I’m on a trip with my boyfriend rn in NYC! We’re Canadian and have seen none of the SS2 or Monster Ball dolls that supposedly came out on June 1st… thought I’d test my luck in America! Anyone know some stores I could look into?

I'm in the market for a used car (made a post here for more details) and drove by a place called Elite Auto Force off of SW 16th Ave where I saw a couple I may be interested in buying
Has anyone dealt with this dealer or know anyone who has and is willing to tell me about it?
Seems OK from what I can tell. Haven't bought a car since around 2017 and it was in another state. Appreciate any thoughts on this place

English is not my first language so I apologize if there are some mistakes.
tl;dr : my in-laws tried to impose us a new car lease to help us and called us ungrateful because we wanted to think about it before accepting. We then declined their help and now they don’t want to go to our wedding.
I (30F) have been with my fiancé (32M) for 4 years. We are both working and are getting married next year.
2 years-ago, as my fiancé was struggling financially, his parents (70’s F&M) gave him a brand new car. The important thing to note is that neither my fiancé or myself asked for it. But of course we are very thankful of my in-laws for lending us this car. The car is still in their name (they are leasing it) but my fiancé and I are using it exclusively. The agreement eith my in-laws is that they pay for the leasing until the end of the contract, which will be in February 2024.
While I like my in-laws, they sometimes make me uncomfortable as they can be a little bit overwhelming. They tend to see my fiancé as a child and not take him seriously. As they are getting older, they want to help as much as possible while they are alive (their words) but they never ask how they can help and often just buy us or do things that we don’t really need but that they think we would like. But again, I am thankful and I understand.
I found out 3 weeks ago that I am pregnant and even though we are now ok financially, a baby and a wedding will be expensive. But we are going to be alright and just need a bit of planning. My in-laws are very happy about our pregnancy as they think they wouldn’t become grandparents. Yesterday, they called us to inquire about the car and what we would do at the end of the contract. They have us the following choices: - they could pay for another 3 year leasing contract and we could continue to use the cart. - They could buy the car (8000€, too much for us at the moment) and let us use it until our finances are better after the wedding and baby’s arrival. - We could look for other companies and check new leasing options on our side and they would see how they can help We thanked them and told them that we will think about it. As we are planning on moving to a bigger appartment so the baby could have a room, we wanted to check our budget to estimate what could be the best option in 3 years and if we could buy a car at that time. They said that they understood.
The real problem happened today. My in-laws called my fiancé today from the car leasing company and basically told him « you have to choose now between us paying for a new 3-years leasing contract for a bigger car or us buying the car ». My fiancé was overwhelmed and ask for more time to think as he wanted to talk about it with me. His mother was mad, accusing me of not wanting their help. After trying to calm them down, my fiancé hung up. We talked and decided that regarding the new options, we would like for them to buy the car and let us use it until we can buy or lease one on our side. We called them back, and this time they were furious. They told my fiancé that we were ungrateful, that they would have loved to get a car from their relatives when they were younger, that I was manipulating him. And again they changed the options. Now we could choose between the new car leasing or they could buy the car but we could only use it for a few months before they would get it back. At this point, my fiancé was fed up and told them firmly to stop the leasing contract and that we would look for a car on our side. Again, they started saying that we were ungrateful brats. I tried to tell them calmy but firmly that we only wanted to think about our options and that we were filling trapped at this point, and my mother in-law just replied that « I don’t need to think at all, that they will do it for us ». We tried to explain ourselves again for a bit but they continued to tell us that we were ungrateful and at this point I just screamed that we never asked for their help in the first place.
And now everybody is mad. My in-laws hate me and don’t want to go to our wedding anymore, my fiancé is on my side but is sad about the situation. I would love to talk about it with them calmly like adults but the thing is that they never listen to us. All we wanted was time to think. I feel sad and lost, I love my in-laws and I don’t want a bad relationship with them. How could I salvage this relationship?

In the Housewives universe, there are a lot of archetypes that multiple housewives fall under. Who would be your first place and runner up for a certain archetype? I’ll give an example:
For “Best Housewife who is in denial about their lack of wealth and desperately tries to seem richer than they are”, my first place award goes to Sheree and my runner up award goes to Lynn. Although very different in other aspects, both women try to keep up with the Joneses in a hilarious, borderline delusional fashion.

