Safestep walk in shower cost

I never thought I'd be posting on Reddit ever but I really needed to get this out.
Long story short, I've been married for about 2.5 years with 2 kids (18 months and 4 months). But sometimes, it feels like 3.
My husband can be super awful about chores and time management (and other things, but I don't want to get into that). To a point that it really makes me feel a lot of regret for even getting married in the first place.
At this point, I don't see any positives about marriage. Marriage sucks. I'm supremely disenchanted about marriage.
He works shifts, and doesn't plan his time well. Right before he goes to work he would take a long shower then rush to prepare to go to work. The usual chores he does is left undone so I always have to pick up the slack. Hell, he ALWAYS takes long showers then I will have to compensate for the prep thanks to his lack of planning.
For example, we could have an appointment at 1500. He would take his super long shower at 1400. I then have to rush getting ready and we end up being late anyway cause the kids' stuff isn't ready.
For the record, I work a full time job. And with 2 kids under 2, it's like I'm working 2 full time jobs. Regardless, I still always make an effort to make sure everything is done - like laundry (washing, folding, putting away), cleaning up the bed, throwing the trash, getting the kid's bottles ready, bathing the kids, etc. If I have to wake up early, so be it. But I always make sure I plan out my day so that shit gets done.
Basically daily maintenance of the house and chores lie on my shoulders. Anything that requires responsibility is on me. Cause I can't depend on my husband much or at all.
I could ask him to do things, but they take FOREVER. That I just give up and do it myself.
Suffice to say that I am one very disenchanted wife and the regret builds day by day as I hear him say that some things are low priority items or that he needs to get in the right mood.
It's not like I've never spoken to him about it. I have. Many times. I have expressed my annoyance and my wish for him to f-ing step up. Still no change.
So yes. Regret. Who tf said marriage was worth it anw.

a somewhat short chapter as I’m busy
(story start)—————— 4
A few hours later
Another devil cam to the front of the warehouse entrance and dropped off a tray of what seems to be alien food before swiftly leave.
Then the devil he was talking to retrieved the food and showed it to him, she then gestured to the tray of food and said
“(Food)”
Before playing a video of a devil eating food, before taking one her self and eating it.
Naturally Franz is alert when being offered food and demands to knows its composition, as he doesn’t know if it’s harmful for him to eat.
“Explain… composition”
Unknown to Franz the Cre’taxians still thought he was a robot and that the food was for the newly appointed negotiator to eat.
At Franz’s response the devil…. No the Cre’taxsian frowns as those 2 words are still not within the database and it the first time she’s hearing it.
It took awhile for Franz to realize his mistake and took out his phone to show the appearance of an atom.
The Cre’taxsian negotiator seems interested in his phone’s design but understands it functions the same as her crystal iPad.
“Atom”
He then shows a few more drawings of atoms and said “Atom” each time
Then he shows a compound H2O (water) and said “composition”
He swipes back to the Atoms that makes up water and points at them before pointing back at the compound.
“Compound”
He then shows a few more simple compounds and points out their atomic make up.
With all that done Franz points to blue alien sand which and said “compound”
The Cre’taxsian frowns a bit before turning on her coms to communicate with the scientists who were watching their interactions.
After a brief back and forth the negotiator taps her pad to show him a bunch of compounds.
Franz squints a bit as they showed him the compounds as 3D model of atoms bonding each other to form a compound.
Like it’s understandable that they didn’t show him the hexagon diagram with English letters on it.
Franz was pretty good chemistry and biology back in high school so he recognizes the fats and amino acids.
‘Those chains of Carbon and 2 Hydrogen must be fats and those….. hmm… everything looks fine to me’ he thought, while he’s no expert chemist he’s saving up money to continue his studies.
Of course the thought that the devils might be lying to him did cross his mind but that still doesn’t change the fact that he’s still trapped in a building surrounded by them.
Not taking their food despite being offered to him might seem rude, especially since the negotiator personally demonstrated that the food is safe to eat by eating one herself.
Besides that do they actually know what’s harmful to a human? Judging by the fact that they’re trying to transcribe English for the last few hours should be a great indicator that this is the first time they meet a human.
After some careful thinking Franz decided to take them up on the offer and took off the respirator covering his face.
Hisssss
“(Gasp)”
The moment he took off his respirator that covers his lower face, the negotiator gasped hard and eyes went wide at the sight.
“(Oh My Goddess! he was an actual man!)” the fresh academy recruit exclaims over the coms —————————————— In the conference room
Everyone was stunned silence for a while as they didn’t quite believe what they’re seeing.
“(he’s actually a male!)”
“(Just by looking at that jawline I can tell that he must have a gorgeous face)”
Discussion broke out amongst the staff
The district commander like the rest of the staff was stunned at first the frowns before contemplating how to deal with this situation.
She the then brought up what she knows about him so far, then she rewatches a brief compilation of the incredible feats he has done so far.
From jump wall to wall to climb a 4 stores building to his mostly recent one beating 3 Hasperax Enforcer mechs.
As she was thinking what to do when an urgent coms request came
She looks at the sender and cursed before sighing
‘Just great’ she thought as the call is from her mother, news must have spread of the 30 or so elite enforcers tactical group along with 3 Hasperax Enforcer mech got wiped out.
Her mother being a senator in pay a lot of attention to reputation.
‘Well then here goes nothing’ she sighs before picking it up.
“(Hello mother……)”
A while later after a long scolding and explanation she puts the communicator back down.
She looks around the room before saying “(It’s out of our hands now)”
She sighs as she sits back down in her chair —————————————————————
Back to Franz
He finished up the alien sandwich before he suddenly hears a commotion out side.
He rushes to a near by window to see what’s happening.
‘Oh boy’ he thought as the troops outside just got replaced by new ones, what’s more is that the new troops are even more armed and armored than the previous one.
The previous ones primarily made up of uniformed officers while these new arrivals are all wearing the same armor that seems fairly high tech.
‘So these must be their military’ Franz thought as the previous bunch must have just been their police force.
At this time the negotiator’s coms suddenly became busy as it seems that a new development has happened.
After their conversation the negotiator turns to Franz and attempted to convey what was happening, unfortunately the vocabulary list is still too short and so could understand.
As the negotiator was still trying convey what was going a dozen of the armored soldiers came rushing through the entrance with their weapons drawn.
Seeing them rushing in Franz leaps towards the side and picks up 2 alien rays guns on the floor before taking cover behind a support column.
As the soldiers in fancy armor pointed their guns at him, he returned the courtesy on by pointing both the ray guns that he has acquired back at them.
…..
After awhile tension slowly rosed
The situation only got diffused when the voice of an angry Cre’taxsian was heard.
Only then did the soldiers lowered their weapon.
Like wise Franz also lowers his weapon.
Then a Cre’taxsian female with a fancy coat and hat arrives, she then looks at the situation within the warehouse.
A bunch of still unconscious elite Enforcers, the wrecks of 3 Hasperax Enforcer mechs and the still standing alien male without a single scratch.
Looking at the pile of unconscious Elite Enforcers that littered the back one of her eyes visibly twitched before she barked a string of orders to the negotiator who quickly salutes and replied in short sentences.
Franz doesn’t know what they’re talking about but he can make an educated guess.
After a brief conversation the negotiator turns to him and said
“Weapon…. Ground” she then gestures for the ray gun in his hand then to the ground.
‘You want me to drop my weapons?’ Franz wondered as he looks at the weapon then to her then back to the ground.
He thoughts for a bit before doing as she suggested and drops the ray guns to the floor.
Drop Drop
Seeing that he drops the ray guns to the floor the 2 of the soldiers then slowly makes their way to him.
These 2 are especially fancier than the rest as they wore capes.
‘What do they want now?’ Franz wondered as he stood still not sure what these 2 caped soldiers want to do.
‘Maybe a fancy ceremony?’ He wondered
When they reached his sides, one on each side then they suddenly leaps into action as they tried to detained him.
‘Mother fuckers!’ Franz cursed as they betrayed his trust.
The enraged Franz easily broke free from their grip, pushed them aside before kicking a ray gun that he has just dropped up.
Franz caught it in mid air before shooting the caped bastard in the head
Beam
The shot hit her helmet but besides a burn mark it didn’t seemed to do anything, seeing that it barely done anything Franz used the alien gun as a club and smacked her hard.
Smack
‘That seems to have done something’ Franz thought as the caped alien he has just smacked in the head got knocked to side.
The alien’s helmet got dented and the gun he used to smack her crumbled into its individual components.
Then Franz turns his attention to the other caped alien, he grabs her by the neck and lifts her off the ground.
Choke
The aliens wisses and flails around as she tries to get his hand off her neck.
Franz then moves the alien that he’s chocking mid air to between himself and the formation of alien soldiers in case they tries to take a potshot out of him.
Oddly enough despite the commotion the rest of the soldiers didn’t moved, the alien with the fancy coat also just stood by and just watched the event happening infront of her.
Since they’re not ganna do anything Franz continues to choke the caped alien mid air.
Meanwhile the other caped alien has gotten back up and tries ti tackle him, unfortunately for her Franz just picks up his stun baton and just smacks her again.
Smack Zaaaaaaaap “(eeeeep!)”
With a yelp she fell to the cold.
With that the only caped soldier left is the one he was still choking mid air.
Franz didn’t rush to zap this other one with his baton as it would make a better meat shield if it’s still flailing around like this.
Besides that he highly doubt that the commander would just stand by watch him slowly chokes her soldier to death in front of her.
It didn’t take long before she muttered something.
Franz then turns to the translator to translate
“Cre’taxsian….. Ground….” The negotiator then gestures to the dangling soldier then to the ground.
Franz looks at the negotiator, the soldiers at that back that still hasn’t moved, the women with a fancy coat alternately for a bit before eventually letting go.
Slop
The caped soldier fell to the ground before frantically taking her helmet off before desperately taking in air.
As the soldier desperately taking in air the women in fancy coat moves forward.
She went to where the fallen soldier who’s desperately catching her breath.
She said something to her before kneeling down and ripping a badge off her chest, she did the same to the unconscious one before turning back to Franz and handing it to him.
Franz stares a bit not quite sure how to make of the current situation but even so he just accepts the badges and stuffs them into his pocket.
Then the women in the fancy cape gestures to the entrance of the warehouse where the soldiers are already line up on both sides.
‘Okay?’ He frowns a bit before cautiously walking towards the entrance, he walks in between the 2 rows of soldiers and out of the warehouse.
The rows of soldiers seems to lead to an aerial vehicle of some sort with its door open.
At this point it’s pretty clear where they want him to go.
Besides that up in the sky there’s a whole lot more alien helicopters flying around, some of them looks like gunships with large canon attached to the bottom.
One thing to note about the aerial vehicles of this place is that they don’t seems to use fan blades or thrusters to fly.
Anyways Franz boarded the alien flyer.

