4 foot high fence panels wood
[M4F] The Null Mage and the Hope that Remains
2023.03.28 12:18 dadcamebackwithcandy [M4F] The Null Mage and the Hope that Remains
Themes
Romance, drama, slow-burn, real issues with real people, maybe enemies to lovers or maybe they can both have issues and their mental health can be all the conflict we need to keep it interesting. xD
What am I looking for in a co-author? 1. Be chill, have fun. 2. Post when you can, at a length that makes sense (or a length you like). 3. Care about writing. Enjoy the process. Recognize it’s for fun, not to compensate for some other issue. 4. If you aren’t feeling it, speak up. We can adjust or part ways with no hard feelings.
Setting
It’s the current era, New York City. Magic exists, like the arts and science exist, and like any other creative process, some have more talent or have practiced and learned more than others.
There had always been envy and resentment for the Gifted, as they were occasionally called, but casters of any school of magic usually had their own communities since a certain lifestyle developed around certain school. For all the rest of humanity, enchanted items were available--often at ghastly prices--though cheaper, disposable pieces looking like cheap jewelry or furniture or whatever else were made, either limited in charges or effect. And like anything else, it all ended up needing repair, or needing to be sold for a quick buck. Which is how arcane shops became a thing.
A (long) intro to this world and my character and his damage/plot hook is below. You will never, ever be expected to post this much at once. It can be a paragraph or two.
Ideas for your character? A healer, an illusionist, a normal nurse, a teacher, a good student who just feels like helping someone—basically, a positive influence and whatever that may look like. I’m wide open suggestions or brainstorming with you. Same for the setting for that matter, just let me know if you’re interested!
-L
"Arcane Pawn & Repair;" so read the sign of tarnished brass and emerald marble that should have been scrubbed two seasons ago. This grand placard was completely at odds with the simple structure of dark wood that made up the place. The windows that began at chest height were old and interlaced with ornate metal framing, like stained glass without the color, offering an obscured view into a cluttered place where light was admitted, and voyeurs denied.
Upon entry, two stories of anything and everything one might find in a second-hand store loomed large, with sunlight holding its breath and turning sideways to push past. Worn and loved instruments, flashy ballgowns, brightly painted toys, ancient rugs, massive tomes, weapons, tools, nightstands and stain glass lamps to name but a few.
A mixture of scents—old lacquer, coffee, and anise cigarettes—competed for nasal dominance. Gentle music played: a woman singing an old French song while a pianist waltzed beside her, each note the footfall of his fingertips.
From a small room behind the counter, Lysias sang along with some slight skill, turning an old violin over in his hands. The sunlight that filtered in caught on the pits and chips of worn lacquer like it were being graded by one of his old professors, highlighting the imperfections with supposed warmth that dimmed the excellence of the work, nevertheless. It was a fine violin, too: one of the few brought in that was actually worth working on.
The varnish would need to be stripped before he could do anything, of course, like rehydrating the wood or sealing it—a tedious process by anyone’s standard but his, for ruination rested within his every breath, just waiting to be sighed out, that another thing of beauty would be wrecked before his downcast eyes.
The cuss walked with him. Lived with him. Breathed with him.
Ate at him. Stole from him. Marginalized. Vilified. Consoled. Condemned.
It eased his sorrows and diminished his joys, adding and subtracting the human experience until the sum of his life was zero; no highs, no lows, just a meaningless medium. The cuss was parasite and partner both. He almost hated it when he had the energy to hate something.
Lysias raised a finger, a mote of darkness erasing a spot in the air above it. As small as it was, he could hear the music bending, the sounds of the busy street outside distorted by its presence, like there was water in his ear. The lacquer of the violin was gone in a blink, and the cuss was put away again, as much as some distant, broken part of him wanted to watch as it ran loose in the streets.
Those visions always came. He knew what it wanted. But fuck what it wanted. It had more than enough of him as it was.
Turning for the sanding block, he saw the ad for New York Healing Institute he pulled from his mailbox. A few stand-out words were read over his scarlet-lensed glasses. “It’s never too late to learn!” He had thoughts about that but ignored them. “NYHI has new scholarships and grants for the aspiring healer! Find us on the web at—“
It was ridiculous.
Besides, no one would have a self-taught, null-aspected mage anyway. Just being around other casters as they spoke or chanted or sang or drew or painted their magic was enough to unravel it sometimes, and that was without trying. If a caster actually came at him, it wasn’t even a fight; he didn’t have to say a word to cuss out their pretty sparks and flames, turning their power and years of study into less than a fizzled out bottle rocket.
As long as they were within a few feet of him.
And they weren’t a mind mage.
Or an illusionist.
…Fine maybe a few others, but generally, he could take care of himself.
Grabbing the sanding block, the long, thin scar that ran from his wrist his elbow flashed silver in the sunlight, right between the fingertips of the deep red tattoo. It looked like a large hand clutched his wrist and held it together.
Just like a hand did, once.
Twice, if you count the other wrist.
Yeah Lysias, you can take care of yourself alright.
It was an eternal reminder of where the cuss would lead if he let it. Green eyes flicked again to the article, to the propaganda and its ludicrous optimism.
It was ridiculous.
But still.
Still, he wondered if there were pretty sparks that could restore what the dark had devoured.
Lysias was wallowing of a fine state of self-pity when the door jingled. Yet another customer here to rudely interrupt his pity party. He was just about list every girl that had ever shot him down, too.
With a sigh, he pushed up his glasses and stepped out from the back in a metal band tee, some torn black jeans and his $1,200 black caiman cowboy boots with matching belt and a giant, tarnished sterling buckle with a big “L” in 18k gold.
He saw them from the corner of his eye, and instead focused on straightening the bracelets in the display case, both magical and mundane. “Weeeeelcome to Arcane Pawn & Repair,” he drawled, monotone, “where we REPair, REstore, and REgret every decision that brought us here. What do you want?”
submitted by dadcamebackwithcandy to discordroleplay [link] [comments]
Romance, drama, slow-burn, real issues with real people, maybe enemies to lovers or maybe they can both have issues and their mental health can be all the conflict we need to keep it interesting. xD
What am I looking for in a co-author? 1. Be chill, have fun. 2. Post when you can, at a length that makes sense (or a length you like). 3. Care about writing. Enjoy the process. Recognize it’s for fun, not to compensate for some other issue. 4. If you aren’t feeling it, speak up. We can adjust or part ways with no hard feelings.
Setting
It’s the current era, New York City. Magic exists, like the arts and science exist, and like any other creative process, some have more talent or have practiced and learned more than others.
There had always been envy and resentment for the Gifted, as they were occasionally called, but casters of any school of magic usually had their own communities since a certain lifestyle developed around certain school. For all the rest of humanity, enchanted items were available--often at ghastly prices--though cheaper, disposable pieces looking like cheap jewelry or furniture or whatever else were made, either limited in charges or effect. And like anything else, it all ended up needing repair, or needing to be sold for a quick buck. Which is how arcane shops became a thing.
A (long) intro to this world and my character and his damage/plot hook is below. You will never, ever be expected to post this much at once. It can be a paragraph or two.
Ideas for your character? A healer, an illusionist, a normal nurse, a teacher, a good student who just feels like helping someone—basically, a positive influence and whatever that may look like. I’m wide open suggestions or brainstorming with you. Same for the setting for that matter, just let me know if you’re interested!
-L
"Arcane Pawn & Repair;" so read the sign of tarnished brass and emerald marble that should have been scrubbed two seasons ago. This grand placard was completely at odds with the simple structure of dark wood that made up the place. The windows that began at chest height were old and interlaced with ornate metal framing, like stained glass without the color, offering an obscured view into a cluttered place where light was admitted, and voyeurs denied.
Upon entry, two stories of anything and everything one might find in a second-hand store loomed large, with sunlight holding its breath and turning sideways to push past. Worn and loved instruments, flashy ballgowns, brightly painted toys, ancient rugs, massive tomes, weapons, tools, nightstands and stain glass lamps to name but a few.
A mixture of scents—old lacquer, coffee, and anise cigarettes—competed for nasal dominance. Gentle music played: a woman singing an old French song while a pianist waltzed beside her, each note the footfall of his fingertips.
From a small room behind the counter, Lysias sang along with some slight skill, turning an old violin over in his hands. The sunlight that filtered in caught on the pits and chips of worn lacquer like it were being graded by one of his old professors, highlighting the imperfections with supposed warmth that dimmed the excellence of the work, nevertheless. It was a fine violin, too: one of the few brought in that was actually worth working on.
The varnish would need to be stripped before he could do anything, of course, like rehydrating the wood or sealing it—a tedious process by anyone’s standard but his, for ruination rested within his every breath, just waiting to be sighed out, that another thing of beauty would be wrecked before his downcast eyes.
The cuss walked with him. Lived with him. Breathed with him.
Ate at him. Stole from him. Marginalized. Vilified. Consoled. Condemned.
It eased his sorrows and diminished his joys, adding and subtracting the human experience until the sum of his life was zero; no highs, no lows, just a meaningless medium. The cuss was parasite and partner both. He almost hated it when he had the energy to hate something.
Lysias raised a finger, a mote of darkness erasing a spot in the air above it. As small as it was, he could hear the music bending, the sounds of the busy street outside distorted by its presence, like there was water in his ear. The lacquer of the violin was gone in a blink, and the cuss was put away again, as much as some distant, broken part of him wanted to watch as it ran loose in the streets.
Those visions always came. He knew what it wanted. But fuck what it wanted. It had more than enough of him as it was.
Turning for the sanding block, he saw the ad for New York Healing Institute he pulled from his mailbox. A few stand-out words were read over his scarlet-lensed glasses. “It’s never too late to learn!” He had thoughts about that but ignored them. “NYHI has new scholarships and grants for the aspiring healer! Find us on the web at—“
It was ridiculous.
Besides, no one would have a self-taught, null-aspected mage anyway. Just being around other casters as they spoke or chanted or sang or drew or painted their magic was enough to unravel it sometimes, and that was without trying. If a caster actually came at him, it wasn’t even a fight; he didn’t have to say a word to cuss out their pretty sparks and flames, turning their power and years of study into less than a fizzled out bottle rocket.
As long as they were within a few feet of him.
And they weren’t a mind mage.
Or an illusionist.
…Fine maybe a few others, but generally, he could take care of himself.
Grabbing the sanding block, the long, thin scar that ran from his wrist his elbow flashed silver in the sunlight, right between the fingertips of the deep red tattoo. It looked like a large hand clutched his wrist and held it together.
Just like a hand did, once.
Twice, if you count the other wrist.
Yeah Lysias, you can take care of yourself alright.
It was an eternal reminder of where the cuss would lead if he let it. Green eyes flicked again to the article, to the propaganda and its ludicrous optimism.
It was ridiculous.
But still.
Still, he wondered if there were pretty sparks that could restore what the dark had devoured.
Lysias was wallowing of a fine state of self-pity when the door jingled. Yet another customer here to rudely interrupt his pity party. He was just about list every girl that had ever shot him down, too.
With a sigh, he pushed up his glasses and stepped out from the back in a metal band tee, some torn black jeans and his $1,200 black caiman cowboy boots with matching belt and a giant, tarnished sterling buckle with a big “L” in 18k gold.
He saw them from the corner of his eye, and instead focused on straightening the bracelets in the display case, both magical and mundane. “Weeeeelcome to Arcane Pawn & Repair,” he drawled, monotone, “where we REPair, REstore, and REgret every decision that brought us here. What do you want?”
2023.03.28 12:14 mdanonomy21 Follow-up diary: I am in my mid-30s, work in nonprofits, and make $125k a year ($180k joint). This week we found out we need to cash flow $11,000 worth of dental procedures in 2023, and I still spent $396 on spring things. 🌱✨
Hi friends! I submitted a diary in February 2021 that you can find here! Since then we’ve sold one house, started higher-paying jobs, moved states to be closer to family, rented a kind of busted house, bought another charming fixer-upper of a house, and given in fully to lifestyle creep, especially when it comes to plants and gardens.
❤️ Section 1: Assets and Debt
Total Net Worth: $108,763 if you believe the equity calculator I reference below. Negative tens of thousands if you think the housing market is about to crash or even just reset!
Retirement Balance: $10,000 for me, split just about evenly between a Roth and a 401k; $25,500 for my husband, L. This will make more sense when you get to the “income progression” section, and after you accompany me as I spend money like I have money to spend, every day.
Savings Account Balance: $17,000 split between an “upcoming house repairs & dental fund.” The first $7k is spoken for already between a big chimney repair ($3k) and an expensive upcoming dental appointment for L ($4k), both in April. The remaining $10k we don’t touch – it’s for an emergency fund.
Checking Account Balance: About $1200. I try to keep this pretty low to discourage my own spending, which works only sometimes.
Credit Card Debt: $12,100 left from our home renovations and move last October. We got two 0% APR cards to finance this, and will pay both off before the APR jumps at the end of this year.
Student Loan Debt: $80,000 for L’s undergrad and MAT. $18,000 for my undergrad and (unfinished, womp womp) MAT. We aren’t paying on this til we have to, and are hoping it will be forgiven – mine via Biden, since I was a Pell Grant recipient, and L’s via PSLF.
Equity: $145,000. This number is from an online equity calculator, and is for our century-old house in a very walkable neighborhood in a popular Southern city, but who knows whether it’s real or not. Numbers that are real: We paid $575,000 for the home last fall, including a 20% down payment that my dad split evenly with us – his portion from his recent inheritance, our portion from the sale of our previous home.
When we started looking in 2021, our “stretch budget” was $450k, but the housing market exploded and it seemed like overnight the base budget for kind of place we were looking for was more like $650k (I’m committed to city living, and we wanted to make sure there was enough space for my sister, J, and her boyfriend to continue living with us, given the skyrocketing rent prices). We bit the bullet on this place after my dad offered to pay for half the down payment. That gift helped us avoid PMI, so that the rent we were paying for a worse place was comparable to the monthly payment on this one. We spent the remaining $15,000 from our previous home sale buying down the rate and on moving costs, repairs, furnishing, gardens, appliances, etc, and then still took out about $12,000 more in credit card debt to renovate the bathrooms and make a few other upgrades.
❤️ Section 2: Income
Monthly Take Home: My base pay is $125,000, and L’s is $55,000. We bring in about $11,400 a month after taxes. The whole family’s health insurance is paid in full by my work, and our pre-tax retirement contribution details are below.
Income Progression: I’ve been working since I was 15 years old, moved out at 18, and paid my own bills starting that year, but income below starts the year I graduated college.
Year 1: $15,000 (part time ABA therapist, full time baby anarchist)
Years 2-8: $28,000 (This is a rough average of my income across these years. I accepted a spot in Teach for America right out of college in order to have a salary, despite my maximalist politics at the time, and kept working with young people for years after my TFA service ended. I paid for L’s expenses in college and supported a few other family members off and on while I taught. When I took a big pay cut to do youth organizing work for a couple years, L’s teacher salary helped support us).
Year 9: $45,000 (got a full-time nonprofit fundraising job, quit teaching)
Year 10: $55,000 (got a raise)
Year 11: $65,000 (got a raise and promotion)
Year 12: $75,000 (was promoted again, realized I was still underpaid)
Year 13: $98,000 (was hired by my current employer)
Year 14: $125,000 (was promoted!)
❤️ Section 3: Expenses
Mortgage, Taxes, & Insurance: About $3,000. My sister and her boyfriend currently live with us and contribute $600 of this total payment each month, but we budget as if we pay the full mortgage ourselves.
Investment Contribution: L’s retirement is pulled out of his check before he receives it: it’s $289 a month. I put $170 into my 401k, directly out of my check. I also contribute $100 to a Roth IRA through Acorns each month. Through Acorns we also have a UTMA/UGMA account for B which gets $100 a month, and we put $40 a month into a taxable brokerage account.
Savings Contribution: We tally an extra $1.5k-$3k a month beyond expenses, and are expecting $6k back from our tax return this year. But we aren’t prioritizing savings right now, and instead are: 1. cashflowing L’s timely dental work (found out in the course of this diary that we’re looking at about $11k this year); 2. paying down the debt on our credit cards ($12k, see above); and 3. cashflowing a few must-do house projects (estimating about $8k for those).
Debt Payments: See above! As I mentioned, we have student loan debt to the tune of $100k but aren’t paying right now. I actually paid my loans down by $10k during COVID with money from our first house sale. But I panicked when Biden said he was going to forgive loans and got my full payment during the pandemic – all $10k – reversed. That money is now our emergency savings account.
Electric/Gas: $150ish, varies significantly. We installed a high-efficiency wood stove when we moved in, which cuts down on the cost of our old furnace a bit.
Internet: $80
Water: $75
Cellphone: $100, for L & I both
Subscriptions: $10 Spotify; $10 Youtube music; $2.99 Apple data; $22 NYT, for newspaper and cooking app; $5 for Acorns. I also pay yearly: $40 for the Freedom app, $20 for Hobnob, and $60 for Insight Timer.
Car Payment and Insurance: $200 for insurance. This covers both of our used cars and my dad’s used handicap van. We paid off our 2012 Honda Fit when we sold our last house, and recently paid cash for a Honda CRV with 180k miles which we use for family trips.
Medical/Therapy: $0. My therapist is $181 a session, and I see her twice a month – but this is covered by my job’s MERP card. I also get an inhaler at least twice a month - that’s reimbursed too, but would cost $60 otherwise.
Pet Expenses: Our precious pittie suffered some injuries before we adopted her. She’s on Gabapentin daily for pain management which is about $60 a month.
CSA: $40/week minimum – this is a special CSA service that has all kinds of tempting goodies, so I usually spend more.
Coworking space: $150. I expense $100 of this to work.
Gym memberships: $75 for a family Y membership, and $120 for my spin studio; I also buy 10-packs to the yoga studio down the street every few months, which are $120 a pop**.**
Donations: Varies. We give $10 monthly to our local Democratic Socialists of America and $10 monthly to the Working Families Party. We give one-off donations when asked or when we come across a need, usually $50-$100 at a time. Once we have less immediate debt, I plan to up our recurring gifts.
Childcare: $600. B goes to the best public preschool in the land – he was on the waiting list for 18 months. We previously paid double this for a subpar Montessori school run out of a church basement. Often babysitting is an extra $100 or so a month.
Kids’ Activities: $120 every three months or so – think swim lessons, toddler soccer, etc.
Outdoorsy memberships: $110 yearly for memberships to nonprofit parks, botanical gardens, etc etc. These are not too expensive and a fun way to spend a day with little ones.
House cleaner: $320. They come twice a month and charge $160 each time. This is some of the best money I spend each month.
Nuuly: $94. This has been a gamechanger for work travel.
❤️ Section 4: Money Diary
✨DAY 1: TUESDAY✨
5:00 am: I wake up wheezing with two pudgy legs draped right across my chest. My three-year-old, B, gave me a cold that I’ve just recovered from, but my asthma is still a bit aggrieved. I disentangle myself from B and head downstairs to make a french press and get some work in before everyone’s up.
6:30 am: B comes running downstairs, naked and boisterous as ever. I spare a thought for my little sister, J, and her boyfriend, who share a wall with him. J and her boyfriend have been living with us since the deep pandemic when we all moved together, which has been a blessing for us. But the early mornings and constant circulating upper respiratory infections are doing them in, and they’re moving to a nearby apartment in May. This very basic one-bedroom will double their monthly rent D: And, since J is finishing up school right now and doesn’t have a steady income, L and I had to cosign their lease in order for them to even qualify for the place. Big sigh on housing across America right now.
7:15 am: B and L head out, and I get dressed and do a little more work. At 8:30, I head to my first-ever dermatologist appointment. My mom recently treated me to a mothedaughter facial where I learned that the creeping redness on my nose is likely hereditary rosacea! The facialist suggested I make an appointment with a dermatologist after I informed her that my skincare routine has to date involved only a wet rag and a heavy moisturizer.
The dermatologist suggests a gentle papaya cleanser; a phyto vitamin c serum; a rosacea triple cream; and a moisturizing sunscreen. The cost for the appointment itself ($150) is covered by my MERP card from work**,** but I pay for the cleanser, serum, and sunscreen from his office ($141) and the rosacea triple cream from an online pharmacy ($49) out of pocket. Thus begins my first-ever skincare routine. Sadly, the dermatologist’s proprietary packaging is ugly, so if you use something similar but cute, please share a link.
10:00 am: I’ve walked the dog, made another cup of coffee, turned on Freedom, and am settling into my laptop for a day of toggling between Google Docs and Zoom rooms.
12:30 pm: M barks rancorously as I’m wrapping up a Zoom call. The Tubies I ordered last week for me (and B) were delivered. It’s SPRING and we are about to eat SMOOTHIE POPS, everybody. It’s also time for lunch, so I heat up this very yummy soup (we subbed veggie sausage and it worked well) and toast a piece of focaccia. I read “I Went On A Package Trip for Lonely Millennials” while I eat. It is every bit as unsettling as it sounds.
1:40 pm: L calls — B has had diarrhea at school and needs to come home. B’s preschool is in the public school where L teaches, which means L handles all pick up and drop off, but my work schedule is much more flexible than L’s so I often do early pickups like this one. I shift my afternoon meetings, notify my direct reports that I’m signing out early, and stop for gas on the way to pick up poor little B. ($40)
4:30 pm: B and I spent the afternoon doing quiet things together – he took a bath, played with toys, and watched some PBS Kids, and I took a few minutes to tie up some loose ends at work. When L gets home at 4:30, we set up the sprinkler on our tiny front “lawn” (currently actually a patch of very-tilled dirt), where we recently seeded low-growing wildflowers.
6:00 pm: I want to drink wine with L while we make veggie fried rice for dinner, but think better of it given that I just got over a cold. L offers to make me a hot toddy (yesssss) but then realizes we’re out of lemons. He and B head to the grocery store around the corner while I finish up dinner. They get lemons, a lime, and a giant bag of lollipops for L’s students. ($11) The hot toddy is delicious.
9:00 pm: B’s bedtime routine is a wrap and my new skincare routine is complete – turns out my face does feel cleaner after a cleanser! I take a nebulizer treatment and read my favorite book that has completely transformed my life, Overcoming Unwanted Intrusive Thoughts: A CBT-Based Guide to Getting Over Frightening, Obsessive, or Disturbing Thoughts, until we turn out the lights. Goodnight!
🌿 DAILY TOTAL: $241
✨ DAY 2: WEDNESDAY✨
5:00 am: I wake up wheezing deeply again. I head downstairs to eat a cold banana and take a prednisone left over from the last time my asthma was aggravated by a cold. I decide to sit for a little Sarah Blondin meditation by the woodstove before I start my early-morning work block. Lesson 8 in this course is my go-to, and is alone worth every bit of the yearly Insight Timer fee.
7:00 am: B and L are awake, but B is staying home from school today so things are a bit slower. I make a mango smoothie for B and then add kale and protein powder for L and I. At 7:45 I don my favorite lilac workout onesie (I have it in black too) and head to my spin class.
9:00 am: I am but one month into spin classes and totally enamored. The dark room and loud music extremely do it for me. After class I stop at the coffee shop next door and buy a big drip coffee to split with L, a sticky bun for L and B to share, and a bag of coffee beans cause we are almost out at home. ($28)
9:30 am: Take a quick post-spin shower while I listen to Iris Dement’s new album, which serves the sound I grew up on and a very earnest progressivism that reminds me of my parents and their sweet Boomer friends who care deeply about abortion access and post anti-racist memes on Facebook. I cover my body in Warm Feelings, spritz on Winter (the best), wriggle into some cheetah-print overalls, and head down to work until L leaves in about an hour and a half.
12:00 pm: My meeting with my boss ran over so L had to leave for work while I was mid-call. I extricate B from Disney+ (we use J’s login) and receive only a moderate tantrum in response. After some breaths, B lays on his blue rug and pretends he’s eating his lunch (a mango pop, grilled cheese, & berries) in the shallow end of a swimming pool. Pre-nap, we read Gabito, a recent fave, and B’s eyes flutter closed during the last few pages. Back to work!
3:30 pm: B comes running into my office but I need to wrap up an important task, so we listen to superhero stories together while I tappity tap. It’s raining out, and L isn’t due home til 6p, so I make a gametime decision to spend the afternoon doing one fun inside thing for me (pick out berry bushes for our garden!) and one fun thing inside thing for B (ride rides inside the mall near the garden center!). B and I gather $2.50 in quarters for his rides, and he dons his Ironman costume and rainboots for the occasion.
At the garden center, we pick out two triple crown blackberry bushes, two chandler blueberry bushes, one heritage everbearing raspberry bush, and, after a quick phone consultation with L, one black tartarian cherry tree. L loves cherries and is very excited to use them in his cocktail-making. We also pick up a galvanized steel watering can since my old thrifted one keeps leaking all over the floor when I water my inside plants. The total is $253. Because I am very excited about this purchase and it’s for our house, it counts as free in my heart.
4:30 pm: B and I are the only nerds in the mall wearing KN95s and clutching quarters in our fists. So far B has purchased a ride on a train ($1) and some tiny banana candies ($.50). He settles on a very exciting race car for his final four quarters – but the greedy car eats his money!!! ($1) We are both very sad, and start searching for a ride that might take a debit card. Then, suddenly, to our left, appears a LEGO STORE. B dashes in and we find that you can build your own tiny Lego person. He happily obliges and I spend $5 on a three-inch-tall Lego man with a spider face and a big helmet.
6:30 pm: Back at home, L and I discuss our most exciting news of the week – L’s youngest sister and her partner arrive at their new apartment in our city TONIGHT! They’ve been living several states away for years. L’s whole family lives in the area and we are all thrilled these two are coming back home. L, B, and I plan to help them unpack tomorrow, and I think we should take them a gift. L heads out to the bottle store down the street to buy two bottles of Morphos (one for us!) ($52), and then goes to the grocery store to buy White Claws and some pull-ups for B. ($25) We could save more money but life is for living.
Dinner is leftover fried rice, and B doesn’t fall asleep til 9. L and I take our favorite CBD gummies before bed and I read the “soft fruits” section of Down to Earth to prepare for our big planting this weekend.
🌿 DAILY TOTAL: $365.50
✨ DAY 3: THURSDAY✨
6:00 am: I wake up late today – I had trouble sleeping because I couldn’t breathe all night. I make my favorite smoothie for breakfast (which is something like this but incorporates protein powder and frozen kale and cayenne), L eats oatmeal, and B eats two mango smoothie pops plus a cereal bar. They leave around 7:15 am and I get myself together to walk the dog before heading to my coworking space for the day.
8:30 am: I pack up my stuff and ride my bike to my pretty coworking space. The sun is out! It’s spring! The trees are blooming! Everyone is glad.
