Severine

Truth. I'd say I agree with all of this. I found it hard to follow (and not in a "wow, there are so many layers to this complex masterpiece, I must watch it again!" way, but in a "come on guys, give it a rest" way), but visually stunning. And yes, it's a very good movie for a "miss" which is a compliment in its own right. Yeah, there are quite a few younger players I like and find really fun to watch (Felix Auger-Aliassime, Gaël Monfils, Taylor Townsend, Leila Fernandez, etc.) but who need to achieve consistency if they're going to be serious contenders in the long term. I would give my left pinky to see someone knock Djokovic off his pedestal. Oh yes, BG3 is MASSIVE. Don't have any delusions about a quick run. Haha, glad you understand. And I did try to trim the lists! 😂 I don't meet many other people into Nick Cave. Apparently 'Red Right Hand' featured on 'Peaky Blinders' at some point, because a friend of mine had it playing in her car while we were carpooling somewhere, and I said, "Oh, I love this song!" and she said, "Yeah, 'Peaky Blinders' has a lot of great music - this one's by a guy I've never heard of, so I guess he's pretty new" and I felt like I got punched in the stomach Daydreaming is one of those special songs, where if it comes on at the right time, like when I'm lying on the couch staring outside through foggy windows at the rain and thinking about serious things, I feel transported to another dimension and it's the most incredibly perfect moment...but if it comes on when I'm in the middle of work or chatting with a friend or something, I skip it because the vibe is all wrong and I just can't even.

I collected all these comments together just to demonstrate that it seems like none of us have bad handwriting, given that it seems everyone does these days. That makes us average I want to make it clear that I don't think neater or more aesthetically pleasing handwriting is better in any objective sense. As long as it's legible and communication is achieved, writing is doing its job. My goal is 100% based on doing something that I will be happy about and take pleasure from - I will write more and enjoy writing more if I like the product. So please, when you hear me complaining about the shape of my 'd' or whatnot, don't think that I don't realize it doesn't actually matter in any real sense Another one living among us! Reveal your secrets, mysterious creature of the outer planes! This is not what I was going for 😂 The loops on my 'g's are one of the things I'm happy with and don't intend to change. I don't want standard textbook writing, just a more consistent/legible version of my own style. And thanks for the kind words and also for understanding that wanting to improve it doesn't mean I'm in the depths of despair about letter sizing or anything dramatic Good point re: cursive, which is a whole different kettle of fish. I'm focusing on printing here (although when I write quickly, it tends to kind of merge together a bit) because I don't use cursive much anymore. I probably will tackle my cursive (which is actually a bit neater than my printing) at a future date, but a surprising number of people can't read cursive anymore (a lot of people now in their late teens and early 20s didn't learn it in school) so I don't use it much. I like your tip about the 't', thanks. I know what you mean about little mental flags.

We begin with tables so that we may build toward charts and graphs: I'm not counting Sunday or Monday at all, since I posted my challenge on Tuesday. And for Tuesday I am giving myself a pass on the elliptical since I posted my challenge late in the day (but I'm still giving myself credit for the two things I did yesterday, hah!) Here is the first of the promised random photos: a mathematically perfect dahlia we bought at the farmer's market from an adorable mother/daughter duo running a small startup flower farm. It's odd talking to the daughter, in particular, and feeling a bit like I'm talking to a younger version of myself (I was running a startup flower farm in 2016 when I first joined NF) but it's been cool because it's not often I get to talk to anyone about flower farming these days, and I enjoy the flowers we buy from them even more because I'm so happy to support their business. Music-wise, I am on an L.E.J. kick at the moment. Here's one of my favourite songs from their 2018 album: For handwriting practice today, I did two things. I practiced writing out letters by themselves, letting myself do what comes naturally (i.e. not hypercorrecting) but also not rushing too much. Most letters are legible but many are not consistent and the letter 'e' continues to confound me, looking half the time like a drunk 'c'. General things I would like to work on for letter forms: consistent sizing and shapes (consistent within reason, I'm not a robot), closing circles (for example, one of the 'g's in the middle looks like a 'y' because the circle wasn't closed), and consistent line placement (some letters sit on the line but some float above it). Anyway, I then wrote out some pangrams I know to focus more on letter combinations and connections. Some things I actually like (my initial 'H' on the fourth line, most of the 'g's and 'y's, most of the 'f's), but there are a lot of things I want to improve. See how the 'w' at the end of 'vow' is so ill-defined it almost looks like a 'u'? And the 'a' in 'Pack' looks like a 'u' because the circle isn't closed? See the way some letters are tiny (the 'e' in 'dozen' is ridiculous) and some are bigger? And the inconsistent spacing and the way some letters float way above the line? None of this is a disaster in isolation, but added up it leads to a sense of sloppiness. I'm not aiming for some kind of idealized standard - I like some quirks in handwriting. My loopy 'g's and dagger 'f's can stay. I just want a more consistent and harmonious version of my writing. Anyway, practice today felt good, and I noticed that loosening my grip on the pen helped a bit. For any stationery nerds out there, this was all written on Tomoe River paper (by way of Nanami) with a Uniball Signo 0.38.

