Peircing places near me

I just want to rave into the void, and other social media doesn't seem right.
At the end of last year I separated from my spouse of 6 years, partner of 9. There was some emotional abuse, and he was a wall-puncher and did strike me, just once, a year before we split (but said several other times he wanted to). I sacrificed too much self-development and stagnated in order to support him and did too much for him, even buying a house and working copious overtime to pay the 7k in attorney's fees for him to retain custody of his first child. It would have been worth it if I didn't spend every day after I came home from work with whiplash at the contrast between the respectful way I am always treated professionally with the frustration he always seemed to save for me.
I also fled my parents, who I had stupidly moved back in with in 2020, at the same time, and am now no contact with one and the other only gets a weekly video call with my child. I have been estranged in the past, but always wanted it to be temporary. This time it's permanent, can't fool me twice, and that feels right.
Since arriving where I am making more money than I ever have, I have started therapy to treat my CPTSD, and am branching out socially for the first time since my freshman year of college. It has been 15 years! My ex was just too clingy and dependent and I never felt able to do this before. He would say it was fine if I asked, but his jealous sulking would say otherwise and I knew it, so I never even tried. I made friends on an app who have landed me in a social group that is mostly based where I plan to move next year, and I have gone out twice in the last two weeks on weeknights with a group of people, which I never thought I would do again! I feel like I am twenty again, social anxiety be damned.
Single parenting is the hardest thing I have ever done, and I do have some resentment that my ex requested I have our child all but Wednesdays and every other weekend for the sake of his mental health–what about mine? But you know what, I am truly thriving for maybe the first time in my adult life. And for the most part, my ex is easy to work with, and we have a better relationship now than we ever did when we were together. I am not at all worried that things will suddenly go sideways when we finalize the legal side of things.
Some post-traumatic stress issues have of course popped up now that I am in a safe place, and I have a bit of a long road ahead with that, but I am learning how to at least manage and stubbornly not allowing negative self-talk to cut off positive interactions. Every decision is a chance to rewire my brain. I don't know what the future will bring, but it feels wide open.

My wife is a bad supervisor. Terrible even. She is the curmudgeon at work that makes everyones time at work miserable. Extremely petty, vindictive, and sets you up to fail by not giving you key information when needed.
1 1/2 years ago she was promoted to office supervisor because of her incredible work ethic. The partners loved her because in 5 years she was only late once, she always stayed late, she IS the model employee. She hit the ground running and implemented all the changes she felt the office was missing. Things were good for maybe a pay cycle after she was hired then tension started showing. She went from having work friends to having subordinates and everyone she worked with felt her attitude shift. The only people that appreciated the changes were the partners working miles away seeing the business as numbers on a page.
The business was working more efficiently than ever for about 4 months, then the bad reviews started. "The employees don't want to be there, don't bother bringing your pets to them" "Unprofessional staff" "Don't bother asking for advice, they'll make you feel stupid for not knowing what dogs should not eat." I knew immediately why the reviews were how they were because of the horror stories she was telling me about work. For a long time i was on the band wagon of her employees are so stupid, why don't they learn how to do their job?
Fast forward a year and she is still complaining about the poor work ethic her subordinates have. She is complaining about how the office use to be a family and they had drinks after work, but now everyone keeps to themselves. I got tired of the venting, told her I love you, but i can't spend 2 hours talking about how much she hates work everyday. I told her I don't like listening to problems without the ability to offer solutions. Any time I offer solutions I'm an ass for not listening and respecting her venting time and i don't like the one sided emotional dumps she has been doing for the past year.
The air was dead for a month after that. She wouldn't tell me anything, not even what she wanted for dinner. When I asked why she doesn't talk to me she said I'm just going to turn around and tell her she is complaining too much. I asked her what is it you want from me? She said i want to be validated when i'm venting. I was like ok... what are the problems you are having at work? She proceeds on telling me that her best worker left and another employee spends hours looking for work on company time and things have gotten worse than ever. She also said that things have gotten worse because i told her i don't want to listen to her vent if she doesnt allow me to voice opinions or solutions. When she is in venting mode, she doesn't want to hear anything that isn't adulating her because she "has it hard enough at work already." This is when our relationship took a bad turn.
She told me a story without using names about a situation at work. She went through the details of the situation and i was honestly horrified at what she said. She said that they have been dispensing medicine wrong for months because a tech has been using kgs instead of lbs. She ranted over and over again that protocols state that multiple people do the calculations just in case. Because of that mix up a small dog almost died because they gave it too much anesthesia during a dental. I was like "damn, for months? why didn't they check the units?" What was that for? I found out she was the person using kgs for calculating dosing.
Immediately she screamed "you never take my side" then proceeded to tell me about standard operating procedures and the appropriate ways of doing things. "REAL PROFESSIONALS USE MGS to KGS!"
I was like "whoa there. Don't yell at me, you need to chill. Don't yell at me while i'm trying to understand a situation." She yelled back "You don't need to understand the situation, you need to know what i say." I said "I DON'T KNOW WHAT YOU ARE SAYING. WHO'S WHO IN THIS STORY? Tell me names or tell me nothing, because for real for real i'd rather not know how this terrible fucking story is going." I was fuming. Then she did the "You are so hot when you are passionate" and i told her "you are missing me with that nonsense. Nothing about how you are acting is sexy to me."
She saw how i reacted to her temper so she changed the story she was telling me. She then starts to tell me about an employee that has missed a week of work and they are preparing to fire her. I tried to be supportive and told her it sucks you have to fire people. But i messed things up with a follow up question, "Why has she been absent?" I thought she was going to stab me after i finished the question.
I scowled back at her just as hard because I'm not the one to sling anger at. She chilled and told me the girl had a miscarriage and it caused complications. So i said "damn... that woman is really going through it. Does she have PTO?" She started to angrily tell me "What does PTO have to do with anything? She hasn't been at work and we are short staffed. I told you that my best worker left and another worker is looking for another job."
I said "CHILL. Listen to yourself. You have an employee that is probably going through the hardest time of her life and you are angry she is prioritizing her health over covering a shift." She answers "I had a miscarriage and was back at work the next day. People these days just have terrible work ethic." I told her "You are their supervisor. have some compassion." She said "They are not my friends. They are people i work with and thats it." I told her "Maybe that's why they stopped inviting you to drinks. You look at them like plebs." She said "they don't invite me because i'm their supervisor and it's weird to go out with your boss." I said "before you were the supervisor we went out for drinks 2 to 3 times a month with the woman that was the supervisor."
I heard enough by that point. I told her to forget telling me the situation and leave work at work because i can't in good conscience defend you behavior. She started to cry, screaming "No one understands me."
Her motivations. Her punitive side that gets compliance through the silent treatment and general bad vibes. Through the year and a half of her venting i've realized she is the problem. She is so controlling she corrects people as they speak by saying shit like "the optimal way of telling me that is..." Then goes about telling you what to do step by step because she finds how other people do things annoying. I understand her deeply, i don't like it. Her first instinct in most situation leaves so many hurt feelings. My friends asked me to stop bringing her to parties and get togethers because she kills he vibe. Turnover is through the roof at her job. The Glassdoor reviews about the terrible supervisor are all about her. Everyone in her circles are telling her about the kinds of behavior that rub them the wrong way and she just says things like "That sounds like a you problem" or "Women are always treated like this in the work place."
ALL HER COWORKERS ARE WOMEN!
I'm so dejected on the situation. I want to be a supportive husband. But I also want to tell her "You are an asshole. I can tell by the way you speak about people and how you treat me that I would sympathize 99 out of 100 times with your subordinates."