1:45 pm: I heat up fried rice and drink some of the on-tap kombucha. While I eat, I read Today in Tabs and consider adding it to my monthly expenses so that I can read it more. Our cleaner texts that they’re done at the house, and I Venmo her $160 (included in monthly expenses).
3:10 pm: I decide to bike home before the final Zoom call of the day. I cannot stress enough how glorious it is outside. It’s also glorious inside, thanks to our fabulous cleaner.
Post-call, I make some smol avocado toasts and L calls to say his sibling is not in fact up for a visit tonight – they are whelmed by boxes. We pivot: bike ride to the playground! While at the playground, B is the first kid to hear the ICE CREAM TRUCK approach. Chaos ensues and we spend $5 on one scoop of cookie dough ice cream.
7:00 pm: For dinner we make mini pizzas on TJ’s cauliflower crust. I also make asparagus with a delicious flaked salt left by my bestie the last time they stayed over, and the result is pretty enough to text to them. L makes us gin fizzes with strawberries and with mint from the garden. 🌱
8:00 pm: Teeth brushing is always a slog with B, but on this night I am visited by a stroke of genius. Tonight, I explain to him that the tooth fairy has been hired for a residency at our place and is listening in while he brushes his teeth and uses the potty. If he does a good job, she’ll leave him a coin somewhere in his bedroom. L overhears and makes tooth fairy sounds (think tinkling giggles) from the hallway – B is delighted and brushes his teeth with aplomb. This is a big win! While he uses the potty, I steal away and hide a quarter under the toe of his stuffed Spiderman. He requests tooth fairy bedtime stories and falls asleep listening. ($.25)
🌿 DAILY TOTAL: $5.25
✨ DAY 4: FRIDAY✨
6:00 am: Another late wakeup for me. I have a spin class at 8 and a packed workday, so I make my favorite smoothie again and walk M while it’s still dark out. Afterwards, I help B with his teeth brushing/potty routine, and it continues to be so much smoother than ever before thanks to our friend the tooth fairy. This time, L stashes a dime under B’s stuffed bear. B proudly puts the dime and last night’s quarter in his coat pocket and, as I buckle him into his car seat, announces he is NOT sharing his money with his teacher today. I suppose the discussion about whether money should be treated as a public good or a personal asset can come later. On the way to school, L stops for gas. ($25 for gas, $.10 for the tooth fairy)
8:00 am: I arrive at the spin studio and learn that the teacher I expected overslept. His sub unfortunately leaves half the lights on and plays lots of Eminem. I survive the weird vibes and head home for a quick shower before work – no coffee shop stop this time! I am a disciplined and frugal Recessionist millennial.
10:15 am: Our CSA is delivered! It includes spinach, heirloom tomatoes (!! new this week!), apples, lacinato kale, meyer lemons, limes, oyster mushrooms, shiitake mushrooms, red onions, shishito peppers, and mixed cherry tomatoes, plus a delivery charge, for $63, $23 more than the monthly minimum I included in set expenses. I fetch it from the sunny porch and am reminded that urgently want a pair of white platform Birkenstocks for spring. I find a pair in my size in EUC on Poshmark and buy them now: $60 with shipping, a steal compared to $110 new!
1:00 pm: My delightful neighbor and I take lunch together! We walk to a nearby eatery where I get a tempeh reuben and diet soda (my vice), $18 including tip. Over lunch we discuss parenting, gardening, her upcoming major home renovation, and how squirrels can sometimes relocate crocus bulbs. Meanwhile, B and L have early release at school so they head to a kid’s play place as a special treat to B. ($23 with snacks)
3:30 pm: B is home early but, curses, I still have much work to do! He and L chill while I tappity tap for a while longer. I eventually wrap up, but will have to do more work over the weekend.
L wants to work in his shop for a while, so B and I take the bike to the playground. He is a very good friend at the playground, running around happily with a couple of 7-year-olds he’s never met and then, when they leave, chatting amicably with an 18-month-old and his parents. He periodically begs me to let him take his pants off so he can better pretend he’s in the pool. The answer is no, but he is shirtless, shoeless, and covered in “tattoos” (washable marker), and I think that’s a pretty good compromise.
7:00 pm: Back home, L is making dinner (avocado tacos!), and I announce to him that we need a few more spring items: new (unscratched) oversize sunglasses and a beaded eyeglass chain for me, and little kid Tevas for B. I use my dad’s Amaz*n to buy the glasses and chain for me ($20) and three pairs of Tevas for B to try on. They’ll only charge us for the ones we keep, which will be $21.
L and I spend the evening drinking the Morphos he bought earlier this week and hanging out with J and her boyfriend. We turn on the AC for the first time which reminds us that we need to get an HVAC repairperson out here to check out some weird details of the old AC system our inspector caught. I mentally add it to my to-dos for the week.
We get B in bed late again – around 9 – and we watch Schitt’s Creek til almost 11. We will never tire of re-watching this show.
🌿 DAILY TOTAL: $185.10
✨ DAY 5: SATURDAY✨
6:45 am: I wake up breathing easy today! Blessings, prednisone; blessings, springtime.
8:00 am: L and I make eggie toasts with heirloom tomatoes, and L reveals that he had a long-awaited budget chat with the medical hospital where he’s been getting dental work done. They’re estimating we’ll need to spend an additional $11k this year to get L’s teeth in order. This kicks off a Big Conversation, during which we realize we absolutely need to be spending less than $8k monthly in order to cash flow his teeth, cash flow our must-do house projects, and pay down our cards by end of year. This should be doable, in theory, but will be a big adjustment as for months we’ve been splashing out on everything from gifts to travel to furniture to tools to fabric to support my baby-clothes-making hobby. As the conversation drags on, tension rises, and we’re both mad at each other but not sure why.
After a few breaths, I realize: we are just launching big numbers back and forth across the room, completely unmoored! I offer to make us a big fancy draft annual budget with monthly projections and schedule a date night to review. HOW FUN! L obliges after I convince him that I actually, truly, want to do this, and I find a very nice budget template on Etsy. ($20)
10 am: I run down a hill and across a parking lot to yoga, and slip in some vom along the way. Meanwhile, L and B head to the gym together.
12 pm: I take our e-bike (the one we’ve been riding around all week) to the shop and tell the bike guy that the lights and the breaks are in rough shape. He tells me they’ll fix it up, but that we should consider replacing it with a Yuba Spicy Curry which is $5200. I think not, but in my heart, I do really want to sell this one and buy a RadWagon or a Blix Packa Genie. Ebike moms and dolls, send thoughts.
When I get home, L heads to Aldi and spends $125 on berries, lots of bananas, eggs, rice, oat milk, oatmeal, snacks for B, frozen berries, fresh broccoli, yogurt, and a bunch of other stuff including Aldi swag that he is very stoked about: a matching pullover, socks, and tumbler. He then goes to Ace Hardware and buys s’mores sticks for use with our fire pit and some light bulbs ($37). B takes a nap and I plant the berry bushes and cherry tree while he snoozes!
6 pm: We head out to dinner to celebrate the big move with L’s sister and her boyfriend. It’s a long walk to our favorite taco place, but a beautiful day. B rides his pink scooter and is very cute, but reader, he is a spirited child and today he is having A Day. We field multiple meltdowns and lots of not-listening on the way to the restaurant. Dinner itself is delicious, though, and we watch the sun set over the water as we eat. It’s $58 with tip for the three of us, including a coconut margarita for L and a watermelon sangria for me.
🌿 DAILY TOTAL: $240
✨ DAY 6: SUNDAY✨
5 am: Up and thinking about parenting. L and I had a long conversation after B fell asleep about what we could do differently to help him manage his emotions. He’s a big child in size and in personality – at 3 he’s wearing size 6 clothes and talking as much as any child that age too. He has big joy, big wonder, big imagination, and also big anger and big sadnesses. We’ve tried to follow Janet Lansbury’s teaching since B was born, but at times gentle parenting, which Janet teaches, has seemed too lax for B. I decide to return to her work anyway. I read the transcript to her newest podcast episode, and wonder if maybe we’re overengaging with B’s big feelings. Then I read this one about another child struggling with aggression, and am glad that B is at least not spitting, I guess?
10 am: B’s morning is going great after all, and we decide to pack a lunch and head out for a hike. B makes himself a ham, cheese, and hummus sandwich, and I make L and I veggie sandwiches with pesto. We happen upon a plant sale on the way home and L approves a “Fuzzy Mystery” peperomia for our bathroom. ($8) Afterwards we drop off my Nuuly at UPS (prepaid!) and head home to watch a movie while it rains. I do work things and start our new annual budget spreadsheet during the movie.
5 pm: J takes a walk with us and M the dog to a playground nearby, and while we’re out, our neighbor texts to suggest once-a-week family dinners on Tuesday (yes please!). For dinner tonight, I make Smitten Kitchen’s tomato sauce with onion and butter using the heirloom tomatoes from our CSA and it’s very good as always. L and I drink some Pinot with dinner, and B eats his spaghetti with his hands.
9 pm: My anxiety (her name is Esther) visits while I’m putting B to sleep, so after he’s down, I decide to get to the bottom of a few things via Google. As usual, this is a bad idea! I walk to bed crying and lay on L’s chest. I cry a lot more, including about the trailer for You Hurt My Feelings which I saw three days ago, and about how scary it would be if L were to die, and about how L’s parents’ best friends’ lives have never been visited by tragedy and is that possible for us too?
Therapy is on Tuesday, everyone! We will make it.
🌿 DAILY TOTAL: $8
✨ DAY 7: MONDAY✨
6:30 am: I wake up later than I wanted to after a fitful night. B was coughing a lot (post-nasal drip, ick), and I was thinking a lot. I have back-to-back calls today with lots of prep beforehand so I get dressed quick and grab a pre-made smoothie from the freezer for breakfast. B and L leave at 7:15; I light my Gardener candle and tuck in to work.
1:00 pm: Lunch is fried rice with a chonk of a Trader Joe’s milk chocolate hazelnut bar, yum. I eat on a call but politely turn off my camera.
4:00 pm: B and L are home and I’m still wrapping up. On the way home, they picked up some natural honey cough syrup stuff for B ($12).
6:00 pm: L and I drop B off at the Y childcare, and find out they are hosting a spring break camp for 3-5 year olds. L wants to build B’s long-awaited tree house over the break, so we sign B up for four days of camp. Very cute! And also less than half the price of other camps in the area. ($100)
6:15 pm: I check the NYT as I start up the elliptical and am sent reeling by news of the school shooting in Nashville. I try to distract myself with The Crown. Unfortunately, Princess Di is really going through it, so the distraction is a bust. I turn on Sarah Blondin’s Learning to Surrender meditation instead, and listen to it twice. I’m trying desperately to trust the universe but the hellscapeness of it all makes that difficult sometimes.
Life marches on anyhow: After our workout, we head to Trader Joe’s to buy the items Aldi didn’t offer over the weekend (fancy bag salad, plantain chips, challah, frozen greens, a Galia melon, a few other things), plus a lot more broccoli because we need it for the tofu and veggies we’re making with the neighbors tomorrow. I love this peanut butter tofu recipe, in case you’re looking for one. ($31)
8 pm: We three look at videos of baby B over dinner, and L says maybe he is ready for a second. I think I am too.
adrienne maree brown posted today,
put your attention on suffering – which is constant and everywhere – and it is all you will see. joy will come, and laughter, but you will find it brief, possibly a distraction.
put your attention on joy, being connected and feeling whole, and you will find it everywhere. your heart will still break. you will know grief. but you will find it a reasonable cost for the random abundance of miracles, and the soft wild rhythms of love.
return to love as many times as you can.
🌿 DAILY TOTAL: $143
❤️ Section 5: TOTALS
Total Expenses: $1228.85
Food & Drink: $376
Fun & Entertainment: $130.85
Home & Health: $557
Clothes & Beauty: $101
Transport: $64
❤️ Section 6: REFLECTION
This week was spendy for us between the plants and the skincare routine – but I’d say we usually have at least one week a month where we spend like this. I know that needs to shift if we’re going to pay for all the things we need to pay for this year without drawing from our life savings. I’m also aware that N’s student loan payments will likely resume, and that having a second baby isn’t cheap – so I’m excited to finish our budget spreadsheet and treat it like a goal rather than a suggestion (I currently track our spending obsessively in Mint but treat the budget limits like unsolicited advice).
I do like everything we spent money on this week, though, and feel very lucky to be able to cover so many wants and needs in a given week. Thanks for reading!
submitted by mdanonomy21 to MoneyDiariesACTIVE [link] [comments]
❤️ Section 1: Assets and Debt
Total Net Worth: $108,763 if you believe the equity calculator I reference below. Negative tens of thousands if you think the housing market is about to crash or even just reset!
Retirement Balance: $10,000 for me, split just about evenly between a Roth and a 401k; $25,500 for my husband, L. This will make more sense when you get to the “income progression” section, and after you accompany me as I spend money like I have money to spend, every day.
Savings Account Balance: $17,000 split between an “upcoming house repairs & dental fund.” The first $7k is spoken for already between a big chimney repair ($3k) and an expensive upcoming dental appointment for L ($4k), both in April. The remaining $10k we don’t touch – it’s for an emergency fund.
Checking Account Balance: About $1200. I try to keep this pretty low to discourage my own spending, which works only sometimes.
Credit Card Debt: $12,100 left from our home renovations and move last October. We got two 0% APR cards to finance this, and will pay both off before the APR jumps at the end of this year.
Student Loan Debt: $80,000 for L’s undergrad and MAT. $18,000 for my undergrad and (unfinished, womp womp) MAT. We aren’t paying on this til we have to, and are hoping it will be forgiven – mine via Biden, since I was a Pell Grant recipient, and L’s via PSLF.
Equity: $145,000. This number is from an online equity calculator, and is for our century-old house in a very walkable neighborhood in a popular Southern city, but who knows whether it’s real or not. Numbers that are real: We paid $575,000 for the home last fall, including a 20% down payment that my dad split evenly with us – his portion from his recent inheritance, our portion from the sale of our previous home.
When we started looking in 2021, our “stretch budget” was $450k, but the housing market exploded and it seemed like overnight the base budget for kind of place we were looking for was more like $650k (I’m committed to city living, and we wanted to make sure there was enough space for my sister, J, and her boyfriend to continue living with us, given the skyrocketing rent prices). We bit the bullet on this place after my dad offered to pay for half the down payment. That gift helped us avoid PMI, so that the rent we were paying for a worse place was comparable to the monthly payment on this one. We spent the remaining $15,000 from our previous home sale buying down the rate and on moving costs, repairs, furnishing, gardens, appliances, etc, and then still took out about $12,000 more in credit card debt to renovate the bathrooms and make a few other upgrades.
❤️ Section 2: Income
Monthly Take Home: My base pay is $125,000, and L’s is $55,000. We bring in about $11,400 a month after taxes. The whole family’s health insurance is paid in full by my work, and our pre-tax retirement contribution details are below.
Income Progression: I’ve been working since I was 15 years old, moved out at 18, and paid my own bills starting that year, but income below starts the year I graduated college.
Year 1: $15,000 (part time ABA therapist, full time baby anarchist)
Years 2-8: $28,000 (This is a rough average of my income across these years. I accepted a spot in Teach for America right out of college in order to have a salary, despite my maximalist politics at the time, and kept working with young people for years after my TFA service ended. I paid for L’s expenses in college and supported a few other family members off and on while I taught. When I took a big pay cut to do youth organizing work for a couple years, L’s teacher salary helped support us).
Year 9: $45,000 (got a full-time nonprofit fundraising job, quit teaching)
Year 10: $55,000 (got a raise)
Year 11: $65,000 (got a raise and promotion)
Year 12: $75,000 (was promoted again, realized I was still underpaid)
Year 13: $98,000 (was hired by my current employer)
Year 14: $125,000 (was promoted!)
❤️ Section 3: Expenses
Mortgage, Taxes, & Insurance: About $3,000. My sister and her boyfriend currently live with us and contribute $600 of this total payment each month, but we budget as if we pay the full mortgage ourselves.
Investment Contribution: L’s retirement is pulled out of his check before he receives it: it’s $289 a month. I put $170 into my 401k, directly out of my check. I also contribute $100 to a Roth IRA through Acorns each month. Through Acorns we also have a UTMA/UGMA account for B which gets $100 a month, and we put $40 a month into a taxable brokerage account.
Savings Contribution: We tally an extra $1.5k-$3k a month beyond expenses, and are expecting $6k back from our tax return this year. But we aren’t prioritizing savings right now, and instead are: 1. cashflowing L’s timely dental work (found out in the course of this diary that we’re looking at about $11k this year); 2. paying down the debt on our credit cards ($12k, see above); and 3. cashflowing a few must-do house projects (estimating about $8k for those).
Debt Payments: See above! As I mentioned, we have student loan debt to the tune of $100k but aren’t paying right now. I actually paid my loans down by $10k during COVID with money from our first house sale. But I panicked when Biden said he was going to forgive loans and got my full payment during the pandemic – all $10k – reversed. That money is now our emergency savings account.
Electric/Gas: $150ish, varies significantly. We installed a high-efficiency wood stove when we moved in, which cuts down on the cost of our old furnace a bit.
Internet: $80
Water: $75
Cellphone: $100, for L & I both
Subscriptions: $10 Spotify; $10 Youtube music; $2.99 Apple data; $22 NYT, for newspaper and cooking app; $5 for Acorns. I also pay yearly: $40 for the Freedom app, $20 for Hobnob, and $60 for Insight Timer.
Car Payment and Insurance: $200 for insurance. This covers both of our used cars and my dad’s used handicap van. We paid off our 2012 Honda Fit when we sold our last house, and recently paid cash for a Honda CRV with 180k miles which we use for family trips.
Medical/Therapy: $0. My therapist is $181 a session, and I see her twice a month – but this is covered by my job’s MERP card. I also get an inhaler at least twice a month - that’s reimbursed too, but would cost $60 otherwise.
Pet Expenses: Our precious pittie suffered some injuries before we adopted her. She’s on Gabapentin daily for pain management which is about $60 a month.
CSA: $40/week minimum – this is a special CSA service that has all kinds of tempting goodies, so I usually spend more.
Coworking space: $150. I expense $100 of this to work.
Gym memberships: $75 for a family Y membership, and $120 for my spin studio; I also buy 10-packs to the yoga studio down the street every few months, which are $120 a pop**.**
Donations: Varies. We give $10 monthly to our local Democratic Socialists of America and $10 monthly to the Working Families Party. We give one-off donations when asked or when we come across a need, usually $50-$100 at a time. Once we have less immediate debt, I plan to up our recurring gifts.
Childcare: $600. B goes to the best public preschool in the land – he was on the waiting list for 18 months. We previously paid double this for a subpar Montessori school run out of a church basement. Often babysitting is an extra $100 or so a month.
Kids’ Activities: $120 every three months or so – think swim lessons, toddler soccer, etc.
Outdoorsy memberships: $110 yearly for memberships to nonprofit parks, botanical gardens, etc etc. These are not too expensive and a fun way to spend a day with little ones.
House cleaner: $320. They come twice a month and charge $160 each time. This is some of the best money I spend each month.
Nuuly: $94. This has been a gamechanger for work travel.
❤️ Section 4: Money Diary
✨DAY 1: TUESDAY✨
5:00 am: I wake up wheezing with two pudgy legs draped right across my chest. My three-year-old, B, gave me a cold that I’ve just recovered from, but my asthma is still a bit aggrieved. I disentangle myself from B and head downstairs to make a french press and get some work in before everyone’s up.
6:30 am: B comes running downstairs, naked and boisterous as ever. I spare a thought for my little sister, J, and her boyfriend, who share a wall with him. J and her boyfriend have been living with us since the deep pandemic when we all moved together, which has been a blessing for us. But the early mornings and constant circulating upper respiratory infections are doing them in, and they’re moving to a nearby apartment in May. This very basic one-bedroom will double their monthly rent D: And, since J is finishing up school right now and doesn’t have a steady income, L and I had to cosign their lease in order for them to even qualify for the place. Big sigh on housing across America right now.
7:15 am: B and L head out, and I get dressed and do a little more work. At 8:30, I head to my first-ever dermatologist appointment. My mom recently treated me to a mothedaughter facial where I learned that the creeping redness on my nose is likely hereditary rosacea! The facialist suggested I make an appointment with a dermatologist after I informed her that my skincare routine has to date involved only a wet rag and a heavy moisturizer.
The dermatologist suggests a gentle papaya cleanser; a phyto vitamin c serum; a rosacea triple cream; and a moisturizing sunscreen. The cost for the appointment itself ($150) is covered by my MERP card from work**,** but I pay for the cleanser, serum, and sunscreen from his office ($141) and the rosacea triple cream from an online pharmacy ($49) out of pocket. Thus begins my first-ever skincare routine. Sadly, the dermatologist’s proprietary packaging is ugly, so if you use something similar but cute, please share a link.
10:00 am: I’ve walked the dog, made another cup of coffee, turned on Freedom, and am settling into my laptop for a day of toggling between Google Docs and Zoom rooms.
12:30 pm: M barks rancorously as I’m wrapping up a Zoom call. The Tubies I ordered last week for me (and B) were delivered. It’s SPRING and we are about to eat SMOOTHIE POPS, everybody. It’s also time for lunch, so I heat up this very yummy soup (we subbed veggie sausage and it worked well) and toast a piece of focaccia. I read “I Went On A Package Trip for Lonely Millennials” while I eat. It is every bit as unsettling as it sounds.
1:40 pm: L calls — B has had diarrhea at school and needs to come home. B’s preschool is in the public school where L teaches, which means L handles all pick up and drop off, but my work schedule is much more flexible than L’s so I often do early pickups like this one. I shift my afternoon meetings, notify my direct reports that I’m signing out early, and stop for gas on the way to pick up poor little B. ($40)
4:30 pm: B and I spent the afternoon doing quiet things together – he took a bath, played with toys, and watched some PBS Kids, and I took a few minutes to tie up some loose ends at work. When L gets home at 4:30, we set up the sprinkler on our tiny front “lawn” (currently actually a patch of very-tilled dirt), where we recently seeded low-growing wildflowers.
6:00 pm: I want to drink wine with L while we make veggie fried rice for dinner, but think better of it given that I just got over a cold. L offers to make me a hot toddy (yesssss) but then realizes we’re out of lemons. He and B head to the grocery store around the corner while I finish up dinner. They get lemons, a lime, and a giant bag of lollipops for L’s students. ($11) The hot toddy is delicious.
9:00 pm: B’s bedtime routine is a wrap and my new skincare routine is complete – turns out my face does feel cleaner after a cleanser! I take a nebulizer treatment and read my favorite book that has completely transformed my life, Overcoming Unwanted Intrusive Thoughts: A CBT-Based Guide to Getting Over Frightening, Obsessive, or Disturbing Thoughts, until we turn out the lights. Goodnight!
🌿 DAILY TOTAL: $241
✨ DAY 2: WEDNESDAY✨
5:00 am: I wake up wheezing deeply again. I head downstairs to eat a cold banana and take a prednisone left over from the last time my asthma was aggravated by a cold. I decide to sit for a little Sarah Blondin meditation by the woodstove before I start my early-morning work block. Lesson 8 in this course is my go-to, and is alone worth every bit of the yearly Insight Timer fee.
7:00 am: B and L are awake, but B is staying home from school today so things are a bit slower. I make a mango smoothie for B and then add kale and protein powder for L and I. At 7:45 I don my favorite lilac workout onesie (I have it in black too) and head to my spin class.
9:00 am: I am but one month into spin classes and totally enamored. The dark room and loud music extremely do it for me. After class I stop at the coffee shop next door and buy a big drip coffee to split with L, a sticky bun for L and B to share, and a bag of coffee beans cause we are almost out at home. ($28)
9:30 am: Take a quick post-spin shower while I listen to Iris Dement’s new album, which serves the sound I grew up on and a very earnest progressivism that reminds me of my parents and their sweet Boomer friends who care deeply about abortion access and post anti-racist memes on Facebook. I cover my body in Warm Feelings, spritz on Winter (the best), wriggle into some cheetah-print overalls, and head down to work until L leaves in about an hour and a half.
12:00 pm: My meeting with my boss ran over so L had to leave for work while I was mid-call. I extricate B from Disney+ (we use J’s login) and receive only a moderate tantrum in response. After some breaths, B lays on his blue rug and pretends he’s eating his lunch (a mango pop, grilled cheese, & berries) in the shallow end of a swimming pool. Pre-nap, we read Gabito, a recent fave, and B’s eyes flutter closed during the last few pages. Back to work!
3:30 pm: B comes running into my office but I need to wrap up an important task, so we listen to superhero stories together while I tappity tap. It’s raining out, and L isn’t due home til 6p, so I make a gametime decision to spend the afternoon doing one fun inside thing for me (pick out berry bushes for our garden!) and one fun thing inside thing for B (ride rides inside the mall near the garden center!). B and I gather $2.50 in quarters for his rides, and he dons his Ironman costume and rainboots for the occasion.
At the garden center, we pick out two triple crown blackberry bushes, two chandler blueberry bushes, one heritage everbearing raspberry bush, and, after a quick phone consultation with L, one black tartarian cherry tree. L loves cherries and is very excited to use them in his cocktail-making. We also pick up a galvanized steel watering can since my old thrifted one keeps leaking all over the floor when I water my inside plants. The total is $253. Because I am very excited about this purchase and it’s for our house, it counts as free in my heart.
4:30 pm: B and I are the only nerds in the mall wearing KN95s and clutching quarters in our fists. So far B has purchased a ride on a train ($1) and some tiny banana candies ($.50). He settles on a very exciting race car for his final four quarters – but the greedy car eats his money!!! ($1) We are both very sad, and start searching for a ride that might take a debit card. Then, suddenly, to our left, appears a LEGO STORE. B dashes in and we find that you can build your own tiny Lego person. He happily obliges and I spend $5 on a three-inch-tall Lego man with a spider face and a big helmet.
6:30 pm: Back at home, L and I discuss our most exciting news of the week – L’s youngest sister and her partner arrive at their new apartment in our city TONIGHT! They’ve been living several states away for years. L’s whole family lives in the area and we are all thrilled these two are coming back home. L, B, and I plan to help them unpack tomorrow, and I think we should take them a gift. L heads out to the bottle store down the street to buy two bottles of Morphos (one for us!) ($52), and then goes to the grocery store to buy White Claws and some pull-ups for B. ($25) We could save more money but life is for living.
Dinner is leftover fried rice, and B doesn’t fall asleep til 9. L and I take our favorite CBD gummies before bed and I read the “soft fruits” section of Down to Earth to prepare for our big planting this weekend.
