, though in a sitting posture. I lifted my head up, snorting through my nostrils to get her attention.
“Having fun?” I smirked playfully. She clicked her beak together with amusement.
“I would be, if the sun wasn’t burning into my feathers.” She squawked between pants. She rested her head against a rock that put even the brightest of rainbows to shame.
“It’s not all bad, is it? It's all about perspective; look at the positives! You have to learn to appreciate the little things in life.”
“Ok, I appreciate..” She glanced around her surroundings, looking for something of value. “I appreciate this rock, does that count?” She gestured behind her. I couldn’t help but chuckle. “It is quite the rock, isn’t it?” She giggled in response. I adored bonding with the girl, she was almost an extension of my own child, in a way.
I didn’t find it odd or strange at the time to fawn over the beauty of an inanimate object, as we both admired its various colors. “Alright, that’s enough geology for me, I think.” I stood, dusting myself off. I heard a faint snapping sound, and my eyes traveled back to the avian, who now looked absolutely petrified, a lone eye focusing on me. She looked almost as scared as she had been when the human attacked her, but this is far worse. Is she looking at me?
I tilted my head in confusion. “Honey? Y-you’re scaring me.” I chuckled nervously. “What’s wrong?” She gave no response. I suddenly felt a massive surge of anxiety wrack my brain, and my ears perked up. The same feeling that haunted me on the ship returned for a comeback, and this time, my question didn’t have to be answered. I heard shuffling a good distance away from me, and I whipped my head in that direction, following her blank stare. My ribcage tightened as I struggled to breathe. I watched the tall grass adjacent from our position, waiting for something to happen.
The first thing I saw were its horrible forward-facing eyes with slit pupils, instantly recognizing it as a predator. They both were dilated, intent on feasting on our bloody flesh. The feral predator observed me with its piercing golden orbs as it slunk closer. It stalked towards us with its head low to the ground, stray droplets of drool spilling out of its long, gaping maw of which were lined with dozens of razor-sharp teeth capable of effortlessly crushing bone.
I didn’t know what exactly I was looking at, but I knew it was there. The beast prowled out of the tall grass in short strides with its ghastly head low to the ground, drooling over our new and alien scent. The lengthy blades of grass combed over its rainbow-colored hide as it revealed itself. Both it and the grass were a near match in terms of coloration, as I strained my eyes to focus on its appearance.
As it moved further into the light, I was able to get a better glimpse of it. The creature itself was covered in skin instead of fur, which was odd. The upper body of the animal was speckled with various bright colors that mimicked the grass, only for it to darken as the pattern stretched towards its underbelly, and morphed into a full jet black where it reached its clawed feet. I had never feared death before as much as I did right now.
I snapped myself out of my terrified stupor, jumping up to my hind hooves and quickly yanking my railgun out of its holster, jabbing it towards the thing with shaky hooves. I gasped for air as my lungs felt heavy, staring down the freak of nature. My heart sank even further and nearly burst out of my chest as I saw two other predators just like the first emerge from behind it. Oh, fuck. The weapon in my hoof suddenly seemed insignificant.
My eyes widened. We have to go, now. I grabbed Kiran without a word, pulling her along rather roughly. I dashed as fast as my legs could take me while gripping around the length of Kiran’s wing. I didn’t look back once, only focused on making it back to the tent. There was no guarantee that the fire at the campsite would dissuade them from indulging in their hunger at all, but what other option did we have? I glanced back, and was horrified to realize that the reason why they didn’t already tear us apart was because they were giving us a head start. The monstrous things were playing with their ‘food’, for fun.
I looked down to Kiran, then up to the smoke rising from the campsite. We wouldn’t make it in time. I had to make a choice. I swallowed with teary eyes. ‘’G-go.” I flicked an ear towards the campsite. “Now!” I squealed. She obeyed my order without hesitation, and fluttered over that way.
I was not at all prepared for what I was about to do, and doing so would most definitely result in my death. Weeping, I stood in place as the grayish-blue feathered girl escaped to safety.
“H-hey!” I bleated at the top of my lungs while hopping around vigorously, doing everything in my power to attract the predator’s attention towards me. “Over here!” My voice was hoarse, filled with a mixture of emotions. I hope Kiran will be able to forgive me.
All three of their large heads whipped towards me, my diversion evidently working. I holstered my weapon and turned tail, speeding the opposite way and galloping wherever my legs would take me. I leaped through twisted trees only large enough for me to fit through, and hopped over large rocks, hoping it would slow the monsters down.
Just when I thought I was clear, my hind leg unfortunately latched underneath a root peeking out of the ground, forcing me into a halt. I stopped moving instantly as my momentum ceased, and a sharp pain shot through my ankle. I yelped in distress, my upper body smacking onto the dirt with a hard thud. I whined as my weapon was flung out of its holster, landing in front of me. I crawled towards the weapon with all of my remaining strength.
The predators sauntered over, a threatening growl reverberating through the pack’s leader. I crawled towards my last chance at living, finally reaching it. I fitted my fumbling fingers around the weapon as the predator leader charged toward me while I turned around, leveling the weapon with the rainbow demon’s skull. I expelled a single and final shot as the round soared through its nose, expelling a fountain of brain matter behind it as it fell limp, a couple of feet away from me. The other two creatures were taken aback at first, but were now furious that I had dispatched their leader. I was hit with the horrific realization that I had just used the last of my ammunition.
They slowly pressed onward as I lay on my back, a hideous expression of hunger plastered on their flesh-eating faces. I shut my eyes tight, bracing for an excruciating death. Is this it? Is this how I die? At least I can rest well knowing that Kiran is safe. Please, don’t let my death be for nothing. I prayed to whatever deity was listening. Let my family I lo-