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So earlier this year I was having some health issues with my heart and kidneys. I was struggling with a lot of personal things, and was just all around in a bad place emotionally, physically and mentally. My doc wanted to try anti depressants on me to see if that would help me a bit. She could tell my psyche was slowly deteriorating and wanted to do something. For a couple of months I took them but I did not like the way they made me feel (full of energy with no purpose). It was not something I wanted to be on long term, so my doctor started working on reducing doses and getting me off the medication.
I have never been on any medication like that, and was unsure how my body would react. But what was even weirder is after I was done taking the meds. My gf had said during a conversation that I would just zone out. I wouldn't even notice, but she said I would be talking and just stop mid sentence and then randomly start up again but about something completely different. My mom and sister had said similar things to me as well.
Lately I have not been feeling like myself. And when I mean not feeling like myself, its like I feel that when I am under stress I am a completely different person. It is like I am a passenger in my own body. I know a long time ago I was in a very bad situation (life or death) and I had to draw on certain traits to survive that place. And even when I felt I drew on these traits, it felt like there was a completely different person controlling my body, thoughts. It felt... scary. Like the person who was speaking for me was a very dangerous person. It is very hard to explain what is going on, but I have been having instances where I catch glimpses of a conversation with someone or even my gf and I can't remember them. Like I knew we talked but it wasn't me they were talking to, it was the other guy.
I have no idea what is going on anymore. I feel like gaps of my day go missing and it feels impossible to recall. I don't know if I have some sort of trigger that makes me mentally checkout without realizing it or what, but I am noticing that my thoughts are becoming harder to organize. I am sorry if this is the wrong place to post this, but I am currently at a loss of what is going on and I am wondering if I will need to check into a psych ward or something until I know what is happening to my mind.

It's been 103 days since my last arrest. That's right, last arrest. I've been arrested twice for alcohol related mistakes.
It's also been 103 days since my last drink or any other substance. 100% clean.
I thank God that both of my arrests involved only me, and no other person. It's a bloody miracle that I've never hurt anyone while choosing to consume copious amounts of alcohol.
I'm not a terrible person, I just have a problem with being safe while choosing to drink. Consequences of my own actions, not a soul to blame other than myself.
Whenever I have the urge to drink, I just have to place myself back on that night 103 days ago, stumbling around so incredibly drunken that I couldnt find my own apartment. Mumbling and stumbling so bad that someone decided it was necessary to call the police on me. Being so drunken I couldn't even tell the police which unit I lived in. So they arrested me.
And I sat in the back of a cop car for the second time. Being so terribly upset with myself, while knowing I don't deserve to be upset, because this is what I wanted. I choose to put myself there, voluntarily and spending my money to do so.
It hurts to write this, but that's a good thing. It's a good hurt, a positive pain. A pain that reenforces better behavior, a pain that I shouldn't forget. I earned this pain.