This is such a cool idea for a challenge. You've essentially developed your own wellbeing RPG. I didn't realize you were so close to Pittsburgh! I have some good memories there. And it sounds like your trip was fantastic. Looking forward to seeing any pictures you might feel like sharing (no pressure of course) as I love hiking/forests/lakes. Also, love that journal. There seem to be quite a few of us notebook people hanging around

I'm here and following and smiling to see you living well, being true to yourself, and feeling good about your days. Congrats on levelling up! Nice to see effective communication and supportive training. More levelling up is imminent. And TIL that I was born in the same year as Tank. Our experiences of pop culture were very different and I don't identify with most of the things people our age in the US/Canada consider emblematic of their childhood, so for me the main cool thing about learning that other people are the same age as me is seeing all the different directions/outcomes/permutations that X number of years can lead to. It's a cool reminder of how full of possibility life is. I hope in another 10 or 20 years we're all still swapping stories.

Hello! Here to follow (and to shamelessly steal ideas from your campaign recaps, haha) and support. I'm so sorry your shoulder is acting up. My right shoulder and I have a nemesis-level rivalry...let me know if you want to trade suggestions for PT exercises. Which makes me feel really old now that I've typed it 😅 I'm impressed with your perseverance on your draft, especially given how much else you have going on. Keep on with it 💪

Congrats on the upcoming birthday! I just turned 42 in August, so I can assure you that I've scouted around and this decade looks pretty safe thus far I hear what you mean about being fine with the age itself and yet simultaneously amazed that it's happening. I once read a really great essay by Ursula K. Leguin about the continuity of personhood over time - to what extent does it even make sense to say that a woman who is in her mid 80s is the same person as the toddler or teenager or 40-something woman whose body grew into that old woman? And what is it that unifies that person across time? In many ways, I feel like the same person as I did 20 or even 25 years ago (which I think is where some of the "Wait, how am I this old?" feeling comes from), but at the same time, I enjoy seeing the ways in which I've evolved and learned and become better. One of the things I love about NF is that it's a group of people who, despite the diversity of the group and the goals we pursue, all want to become better while still respecting and caring for the people we are today. I think that's the reason a lot of us have been here for so long. re: New England winters - not sure if this is an issue for you, but I found that one of those daylight therapy lamps was really helpful. I hope your extremely sensible plans help you feel better and that your health issues settle down and leave you in peace. Oh and one final word on the value of a bare minimum "just show up" goal: I can't remember who it was, but I once read of an account of a woman who'd tried and failed multiple times to get into jogging despite really wanting to. Finally, she decided to try something new: she left her house with the intention of jogging until it felt like it sucked and then stopping and walking home. She made it two blocks, but on the way home, she was like, "Hey, no part of that sucked, cool." So she stuck with that approach. After a few months, she was running a couple miles some days (and some days still only a couple blocks) and within a year she did a 5K and then a 10K the following year. And her policy always stayed the same: stop when it sucks. Personally, I think there's value in sometimes doing stuff that sucks, but it's a delicate balance, and if the choice is "only when it doesn't suck" or "never" then there's a clear winner.