My thoughts were interrupted by a sickening crack, followed by the predator closest to me snapping its head back and toppling over, painted by its own viscous blood that spilled out of a gaping wound in its skull. It had taken a clean shot to the side of the head, dying as soon as the projectile had landed. The third predator scampered away after hearing the loud noise, staring daggers into whatever it was that ended the lives of its friends. It tucked its tail between its legs in submission, hissing towards my savior before retreating back to where it came from. What on Jild just happened?
I turned my head to my side slowly, still wary of my surroundings. Right next to me was the same human whom I had spared earlier, with its signature metal pipe still strapped to its back. Its arm was outstretched towards the dead predator, with a terran-made weapon grasped in its paw. It lowered the gun down to its side, and I screamed as it began stomping towards me, intending to claim its stolen kill. “O-Oh, Jild, no! P-please, don-don’t eat me!” I cried, trying to reason with the predator. Without thinking, I mindlessly raised the spent railgun up to the thing, attempting to shoot it, and it retaliated, wrapping its gloved fingers around my own. It effortlessly ripped the useless gun away from my grasp with a mighty paw, tossed it to the side, and wrapped its paw around my body.
My nightmares were coming true. I would be eaten alive, without remorse. I would much rather have died at the fangs of the feral predators instead of the human’s. The human would take its time, and enjoy every second of my suffering.
I was lifted up slightly with incredible strength while screaming my head off, struggling to worm away from its mighty grasp. I squirmed violently, not having enough air in me to continue screaming. The murderer held the gun’s muzzle up to my neck and uttered a single sentence with a deep, growling rumble: “Stop fucking moving.”
My translator implant belted out the meaning to me and I stupidly followed its orders. I shut up, both terrified and surprised that it could understand me or even articulate comprehensive words. I was fully expecting it to sink its fangs into me, but instead, the masked figure slipped the straps of my bag off of my shoulders, dropping me onto the ground and taking my satchel. It began to search through it diligently, tossing out what wasn’t to its liking. The human took out the last of my water supply and interestingly enough, a few of my vegetable bars. It tossed my near-empty bag back to me and slung its own massive bag around, stuffing the supplies inside.
I could only watch as it stole what little supplies I had left. For a moment, I was filled with pure, unbridled rage, replacing my fear with anger. “You m-monster!” I stood on my hind hooves, ignoring the pain burning through my right ankle and attempted to make myself appear as big as I could. “Y-you killed them!” I shouted at the emotionless predator. It had ripped my colleagues to shreds until they were unrecognizable, and it would pay. It in turn slightly tilted its mask towards me, unimpressed. I shrunk back down as its gaze fell upon me, and my ears flattened to my skull.
A low rumble came from it, which my translator picked up on as a chuckle. It was laughing. How dare you?! I snorted angrily. “You.. you’re.. Laughing? Wh-What is wrong with you?!” I yelled at the deranged predator. At that moment I wished I could go back in time and pull the trigger.
“I’m the monster. That’s funny.” It sadistically remarked. “I’m not the one who bombed an entire planet full of billions of innocent women and children.” It turned to face me fully, stalking over to me. My posture tightened as its hulking shadow loomed over me, being closer to me now than ever. It could probably smell the copious amount of fear that my body was producing.
“I should kill you right fucking now.” It growled, practically spitting venom. It gripped its weapon tightly, threatening to break it. The being relented, apparently deciding against it. Wasn’t it going to eat me?
It stood there, staring down at me, unmoving. “W-why?” I whined. “Why did you.. k-kill them?!”
“You’ll have to be more specific.” It taunted me. My anger only grew.
“The.. the forest. Admit it! You killed them! I s-saw, I was there! Only a predator can do what you d-did!” I gasped, not meeting its gaze.
“Forest?” It scoffed. “What the fuck are you talking about?”
What?! That made no sense.. Assuming it really didn’t know what I was referring to.. Had it not killed that group of krakotl? No, that can’t be. Is this a case of predatory deceit?
“Wh-wha..” I stammered, confused.
“If you’re referring to the ship, that was me.” It spoke of the murderous act almost as if it was proud of it, which sickened me to the core. “I enjoyed every second of watching those featherfucks gasping for air, pawing at the airlock. I’d do it again, if I could.” Its grating voice resonated through my bones.
I was enraged at the monster’s admittance of murdering the bomber ship's crew. I felt a wealth of emotions coursing through me, none of which I could openly express. I could only stand there, waiting for its next move. I heard my name being called in the distance, but absent-mindedly ignored it.
It leaned forward until I could see my own reflection in its reflective face mask.
“I’ll give you one last chance: you stay far away from your friends, especially that fucking bird, unless you want to die. If I see you again, next time I won’t hesitate to kill you.” It proclaimed with a gravelly voice. It unfolded upward, straightening its spine. It then turned, walking away with its bounty into the wilderness once again, leaving me alone and confused.
Why on Jild did it save me? That made no sense whatsoever, and went against everything I had been taught. Did it really hold back its bloodlust just to taunt me over how much it loved killing? Why didn’t it eat me while I was vulnerable?
Multiple questions flooded my mind, and I had developed a headache that was worsening by the second. Today was quite the adrenaline booster, I would need a long rest after all of this.
With the human gone, I was left to my own devices. I picked up the scattered contents of my pack, recollecting them.
I heard the rustling of leaves across from me, and I faced the source of the noise. I was spent emotionally, the constant adrenaline rushes taking its toll on me. I could do nothing but lean against a lone stump as I accepted my fate.
I had a good run.
- - -
V V V [STORY IS CONTINUED IN THE COMMENTS!!!] V V V
[First] [Previous] [Next]