I received a 30-day advanced warning that I was going to be placed on a PIP or offered severance so I shut up, tried to work hard at my current job, and began looking for a new one.
My 30 days are now up and my bosses said they still don’t like my performance. They told me HR will be in touch to begin paperwork for a PIP and severance. Luckily, I just got a job offer and signed it. I’m still waiting for my background check to clear.
My question is, do I give my 2-week resignation notice before the PIP paperwork, or should I accept the PIP and severance without saying anything?
I don’t understand how a PIP/severance will affect my new job or finding other in the future.
I have until Friday to give enough notice before I start the next job.

Strap in, friends, because this is a straight up paradigm shift.
So you know I've been talking to/seeing a very attractive person
...and I've been in my feelings about it because it turns out I have work-arounds/coping mechanisms for my insecurities instead of actually dealing with them. Awesome.
Old me would have laughed in his face when he indicated interest.
New me trusted my instincts about him and also that he wouldn't have approached me in the first place unless he was genuinely interested and attracted to me.
That confidence last all of a couple of days, which is when all my insecurities started raging to the fore.
ANYWAY.
He's been...awesome. He's communicating where he's at emotionally, he is empathizing with me, perspective-taking for me, holding space for my feelings, checking in with me, actively in therapy, letting me know what he needs and is capable of, et cetera.
Conflict with him doesn't push us apart, it brings us together.
And I don't mean in the push-pull cycle of break-up/make-up that ends up with increasingly shorter 'honeymoon stages'. What I mean is that we are on the same team. We are respecting the fuck out of each other. We appreciate when the other person brings something up instead of feeling defensive.
Conflict is an opportunity for connection and deeper understanding.
FAM. We are doing conflict ALL WRONG.
I think we think it has to be hard. I think we think that conflict is by definition contentious and antagonistic.
Argument does not have to heated or angry, no one has to 'win'; it can literally just be a discussion of diverging or opposite views.
I've literally said these actual words to him:
"It's a good boundary and I am impressed with you for keeping it." "Thank you for keeping me accountable on that." "Thank you for your understanding and grace."
And he's reflecting my feelings back to me and apologizing for his actions, advocates for my right to express my feelings, seriously attends to and considers my ideas and what I'm telling him, and positively reinforces to me what I am doing right.
What. the. fuck.
Guys, we have been wasting our lives trying to 'communicate' with people who are not on our team in the first place and honestly cannot handle reality in some way, shape, or form. How many victims of abuse hollow themselves out for a toxic or abusive person, trying so hard to empathize with them, thinking that if they only are only 'healthier' that they can get past the conflict into a healthy relationship.
The conflict IS the relationship.
I don't know where this is all heading but if I simply end up with an amazing friend that I respect the fuck out of, it is an absolute win. He is an amazing person, or at least doing his best to be one. I am so happy to know him as a person and that he exists in the world.
We are on each other's team.
If I could bottle how I feel right now so you could experience it, you would never, ever go back to some bullshit.
This is easy even when it is emotional.
I need us all to start being attracted to self-awareness first, and honesty. We need to literally be repelled by people who are not self-aware or honest with themselves. We need to establish a foundation of deep respect.
I suspect we are honing in on connection and chemistry, turning it into attachment, and calling that love because we feel the love-feeling even though it hasn't been built through time and deep understanding. That is not love.
The advice to 'date your best friend' sounds SO UNSEXY
...but what if he's hot, tho. The sexy is there and also somehow the least important part because you are so deeply attracted to who they are as a person and their soul.
I have tried ending things multiple times with this amazing person
...because I was actively self-sabotaging. I'm working on that. But just knowing how it is supposed to feel is such a game-changer.
Conflict should BE the repair, not the thing we have to repair from.
It literally can be something you enjoy, where you learn more about each other!

In short, I am going to have 2-3 first names, but I'm not sure which should be my primary name. I want a name/nickname that is androgynous and probably more practical to be my primary name. And, you know, one that suits me and sounds good. Each name has unique pros and cons, so I'm struggling to pick. My full dilemma is a bit more complex, but I figure here is a fine place to start. (vey/ven/vims, they/them)
View Poll

-Bubbles gets beaten nearly to death because Herc didn’t make good on his promise, because… -Herc was too busy giving Randy up as his CI, because… -Herc is clearly in over his head and should have never been given stripes.
All while the “Colvin takes the corner kids to Ruth’s Chris” subplot is taking place.