Hi guys! Our 12 year old beagle mix has all of a sudden started pacing/not sleeping in the middle of the night. She used to be the dog to sleep like a log. We take her out to potty and put her back to bed and within 10 minutes, she up and around again. She’s not pacing all the time, she walks to one end of the room and just stairs at the wall. Nothing has changed in our home to account for this that I can think of. The last couple of years definitely have been rough - CHF diagnosis, seizures, and cancer. She eats, drinks, and plays just fine. The vet says she should have a good bit of time left. We have a wellness exam next week and I’ll of course ask the vet, but wanted to know if anybody has experienced this with their own pup and what may be the cause?

Hi everyone hope you’re well. I currently work as a server and I’m trying to save as much as I can to put towards my tuition (besides rent of course). To cut down on costs I’m trying to buy a bike from one of my neighbors so I can use it to commute to work and class. Right now I’m $32 away from being able to afford it. My neighbor has already done me a solid by giving me a discount but he said he’s not willing to go any lower because it’s in great condition. I know that amount is a lot to ask for but I would be super grateful. I’m trying to get out of my depressive slump and work on self improvement. There is no obligation of course, but it would mean the world to me.
I appreciate your time! My cash tag is $Hiishiki

Hello and welcome to Reluctant UHC Season 6 - Catalyzation!
Welcome to Reluctant UHC Season 6! For those who don't know, Reluctant is an ultrahardcore Recorded Round created by Organized by BlueSparkss, and each season we give players an incentive to not do something, and in this season, we were Reluctant to Catalyze. To represent this, we used Rigged Teams of 3, along with the scenarios listed below.
Gamemodes:

• [Catalyzation]
  • When you mine diamonds/gold you will not receive them immediately, there are two ways to receive your valuable ores.
• There will be a 20 minute timer that goes off at the start of every episode, that will give you all of your ores smelted.