Hello! I am sad about arriving late, but also it was nice in a way, because I was able to see all in one go the string of positive events and experiences that have unfolded for you recently. You're definitely giving off a happier and more fulfilled vibe since starting the new job. I have marvelled over this to the point of doing a bunch of research on why. It's pretty fascinating, actually. I'm no expert, but here is my understanding of why based on my reading: When standing still, certain muscles in the legs, especially the calves, have to stay constantly engaged to keep us upright and motionless. It's a lot of work, even if we don't experience it as such consciously. In contrast, walking engages a greater variety of muscles in the legs, so the work is more distributed, and there's also assistance from other muscle groups in the body (like the core), and momentum can help ease the workload on the muscle groups too. While standing, the full weight of the body has to be distributed across both feet, so assuming a balanced stance, each leg is bearing 50% of body weight at all times. While walking, each leg gets a tiny rest each time the weight is on the other foot, which seems to help. In addition, the weight is distributed more across the foot (more muscles engaged for support) while walking, but while standing, the heels and ball of the foot are loaded basically the entire time. Walking encourages circulation of blood and lymph fluids, which helps keeps the feet well drained of waste molecules and well supplied with oxygenated blood that promotes healthy cell functions. Someone who is standing still is not driving as much oxygenated blood to the feet nor removing accumulated fluids. Sorry for the nerd outburst, haha, but odd as it might sound, knowing this helps me because when I'm standing I now take little micro steps back and forth or try to lift one foot once in a while and give the ankle a few rotations. I probably look like a fidgety child, but it does help stave off fatigue. I am sighing in nostalgic appreciation. We don't really get thunderstorms in Vancouver and it's a hole in my heart. It is getting chilly here, though. The light has changed and fall is coming on strong. I am thinking to break out the electric blanket tonight. Mmmm. Re: feet stuff. As someone who has done a lot of professionally mandated standing and walking and such, I would suggest you consider compression socks. They have a reputation as being mostly for older folks worried about blood clots on planes, but they're actually fantastic for lots of people. Many top athletes use them, in fact. They definitely reduce fatigue for me. This sounds amazing. Thank you for posting the recipe ❤️ This sucks and I hope you're able to sort it. Maybe an area with aerial enforcement of speeding limits? Try to be patient with yourself. It's natural for your boss to want you to be faster, but that'll happen naturally, and it's far far better to start slow but do things the right way and then gradually speed up with experience than to rush to try to be as fast as possible now, but make mistakes and calcify bad habits. I hope you have a happy rest of the week and feel the warmth of knowing that you deserve it.

Emma! I am so so happy that your procedure went well. I cannot imagine the burden you're shouldering right now, with work, sorting out your food with respect to blood sugar issues, pursuing a fitness plan, managing stress and what sounds like lingering trauma from the last few years...it's a lot. I know it's one of those things where you don't really have a choice, so it might feel weird to be admired/complimented for it, but I am a firm believer that it's just your determination and spirit that make you feel like you simply must do what must be done. Working in health care, I am sure you have seen many people who simply won't or can't do the things they need to do to manage a serious health condition. So definitely give yourself credit for showing up for yourself. I hope that the three post-op months go smoothly 🫰 Sounds like you got some valuable insights from all the bloodwork, which is a nice side effect. I tend toward anemia too. Do you like tea and/or soups? One of the things that has helped me was the lucky iron fish (which I actually found out about on NF a year or so ago) used a few times a week while boiling water for tea or while cooking a soup or sauce. I asked my doctor about it first and he was supportive, said it had a good reputation, but you might want to ask yours as well if you decide to try it, just in case. I am curious about the piece you're trying to get performed, so please share details if you feel you want to, if things move along to the next stage. I don't have the benefit of a CGM, but some of my favourite non-carb or low-carb breakfast options include: eggs, walnuts with peanut butter, roasted sliced ham, Vietnamese fish soup, and greek yoghurt. Hope the follow up with the cardiologist went well.