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Help needed!
My 7 mo old has decides that being on his changing pad is a good place to do tummy time and roll around like an alligator doing a death roll.
If I try and put him on his back he screams and screams. It's absolutely BRUTAL trying to change his dirty diapers and it's getting to me.
If I can get it off him without poop going everywhere, I try my best to put a clean diaper and snap up his onesie while he's on his tummy. I've got a mobile above his head that keeps his attention for about 30 seconds and I try singing and making faces, but this only works enough for me to undo the velcro.
He's going to launch himself off this thing at the worst, and at the best, I'm going to go insane 🤪
Does anyone have any suggestions? Is this just a phase or is this my new existence? Lol

What’s everyone up to today? Does anyone have a recommendation for a new tv show to watch? I’m close to finishing the show I’m currently watching
Anyways, bored at work today boss is out so I won’t have anything to do. Let’s entertain each other :)
I’m down to talk about whatever tbh I’m a pretty open book. Also down to play iMessage games if anyone wants?
I like to play video games, workout, go hiking, hangout with friends and watch tv/movies. Harry Potter and Star Wars are my favorites. I’m kinda introverted so a lot of times I prefer to just chill at home lol.
Share some of your interests with me or goals for the year!
I’m going on an international trip next year so give me recommendations!
Also, if anyone is from or near Ohio DM me it would be cool to make some friends nearby!

Hi there, not really sure why I’m writing this. I’m just a bit lost on what to do.
Back story.
Was with my ex for 6years she has MH issues (EUPD, anxiety and suicidal ideation) 3 years ago we found out she was pregnant with our twins. (She also has polysistic ovary syndrome)
Shortly after the birth of our twins she became very withdrawn and the suicide attempts became for frequent whilst I was looking after the twins 1f, 1m,
At 6 months old the twins and my ex were put in a month we and baby unit to help her with her MH and her bond with the babies.
After 4 months in the unit she was discharged, two days after discharge she attempted an OD again.
Because the twins were over a year old she was taken out of perinatal care and placed in community care.
Around October 2021 I got diagnosed with Covid, then long Covid and it now transpires I have psoriasis arthritis, fibromyalgia and potentially lupus,
Last April she decided to up and leave us all. Saying she needed a break from the twins. This cycle has continued for the last year of her upping and leaving, not seeing the twins, getting more depressed then coming back, trying really hard with the twins and then completely shutting down again and leaving.
In February this happened again after I found out she’d cheated on me again (she’s done this maybe 15times over the 6 years because of her impulsive behaviour)
Since then she has seen the twins maybe 10 times. And I’ve had to lend her over £1150 to keep her in food and things as she cannot control money and is always impulsively spending.
Now our son has been referred to early autism assesments and speech and language therapy as he is non verbal.
My ex doesn’t ask for photos nor asks to face time. I suggest visits and then she 90% of the time bails on them. She claims it’s because of her MH and she says she is constantly sad,
I’m just at a loss of what to do now.
Sorry for the long ramble..

Me and my partner very quickly had a child (not planned) and moved into a rented house from his family. After 3 years together I decided I was interested in marriage. At first he said absolutely not. He is not interested in it, never has seen the point and to him it's just a peice of paper. Almost 5 years together and me bringing it up alot, I said I don't know why you don't want to marry me we have a child and have been together almost 5 years, he explained that marriages he's seen have always ended in devorce and only those who didn't get married seem happy. I asked well do you expect me to leave you or for you to leave me and he said no. I brang it up AGAIN a few weeks after and he said that for all intense and purposes we are engaged. So I said lets get a ring if you really mean that. So we picked out a ring and ordered it in my size. But he seemed really uninterested. Sort of almost rushing me to decide and when I got a bit anxious if it was the right one he got short with me and said he can't choose I need to just make a decision. It just felt really unspecial? I love him, but we have many differences and we've really had to fight to get where we are. He isn't the sort of guy to celebrate birthdays, Christmases ect which is has been a big issue since I'm the oppersit and love to celebrate. We disagreed on parenting. I didn't originally want to be a sahm either, and when I finally became one he started to almost resent me. I had to explain I don't have my own income so he needs to give me some sort of money to take our child out, buy him clothes ect. And he just seemed annoyed. But when I said I'd work he got angry and said how does that make him feel if I'm acting like he can't provide. We had big arguments over it and explained both sides. He was jealous of me being able to spend this time with our child and that's apparently why he acted this way. And I explained that it's hard work some days and not to dismiss it as doing nothing all day or getting to do what ever I want. Some days I still don't think he understands. The life we have built is so good, and our child is so lucky. They have everything they need and want. I feel able to enjoy being a sahm more now my partner doesn't get angry at me for not having a spotless house, and that I can actually have money to take my child to places like softplay. I feel really stuck some days. Alot of the ways he treated me were due to things going on, his father got very sick and passed away, I had awful ppd and ppa for two years without any support from Dr's ( I tried but they didn't do anything for me). I just want to know what outsiders view is. And there's lots I've missed but this is sort of the things going around in my head right now.