Alternatively…

• There will be monuments at each 500 coordinate that will give you your diamonds & gold unsmelted. It will be broadcasted when a player uses a monument. (will not reveal who)
• A team can only use each monument once between eps 1-4, & once between episodes 4-6. The daylight cycle will also move forward 5 minutes.
• You can use /balance to check how many ores you have that can be collected
  
• Using the command "/catalyze" at the cost of 15 gold nuggets and 1 exp level, the following will be enabled for all players for a 45 seconds. Speed 2, Haste 2, Overcook, Speed up daylight cycle. An additional trivia question will also be asked
  
  • [Trivia] Every 10 minutes a trivia question will be broadcasted, the first person to get the answer right will receive a diamond

Enjoy the season :)
Episode Links

Players	Links	Links	Links	Links	Links
Shark Teeth
Broccoliar	Episode 2	Episode 3	Episode 4	Episode 5	Episode 6 + Episode 7
Rebelghost	Hard drive exploded	Hard drive exploded	Hard drive exploded	Hard drive exploded	Hard drive exploded
Dieter	Combined	Combined	Combined	Combined	Full Footage
Hall Monitors
527Max	Phasing Through Trivia	Shark Teeth	Sting Like a Bee	Gas and Gravity	Reaching for Leaves + Part 2
Immortal	Episode 2	Episode 3	Episode 4	Episode 5	Episode 6
KaiSmartyPants	Episode 2	Episode 3	Episode 4	Episode 5	Episode 6
Big Purple Men
Alcxz	Combined	Combined	Combined	Combined	Full Footage
Brinkwhy	Episode 2	Episode 3	Episode 4	Episode 5	Episode 6 + Episode 7
Kiinako	Episode 2	Episode 3	Episode 4	Episode 5	Episode 6
Chainsaw Men
Blarkslol	[Late]()	[Late]()	[Late]()	DEAD	DEAD
Lexicuhl	Episode 2	DEAD	DEAD	DEAD	DEAD
Zebrapantz	Accidentally Deleted	Accidentally Deleted	DEAD	DEAD	DEAD
Calvin Harris
Coldbacon	Episode 2	DEAD	DEAD	DEAD	DEAD
Azoof	Episode 2	DEAD	DEAD	DEAD	DEAD
ArcticSeagull	Late()	Late()	Late()	Late()	Late()
On The Fly UHC Season 7
ItsColinn	[Late]()	[Late]()	[Late]()	[Late]()	[Late]()
TheSlimeBrother	Combined	Episode 2+3	Episode 4	Episode 5	Episode 6 + Part 2
David63	Episode 2	Episode 3	Episode 4	Episode 5	Episode 6 + Episode 7
If Nobody Got Me I Know CodeJoshua Got Me
CodeJoshua	Episode 2	Episode 3	Episode 4	Episode 5	Episode 6
Flcnt	Unresponsive ):	Unresponsive ):	Unresponsive ):	Unresponsive ):	Unresponsive ):
zac083	Episode 2	Episode 3	Episode 4	Episode 5	Episode 6

Credits!

• Organisation: BlueSparks (Nick Cubic & Kirbey?)
  