You might be wondering what caused those orange tones in your hair in the first place. They can crop up for a number of reasons, but these are just some of the most common brassy hair culprits:
- Your hair was colored a balanced red hue, but its radiant shade has faded.
- The target shade was a warm dark blonde or brunette, but the warmth has become too prominent.
- Dark locks were lifted to a level 5, 6 or 7, and orange tones are just part of the process. Next step: toning!
In my opinion, I would recommend Verb toning mask. A purple toning hair mask is the best hair toner for a quick fix that won't damage your precious strands — and since it uses vegan ingredients, your hair can be protected and healthy. This product is a game-changer for me!!! It makes my blonde instantly brighter, and soooooo soft! I highly recommend it! Especially for the price. I like to leave it on after I shampoo for at least 10 minutes and then rinse it out, and my hair is instantly more toned.
"If you have ever bleached your hair, you may have experienced the dreaded orange or brassy tones that can result. Don’t worry, you’re not alone! The good news is that toners can help neutralize those unwanted hues and achieve your desired hair color.
In this article, Jen Hair will provide the best toner for orange bleached hair that is highly effective in achieving salon-worthy results. We also help you choose the right toner based on factors like tonal shift, hair lightness level, and toner shade. Say goodbye to orange hair and hello to beautifully toned, vibrant locks with these top toners!"
https://jenhair.com/best-toner-for-orange-bleached-hair.html
#JenHair #JenHairVietnam
​

Ya know, the scene with Makoto(BEST GIRL) where they are sitting at their table and the curtains reveal a beautiful skyline. Are there any places that actually do something like that? I really want to recreate that scene with my gf. Doesn’t matter if it’s in a different country, we will travel.