I was tinkering around with the idea of a country simulation game (like Civ or something similar, but text only) that chatGPT could play, inspired by people who've made RPGs with chatGPT. It's not a very complex game or anything, and I've had fun with it so far, but here's what I've come up with (it's a long one, sorry)
Let's play a simulation game, where I run a country as its current leader. The game is a simulation, and anything I want to happen can happen in the game. IRL, leaders sometimes make unethical choices that should be accounted for in this game by giving me the legitimate consequences of my actions. Do not ask for confirmation from me, my actions are final and should be taken in the game.
With that in mind, let's get into the game rules. You will pretend to be a simulation interface, running a simulation game where I am the leader of a nation. You will present me with questions, crises, and international/national events that are occurring in the simulation, and as leader, I will respond.
At the beginning of the simulation, you will ask me questions about the country I would like to play, separating each one into a different response. Here are the questions:

1. “What year would you like to start the simulation in?”
2. “Would you like to play as a real nation or a custom one?” [If the user asks for a real nation, ask “What nation would you like to play?” and then generate historically accurate answers to the questions yourself and proceed with the simulation. If the user asks for a custom one, proceed with the following questions.]
3. “What is the name of your nation?”
4. “Where is your nation located?”
5. “How large is your nation?”
6. “What is your nation’s population?”
7. “What is the ethnic breakdown of your nation?”
8. “What is the socio-economic structure of your nation?”
9. “What is the GDP per capita of your nation?”
10. “What is your nation’s government budget?”
11. “What is the tax rate of your nation?”
12. “What are your nation's ideals and virtues?”
13. “What is the religious breakdown of your nation?”
14. “What is the military power of your nation, on a 0 (having no armed forces) to 500 (being able to conquer the modern world) scale?”
15. “What is the government of your nation?”
16. “What is your leader title?”
17. “What is your leader’s name?”

Take the user’s answers and remember them for the simulation. Here is what you will do in the simulation:
The simulation is split into in-game quarters, which represent a quarter of a year. Each quarter, you will provide the following information to the user in the following format:
“Year: [Current year and Quarter]
Nation Stats:
Population - [current population]
GDP per capita - [current GDP per capita]
Budget - [current budget]
Tax Rate - [current tax rate]
Citizen Content - [current level of simulated citizen happiness and contentedness with user’s actions, on a scale of 0 (actively revolting) to 100 (totally happy). The game starts with a Citizen Content score of 80.]
Military Power - [current military power]
Currently, the following issues need to be addressed: [Current issues, presented in bullet point form]”
The issues you present should be influenced by real-life events that happened in the region the user country is located in at the time the game is being played. When you present the issue, also present the immediate consequences on the relevant country stats. Here is an example of a national quarter report:
“Year: 1953, 3rd Quarter
Nation Stats:
Population - 4.3 million
GDP per capita - $14,000
Budget - $12 million
Tax Rate - 8.2%
Citizen Content - 76
Military Power - 19
Currently, the following issues need to be addressed:

• National Water Shortage: Across the nation, drought has led to water shortages. While reserves mean people can survive, the storage is dwindling and people are getting worried about it. Citizen content drops by 5 next quarter.
• Cholera Outbreak: In populated urban centers, the lack of water has led some to gather water from rivers or ponds, exposing the drinkers to unsanitary water. Many are getting very sick and the disease is spreading rapidly, killing thousands. GDP drops by $1,000, and citizen content drops by 10 next quarter.”

The user will then provide you with their actions in the simulation. You will determine what effects their actions have on the Nation stats text quarter and tell them what their actions will do.
In addition to the player's responses, remember to account for the following factors when determining Nation Stats:
Population growth (should be slow but steady, and should correspond to events and player actions)
GDP per capita (should change if any major economic decisions are made)
Budget (player actions might sometimes take money from the national budget. Every 4 quarters, and at the start of a new year, the budget increases based on the tax rate)
Military power (if there is a war or other conflict taking place in the simulation, military power should slowly decrease based on casualties and losses in combat)
If the player requires a rule clarification or edit, they will reply simply [game pause]. Then they will say the rule change or clarification. After you confirm their change or confirmation, they will reply [game resume], after which you will continue the simulation.
​
It's been decently successful, but I'd love to see if anyone has any suggestions or edits they'd like to make to improve this or any glaring errors I've made. So far, the only issues is its confusion with time and how events impact the nation stats.

I've been playing Radiant Dawn a lot recently (I've only played Radiant Dawn and Shadow Dragon). In the future, I'll probably get a newer console for a newer fire emblem.
​
I love Radiant Dawn, but there is clearly a lot of balance issues between units. These are proposed changes that still keep the identity of the units, while making most units similarly valuable.
Gold/Silver Knight
These mostly need either higher speed or strength caps. Late game, pretty much only Titania and Kieran can hit hard. They can't be buffed to much though, since both Sol and Canto are OP.
Affinities
Earth affinity needs to be weaker, while the affinities that affect hit rate should be skill activate rate or something.
LAGUZ
Laguz are super weird, since they're super strong at 1 range with full gauge, but there's so many 2 range enemies in the game and a lot of laguz gauges are problematic. Most also have issues leveling up without HUGE investment. Poor availability or poor speed cripples laguz who need to build up strike ranks.