• Host / Coding: Inferno / MrcsM
  
• Intro: BlueSparks
  
• Art: EvanDeadlySins
  
• Logo: Blarks
  

In many ways, I would describe myself as a fan that "knows everything yet knows nothing". I found out about BABYMETAL through reaction videos on Youtube in early 2020, and although I soon devoured all the concert footage and interviews and stories about them that I could find, I had never been blessed with the opportunity to experience them live until yesterday night in Taipei.
Before the concert, I had "followed" the 2023 Sabaton concerts and earlier Asia shows in real time, constantly checking Discord to see which songs were on the setlist, and if there was anything new or surprising. I would get excited when surprising songs like "Shanti Shanti Shanti" were announced, and hyped to see some new bangers like "Maya".
When you're at the show though, none of that matters. I paradoxically cared about the setlist more as a spectator on the internet, than when I was there in the moment experiencing it. Performed live, every song is a banger, and every song they select is the right one.
Su famously says "Don't Think, Feel" when it comes to BABYMETAL, and she's absolutely right. This idea felt somewhat abstract to me before last night, but afterwards, I truly understood what she was saying. BABYMETAL is often described as a "theatrical" performance. There are various different elements of "theater" that typically come to mind when most people use the word - acting, facial expressions, creating a sense of story and lore, suspension of disbelief, etc.
But there's something else that's a crucial part of theater - it doesn't last. It's there, and then it's gone.
Unlike movies or other forms of visual storytelling, theater performances typically are a "one-time" thing. Sure, a theater troupe might perform the same play multiple times, but each performance is unique. This is in contrast to a movie, which will always be exactly the same. Perhaps you might observe something you overlooked before, or feel differently about it at different times. But the movie itself is static and permanent, whereas every night of "Romeo and Juliet" performed 7 nights in a row is different. The slight differences in inflection, the facial expressions, the emphasis, the little mistakes... the show that you saw today is simply not identical to the show your friend saw yesterday.
This is something that affects both the actors and audience alike, and a big part of what makes theater special - when you know that it's a fleeting experience; that what you see will never be 100% replicated again (recordings are but a limited view), it primes you to focus on "feeling" and "experiencing" the show, savoring each moment for what it is because there's no time to think about it - every moment is passing you by, every second and minute. That moment Moa flashes a ridiculously charming grin, and when your eyes seem to meet, it's as if she's looking right at you and no one else in the world? Cherish that moment, because it was there, and now it isn't.
To be clear, I have nothing against people recording concerts on their phones and taking photos (as long as they're not overly obstructing the view) to share the experience as best they can, and try and preserve memories for themselves and the fanbase. But for my very first show, I decided to (perhaps selfishly) simply soak it all in and bask in the BABYMETAL experience without taking a single fancam video, and that's what helped me enjoy the show to its fullest. (I would note that it seemed there were generally fewer phones out at all times, in contrast to some European or American shows I've seen, and it generally didn't affect the viewing experience at all for me)
In a sense, all the "book-knowledge" I possessed about BABYMETAL and their songs made it easier for me to "Feel" and not "Think". I already knew when I was "supposed" to raise my fists, when to chant, and when to mosh for each song. And that brings me to the first of several points about the concert that really came to mind (I don't plan on doing a full concert recap, as in a sense, the play-by-play isn't actually that different between each performance, but what you personally see and feel is what makes it unique):
1) The audience is an integral part of the show
This is also very much a "BABYMETAL cliche", but it's also absolutely true. I don't know what it is, but it almost feels like we're compelled to be an amazingly hype crowd because we don't want to let them down, almost like we're performing for them. I'd estimate that roughly 1/4 to 1/3 of the crowd may have been from Japan, and they obviously know exactly what the crowd "should" be doing. But the Taiwanese crowd was extremely in sync, constantly cheering and jumping and yelling at the right time, giving the girls further energy, leading to my next point:
2) Perfect combustion
BABYMETAL shows are understandably criticized as being too short. There certainly are ways to pad out the length fairly easily without adding to the physical workload of the members, such as adding Kami solos and some lore videos. But personally, I think the 70 minute pedal-to-the-metal non-stop performance is really exhilarating. Both the members and the audience alike give it everything they've got, spending every last bit of energy to burst past the finish line, and you go home wiped out and satisfied. Knowing that the show would be fairly short, I was able to jump and shout and run around to my heart's content, without feeling like I needed to preserve energy. And I think this is part of what makes the live experience so good; no one's phoning it in.
3) Great mix of old and new
I like the Asia setlist very much, and I think that for a concert participant, it was extremely well-structured. For the older songs from the first album, there was a lot of crowd interaction and chanting, which is always fun. But I don't think it would be the best idea to do this for the entire show - by mixing in newer songs that had fewer sections where we felt "obligated" to do various chants and fist-pumping, the new songs from THE OTHER ONE provided a great opportunity to just stand there in awe and enjoy the music and new complex crisp choreography, before another hype classic begins and you start running around again.
4) Kami Masks
The three members were absolutely mesmerizing. Honestly, I feel that even if the Kamis weren't wearing masks, I would still be looking at Su, Moa, and Momo the entire time; I didn't want to miss a single mischievous smirk from Moa, a habitual tongue blep from Su, and the ball of energy that Momo has become. Obviously others that are more fans of the musicians will feel differently, and perhaps I would as well if I had the chance to go to multiple shows and had the luxury of "wasting" my limited (precious) attention on the Kamis, great as they are. On a related note, I saw Barone walking around the venue a few hours before the show (probably getting some refreshments or something) and it seems like absolutely no one recognized one, w hich is probably exactly what they prefer before a show.
and lastly...
5) Moa and Momo (and Yui before) are magical
I've always believed that BABYMETAL would have been quite successful even if it had been a more traditional rock/metal band with Su as a solo frontwoman. However, it was the "scream and dance" roles that really elevated BABYMETAL from "great" to "legendary". Moa/Momo/(Yui) really do have a way of making the show feel personal, in a way that can't be captured fully on camera. If I were only allowed to pick one thing when it comes to describing the difference between seeing them in person and on a Blu-ray, it would be the little details of Moa/Momo's crowd interaction. The way I see it, Su makes you want to bow down, but Moa/Momo/(Yui) are what make you want to love them. It's a perfect combination.
Random notes I found interesting/amusing
There were several people wearing frog costumes (I counted 4), I'm sure Su got a kick out of that!
During "Megitsune" it seemed that Su was having some earpiece(?) issues; she seemed to be gesturing several times for adjustment, and dashed off the stage immediately after the song was over, and there was a longer pause than usual before the next song "Iine!" began as they resolved the problem. On a related note, Su sounded amazingly good live, with very few pitch issues compared to what I've heard in fancams. I don't know if that's confirmation bias from being at the show, but I think it's fair to say that phone microphones aren't entirely reliable for capturing what you actually hear at the venue.
Earplugs, oh lord earplugs are needed. I was near the barrier in front of the "Moa" side and it felt like I was getting directly blasted by the sound (and the drums/bass in particular). But I heard from some fans in other parts of the floor that the sound was muffled or quiet at places, so I think where you were standing made quite a big difference. At any rate, protect your hearing, people! If I hadn't been wearing earplugs, I definitely could have permanently damaged my hearing; it's not worth it to go without.
All in all, 10/10, would do again.

Taking the family to Cancun in a couple of weeks. I know they have some really nice golf courses and I was considering squeezing a round in. I’m a little reluctant because I would be solo. I play solo from time to time locally, but that’s usually twilight rounds at my local muni courses so not a big investment and I’ve made excuses and left early when paired with those I didn’t care to play with. Playing in Cancun will likely cost me $300 or more with rentals. Do y’all think it’s worth it rolling the dice and getting paired with randoms?

Hoping to have a discussion and understand what others experience has been like for long panel interviews. I’ve been working for ten years now and been at a number of companies. Each time I’ve moved the interview process has been something like phone screen, maybe a quick 30 min zoom call, then an hour long interview with the hiring manager. I’ve moved up in job title since then, but this company I’m currently interviewing at seems a bit extreme.
For starters, they wanted to do a ‘casual coffee’ meeting first. Which was still basically an interview to me. All we talked about was my work experience for an hour, but then they made me take a 30 minute tour of the facility which seemed like something to save for after being hired. Another thing that was odd to me was HR refused to provide a salary range for the position claiming, they would provide a range after having me in to ‘gauge my skill level and experience’ from the meeting.
HR reached out and was excited to start scheduling the formal interview panel, but not before I requested the salary range to avoid wasting anymore of their or my time. It was 85k with 10% sign on bonus. I then stated my range required to make a move at this time 115-125k and hours later it turns out they still want to have me in for the interviews. I was excited they were considering it, but now something doesn’t feel right. It seems like a pretty large difference in opinion on what this position is worth. Even if they did make an offer in my range, how could I work there knowing they thought so little of the role and my experience?
I received the schedule and it’s 3 hours, from 9:30am to 12:30pm next week. I’ve never seen anything like this, I’m assuming I must be a top candidate for them to take up this much time for this many people? It’s broken up and there are two people interviewing me per hour. I’m honestly still a little taken back and on guard after they insisted I come in without knowing the salary range. Now another 3 hours in the middle of a workday instead of going through a few rounds one at a time.
Are they seriously considering me and my salary requirements or are they trying to make up for almost wasting my time and theirs? Could it possibly be they only want me in for research and to pick my brain on what I’d do with this role? I’m going to try to sleep on it this weekend, but part of me is wanting to walk away at this point. Thanks for any guidance and input!