🌿 DAILY TOTAL: $365.50
✨ DAY 3: THURSDAY✨
6:00 am: I wake up late today – I had trouble sleeping because I couldn’t breathe all night. I make my favorite smoothie for breakfast (which is something like this but incorporates protein powder and frozen kale and cayenne), L eats oatmeal, and B eats two mango smoothie pops plus a cereal bar. They leave around 7:15 am and I get myself together to walk the dog before heading to my coworking space for the day.
8:30 am: I pack up my stuff and ride my bike to my pretty coworking space. The sun is out! It’s spring! The trees are blooming! Everyone is glad.
1:45 pm: I heat up fried rice and drink some of the on-tap kombucha. While I eat, I read Today in Tabs and consider adding it to my monthly expenses so that I can read it more. Our cleaner texts that they’re done at the house, and I Venmo her $160 (included in monthly expenses).
3:10 pm: I decide to bike home before the final Zoom call of the day. I cannot stress enough how glorious it is outside. It’s also glorious inside, thanks to our fabulous cleaner.
Post-call, I make some smol avocado toasts and L calls to say his sibling is not in fact up for a visit tonight – they are whelmed by boxes. We pivot: bike ride to the playground! While at the playground, B is the first kid to hear the ICE CREAM TRUCK approach. Chaos ensues and we spend $5 on one scoop of cookie dough ice cream.
7:00 pm: For dinner we make mini pizzas on TJ’s cauliflower crust. I also make asparagus with a delicious flaked salt left by my bestie the last time they stayed over, and the result is pretty enough to text to them. L makes us gin fizzes with strawberries and with mint from the garden. 🌱
8:00 pm: Teeth brushing is always a slog with B, but on this night I am visited by a stroke of genius. Tonight, I explain to him that the tooth fairy has been hired for a residency at our place and is listening in while he brushes his teeth and uses the potty. If he does a good job, she’ll leave him a coin somewhere in his bedroom. L overhears and makes tooth fairy sounds (think tinkling giggles) from the hallway – B is delighted and brushes his teeth with aplomb. This is a big win! While he uses the potty, I steal away and hide a quarter under the toe of his stuffed Spiderman. He requests tooth fairy bedtime stories and falls asleep listening. ($.25)
🌿 DAILY TOTAL: $5.25
✨ DAY 4: FRIDAY✨
6:00 am: Another late wakeup for me. I have a spin class at 8 and a packed workday, so I make my favorite smoothie again and walk M while it’s still dark out. Afterwards, I help B with his teeth brushing/potty routine, and it continues to be so much smoother than ever before thanks to our friend the tooth fairy. This time, L stashes a dime under B’s stuffed bear. B proudly puts the dime and last night’s quarter in his coat pocket and, as I buckle him into his car seat, announces he is NOT sharing his money with his teacher today. I suppose the discussion about whether money should be treated as a public good or a personal asset can come later. On the way to school, L stops for gas. ($25 for gas, $.10 for the tooth fairy)
8:00 am: I arrive at the spin studio and learn that the teacher I expected overslept. His sub unfortunately leaves half the lights on and plays lots of Eminem. I survive the weird vibes and head home for a quick shower before work – no coffee shop stop this time! I am a disciplined and frugal Recessionist millennial.
10:15 am: Our CSA is delivered! It includes spinach, heirloom tomatoes (!! new this week!), apples, lacinato kale, meyer lemons, limes, oyster mushrooms, shiitake mushrooms, red onions, shishito peppers, and mixed cherry tomatoes, plus a delivery charge, for $63, $23 more than the monthly minimum I included in set expenses. I fetch it from the sunny porch and am reminded that urgently want a pair of white platform Birkenstocks for spring. I find a pair in my size in EUC on Poshmark and buy them now: $60 with shipping, a steal compared to $110 new!
1:00 pm: My delightful neighbor and I take lunch together! We walk to a nearby eatery where I get a tempeh reuben and diet soda (my vice), $18 including tip. Over lunch we discuss parenting, gardening, her upcoming major home renovation, and how squirrels can sometimes relocate crocus bulbs. Meanwhile, B and L have early release at school so they head to a kid’s play place as a special treat to B. ($23 with snacks)
3:30 pm: B is home early but, curses, I still have much work to do! He and L chill while I tappity tap for a while longer. I eventually wrap up, but will have to do more work over the weekend.
L wants to work in his shop for a while, so B and I take the bike to the playground. He is a very good friend at the playground, running around happily with a couple of 7-year-olds he’s never met and then, when they leave, chatting amicably with an 18-month-old and his parents. He periodically begs me to let him take his pants off so he can better pretend he’s in the pool. The answer is no, but he is shirtless, shoeless, and covered in “tattoos” (washable marker), and I think that’s a pretty good compromise.
7:00 pm: Back home, L is making dinner (avocado tacos!), and I announce to him that we need a few more spring items: new (unscratched) oversize sunglasses and a beaded eyeglass chain for me, and little kid Tevas for B. I use my dad’s Amaz*n to buy the glasses and chain for me ($20) and three pairs of Tevas for B to try on. They’ll only charge us for the ones we keep, which will be $21.
L and I spend the evening drinking the Morphos he bought earlier this week and hanging out with J and her boyfriend. We turn on the AC for the first time which reminds us that we need to get an HVAC repairperson out here to check out some weird details of the old AC system our inspector caught. I mentally add it to my to-dos for the week.
We get B in bed late again – around 9 – and we watch Schitt’s Creek til almost 11. We will never tire of re-watching this show.
🌿 DAILY TOTAL: $185.10
✨ DAY 5: SATURDAY✨
6:45 am: I wake up breathing easy today! Blessings, prednisone; blessings, springtime.
8:00 am: L and I make eggie toasts with heirloom tomatoes, and L reveals that he had a long-awaited budget chat with the medical hospital where he’s been getting dental work done. They’re estimating we’ll need to spend an additional $11k this year to get L’s teeth in order. This kicks off a Big Conversation, during which we realize we absolutely need to be spending less than $8k monthly in order to cash flow his teeth, cash flow our must-do house projects, and pay down our cards by end of year. This should be doable, in theory, but will be a big adjustment as for months we’ve been splashing out on everything from gifts to travel to furniture to tools to fabric to support my baby-clothes-making hobby. As the conversation drags on, tension rises, and we’re both mad at each other but not sure why.
After a few breaths, I realize: we are just launching big numbers back and forth across the room, completely unmoored! I offer to make us a big fancy draft annual budget with monthly projections and schedule a date night to review. HOW FUN! L obliges after I convince him that I actually, truly, want to do this, and I find a very nice budget template on Etsy. ($20)
10 am: I run down a hill and across a parking lot to yoga, and slip in some vom along the way. Meanwhile, L and B head to the gym together.
12 pm: I take our e-bike (the one we’ve been riding around all week) to the shop and tell the bike guy that the lights and the breaks are in rough shape. He tells me they’ll fix it up, but that we should consider replacing it with a Yuba Spicy Curry which is $5200. I think not, but in my heart, I do really want to sell this one and buy a RadWagon or a Blix Packa Genie. Ebike moms and dolls, send thoughts.
When I get home, L heads to Aldi and spends $125 on berries, lots of bananas, eggs, rice, oat milk, oatmeal, snacks for B, frozen berries, fresh broccoli, yogurt, and a bunch of other stuff including Aldi swag that he is very stoked about: a matching pullover, socks, and tumbler. He then goes to Ace Hardware and buys s’mores sticks for use with our fire pit and some light bulbs ($37). B takes a nap and I plant the berry bushes and cherry tree while he snoozes!
6 pm: We head out to dinner to celebrate the big move with L’s sister and her boyfriend. It’s a long walk to our favorite taco place, but a beautiful day. B rides his pink scooter and is very cute, but reader, he is a spirited child and today he is having A Day. We field multiple meltdowns and lots of not-listening on the way to the restaurant. Dinner itself is delicious, though, and we watch the sun set over the water as we eat. It’s $58 with tip for the three of us, including a coconut margarita for L and a watermelon sangria for me.
🌿 DAILY TOTAL: $240
✨ DAY 6: SUNDAY✨
5 am: Up and thinking about parenting. L and I had a long conversation after B fell asleep about what we could do differently to help him manage his emotions. He’s a big child in size and in personality – at 3 he’s wearing size 6 clothes and talking as much as any child that age too. He has big joy, big wonder, big imagination, and also big anger and big sadnesses. We’ve tried to follow Janet Lansbury’s teaching since B was born, but at times gentle parenting, which Janet teaches, has seemed too lax for B. I decide to return to her work anyway. I read the transcript to her newest podcast episode, and wonder if maybe we’re overengaging with B’s big feelings. Then I read this one about another child struggling with aggression, and am glad that B is at least not spitting, I guess?
10 am: B’s morning is going great after all, and we decide to pack a lunch and head out for a hike. B makes himself a ham, cheese, and hummus sandwich, and I make L and I veggie sandwiches with pesto. We happen upon a plant sale on the way home and L approves a “Fuzzy Mystery” peperomia for our bathroom. ($8) Afterwards we drop off my Nuuly at UPS (prepaid!) and head home to watch a movie while it rains. I do work things and start our new annual budget spreadsheet during the movie.
5 pm: J takes a walk with us and M the dog to a playground nearby, and while we’re out, our neighbor texts to suggest once-a-week family dinners on Tuesday (yes please!). For dinner tonight, I make Smitten Kitchen’s tomato sauce with onion and butter using the heirloom tomatoes from our CSA and it’s very good as always. L and I drink some Pinot with dinner, and B eats his spaghetti with his hands.
9 pm: My anxiety (her name is Esther) visits while I’m putting B to sleep, so after he’s down, I decide to get to the bottom of a few things via Google. As usual, this is a bad idea! I walk to bed crying and lay on L’s chest. I cry a lot more, including about the trailer for You Hurt My Feelings which I saw three days ago, and about how scary it would be if L were to die, and about how L’s parents’ best friends’ lives have never been visited by tragedy and is that possible for us too?
Therapy is on Tuesday, everyone! We will make it.
🌿 DAILY TOTAL: $8
✨ DAY 7: MONDAY✨
6:30 am: I wake up later than I wanted to after a fitful night. B was coughing a lot (post-nasal drip, ick), and I was thinking a lot. I have back-to-back calls today with lots of prep beforehand so I get dressed quick and grab a pre-made smoothie from the freezer for breakfast. B and L leave at 7:15; I light my Gardener candle and tuck in to work.
1:00 pm: Lunch is fried rice with a chonk of a Trader Joe’s milk chocolate hazelnut bar, yum. I eat on a call but politely turn off my camera.
4:00 pm: B and L are home and I’m still wrapping up. On the way home, they picked up some natural honey cough syrup stuff for B ($12).
6:00 pm: L and I drop B off at the Y childcare, and find out they are hosting a spring break camp for 3-5 year olds. L wants to build B’s long-awaited tree house over the break, so we sign B up for four days of camp. Very cute! And also less than half the price of other camps in the area. ($100)
6:15 pm: I check the NYT as I start up the elliptical and am sent reeling by news of the school shooting in Nashville. I try to distract myself with The Crown. Unfortunately, Princess Di is really going through it, so the distraction is a bust. I turn on Sarah Blondin’s Learning to Surrender meditation instead, and listen to it twice. I’m trying desperately to trust the universe but the hellscapeness of it all makes that difficult sometimes.
Life marches on anyhow: After our workout, we head to Trader Joe’s to buy the items Aldi didn’t offer over the weekend (fancy bag salad, plantain chips, challah, frozen greens, a Galia melon, a few other things), plus a lot more broccoli because we need it for the tofu and veggies we’re making with the neighbors tomorrow. I love this peanut butter tofu recipe, in case you’re looking for one. ($31)
8 pm: We three look at videos of baby B over dinner, and L says maybe he is ready for a second. I think I am too.
adrienne maree brown posted today,
put your attention on suffering – which is constant and everywhere – and it is all you will see. joy will come, and laughter, but you will find it brief, possibly a distraction.
put your attention on joy, being connected and feeling whole, and you will find it everywhere. your heart will still break. you will know grief. but you will find it a reasonable cost for the random abundance of miracles, and the soft wild rhythms of love.
return to love as many times as you can.
🌿 DAILY TOTAL: $143
❤️ Section 5: TOTALS
Total Expenses: $1228.85
Food & Drink: $376
Fun & Entertainment: $130.85
Home & Health: $557
Clothes & Beauty: $101
Transport: $64
❤️ Section 6: REFLECTION
This week was spendy for us between the plants and the skincare routine – but I’d say we usually have at least one week a month where we spend like this. I know that needs to shift if we’re going to pay for all the things we need to pay for this year without drawing from our life savings. I’m also aware that N’s student loan payments will likely resume, and that having a second baby isn’t cheap – so I’m excited to finish our budget spreadsheet and treat it like a goal rather than a suggestion (I currently track our spending obsessively in Mint but treat the budget limits like unsolicited advice).
I do like everything we spent money on this week, though, and feel very lucky to be able to cover so many wants and needs in a given week. Thanks for reading!
2023.03.28 12:14 dadcamebackwithcandy [M4F] The Null Mage and the Hope that Remains
Themes
Romance, drama, slow-burn, real issues with real people, maybe enemies to lovers or maybe they can both have issues and their mental health can be all the conflict we need to keep it interesting. xD
What am I looking for in a co-author? 1. Be chill, have fun. 2. Post when you can, at a length that makes sense (or a length you like). 3. Care about writing. Enjoy the process. Recognize it’s for fun, not to compensate for some other issue. 4. If you aren’t feeling it, speak up. We can adjust or part ways with no hard feelings.
Setting
It’s the current era, New York City. Magic exists, like the arts and science exist, and like any other creative process, some have more talent or have practiced and learned more than others.
There had always been envy and resentment for the Gifted, as they were occasionally called, but casters of any school of magic usually had their own communities since a certain lifestyle developed around certain school. For all the rest of humanity, enchanted items were available--often at ghastly prices--though cheaper, disposable pieces looking like cheap jewelry or furniture or whatever else were made, either limited in charges or effect. And like anything else, it all ended up needing repair, or needing to be sold for a quick buck. Which is how arcane shops became a thing.
A (long) intro to this world and my character and his damage/plot hook is below. You will never, ever be expected to post this much at once. It can be a paragraph or two.
Ideas for your character? A healer, an illusionist, a normal nurse, a teacher, a good student who just feels like helping someone—basically, a positive influence and whatever that may look like. I’m wide open suggestions or brainstorming with you. Same for the setting for that matter, just let me know if you’re interested!
-L
"Arcane Pawn & Repair;" so read the sign of tarnished brass and emerald marble that should have been scrubbed two seasons ago. This grand placard was completely at odds with the simple structure of dark wood that made up the place. The windows that began at chest height were old and interlaced with ornate metal framing, like stained glass without the color, offering an obscured view into a cluttered place where light was admitted, and voyeurs denied.
Upon entry, two stories of anything and everything one might find in a second-hand store loomed large, with sunlight holding its breath and turning sideways to push past. Worn and loved instruments, flashy ballgowns, brightly painted toys, ancient rugs, massive tomes, weapons, tools, nightstands and stain glass lamps to name but a few.
A mixture of scents—old lacquer, coffee, and anise cigarettes—competed for nasal dominance. Gentle music played: a woman singing an old French song while a pianist waltzed beside her, each note the footfall of his fingertips.
From a small room behind the counter, Lysias sang along with some slight skill, turning an old violin over in his hands. The sunlight that filtered in caught on the pits and chips of worn lacquer like it were being graded by one of his old professors, highlighting the imperfections with supposed warmth that dimmed the excellence of the work, nevertheless. It was a fine violin, too: one of the few brought in that was actually worth working on.
The varnish would need to be stripped before he could do anything, of course, like rehydrating the wood or sealing it—a tedious process by anyone’s standard but his, for ruination rested within his every breath, just waiting to be sighed out, that another thing of beauty would be wrecked before his downcast eyes.
The cuss walked with him. Lived with him. Breathed with him.
Ate at him. Stole from him. Marginalized. Vilified. Consoled. Condemned.
It eased his sorrows and diminished his joys, adding and subtracting the human experience until the sum of his life was zero; no highs, no lows, just a meaningless medium. The cuss was parasite and partner both. He almost hated it when he had the energy to hate something.
Lysias raised a finger, a mote of darkness erasing a spot in the air above it. As small as it was, he could hear the music bending, the sounds of the busy street outside distorted by its presence, like there was water in his ear. The lacquer of the violin was gone in a blink, and the cuss was put away again, as much as some distant, broken part of him wanted to watch as it ran loose in the streets.
Those visions always came. He knew what it wanted. But fuck what it wanted. It had more than enough of him as it was.
Turning for the sanding block, he saw the ad for New York Healing Institute he pulled from his mailbox. A few stand-out words were read over his scarlet-lensed glasses. “It’s never too late to learn!” He had thoughts about that but ignored them. “NYHI has new scholarships and grants for the aspiring healer! Find us on the web at—“
It was ridiculous.
Besides, no one would have a self-taught, null-aspected mage anyway. Just being around other casters as they spoke or chanted or sang or drew or painted their magic was enough to unravel it sometimes, and that was without trying. If a caster actually came at him, it wasn’t even a fight; he didn’t have to say a word to cuss out their pretty sparks and flames, turning their power and years of study into less than a fizzled out bottle rocket.
As long as they were within a few feet of him.
And they weren’t a mind mage.
Or an illusionist.
…Fine maybe a few others, but generally, he could take care of himself.
Grabbing the sanding block, the long, thin scar that ran from his wrist his elbow flashed silver in the sunlight, right between the fingertips of the deep red tattoo. It looked like a large hand clutched his wrist and held it together.
Just like a hand did, once.
Twice, if you count the other wrist.
Yeah Lysias, you can take care of yourself alright.
It was an eternal reminder of where the cuss would lead if he let it. Green eyes flicked again to the article, to the propaganda and its ludicrous optimism.
It was ridiculous.
But still.
Still, he wondered if there were pretty sparks that could restore what the dark had devoured.
Lysias was wallowing of a fine state of self-pity when the door jingled. Yet another customer here to rudely interrupt his pity party. He was just about list every girl that had ever shot him down, too.
With a sigh, he pushed up his glasses and stepped out from the back in a metal band tee, some torn black jeans and his $1,200 black caiman cowboy boots with matching belt and a giant, tarnished sterling buckle with a big “L” in 18k gold.
He saw them from the corner of his eye, and instead focused on straightening the bracelets in the display case, both magical and mundane. “Weeeeelcome to Arcane Pawn & Repair,” he drawled, monotone, “where we REPair, REstore, and REgret every decision that brought us here. What do you want?”
submitted by dadcamebackwithcandy to DiscordRP [link] [comments]
Romance, drama, slow-burn, real issues with real people, maybe enemies to lovers or maybe they can both have issues and their mental health can be all the conflict we need to keep it interesting. xD
What am I looking for in a co-author? 1. Be chill, have fun. 2. Post when you can, at a length that makes sense (or a length you like). 3. Care about writing. Enjoy the process. Recognize it’s for fun, not to compensate for some other issue. 4. If you aren’t feeling it, speak up. We can adjust or part ways with no hard feelings.
Setting
It’s the current era, New York City. Magic exists, like the arts and science exist, and like any other creative process, some have more talent or have practiced and learned more than others.
There had always been envy and resentment for the Gifted, as they were occasionally called, but casters of any school of magic usually had their own communities since a certain lifestyle developed around certain school. For all the rest of humanity, enchanted items were available--often at ghastly prices--though cheaper, disposable pieces looking like cheap jewelry or furniture or whatever else were made, either limited in charges or effect. And like anything else, it all ended up needing repair, or needing to be sold for a quick buck. Which is how arcane shops became a thing.
A (long) intro to this world and my character and his damage/plot hook is below. You will never, ever be expected to post this much at once. It can be a paragraph or two.
Ideas for your character? A healer, an illusionist, a normal nurse, a teacher, a good student who just feels like helping someone—basically, a positive influence and whatever that may look like. I’m wide open suggestions or brainstorming with you. Same for the setting for that matter, just let me know if you’re interested!
-L
"Arcane Pawn & Repair;" so read the sign of tarnished brass and emerald marble that should have been scrubbed two seasons ago. This grand placard was completely at odds with the simple structure of dark wood that made up the place. The windows that began at chest height were old and interlaced with ornate metal framing, like stained glass without the color, offering an obscured view into a cluttered place where light was admitted, and voyeurs denied.
Upon entry, two stories of anything and everything one might find in a second-hand store loomed large, with sunlight holding its breath and turning sideways to push past. Worn and loved instruments, flashy ballgowns, brightly painted toys, ancient rugs, massive tomes, weapons, tools, nightstands and stain glass lamps to name but a few.
A mixture of scents—old lacquer, coffee, and anise cigarettes—competed for nasal dominance. Gentle music played: a woman singing an old French song while a pianist waltzed beside her, each note the footfall of his fingertips.
From a small room behind the counter, Lysias sang along with some slight skill, turning an old violin over in his hands. The sunlight that filtered in caught on the pits and chips of worn lacquer like it were being graded by one of his old professors, highlighting the imperfections with supposed warmth that dimmed the excellence of the work, nevertheless. It was a fine violin, too: one of the few brought in that was actually worth working on.
The varnish would need to be stripped before he could do anything, of course, like rehydrating the wood or sealing it—a tedious process by anyone’s standard but his, for ruination rested within his every breath, just waiting to be sighed out, that another thing of beauty would be wrecked before his downcast eyes.
The cuss walked with him. Lived with him. Breathed with him.
Ate at him. Stole from him. Marginalized. Vilified. Consoled. Condemned.
It eased his sorrows and diminished his joys, adding and subtracting the human experience until the sum of his life was zero; no highs, no lows, just a meaningless medium. The cuss was parasite and partner both. He almost hated it when he had the energy to hate something.
Lysias raised a finger, a mote of darkness erasing a spot in the air above it. As small as it was, he could hear the music bending, the sounds of the busy street outside distorted by its presence, like there was water in his ear. The lacquer of the violin was gone in a blink, and the cuss was put away again, as much as some distant, broken part of him wanted to watch as it ran loose in the streets.
Those visions always came. He knew what it wanted. But fuck what it wanted. It had more than enough of him as it was.
Turning for the sanding block, he saw the ad for New York Healing Institute he pulled from his mailbox. A few stand-out words were read over his scarlet-lensed glasses. “It’s never too late to learn!” He had thoughts about that but ignored them. “NYHI has new scholarships and grants for the aspiring healer! Find us on the web at—“
It was ridiculous.
Besides, no one would have a self-taught, null-aspected mage anyway. Just being around other casters as they spoke or chanted or sang or drew or painted their magic was enough to unravel it sometimes, and that was without trying. If a caster actually came at him, it wasn’t even a fight; he didn’t have to say a word to cuss out their pretty sparks and flames, turning their power and years of study into less than a fizzled out bottle rocket.
As long as they were within a few feet of him.
And they weren’t a mind mage.
Or an illusionist.
…Fine maybe a few others, but generally, he could take care of himself.
Grabbing the sanding block, the long, thin scar that ran from his wrist his elbow flashed silver in the sunlight, right between the fingertips of the deep red tattoo. It looked like a large hand clutched his wrist and held it together.
Just like a hand did, once.
Twice, if you count the other wrist.
Yeah Lysias, you can take care of yourself alright.
It was an eternal reminder of where the cuss would lead if he let it. Green eyes flicked again to the article, to the propaganda and its ludicrous optimism.
It was ridiculous.
But still.
Still, he wondered if there were pretty sparks that could restore what the dark had devoured.
Lysias was wallowing of a fine state of self-pity when the door jingled. Yet another customer here to rudely interrupt his pity party. He was just about list every girl that had ever shot him down, too.
With a sigh, he pushed up his glasses and stepped out from the back in a metal band tee, some torn black jeans and his $1,200 black caiman cowboy boots with matching belt and a giant, tarnished sterling buckle with a big “L” in 18k gold.
He saw them from the corner of his eye, and instead focused on straightening the bracelets in the display case, both magical and mundane. “Weeeeelcome to Arcane Pawn & Repair,” he drawled, monotone, “where we REPair, REstore, and REgret every decision that brought us here. What do you want?”
2023.03.28 12:09 dadcamebackwithcandy The Null Mage and the Hope that Remains
Themes
Romance, drama, slow-burn, real issues with real people, maybe enemies to lovers or maybe they can both have issues and their mental health can be all the conflict we need to keep it interesting. xD
What am I looking for in a co-author? 1. Be chill, have fun. 2. Post when you can, at a length that makes sense (or a length you like). 3. Care about writing. Enjoy the process. Recognize it’s for fun, not to compensate for some other issue. 4. If you aren’t feeling it, speak up. We can adjust or part ways with no hard feelings.
Setting
It’s the current era, New York City. Magic exists, like the arts and science exist, and like any other creative process, some have more talent or have practiced and learned more than others.
There had always been envy and resentment for the Gifted, as they were occasionally called, but casters of any school of magic usually had their own communities since a certain lifestyle developed around certain school. For all the rest of humanity, enchanted items were available--often at ghastly prices--though cheaper, disposable pieces looking like cheap jewelry or furniture or whatever else were made, either limited in charges or effect. And like anything else, it all ended up needing repair, or needing to be sold for a quick buck. Which is how arcane shops became a thing.
A (long) intro to this world and my character and his damage/plot hook is below. You will never, ever be expected to post this much at once. It can be a paragraph or two.
Ideas for your character? A healer, an illusionist, a normal nurse, a teacher, a good student who just feels like helping someone—basically, a positive influence and whatever that may look like. I’m wide open suggestions or brainstorming with you. Same for the setting for that matter, just let me know if you’re interested!
-L
"Arcane Pawn & Repair;" so read the sign of tarnished brass and emerald marble that should have been scrubbed two seasons ago. This grand placard was completely at odds with the simple structure of dark wood that made up the place. The windows that began at chest height were old and interlaced with ornate metal framing, like stained glass without the color, offering an obscured view into a cluttered place where light was admitted, and voyeurs denied.
Upon entry, two stories of anything and everything one might find in a second-hand store loomed large, with sunlight holding its breath and turning sideways to push past. Worn and loved instruments, flashy ballgowns, brightly painted toys, ancient rugs, massive tomes, weapons, tools, nightstands and stain glass lamps to name but a few.
A mixture of scents—old lacquer, coffee, and anise cigarettes—competed for nasal dominance. Gentle music played: a woman singing an old French song while a pianist waltzed beside her, each note the footfall of his fingertips.