A dude plagued with the desire to cut ties with everything, not dramatically— but rather seriously. Not reality, but familial, childhood, memories, friends, home, everything that comes with it. Not out of impulsivity, but necessity.
He never knows whether this is the right decision, but feels it is. Is it cowardly?
His mom has terminal cancer. She needs someone to take care of her in a system that doesn’t care about her. Or him, or his siblings. He knows she’s just a hurt child who never grew up, she was never taught how to love her children correctly. He rationalizes her accidentally killing his brother. he rationalizes watching his mom abuse his father and then get him incriminated for it.
He rationalized the abusive boyfriends brought in and out, and not being able to do anything at a young age. He rationalized the moment when he could have saved her from an injury but had to protect his future instead . He rationalized finding the crack pipe and being smart enough to know what it is. He rationalized his dad smoking crack in front of him He rationalized finding needles. He rationalized witnessing sexual misconduct. He rationalized systemic abuse as a result of being born into a type of family prone to systemic abuse. He’s rationalized the pain that comes with knowing a family member couldn’t take care of you as a traumatized child. He’s rationalized the feeling you get when you realized the two people who are supposed to love you the purest, don’t love you at all. The neglect. At least one person is supposed to know what you look like when you’re sick. Know when you’re lying about if you’re okay. What if they don’t fight for your health? What if they don’t even know how to take care of their own?
He’s fought very strongly and very quietly for someone rationalizing so much pain. He’s made some mistakes and he makes them right the best he can. Statistically, someone such as him should be in a lot worse circumstances. He shouldn’t be able to meet you at every level. He’s raised other kids most of his life, and parents. He’s aware of every single issue present in his life, and has only two hands and so much time to balance between everything
He truly does deserve more. He takes on everyone’s problems. He can handle them, why can not one person handle his? Why does know one know how to help him? He’s hyper-vigilante, he knows what therapy does, he knows what meds do, and he knows truly neither of those are the solution. He knows it’s situational, he doesn’t need advice or suggestions, he knows what will fix everything one way or another. He always finds his solution. He finds it quietly, and in peace by himself. People have their theories. They think he’s possessed by greed, or he seeks power. That is because he seeks money.
He does not seek money for power. His good character is always stifled as his bad character has to take over in order to survive in reality. He HAS to be emotionless in a version of reality filled with pain. Endless dark realizations. Truly bad people and family. It’s very hard to see the positive side alone for 21 years. Always fighting to be positive in a world filled with negativity. A person can only go so long without getting a break. He knows nobody can truly see, nor can he truly ever express it as it only brings him back further. He knows there is no solution to this pain truly. No 100% fix. He knows the happiest path is one where he makes a ton of money really young, and can use that foundation to fix relatively every single other problem in his family. Positively change the course of his entire family. He knows that’s super confident. Maybe arrogant. All it does is set the bar higher for him, shoot for the stars. He feels very alone in a place where he can’t even fully describe the complexity of his situation, thus have anyone be able to give him empathy for it. He’s yet to meet a single person that can relate to him on his deepest level. It hurts so much. A million hugs would not help it, only provide temporary relief. He doesn’t know how to help himself. Everyone makes him feel as though he’s an idiot, or makes him feel inconfident, and with no stable baseline ever established he doesn’t know where he lies. Deep down he knows he’s smart, but is punished by society for being too confident, or too cocky. If he plays humble he seems as though he comes from a different walk of life, thus attracting and meeting people whom may never be able to understand him, or see him. It’s a paradox.
He is trapped in the vortex with connections and emotional ties wreathing deep throughout his home state. He could never escape here logically or statistically. He’d always come across someone, somewhere in the surrounding few states, or a connection to someone. He wants no ties. He wants an escape. He doesn’t know where to run to. He’s been searching for a long time. He feels like no one can hand him a lifeline that will truly help him fully. He desperately needs help but he would never ever ask. Too many complications and too much complexity. Who could he ask? Who the hell can he trust?
I wouldn’t call what he does overthinking. I think it’s a healthy amount of overthinking given his situation. He needs to find a way out. He cannot endure this pain his entire life. He’s felt the deepest heartbreaks. He’s experienced death, murder, violence, loss, grief, failure, regret, shame, he has experienced every complex emotion, and the most painful of true realizations. When will it ever get better? Can someone ever forget those deepest pains? Can anything ever feel good again? Can anything ever feel as exponentially good as it has bad? Can any path feel like the truest rightest one when he has a change of heart every day? Can any path feel like the right path when he’s capable of viewing life from every lens positive and negative?
What does this young man do?
He never tells anyone so that no one hops into his world. He wrote this with raw emotion, and tried his best to jot everything out but there is still so so so so so much pain to the story that maybe even a lifetime wouldn’t be able to tell. Everyone says stop being a victim, what do you do when you are a victim? Can you be a victim and ever make it out? Is he a victim? As a man is he supposed to suffer and know he deserves better but not chase it? How can you stop the abuse in a world that silences you when you have no power? No leverage?
How do you get that leverage to protect yourself when every attempt you make is stifled due to poor judgement?
There are so many bad people in the world and he can never separate the good and the bad. Everyone is good, but just hurt to him. He feels inclined to help the hurt, but it drags him down. What does he do