1. The recently released open-source large language model Falcon LLM, by UAE’s Technology Innovation Institute, is now royalty-free for both commercial and research usage. Falcon 40B, the 40 billion parameters model trained on one trillion tokens, is ranked #1 on Open LLM Leaderboard by Hugging Face.
2. Neuralangelo, a new AI model from Nvidia turns 2D video from any device - cell phone to drone capture - into 3D structures with intricate details using neural networks..
3. In three months, JPMorgan has advertised 3,651 AI jobs and sought a trademark for IndexGPT, a securities analysis AI product.
4. Google presents DIDACT (​​Dynamic Integrated Developer ACTivity), the first code LLM trained to model real software developers editing code, fixing builds, and doing code review. DIDACT uses the software development process as training data and not just the final code, leading to a more realistic understanding of the development task.
5. Researchers from Deepmind have presented ‘LLMs As Tool Makers (LATM)’ - a framework that allows Large Language Models (LLMs) to create and use their own tools, enhancing problem-solving abilities and cost efficiency. With this approach, a sophisticated model (like GPT-4) can make tools (where a tool is implemented as a Python utility function), while a less demanding one (like GPT-3.5) uses them.
6. Japan's government won't enforce copyrights on data used for AI training regardless of whether it is for non-profit or commercial purposes.
7. ‘Mitigating the risk of extinction from AI should be a global priority alongside other societal-scale risks such as pandemics and nuclear war.’ - One sentence statement signed by leading AI Scientists as well as many industry experts including CEOs of OpenAI, DeepMind and Anthropic..
8. Nvidia launched ‘Nvidia Avatar Cloud Engine (ACE) for Games’ - a custom AI model foundry service to build non-playable characters (NPCs) that not only engage in dynamic and unscripted conversations, but also possess evolving, persistent personalities and have precise facial animations and expressions.
9. OpenAI has launched a trust/security portal for OpenAI’s compliance documentation, security practices etc..
10. Nvidia announced a new AI supercomputer, the DGX GH200, for giant models powering Generative AI, Recommender Systems and Data Processing. It has 500 times more memory than its predecessor, the DGX A100 from 2020.
11. Researchers from Nvidia presented Voyager, the first ‘LLM-powered embodied lifelong learning agent’ that can explore, learn new skills, and make new discoveries continually without human intervention in the game Minecraft.
12. The a16z-backed chatbot startup Character.AI launched its mobile AI chatbot app on May 23 for iOS and Android, and succeeded in gaining over 1.7 million new installs within a week.
13. Microsoft Research presents Gorilla, a fine-tuned LLaMA-based model that surpasses the performance of GPT-4 on writing API calls.
14. OpenAI has trained a model using process supervision - rewarding the thought process rather than the outcome - to improve mathematical reasoning. Also released the full dataset used.
15. WPP, the world's largest advertising agency, and Nvidia have teamed up to use generative AI for creating ads. The new platform allows WPP to tailor ads for different locations and digital channels, eliminating the need for costly on-site production.
16. PerplexityAI’s android app is available now, letting users search with voice input, learn with follow-up questions, and build a library of threads.