Hello! I am late (I was on a trip too, but it was much less cool than yours), but I found you. Your trip looked absolutely fantastic (even though I am terrified of riding a motorcycle, you made it look pretty damn cool) and I am so, so happy you had the chance to do that. Boo on your boss for bothering you on vacation - when I read the part about you applying for jobs on your return, I said, "Good!" out loud and D happened to be walking past my office, so he popped his head in and said, "Something good happened?" and when I explained that my NF friend was hopefully going to stick it to her failure of a boss, he gave two enthusiastic thumbs up As someone who loves snow, this makes much more instinctive sense to me and I find your icon updates much less cognitive load to process now, haha. Thanks again for sharing the photos. Really brightened my afternoon.

I'm selfishly happy about your goal of being more active on the forums, because your presence on the forums is an unmitigated positive for all of us. I've experimented with the pomodoro method in the past and had mixed results, but your success with it always makes me want to try again. Maybe next challenge. Your volunteering sounds wonderful, and like a good way to build mandatory contact with other humans into your life. Plus I like the idea of girls in your area having a Sylvaa as a mentor. Your community is lucky to have you ❤️ Thanks for doing a challenge! I hope you look back in a month and feel genuinely glad you did.

I found you! Was travelling, so I am late to the party, but I relate (as always) to your struggles and want to be here to support and stay updated on all the news. I'm glad the convention was fun, and your idea for a con-themed dress as an alternative to (extremely work-intensive) cosplay sounds like a good way to feel like you're part of the ambiance without dedicating time you don't have. I know you've heard it before from a lot of us here, but you are 100% not alone on having difficulty establishing a consistent movement routine even when all the pieces are theoretically in place. I get it; so many of us get it. The thing I like is that you seem to have shed a lot of the sheepishness you once had about it not working previous times, and you're just getting back to it without (visible) shame or baggage. That is definitely the way to approach it. In some ways, the less it feels like a big deal, the easier it is to do. And you know that even if you try to do it every day and only manage to succeed 75% of the time, that's still a way better outcome than not trying. In short, you're awesome, you're doing everything right - it's just hard. Keep on with it and you'll get there.

Hello! Here for lists and hoping your immune system treats you right this challenge. Also, this made me laugh: I was totally that kid once upon a time. My grandmother was such a sucker >.>

Red kidney beans are an all-around tragedy that give beans a bad name because they're the first beans many kids get a chance to try (as a result of fools putting them in chili). When I was cleaning up my eating in my 30s, I discovered black beans, cannellini beans, navy beans, pinto beans, etc. and they were all delicious, and I realized that I had wasted years thinking I disliked beans when actually I just (sensibly) dislike The Bad Bean, i.e., filthy red kidney beans.

Yes, sorry, I realized I hadn't updated the current challenge link 😅 For what it's worth, of all the challenges I've ever done, this was one of the most helpful. Just being aware of the fallacies and habits my brain was falling victim to was really helpful in seeing the root causes of some frustrating behaviours and making some positive changes. It wasn't a magic solution, obviously, but I am in a better place than I was a year ago on a lot of these metrics. In general, I am big into neuroscience and its applications for trying to understand and hack/optimize my own brain and trying to change my unconscious assumptions, frameworks, and behaviours. I don't delude myself into thinking it'll ever be completely "fixed", but I figure I'll be in a much better place if I try than if I don't. It's awesome that you and your wife complement each other's strengths like that. D and I are like that - he almost never worries about the future, whereas my natural inclination is to anticipate every possible problem and devise a plan - he helps me chill out a bit, and I help him anticipate and plan for stuff that would otherwise catch him unprepared. As a unit, we are pretty well prepared for disaster but also reasonably chill without going overboard on either. Huzzah for the power of good relationships to take the sharp edges off our flaws!