From a small room behind the counter, Lysias sang along with some slight skill, turning an old violin over in his hands. The sunlight that filtered in caught on the pits and chips of worn lacquer like it were being graded by one of his old professors, highlighting the imperfections with supposed warmth that dimmed the excellence of the work, nevertheless. It was a fine violin, too: one of the few brought in that was actually worth working on.
The varnish would need to be stripped before he could do anything, of course, like rehydrating the wood or sealing it—a tedious process by anyone’s standard but his, for ruination rested within his every breath, just waiting to be sighed out, that another thing of beauty would be wrecked before his downcast eyes.
The cuss walked with him. Lived with him. Breathed with him.
Ate at him. Stole from him. Marginalized. Vilified. Consoled. Condemned.
It eased his sorrows and diminished his joys, adding and subtracting the human experience until the sum of his life was zero; no highs, no lows, just a meaningless medium. The cuss was parasite and partner both. He almost hated it when he had the energy to hate something.
Lysias raised a finger, a mote of darkness erasing a spot in the air above it. As small as it was, he could hear the music bending, the sounds of the busy street outside distorted by its presence, like there was water in his ear. The lacquer of the violin was gone in a blink, and the cuss was put away again, as much as some distant, broken part of him wanted to watch as it ran loose in the streets.
Those visions always came. He knew what it wanted. But fuck what it wanted. It had more than enough of him as it was.
Turning for the sanding block, he saw the ad for New York Healing Institute he pulled from his mailbox. A few stand-out words were read over his scarlet-lensed glasses. “It’s never too late to learn!” He had thoughts about that but ignored them. “NYHI has new scholarships and grants for the aspiring healer! Find us on the web at—“
It was ridiculous.
Besides, no one would have a self-taught, null-aspected mage anyway. Just being around other casters as they spoke or chanted or sang or drew or painted their magic was enough to unravel it sometimes, and that was without trying. If a caster actually came at him, it wasn’t even a fight; he didn’t have to say a word to cuss out their pretty sparks and flames, turning their power and years of study into less than a fizzled out bottle rocket.
As long as they were within a few feet of him.
And they weren’t a mind mage.
Or an illusionist.
…Fine maybe a few others, but generally, he could take care of himself.
Grabbing the sanding block, the long, thin scar that ran from his wrist his elbow flashed silver in the sunlight, right between the fingertips of the deep red tattoo. It looked like a large hand clutched his wrist and held it together.
Just like a hand did, once.
Twice, if you count the other wrist.
Yeah Lysias, you can take care of yourself alright.
It was an eternal reminder of where the cuss would lead if he let it. Green eyes flicked again to the article, to the propaganda and its ludicrous optimism.
It was ridiculous.
But still.
Still, he wondered if there were pretty sparks that could restore what the dark had devoured.
Lysias was wallowing of a fine state of self-pity when the door jingled. Yet another customer here to rudely interrupt his pity party. He was just about list every girl that had ever shot him down, too.
With a sigh, he pushed up his glasses and stepped out from the back in a metal band tee, some torn black jeans and his $1,200 black caiman cowboy boots with matching belt and a giant, tarnished sterling buckle with a big “L” in 18k gold.
He saw them from the corner of his eye, and instead focused on straightening the bracelets in the display case, both magical and mundane. “Weeeeelcome to Arcane Pawn & Repair,” he drawled, monotone, “where we REPair, REstore, and REgret every decision that brought us here. What do you want?”
submitted by dadcamebackwithcandy to RoleplayPartnerSearch [link] [comments]
Romance, drama, slow-burn, real issues with real people, maybe enemies to lovers or maybe they can both have issues and their mental health can be all the conflict we need to keep it interesting. xD
What am I looking for in a co-author? 1. Be chill, have fun. 2. Post when you can, at a length that makes sense (or a length you like). 3. Care about writing. Enjoy the process. Recognize it’s for fun, not to compensate for some other issue. 4. If you aren’t feeling it, speak up. We can adjust or part ways with no hard feelings.
Setting
It’s the current era, New York City. Magic exists, like the arts and science exist, and like any other creative process, some have more talent or have practiced and learned more than others.
There had always been envy and resentment for the Gifted, as they were occasionally called, but casters of any school of magic usually had their own communities since a certain lifestyle developed around certain school. For all the rest of humanity, enchanted items were available--often at ghastly prices--though cheaper, disposable pieces looking like cheap jewelry or furniture or whatever else were made, either limited in charges or effect. And like anything else, it all ended up needing repair, or needing to be sold for a quick buck. Which is how arcane shops became a thing.
A (long) intro to this world and my character and his damage/plot hook is below. You will never, ever be expected to post this much at once. It can be a paragraph or two.
Ideas for your character? A healer, an illusionist, a normal nurse, a teacher, a good student who just feels like helping someone—basically, a positive influence and whatever that may look like. I’m wide open suggestions or brainstorming with you. Same for the setting for that matter, just let me know if you’re interested!
-L
"Arcane Pawn & Repair;" so read the sign of tarnished brass and emerald marble that should have been scrubbed two seasons ago. This grand placard was completely at odds with the simple structure of dark wood that made up the place. The windows that began at chest height were old and interlaced with ornate metal framing, like stained glass without the color, offering an obscured view into a cluttered place where light was admitted, and voyeurs denied.
Upon entry, two stories of anything and everything one might find in a second-hand store loomed large, with sunlight holding its breath and turning sideways to push past. Worn and loved instruments, flashy ballgowns, brightly painted toys, ancient rugs, massive tomes, weapons, tools, nightstands and stain glass lamps to name but a few.
A mixture of scents—old lacquer, coffee, and anise cigarettes—competed for nasal dominance. Gentle music played: a woman singing an old French song while a pianist waltzed beside her, each note the footfall of his fingertips.
From a small room behind the counter, Lysias sang along with some slight skill, turning an old violin over in his hands. The sunlight that filtered in caught on the pits and chips of worn lacquer like it were being graded by one of his old professors, highlighting the imperfections with supposed warmth that dimmed the excellence of the work, nevertheless. It was a fine violin, too: one of the few brought in that was actually worth working on.
The varnish would need to be stripped before he could do anything, of course, like rehydrating the wood or sealing it—a tedious process by anyone’s standard but his, for ruination rested within his every breath, just waiting to be sighed out, that another thing of beauty would be wrecked before his downcast eyes.
The cuss walked with him. Lived with him. Breathed with him.
Ate at him. Stole from him. Marginalized. Vilified. Consoled. Condemned.
It eased his sorrows and diminished his joys, adding and subtracting the human experience until the sum of his life was zero; no highs, no lows, just a meaningless medium. The cuss was parasite and partner both. He almost hated it when he had the energy to hate something.
Lysias raised a finger, a mote of darkness erasing a spot in the air above it. As small as it was, he could hear the music bending, the sounds of the busy street outside distorted by its presence, like there was water in his ear. The lacquer of the violin was gone in a blink, and the cuss was put away again, as much as some distant, broken part of him wanted to watch as it ran loose in the streets.
Those visions always came. He knew what it wanted. But fuck what it wanted. It had more than enough of him as it was.
Turning for the sanding block, he saw the ad for New York Healing Institute he pulled from his mailbox. A few stand-out words were read over his scarlet-lensed glasses. “It’s never too late to learn!” He had thoughts about that but ignored them. “NYHI has new scholarships and grants for the aspiring healer! Find us on the web at—“
It was ridiculous.
Besides, no one would have a self-taught, null-aspected mage anyway. Just being around other casters as they spoke or chanted or sang or drew or painted their magic was enough to unravel it sometimes, and that was without trying. If a caster actually came at him, it wasn’t even a fight; he didn’t have to say a word to cuss out their pretty sparks and flames, turning their power and years of study into less than a fizzled out bottle rocket.
As long as they were within a few feet of him.
And they weren’t a mind mage.
Or an illusionist.
…Fine maybe a few others, but generally, he could take care of himself.
Grabbing the sanding block, the long, thin scar that ran from his wrist his elbow flashed silver in the sunlight, right between the fingertips of the deep red tattoo. It looked like a large hand clutched his wrist and held it together.
Just like a hand did, once.
Twice, if you count the other wrist.
Yeah Lysias, you can take care of yourself alright.
It was an eternal reminder of where the cuss would lead if he let it. Green eyes flicked again to the article, to the propaganda and its ludicrous optimism.
It was ridiculous.
But still.
Still, he wondered if there were pretty sparks that could restore what the dark had devoured.
Lysias was wallowing of a fine state of self-pity when the door jingled. Yet another customer here to rudely interrupt his pity party. He was just about list every girl that had ever shot him down, too.
With a sigh, he pushed up his glasses and stepped out from the back in a metal band tee, some torn black jeans and his $1,200 black caiman cowboy boots with matching belt and a giant, tarnished sterling buckle with a big “L” in 18k gold.
He saw them from the corner of his eye, and instead focused on straightening the bracelets in the display case, both magical and mundane. “Weeeeelcome to Arcane Pawn & Repair,” he drawled, monotone, “where we REPair, REstore, and REgret every decision that brought us here. What do you want?”
2023.03.28 12:00 WaveOfWire One Hell Of A Vacation- Chapter 58
First Prev Next Royal Road
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The slight rustle of the dense foliage could be hard as he stepped, two of the pack frowning at him as he sheepishly gestured his apology. The mono-deer that they were tracking perked its head up to look around, the singular eye carefully scanning the surroundings.
The slightest twang of a bow sounded from a tree nearby, the arrow lodging itself just below the neck of the animal. A mortal wound, though not instantly fatal. The deer tore into the forest, blood drops leaving a trail.
Joseph exhaled and lowered his crossbow to unload, the tension from readying to fire it lost now that someone else had gotten a shot off before he could line up something useful. Jax quietly chucked at his reduced enthusiasm once he dropped from his perch, lightly patting the Human’s back and gesturing for him to follow.
“Worry not, Grand Hunter, your specialty resides in taming the wildest of Lilhuns rather than hunting beasts.”
Joseph gave him an unimpressed glare until he couldn’t maintain it, a smirk playing underneath the facade as he navigated the rough terrain. “When you asked if i wanted to join you hunting, i thought it would be a little less...” He glanced to the other two of the pack whom were tracking the animal, one inspecting the path it took while the other kept their bow ready in case something was to hunt them back. “Public.”
Jax dismissed his concerns with a paw, his other idly adjusting his bandoleer of arrows and crossbow bolts, though the male didn’t bring his crossbow this time. “They have not synchronized yet. It is of no concern if they hear us speak.”
He raised a brow at the Lilhun. “Something on your mind?”
The male hushed him as the two doing most of the work signalled that they had closed in on their quarry, both bows drawn and ready. Joseph peered over one of their crouched forms to see the deer stumbling as it changed direction, a moss-wolf some distance nearby prowling low in the brush while blending into its surroundings. A look to the others confirmed that no one else had noticed the moving moss, so he patted Jax on the shoulder, receiving a questioning expression and repetition of the gesture to remain quiet.
A second inspection of the wolf proved to be a wise decision, the beast having caught their scent and changed targets to check out the other source of food that was somewhat closer.
“Jax.” The Grand Hunter hissed quietly, successfully gaining the male’s attention. He pointed to the low-laying animal, though Jax raised his brow in response. A huff was given as he loaded his crossbow and aimed it, pausing to allow his breathing to steady along with his heart rate. One of the other hunters noticed, scowling at him for the breach in stealth.
Sure enough, the deer noticed the more rapid movements of the Human as the weapon was brought to bear, the prey taking off again into the trees. The hunter who was about to complain turned to argue with Jax on his behalf, the action being all the wolf was waiting for.
Joseph’s crossbow recoiled in his hands, the string snapping from the impulse as the animal took to the air. The corpse of the moss-wolf crashed down just inches behind the whining male, the startled expression turning into a slight shock as he noticed the bolt barely protruding from the head of the creature that was going to turn him into its next meal. The Human frowned at his weapon, dejectedly clipping it to his armour with a sigh.
Jax looked back and forth between his Grand Hunter and the eliminated threat, a low chuckle being generated when the stunned male who was saved weakly pointed towards where the deer had run off. Permission was given to head towards it, but not to stray too far. “Perhaps the ‘hunter’ part of your title suits you better than we suspected.”
Joseph crouched next to his kill, the bolt proving too difficult to remove. “I have no idea how you guys didn’t see a moving moss patch.”
“I am surprised you are so calm.”
The Human paused his attempts to free his ammunition, a contemplative expression taking over as he scanned the air around him. A few blinks broke him from his thoughts as he reached a conclusion. “I guess because I’ve been under guard from you guys for so long that i got used to having help if i need it.” He looked over his shoulder to nod at Jax. “Thank you, by the way.”
The black-furred male smiled. “I am honoured you put so much trust in one such as i.”
Joseph shrugged. “You, and whichever one of the girls up there is keeping tabs on me today.”
“What?”
He turned around as he stood, abandoning the retrieval operations to see Jax looking around cautiously. “Ah, right. You can’t smell that.”
Jax became slightly more distraught. “My injury prevents it.”
A regretful wince crossed the Human’s face. “I meant Lilhuns can’t. Here.” He let out a two tone whistle, though both notes were rapid and close together in pitch. A black shadow dropped from a tree next to Jax, startling the male. “Calm down. It’s one of Trill’s girls.”
The Head of Security kept a tight grip on his bow as he stepped closer to Joseph. “You have these Blades simply following you?”
He shrugged, not overly concerned anymore since he had spent quite a bit of time idly watching them during his visual scans for Tel. They were pretty good, but he knew why Tel called them ‘dull’. Unlike his most recent addition to his circle of affection, he could hear them on occasion, and they often chose hiding spots that weren’t the best. It could be a result of lesser skill, or maybe he had just gotten good at finding them. “Like i said in the base; you get used to it.”
“Do you not fear they will target your life?”
A skyward glance preceded the thought. “At this point, I’m kind of tired of worrying about it. Besides, they listen pretty well, and Tel seems to have some serious pull with them.” A second shrug was given to confirm his apathy. “I’ve taken to thinking of them as a secret security force or something.”
Jax looked him up and down for a moment, releasing the breath he had been holding as he turned his attention back to the Blade, the latter dutifully kneeling towards the Grand Hunter with their gaze buried in the ground. “What proof do you have they are obedient?”
“What proof do you need? They’ve done everything we’ve asked them to so far, minus taking proper breaks. Pretty sure I’d be dead ten times over if they wanted.”
The male raised a brow at his annoyance, banishing the thought as he audibly mused what might be sufficient. He turned to Joseph with a grin. “Perhaps asking them to disrobe? No disloyal assassin would part with their shadows and weapons in such an environment.”
Joseph stared flatly at the Lilhun. “You just want to see her naked.”
“I am ensuring your claims are valid.”
“I’m not telling a woman to strip out here for something as benign as that.”
Jax made a show of looking hurt. “Surely you do not think of my motives as impure!”
“Jax, I’ve spent the last 3 weeks with someone who looked at me like a piece of meat to be eaten. I know that look in your eye.”
A paw was waved. “Tel is hardly an example of an upstanding citizen.”
Joseph snorted, approaching the stilled Blade and crouching near their height. “Fair.”
Jax watched him as the Human placed his hand under the female’s chin to raise her face, the impassive expression not budging as she offered no resistance. A dagger was removed from her holder on her hip, Joseph waving it towards Jax.
“Pretty sure that letting me take their weapons wouldn’t be the best idea.”
“Or they wish not to fight multiple opponents.”
The Grand Hunter huffed, standing and pulling the Blade to her feet gently, the knife returned with the handle in her direction. “Just ask her to grab whoever is free to come help drag these two back.”
Jax did as requested, obviously curious as to what the Human meant by ‘two’ until the other hunters quietly dragged the deer through the brush. “You will need to practise a communication method if you are to command a shadow force.”
Joseph sighed, rubbing his temple with his thumb before brushing his hair back with his fingers. “Honestly, just knowing your damn language would help a shit-load, even if i couldn’t pronounce half the words.”
The male hummed for a moment. “I believe you would be able. It may be accented, but it would suffice.”
“The question there is ‘how badly accented?’. You all have the translator tech to help you out and Sahari still sounds french. You sounded... I want to say German. Harrow got off mostly clean there, though.”
“Oh? What of your mates?”
Joseph cringed at the plural. “Tel worked out any transition before i heard her speak it. Pan... Honestly? Pan kinda sounded... I don’t remember, actually. I’ve gotten pretty used to how she speaks now.”
Jax shook his head. “Regardless, it would bode well for you to study as much as your kit.”
A glance was given, the Human feeling pride in his adopted daughter as he watched the other two hunters lay their catch next to his own to take a break. “I guess i could ask you guys for lessons or something, but everyone’s pretty busy with the settlement. I’d feel guilty if i tried to drag you out of what you need to do for something that stupid. Plus, i am absolutely shit at learning that kind of thing.”
His black-furred companion patted his back, leaning in to speak quietly into his ear, the deep bass of his voice rattling him somewhat. “What if i were offering to teach you some things your mates might like to hear during the moons?”
Joseph felt his face scrunch in distress as he worked to parse the meaning of the suggestion, a smirk breaking the expression in time with the stunned laughter. “Are you trying to motivate me to learn Lilhun so i can talk dirty?”
Jax shrugged. “Perhaps not so directly, but i can fathom a phrase or two that they might appreciate to hear from you.”
He blinked, giving the male a skeptical examination. “Not typically my thing.”
“Would you wish to learn how to tell them how dearly you cherish them?”
The smile answered for him. “That doesn’t sound like a terrible motivation. I’d want to keep it a surprise though. Well, that might be hard to do if it takes forever.”
“I am teaching Violet.” Jax offered casually. “It would not be much effort to include yourself.”
“And i could help her with her English writing while you try to hammer it into me, yeah.” He raised his eyebrows in consideration. “Yeah, okay. If i could bother you with that, I’d appreciate it.”
The male shook his head at the grateful look. “I have stated before, Joseph. You are my Grand Hunter. I will do as you command.”
“Not commanding you.”
“And yet, i treat it as such. If it will benefit the one whom spared mine existence and led me to accepting the affections of my bond, then i shall do all that i can.”
Joseph defaulted to the mild annoyance he felt whenever they took his ‘role’ too seriously. “Jax, at this rate I’m going to think you have a crush on me.”
Jax tossed on a disbelieving expression, his voice overly dramatic. “Oh woe is me! Does this low one’s love not satisfy you? Mine mate! You may have mine mate if i may only have your heart!”
A firm tap to the stomach was enough to stop the theatrics, the rumbling laughter at odds with the soothing rubbing the male applied to the effected area. “A simple ‘no worries’ or ‘not a problem’ would suffice.”
“But then i would be barren of the opportunity to displease you.”
Joseph nodded, his thin smile eased by the genuine levity in his eyes. “Figured as much. One of these days Harrow is going to be sad that you keep offering her.”
Jax huffed in amusement. “Does she not do such herself?”
“I try not to take you two seriously.” He quickly dumped that train of thought into the nearest black-hole, changing topics to encourage the process. “What made you start teaching Vi anyway?”
“I have done as much for my younger siblings.”
Joseph raised a brow. “No ‘den’ or ‘blood’ prefix?”
“They are kits of my blood-mother, though most do not share the same sire.”
He thought about it for a moment. “Fair, i guess. What was home like for you?”
Jax stepped to the side, taking a seat on a log while they waited for whoever was going to come give them a hand. “My den? Simple, if i were to say.”
“Simple? You end up on a military vessel after working years in security, and that had no catalyst?”
The male chuckled. “One does not always need a tragic beginning, Joseph. My den was simple. Four den-fathers and a single den-mother. We lived too far to be a part of a larger den, so my exposure to such was little more than what i have seen on my travels.”
“So what sparked the career in security?” Joseph prompted with a passive curiosity.
Jax tilted his head slightly as his ears maintained some semblance of vigilance, his focus on the conversation but still maintaining awareness. “Two of my den-fathers were in similar roles. They would tell us stories of their time on this planet or that site, often embellishing the roles into tales of epic proportions to entertain us before the moon grew too high.” The Lilhun smiled softly. “I suppose i wished to become the same. If not for the glory that they imparted upon their retelling, then to pass along my own tales to my kits.”
Joseph nodded, a wistful expression following the explanation. “So you wanted to do awesome shit so you could brag to your kids, huh? I can understand that.”
The male spoke softly, noticing the longing hidden under his voice. “Violet is a wonderful kit to have, Joseph. I fear i have began thinking of her as my own as well.”
He cycled a deep breath, a smile tugging at his lips. “She’s the ‘den-kit’, Jax. She’s all of ours, in a way.”
“That much is true, my friend.” Jax agreed with warmth to his eyes. “What of your parentage?”
“Mine?” The Human asked in surprise before humming in thought while he tried to summarize the important parts. “Mom worked as a receptionist for a pharmaceutical company before she got sick. Dad worked at whatever he could, eventually taking a construction job for the Union after mom passed...” He exhaled as the memories of his father’s funeral without a body still lay somewhat fresh in his mind despite how long it had been. “He was really excited to be off the planet, mom had always wanted to go. I got a letter a few months after, explaining what happened when he didn’t come back on time.”
Jax took the news sombrely, his face showing that he sympathized with the pain of loss. “My own blood-mother passed shortly before this deployment.”
“Sorry to bring it up.”
The Lilhun shook his head. “Worry not. It was a natural departure to the Great Hunt. She raised many young and loved them all equally. She was a fine female who made each of her kits feel her embrace.”
“Your dad...s... still alive?”
“Two are.” He clarified passively. “Though they have since found new love for their retirements. I have not personally met their mates, but i trust that my blood-mother has imparted a high standard in them.”
A light snort was returned, the comfortable smile on Joseph’s face easing itself into place. “Brothers and sisters?”
“Twelve.”
“Jesus.”
Jax chuckled. “I am near the younger of the progeny, only three are less.”
Joseph shook his head slowly. “Too many for me. Rob gave me enough headaches.”
“My kin are kind. We have had our disagreements, but we hold each other fondly nonetheless.”
Joseph bobbed his head to concede. “That works. Think you’ll be able to get in touch with them when we get off this rock?”
The Lilhun fell silent for a while. “Perhaps. I know not of their deployments.”
The Human found himself wrapping an arm around the massive male’s shoulders to pull him into a side hug, Jax doing nothing but accepting the affection from his seated position. “We’ll get in contact with them at some point, okay? I’ll see if Rob or Sil can figure something out, get in touch with your family.”
Jax nodded quietly. “I worry now that i may have grown too used to this.”
“Why’s that.”
A mirthless huff escaped the male. “Friends are sparse in my previous field of work, as much as the current, i suppose. One would need to relocate before any connection may take place. It can be a lonely endeavour.”
Joseph felt that he had more to say, opting to rub the guy’s shoulder to show that he was ready to listen. Based on Jax allowing his weight to rest against him, the message was received.
“When i... The moon that i assaulted... The moon in which you spared me.” He started again, stumbling over how he wanted to frame his thoughts. The Human patted his friend in reassurance. “I worried that i may lose those that i began to feel closer to. Pan, i am ashamed to admit, was not a concern of mine at the time, though i realized after that she had begun to be a part of my pack before i was willing to accept. I wanted to keep them safe.”
“I know buddy, i know.” Joseph continued his light rubbing on Jax’s shoulder, letting the male get whatever he needed to off his mind.
“Now i find myself fond of each of you. Pan has developed to be a fine Paw, Sahari seems less burdened by her past, Nalah has softened her edge, Tel has become manageable.” He chucked at that one. “Harrow has become my mate, and although Violet is not my own, i feel the same fulfillment as if she were... I fail to find a depth to this gratitude i have for you, yet you keep giving me more to be thankful for.”
Joseph paused, squeezing Jax tightly as he absorbed what the male had to say. “You guys are my family, Jax. All i can say to that is...” He inhaled as he tried to find the words, exhaling once he succeeded. “You matter to me, buddy. I care about you.”
Jax met his gaze, his left eye dulled and less responsive to the light as his right focused on the scars around Joseph’s. An opened mouth failed to voice a thought, a soft huff causing it to be abandoned in favour of a second. “We have quite the unorthodox relationship, no?”
The Human gave the male one last squeeze before parting, a laugh joining the action. “Yep. That we do. Now if we could get past you asking me to join you two in bed then we might have something to call normal.”
Jax rose to his feet as two more of the pack returned, the slight tint of peppermint signalling the return of the Blade. “You have befriended and lead a people who you were unaware of before this. I believe normality has long since departed.”
“Not going to drop it, are you?”
“Sadly.”
Joseph sighed, joining the convening group to ready the results of the hunt for carrying. “Fuck off, Jax.”
“Of course, Grand Hunter.”
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They returned to the settlement after a few hours, a break being taken part-way to give those who were pushing the smaller carts a chance to rest their legs while Jax and himself took over once they got moving again. The gate, having never really held a massive door in which the name would suggest, had become something of a topic amongst the construction team as a wolf had wandered in at some point. Luckily, it was noticed by Nalah and Sahari before it had the chance to do much besides startle some people.
This also had the side-effect of causing the blond-furred female to seek him out once he walked within the walls.
She approached, prompting him to pass off the cart to someone else so that they could bring it to the hunter’s lodge, the subtle golden stripes running down her body contrasting with the leathers she wore often whenever she was being more hands-on with whatever was being built at the moment.
They hadn’t really spoken since the morning, Tel’s mark being a point of contention and then a mention of a bath house being their last proper interaction before Harrow dragged him off to be physical tech support. There was a slight worry that something would be brought up again, he wasn’t really looking forward to reiterating how little he minded the whole ‘mark’ thing now that Tel had more-or-less been accepted, but he would if it came up.
A skyward glance occurred as he struggled to come to grips with how smoothly his new... Mate? Girlfriend? Bodyguard? Assassin... Mate. How smoothly his new mate entered into the pack dynamics proper.
“I suppose your hunt was successful.” Nalah mused as she watched the group cart off the two corpses, her expression exposing that she was at least somewhat impressed. Joseph shrugged, following the gaze for a second.
“We need to work on awareness. A wolf got way too close and nobody noticed.”
She raised a brow. “Is anyone injured?”
“Nah.” A lazy shake of his head was the most emotive he could have been about the matter. “I put a bolt into it before it could do anything.”
The female furrowed a brow skeptically, her eyes scanning his face. “I would have expected you to be rather worked up after something like that.”
“Jax said the same thing.”
She shrugged. “It is what we have come to expect. Previously, you would have insisted on extensive defensive measures and caution.”
The Human exhaled, rolling his eyes in contemplation as his weight shifted to his other foot. “Yeah, i guess. I don’t know. Been facing death too often to worry too much about it at this point.” A frown appeared as the words left his mouth. “That’s concerning.”