Gf broke up with me about 10 months ago, we had a rough couple of weeks but we didn’t officially let go of each other. 6 months ago she started to change, but hugs and company were still there, I was aware that we were not getting back, that I needed to change, become better. 2 weeks ago she said she was attracted to someone else, just because of their looks. And it hit me again, but harder this time. I always had hope as we are currently living together, do everything together, laugh together. But not anymore. We renewed our lease 2 months ago. I have to leave, but due to our situation, I can’t stand the idea of completely losing her, leaving her to find a place of her own with some strangers, or to suffer due to her situation, but I can’t stand the idea of her going out with someone new, knowing that she doesn’t have the same feelings nor will ever do. We’ve talked about almost everything we did wrong (mostly me), what are the things we hate about each other, and things that we are grateful for. She says that she knows that no one will ever love her as much as I did. It was heartbreaking to hear that she would never be in a relationship with me again, that she pictures herself with a lot of future guys, and someone who will love her just like she is.
I thought this info would help, but I just feel awful. I get extremely anxious when we are heading to a night out with friends (most of our friends are shared), since she might end up going to some guy friend’s house, or make out with someone.
She sees me as a sibling now, she says that her love transformed from a relationship love to a family type of love. She cares and loves me deeply still, but not in the same way anymore.
I can move out and possibly ruin her mental health by just doing so, or, I can figure out a way to get over her, see her as a sibling, and just not care what she does, for one more year. Then we can part ways forever.
I’m seeing a therapist but we don’t share the same values. Any advice, or anything on your mind about this will help me a lot.

Hello. I'll be working in foster city in a couple weeks and will be commuting for the time being. I am currently looking for a room to rent in or near by. If anyone has any information please reply here or send me a message. Thank you.