Pleased to have found the OG colour-coded tracking spreadsheet system that everyone is so keen to nick. I adore your focus on quantifiable data, but I admit, I am a chronic sleep shirker myself and I'm not sure I'd have the courage to actually post my average sleep duration as you do (despite having the information thanks to my fitness tracker). Perhaps I will work up to such levels of bravery for a future challenge. Curious what you thought of Tenet. I love a lot of Nolan's stuff (Interstellar remains one of my all-time favourite films for a host of reasons I could go on about for hours), but Tenet just didn't land with me at all. One of those movies I felt as though I didn't get. It was a hell of a match, definitely surprised me to see Alcaraz underperform like that. It's so easy to forget he's just a kid. Consistency will come with experience - he's going to be one to watch for sure. With the Sabalenka v. Gauff match, I was so torn. I really like both of them, so I would have been happy with either winning and I just really wanted to see both perform well. Women's tennis is in a very exciting place right now. That is a crazy small-world factoid. I didn't see NIN live until 1998 or 1999 (can't remember which), so I would have missed seeing him as part of the band, but that's still neat to know. And man, Filter brings back memories. Such a good game though! Are you planning to try BG3? The studio did a really good job with it IMO. With you on all of this. OK Computer remains so important and is just a masterpiece of an album. The Bends I only discovered fully (having heard those listed songs as singles on the radio, but not having bought the full album) after OK Computer made me want to really dig into all their stuff. Yeah, I wasn't sure what to make of it at first, but I warmed to it. Everything In Its Right Place still gives me chills, and listening to Idioteque just transports me mentally to a certain time and place. Almost the entire album is great. Oh man, you have no idea what you've done. They very much did not disappear off my radar, so I have some suggestions. From Amnesiac (which for me really blends in with KidA since they were released in such quick succession and drawn from a lot of the same studio work): You and Whose Army? I Might Be Wrong Knives Out Pyramid Song The whole album flows well, too, if you listen to it as a unit. Their live tour for that album was a hell of an experience. From Hail to the Thief (which overall had a very KidA/Amnesiac vibe with some evolution/experimentation that I really liked): 2 + 2 = 5 Backdrifts We Suck Young Blood A Punch Up at a Wedding Myxomatosis Go to Sleep Where I End and You Begin ...I'll stop because that's half the album. It's a good album. From In Rainbows: this one was a sleeper and flew under the radar, in part because of the experimental way they released it, but I absolutely adored it and it's among my favourite albums of theirs. It's mature and confident, experimental and yet adroit. I am not going to make a song list because I absolutely love every song on this album except Reckoner, which for some reason I have always disliked and always skip. Nude is one of the most incredibly haunting and weird songs I have ever heard, and while it's not objectively beautiful necessarily, there's something about it that just gets me every time. I love listening to it LOUD with fantastic quality headphones. Seriously, listen to the whole album once through (it's on Spotify and probably other places) if you can. So good. From King of Limbs (which overall was not my jam, with too much reliance on jarring syncopated beats for me to enjoy it, but has a couple of songs I like): Morning Mr Magpie Codex Separator (which I like or don't depending on mood) From A Moon Shaped Pool (which honestly I am still making my mind up about. I don't like it much, but I don't know. I haven't listened to it as much as I should to see if it grows on me): True Love Waits (pure fan service I would say, as this is a b-side song from the late 90s that they went back to for who knows what reason. It's not even that good a song, and the instrumentation on this version is weird, but I literally once had a bootleg cassette tape of this song, so it's just so nostalgic) Burn the Witch Identikit Decks Dark Okay, hopefully you do not now think I am insane. *laughs nervously*