Nalah slapped his shoulder with a laugh, the impact off-balancing him. “You have sought an assassin for your bed, Joseph. I would say you are trying to lay with the Void rather than fight it.”
He rolled his eyes more genuinely this time, a smile and a slight blush of embarrassment ruining the attempt to seem annoyed. “Ha. Ha. Very funny.” Nalah smirked at his displeasure as he continued to whatever brought her to him. “So what’s up?”
Her expression remained smug for a moment before she shook her head and pointed off to a rapidly developing framework for a building that was partially blocked from view. “We are progressing on the bath house first, since you seemed to be interested in the project and the pack were in favour, and i would like your more direct input while others craft a suitable solution for the gate.”
“Sure, i guess.” He answered, not entirely sure what he could have to offer to professionals and the woman who literally designed the layout of the village. She liked to run ideas by him, but that was mostly just formality, right?
A firm nod was returned, Nalah placing her paw on his shoulder and leading him to the site.
The skeleton suggested that it was going to be a sizable building, if nothing else, though it was just the exterior and basic layout that was framed. The orientation suggested that it would be a single entrance with a split to the dedicated baths by gender.
It was a slight oddity to him. Lilhuns had no issues seeking out recreational sex, and as far as he was aware, they didn’t really care about being naked in front of others, but that might just extend to others in their den or pack.
“Hey, Nalah?”
“Hmm?”
He paused to think if he should even ask the question, mentally sighing when he remembered that they would likely answer whatever he asked, regardless of how personal it was. “How is nudity viewed in your culture? You guys didn’t seem to really care until clothing became an option.”
She gave him a confused look, smirking once she finished processing his query. “Do you miss seeing our forms, oh venerable Grand Hunter?”
The female dodged his weak attempt to tap her arm with his fist. “I’m happy without the distraction, thank you very much.”
“Oh, so it is pleasant to see?”
He ignored her, a chuckle returned.
“It is not preferred, if that is what you are asking.” She answered after her amusement wore off. “Besides the basic utility and protective qualities, we do value modesty. Though, that is quite fungible within the confines of the den.”
He looked at her out of the corner of his eye as they walked, a step avoiding a placed marker for future construction. “So you guys don’t mind as much within the base?”
Nalah hummed, her tone suggesting he was only partially correct. “Privacy of one’s den will influence it, yes, but it is the people where it truly matters. I, for one, would rather not be bare if i can help it, but i also wouldn’t put much thought into it if i were to be such around our own.”
He nodded, understanding where she was coming from. It wasn’t much of a stretch to be naked around people who spent the better part of a year seeing you like it. Not like there was anything left to be embarrassed about at that point. “I can see that.”
“Yourself?” She asked passively, killing the time while they crossed the expanding village.
“I hate it.” He noted aloud, though it was mostly him voicing his opinion rather than thinking about it. “In company, anyway.”
“Would it ease your mind if we were as well?”
He shot her a doubtful stare, the placid expression on her face showing no ulterior meaning to her offer. “I’m pretty sure I’d be stared at or assaulted.”
Nalah snorted, nodding at a Lilhun who seemed to be taking a break some distance from the nearing construction. “As you viewed our forms?”
A blush took to his cheeks. He was going to argue, or even just deny, that he had inadvertently taken more than his fair share of time noting the similarities of their builds to the human counterpart, but the attempts died in his throat. “Sorry.”
A jolt to his back stopped his self-chastisement. “We are a different people. It is understandable that one would be curious.”
He cleared his throat, desperate to jump topic before it got to questions he would rather not answer at the moment. “How are things with Sahari?”
He proceeded a few steps before noticing that she had stopped, her gaze fixed on the treeline beyond the wall. He doubled back, worry evident.
“Everything okay?”
“Yes, apologies.” She answered after snapping from her reverie. “I am not accustomed to others being aware.”
A soft smile formed on his face. “Look, i had a talk with her. Don’t look at me like that.” He pointed a finger at the beginning form of betrayal in her expression. “I didn’t tell her anything, but, i did want to figure out if it would only get you hurt to keep this up.”
“Joseph, I am aw-”
“Keep it up.”
She stared slack-jawed as he cut her off in her attempt to dissuade him from asking her to move on, the encouragement seeming to have been something she didn’t expect. “Pardon?”
A huff of amusement preceded the light hand on her shoulder. “I said that you should keep it up. Sahari just needed a push, she’s spent a long time thinking that she didn’t deserve to be loved since she lost her old mate. I...” He paused for a breath, his eyes falling to the ground. “I spent a long time thinking the same, Nalah.”
A choked sob caught his attention, the female’s tears building on her fur prevailing any attempt for her to speak. He took advantage of her relaxed legs equalizing their height to pull her into a tight hug, a hand gently rubbing her back.
“Hey, it’s okay. I’m here for you.” He cooed in a soft voice. “Don’t try to talk yet, just let it out.”
Though she didn’t start bawling, she did return the embrace, the damp moisture feeling cool on his neck as she absently nuzzled into him. A slight rasp worked its way into her voice. “Thank you.”
He chuckled, the smile causing his cheek to press into her own. “You asked me to bring her back, right? I thought you might like it if i tried to bring that part of her back too.”
Her grip almost crushed him, though he didn’t allow the groan to ruin the moment. “She had lost everything dear to her, yet she saved myself and given me purpose when i had none. All this time i wanted to repay her in any way i could, yet you have done so effortlessly.”
“I didn’t do much.” He tried to assure the now-weeping female, intensifying his back rubs.
She shook her head, dampening his ear in the process. “You have given her a connection to herself and released her of her shackles. I know of no way to reward you, nor apologize for my immature actions in the past.”
A slight confusion settled. “All i did was have a few chats with her over a fire when we were alone. You were the one to support her so much.”
The choked laugh came out in time with an ease of her squeeze, his breathing becoming easier. “She bonded to you, that much would have been cause for celebration enough.”
“She what?”
“A moment, Joseph.” Nalah quietly pleaded. He bit back his bewilderment for the time being. “She sought revenge for her mate, for nothing else could exist within her. She could laugh an empty laugh, smile a hollow smile, but she could not truly feel more than a cold rage and sorrow. You have given her what she has lost, and then given her hope.”
His protest died in his throat at the gratitude in her voice, a defeated sigh escaping as he dismissed his concerns about the topic. It would be brought up later, but now wasn’t the time, it seemed. “Pay me back by making her happy. She’s a good friend of mine and I’ll be pissed if you screw up.”
The female separated, a content smile dominating over her previously overwhelmed expression. “Is there anything i may do for you personally?”
“I’m used to Harrow by now,” He warned, a smirk appearing as the atmosphere lightened. “You aren’t going to fluster me by joking about sleeping with me.”
“Only if you wished it so.” She winked, a free paw drying her eyes as she chuckled.
Proving his experience in dealing with Jax and Harrow to be ill-suited to dealing with Nalah, he stalled, closing his eyes as he sighed. “Let’s start by getting this bath house underway.”
“Of course, Grand Hunter, my apologies.”
“Shut up, Nalah.” He patted her back to get them moving now that they had spent a while just outside of the construction. Several of the crew were beginning to give them confused looks and he was worried they would think he was bullying her. She shook her head, but finished escorting him to the site once the evidence of her slight lapse in composure had been removed.
A soft clicking barely preceded the startlingly large impact tackle-hug that enveloped him, Mama having approached from his blind spot silently thanks to the soft dirt. She made a point of covering almost all of him with her frame and long blades, the purring reminding him that this was the first he had actually seen her since he had left for the trip. He worked an arm free and returned the hug the best he could.
“Hey, Mama. I missed you too. Sorry i was gone so long. Are you doing okay? Pack didn’t drive you nuts?”
She reluctantly released him, a chittered laugh returned for his joke as she nodded. Joseph smiled at the massive insect, two thoughts passing his mind and battling for which would be voiced first. “Would you be interested in learning how to write English with Violet? We’d be able to talk more then.”
The question seemed to have caught Mama by surprise, a consideration was given until she looked to Nalah, the female watching the reunion with a small smile. “You need not fear for the effect that your occasional absence would have on our progress.”
Mama shifted her regard back to him, a passive nod given. He couldn’t fight off the warmth he felt thinking about actually conversing with the two who had been with him so long. “Jax and me are going to be teaching Vi once we work out a schedule. I’ll let you know when.”
She nodded again, seemingly remembering something and gesturing for him to remain where he was. He agreed, a brow raised in confusion.
It wasn’t a long wait, two more large forms around Mama’s size curiously tagging behind the mother. The two were subjected to a brief conversation with the familiar Atmo, several gestures being pointed in his direction. Feeling the need to do more than stand there in surprise at seeing more of them, he waved lightly, offering a polite ‘hello’ while trying to reign in his rapidly developing theorizing.
The red Atmo approached first, circling him slowly while taking its time to inspect him, Mama still speaking to them all the while. Finished their observations, the second blue one repeated the gesture, taking less time to complete it.
The two consulted each other, occasionally looking to Mama for something before continuing.
“Is something wrong?” He asked no one in particular, Nalah shrugging, seemingly as confused as he was.
“They had little interest in our own.” She commented, brows lowered in consideration.
Joseph checked himself over for something that might be weird. Other than his legs and lack of more animal-like features, he was pretty close to the company they had been helping. He was a pretty average height when compared to everyone, though most of the males had a few inches on him when they stood upright to their fullest. He was wearing his worn-out clothing that he brought with him on the cruise, so maybe that was it?
“Am i that weird looking?” He asked over his shoulder, Nalah laughing at the self-conscious tone.
“Physical features are a lesser focus of our people, Joseph.” She explained as the three Atmo had slowed their discussion. “That is not to say that you are not a peculiar subject.”
“Wow, thanks.” He deadpanned, becoming slightly more aware of how far he departed from what they would look for in a partner of their own species. It seemed stupid to think about it now, especially since he... It just crossed his mind due to the Atmo’s reaction, is all.
The clicking and pantomiming stopped as the two new insects approached him without circling him again, both bowing low before him. A heavy set of blinks tried to follow whatever the hell was happening when Nalah spoke behind him.
“Hello, Violet.”
Excited clicks drew his eye to his daughter displaying her sign to the female before walking up to nuzzle into Joseph, the Human chuckling and lightly stroking her as she held up the sign for him as well, though it still only carried the cluster that was Lilhun script.
“I’ll assume that’s you saying ‘hello’,” He crouched to be eye-level with her and gave her a hug, her blades quickly resting over his shoulders as she placed her head against his and purred contently. “You’re doing great, sweetie. I talked to Jax, and we’ll set up some dual lessons soon. Think you could do both English and Lilhun, or do you want to focus on one for now?”
The pressure of her hug forced him to shift his neck so that she had room to do it without cutting into his armour, the alternating sets of legs causing her to bounce slightly.
“Ask Jax when he’s free, i think he should be at the hunter’s lodge right now assisting with what we brought back.”
She nodded, giving him one last squeeze before leaving in that direction, a second sign displayed to the Nalah on her way out, eliciting a chuckle from the female as she said her own farewell.
Once the ‘den-kit’ had passed the point of view, the two Atmo rose to their height, offering him a more shallow bow as they excused themselves back to their work and exchanging with Mama again as they did so.
Joseph inhaled, turning to his friend with pursed lips. “So... What the fuck was that?”
She shrugged. “They seemed to do as much whenever she is around.”
A sigh was returned. “Whatever. Show me where you want my input.”
Nalah patted his back and led him to where she was planning to put the actual baths, though he didn’t have much to say for most of it. It all seemed pretty well thought out to him.
The only part he was confused about was a plan for a significantly smaller set of baths that were sectioned off on either side.
“What are those for?”
The female gestured to them lazily. “That one is for the High Huntress and whomever she has accompany her,” Another paw was raised towards the far end of the site. “And that one is for yourself, until another of proper station is acquired.”
He raised a brow. “Why do i need a bath out here?”
Nalah smirked. “I believed you may enjoy the novelty of the arrangement, if not simply appreciate the privacy. Or would you like to be intruded upon by Harrow again?”
He thinned his lips, a firm nod given as he remembered the female fighting the urge to inspect him while delivering important information. “Point taken.”
Next
A/N: 8k views on RR – They’ve reached Mi’low now. We’re hovering at 4.8 stars, which is neat! I think.
This arc is looking to be a bit shorter, and more of an ‘at home’ section while we clean up the mess from last arc, so it’ll be pretty character focused. Romance, major plot elements, Tel... yeah, we know where that’s going.
Finally: The two comments to pass 10 upvotes were you guys telling me how much you like the story... so.. DAWW
submitted by WaveOfWire to HFY [link] [comments]
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The slight rustle of the dense foliage could be hard as he stepped, two of the pack frowning at him as he sheepishly gestured his apology. The mono-deer that they were tracking perked its head up to look around, the singular eye carefully scanning the surroundings.
The slightest twang of a bow sounded from a tree nearby, the arrow lodging itself just below the neck of the animal. A mortal wound, though not instantly fatal. The deer tore into the forest, blood drops leaving a trail.
Joseph exhaled and lowered his crossbow to unload, the tension from readying to fire it lost now that someone else had gotten a shot off before he could line up something useful. Jax quietly chucked at his reduced enthusiasm once he dropped from his perch, lightly patting the Human’s back and gesturing for him to follow.
“Worry not, Grand Hunter, your specialty resides in taming the wildest of Lilhuns rather than hunting beasts.”
Joseph gave him an unimpressed glare until he couldn’t maintain it, a smirk playing underneath the facade as he navigated the rough terrain. “When you asked if i wanted to join you hunting, i thought it would be a little less...” He glanced to the other two of the pack whom were tracking the animal, one inspecting the path it took while the other kept their bow ready in case something was to hunt them back. “Public.”
Jax dismissed his concerns with a paw, his other idly adjusting his bandoleer of arrows and crossbow bolts, though the male didn’t bring his crossbow this time. “They have not synchronized yet. It is of no concern if they hear us speak.”
He raised a brow at the Lilhun. “Something on your mind?”
The male hushed him as the two doing most of the work signalled that they had closed in on their quarry, both bows drawn and ready. Joseph peered over one of their crouched forms to see the deer stumbling as it changed direction, a moss-wolf some distance nearby prowling low in the brush while blending into its surroundings. A look to the others confirmed that no one else had noticed the moving moss, so he patted Jax on the shoulder, receiving a questioning expression and repetition of the gesture to remain quiet.
A second inspection of the wolf proved to be a wise decision, the beast having caught their scent and changed targets to check out the other source of food that was somewhat closer.
“Jax.” The Grand Hunter hissed quietly, successfully gaining the male’s attention. He pointed to the low-laying animal, though Jax raised his brow in response. A huff was given as he loaded his crossbow and aimed it, pausing to allow his breathing to steady along with his heart rate. One of the other hunters noticed, scowling at him for the breach in stealth.
Sure enough, the deer noticed the more rapid movements of the Human as the weapon was brought to bear, the prey taking off again into the trees. The hunter who was about to complain turned to argue with Jax on his behalf, the action being all the wolf was waiting for.
Joseph’s crossbow recoiled in his hands, the string snapping from the impulse as the animal took to the air. The corpse of the moss-wolf crashed down just inches behind the whining male, the startled expression turning into a slight shock as he noticed the bolt barely protruding from the head of the creature that was going to turn him into its next meal. The Human frowned at his weapon, dejectedly clipping it to his armour with a sigh.
Jax looked back and forth between his Grand Hunter and the eliminated threat, a low chuckle being generated when the stunned male who was saved weakly pointed towards where the deer had run off. Permission was given to head towards it, but not to stray too far. “Perhaps the ‘hunter’ part of your title suits you better than we suspected.”
Joseph crouched next to his kill, the bolt proving too difficult to remove. “I have no idea how you guys didn’t see a moving moss patch.”
“I am surprised you are so calm.”
The Human paused his attempts to free his ammunition, a contemplative expression taking over as he scanned the air around him. A few blinks broke him from his thoughts as he reached a conclusion. “I guess because I’ve been under guard from you guys for so long that i got used to having help if i need it.” He looked over his shoulder to nod at Jax. “Thank you, by the way.”
The black-furred male smiled. “I am honoured you put so much trust in one such as i.”
Joseph shrugged. “You, and whichever one of the girls up there is keeping tabs on me today.”
“What?”
He turned around as he stood, abandoning the retrieval operations to see Jax looking around cautiously. “Ah, right. You can’t smell that.”
Jax became slightly more distraught. “My injury prevents it.”
A regretful wince crossed the Human’s face. “I meant Lilhuns can’t. Here.” He let out a two tone whistle, though both notes were rapid and close together in pitch. A black shadow dropped from a tree next to Jax, startling the male. “Calm down. It’s one of Trill’s girls.”
The Head of Security kept a tight grip on his bow as he stepped closer to Joseph. “You have these Blades simply following you?”
He shrugged, not overly concerned anymore since he had spent quite a bit of time idly watching them during his visual scans for Tel. They were pretty good, but he knew why Tel called them ‘dull’. Unlike his most recent addition to his circle of affection, he could hear them on occasion, and they often chose hiding spots that weren’t the best. It could be a result of lesser skill, or maybe he had just gotten good at finding them. “Like i said in the base; you get used to it.”
“Do you not fear they will target your life?”
A skyward glance preceded the thought. “At this point, I’m kind of tired of worrying about it. Besides, they listen pretty well, and Tel seems to have some serious pull with them.” A second shrug was given to confirm his apathy. “I’ve taken to thinking of them as a secret security force or something.”
Jax looked him up and down for a moment, releasing the breath he had been holding as he turned his attention back to the Blade, the latter dutifully kneeling towards the Grand Hunter with their gaze buried in the ground. “What proof do you have they are obedient?”
“What proof do you need? They’ve done everything we’ve asked them to so far, minus taking proper breaks. Pretty sure I’d be dead ten times over if they wanted.”
The male raised a brow at his annoyance, banishing the thought as he audibly mused what might be sufficient. He turned to Joseph with a grin. “Perhaps asking them to disrobe? No disloyal assassin would part with their shadows and weapons in such an environment.”
Joseph stared flatly at the Lilhun. “You just want to see her naked.”
“I am ensuring your claims are valid.”
“I’m not telling a woman to strip out here for something as benign as that.”
Jax made a show of looking hurt. “Surely you do not think of my motives as impure!”
“Jax, I’ve spent the last 3 weeks with someone who looked at me like a piece of meat to be eaten. I know that look in your eye.”
A paw was waved. “Tel is hardly an example of an upstanding citizen.”
Joseph snorted, approaching the stilled Blade and crouching near their height. “Fair.”
Jax watched him as the Human placed his hand under the female’s chin to raise her face, the impassive expression not budging as she offered no resistance. A dagger was removed from her holder on her hip, Joseph waving it towards Jax.
“Pretty sure that letting me take their weapons wouldn’t be the best idea.”
“Or they wish not to fight multiple opponents.”
The Grand Hunter huffed, standing and pulling the Blade to her feet gently, the knife returned with the handle in her direction. “Just ask her to grab whoever is free to come help drag these two back.”
Jax did as requested, obviously curious as to what the Human meant by ‘two’ until the other hunters quietly dragged the deer through the brush. “You will need to practise a communication method if you are to command a shadow force.”
Joseph sighed, rubbing his temple with his thumb before brushing his hair back with his fingers. “Honestly, just knowing your damn language would help a shit-load, even if i couldn’t pronounce half the words.”
The male hummed for a moment. “I believe you would be able. It may be accented, but it would suffice.”
“The question there is ‘how badly accented?’. You all have the translator tech to help you out and Sahari still sounds french. You sounded... I want to say German. Harrow got off mostly clean there, though.”
“Oh? What of your mates?”
Joseph cringed at the plural. “Tel worked out any transition before i heard her speak it. Pan... Honestly? Pan kinda sounded... I don’t remember, actually. I’ve gotten pretty used to how she speaks now.”
Jax shook his head. “Regardless, it would bode well for you to study as much as your kit.”
A glance was given, the Human feeling pride in his adopted daughter as he watched the other two hunters lay their catch next to his own to take a break. “I guess i could ask you guys for lessons or something, but everyone’s pretty busy with the settlement. I’d feel guilty if i tried to drag you out of what you need to do for something that stupid. Plus, i am absolutely shit at learning that kind of thing.”
His black-furred companion patted his back, leaning in to speak quietly into his ear, the deep bass of his voice rattling him somewhat. “What if i were offering to teach you some things your mates might like to hear during the moons?”
Joseph felt his face scrunch in distress as he worked to parse the meaning of the suggestion, a smirk breaking the expression in time with the stunned laughter. “Are you trying to motivate me to learn Lilhun so i can talk dirty?”
Jax shrugged. “Perhaps not so directly, but i can fathom a phrase or two that they might appreciate to hear from you.”
He blinked, giving the male a skeptical examination. “Not typically my thing.”
“Would you wish to learn how to tell them how dearly you cherish them?”
The smile answered for him. “That doesn’t sound like a terrible motivation. I’d want to keep it a surprise though. Well, that might be hard to do if it takes forever.”
“I am teaching Violet.” Jax offered casually. “It would not be much effort to include yourself.”
“And i could help her with her English writing while you try to hammer it into me, yeah.” He raised his eyebrows in consideration. “Yeah, okay. If i could bother you with that, I’d appreciate it.”
The male shook his head at the grateful look. “I have stated before, Joseph. You are my Grand Hunter. I will do as you command.”
“Not commanding you.”
“And yet, i treat it as such. If it will benefit the one whom spared mine existence and led me to accepting the affections of my bond, then i shall do all that i can.”
Joseph defaulted to the mild annoyance he felt whenever they took his ‘role’ too seriously. “Jax, at this rate I’m going to think you have a crush on me.”
Jax tossed on a disbelieving expression, his voice overly dramatic. “Oh woe is me! Does this low one’s love not satisfy you? Mine mate! You may have mine mate if i may only have your heart!”
A firm tap to the stomach was enough to stop the theatrics, the rumbling laughter at odds with the soothing rubbing the male applied to the effected area. “A simple ‘no worries’ or ‘not a problem’ would suffice.”
“But then i would be barren of the opportunity to displease you.”
Joseph nodded, his thin smile eased by the genuine levity in his eyes. “Figured as much. One of these days Harrow is going to be sad that you keep offering her.”
Jax huffed in amusement. “Does she not do such herself?”
“I try not to take you two seriously.” He quickly dumped that train of thought into the nearest black-hole, changing topics to encourage the process. “What made you start teaching Vi anyway?”
“I have done as much for my younger siblings.”
Joseph raised a brow. “No ‘den’ or ‘blood’ prefix?”
“They are kits of my blood-mother, though most do not share the same sire.”
He thought about it for a moment. “Fair, i guess. What was home like for you?”
Jax stepped to the side, taking a seat on a log while they waited for whoever was going to come give them a hand. “My den? Simple, if i were to say.”
“Simple? You end up on a military vessel after working years in security, and that had no catalyst?”
The male chuckled. “One does not always need a tragic beginning, Joseph. My den was simple. Four den-fathers and a single den-mother. We lived too far to be a part of a larger den, so my exposure to such was little more than what i have seen on my travels.”
“So what sparked the career in security?” Joseph prompted with a passive curiosity.
Jax tilted his head slightly as his ears maintained some semblance of vigilance, his focus on the conversation but still maintaining awareness. “Two of my den-fathers were in similar roles. They would tell us stories of their time on this planet or that site, often embellishing the roles into tales of epic proportions to entertain us before the moon grew too high.” The Lilhun smiled softly. “I suppose i wished to become the same. If not for the glory that they imparted upon their retelling, then to pass along my own tales to my kits.”
Joseph nodded, a wistful expression following the explanation. “So you wanted to do awesome shit so you could brag to your kids, huh? I can understand that.”
The male spoke softly, noticing the longing hidden under his voice. “Violet is a wonderful kit to have, Joseph. I fear i have began thinking of her as my own as well.”
He cycled a deep breath, a smile tugging at his lips. “She’s the ‘den-kit’, Jax. She’s all of ours, in a way.”
“That much is true, my friend.” Jax agreed with warmth to his eyes. “What of your parentage?”
“Mine?” The Human asked in surprise before humming in thought while he tried to summarize the important parts. “Mom worked as a receptionist for a pharmaceutical company before she got sick. Dad worked at whatever he could, eventually taking a construction job for the Union after mom passed...” He exhaled as the memories of his father’s funeral without a body still lay somewhat fresh in his mind despite how long it had been. “He was really excited to be off the planet, mom had always wanted to go. I got a letter a few months after, explaining what happened when he didn’t come back on time.”
Jax took the news sombrely, his face showing that he sympathized with the pain of loss. “My own blood-mother passed shortly before this deployment.”
“Sorry to bring it up.”
The Lilhun shook his head. “Worry not. It was a natural departure to the Great Hunt. She raised many young and loved them all equally. She was a fine female who made each of her kits feel her embrace.”
“Your dad...s... still alive?”
“Two are.” He clarified passively. “Though they have since found new love for their retirements. I have not personally met their mates, but i trust that my blood-mother has imparted a high standard in them.”
A light snort was returned, the comfortable smile on Joseph’s face easing itself into place. “Brothers and sisters?”
“Twelve.”
“Jesus.”
Jax chuckled. “I am near the younger of the progeny, only three are less.”
Joseph shook his head slowly. “Too many for me. Rob gave me enough headaches.”
“My kin are kind. We have had our disagreements, but we hold each other fondly nonetheless.”
Joseph bobbed his head to concede. “That works. Think you’ll be able to get in touch with them when we get off this rock?”
The Lilhun fell silent for a while. “Perhaps. I know not of their deployments.”
The Human found himself wrapping an arm around the massive male’s shoulders to pull him into a side hug, Jax doing nothing but accepting the affection from his seated position. “We’ll get in contact with them at some point, okay? I’ll see if Rob or Sil can figure something out, get in touch with your family.”
Jax nodded quietly. “I worry now that i may have grown too used to this.”
“Why’s that.”
A mirthless huff escaped the male. “Friends are sparse in my previous field of work, as much as the current, i suppose. One would need to relocate before any connection may take place. It can be a lonely endeavour.”
Joseph felt that he had more to say, opting to rub the guy’s shoulder to show that he was ready to listen. Based on Jax allowing his weight to rest against him, the message was received.
“When i... The moon that i assaulted... The moon in which you spared me.” He started again, stumbling over how he wanted to frame his thoughts. The Human patted his friend in reassurance. “I worried that i may lose those that i began to feel closer to. Pan, i am ashamed to admit, was not a concern of mine at the time, though i realized after that she had begun to be a part of my pack before i was willing to accept. I wanted to keep them safe.”
“I know buddy, i know.” Joseph continued his light rubbing on Jax’s shoulder, letting the male get whatever he needed to off his mind.