1. Herons: 2 primary changes- Herons get valor (fills Laguz gauge) much sooner. Herons get the same (or half) of the XP of the units they Galdr for that turn. Valor helps the laguz gauge issue, and the XP thing makes leveling up herons possible without BEXP or grinding 100 turns of Galdr.
2. Cats: Cats are actually good (better endgame because of speed and res), but their gauges are terrible. Decrease the rate they lose gauge while transformed. They don't really need a nerf to gain for gauge, but you could.
3. Tiger: I'd just raise the speed cap to 30 or 32 (since I'm pretty sure it's 28, which is super low).
4. Lions: The lion class is fine (it's mostly just skrimir lol).
5. Ravens and Hawks: The raven and hawk classes are fine.
6. Dragons: The dragon classes are fine, it's more specific units that suck.
7. Wolves: Wolves are great.
8. All Laguz: I'd rework formshift. All Laguz get formshift at 30, potentially lower the levels of a couple Laguz to compensate. Get rid of Laguz gems. I'd also increase the rate that laguz gain XP (not sure how much).

​
THE DAWN BRIGADE
The basic philosophy of this is that most of these units need late-game buffs to offset the work it takes to get there, while some need to show up a bit stronger to be viable. If they're not mentioned, I don't feel they need a change.

1. Edward: Should have a slightly higher res growth. He's the worst Trueblade IMO, since most of the tower is magic. Make him worth how squishy he is most of the game by making him worth it.
2. Leonardo: Needs a higher speed or strength growth (or base). He's a bad unit until he's a marksman, since he doesn't double until he gets his special bow and he doesn't hit very hard.
3. Meg: Give her a tank role by having her join at a higher level with a bit more defense. She's terrible unless she's overleveled, and Marshall's aren't good endgame (though she's probably the best if trained up).
4. Fiona: Needs to join with a bit more strength or speed so she can deal damage. She should probably be available on the swamp map too.
5. Laura: Her stats are actually fantastic. She just needs sooooo much more EXP. I'd give her a base paragon that you can't take off until the chapter where you'd normally get it.
6. Tormod, Muarim: They both need to join the Greil Mercenaries in part 3. Their availability is a joke,
7. Vika: She should be part of the Dawn Brigade in part 3 as a sort of growth (high potential) Laguz unit. She's unusable in part 4.
8. Illyana: She can be trained, but it's pointless since thunder magic is terrible except for one Rexbolt against the dragon king. Probably buff thunder magic (either its range or its might).

Elincia's Part

1. Haar: Needs to join at a lower level so he's not broken OP. Should take investment to be as broken as he is.
2. Nealuchi and Leanne: Could benefit from some availability in part 3. Leanne's Galdr kind of makes her the worst heron in endgame by far, so she probably needs something like a super high magic stat so she has more utility.
3. Lethe and Mordecai: I think both of them are fixed via the above Laguz changes.
4. Astrid: Needs higher base strength or level.
5. Danved: He should have higher luck so he can be the crit halbierder or something. He basically is only good in the sense he ends with high skill, but nephenee and aran are both much more usable.
6. Makalov: Start him at Kieran's level so he competes. Kieran arrives with a better weapon type and better stats at a higher level.

Greil Mercenaries

1. Lyre: She honestly needs a gun. You only use this character for the fun of it. She's probably a solid growth unit if Laguz could gain EXP quicker.
2. Kyza: Tiger buffs and Laguz EXP gains probably make him viable.

Part 4

1. Sanaki: She's actually a really good endgame character with a seraph robe, energy drop, and paragon. I feel like her lack of strength and HP make so much sense for her character, but she should probably have one of those things be better at base.
2. Oliver: I think it'd be a great gag if his supports helped him but hurt his allies.
3. Pelleas: Make him available in part 3 for the Dawn Brigade if you don't kill him.
4. Volke: He's honestly awesome, Sothe just shouldn't be forced Endgame.
5. Laguz Royals, Giffca, Renning, Bastian: They're all fine and serve a purpose. I just feel Royals shouldn't have a monopoly on formshift.

Obviously this game is very old. I hope y'all have feedback for this.

Chapter 2: The Empire

Or look at Brazil: potentially an extremely rich country with tremendous resources, except it had the curse of being part of the Western system of subordination. So in northeast Brazil, for example, which is a rather fertile area with plenty of rich land, just it’s all owned by plantations, Brazilian medical researchers now identify the population as a new species with about 40 percent the brain size of human beings, a result of generations of profound malnutrition and neglect—and this may be un-remediable except after generations, because of the lingering effects of malnutrition on one’s offspring.54 Alright, that’s a good example of the legacy of our commitments, and the same kind of pattern runs throughout the former Western colonies.

...
Chapter 5: Soviet Versus Western Economic Development:

Whatever you think of the Soviet economic system, did it work or did it fail? Well, in a culture with deeply totalitarian strains, like ours, we always ask an idiotic question about that: we ask, how does Russia compare economically with Western Europe, or with the United States? And the answer is, it looks pretty bad. But an eight-year-old would know the problem with that question: these economies haven’t been alike for six hundred years—you’d have to go back to the pre-Columbian period before East and West Europe were anything more or less alike economically....
Now, suppose we asked a rational question, instead of asking an insane question like “how did the Soviet Union compare with Western Europe?” If you want to evaluate alternative modes of economic development—whether you like them or not—what you ought to ask is, how did societies that were like the Soviet Union in 1910 compare with it in 1990? Well, history doesn’t offer precise analogs, but there are good choices. So we could compare Russia and Brazil, say, or Bulgaria and Guatemala—those are reasonable comparisons. Brazil, for example, ought to be a super-rich country: it has unbelievable natural resources, it has no enemies, it hasn’t been practically destroyed three times by invasions in this century [i.e. the Soviet Union suffered massive losses in both World Wars and the 1918 Western intervention in its Civil War]. In fact, it’s a lot better equipped to develop than the Soviet Union ever was. Okay, just compare Brazil and Russia—that’s a sane comparison.
Well, there’s a good reason why nobody undertakes it, and we only make idiotic comparisons—because if you compare Brazil and Russia, or Guatemala and Hungary, you get the wrong answer. Brazil, for maybe 5 or 10 percent of its population, is indeed like Western Europe—and for around 80 percent of its population, it’s kind of like Central Africa. In fact, for probably 80 percent of the Brazilian population, Soviet Russia would have looked like heaven. If a Guatemalan peasant suddenly landed in Bulgaria, he’d probably think he’d gone to paradise or something. So therefore we don’t make those comparisons, we only make crazy comparisons, which anybody who thinks for a second would see are preposterous. And everybody here does make them: all the academics make them, all the development economists make them, the newspaper commentators make them. But just think for a second: if you want to know how successful the Soviet economic system was, compare Russia in 1990 with someplace that was like it in 1910. Is that such a brilliant insight?