First / Previous / Next
After I sent River and Ocean away, I took a moment to compose myself. Omar is watching, trying to see how I'm reacting, I think.
"Melody, if you're going to use your Voice, you need to be very careful about the things you order. You didn't specify to bring the Marines back alive, and now they're dead."
"You're right Omar, I need to be very careful when I'm wording things."
Ava doesn't seem to mind. "They did do what you asked though. and so quickly! I expected to not see them for at least a week."
It doesn't seem to bother Um'reli either. "You have to admit, it sends a message. People weren't taking you seriously before, and between this and what you did to Starlight... they're going to realize you are the real deal."
Omar looked ahead "Speaking of the real deal, look." He pointed.
We look out and...
Oh my.
The crowd.
It's wall to wall people in front of the entrance to the Throne. More people than I've ever seen in one place before. Not here, not on Starbase Picaresque, not even at home on Meíhuā.
And they are all here to see me.
I wish there was a rear entrance to the Throne. I bet there is, I wish we looked harder to find it.
I sighed. If we're going to do this, we might as well do it right. I looked back and my friends. "Okay, we're on. I'm going to try and impress everyone and see if they'll make a path for us. Once we're up I'll sit on the Throne and you can just stand behind me and look... official I guess. Ready?"
Nods all around. Good.
I turned back forward and thought about how I wanted to appear. My gown started to rustle like I was in a stiff breeze and my crown and wings appeared. I thought about the connection to the Reach and was able to tweak the air settings to get a breeze going around here too and as people looked back to see where the wind was coming from, they saw us.
The cheering created a wall of sound that we walked headlong into. It was practically a physical thing. As we stepped into the crowd Um'reli and Omar pushed forward to clear a path and the people parted like grass on the plains.
As we walked, I spread my wings for the look of it and they hung over the crowds as we walked past. People reached out to touch them as I passed and - I'll be honest here - I didn't think people would be able to feel them as they're made out of light and fog by the Nanites, but they could! I could even feel their fingers brushing over the feathers.
It's very odd to have a sensation from a limb you've never had before. If I concentrated, I could hear the individual cries from people in the crowd as we walked, but after trying that for a couple of seconds it was entirely too overwhelming, so I just concentrated on the noise as a wall of sound without definition. It was easier to take that way.
We made it to the top of the gallery, and I turned to face everyone. every seat was filled and the entire lower level spilled out into the street almost all the way to the dock. I had never seen this many people here before all in one place! Aviens, Mariens, Azurians, the people who wear pressure suits and a few others I haven't met yet, all shapes, sizes and colors.
They were here, to cheer me.
They were here, to worship me.
This, was all for me.
Omar, Um'reli and Ava took up station behind me, seen but in the background as I raised my hands and spread my wings for silence. A hush descended, and everyone stared up at me, waiting.
"People of Reach of the Might of Vxxz. Thank you for coming. Today is a great day. A Builder, an Empress returns to you, so that you can become whole once again!"
Cheers and shouts. I hold my hand up for silence once again.
"The road ahead is long. The Gate is locked, the starships here in need of repair and systems all over the Reach have languished. But! You remain. We remain. Now that I am here, I will begin repairs and upgrades. I will make our starships move again. I will open the Gates. I will reunite my Empire and we shall once again, rule the stars!"
More cheers. I wait for them to die down before continuing.
"Today though, you can come to me directly with your immediate grievances about things here, and me and my fellow Builders-" I gesture behind me "-will work to resolve as many as we can."
I sit in the Throne and feel the familiar cold tang of connecting to the Starbase. It feels different this time, smoother, more familiar. I lean back... and let go...
From all around the arena, my voice is heard. Everyone perceives my voice as coming only to them, direct to them. It's as if I am speaking to them, and them only.
"Speak your issue, and be heard."
"We are a family of 6 and yet, our quarters are such th-"
"Please, Empress, my son, he nee-"
"Those nosy Aviens next door are alway-"
"Food prices keep going higher and hig-"
As everyone talks to 'me' I am keeping a list of the grievances. I'm not sure how I'm doing it, I assume it's the Nanites plus how I'd naturally try and keep a list of information being used together, but as they speak, I track what their problem is. Amazingly, after they speak, I'm able to offer some soothing words to everyone. It's me and it's not me at the same time. Even with my full Builder persona activated, I don't think I have the parallel processing to complete a feat like this. The Starbase and the Nanites must be doing the majority of the work.
After only an hour or so, it's done. Everyone that wants to speak has spoken, and I have thousands upon thousands of complaints to sort. I give a farewell and offer a blessing to everyone, and order the restaurants across the whole of the Reach to feed everyone for free today - promising they will be reimbursed for their work.
Royal part over, it becomes somewhat of a festival atmosphere around the Throne area. People milling about, talking with each other, catching up with old friends, eating and laughing. From my perch on the Throne, I watch the celebration. I get an overwhelming sense of relief tinged with a small amount of anxiety over what it means to have an Empress again. It strengthens my resolve to do my best to have it mean good things for the people that live here.
How am I going to pay for all this? What to other Empresses do?
They owned the banks. They just ordered it.
Wait. There are banks here, right? Is it really that simple?
Simple is often not *easy*. But yes. You own your whole empire, including the banks.
That's it! That's how we'll pay everyone and fund everything. A quiet part of me yells that it probably isn't that easy, and isn't that how inflation happens and don't I need to start taxing people to get money to go in or something? I should look into it further, but it's a very quiet part of me right now. I can tune it out pretty easily.
I turn my attention to the list of complaints that were collected and with the Throne and the Nantes help, I try and do some rough categorization.
Neighbor Complaints - this is the largest list and will most likely be ignored. Should it though? Maybe I'll have the others look them over in more detail.
Food issues - this is second largest. We can look over it and see if there's some underlying issue. I can also look into the disused food distribution centers. Maybe they're turned off because there isn't the resources to use them anymore, maybe it's another reason. I feel like I can fix this one, and if I do, it will give me the biggest boost to my legitimacy.
Environmental issues - third largest and issues related to the environment here. I had just turned up the settings here yesterday, so I hope this helps eliminate those. This should be an easy win. Mei'la had mention something about how power usage felt wasteful here. Maybe there's something we can do to boost efficiency.
The rest of them are things like, asking when we're going to launch the Starships again and quite a few asking when I'm going to "take care of" the issue of other sapient groups. Hmm. I don't like that one. Luckily, the questions seem to be in the minority, but still.