I didn't know you were Belgian! I've only been there once, but I absolutely adored it. My partner and I often have good-natured debates about whether Antwerp or Brussels is the better city (I will let you guess what side I'm on) and we've joked that if we had the good fortune to somehow acquire Belgian residency rights, we'd have to live in a small town midway between the two to satisfy us both. I'd like to go back within the next couple of years, if we can swing the time off. We adored the food there, and I have a soft spot for Belgian series and TV as well (I recently watched https://www.netflix.com/ca/title/81008221 and https://www.netflix.com/ca/title/81612616, for example). My partner D is a lover of fine chocolate and yet he manages, by some arcane power, to walk over to the cupboard, break off one square, enjoy it, and then just...stop. He just goes back to work or watching a movie or whatever he was doing and doesn't feel the need to have more until the next day. And I can't even call it willpower because he's not even tempted. He just...only wants a reasonable amount. I have never stopped marvelling at it. This is a lot of it, yes. I wrote by hand for an average of several hours a day in high school and university, but then by the time I went to do my JD, I had managed to acquire a laptop and all of my academic/professional activities shifted to computers. I still write by hand more than most people I know, simply because I like it (and because learning foreign languages is one of my hobbies and writing by hand helps solidify memory), but still, I probably write in an entire week the amount I used to write in a day. And I have become sloppier simply because it's not for anything important like a school project or notes I'll need to show to a colleague, so I don't try as hard as I used to, frankly. That's what I'm trying to change.

You have me just dying of twee cozy delight over here. Autumn is my favourite season. I love soups, and books, and tea, and arcane-looking leatherbound journals, and there is just so much to adore about this challenge that I don't know where to begin. I am doing a sweets (specifically chocolate) limiting challenge as well, so consider me your nerd-in-arms against the sugary menace. I keep reading all these articles about the incredible health-boosting power of a good night's sleep, so while I adore the same lies, I think you're making a solid choice here. Not sure if this would be a useful technique for you, but I keep a glass of water on my bedside table, and as soon as I wake up, I sit on the edge of my bed and drink it, sipping at a reasonable pace so it takes maybe 2-4 minutes to drink, and I use that time to let my mind wake up and think about what I want to do for the day and try to give myself a little pep talk. It sounds hokey, but it is a nice ritual, and the hydration first thing in the morning (as opposed to waiting until after I've showered and dressed and all that) makes a positive difference. If I were local to you and criminally inclined, soup banditry would be a serious menace. Just amazing. This is so cozy. Just one data point, but journalling has really helped me with weight loss. And holy crap, I love your journal.

I'm so sorry to hear about the situation at work. It sounds like there has been a lot of failed communication and unprofessionalism amongst your colleagues and supervisor, and I am sorry it's screwing you over. But with luck, you'll look back on this in a year from a better work situation and be grateful that things imploded when they did so that you'd be prompted to move on to a healthier and more functional environment. Badass win at roller derby, and I like the analogy of riding momentum and not pushing yourself too hard leading to better results...in life as well as on skates

I see what you did there Love the focus on routines, as they're a compound interest sort of improvement. Always seems to improve everything else by proxy if you start and end your day well. I am so with you on this. Oh man, so important. Wisdom. This is a thing of beauty.

I'm here to enthusiastically support and follow your progress. Apologies for the late arrival (was travelling) but I'm frankly floored by how much you're accomplishing and how well you're handling everything. Seriously, when you post your lists of everything you do in a day, I notice - it's a lot. Do you realize that and give yourself credit for it? I know you're in pain and overwhelmed a lot, and it often feels like pulling teeth, but you are absolutely smashing it in terms of showing up and doing the thing. That is worth so much. Like, you're taking care of your dog, doing housework, going to the shop, cooking, doing self care (baths, etc.), supporting your GF, doing your art, organizing shows, going out to socialize...hell, I know a lot of people who don't do half of that in a day. I think maybe you're so used to just getting on with it that you don't realize how MUCH it is and how impressive it is. I hope you can see that and give yourself credit. Re: the sobriety stuff, I think it's so good that you're being honest about the hard parts of it. No rosy glasses. Many, many people who get sober find their social life evolves as a consequence (growing apart from some people with whom the connection was mostly shared drinking, for example), and it can be painful but almost universally does lead to a healthier, happier place. And while it's so much harder to face emotions and anxiety than numb them with drink and drugs, the thing that makes it worth it is that actually facing the problems and MH challenges is the only way to actually resolve them. So it's more pain in the short term, but in exchange you get the potential for true healing and living the rest of your life free of that pain and the need to numb it. I think you're making a very brave and self-loving choice. I noticed your comment that you haven't really told people and am curious about it. Has it just not come up, or are you worried about people feeling like you not drinking is a criticism of their drinking? Or are you secretly afraid you won't stay sober and you're avoiding telling people so you won't feel like they're judging you if you have a lapse? You don't have to answer this question at all, I'm just wondering if you have noticed it or thought about it. I really love massages. You know what helped me relax? I found a massage therapist who was himself quite a big, fluffy guy. Illogical maybe, but given that he wasn't some beachbod god himself, I always felt more relaxed. Finally: your show sounds amazing and I am excited for you and crossing every finger. Is there a way that those of us across the pond can support it?