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FYI, this is a story COLLECTION. Lots of standalones technically. So, you can basically start to read at any chapter, no pre-read of the other chapters needed technically (other than maybe getting better descriptions of characters than: Adam Vir=human, Krill=antlike alien, Sunny=tall alien, Conn=telepathic alien). The numbers are (mostly) only for organization of posts and continuity.
OC Written by Charlie Stastarrfallknightrise,
Typed up and then posted here by me.
Proofreading and language check for some chapters by u/Finbar9800
Future Lore and fact check done by me.
Damn! The last LFIL chapter a while ago had a pretty legendary photograph moment, but this one tops it by far!
Previous First [Next](link)
Want to find a specific one, see the whole list or check fanart?
Here is the link to the master-post.
"Please everyone, calm yourselves. The Galactic Assembly is addressing the issue as we speak."
The crowd roiled and churned like the bubbles in a pot of boiling water. Flags waved and voices rose high into the air.
The chanting increased in fervor.
"Please!"
The Rundi struggled to raise his voice high enough to be heard over the crowd, who only grew with strength and intensity.
Commander Vir keyed his mic,
"Delta units to the GA side of the crowd, some of these protesters are looking extremely agitated. Let's make sure they don't do anything we're all going to regret.”
He stood with his back to the GA chambers, its wide arching courtyard devoid of life, except for those unfortunate Rundi ordered to carry messages from one side of the compound to the other, otherwise they tried to keep their distance from the front facade of the building and the churning mass of protesters.
White flags waved and fluttered.
Commander Vir held the energy shield with one arm, pressing it back firmly against the crowd, so they could not pass the dedicated marking point.
"Commander, the crowd over here is getting violent."
He grimaced and reached a hand down to open the line,
"Stun them and let them calm down, do NOT catch anyone else in the crossfire. We do not want this escalating."
"Yes sir."
Something pushed against his shield and he grunted, pushing back.
The white bandanna on his arm was pressed against the clear blue force field and helped to at least confuse the crowd before them.
And luckily, they would be kept too confused to get violent.
The aliens among the human protesters helped as well.
If this was on earth, things would have broken out into a riot by now, but the Drev the Tesraki and the Finnari tended to be more levelheaded when it came to these kinds of things, and they managed to reign in their humans from doing something stupid.
He closed his eyes tight for a second, praying that the GA would rethink their position.
It hurt him to watch these people struggle like this.
It just felt so strange that anyone should be here in the first place.
Beside him, Sunny had taken control of two young humans who were getting a bit more than rowdy,
"Let’s keep this a protest, and not a riot."
She growled, giving them a look that would have made anyone quell in their boots. It sort of made him half smile, Sunny was such a badass, he wanted to be more like her when he eventually grew up.
His thoughts were cut off, as the crowd churned a bit, pressing into his shield.
He keyed his mic again, prepared to go over the loudspeaker and tell them that if they didn't calm down he was going to turn this protest into a mass nap time.
He had the power to do that if things got out of hand, though he honestly didn't want to.
The GA needed to see this.
He was so preoccupied with the crowd, that he barely noticed as the Rundi ran up from the inside of the compound, flying forward on its long spindly legs.
It stopped by the first Rundi to say something, and the conversation that passed between them didn't look particularly encouraging.
HIs heart sank into his stomach.
He felt... Surprisingly disappointed, very sad for all those people who were going to get their day ruined.
The Rundi waffled around at the front of the crowd for a bit before turning and looking over to where he stood.
Oh great.
The Rundi walked over, and he backed off from the crowd, allowing Sunny to take a step in his place with her shield at the ready.
The people looked as if they were about to start something, but seeing her expression, they decided not to.
He dropped his shield and lowered his head to hear the Rundi over the roaring of the crowd.
"The GA is not budging."
The Rundi whispered,
"They are asking the protesters to leave."
Adam growled in frustration.
Behind him someone in the crowd pointed at him,
"They're saying no aren't they!?”
Others took up the call, and soon enough the rest of the crowd had been alerted. Adam was forced to run back to support Sunny, as everything suddenly grew more intense.
Fights were breaking out on the left and the right.
People were hitting the ground as the guards were forced to stun them.
That only agitated the rest of the crowd who also began to buck and fight.
Adam keyed the mic for real this time, filling the intervening space with his booming voice,
”ALL OF YOU KNOCK IT OFF RIGHT NOW OR I WILL STUN YOU ALL."
The aggression in the crowd died down, though the anger remained sizzling at the surface.
Overhead clouds passed over the sun, before him the crowd roared like a wave, and behind him the GA council chambers were as silent as a ghost town.
"LISTEN, QUIET DOWN ALL OF YOU."
It sort of felt as if he was floating.
The world around him hardly seemed real though that was not the best way to explain it.
The crowd died down a bit,
"You may not understand this! And I have said it before, but these are not humans. Protests don't work on them. When they see a group of angry humans, they get scared and when they get scared, they double down even further. I know it does not make any sense to you NOT to protest for what you believe in, but if you are going to do this, you MUST remain civil. Even now the GA is frightened by you. They don't believe you are rational, and they are not going to listen to you if this keeps up."
The crowd had quieted down to a milling sort of confusion.
"Then what should we do!"*
The shouting came from somewhere and in anger, though he couldn't pinpoint the source.
In frustration he nudged Sunny, and she allowed him to climb on her back as he had before.
The crowd could see him now, and he could see them for the most part.
He waved them down trying to cut off the others who had taken up the chant.
"I understand what you are trying to do, and I support your efforts, but you are only hurting ourselves. The GA can only be won by rational discussion."
"The GA won't see any of our representatives. They are debating only on their own facts and opinions."
One of the crowd's people snarled. The call was echoed and Adam stared at them in shock,
"Wait what!? Are you serious?”
There was a muttering throughout the crowd.
"For fuck's sake."
He muttered under his breath,
"The Rudi think none of us are high ranking enough to be allowed into the council chambers, and none of the representatives will take up our cause. The human ambassador thinks we are disgusting, so she won't do anything and says she won’t represent our minority."
The muttering through the crowd grew louder.
Adam looked around, head turning to see all the angry faces, blushed with red, or streaked with tears.
These people were frustrated, and hurt, and he understood why.
This wasn't right!
He closed his eyes again and took another deep breath.
What was he thinking!?
He stepped down from Sunny's back and walked over to one of the protestors in the front row, pointing to his large flag on a pole that was about eight feet tall.
"May I borrow your flag?"
The protester stared on at him in confusion,
"What, why?"
"Because, I am going to give you the representative you need."
[…]
Commander Vir and Sunny walked alone down the length of the GA outer courtyard.
A billowing white flag streamed lazily over his head, suspended there by way of the pole which rested heavily on his shoulder. The white of the fabric had been marred now by many colors as hundreds of rushed signatures had been scrawled on its face.
He was armed with the backing of a thousand protesters, a hundred signatures, and more than a few dozen stories.
Sunny turned her head to look at him, and he fancied that maybe he saw an expression of pride in her eyes, though she didn't say much except,
"Pretty brave."
He didn't feel very brave, and as they walked through the front doors of the GA atrium, his hand was shaking against the cold metal of the flagpole.
He was stopped by a pair of Rundi guards on his way into the chamber, but was let in after they recognized who he was.
He could hear voices up ahead, and the sounds of the protest going on outside had all but died away,
"They have proven that they cannot be civil, and based on the humanizing effect, we can assume they will do similar things to any non-human lifeform that they encounter."
"I may not agree with their decision counselor, but that sounds like your prejudice against humans is seeping through."
There was an uproar in the council chamber.
He paused for a moment, staying with Sunny just out of line of sight and took a deep breath.
She lay a hand on his shoulder.
"Here goes nothing."
He muttered, before stepping his way out onto the GA floor.
At first no one noticed his presence as he made his slow way into the center of the circle, but his large, white flag soon changed that.
The council chambers went silent.
The chairwoman stood,
"Commander, what are you doing here. Shouldn't you be taking care of the protesters?”
His lips drew into a thing line,
"With all due respect councilwoman, I am."
He rammed the flagpole against the stone, sending a loud cracking sound out and around the wide atrium silencing the council,
"I have been made aware that you refuse to see their representatives based on a ranking issue, well I assume my rank is high enough."
The Human rep leaned forward,
"Commander, this is not your place!”
He shot her a look,
"Then whose place is it counselor? I heard a certain democratic counselor refuses to speak for them because they are and I quote “a too small and insignificant minority”…”
He turned his head in a wide arc at the watching crowd,
"Counselors, you have known me, longer than you have known any human currently in this galaxy. You understand that I know your rules and your customs. You understand that I have only ever striven to protect and uphold the GA and the planet's it encompasses. I have thwarted wars, signed treaties, and broken my own body for your best interests."
There was silence about the room.
"Will you let me speak now, with the understanding that my loyalty has never wavered from you, and never will?”
The silence continued.
Aliens understood the power of human loyalty.
Or at least they should…
The chairwoman took a seat,
"Very well, commander."
He lifted his head, feeling his heart slow as he took a few deep breaths. There was a muscle in his face that had begun to twitch, like it always did if he was extremely angry or nervous, but he held it down,
"I understand you are frightened, and I understand that you are confused, but I want you to know first of all that those people outside are good average people. They don't mean you any harm. They are hurting, and they are afraid for themselves, and they are trying to get your attention. Historically, humanity has used protests to right the injustices of government to combat prejudices brought on by one's sex or the color of their skin. You must understand that they see this as an impingement on their happiness and a decision made out of line."
There was a murmur around the room.
"So, I ask you now, that I may, perhaps, answer your questions and ease your worries. Why are you so against them?"
"It's unnatural."
It was the Bran representative that had spoken, and he did it quite emphatically.
"Why?"
The commander asked,
"Because they aren't even the same species."
"So?"
The Bran seemed caught off guard,
"They... It's not natural. They can't reproduce, so it isn't... A thing that should be done."
The commander shrugged,
"So if one can't reproduce then they aren't natural? I see a couple issues in that logic relating to prejudices against people with infertility."
There was a murmur around the room.
"So, they can't reproduce, so what? You know who we can reproduce with though... Adaptids."
There was a sort of hushed exclamation form around the room.
The commander shrugged,
"They can't have kids.... Hardly a good enough argument to bring to the floor of a government discussion."
"What he is trying to say is that this practice equates itself to bestiality. It is utterly disguting!"
It was the human representative this time, and she stared at him with her eyes narrowed in anger.
He kept his cool, though he very much did not like her.
"That is absolutely disgusting and wildly insulting of you because that implies that one or both parties are no better than animals, beasts as you will."
The room was silent,
"So which one is it, are humans animals, counselor, are the Finnari or the Rundi animals?"
He turned to the Drev counselor,
"Are the Drev just dumb animals that have no understanding, and no decision making abilities?”
The Drev representative stood, angrily cracking his spear against the stone,