Job finished for now, I stand up and stretch. My goodness, that was boring. I hope I don't have to do it very often. Looking around, I find Omar, Um'reli and Ava wandering around the area behind the Throne. "Find anything interesting?"
Omar gestures towards me. "Actually yes, look here. There's a door behind the Throne, out of sight of the people on the ground.
"What's behind it?"
"I don't know, there's no handle and I can't get it to open."
"You've had the Nanites for a day, try to do it as a Builder. Just concentrate on the door and imagine it doing what you order."
Omar stares at the door, and I can see the concentration in his hands and on his face. There's a small breeze around him and with a hiss, the door slides open into the ceiling.
"You did it! Congratulations, Builder!" I'm super proud of him.
Omar stares at the open door, and then down at his hands, and over to me. "That... was... the most amazing thing! I just thought about the door opening and it did! It's like magic."
Now he will be one of *us*. He has felt the power.
I'm just happy he was able to do it. "Come on Omar, lead on. Let's see what's in here."
We go into the darkened room, and Omar again concentrates and the lights come up. Like most Builder stuff it clearly hasn't been touched in a very long time, but again, there isn't much dust here at all. It looks like everyone left for the day and shut the door... but then the door stayed shut for who knows how long.
Inside the room is 6 chairs that are arranged around a long table. Each of the chairs is in the same green metallic substance as the Throne. They're molded into the floor instead of the ceiling, but to me they look like where the Builder operators would sit when running the station.
"This looks like where the Builders sit when they are the starbase. Come, let's sit and try it out. It'll feel odd when you first sit, and if you get that feeling in the back of your brain to let go and sink further, don't yet. You need at least another day of Nanite development, but I think we're safe to connect lightly. I'll stay out of the seats and if I see anyone in distress, I'll pull them out. See if you can find my notes from the celebration."
Omar, Um'reli and Ava all sit gingerly. Ava is especially nervous - she's the one that saw me scream when I tried to integrate too quickly, but after a moment, I can feel them with my connection to the Reach.
"Wow, this is amazing! Melody, can you hear me?" It's Ava.
"Sure can Ava, it sounds like you're standing right next to me." I look over, and her body is just sitting in the chair, relaxed, breathing normally.
"Okay, I found your notes Melody. Looks like you sorted it somewhat already? Wow, how did you collect all this data?" Um'reli must have found my notes first.
"I have to admit, I don't really know. I just... knew what to do. The Nanites know more than I do, so sometimes I just let go and let them drive. I have a feeling that isn't always the right choice, but until I get more familiar with things, sometimes I feel like it's the only thing to do."
"Melody? I found the docking bay. It's empty right now, but I think I see how to maneuver High Line from the umbilical to the docking bay. Once it's inside we can get a better idea of what it would take to refit it with human systems and make it a viable starship again."
Oh, wonderful! I'm so glad Omar is here.
"Yes please Omar, do that. We'll go down and check it out once you've finished and everyone has a chance to get more familiar with how to be Reach."
While everyone is working, I go back over to the Throne and sit down. I get reconnected and just look around for a while. I like watching the movement of people on the Reach. It's... soothing I guess? Oh hey, up further are gardens and parks! I was worried there would be no greenery here. I should ride the train up later and explore.
I can feel Omar, Um'reli and Ava behind me exploring things, learning how they work, and with them here, I swear the Starbase is starting to work better. I can see people looking in wonder at lights that were long off and now are on again, breezes blowing as the air freshens, and even I'm noticing people starting to clean and sweep. It really feels like we're turning a corner here. I get an alert that for the first time in [DEMARCATION ERROR] another train is wheeled out from storage. It's needed for the crowds.
I wish I knew how long [DEMARCATION ERROR] was. If the starbase doesn't know, it was probably a long time. That really speaks to the power of the original Builders if 11 million people could live here with effectively no administration the whole time.
It's almost too good to be true...
My reverie is interrupted by a radio signal. I look around, ah, there it is. It's the long range comms. Someone is signaling us.
Huh, FarReach is signaling us.
"Okay Melody, very funny. You've made your point. Open the Gate now please." FarReach isn't even bothering with any niceties.
"Hello FarReach. How are you doing?" I admit, I'm being a little petty here.
"Melody! Do you understand what's happening? Do you see how you're changing? Most of the BIs don't see it, but your commanding voice thing and that 'don't worry about it' aura doesn't work on AIs. I see your changes, what's happening to you, what you're becoming. Keep down this path and you won't be the Empress Melody.
You'll be the Tyrant Melody.
"Ava said there aren't very many AIs around on this side of the galaxy, I have a hunch I know why. An Empress would not keep people around that can't be placed in thrall."
"FarReach! I am insulted. You're saying that just because I can't control them, I wouldn't like AIs?"
"Maybe not you yourself, at least not yet, but that Empress nano machine package that was installed on you wouldn't like AIs for sure. It sure feels like the decisions you're making are more their decisions than your own. I know you Melody, this isn't you."
Isn't me? Every decision I've made so far has been mine. Sure, the Nanites have helped, but if I didn't like what they were recommending, I wouldn't have done it.
"We caught up to that Mariens, Ottarn by the way. We took them and their tiny crew aboard. Their ship was basically junk taped together. Even if he had made it to the Gate, they probably wouldn't have made it to their destination. We're going to take them wherever they want to go, and then head home."
They took Ottarn? Hmm. I don't know if this is a good thing or a bad thing or anything. I'm worried about it though, I wonder why?
"FarReach, did you call us up just to insult me and call into question all the good work we're doing here? We're helping the people of this Starbase! We've already improved the environmental systems, and now we're beginning to retrofit one of their broken Starships."
"Ugh, Fine Melody. We don't have to agree. You and Omar and Um'reli and Ava stay over here on your side of the Galaxy and leave the rest of humanity alone. I don't care anymore, I hate it here. Open the Gate."
"Or else what?"
"Or else, Empress I will link away." It really sounds like FarReach is speaking through gritted teeth. AIs are usually so reserved and chill. I've never heard one as angry as FarReach right now.
"Why are you being so mean to Melody, FarReach? She hasn't done anything to you." I forgot that Ava, Omar and Um'reli can hear this call too. I wonder if FarReach knew too?.
"FarReach, I think I have to agree with Ava and Melody. Our leaving was our on decision. Melody didn't place us in thrall or order us to come with her with her Voice. She didn't even come back to you. Ava came and asked us. We're here because we want to be here." I can feel the emphasis in Omar's voice. He seemed like the one that was least up for the business of ruling, it that sure made it sound like he's all in. I'm practically bursting with pride.