“Now i find myself fond of each of you. Pan has developed to be a fine Paw, Sahari seems less burdened by her past, Nalah has softened her edge, Tel has become manageable.” He chucked at that one. “Harrow has become my mate, and although Violet is not my own, i feel the same fulfillment as if she were... I fail to find a depth to this gratitude i have for you, yet you keep giving me more to be thankful for.”
Joseph paused, squeezing Jax tightly as he absorbed what the male had to say. “You guys are my family, Jax. All i can say to that is...” He inhaled as he tried to find the words, exhaling once he succeeded. “You matter to me, buddy. I care about you.”
Jax met his gaze, his left eye dulled and less responsive to the light as his right focused on the scars around Joseph’s. An opened mouth failed to voice a thought, a soft huff causing it to be abandoned in favour of a second. “We have quite the unorthodox relationship, no?”
The Human gave the male one last squeeze before parting, a laugh joining the action. “Yep. That we do. Now if we could get past you asking me to join you two in bed then we might have something to call normal.”
Jax rose to his feet as two more of the pack returned, the slight tint of peppermint signalling the return of the Blade. “You have befriended and lead a people who you were unaware of before this. I believe normality has long since departed.”
“Not going to drop it, are you?”
“Sadly.”
Joseph sighed, joining the convening group to ready the results of the hunt for carrying. “Fuck off, Jax.”
“Of course, Grand Hunter.”
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They returned to the settlement after a few hours, a break being taken part-way to give those who were pushing the smaller carts a chance to rest their legs while Jax and himself took over once they got moving again. The gate, having never really held a massive door in which the name would suggest, had become something of a topic amongst the construction team as a wolf had wandered in at some point. Luckily, it was noticed by Nalah and Sahari before it had the chance to do much besides startle some people.
This also had the side-effect of causing the blond-furred female to seek him out once he walked within the walls.
She approached, prompting him to pass off the cart to someone else so that they could bring it to the hunter’s lodge, the subtle golden stripes running down her body contrasting with the leathers she wore often whenever she was being more hands-on with whatever was being built at the moment.
They hadn’t really spoken since the morning, Tel’s mark being a point of contention and then a mention of a bath house being their last proper interaction before Harrow dragged him off to be physical tech support. There was a slight worry that something would be brought up again, he wasn’t really looking forward to reiterating how little he minded the whole ‘mark’ thing now that Tel had more-or-less been accepted, but he would if it came up.
A skyward glance occurred as he struggled to come to grips with how smoothly his new... Mate? Girlfriend? Bodyguard? Assassin... Mate. How smoothly his new mate entered into the pack dynamics proper.
“I suppose your hunt was successful.” Nalah mused as she watched the group cart off the two corpses, her expression exposing that she was at least somewhat impressed. Joseph shrugged, following the gaze for a second.
“We need to work on awareness. A wolf got way too close and nobody noticed.”
She raised a brow. “Is anyone injured?”
“Nah.” A lazy shake of his head was the most emotive he could have been about the matter. “I put a bolt into it before it could do anything.”
The female furrowed a brow skeptically, her eyes scanning his face. “I would have expected you to be rather worked up after something like that.”
“Jax said the same thing.”
She shrugged. “It is what we have come to expect. Previously, you would have insisted on extensive defensive measures and caution.”
The Human exhaled, rolling his eyes in contemplation as his weight shifted to his other foot. “Yeah, i guess. I don’t know. Been facing death too often to worry too much about it at this point.” A frown appeared as the words left his mouth. “That’s concerning.”
Nalah slapped his shoulder with a laugh, the impact off-balancing him. “You have sought an assassin for your bed, Joseph. I would say you are trying to lay with the Void rather than fight it.”
He rolled his eyes more genuinely this time, a smile and a slight blush of embarrassment ruining the attempt to seem annoyed. “Ha. Ha. Very funny.” Nalah smirked at his displeasure as he continued to whatever brought her to him. “So what’s up?”
Her expression remained smug for a moment before she shook her head and pointed off to a rapidly developing framework for a building that was partially blocked from view. “We are progressing on the bath house first, since you seemed to be interested in the project and the pack were in favour, and i would like your more direct input while others craft a suitable solution for the gate.”
“Sure, i guess.” He answered, not entirely sure what he could have to offer to professionals and the woman who literally designed the layout of the village. She liked to run ideas by him, but that was mostly just formality, right?
A firm nod was returned, Nalah placing her paw on his shoulder and leading him to the site.
The skeleton suggested that it was going to be a sizable building, if nothing else, though it was just the exterior and basic layout that was framed. The orientation suggested that it would be a single entrance with a split to the dedicated baths by gender.
It was a slight oddity to him. Lilhuns had no issues seeking out recreational sex, and as far as he was aware, they didn’t really care about being naked in front of others, but that might just extend to others in their den or pack.
“Hey, Nalah?”
“Hmm?”
He paused to think if he should even ask the question, mentally sighing when he remembered that they would likely answer whatever he asked, regardless of how personal it was. “How is nudity viewed in your culture? You guys didn’t seem to really care until clothing became an option.”
She gave him a confused look, smirking once she finished processing his query. “Do you miss seeing our forms, oh venerable Grand Hunter?”
The female dodged his weak attempt to tap her arm with his fist. “I’m happy without the distraction, thank you very much.”
“Oh, so it is pleasant to see?”
He ignored her, a chuckle returned.
“It is not preferred, if that is what you are asking.” She answered after her amusement wore off. “Besides the basic utility and protective qualities, we do value modesty. Though, that is quite fungible within the confines of the den.”
He looked at her out of the corner of his eye as they walked, a step avoiding a placed marker for future construction. “So you guys don’t mind as much within the base?”
Nalah hummed, her tone suggesting he was only partially correct. “Privacy of one’s den will influence it, yes, but it is the people where it truly matters. I, for one, would rather not be bare if i can help it, but i also wouldn’t put much thought into it if i were to be such around our own.”
He nodded, understanding where she was coming from. It wasn’t much of a stretch to be naked around people who spent the better part of a year seeing you like it. Not like there was anything left to be embarrassed about at that point. “I can see that.”
“Yourself?” She asked passively, killing the time while they crossed the expanding village.
“I hate it.” He noted aloud, though it was mostly him voicing his opinion rather than thinking about it. “In company, anyway.”
“Would it ease your mind if we were as well?”
He shot her a doubtful stare, the placid expression on her face showing no ulterior meaning to her offer. “I’m pretty sure I’d be stared at or assaulted.”
Nalah snorted, nodding at a Lilhun who seemed to be taking a break some distance from the nearing construction. “As you viewed our forms?”
A blush took to his cheeks. He was going to argue, or even just deny, that he had inadvertently taken more than his fair share of time noting the similarities of their builds to the human counterpart, but the attempts died in his throat. “Sorry.”
A jolt to his back stopped his self-chastisement. “We are a different people. It is understandable that one would be curious.”
He cleared his throat, desperate to jump topic before it got to questions he would rather not answer at the moment. “How are things with Sahari?”
He proceeded a few steps before noticing that she had stopped, her gaze fixed on the treeline beyond the wall. He doubled back, worry evident.
“Everything okay?”
“Yes, apologies.” She answered after snapping from her reverie. “I am not accustomed to others being aware.”
A soft smile formed on his face. “Look, i had a talk with her. Don’t look at me like that.” He pointed a finger at the beginning form of betrayal in her expression. “I didn’t tell her anything, but, i did want to figure out if it would only get you hurt to keep this up.”
“Joseph, I am aw-”
“Keep it up.”
She stared slack-jawed as he cut her off in her attempt to dissuade him from asking her to move on, the encouragement seeming to have been something she didn’t expect. “Pardon?”
A huff of amusement preceded the light hand on her shoulder. “I said that you should keep it up. Sahari just needed a push, she’s spent a long time thinking that she didn’t deserve to be loved since she lost her old mate. I...” He paused for a breath, his eyes falling to the ground. “I spent a long time thinking the same, Nalah.”
A choked sob caught his attention, the female’s tears building on her fur prevailing any attempt for her to speak. He took advantage of her relaxed legs equalizing their height to pull her into a tight hug, a hand gently rubbing her back.
“Hey, it’s okay. I’m here for you.” He cooed in a soft voice. “Don’t try to talk yet, just let it out.”
Though she didn’t start bawling, she did return the embrace, the damp moisture feeling cool on his neck as she absently nuzzled into him. A slight rasp worked its way into her voice. “Thank you.”
He chuckled, the smile causing his cheek to press into her own. “You asked me to bring her back, right? I thought you might like it if i tried to bring that part of her back too.”
Her grip almost crushed him, though he didn’t allow the groan to ruin the moment. “She had lost everything dear to her, yet she saved myself and given me purpose when i had none. All this time i wanted to repay her in any way i could, yet you have done so effortlessly.”
“I didn’t do much.” He tried to assure the now-weeping female, intensifying his back rubs.
She shook her head, dampening his ear in the process. “You have given her a connection to herself and released her of her shackles. I know of no way to reward you, nor apologize for my immature actions in the past.”
A slight confusion settled. “All i did was have a few chats with her over a fire when we were alone. You were the one to support her so much.”
The choked laugh came out in time with an ease of her squeeze, his breathing becoming easier. “She bonded to you, that much would have been cause for celebration enough.”
“She what?”
“A moment, Joseph.” Nalah quietly pleaded. He bit back his bewilderment for the time being. “She sought revenge for her mate, for nothing else could exist within her. She could laugh an empty laugh, smile a hollow smile, but she could not truly feel more than a cold rage and sorrow. You have given her what she has lost, and then given her hope.”
His protest died in his throat at the gratitude in her voice, a defeated sigh escaping as he dismissed his concerns about the topic. It would be brought up later, but now wasn’t the time, it seemed. “Pay me back by making her happy. She’s a good friend of mine and I’ll be pissed if you screw up.”
The female separated, a content smile dominating over her previously overwhelmed expression. “Is there anything i may do for you personally?”
“I’m used to Harrow by now,” He warned, a smirk appearing as the atmosphere lightened. “You aren’t going to fluster me by joking about sleeping with me.”
“Only if you wished it so.” She winked, a free paw drying her eyes as she chuckled.
Proving his experience in dealing with Jax and Harrow to be ill-suited to dealing with Nalah, he stalled, closing his eyes as he sighed. “Let’s start by getting this bath house underway.”
“Of course, Grand Hunter, my apologies.”
“Shut up, Nalah.” He patted her back to get them moving now that they had spent a while just outside of the construction. Several of the crew were beginning to give them confused looks and he was worried they would think he was bullying her. She shook her head, but finished escorting him to the site once the evidence of her slight lapse in composure had been removed.
A soft clicking barely preceded the startlingly large impact tackle-hug that enveloped him, Mama having approached from his blind spot silently thanks to the soft dirt. She made a point of covering almost all of him with her frame and long blades, the purring reminding him that this was the first he had actually seen her since he had left for the trip. He worked an arm free and returned the hug the best he could.
“Hey, Mama. I missed you too. Sorry i was gone so long. Are you doing okay? Pack didn’t drive you nuts?”
She reluctantly released him, a chittered laugh returned for his joke as she nodded. Joseph smiled at the massive insect, two thoughts passing his mind and battling for which would be voiced first. “Would you be interested in learning how to write English with Violet? We’d be able to talk more then.”
The question seemed to have caught Mama by surprise, a consideration was given until she looked to Nalah, the female watching the reunion with a small smile. “You need not fear for the effect that your occasional absence would have on our progress.”
Mama shifted her regard back to him, a passive nod given. He couldn’t fight off the warmth he felt thinking about actually conversing with the two who had been with him so long. “Jax and me are going to be teaching Vi once we work out a schedule. I’ll let you know when.”
She nodded again, seemingly remembering something and gesturing for him to remain where he was. He agreed, a brow raised in confusion.
It wasn’t a long wait, two more large forms around Mama’s size curiously tagging behind the mother. The two were subjected to a brief conversation with the familiar Atmo, several gestures being pointed in his direction. Feeling the need to do more than stand there in surprise at seeing more of them, he waved lightly, offering a polite ‘hello’ while trying to reign in his rapidly developing theorizing.
The red Atmo approached first, circling him slowly while taking its time to inspect him, Mama still speaking to them all the while. Finished their observations, the second blue one repeated the gesture, taking less time to complete it.
The two consulted each other, occasionally looking to Mama for something before continuing.
“Is something wrong?” He asked no one in particular, Nalah shrugging, seemingly as confused as he was.
“They had little interest in our own.” She commented, brows lowered in consideration.
Joseph checked himself over for something that might be weird. Other than his legs and lack of more animal-like features, he was pretty close to the company they had been helping. He was a pretty average height when compared to everyone, though most of the males had a few inches on him when they stood upright to their fullest. He was wearing his worn-out clothing that he brought with him on the cruise, so maybe that was it?
“Am i that weird looking?” He asked over his shoulder, Nalah laughing at the self-conscious tone.
“Physical features are a lesser focus of our people, Joseph.” She explained as the three Atmo had slowed their discussion. “That is not to say that you are not a peculiar subject.”
“Wow, thanks.” He deadpanned, becoming slightly more aware of how far he departed from what they would look for in a partner of their own species. It seemed stupid to think about it now, especially since he... It just crossed his mind due to the Atmo’s reaction, is all.
The clicking and pantomiming stopped as the two new insects approached him without circling him again, both bowing low before him. A heavy set of blinks tried to follow whatever the hell was happening when Nalah spoke behind him.
“Hello, Violet.”
Excited clicks drew his eye to his daughter displaying her sign to the female before walking up to nuzzle into Joseph, the Human chuckling and lightly stroking her as she held up the sign for him as well, though it still only carried the cluster that was Lilhun script.
“I’ll assume that’s you saying ‘hello’,” He crouched to be eye-level with her and gave her a hug, her blades quickly resting over his shoulders as she placed her head against his and purred contently. “You’re doing great, sweetie. I talked to Jax, and we’ll set up some dual lessons soon. Think you could do both English and Lilhun, or do you want to focus on one for now?”
The pressure of her hug forced him to shift his neck so that she had room to do it without cutting into his armour, the alternating sets of legs causing her to bounce slightly.
“Ask Jax when he’s free, i think he should be at the hunter’s lodge right now assisting with what we brought back.”
She nodded, giving him one last squeeze before leaving in that direction, a second sign displayed to the Nalah on her way out, eliciting a chuckle from the female as she said her own farewell.
Once the ‘den-kit’ had passed the point of view, the two Atmo rose to their height, offering him a more shallow bow as they excused themselves back to their work and exchanging with Mama again as they did so.
Joseph inhaled, turning to his friend with pursed lips. “So... What the fuck was that?”
She shrugged. “They seemed to do as much whenever she is around.”
A sigh was returned. “Whatever. Show me where you want my input.”
Nalah patted his back and led him to where she was planning to put the actual baths, though he didn’t have much to say for most of it. It all seemed pretty well thought out to him.
The only part he was confused about was a plan for a significantly smaller set of baths that were sectioned off on either side.
“What are those for?”
The female gestured to them lazily. “That one is for the High Huntress and whomever she has accompany her,” Another paw was raised towards the far end of the site. “And that one is for yourself, until another of proper station is acquired.”
He raised a brow. “Why do i need a bath out here?”
Nalah smirked. “I believed you may enjoy the novelty of the arrangement, if not simply appreciate the privacy. Or would you like to be intruded upon by Harrow again?”
He thinned his lips, a firm nod given as he remembered the female fighting the urge to inspect him while delivering important information. “Point taken.”
Next
A/N: 8k views on RR – They’ve reached Mi’low now. We’re hovering at 4.8 stars, which is neat! I think.
This arc is looking to be a bit shorter, and more of an ‘at home’ section while we clean up the mess from last arc, so it’ll be pretty character focused. Romance, major plot elements, Tel... yeah, we know where that’s going.
Finally: The two comments to pass 10 upvotes were you guys telling me how much you like the story... so.. DAWW
2023.03.28 11:41 abdulnafeh99 Nvidia GTX 1660ti isn't performing full in games
I have ryzen 5 2400g cpu and I've been using its integrated graphics for the last 2-3 years and it was working like charm ...now i recently bought myself a GTX 1660ti so that it's an upgrade , before buying the GPU i saw every website to check if it would be a bottleneck with my cpu or not , and everyone said that the cpu and GPU were perfect together and it'll be little no none bottlenecking, therefore i bought the GPU and a new psu for it , Before installing the GPU I've made sure i have connected the GPU well into the slot and turned the integrated graphics off in the bios , i have also installed correct drivers for nvidia and everything as usual But when I started playing games , i saw not much of difference compared to my old apu , the only difference was I could play the game on ultra settings/high settings for the same fps as on low Cpu usage is at average 70-80% GPU usage is at average 50-60% I have done almost everything from other forums and still no luck Here's the list of things I've already done 1.removed old drivers for old apu using ddu 2. Reinstalled drivers 3.check and see if the control panel settings are at high performance 4.reinstalled GPU physically 5.turned vsync off everywhere 6. Made sure there are no fps cap in games 7.ran multiple games to see results (unfortunately everything was similar)
But when I do renders on blender, and do benchmark,the GPU is utilising 100% and functioning well , it's somehow just games that's getting this issue
Here are specs of my pc Motherboard: Gigabyte A320M-H CPU: Ryzen 5 2400g with Vega 11 RAM:16 GB 2666mhz Power supply: Ant eSports 500VL Storage :256gb ssd Monitor: samsung 24 inch (75 hz)(model number LF24T350FHWXXL)
submitted by abdulnafeh99 to buildapc [link] [comments]
But when I do renders on blender, and do benchmark,the GPU is utilising 100% and functioning well , it's somehow just games that's getting this issue
Here are specs of my pc Motherboard: Gigabyte A320M-H CPU: Ryzen 5 2400g with Vega 11 RAM:16 GB 2666mhz Power supply: Ant eSports 500VL Storage :256gb ssd Monitor: samsung 24 inch (75 hz)(model number LF24T350FHWXXL)
2023.03.28 11:40 abdulnafeh99 Same fps in any settings
I have ryzen 5 2400g cpu and I've been using its integrated graphics for the last 2-3 years and it was working like charm ...now i recently bought myself a GTX 1660ti so that it's an upgrade , before buying the GPU i saw every website to check if it would be a bottleneck with my cpu or not , and everyone said that the cpu and GPU were perfect together and it'll be little no none bottlenecking, therefore i bought the GPU and a new psu for it , Before installing the GPU I've made sure i have connected the GPU well into the slot and turned the integrated graphics off in the bios , i have also installed correct drivers for nvidia and everything as usual But when I started playing games , i saw not much of difference compared to my old apu , the only difference was I could play the game on ultra settings/high settings for the same fps as on low Cpu usage is at average 70-80% GPU usage is at average 50-60% I have done almost everything from other forums and still no luck Here's the list of things I've already done 1.removed old drivers for old apu using ddu 2. Reinstalled drivers 3.check and see if the control panel settings are at high performance 4.reinstalled GPU physically 5.turned vsync off everywhere 6. Made sure there are no fps cap in games 7.ran multiple games to see results (unfortunately everything was similar)
But when I do renders on blender, and do benchmark,the GPU is utilising 100% and functioning well , it's somehow just games that's getting this issue
Here are specs of my pc Motherboard: Gigabyte A320M-H CPU: Ryzen 5 2400g with Vega 11 RAM:16 GB 2666mhz Power supply: Ant eSports 500VL Storage :256gb ssd Monitor: samsung 24 inch (75 hz)(model number LF24T350FHWXXL)
submitted by abdulnafeh99 to techsupport [link] [comments]
But when I do renders on blender, and do benchmark,the GPU is utilising 100% and functioning well , it's somehow just games that's getting this issue
Here are specs of my pc Motherboard: Gigabyte A320M-H CPU: Ryzen 5 2400g with Vega 11 RAM:16 GB 2666mhz Power supply: Ant eSports 500VL Storage :256gb ssd Monitor: samsung 24 inch (75 hz)(model number LF24T350FHWXXL)
2023.03.28 11:38 heyuiuitsme meh, this one has a tl:dr at the bottom
So, the fdic is putting a plan into place in case the banking system fails, how to tell the american people. I mean, it’s good to be prepared, sure. Yes. frightening none the less. I’m sure that’s all perfectly standard.
I’m sure i’ll be fine. I ain’t got no money to lose, so that makes it a little easier to prepare for. Since, you know, if things go according to plan, they’ll announce it on a friday after all the banks have closed for the weekend.
So, you know. Do your grocery shopping prior to that. Lol, i’m not really worried about that, i’m sure it will straighten itself out, i mean, everything else in america is going so great, so you know. It’ll be fine
Over the past couple of months, or i guess it’s been going on for a year, or years, or more. Idk, but, i saw a ratty trailer in a trailer park for rent on facebook the other day, $1000 a month. And, according to google you’d have to make 40K a year to comfortably and pay that rent.
Your typical trailer park residents don’t make that much, so, i guess they’re going to get pushed out for higher rents on .. well, i’ve lived in a trailer park, it’s subpar housing. And, that’s exactly what that trailer on facebook looked like, something from the 80s that was ragged out as hell
For only just $1,000 per month you, too can risk the toilet falling thru the floor while you’re sitting on it. Yay, congratulations. Good for you. My first apartment that i rented on my own probably goes for that, or maybe even more.
It was a wood paneling and shag carpet townhouse, that’s what they called it, that just meant the bedrooms and bathroom were upstairs with the kitchen and living room on the main level. It went for $435 a month way back then, back in 99/00. It wasn’t great, and sometimes the range hood would shock you if you touched it.
Quirky, i guess. That apt is no doubt up to $1200 a month. Sure, they probably remodeled it. Ok. but, they ain’t remodeled my pay, you know, since then. That’s what made my decision to leave the area. October 2021, i couldn’t figure out why i was so broke.
That’s when inflation caught my attention and i thought, holy shit, is my check right. I’m so broke, this can’t be right. That’s when inflation started cutting into not just my ability to save, but also my savings. Just for basic necessities, you know. Food and such
I was working at a corporate place that paid .. you know, just a tiny little bit above the going rate for wages around town. Based on experience the fucking ad said, lol. I hate that fucking shit. It’s just bullshit, you know, me with decades of experience at that exact job hired in at the same rate as people who’d never stepped foot behind a desk.
That’s why unions, you know. Make those words in employment ads mean what they say again.
Anyway, i pulled up their payroll system, you know, where you could see a copy of your checkstub. Idk, i thought maybe there was a tax issue or something, and when i pulled it up, it was pretty obvious they’d designed the system around their corp employees.
I full well knew what i made an hour, i think it was $13.50, then. How it appeared on the payroll system, it was posted like that, but instead by the year. And, i was like, well, shit - that’s why you’re broke. I was making the same exact wage i made in 99/00, minus free benefits and a gas expense. Wtf.
Making less money. That’s when i was done, just fucking done with the whole ass damn town. I’d been paying $1,000 a month for rent, so during the time that i lived there, my rent more than doubled for about half the space and my wages didn’t fucking budge.
Fuck ‘em. I hope some trust fund babies gotta go cover some shifts this season. Wouldn’t that be nice. I mean, you know, the trust funds up there are the cause of it. Own a lot of businesses and most of the rentals, that’s where those funds came from.
You know, that they all worked so very hard for. I saw a tik toc today, appeared on my facebook newsfeed. Some blond in a benz going on about how people who pronouns are lazy and require special treatment at work
Yeah, that’s totally been my experience at work, but not with people use pronouns. Not them. You. judging ass thinks they’re better than every other person on earth. You. you’re the fucking problem, and your ass ain’t better
And, i hope every one of you fucks end up having to cover the shifts at the business that pay for your lives. I hope you have to labor this year.
She began the video with the words “if i was a hiring manager and … “ well, here’s the thing, i have been the hiring manager before, i’ve also been the fire your ass manager. I’ve worked jobs like the one i have now that the whole staff is just a handful of people, and large corporates with more than 250 people there.
The problems at work ain’t ever come from gays or trans or any other person just looking to be accepted as the person they are. It’s always the “good christians”
What is it about you that makes you think you have the right to tell others how to live.
What is legitimately fucking wrong with you. Why don’t you get a life and mind it. Hoe your own row. Worry about that plank in your own eye. Cast the first stone. Isn’t that what your fucking book says. The one you always throwing up in people’s faces
Why aren’t you following that. Why don’t you.
I mean, i keep going on about this, but:
Tl;dr: nazis are bad.
submitted by heyuiuitsme to LackOfModeration [link] [comments]
I’m sure i’ll be fine. I ain’t got no money to lose, so that makes it a little easier to prepare for. Since, you know, if things go according to plan, they’ll announce it on a friday after all the banks have closed for the weekend.
So, you know. Do your grocery shopping prior to that. Lol, i’m not really worried about that, i’m sure it will straighten itself out, i mean, everything else in america is going so great, so you know. It’ll be fine
Over the past couple of months, or i guess it’s been going on for a year, or years, or more. Idk, but, i saw a ratty trailer in a trailer park for rent on facebook the other day, $1000 a month. And, according to google you’d have to make 40K a year to comfortably and pay that rent.
Your typical trailer park residents don’t make that much, so, i guess they’re going to get pushed out for higher rents on .. well, i’ve lived in a trailer park, it’s subpar housing. And, that’s exactly what that trailer on facebook looked like, something from the 80s that was ragged out as hell
For only just $1,000 per month you, too can risk the toilet falling thru the floor while you’re sitting on it. Yay, congratulations. Good for you. My first apartment that i rented on my own probably goes for that, or maybe even more.
It was a wood paneling and shag carpet townhouse, that’s what they called it, that just meant the bedrooms and bathroom were upstairs with the kitchen and living room on the main level. It went for $435 a month way back then, back in 99/00. It wasn’t great, and sometimes the range hood would shock you if you touched it.
Quirky, i guess. That apt is no doubt up to $1200 a month. Sure, they probably remodeled it. Ok. but, they ain’t remodeled my pay, you know, since then. That’s what made my decision to leave the area. October 2021, i couldn’t figure out why i was so broke.
That’s when inflation caught my attention and i thought, holy shit, is my check right. I’m so broke, this can’t be right. That’s when inflation started cutting into not just my ability to save, but also my savings. Just for basic necessities, you know. Food and such
I was working at a corporate place that paid .. you know, just a tiny little bit above the going rate for wages around town. Based on experience the fucking ad said, lol. I hate that fucking shit. It’s just bullshit, you know, me with decades of experience at that exact job hired in at the same rate as people who’d never stepped foot behind a desk.
That’s why unions, you know. Make those words in employment ads mean what they say again.