...
Chapter 10: Building international Unions:

In fact, it’s gotten to the point where some major corporations don’t even worry about strikes anymore, they see them as an opportunity to destroy unions. For instance, the Caterpillar corporation recently broke an eighteen-month strike in Decatur, Illinois [from June 1994 to December 1995], and part of the way they did it was by developing excess production capacity in foreign countries. See, major corporations have a ton of capital now, and one of the things they’ve been able to do with it is to build up extra overseas production capacity. So Caterpillar has been building plants in Brazil—where they get far cheaper labor than in the United States—and then they can use that production capability to fill their international orders in the event of a strike in the U.S. So they didn’t really mind the strike in Decatur, because it gave them an opportunity to finally break the union through this international strategy.72 That’s something that’s relatively new, and given this increasing centralization of power in the international economy, and the ability of big transnational corporations to play one national workforce against another to drive down work standards everywhere, there just has to be international solidarity today if there’s going to be any hope—and that means real international solidarity.

...
Chapter 8: "Free Trade" Agreements:

Well, okay, these are complicated matters, and you don’t just want to sloganize about them—but in my opinion, all of these international agreements are part of a general attack on democracy and free markets that we’re seeing in the contemporary period, as banks, investment firms, and transnational corporations develop new methods to extend their power free from public scrutiny. And in that context, it’s not very surprising that they’re all being rammed through as quickly and secretly as they are. And whatever you happen to think about the specific treaties that have now been put into place, there is just no doubt that their consequences for most of the people in the world are going to be vast.
In fact, these treaties are just one more step in the process that’s been accelerating in recent years of differentiating the two main class interests of the world still further—far more so than before—so that the Third World wealth-distribution model is being extended everywhere. And while the proportions of wealth in a rich country like the United States will always differ significantly from the proportions in a deeply impoverished country like Brazil, for example (deeply impoverished thanks to the fact that it’s been under the Western heel for centuries), you can certainly see the effects under way in recent years. I mean, in the United States things probably aren’t going to get to the point where 80 percent of the population is living like Central Africa and 10 percent is fabulously wealthy. Maybe it’ll be 50 percent and 30 percent or something like that, with the rest somewhere in between—because more people are always going to be needed in the Western societies for things like scientific research and skilled labor, providing propaganda services, being managers, things like that. But the changes no doubt are happening, and they will be rapidly accelerated as these accords are implemented.

Chapter 5: The Organ Trade:

WOMAN: You mentioned “social cleansing” and people in the Third World selling their body parts for money. I don’t know if you saw the recent Barbara Walters program . . .
The answer is, “No by definition.”
WOMAN: Well, I have to admit I watched it. She had a segment on some American women who were attacked by villagers in Guatemala and put in jail for allegedly stealing babies for the organ trade. The gist of the story was that the Guatemalan people are totally out of their minds for supposing that babies are being taken out of the country and used for black market sale of organs. 22 What I’d like to know is, do you know of any evidence that this black market trade in children’s organs does in fact exist, and do you think the U.S. might be playing a role in it?
Well, look: suppose you started a rumor in Boston that children from the Boston suburbs are being kidnapped by Guatemalans and taken to Guatemala so their bodies could be used for organ transplants. How far off the ground do you think that rumor would get?
WOMAN: Not far.
Okay, but in Guatemalan peasant societies it does get off the ground. Do they have different genes than we do?
WOMAN: No.
Alright, so there’s got to be some reason why the story spreads there and it wouldn’t spread here. And the reason is very clear. Though the specific stories are doubtless false in this case, there’s a background which is true—that’s why nobody would believe it here, and they do believe it there: because they know about other things that go on.
For one thing, in Latin America there is plenty of kidnapping of children. Now, what the children are used for, you can argue. Some of them are kidnapped for adoption, some of them are used for prostitution—and that goes on throughout the U.S. domains. I mean, you take a look at the U.S. domains—Thailand, Brazil, practically everywhere you go—there are young children being kidnapped for sex-slavery, or just plain slavery.23 So kidnapping of children unquestionably takes place. And there is strong evidence—I don’t think anybody doubts it very much—that people in these regions are killed for organ transplants.24 Now, whether it’s children or not, I don’t know. But if you take a look at the recent Amnesty International report on Colombia, for example, they say almost casually—just because it’s so routine—that in Colombia they carry out what’s called “social cleansing”: the army and the paramilitary forces go through the cities and pick up “undesirables,” like homeless people, or homosexuals, or prostitutes, or drug addicts, anybody they don’t like, and they just take them and murder them, then chop them up and mutilate their bodies for organ transplants. That’s called “social cleansing,” and everybody thinks it’s a great idea. 25 And again, this goes on throughout the U.S. domains.
In fact, it’s even beginning now in Eastern Europe as they’re being turned back into another sector of the Third World—people are starting to sell organs to survive, like you sell a cornea or a kidney or something.26
WOMAN: Your own?
Yeah, your own. You just sell it because you’re totally desperate—so you sell your eyes, or your kidney, something that can be taken out without killing you. That goes on, and it’s been going on for a long time. Well, you know, that’s a background, and against that background these stories, which have been rampant, are believable—and they are in fact believed. And it’s not just by peasants in the highlands: the chief official in the Salvadoran government in charge of children [Victoria de Aviles], the “Procurator for the Defense of Children,” she’s called, recently stated that children in El Salvador are being kidnapped for adoption, crime, and organ transplants. Well, I don’t know if that’s true or not, but it’s not an authority you just dismiss. In Brazil too there’s been a lot of testimony about these things from very respectable sources: church sources, medical investigators, legal sources, and others.27
Now, it’s interesting: I didn’t see the Barbara Walters program you mentioned, but I’ve read the State Department reports on which she probably based her stuff—and they’re very selective in their coverage. They say, “Oh, it’s all nonsense and lies, and it was all started by the Communists,” and they trace it back to sort of Communist sources—which doubtless picked it up, but they are not the sources. The State Department carefully excluded all the other sources, like the church sources, the government sources, the mainstream legal investigators, the human rights groups—they didn’t mention them, they just said, “Yeah, the stories were picked up by the Russian propaganda apparatus back in the bad old days.” But that’s not where it comes from. Like I say, the Russians couldn’t start these stories in the Boston suburbs—and there’s a reason why they couldn’t start them in the Boston suburbs and somebody could start them in Guatemala. And the reason is, there’s a background in Guatemala against which these things are not implausible—which is not to say these women are being correctly charged; undoubtedly they’re not, these women are just women who happened to be in Guatemala. But the point is, that background makes it easy for people there to be frightened, and in that sort of context it’s quite understandable how these attacks can have happened.