"I can't believe I'm here arguing with you four. Open the damn Gate, or I'm going to WEP the reactors and link away."
"Wait, how can you WEP with Captain Q'ari locked up?" Um'reli sounds genuinely curious.
"I declared Captain Q'ari unfit to lead thanks to Melody's meddling Um'reli. That makes me the commander and as the commander I can declare WEP on myself. Anyway, did you really think AIs can't WEP their own reactors? We allow the commander to order it. If I link away and it fails, then my destruction will be on your head. I already linked a beacon back to Starbase Picaresque. They never linked one back so I don't know if it worked, but if it did, then they already know about what's going on here. I am going to ask one. more. time. Melody. Open the Gate, please."
Ugh. The nerve! Still, I don't want FarReach to try and link away and have it fail.
Or worse, have it succeed and then they can link back with a couple of dreadnoughts and Starjumpers... before we're ready for them.
Fine. I lean back in my Throne and let go just a little more until I expand beyond the Starbase and... There. There's the Gate. The lock isn't strong, you just know where... to... push... and... there.
Outwardly, nothing changed, but I can tell the Gate is open now to regular travel. "I unlocked the Gate FarReach. Go home. Tell them what we have. Let everyone know that those who want to join us are welcome to."
"Not a chance, Melody. You're on your own. I was friends with the friendly Information Warfare Officer who had a knack for firearms and loved coffee. I hope she's still in there somewhere. I'd like to meet her again." FarReach closes the connection. From my vantage point I can watch them thrust away. After only a few moments, the Gate glows painfully blue, and...
They're gone.
Why am I sad? I'm so sad she left. I still had so much to show them. So much good we're doing.
"Melody? Melody? Are you all right?" I can hear Ava, she's not connected to the chairs anymore. I open my eyes and see her looking at me on the Throne. "You're crying."
"Oh Ava." I stand up and hug her. "You heard her. FarReach says I'm not me anymore. She said that I've changed and that she misses the old me."
"Oh Melody. She doesn't know what she's talking about. You're still you. You're you plus so much more."
"Ava is right." Um'reli stands from her chair and comes over. "You're still you Melody. You've been changed, this is true, but everyone changes. A change like this won't fundamentally change who you are."
I sniff. "Thanks Ava, thanks Um'reli. I just... FarReach was my friend. She sounded so angry."
Omar puts a hand on my shoulder. "Don't worry about it Melody. We know we're here for good reasons. That's enough. Besides, once we have our own Starship, we can head back to Human/K'laxi space and show them what we're doing. All kinds of people, AI and BI will want to come with us and help out. You'll see."
"Thanks everyone, I'm so lucky to have you here with me."
Omar is right. We'll show them.
We'll show them all.
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Big rant. My sister is divorcing her husband and they have two cats together. She moved out of the shared apartment in with a friend where pets aren’t allowed. Her soon to be ex husband is still living in the apartment and looking after the cats. He wants to move in with some of his friends soon (again no pets allowed) and then see where he goes from there.
Now my sister has flat out told me that i „will have to take the cats in for 2-3 months“. I‘ve asked what made her so sure that she or her ex could take the cats back after that time, Since neither of them is actively looking for flats where pets are allowed. She just said that she „guarantees that they will take them back then“. I‘m quite sure she expects me to get attached and keep the cats so she can live cheap and can visit her cats with me sometimes. That won‘t happen.
Now i usually love cats and i have a tomcat of my own who i found as a grown up stray.
The thing is, he‘s highly intelligent. I train with him daily to make sure he‘s enriched while understanding what he‘s not allowed to do. For example, he understands he’s not allowed on counters or tables. But he can have every bed and chair in the house instead. When i talk to him there’s this comprehension in his eyes, then he does what i asked.
Besides that he‘s very clean and doesn’t have accidents around the house and is profoundly chill and docile. He only meows when it’s feeding time, he doesn’t run around mad and he doesn’t try to destroy or push things. I have a wall of expensive houseplants and he doesn’t fuck with any of them. I even gave him a cushion among the plants to sleep on. I play with him daily and let him do little tricks that he‘s picking up really fast.
I’ve had him for 8 years and we’re such a good team. He understands what i want from him by word or gesture. A dream of a cat and a perfect fit for me. I make sure he stays that way by working with him on boundaries, bonding with him and rewarding him a lot.
Now my sisters cats? She got them from random people on the internet when they were kittens. She chose them bc they were cheap and small and cute. She got the first cat as an impulse and after a year she got the second cat bc the first one was acting out too much and wanted too much attention. She hoped they‘d play with each other and she would be left alone gaming in peace. They sometimes shit or pee on furniture. They are destroying things, scratching corners, jumping on everything, knocking stuff over, biting plants and meowing a lot. They like to be pet only sometimes and otherwise they are just smelly devils that refuse to listen. She doesn’t train or work with them in any way. It’s like two wild animals in a house. Like the cats were meant to be furniture and play with themselves.
To add to all that. My BF is going to move in with me soon and he doesn’t like cats much except for mine. He has agreed to take them in for a week at most just as a trial to see if we could get along. He was interested in seeing if i could turn the cats around and train them like my boy. I kinda doubt that. On top of that we wanted to look into adopting a friend for my tomcat but we‘re being smart about it and not rushing it. If we by chance find a cat that checks all the boxes we‘ll get that one. Idc if it’s this year or later.
My sister is super mad that we would consider taking in a new cat but that i don’t want to take „her babies“ in. She claims she would do the same for me… only that my cat is a well behaved little gentleman and wouldn‘t cause any issues. Her cats will probably rip up my plants, shit on my bed and drive away my boyfriend with their nightly screaming matches. Besides. She‘s not actively looking for a place that allows cats. That‘s basically just a trap so i either keep them or she can be mad at me for surrendering them to a shelter. Those cats are just not a good fit for my life.
I just needed to get that out. Don‘t get kittens just bc they look cute. They aren’t developed yet and could have a personality that just doesn’t match you at all. Then you‘re stuck with a loud high energy animal when you wanted a lazy couch potato cat or an aloof cat when you wanted a cuddle buddy. You wouldn’t just get a husky puppy as a lap dog or a pug puppy as a hunting dog. Then why get kittens without knowing what character traits they will get? The character is just the base and then they still need to be trained. There’s this wide spread belief that cats are resistant to training but they are just more difficult than dogs. With proper education and lots of empathy and repetition cats can be made to understand basic rules. Cats aren’t furniture!
Tldr: my sister has crazy cats that she wants me to take in for an indefinite amount of time. I don’t want to do that bc they don’t fit in my life and i frankly don’t like their personalities.