Anyway, i pulled up their payroll system, you know, where you could see a copy of your checkstub. Idk, i thought maybe there was a tax issue or something, and when i pulled it up, it was pretty obvious they’d designed the system around their corp employees.
I full well knew what i made an hour, i think it was $13.50, then. How it appeared on the payroll system, it was posted like that, but instead by the year. And, i was like, well, shit - that’s why you’re broke. I was making the same exact wage i made in 99/00, minus free benefits and a gas expense. Wtf.
Making less money. That’s when i was done, just fucking done with the whole ass damn town. I’d been paying $1,000 a month for rent, so during the time that i lived there, my rent more than doubled for about half the space and my wages didn’t fucking budge.
Fuck ‘em. I hope some trust fund babies gotta go cover some shifts this season. Wouldn’t that be nice. I mean, you know, the trust funds up there are the cause of it. Own a lot of businesses and most of the rentals, that’s where those funds came from.
You know, that they all worked so very hard for. I saw a tik toc today, appeared on my facebook newsfeed. Some blond in a benz going on about how people who pronouns are lazy and require special treatment at work
Yeah, that’s totally been my experience at work, but not with people use pronouns. Not them. You. judging ass thinks they’re better than every other person on earth. You. you’re the fucking problem, and your ass ain’t better
And, i hope every one of you fucks end up having to cover the shifts at the business that pay for your lives. I hope you have to labor this year.
She began the video with the words “if i was a hiring manager and … “ well, here’s the thing, i have been the hiring manager before, i’ve also been the fire your ass manager. I’ve worked jobs like the one i have now that the whole staff is just a handful of people, and large corporates with more than 250 people there.
The problems at work ain’t ever come from gays or trans or any other person just looking to be accepted as the person they are. It’s always the “good christians”
What is it about you that makes you think you have the right to tell others how to live.
What is legitimately fucking wrong with you. Why don’t you get a life and mind it. Hoe your own row. Worry about that plank in your own eye. Cast the first stone. Isn’t that what your fucking book says. The one you always throwing up in people’s faces
Why aren’t you following that. Why don’t you.
I mean, i keep going on about this, but:
Tl;dr: nazis are bad.
2023.03.28 11:37 abdulnafeh99 Nvidia GTX 1660ti low fps on games
 | I have ryzen 5 2400g cpu and I've been using its integrated graphics for the last 2-3 years and it was working like charm ...now i recently bought myself a GTX 1660ti so that it's an upgrade , before buying the GPU i saw every website to check if it would be a bottleneck with my cpu or not , and everyone said that the cpu and GPU were perfect together and it'll be little no none bottlenecking, therefore i bought the GPU and a new psu for it , Before installing the GPU I've made sure i have connected the GPU well into the slot and turned the integrated graphics off in the bios , i have also installed correct drivers for nvidia and everything as usual But when I started playing games , i saw not much of difference compared to my old apu , the only difference was I could play the game on ultra settings/high settings for the same fps as on low Cpu usage is at average 70-80% GPU usage is at average 50-60% I have done almost everything from other forums and still no luck Here's the list of things I've already done 1.removed old drivers for old apu using ddu 2. Reinstalled drivers 3.check and see if the control panel settings are at high performance 4.reinstalled GPU physically (made sure hdmi is in GPU) 5.turned vsync off everywhere 6. Made sure there are no fps cap in games 7.ran multiple games to see results (unfortunately everything was similar) submitted by abdulnafeh99 to pcmasterrace [link] [comments] But when I do renders on blender, and do benchmark,the GPU is utilising 100% and functioning well , it's somehow just games that's getting this issue I have also attached images of heaven benchmark in which it performed well Here are specs of my pc Motherboard: Gigabyte A320M-H CPU: Ryzen 5 2400g with Vega 11 RAM:16 GB 2666mhz Power supply: Ant eSports 500VL Storage :256gb ssd Monitor: samsung 24 inch (75 hz)(model number LF24T350FHWXXL) |
2023.03.28 11:20 Azeem083 5 Reasons Why Wooden Fences Are the Perfect Addition to Your Outdoor Space
Certainly! Here's a post on 5 Reasons Why Wooden Fences Are the Perfect Addition to Your Outdoor Space:
Wooden fences have been a popular choice for homeowners for centuries. They are not only an attractive addition to any outdoor space, but also offer several benefits that make them the perfect fencing solution for your property. Here are 5 reasons why wooden fences are the perfect addition to your outdoor space:
submitted by Azeem083 to u/Azeem083 [link] [comments]
Wooden fences have been a popular choice for homeowners for centuries. They are not only an attractive addition to any outdoor space, but also offer several benefits that make them the perfect fencing solution for your property. Here are 5 reasons why wooden fences are the perfect addition to your outdoor space:
- Aesthetic Appeal: Wooden fences are one of the most attractive fencing options available. They can be designed to match the style and aesthetics of your property, and can be painted or stained in a variety of colors to complement your home's exterior. Wooden fences also offer a natural, warm look that can enhance the beauty and charm of any outdoor space.
- Privacy: Wooden fences offer a high level of privacy, which is especially important for homeowners with outdoor living spaces. By blocking the view from neighboring properties, a wooden fence can create a peaceful, secluded area where you can relax and enjoy your time outdoors.
- Security: Wooden fences also provide a sense of security, by preventing unauthorized access to your property. This is particularly important for families with children or pets, as it helps keep them safe and secure in your yard.
- Durability: Wooden fences are incredibly durable and can withstand harsh weather conditions, making them a long-lasting and cost-effective fencing option. With proper maintenance, a wooden fence can last for decades, providing an excellent return on investment.
- Versatility: Wooden fences are incredibly versatile, as they can be designed to suit a wide range of purposes. Whether you need a fence to enclose your yard, secure your pool area, or define your garden space, a wooden fence can be tailored to meet your specific needs.
2023.03.28 11:00 ORIGINAL_MAMMOTH Any reviews?
 | Thinking of replacing WC Hero Smolarek submitted by ORIGINAL_MAMMOTH to fut [link] [comments] |
2023.03.28 10:59 TheNewBostonOrg The Ultimate Guide To Finding The Best 4K 144Hz Monitor
 | This review article thoroughly examines the top 4K 144Hz monitors on the market. It discusses each model's essential features, benefits, and drawbacks to help you make an informed decision. submitted by TheNewBostonOrg to u/TheNewBostonOrg [link] [comments] OVERVIEW Are you fed up with poor screens that don't give the vivid and clear graphics you expect? Do you wish to advance your gaming, streaming, or employment experience? https://preview.redd.it/w07csrqz2gqa1.jpg?width=438&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=bbff98d124a73ccc3a3f40061e838cabe7d6343a Look no further since we have compiled a comprehensive guide to locating the best 4k 144hz monitor. With our top options, you can expect gorgeous visuals and buttery-smooth action.
If you're in the market for the best 4K 144Hz monitor, there are several criteria to consider before making your purchase. To help make your decision easier, we've compiled a detailed buying guide covering some of the most important factors to consider. 1. Panel Technology: The type of panel technology used in a monitor can significantly impact picture quality. For example, IPS panels offer excellent colour accuracy and wide viewing angles, while TN panels have faster response times and are better suited for gaming. An example of a 4K 144Hz monitor with an IPS panel is the LG 27GN950-B 27 Inch Ultragear 4K Nano IPS Gaming Monitor. At the same time, the Alienware Ultrawide Curved Gaming Monitor 38 Inch uses a fast TN panel. 2. Refresh Rate: A monitor's refresh rate is the number of times the image is refreshed on the screen per second. A higher refresh rate can provide smoother motion and reduce motion blur, which is especially important for gaming. https://preview.redd.it/xa69vhc03gqa1.jpg?width=500&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=626c49e2b38629d6698e7362cb323aafccaaf63a The ASUS ROG Swift PG27UQ 27" 4K 144Hz Monitor has a 144Hz refresh rate, while the LG 27UK650-W 27 Inch 4K UHD IPS LED Monitor has a lower 60Hz refresh rate. 3. Response Time: The response time of a monitor refers to how quickly it can change from one colour to another. A lower response time can prevent ghosting and motion blur in fast-paced games. The Acer Predator X27 Pbmiphzx 27" 4K 144Hz Monitor has a 4ms response time, while the LG 27GN950-B 27 Inch Ultragear 4K Nano IPS Gaming Monitor has a faster 1ms response time. 4. HDR Support: High Dynamic Range (HDR) technology can provide a wider colour gamut and higher contrast ratios, producing more vibrant and realistic images. The ASUS ROG Swift PG27UQ 27" 4K 144Hz Monitor and Acer Predator X27 Pbmiphzx 27" 4K 144Hz Monitor both support HDR, while the AOC CU32U3 32" 4K 144Hz Monitor does not. 5. Connectivity: The number and type of ports available on a monitor can impact its versatility and compatibility with other devices. Read more: https://thenewboston.org/best-4k-144hz-monito |
2023.03.28 10:36 Short_Algo $SCI Awaiting Buy Signal based off 11 signals $1,237 net profit 6.01 profit factor 81% win rate on a 15-min chart. Free trial at https://t.co/yI1SPnacSZ https://t.co/xL13z8k9a3
 | submitted by Short_Algo to StockTradingIdeas [link] [comments] |
2023.03.28 10:36 Short_Algo $COIN Awaiting Buy Signal based off 12 signals $3,433 net profit 10.75 profit factor 91% win rate on a 15-min chart. Free trial at https://t.co/yI1SPnacSZ https://t.co/ckMoKgE8rI
 | submitted by Short_Algo to StockTradingIdeas [link] [comments] |
2023.03.28 10:31 Short_Algo $MDB Awaiting Short Signal based off 11 signals $1,686 net profit 13.33 profit factor 90% win rate on a 15-min chart. Free trial at https://t.co/yI1SPnacSZ https://t.co/8RAP12ddoW
 | submitted by Short_Algo to StockTradingIdeas [link] [comments] |
2023.03.28 10:29 suntelecom Know the Details of the Network Video Recorder
 | Video Surveillance has been popular in recent years, bringing convenience to people's daily life, such as remote video monitoring, facility protection, and loss prevention. Network video recorder (NVR) is used in many surveillance systems by connecting with IP Cameras to provide images and videos. This article discusses everything you need to know about NVR. submitted by suntelecom to u/suntelecom [link] [comments] https://preview.redd.it/mx6tt56bxfqa1.png?width=1174&format=png&auto=webp&s=ea3a327714772a6da821c4030135d09222b66cdc What is a Network Video Recorder? A network video recorder (NVR) is a specialized computer system that includes a software program. It is used in an IP video surveillance system to record video in a digital format to a disk drive, USB flash drive, SD memory card, or other mass storage device. https://preview.redd.it/ywfr86fcxfqa1.png?width=415&format=png&auto=webp&s=532e55ef0ca58e175f6114f0200ef51e326ca54b Types of Network Video Recorder According to the functions of power over Ethernet (PoE), NVR has two types PoE NVR and Non-PoE NVR types. PoE NVR is used with PoE-based IP cameras. The IP cameras are plugged into the NVR's PoE ports and do not require a separate power adapter to work. Non-PoE NVR has no Ethernet ports for IP cameras to connect to on the back panel but can add IP cameras with the built-in scan function that finds IP cameras connected to the same network. According to the number of channels, NVR is divided into 4/8/9/16/25/32/36/64-channel NVR, etc. https://preview.redd.it/g3fnb37gxfqa1.png?width=856&format=png&auto=webp&s=b371fad5ca3abbc12301da9325270b1746542806 How Does NVR Work in an IP Camera System? The IP camera system consists of IP cameras, a network, and the NVR. NVR receives video footage through a network data connection and store footage for review. NVR contains Ethernet ports that users can connect to multiple cameras on one side. It can hook up the router, monitor, or viewing station on the other side to show what happened. IP cameras capture and process video and audio data, while NVR helps to record videos and manage cameras. IP cameras connect to the NVR using an ethernet cable. https://preview.redd.it/wbydcpwhxfqa1.png?width=806&format=png&auto=webp&s=8ae73a20dc5fadda2b2a2dc02a4cc616cf6e7a5e Features and Benefits An NVR provides the following features and benefits:
An NVR is used in CCTV and Surveillance, home, business, public safety, etc. https://preview.redd.it/fpggkrhlxfqa1.png?width=729&format=png&auto=webp&s=ed8cd60ba2b413bb8bf9b061431f2afd33c3da73 Conclusion Video surveillance is closely related to life. Therefore great importance should be attached to choosing NVR with IP cameras to meet specific needs. Sun Telecom specializes in providing one-stop total fiber optic solutions for all fiber optic application industries worldwide. Contact us if any needs. |
2023.03.28 10:26 Short_Algo $ENTG Awaiting Short Signal based off 9 signals $1,189 net profit 4.56 profit factor 88% win rate on a 15-min chart. Free trial at https://t.co/yI1SPnacSZ https://t.co/t80PRFDcY6
 | submitted by Short_Algo to StockTradingIdeas [link] [comments] |
2023.03.28 10:26 Short_Algo $HSIC Awaiting Short Signal based off 8 signals $891 net profit 8.17 profit factor 75% win rate on a 15-min chart. Free trial at https://t.co/yI1SPnacSZ https://t.co/h9eNyiasyN
 | submitted by Short_Algo to StockTradingIdeas [link] [comments] |
2023.03.28 10:16 Short_Algo $TTC Awaiting Short Signal based off 9 signals $893 net profit 4.04 profit factor 88% win rate on a 15-min chart. Free trial at https://t.co/yI1SPnacSZ https://t.co/JG75jXJXkq
 | submitted by Short_Algo to StockTradingIdeas [link] [comments] |
2023.03.28 10:15 VADANIASHOP The Ultimate Guide to Different Types of Screws: How to Choose the Right One for Your Project
Table of contents
At Vadania, we understand the importance of choosing the right screw, which is why we offer a wide selection of screws, bolts, and nuts to meet all your needs. Our products are made from high-quality materials, and we offer a variety of sizes and types to cater to your specific project requirements.
Choosing the wrong screw can result in weak joints, stripped threads, and ultimately, a failed project. For example, using the wrong screw for woodworking can split the wood or cause it to crack, while using a weak screw in construction can lead to structural failure or compromise the safety of the building.
On the other hand, using the right screw can provide a strong and secure joint, which is vital for the overall performance and longevity of your project. A well-chosen screw can also provide resistance to wear and tear, corrosion, and weathering.
Furthermore, choosing the right screw can save you time and money. By selecting the appropriate screw for your project, you can avoid having to redo work or replace parts, which can be costly and time-consuming.
In this guide, we will explore the different types of screws available, the materials they are made from, and their specific applications. We will also provide tips on how to choose the right screw for your project, as well as step-by-step installation techniques, screw maintenance, and troubleshooting common problems.
In conclusion, choosing the right screw is essential for achieving optimal performance, longevity, and reliability of your project. At Vadania, we are committed to providing high-quality screws, bolts, and nuts to help you achieve the best results for your projects.
At Vadania, we offer a wide variety of screw heads to meet the needs of different applications. Here are some of the most common types of screw heads and their uses:
Flat Head Screws
Flat head screws, also known as countersunk screws, have a flat top surface that sits flush with the material they’re fastened to. These screws are commonly used in woodworking and furniture assembly, where a sleek, flush appearance is desired. They’re also useful in applications where the screw head needs to be recessed, such as in electrical outlets.
Pan Head Screws
Pan head screws have a rounded, slightly domed head that protrudes above the surface of the material they’re fastened to. These screws are versatile and can be used in a wide range of applications, including electronics, machinery, and automotive.
Round Head Screws
Round head screws have a semi-circular, dome-shaped head that sits above the surface of the material they’re fastened to. These screws are commonly used in construction and woodworking projects, where a strong, durable hold is needed.
Truss Head Screws
Truss head screws have a low-profile, wide head with a flat underside that distributes weight and pressure evenly. These screws are often used in construction projects, such as in roofing and decking.
Button Head Screws
Button head screws have a low-profile, rounded head with a smaller diameter than a pan head screw. They’re commonly used in furniture assembly, as well as in electronics and automotive applications.
Hex Head Screws
Hex head screws have a six-sided head that requires a wrench or pliers for tightening and loosening. They’re commonly used in construction and machinery applications, where a high degree of torque is needed.
In conclusion, choosing the right screw head is an essential part of any fastening system. By considering the aesthetic and practical requirements of your project, you can select the appropriate screw head for optimal performance. At Vadania, we offer a broad range of screw heads, so you can find the perfect solution for your needs.
At Vadania, we offer a variety of screw threads to meet the needs of our customers. Here’s a breakdown of some of the most common screw thread types:
Coarse Thread
Coarse threads are the most commonly used screw thread type. They have a larger pitch than other thread types, which allows them to be installed and removed quickly. Coarse threads are best suited for materials with lower density, such as wood and plastics. They are also great for applications where speed and efficiency are a priority.
Fine Thread
Fine threads have a smaller pitch than coarse threads, making them ideal for materials with higher density, such as metal. The smaller pitch allows the screw to be tightened more precisely, ensuring a secure hold. Fine threads are commonly used in machinery, electronics, and automotive applications where precision is crucial.
Machine Thread
Machine threads are designed to be used in tapped holes or with a nut. They are commonly used in machinery and equipment where parts need to be disassembled and reassembled frequently. Machine threads are available in both coarse and fine thread types.
Self-Tapping Thread
Self-tapping threads have a sharp point that allows them to be drilled directly into a material without the need for a pre-drilled hole. They are commonly used in wood and plastics, as well as thin metal sheets. Self-tapping screws are available in both coarse and fine thread types.
Advantages of Different Screw Thread Types
The different screw thread types offer unique advantages depending on the application they are used for. Coarse threads are best for quick installation and removal, while fine threads offer more precise tightening. Machine threads are ideal for disassembling and reassembling equipment, while self-tapping threads eliminate the need for pre-drilled holes.
When selecting a screw thread type, it is important to consider the material you are fastening to and the application it will be used for. At Vadania, we offer a wide range of screw threads to ensure that our customers can find the perfect fastener for their project.
Steel
Steel screws are the most commonly used type of screw due to their strength and affordability. They are made from carbon steel and come in a range of grades, with higher grades offering increased strength and corrosion resistance. Steel screws are a popular choice for construction and woodworking projects, as well as automotive repairs. However, they are not suitable for use in outdoor or marine environments, as they are prone to rust and corrosion.
Stainless Steel
Stainless steel screws are made from an alloy of steel, chromium, and nickel, which makes them highly resistant to corrosion and rust. They are a popular choice for outdoor and marine applications, as well as in the food and medical industries where corrosion resistance is essential. However, stainless steel screws are more expensive than steel screws and may not be suitable for high-stress applications.
Brass
Brass screws are made from an alloy of copper and zinc and are known for their attractive gold-like appearance. They are a popular choice for decorative applications, as well as for use in electrical and plumbing projects. Brass screws are also highly resistant to corrosion and are a good choice for use in outdoor and marine environments. However, they are less strong than steel screws and may not be suitable for high-stress applications.
Titanium
Titanium screws are the strongest and most durable type of screw available, with a high strength-to-weight ratio and excellent corrosion resistance. They are a popular choice for high-stress applications in aerospace, medical, and industrial settings. However, titanium screws are more expensive than other types of screws and may not be necessary for less demanding applications.
In summary, the choice of screw material depends on the specific application and the desired properties of the screw. At Vadania, we offer a range of screw materials to suit any project, and our knowledgeable staff can help you choose the right material for your needs.
Woodworking
Woodworking projects require different types of screws, depending on the type of wood and the purpose of the project. At Vadania, we offer a variety of wood screws in different sizes and materials, including brass, stainless steel, and steel.
When choosing screws for woodworking, consider the following factors:
· Wood Type: Hardwoods, such as oak or maple, require thicker screws than softwoods, such as pine or cedar.
· Screw Type: Choose screws with a sharp point for softwoods and a blunt point for hardwoods. The thread type will also depend on the wood density.
· Screw Size: The size of the screw will depend on the thickness of the wood and the load capacity required.
At Vadania, we offer a range of wood screws, including countersunk, pan head, and round head screws, in various sizes and materials to fit your specific needs.
Construction
Construction projects require strong and durable screws to withstand heavy loads and extreme weather conditions. At Vadania, we offer a variety of construction screws in different sizes and materials, including galvanized steel and stainless steel.
When choosing screws for construction, consider the following factors:
· Load Capacity: Choose screws with a higher load capacity for heavier loads.
· Screw Type: Self-tapping screws are ideal for metal-to-metal applications, while lag screws are suitable for wood-to-wood connections.
· Screw Size: The size of the screw will depend on the thickness of the material being joined and the load capacity required.
At Vadania, we offer a range of construction screws, including lag screws, hex head screws, and self-tapping screws, in various sizes and materials to fit your specific needs.
Automotive
Automotive projects require screws that can withstand high temperatures and vibrations. At Vadania, we offer a variety of automotive screws in different sizes and materials, including stainless steel and titanium.
When choosing screws for automotive projects, consider the following factors:
· Material Type: Choose screws made of materials that can withstand high temperatures and corrosion, such as stainless steel or titanium.
· Screw Type: Self-tapping screws are ideal for metal-to-metal applications, while machine screws are suitable for attaching components to the chassis or engine.
· Screw Size: The size of the screw will depend on the thickness of the material being joined and the load capacity required.
At Vadania, we offer a range of automotive screws, including self-tapping screws, machine screws, and hex head screws, in various sizes and materials to fit your specific needs.
In conclusion, choosing the right screw for your project is crucial for its strength and durability. At Vadania, we offer a wide range of screws in different sizes and materials to fit your specific needs. Whether you’re working on a woodworking, construction, or automotive project, we have the screws you need to get the job done right.
Consider the Material of the Materials Being Fastened
One of the most important factors to consider when choosing a screw is the material of the materials being fastened. For example, if you are fastening wood to wood, you’ll want to choose a wood screw that is designed specifically for this purpose. Similarly, if you’re fastening metal to metal, a metal screw would be a better choice. For fastening different materials together, such as wood to metal, you’ll need to choose a screw that is suitable for both materials.
Determine the Required Length and Diameter
The length and diameter of the screw are also important factors to consider. The length of the screw should be long enough to go through both materials being fastened and provide a secure hold, but not so long that it protrudes through the other side. The diameter of the screw should be appropriate for the size of the hole being drilled.
Consider the Type of Head
Screw heads come in different types, such as flat, pan, and round. The type of head you choose will depend on your specific application. For example, if you need a screw that sits flush with the surface of the material, a flat head screw would be the best choice.
Check the Thread Pitch
The thread pitch refers to the distance between the threads on the screw. Different screws have different thread pitches, and choosing the right one is important for ensuring a secure hold. A fine thread pitch is suitable for hard materials such as metal, while a coarse thread pitch is better for softer materials such as wood.
Look for Corrosion-Resistant Screws
If your project will be exposed to the elements or in a high-moisture environment, it’s important to choose screws that are corrosion-resistant. Stainless steel screws, for example, are a popular choice for outdoor projects and those that will be exposed to moisture.
Don’t Forget About Aesthetics
While the functionality of the screw is important, you may also want to consider its appearance. Screws come in a variety of finishes, such as brass, black oxide, and chrome, that can add a decorative touch to your project.
By considering these factors and browsing the selection of screws, bolts, and nuts available at Vadania’s online store, you’ll be able to choose the perfect fastener for your specific project. Remember to always choose high-quality screws that are suitable for your application to ensure a strong, secure hold that will last for years to come.
Step 1: Choose the Right Screw
The first step is to choose the right screw for your project. Consider the material you are working with, the screw’s size, and its intended use. If you’re unsure which screw to use, refer to the product descriptions or consult with a professional.
Step 2: Mark the Spot
Once you have the right screw, mark the spot where you want to install it. Use a pencil or marker to make a small dot or a cross, depending on your preference.
Step 3: Pre-Drill the Hole
Before you install the screw, it’s important to pre-drill the hole to prevent the wood from splitting. Choose a drill bit that is slightly smaller than the screw’s diameter and drill a hole to the screw’s length.
Step 4: Insert the Screw
Next, insert the screw into the pre-drilled hole. Make sure the screw is straight and level before you start turning it. You can use a screwdriver, power drill, or impact driver to turn the screw, depending on the screw’s size and your preference.
Step 5: Tighten the Screw
Continue to turn the screw until it is tight. Do not over-tighten the screw, as this can cause the wood to split or damage the screw’s threads. Use a torque wrench or a screwdriver with a torque-limiting feature to ensure you do not over-tighten the screw.
Step 6: Repeat the Process
If you need to install multiple screws, repeat the process for each screw. Make sure you choose the right screw and pre-drill the holes to prevent splitting.
Step 7: Finishing Touches
Once you’ve installed the screws, you can add finishing touches if necessary. For example, if the screws are visible, you can use wood filler to cover the holes or use a screw cap to hide the screw head.
By following these steps, you can ensure proper installation of your screws, whether you’re working on a woodworking project, construction project, or automotive project. At Vadania, we offer a wide selection of screws, bolts, and nuts, so you can find the right fasteners for your project.
By following these maintenance tips, you can ensure the longevity and reliability of your screws for your projects. At Vadania, we offer a variety of high-quality screws, bolts, and nuts to fit all of your project needs.
Stripped Screws
Stripped screws are one of the most common problems encountered when working with screws. This issue occurs when the screwdriver cannot grip the screw’s head, causing it to spin in place without loosening or tightening. This issue can happen due to a variety of reasons, including using the wrong screwdriver size or over-tightening the screw.
To fix stripped screws, you can try the following methods:
· Use a rubber band or an elastic band to provide extra grip between the screw and the screwdriver.
· Try using a different screwdriver that is the correct size and fits snugly in the screw head.
· Apply some penetrating oil to the screw to help loosen it and reduce friction.
· Use a screw extractor tool to remove the stripped screw from the surface.
Broken Screws
Another common problem is broken screws. This can happen when screws are over-tightened, or when they are exposed to excessive force or pressure. Broken screws can be challenging to remove, but there are several methods you can try:
· Use a pair of pliers or a pair of locking pliers to grip the screw shaft and turn it counterclockwise to loosen it.
· Apply some heat to the screw with a soldering iron or a heat gun to help loosen it.
· Use a drill bit to drill a hole into the center of the screw, then use a screw extractor tool to remove it.
Loose Screws
Loose screws can be a significant issue, as they can cause instability and compromise the integrity of the project. This issue can happen when screws are not tightened enough or when they become loose due to vibrations or other external factors.
To fix loose screws, you can try the following methods:
· Tighten the screw using a screwdriver or a wrench, making sure not to over-tighten it.
· Apply some thread-locking adhesive to the screw to prevent it from becoming loose again.
· Use a larger screw or a different type of fastener that provides better stability and support.