"We are most certainly not!"
The commander held up his hands,
"Then what is so bestial about it? Bestiality is absolutely disgusting because you are taking advantages of a creature that can neither understand nor protect itself from what you are doing. It cannot say yes, and it cannot say no. It has no greater understanding than that of a child, and so cannot make its own decisions."
He looked towards the Finnari representative,
"Tell me counselor, is your species a species of children, with no greater concept of their own decision making?”
"Of course not. Why would you even imply such a thing!?”
"I imply nothing, counselor. This is what YOU imply with your decision. So far we have established that all parties are intelligent consenting creatures, and none of you have managed to give me an actually good reason for banning the practice."
The floor was growing more agitated.
"They will be a poor example for the rest of the galaxy. If we make it legal others will surely follow."
Adam turned his eyes on the speaker, an Iotin,
"You're worried that they are going to turn the rest of the galaxy extrial?"
He laughed,
"That is a poor argument which is not only selfish, but foolish. People should be allowed to make their own decisions. And assuming you are right, what then? Oh no... There are a few more extrials... And it does... What exactly?"
He turned in a wide circle,
"If you are worried about population growth or in this case population falloff due to this issue then you should be reminded that extrials comprise a percentage of the human population so small that I could fit the greater majority of them on my ship comfortably. This occurrence is not common, and even if the numbers were to rise, it would not be of enough significance to cause issues."
His heart was hammering hard inside his chest. He felt like he was doing alright, but that might mean nothing.
"In any event, these relationships do not affect the vast majority of the galaxy. Humans cannot be with the Bran or the Rundi due to the water we shed from our skin. The Gromm and the Iotins are out for similar reasons. Vrul and Gibb are incapable of having feelings for humans in that way as far as we know, and both the Tvek and the Celzex are too different from humans for either party to be interested."
He walked around in a circle, allowing the flag to trail behind him,
"Furthermore, the humanization phenomenon happens with or without romantic intent, and as it is, its mention is more a mark of prejudice on humans than it is an argument against the two groups being together."
He left the floor open for a little while, as the council muttered with each other.
Finally, the Drev representative stood,
"My species culture and our way of life has been upturned by the GA. I fear relationships with humans will result in the loss of our culture. We have already strayed far from what we originally were. We are hardly recognizable as Drev anymore."
The commander let his voice soften,
"I understand that the Drev have lost a lot in joining this..."
Sunny held up a hand, and in surprise he was cut off.
She took the floor,
"Your Glory…"
She said bowing her head,
"If you would have truly upheld those ideals, you would not be sitting on this council."
The Drev pulled back in surprise at her words,
"Yes, we lost a lot in joining the GA, and after the war, but I would argue that some of that was for good. Before the GA people like me, with perceived imperfection were cast into the fire and perceived as no better than animals. This practice still takes place on our planet, where these traditions are still alive and well."
Her words made the room shift nervously,
"However, culture changes and adapts, and it must to survive. We changed in order to live among the GA. We found other alternatives to fighting that still maintain our honor and our prowess in war, and this includes the sports that the humans have brought to us. Furthermore, the vast majority of the Drev I see who are with humans are those of us who would not be accepted by our own kind, perceived as ugly or malformed. If this is the case then your traditions remain sound, and those like me are removed from the mating population."
The counselor almost looked ashamed at her words, turning his head away so as not to look her in the eyes.
"As far as a change of culture goes, it was bound to happen, and it seems you are more worried about change than you actually are about human Drev relationships."
She went quiet, and Adam nodded to her taking the floor again.
A Finnari counselor stood,
"I am simply worried about our birth rate. The Finnari were farmed by the Gnarlak for many years, and we are only now replenishing our population."
"I don't think you need to worry. The amount of actual relationships is so small that it will not affect the Finnari population in any significant manner."
The representative sat back down with no real argument to combat him.
The chairwoman stood,
"Your arguments have been heard commander, though, what the others do not mention is the issue of disease. We have seen a great increase of illness transmissible from humans to non humans and-"
"I hate to cut you off chairwoman, but that is NOT related to interspecies relationships, but instead has another simple explanation: the rise in human tourism."
She paused,
"Explain."
"You all know very well that humans are not allowed to leave their planet unless they are tested for all communicable non-treatable diseases. This means that those of us that you see here cannot physically pass our diseases off onto other people, except for the germs that are found naturally on our skin. In this case these issues did not stem from relationships at all, but poor vaccination, the poor regulation of tourism, and allowing aliens to travel onto earth where infected humans are located and not testing them as they leave."
He looked on at them pleadingly,
"You see. You don't even have problems with them, but you are using them as a real scapegoat for the actual issues. And I am here to tell you that, in fact you are causing more problems by banning this! The more you push, the harder they will push back, and eventually someone is going to get hurt, because they are not allowed to be together legally, they do it illegally, and because they do it illegally, they end up in dangerous places exposed to greater rates of crime. They get hurt, and they get involved in things they would otherwise not have gotten involved in if you had not banned it. Just look at Noctoplis. It has the highest rate of extrials living there and the lowest policing force and the most corrupted system. There are no legitimate jobs there, so we see an influx of crime by desperate people who won't be accepted anywhere else. Not to mention that it increased the depression rates, which increases suicide rates. Your laws have ostracized them, forced them to become criminals, and turned many of them to think that killing themselves is better than living in a world where they are seen as disgusting when they don't actually do any real harm."
He had to take a deep breath,
"Earth has seen all of this before, and one way or another, eventually someone will see what I am trying to say."
He rested the flag on the floor beside him, feet planted at shoulder width.
"I hope that this rational conversation will allow a more open mind on the council. I encourage you to talk to their representatives. They are more rational and educated than I am, and they can give you hard facts and statistics. But please, they don't want to cause trouble, if you allow them to do as they will, you might find these problems going away for you."
The human representative clearly did not seem convinced, but he didn't expect to convince her, he expected to convince the others who were more afraid than they were prejudiced.
"It seems as if we have some other potential policies to discuss, commander."
The chairwoman said, tapping her fingers on the table before her.
"I have a suggestion, ma'am."
"And that is?"
"A temporary revocation on the ban, that way you can SEE what the universe will be like without it, and you can judge for yourself whether The ban does any good. You don't have to overturn the law just yet, but temporarily suspend it, that way you can re institute at any time. Then you will have concrete proof. You can do testing, and polls and whatever else, then you would know for sure."
His suggestion turned into a discussion, that dragged on for many minutes before the chairwoman raised her hand,
"It has been decided, all in favor of this temporary proposal please indicate."
The voting lights flashed above them.
Commander Vir waited with baited breath.
[…]
He walked from the venue, hours after he had entered, totally tired and exhausted.
The flag felt heavy in his hands and his boots thudded with exhaustion on the white marble below him.
Outside, the protest field was surprisingly silent, though he could still see their flags.
As he walked closer, he could see that the vast majority of the crowd was sitting down.
Their voices reached him from a distance at first, until he realized they were calmly singing with each other.
Waiting for his verdict.
Suddenly the first people from the crowd noticed the two silhouettes coming from the chambers towards them.
A lone man and Drev were walking from the building.
The man was wearing riot gear, a full helmet, a shield, and carrying their flag, resting against his right shoulder.
The group of them began to stand, rising to their feet and yelling.
Pointing in his direction.
They quieted as he got closer.
"What did they say!? What did they say!?”
He stayed quiet, holding a hand in the air to silence them.
He passed the flag to the original protester who looked on at him with such an expression of pleading that he felt his eyes tingle a bit with rising emotion.
He had to look away, boosting himself onto Sunny's back, keying his mic.
The crowd was silent.
A thousand eyes fixed on one human and one Drev.
"I spoke to the GA."
They waited on tenterhooks,
"And after a long debate, and a slim majority the GA have decided..."
Flags whipped in the wind,
"To temporarily revoke the ban on inter-species relationships until a-"
He didn't get to finish his sentence, drowned out by a powerful wave of noise and joy so overwhelming that he was nearly knocked backwards off his feet.
The crowd surged forward, and Sunny staggered as the group surrounded them, pressing inward and upwards.
Adam found himself on the ground on his feet, packed in by bodies enclosed by hundreds of pairs of arms, which slapped on the shoulder and the arm, as every person tried their best to get one hand on him.
The flag from earlier was ripped off its stand and pressed into his hands.
He was deafened by cheering and an outpouring of gratitude so profound he had simply never experienced such emotion.
He looked up at Sunny, pressed in with him by the enthusiastic crowd.
And she nodded her head in approval.
He grinned.
He had to admit.
This felt pretty good.
Though, weather it was all over was a question for another time.
Previous First [Next](link)
Want to find a specific one, see the whole list or check fanart?
Here is the link to the master-post.
Intro post by me
OC-whole collection
Patreon of the author
Thanks for reading! As you saw in the title, this is a cross posted story written by starrfallknightrise and I'll just upload some of it here for you guys, if you are interested and want to read ahead, the original story-collection can be found on tumblr or wattpad to read for free. (link above this text under "OC:..." ) It is the Empyrean Iris story collection by starfallknightrise. Also, if you want to know more about the story collection i made an intro post about it, so feel free to check that out to see what other great characters to look forward to! (Link also above this text). I have no affiliations to the author; just thought I’d share some of the great stories you might enjoy a lot!
Obviously, I have Charlie’s permission to post this and for the people already knowing the stories, or starting to read them: If you follow the link and check out the story you will see some differences. I made some small (non-artistic) changes, mainly correcting writing mistakes, pronoun correction and some small additional info here and there of things which were not thought of/forgotten or even were added/changed in later stories (like the “USS->UNSC” prefix of Stabby, Chalar=/->Sunny etc). As well as some "biggemajor" changes in descriptions and info’s for the same stringency/continuity reason. That can be explained by the story collection being, well a story collection at the start with many standalone-stories just starring the same people, but later on it gets more to a stringent storyline with backstories and throwbacks. (For example Adam Vir has some HEAVY scars over his body, following his bones, which were not really talked about up till half the collection, where it says it covers his whole body and you find out via backflash that he had them the whole time and how he got them, they just weren't mentioned before. However, I would think a doctor would at least see these scars before that, especially since he gets analyzed, treated and goes shirtless/in T-shirts in some stories). So TLDR: Writing and some descriptions are slightly changed, with full OK from the author, since he himself did not bother to correct these things before.