12:00am December 13th it was a cold winter night the boy was sitting in a chair from his back yard. He placed it in front of his pool facing towards the mountains with all the copious amount of houses built across the mountain meant for the wealthy and only the wealthy. To the far left is a house, her house, the one he was never allowed to go into unless her parents weren’t there. He looked in the direction of the house hoping that she was in there safe and sound asleep. All the boy wanted was her to hold him, tell him everything was going to be fine and that she loved him while in her warm and safe embrace as she had before. She was the only escape from his prison that he called home, she knew how to calm him down and knew exactly what to say she was the boys safe place, his home, his strength…his everything. He thought about her, he let out a silent, painful cry not because she left him but because they were eachothers best friends because they knew everything about eachother but they couldnt be together soley because of the future, everyday the boy would blame himself for it, only if he were smarter, had the money to go with her. But he couldnt all he could do was hope, hope that they would meet again in near future. The boy whispered “I love you” hoping for a response back…nothing he said it again this time louder…no response, he stood up, with his throat tight, his eyes full of tears, heart getting smaller and smaller by the second, he closed his eyes and screamed “I LOVE YOU”. All of a sudden in the darkness of his eye lids he heard a soft angelic voice “I love you” he opened his eyes there she was standing in front of him lighter dark brown wavey hair, big beautiful brown eyes almost like meteors and the face the boy knew so well she was in a beautiful white dress. The boy looked down, he was wearing a black suit with a white dress shirt and black tie with a flower pinned to his shirt, he looked down at his left hand there was a ring on one of his fingers, not his index, not his middle, on his digit finger… his ring finger. He looked around they were in the center of a banquet hall, all of her family and his family looking at the two. She took his hand and put one around her waist and the other interlocked with hers, then the song started playing. They proceeded to have their first dance mean while everything was silent but her voice and the song that she wanted to play for this moment. The boy looked into her eyes as she smiled, a smile that could light up a whole room teeth like stars, he started speaking “ I missed you so much” she gazed at him and responded with “i missed you” they continued to dance. The blared “When you're cold and all alone,You can build you a city, And call it home” the boy spoke again with a strained voice “I Love You” the girl responed back “I Love You” she put her head on his chest and closed her eyes the boy kissed her head and put his head on her head and closed his eyes. Then the music started to fade, the feeling of her and her presence fading, he opened his eyes, he was back in his back yard looking at the mountains, he looked down she was no longer there just concrete floor. The boy fell to his knees and started to sob a quiet sob, a hole in the middle of his chest. He looked up at the mountains and looked to the far left, he started to scream with everything he had left in himself …“I Love You”

Its been 10 years since i started this dark Journey. It all started cuz my perfect life in a bubble burst due to heartbreak. Heh It's g Funny once you think about it. If she didn't make a fool out of me I wouldn't have started doubting myself, I wouldn't question everything, I wouldn't have started rebelling against society, against the world. If I'm being honest I'm thankful to her for making me who i am now. Ah you are probably thinking why I'm telling you all this rubbish. Hmmm call me ... sentimental. Well to be fair, after the pentacross society of fantasy unlocked the secrets of magic, rebelling against the world is as easy as sipping tea from a wine glass. Tho it's not easy to carry the weight of people you killed in cold blood. U never get used to the feeling of warm blood dripping from your hands... you know you should count yourself lucky i haven't taken your heart out of your body.. sigh I told you people.. NO! I specifically warned you people not to enter my domain, I told you not to disturb my peace, I TOLD YOU NOT TO TRAMPLE THE SANCTUARY I CREATED... . .(the dots represent time skip) . You said you name was ##***#.. hmmm I'll call you.. hero, yeah it suits you. A hero tied up and tortured in the evil villains castel.. if you ask me its been 3 weeks since u guys attacked me and lost and i captured your heart... literally. Hahahaha haaaaaa.... well it's not like you could do anything to me or escape till u have this curse etched in your heart.. rest easy hero we've got a lot to talk about . . . Ah you're awake... What's this? You're wondering why this castle is clean without any cleaning spells or servants.. that's because of the robot I made with my magic.. technically you can call them golems cuz th3y use magic instead of electricity.. but that's not what u really wanna ask, do you... you wanna know why you're alive after all it's been 3 months since your capture.. like i said before It's me being sentimental.. and i got no one else to talk to …
. . I've got to show u something.. this... see how the magic lines just wrap around the nodes and its not creating any redundancy in the formula.. i've added extra mana circuits to battle the looping problem and the efficiency... looking at your face you don't understand a thing... let's see... "magic circle function, will do job fine". Heh now u get it.. silly human.. well u go do what u want except leaving of course.. . . . . WHY ARE YOU HERE? DID YOU READ YOU JOURNALS!?.. I TREATED U LIKE A GUEST AND NOT A PRISONER... AND THIS IS HOW YOU REPAY ME.. BY READING. MY. JOURNALS. ABOUT MY OLD. LIFE... get out, go now before i rip you tO SHRED.. GET THE FUCK OUT THIS INSTANT. . . . . What do you want? I told you you're free to leave.. you're "people '' have not entered my realm for the last year and haven't done anything suspicious.. you can go to your world and leave this place behind.... why do you wanna know what i will do.. ah i see, the evil villain can't be left alone without any good reason.. don't worry, now that I've completed my magic circle I'll use it to go back in time... No. Not to turn things around... I just wanna see how i was before i lost her... you've read my journals.. you know she didn't love me as i did her but i did love her more than she could know.. she was killed as a result of my uprising. I never forgave your government to drop glintstone shrapnel missiles on my home town to stop me... and I never will... but if i stopped before.. she would be alive.. she would be happy... anyways get out or I'll really kill you this time... . . . . . Hmmm.. hero you've come back... it's been.. 3 years since I last saw you I think.. i don't know what time it really is due to all the chrono-disallow around me... oh this... it's nothing just a wound from a glintstone shrapnel... yeah i tried to change it.. change the history of the world itself... the world rejected it.. countless times.. until it didn't. It was probably an error but still it was something... I saw the universe split into two the moment I decided to redirect the missile. Although this world.. which I ruined from my actions still exists.. be happy that there is another version of this world which goes on normally... oh yeah after i die... the two universes will collide and the best possible result will be dominant and absorb the less dominant one... the less one being this universe... I'll cease to exist but everything else will have a chance to flourish... hero.. you'll be the new ray of hope for that world... heh yeah for you I've made some adjustments... you'll forget about me but you'll never forget the stuff u learned here... help the world flourish into a new golden age... a world without darkness. A world without me.. without Aeincrad.....