In conclusion, troubleshooting common screw problems can be challenging, but with the right tools and techniques, you can fix most issues quickly and effectively. At Vadania, we offer a wide selection of screws, bolts, and nuts to meet your project needs. Our products are made of high-quality materials and are designed to provide reliable and long-lasting performance.
At Vadania, we offer a wide range of screws, bolts, and nuts for various applications. Our products are made of high-quality materials such as stainless steel, brass, and titanium to ensure durability and longevity. We understand that choosing the right fastener can make a significant difference in the success of your project, which is why we are committed to providing our customers with the best possible products and service.
When selecting a screw, it’s important to consider the head type, as it determines the type of driver needed for installation. For example, Phillips and flathead screws are common head types used in woodworking, while hex head screws are often used in construction and automotive projects. It’s also important to consider the thread type, as this affects the holding power and resistance to loosening. Coarse threads are ideal for soft materials like wood, while fine threads are better suited for hard materials like metal.
Another factor to consider when choosing a screw is the material. Stainless steel screws are corrosion-resistant and ideal for outdoor projects, while brass screws are a good choice for decorative applications. Titanium screws are lightweight, strong, and highly resistant to corrosion, making them ideal for aerospace and marine applications.
Finally, it’s important to select a screw that is appropriate for the specific application. For example, wood screws are designed to fasten wood to wood, while machine screws are ideal for fastening metal to metal. Choosing the right screw for the job will not only ensure optimal performance but also prevent damage to your materials.
In conclusion, choosing the right screw for your project is essential for optimal performance and longevity. By considering factors such as screw head type, thread type, material, and application, you can make an informed decision and select the best screw for your needs. At Vadania, we offer a wide range of high-quality screws, bolts, and nuts for various applications, and our knowledgeable staff is always available to help you make the right choice for your project.
submitted by VADANIASHOP to woodworkwithslides [link] [comments]
- Introduction: The Importance of Choosing the Right Screw
- Screw Heads: Understanding the Different Types and Their Uses
- Screw Threads: The Different Thread Types and Their Advantages
- Screw Materials: The Pros and Cons of Steel, Stainless Steel, Brass, and Titanium
- Common Screw Applications: Choosing the Right Screw for Woodworking, Construction, and Automotive Projects
- Tips for Choosing the Right Screw: Factors to Consider When Selecting the Perfect Fastener
- How to Install Screws: Step-by-Step Guide to Proper Installation Techniques
- Screw Maintenance: How to Ensure Longevity and Reliability of Your Screws
- Troubleshooting Common Screw Problems: How to Fix Stripped Screws and Other Issues
- Conclusion: Choosing the Right Screw for Your Project for Optimal Performance
- Introduction: The Importance of Choosing the Right Screw
At Vadania, we understand the importance of choosing the right screw, which is why we offer a wide selection of screws, bolts, and nuts to meet all your needs. Our products are made from high-quality materials, and we offer a variety of sizes and types to cater to your specific project requirements.
Choosing the wrong screw can result in weak joints, stripped threads, and ultimately, a failed project. For example, using the wrong screw for woodworking can split the wood or cause it to crack, while using a weak screw in construction can lead to structural failure or compromise the safety of the building.
On the other hand, using the right screw can provide a strong and secure joint, which is vital for the overall performance and longevity of your project. A well-chosen screw can also provide resistance to wear and tear, corrosion, and weathering.
Furthermore, choosing the right screw can save you time and money. By selecting the appropriate screw for your project, you can avoid having to redo work or replace parts, which can be costly and time-consuming.
In this guide, we will explore the different types of screws available, the materials they are made from, and their specific applications. We will also provide tips on how to choose the right screw for your project, as well as step-by-step installation techniques, screw maintenance, and troubleshooting common problems.
In conclusion, choosing the right screw is essential for achieving optimal performance, longevity, and reliability of your project. At Vadania, we are committed to providing high-quality screws, bolts, and nuts to help you achieve the best results for your projects.
- Screw Heads: Understanding the Different Types and Their Uses
At Vadania, we offer a wide variety of screw heads to meet the needs of different applications. Here are some of the most common types of screw heads and their uses:
Flat Head Screws
Flat head screws, also known as countersunk screws, have a flat top surface that sits flush with the material they’re fastened to. These screws are commonly used in woodworking and furniture assembly, where a sleek, flush appearance is desired. They’re also useful in applications where the screw head needs to be recessed, such as in electrical outlets.
Pan Head Screws
Pan head screws have a rounded, slightly domed head that protrudes above the surface of the material they’re fastened to. These screws are versatile and can be used in a wide range of applications, including electronics, machinery, and automotive.
Round Head Screws
Round head screws have a semi-circular, dome-shaped head that sits above the surface of the material they’re fastened to. These screws are commonly used in construction and woodworking projects, where a strong, durable hold is needed.
Truss Head Screws
Truss head screws have a low-profile, wide head with a flat underside that distributes weight and pressure evenly. These screws are often used in construction projects, such as in roofing and decking.
Button Head Screws
Button head screws have a low-profile, rounded head with a smaller diameter than a pan head screw. They’re commonly used in furniture assembly, as well as in electronics and automotive applications.
Hex Head Screws
Hex head screws have a six-sided head that requires a wrench or pliers for tightening and loosening. They’re commonly used in construction and machinery applications, where a high degree of torque is needed.
In conclusion, choosing the right screw head is an essential part of any fastening system. By considering the aesthetic and practical requirements of your project, you can select the appropriate screw head for optimal performance. At Vadania, we offer a broad range of screw heads, so you can find the perfect solution for your needs.
- Screw Threads: The Different Thread Types and Their Advantages
At Vadania, we offer a variety of screw threads to meet the needs of our customers. Here’s a breakdown of some of the most common screw thread types:
Coarse Thread
Coarse threads are the most commonly used screw thread type. They have a larger pitch than other thread types, which allows them to be installed and removed quickly. Coarse threads are best suited for materials with lower density, such as wood and plastics. They are also great for applications where speed and efficiency are a priority.
Fine Thread
Fine threads have a smaller pitch than coarse threads, making them ideal for materials with higher density, such as metal. The smaller pitch allows the screw to be tightened more precisely, ensuring a secure hold. Fine threads are commonly used in machinery, electronics, and automotive applications where precision is crucial.
Machine Thread
Machine threads are designed to be used in tapped holes or with a nut. They are commonly used in machinery and equipment where parts need to be disassembled and reassembled frequently. Machine threads are available in both coarse and fine thread types.
Self-Tapping Thread
Self-tapping threads have a sharp point that allows them to be drilled directly into a material without the need for a pre-drilled hole. They are commonly used in wood and plastics, as well as thin metal sheets. Self-tapping screws are available in both coarse and fine thread types.
Advantages of Different Screw Thread Types
The different screw thread types offer unique advantages depending on the application they are used for. Coarse threads are best for quick installation and removal, while fine threads offer more precise tightening. Machine threads are ideal for disassembling and reassembling equipment, while self-tapping threads eliminate the need for pre-drilled holes.
When selecting a screw thread type, it is important to consider the material you are fastening to and the application it will be used for. At Vadania, we offer a wide range of screw threads to ensure that our customers can find the perfect fastener for their project.
- Screw Materials: The Pros and Cons of Steel, Stainless Steel, Brass, and Titanium
Steel
Steel screws are the most commonly used type of screw due to their strength and affordability. They are made from carbon steel and come in a range of grades, with higher grades offering increased strength and corrosion resistance. Steel screws are a popular choice for construction and woodworking projects, as well as automotive repairs. However, they are not suitable for use in outdoor or marine environments, as they are prone to rust and corrosion.
Stainless Steel
Stainless steel screws are made from an alloy of steel, chromium, and nickel, which makes them highly resistant to corrosion and rust. They are a popular choice for outdoor and marine applications, as well as in the food and medical industries where corrosion resistance is essential. However, stainless steel screws are more expensive than steel screws and may not be suitable for high-stress applications.
Brass
Brass screws are made from an alloy of copper and zinc and are known for their attractive gold-like appearance. They are a popular choice for decorative applications, as well as for use in electrical and plumbing projects. Brass screws are also highly resistant to corrosion and are a good choice for use in outdoor and marine environments. However, they are less strong than steel screws and may not be suitable for high-stress applications.
Titanium
Titanium screws are the strongest and most durable type of screw available, with a high strength-to-weight ratio and excellent corrosion resistance. They are a popular choice for high-stress applications in aerospace, medical, and industrial settings. However, titanium screws are more expensive than other types of screws and may not be necessary for less demanding applications.
In summary, the choice of screw material depends on the specific application and the desired properties of the screw. At Vadania, we offer a range of screw materials to suit any project, and our knowledgeable staff can help you choose the right material for your needs.
- Common Screw Applications: Choosing the Right Screw for Woodworking, Construction, and Automotive Projects
Woodworking
Woodworking projects require different types of screws, depending on the type of wood and the purpose of the project. At Vadania, we offer a variety of wood screws in different sizes and materials, including brass, stainless steel, and steel.
When choosing screws for woodworking, consider the following factors:
· Wood Type: Hardwoods, such as oak or maple, require thicker screws than softwoods, such as pine or cedar.
· Screw Type: Choose screws with a sharp point for softwoods and a blunt point for hardwoods. The thread type will also depend on the wood density.
· Screw Size: The size of the screw will depend on the thickness of the wood and the load capacity required.
At Vadania, we offer a range of wood screws, including countersunk, pan head, and round head screws, in various sizes and materials to fit your specific needs.
Construction
Construction projects require strong and durable screws to withstand heavy loads and extreme weather conditions. At Vadania, we offer a variety of construction screws in different sizes and materials, including galvanized steel and stainless steel.
When choosing screws for construction, consider the following factors:
· Load Capacity: Choose screws with a higher load capacity for heavier loads.
· Screw Type: Self-tapping screws are ideal for metal-to-metal applications, while lag screws are suitable for wood-to-wood connections.
· Screw Size: The size of the screw will depend on the thickness of the material being joined and the load capacity required.
At Vadania, we offer a range of construction screws, including lag screws, hex head screws, and self-tapping screws, in various sizes and materials to fit your specific needs.
Automotive
Automotive projects require screws that can withstand high temperatures and vibrations. At Vadania, we offer a variety of automotive screws in different sizes and materials, including stainless steel and titanium.
When choosing screws for automotive projects, consider the following factors:
· Material Type: Choose screws made of materials that can withstand high temperatures and corrosion, such as stainless steel or titanium.
· Screw Type: Self-tapping screws are ideal for metal-to-metal applications, while machine screws are suitable for attaching components to the chassis or engine.
· Screw Size: The size of the screw will depend on the thickness of the material being joined and the load capacity required.
At Vadania, we offer a range of automotive screws, including self-tapping screws, machine screws, and hex head screws, in various sizes and materials to fit your specific needs.
In conclusion, choosing the right screw for your project is crucial for its strength and durability. At Vadania, we offer a wide range of screws in different sizes and materials to fit your specific needs. Whether you’re working on a woodworking, construction, or automotive project, we have the screws you need to get the job done right.
- Tips for Choosing the Right Screw: Factors to Consider When Selecting the Perfect Fastener
Consider the Material of the Materials Being Fastened
One of the most important factors to consider when choosing a screw is the material of the materials being fastened. For example, if you are fastening wood to wood, you’ll want to choose a wood screw that is designed specifically for this purpose. Similarly, if you’re fastening metal to metal, a metal screw would be a better choice. For fastening different materials together, such as wood to metal, you’ll need to choose a screw that is suitable for both materials.
Determine the Required Length and Diameter
The length and diameter of the screw are also important factors to consider. The length of the screw should be long enough to go through both materials being fastened and provide a secure hold, but not so long that it protrudes through the other side. The diameter of the screw should be appropriate for the size of the hole being drilled.
Consider the Type of Head
Screw heads come in different types, such as flat, pan, and round. The type of head you choose will depend on your specific application. For example, if you need a screw that sits flush with the surface of the material, a flat head screw would be the best choice.
Check the Thread Pitch
The thread pitch refers to the distance between the threads on the screw. Different screws have different thread pitches, and choosing the right one is important for ensuring a secure hold. A fine thread pitch is suitable for hard materials such as metal, while a coarse thread pitch is better for softer materials such as wood.
Look for Corrosion-Resistant Screws
If your project will be exposed to the elements or in a high-moisture environment, it’s important to choose screws that are corrosion-resistant. Stainless steel screws, for example, are a popular choice for outdoor projects and those that will be exposed to moisture.
Don’t Forget About Aesthetics
While the functionality of the screw is important, you may also want to consider its appearance. Screws come in a variety of finishes, such as brass, black oxide, and chrome, that can add a decorative touch to your project.
By considering these factors and browsing the selection of screws, bolts, and nuts available at Vadania’s online store, you’ll be able to choose the perfect fastener for your specific project. Remember to always choose high-quality screws that are suitable for your application to ensure a strong, secure hold that will last for years to come.
- How to Install Screws: Step-by-Step Guide to Proper Installation Techniques
Step 1: Choose the Right Screw
The first step is to choose the right screw for your project. Consider the material you are working with, the screw’s size, and its intended use. If you’re unsure which screw to use, refer to the product descriptions or consult with a professional.
Step 2: Mark the Spot
Once you have the right screw, mark the spot where you want to install it. Use a pencil or marker to make a small dot or a cross, depending on your preference.
Step 3: Pre-Drill the Hole
Before you install the screw, it’s important to pre-drill the hole to prevent the wood from splitting. Choose a drill bit that is slightly smaller than the screw’s diameter and drill a hole to the screw’s length.
Step 4: Insert the Screw
Next, insert the screw into the pre-drilled hole. Make sure the screw is straight and level before you start turning it. You can use a screwdriver, power drill, or impact driver to turn the screw, depending on the screw’s size and your preference.
Step 5: Tighten the Screw
Continue to turn the screw until it is tight. Do not over-tighten the screw, as this can cause the wood to split or damage the screw’s threads. Use a torque wrench or a screwdriver with a torque-limiting feature to ensure you do not over-tighten the screw.
Step 6: Repeat the Process
If you need to install multiple screws, repeat the process for each screw. Make sure you choose the right screw and pre-drill the holes to prevent splitting.
Step 7: Finishing Touches
Once you’ve installed the screws, you can add finishing touches if necessary. For example, if the screws are visible, you can use wood filler to cover the holes or use a screw cap to hide the screw head.
By following these steps, you can ensure proper installation of your screws, whether you’re working on a woodworking project, construction project, or automotive project. At Vadania, we offer a wide selection of screws, bolts, and nuts, so you can find the right fasteners for your project.
- Screw Maintenance: How to Ensure Longevity and Reliability of Your Screws
- Avoid Over-tightening
- Use the Right Screwdriver
- Lubricate the Threads
- Inspect for Damage
- Store Properly
By following these maintenance tips, you can ensure the longevity and reliability of your screws for your projects. At Vadania, we offer a variety of high-quality screws, bolts, and nuts to fit all of your project needs.
- Troubleshooting Common Screw Problems: How to Fix Stripped Screws and Other Issues
Stripped Screws
Stripped screws are one of the most common problems encountered when working with screws. This issue occurs when the screwdriver cannot grip the screw’s head, causing it to spin in place without loosening or tightening. This issue can happen due to a variety of reasons, including using the wrong screwdriver size or over-tightening the screw.
To fix stripped screws, you can try the following methods:
· Use a rubber band or an elastic band to provide extra grip between the screw and the screwdriver.
· Try using a different screwdriver that is the correct size and fits snugly in the screw head.
· Apply some penetrating oil to the screw to help loosen it and reduce friction.
· Use a screw extractor tool to remove the stripped screw from the surface.
Broken Screws
Another common problem is broken screws. This can happen when screws are over-tightened, or when they are exposed to excessive force or pressure. Broken screws can be challenging to remove, but there are several methods you can try:
· Use a pair of pliers or a pair of locking pliers to grip the screw shaft and turn it counterclockwise to loosen it.
· Apply some heat to the screw with a soldering iron or a heat gun to help loosen it.
· Use a drill bit to drill a hole into the center of the screw, then use a screw extractor tool to remove it.
Loose Screws
Loose screws can be a significant issue, as they can cause instability and compromise the integrity of the project. This issue can happen when screws are not tightened enough or when they become loose due to vibrations or other external factors.
To fix loose screws, you can try the following methods:
· Tighten the screw using a screwdriver or a wrench, making sure not to over-tighten it.
· Apply some thread-locking adhesive to the screw to prevent it from becoming loose again.
· Use a larger screw or a different type of fastener that provides better stability and support.
In conclusion, troubleshooting common screw problems can be challenging, but with the right tools and techniques, you can fix most issues quickly and effectively. At Vadania, we offer a wide selection of screws, bolts, and nuts to meet your project needs. Our products are made of high-quality materials and are designed to provide reliable and long-lasting performance.
- Conclusion: Choosing the Right Screw for Your Project for Optimal Performance
At Vadania, we offer a wide range of screws, bolts, and nuts for various applications. Our products are made of high-quality materials such as stainless steel, brass, and titanium to ensure durability and longevity. We understand that choosing the right fastener can make a significant difference in the success of your project, which is why we are committed to providing our customers with the best possible products and service.
When selecting a screw, it’s important to consider the head type, as it determines the type of driver needed for installation. For example, Phillips and flathead screws are common head types used in woodworking, while hex head screws are often used in construction and automotive projects. It’s also important to consider the thread type, as this affects the holding power and resistance to loosening. Coarse threads are ideal for soft materials like wood, while fine threads are better suited for hard materials like metal.
Another factor to consider when choosing a screw is the material. Stainless steel screws are corrosion-resistant and ideal for outdoor projects, while brass screws are a good choice for decorative applications. Titanium screws are lightweight, strong, and highly resistant to corrosion, making them ideal for aerospace and marine applications.
Finally, it’s important to select a screw that is appropriate for the specific application. For example, wood screws are designed to fasten wood to wood, while machine screws are ideal for fastening metal to metal. Choosing the right screw for the job will not only ensure optimal performance but also prevent damage to your materials.
In conclusion, choosing the right screw for your project is essential for optimal performance and longevity. By considering factors such as screw head type, thread type, material, and application, you can make an informed decision and select the best screw for your needs. At Vadania, we offer a wide range of high-quality screws, bolts, and nuts for various applications, and our knowledgeable staff is always available to help you make the right choice for your project.
2023.03.28 10:13 _Triple_ [STORE] 900+ KNIVES/GLOVES/SKINS, 50.000$+ INVENTORY. M9 Fade, M4 Poseidon, Kara Gamma, BFK Freehand, BFK Bright Water, Spec Gloves Kimono, Nomad Fade, M9 Doppler, Skeleton, BFK B.Steel, AWP Fade, Stiletto Fade, S.Gloves Slingshot, BFK Ultra, Kara Damas, Bayo Lore, Bayo Gamma, Flip Fade & A Lot More
Everything in my inventory is up for trade. The most valuable items are listed here, the rest you can find in My Inventory
Feel free to Add Me or even better send a Trade Offer. Open for any suggestions: upgrades, downgrades / knives, gloves, skins / stickers, patterns, floats.
All Buyouts are listed in cash value.
KNIVES
★ Butterfly Knife Freehand FN #1, B/O: $1867
★ Butterfly Knife Bright Water MW, B/O: $1098
★ Butterfly Knife Blue Steel BS, B/O: $907
★ Butterfly Knife Ultraviolet FT, B/O: $789
★ Butterfly Knife Stained FT, B/O: $695
⎯★ Bayonet Tiger Tooth MW #1, B/O: $888
★ Bayonet Gamma Doppler (Phase 4) FN, B/O: $727
★ Bayonet Doppler (Phase 2) FN, B/O: $608
★ Bayonet Doppler (Phase 1) FN, B/O: $521
★ Bayonet Rust Coat BS, B/O: $253
★ Bayonet Night FT, B/O: $251
★ StatTrak™ Bayonet Lore MW, B/O: $751
⎯★ Karambit Gamma Doppler (Phase 4) FN, B/O: $1343
★ Karambit Damascus Steel FT, B/O: $774
★ Karambit Rust Coat BS, B/O: $537
★ Karambit Boreal Forest FT, B/O: $488
⎯★ M9 Bayonet Fade FN, B/O: $1523
★ M9 Bayonet Fade FN, B/O: $1523
★ M9 Bayonet Doppler (Phase 4) FN, B/O: $1008
★ M9 Bayonet Blue Steel FT, B/O: $534
★ M9 Bayonet Rust Coat BS, B/O: $449
⎯★ Flip Knife Fade FN, B/O: $703
★ Flip Knife Gamma Doppler (Phase 1) MW, B/O: $509
★ Flip Knife Doppler (Phase 1) FN, B/O: $406
★ Flip Knife Freehand FT, B/O: $228
★ StatTrak™ Flip Knife Bright Water FN, B/O: $332
⎯★ Falchion Knife Doppler (Phase 2) FN, B/O: $292
★ Falchion Knife Doppler (Phase 3) FN, B/O: $264
★ Falchion Knife Marble Fade FN, B/O: $258
★ Falchion Knife Bright Water MW, B/O: $133
⎯★ Stiletto Knife Fade FN, B/O: $822
★ Stiletto Knife Slaughter FN, B/O: $569
★ Stiletto Knife Doppler (Phase 1) FN, B/O: $530
★ Stiletto Knife Crimson Web FT, B/O: $396
★ StatTrak™ Stiletto Knife Scorched FT, B/O: $172
⎯★ Gut Knife Doppler (Sapphire) MW #1, B/O: $830
★ Gut Knife Fade FN, B/O: $204
★ Gut Knife Tiger Tooth FN, B/O: $138
★ Gut Knife Bright Water MW, B/O: $104
★ Gut Knife Freehand FT, B/O: $92
★ Gut Knife Urban Masked FT, B/O: $82
★ StatTrak™ Gut Knife Rust Coat BS, B/O: $93
⎯★ Shadow Daggers Fade FN, B/O: $258
★ Shadow Daggers Doppler (Phase 3) FN, B/O: $165
★ Shadow Daggers Blue Steel FT, B/O: $82
★ Shadow Daggers Bright Water FT, B/O: $82
★ Shadow Daggers Blue Steel WW, B/O: $80
★ Shadow Daggers Rust Coat BS, B/O: $74
★ StatTrak™ Shadow Daggers Marble Fade FN, B/O: $186
⎯★ Classic Knife Slaughter MW, B/O: $311
★ StatTrak™ Classic Knife Stained BS, B/O: $163
⎯★ Talon Knife Slaughter MW, B/O: $605
★ Talon Knife Scorched MW, B/O: $290
⎯★ Ursus Knife Marble Fade FN, B/O: $405
★ Ursus Knife Night Stripe MW, B/O: $162
⎯★ Paracord Knife Stained WW, B/O: $125
★ Paracord Knife Forest DDPAT FT, B/O: $97
★ Paracord Knife Safari Mesh FT, B/O: $96
⎯★ Navaja Knife Safari Mesh FT, B/O: $71
★ Navaja Knife Scorched WW, B/O: $71
⎯★ Nomad Knife Fade FN, B/O: $1015
★ Skeleton Knife, B/O: $909
★ Bowie Knife Boreal Forest MW, B/O: $106
★ Survival Knife Forest DDPAT FT, B/O: $97
GLOVES
★ Driver Gloves Crimson Weave FT, B/O: $335
★ Driver Gloves King Snake BS, B/O: $270
★ Driver Gloves Lunar Weave WW, B/O: $113
★ Driver Gloves Overtake WW, B/O: $88
★ Driver Gloves Overtake BS, B/O: $67
⎯★ Moto Gloves Transport MW, B/O: $171
★ Moto Gloves Polygon BS, B/O: $137
★ Moto Gloves Transport WW, B/O: $71
★ Moto Gloves 3rd Commando Company BS, B/O: $62
⎯★ Specialist Gloves Crimson Kimono WW, B/O: $1027
★ Specialist Gloves Tiger Strike FT, B/O: $654
★ Specialist Gloves Mogul FT, B/O: $295
★ Specialist Gloves Lt. Commander FT, B/O: $277
★ Specialist Gloves Crimson Web FT, B/O: $275
⎯★ Sport Gloves Slingshot FT, B/O: $796
★ Sport Gloves Amphibious BS #2, B/O: $699
★ Sport Gloves Omega FT, B/O: $656
⎯★ Broken Fang Gloves Unhinged BS, B/O: $60
WEAPONS
AK-47 Case Hardened BS, B/O: $130
AK-47 Bloodsport MW, B/O: $79
AK-47 Fuel Injector BS, B/O: $76
AK-47 Fuel Injector BS, B/O: $76
AK-47 Bloodsport FT, B/O: $70
AK-47 Neon Rider MW, B/O: $60
⎯AWP Fade FN, B/O: $864
AWP BOOM MW, B/O: $84
AWP Containment Breach FT, B/O: $69
AWP Containment Breach FT, B/O: $69
AWP Wildfire FT, B/O: $59
AWP Chromatic Aberration FN, B/O: $59
StatTrak™ AWP Hyper Beast FT, B/O: $65
StatTrak™ AWP Hyper Beast FT, B/O: $65
⎯Desert Eagle Blaze FN, B/O: $565
Desert Eagle Blaze FN, B/O: $565
Desert Eagle Printstream FN, B/O: $155
Desert Eagle Cobalt Disruption FN, B/O: $58
⎯M4A1-S Icarus Fell FN, B/O: $414
M4A1-S Printstream MW, B/O: $204
M4A1-S Printstream MW, B/O: $204
⎯M4A4 Poseidon FN, B/O: $1402
M4A4 The Emperor FN, B/O: $152
M4A4 Asiimov WW, B/O: $97
⎯USP-S Kill Confirmed MW, B/O: $65
USP-S Printstream FT, B/O: $69
StatTrak™ USP-S Kill Confirmed FT, B/O: $123
StatTrak™ USP-S Neo-Noir FN, B/O: $106
⎯AUG Flame Jörmungandr FN, B/O: $218
P2000 Ocean Foam FN, B/O: $139
Souvenir SSG 08 Death Strike MW, B/O: $81
CZ75-Auto Emerald Quartz MW, B/O: $61
Trade Offer Link - Steam Profile Link - My Inventory
Some items on the list may no longer be available or are still locked, visit My Inventory for more details.
Send a Trade Offer for fastest response. I consider all offers.
Add me for discuss if there is a serious offer that needs to be discussed.
2023.03.28 10:12 Short_Algo $BAP Awaiting Short Signal based off 9 signals $1,290 net profit 4.68 profit factor 88% win rate on a 15-min chart. Free trial at https://t.co/yI1SPnacSZ https://t.co/8q4DsfFspP
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