I have been really stupid this week.
I don't have a lot of money and times are tough so I decided to shoplift some clothes from H&M What I didn't know is that the tag has a silent alarm inside of it and I walked out the store every time with the tags still on.
I stole for maybe 300$ in 4 different H&M's so my question is will I get fined / Prosecuted for this or do they even know that I shoplifted?
And can I return to the stores In 4-8 months without them recognizing me or will I get put in a database for shoplifters and get recognized?

I swam in my boyfriends pool last night and it’s a salt water pool. When I let my hair air dry there were perfect ringlet curls that I’ve been looking for for years. Would spraying salt water in my hair after a shower be helpful?

Hi everyone, I’m really in need of some advice right now.
Here’s the thing: before being diagnosed my study consisted in me having to constantly listen to true crime podcasts. I can’t explain but this has been my hiper focus for way too long. I would just hit play and do my stuff, do everything really, I could not do the dishes, or laundry without listening to it. But especially studying. If I tried music, I would have this impulse to just walk and walk and walk and nothing would be done by the end of the day.
Now, my issue: now that I’m diagnosed and medicated, things are…complicated: I can’t do both anymore. It makes me anxious and I’m constantly having to pause it, but then unpause it because the silence bugs me and at this point it became a habit, that I’m really struggling to get away from.
I tried music, but the singing distracts me, I tried classical music and it just makes me too emotional, and I can’t focus either.
I don’t know what to do, please if anyone knows how to deal with this issue I would appreciate it very much!

So i recently had a consultation with plastic surgeon regarding gynaecomastia he diagnosed me with grade 2 gyno and gave me a brief details of surgery expense.
I'm a student and can't afford surgery cost(55k). I want to know does any public hospitals in Hyderabad provide surgery for gyno.

Our medical costs (USA), student loans, little to no paid time off, and no paid family leave requirements, etc. As a former conservative, this is disgusting. I used to believe in the systems at work, but now, I understand how insanely sickening they are for people. Does anyone see any hope? After this debt ceiling bill was drafted, I felt entirely hopeless. Thoughts?