I adore the school theme and may nick it for a future challenge. Удачи! My partner D was born in the USSR and lived there until age 8. He's also fluent in English thanks to how young he emigrated, but he has always spoken Russian with his family, and I learned it to an intermediate level to be able to understand and speak with my in-laws. My learning involved watching a lot of old Soviet cartoons and other things that held a lot of memory/meaning for D, so my (still quite imperfect) Russian feels very personal and I have a sentimental soft spot for the language. If you ever want to nerd out about it, I am here for you. Dude, you're even cooler than I realized. As a member of the Skyrim-loving, mod-installing community, I salute. And where are you taking voice lessons? That is awesome. I can relate to this. I am loving Starfield thus far! It captures a lot of what I loved about Skyrim, Oblivion, Morrowind, Fallout 4, Fallout 3, etc. There are of course bugs (Bethesda, right?), and I am counting on the modding community save us all. I swear Bethesda would not be half as successful as it is without modders. This whole saga was just delightful in its weirdness. I do have some insights on what he might have been thinking, but I don't think there's any way to explain it in polite company If my grandmother were reading this, she would snort in amusement, shake her head, and say, "well, bless her heart." And that's basically where I am on that. Keep on being awesome.

This is a fun challenge, and it seems like you're off to a strong (and smashy melee) start I'm a little confused about why you're having to do work tasks at home - is it for your job, or is it like, personal stuff that feels like work? I hope your employer is not exploiting you!

Ugh, sorry! If I ever knew that, I completely forgot. I just grabbed a spoon GIF. Bad Severine. Yeah I hear this 100%, but I also know following rules is a Thing for you so I hoped it'd maybe at least take some pressure off. That's strangely fascinating. I had no idea you had to do all that. I knew your programs were competitive/prestigious, but I didn't know the actual details. And honestly, that process sounds like a total pressure cooker mindf*ck. And let's face it, realistically, most undergrads don't actually know the answers to questions like that (what they're going to do blah blah). So of course they're just going to say whatever they feel like the panel wants to hear, so it seems pointless in addition to being stressful and weirdly gatekeepy. If you try it and notice anything, let me know.

Thanks @Kalitraz and @Sovalis! For those who are curious, the full version of the avatar art: Veronica Guzzardi is awesome. And here's my starting point for improving my handwriting: I just copied out the first page of the book I'm reading because it meant I didn't have to spend brainpower thinking about what to write. I intentionally wrote the way I do in normal daily life when nobody else will see it but me - I can make it look better if it's for something other people will see, but 95% of the time I write, it's just for me, so this is what my writing looks like most of the time. As I type this, I'm realizing the emotional/psychological implications of thinking that hey, maybe something only I see is still worth improving. Food for thought. As you can see, there are lots of issues. My e's look like c's most of the time, there are issues with spacing and consistency and legibility and...I could go on. It used to be much, much nicer, and I would very much like to get back to at least feeling neutral about it and hopefully even liking it a bit, rather than being actively displeased by it as I am now. Comments and critiques and tips are welcome; you won't hurt my feelings.