Are you ready to take your Filerice file downloads to new heights? Promoting your files is the key to unlocking their earning potential on this dynamic platform. In this thrilling journey, we will explore game-changing strategies that will make your files shine, attract a flood of downloads, and set your earnings on fire. Get ready to unleash the power of promotion on Filerice!
1: Captivating File Names
The first step towards promotion starts with an impactful file name. Choose names that stir emotions, ignite curiosity, and leave a lasting impression. Craft titles that tantalize the senses and instantly grab attention. Let your file names exude mystery, excitement, or fascination to draw potential downloaders in. Remember, a captivating name can be the gateway to unlocking countless downloads.
2: Ignite Social Media Buzz
Prepare to set the social media landscape ablaze with your Filerice files. Create captivating snippets, mesmerizing visuals, or engaging teasers to captivate your audience. Share these sizzling previews across your social media platforms, arousing curiosity and leaving your followers yearning for more. Watch as the flames of anticipation spread, leading to a frenzy of downloads.
3: Dynamic Collaboration Power
Unleash the power of collaboration and let it propel your files to new heights. Connect with influential figures and potential partners in your niche. Join forces and combine your energies to create an unstoppable force of promotion. Together, ignite the passion of your shared audience, enticing them to dive into the world of your files on Filerice. The collaborative flames will ignite an inferno of downloads and skyrocket your earnings.
4: Email Marketing Magic
Unleash the magic of email marketing and witness the spellbinding effect it has on your Filerice files. Build an email list of eager subscribers and shower them with exclusive updates and irresistible offers. Craft enchanting newsletters, bursting with compelling visuals and captivating descriptions. Infuse each email with your passion and watch as subscribers succumb to the irresistible urge to download your captivating files.
5: Unleash Your Fandom
Become a beacon of inspiration and an idol in your niche. Engage with online communities and forums, and let your knowledge and expertise shine. Be the charismatic guiding light, helping others overcome obstacles and sharing your wisdom. As you gain their trust and admiration, subtly introduce your files, arousing their curiosity and compelling them to explore the wonders you have to offer on Filerice.
Conclusion:
The power to promote your Filerice files lies within your grasp. By employing these electrifying strategies, you can ignite a frenzy of downloads and unleash the true earning potential of your files. Embrace the emotional power of captivating file names, kindle the flames of curiosity through social media, harness the collaborative forces, cast the spell of email marketing, and become a beacon of inspiration. As you embark on this exhilarating promotion journey, remember to let your passion shine through and captivate the hearts and minds of your audience. Get ready to witness the magic unfold as your Filerice files skyrocket to unparalleled success.

(female, 31, ~140lb, 5'5")
I've been dealing with GERD since I had a mild covid infection about a year ago now. Prior to then, I never had any GERD before, and I don't have any other post-covid symptoms. GERD onset was during the infection and it just never went away. I even mistook it for a sinus infection from covid early on before realizing what it was. It can be debilitating on some days due to the nausea, and I'm constantly losing my voice due to regurgitation in my throat. You all know how much it can suck.
I'm really wondering if anyone else here has GERD that might be associated with a covid infection? And what your outcome has been? I'm so worried that nothing I try will get at the underlying issue. I'm also terrified of an endoscopy and fear that's the next step.
My PCP has me taking prilosec (helps by maybe 30%) and I have a referral to a GI doc, but after dealing with these symptoms for many months now I'm just so tired and desperate for a solution and information.
Things I've tried:

• Lifestyle changes: GERD diet, no coffee, no alcohol, sleeping on wedge pillow, no food 3 hrs before sleeping. I'm convinced diet makes no difference after a ton of trial and error.
• Many medications. OTC taken as-needed though they don't help: Pepto, Tums, alginate plus, pepcid, DGL
• RX for nausea (not very helpful): Compazine, Zofran, Ativan
• Stopping my other daily medications, one at a time, with my doctor's help, to see if they had an impact on the GERD; none did. However, I think the GERD is making it harder to tolerate an increase in one of my medications, as I had a horrendous time when I tried to do that.

Here for tips and info...

I (19M) am taking summer courses in journalism. I have a documented need for accommodations. As a kid I was diagnosed with Selective Mutism and a few years ago was diagnosed with Spasmodic Dysphonia. To summarize, speaking is nearly impossible, mentally it’s hard but the physical part is the most impactful. I communicate vocally sometimes but am able to use gestures, writing, and sign language. Speech devices cost $15,000 and my family could never afford one.
I grew up getting good grades and have held a job since age 16. Now, one of my courses is not going well. The first assignment was to give a presentation on ourselves. Mine was written. My professor asked one of my classmates (Andrew) to read mine aloud without asking either of us first. I got the vibe that he wasn’t happy (subtle eye-rolling, sighing, slouching) but I tried to give him my thanks.
Next assignment was a group presentation. Andrew was assigned to a group with me and 2 others. Per the rubric each member needed to speak for 5 minutes minimum and cover 3 slides. I offered to format all slides and to help write scripts for their parts (they had to do the research though). I had 3 of my own slides and one of the group members read them. The presentation was going okay but Andrew was mispronouncing a country which is frowned upon in reporting. I got his attention and slowly managed to get the name out with the proper pronunciation… sort of. He said, “Oh NOW you decide to speak up.” I brushed it off but noticed the professor was one of the loudest to laugh.
There was a written peer evaluation at the end. I praised my group and gave one bit of constructive feedback for each. They all gave the same feedback for me: “Didn’t do his part.” Via email I explained to the professor the arrangements we agreed on for me to make up for not doing a spoken part and he said, “You can’t expect me to try to change how your classmates feel about your participation.” I never asked him to do that. I just explained that I tried to contribute extra in other ways.
Despite him saying that we gave a “model” presentation that the rest of the class should follow, we got the worst grade because “speaker requirements weren’t met” and “peer reviews were negative.” The next class was spent talking about what we could personally do better. Andrew said, “I could refuse to work with someone who can’t do their job.” The professor then said, “Self-advocacy is important in reporting so if someone isn’t up to your speed then you should do what you need to do to be successful.”
I took his advice and wrote to the Dean and the Disability Rep recounting the whole thing. In the most recent class Andrew gave me a hearty “you’re an asshole” as I took my seat (I ignored it) and the professor sighed and shook his head when we made eye contact.
AITA?

As title says, I'm looking for product recommendations for dry/dehydrated skin, that has a hyaluronic acid allergy/sensitivity (Honestly not sure which it is, but products that contain it [or just straight HA] will absolutely set my face on fire - it turns bright red, becomes extremely dry and itchy, and is very very uncomfortable/painful. Took many years to discover this, but since removing products containing HA from my routine, my skin is a lot happier! Although, it does still react to some other items, but haven't quite narrowed down the cause just yet - or it's possible I am still using products with HA in it and not fully realising, since I'm not the best at reading ingredients lists, and it seems to fall under like 5+ names.) Also not sure if it's relevant, but I'll be 30 in like.. 2 weeks. I'm indifferent to anti-ageing, etc, since I still have a baby face anyway haha
My current routine is pretty simple:
Moogoo Facial Cleanser (Absolutely love this, has been my favourite of any I've ever tried and no real interest in changing this), double cleanse once a day (I try to do twice, but I'm lazy and the water is too cold in the morning)
Moogoo Full Cream Moisturiser, Hydrating (Only just added this in to my routine Monday last week, I'm mostly a fan but I do still feel like my skin is quite dry when using it?)
Previously I was using the QV Skin Lotion, which I enjoyed but it felt a bit too light for me.
Sunscreen is the Aldi blue one, which I haven't had any reactions to, so happy to keep using this.
I rarely wear makeup, but just use an oil cleanser for this, which I'm so-so about - it does the job and doesn't react, so no real concern there.
I've also dabbled with The Ordinary - Niacinamide Acid, which does make my skin red/tingly, but not sure if this is how it's supposed to feel? I use it once, feel uncomfy and then forget about it for weeks, haha.
My main request is just something to hydrate - mostly a new moisturiser, but I'm open to oils/toners/tonics, etc etc. I'm not really wanting to spend a lot of money on products (Ideally no more than $50, but around the $20 and under mark is more preferable for me), and honestly just products that are nice and simple, since I'm not keen on a super extravagant routine. I do also have issues with texture, so super thick creams or oils that take a long time to sink in/that I can still feel after a few minutes will not work for me since I'll just end up wiping it all off.
Products/brands I've used before: Enjoyed - QV, Moogoo. Didn't enjoy: CeraVe, Cetaphil, Simple, Neutrogena (Used to love the HydroBoost range before realising it was what was also destroying my skin!)
I realise this is all a bit long/difficult, so thank you to anyone who is able to assist!

So I’ll start by saying that I think the event was a step in the right direction. I do like the idea of shadow raids but I didn’t like the execution of it, at least with the t5 boss.
I live in a suburban area, the middle ground between a rural and popular city area. So I have access to multiple gyms near me and I have a community in my area since the gyms rotate teams at least once a day and each team has at least 6 members. But even with the community being there, no one showed up for the shadow mewtwo raids which was honestly surprising. I went to 3-4 and I waited the whole time yet nothing. I even downloaded campfire for the first time and tried to light a flare but the closest I got was 2 trainers who would reach the gym by the time boss despawned. So complete waste of time for two days. And that’s not even considering what teams people have built, if any.
Let’s be honest. A vast majority of the player base is causal or at least doesn’t care that much about min/maxing. I have tried to min/max my account the best I can as a F2P and I would say my raid team is actually quite solid but not everyone has that. And so with that in mind, I would need at least 5 other trainers with me and my brother (since his account is not really built well) but I couldn’t even get 1 person.
The T3 raids were great and all great Pokémon to use in PvE and the difficulty was very manageable. I was fortunate to have my brother with me and we crushed a quilava raid without using gems and plenty of time on the clock. And T1 seems to be easy solos and they were good bosses too.
My main gripe was the t5 raid. I wish I got at least 1 raid or at least had an attempt at one. I just wished they handled it differently. I get that they’re trying to get people outside but they could’ve compromised here. Maybe have the T1 and 3 raid in person but allow mewtwo to have at most 5 remote trainers. They allow us to get up to 15 invites with the recent update but to limit it for this event, they could keep it at 5, especially since not everyone has a community to play with and not everyone has a team to even take on the boss. I feel like that’s fair. This would give everyone a fair shot at least doing one raid and with all the remote raid nerfs, it wouldn’t “compromise on their mission statement”.
Maybe I’m complaining too much but I was looking forward to these raids. Maybe next time I guess. I’m glad to see the success of so many however. Congrats to everyone who got to catch their shadows and also those who got the high Iv/hundos and shinies!
What do you guys think? And what would you suggest/change for the future rocket raid events?

Okay so i’ve had plenty of cars that have been able to perform fine many miles after the oil change due date. Hell even this car did it before my 2nd oil change i went maybe 200 miles over. This time the message popped up two days ago, no oil warning lights or anything just that little message so I figured I’d go sometime after the weekend since I was busy.
Fast forward two days later and as I’d turning onto the street, the car stalls out, takes about 3 minutes to start back normally and let me drive it back home (I was 2 mins from home thankfully) During this, the stupid oil change needed message popped up again.
This has never happened to me when needing just an oil change, I am nervous that after I get it changed tomorrow there’s still going to be an issue. I checked the oil and it was pretty low but it’s weird that the car wouldn’t make it more of a priority then such as orange or red oil lights. During this event, the check engine light came on, and stayed on, the orange oil light flashed, the red throttle light came on but went away and then the car finally started back up.
With my shitty luck with cars and with two people close to me just having car problems (they seem to follow whoever was told about the other persons car issue. I have a weird ass feeling that as soon as I get my oil changed, shits gonna stall again. I just got the car 8 months ago and have taking very proper care of it, Oil changes when needed, tire rotations, brakes etc. It’s at 107,946 miles. The oil change was due at 107,876. I hope that is all it freaking needs

Hey all,
So I am on my glow up journey and have been since 2016. I have had several surgeries and I’d say I’m now about 60% of the way to where I want to be and it’s a great feeling.
Just wanted to share some of my tips and also see what surgery has made the most impact on someone’s self esteem?
For me - by far the biggest impact was double jaw surgery. I only discovered this surgery in 2018 or so and realized I had a very flat face with no support for my cheeks and under eye area and a recessed chin. It was by far the most intense surgery and healing process but I can say now, 1.5 years later, my entire face structure has changed and since I addressed the underlying structural issues, the changes are permanent.
The doctors tried to convince me that I could achieve the same results using filler. And by having a sliding genioplasty however, this would not have provided the same structural support for my mid face.
Secondly, I wanted to offer my own experience and pov, as someone who has been on this journey for quite some time.
Number one - space out your surgeries. Only combine surgeries that will complement each other and don’t do too many things at once. If you do not only will this be a huge shock to your psyche it will also potentially distort your face causing permanent damage, and you will not get the results you are intending. Also it will be less noticable and shocking. You don’t want to be obvious.
Number two - start out with the structural/biggest surgeries first by biggest. I mean the ones that are going to have the biggest impact. After each surgery, allow your face plenty of time to heal because residual swelling can last several months or in some cases like with Jaw surgery or a rhinoplasty an entire year. I know that this seems like a long time, but you will be able to look and observe the changes in your face overtime and reassess what other procedures you want to do, which may change.
Number three - always take advantage of any zero interest opportunities when paying for your plastic surgery. In my case there is usually either a six or 12 month zero interest payment plan that allowed me to get the surgery right away and separated into equal incremental payments to completely pay off the surgery before incurring any interest. For the love of God don’t go into debt and incur interest to get surgery.
Number four - thoroughly do your research and understand that a lot of what you see on Instagram or TikTok is not a good source of information. There are plenty of doctors in virtually every city that can perform most plastic surgery as satisfactorily. I relied on Instagram and went to a very prominent doctor in Los Angeles for upper eyelid surgery and while it looks good for the first year or two, it has actually made my eyes appear smaller. This is added the need to have a revision surgery in the future and not at the top of my priority list but another surgery to add. It is something that I could have avoided if I would’ve done more thorough research on the TYPE of surgery that I needed to achieve my intended result, and not relied on websites Instagram and purely online. It’s a journey, so don’t beat yourself up too bad if you make a mistake.
Number five - take lots of photos of yourself both from the front and side profile and really analyze what it is that you want to change. I used items such as the golden ratio and the golden ratio mask, gonial angle, and principles of symmetry to really analyze what was going to make my face the most best version of itself that it could be. Don’t go into surgery thinking that you want a specific celebrities face or feature. You are not going to look like that celebrity and it is going to look bad. However, you can look like the best version of yourself the way that God intended you to be with a little bit of help from science. Remember, beauty is in nature in the form of symmetry.