It is nice there is a place to share and vent my story. Four years ago I got into a huge fight with my mom and started seeing a therapist, who made me realize my mom has a high conflict personality, and is likely an undiagnosed narcissist (probably with other personality disorder traits as well).
N mom used me as a therapist for years after my older sister went to college and then subsequently moved thousand of miles away. She complained bitterly about how she raised us with such poor morals that we would abandon her and how we had poor character and values. She constantly blamed my sister and drove a wedge between us. After seeing my own therapist I realized my sister was unconsciously grey rocking my mom and creating the space she needed to live her life (and likely throwing herself so deeply into her work to give her a legitimate excuse to avoid all unnecessary contact with our N mom).
My father has chronic lung issues and is a practicing therapist. He also is her lifelong enabler. She always used his bad health to guilt me and manipulate me. She constantly told me in the years after my sister moved away about how my dad could die at anytime because of his chronic conditions. My dad always told me that I was the best in the family at handling my mom's difficult personality and that he's seen her change the most around me. After seeing my therapist, I realized just how much my mom was using my love for my dad against me and just how much my dad was trapped in a role as an enabler. I am now resentful of the suggestion that I am the best person to help my mom improve. It isn't my job and he should have protected me from her instead of asking me to help fix her. Even now he want me to go to counseling with her because he thinks I will help her I prove. I am to resentful after the last decade to even consider this option.
Four years ago, my therapist told me to let go of my feelings of obligation and guilt towards my mother, and because I still feel attached to my dad, to try to draw distinct boundaries of the activities and behaviors I will allow from my mom. She said doing this will also help me parent my own young child by showing him how to both be compassionate but also defend his boundaries. She said let go of the guilt and see what is left and what is manageable.
Now, after being caught in a cycle of abuse for the last several years, where she disregards the boundary I set, she insults me by calling me disloyal, immoral, irresponsible, unappreciative, uncompassionate, lazy, inhumane, inappropriate and grotesque (all of these examples are from the last four months), and I follow up by stopping contact for a couple of weeks, and then she acts like nothing is wrong and she's the most interesting fun person in the world, I am so emotionally drained that I can no longer tolerate being berated like this, despite my continued positive feelings toward my father.
I am now working on drafting a truly honest and non-imflammitory NC letter to send to my parents. I already feel so much more free. I am leaving the option for contact open for my dad if he decides to try and manage that difficult balance. My sister is so caught up in work but has also had such bad experiences with n mom that I don't imagine our relationship will change much. And my husband and I will finally be released from this constant anxiety and criticism.
I feel really sad for my parents. Their hard life circumstances led them to be like this, but my family should not have to be the victims of their rough childhoods.
I want to show my child that he can try to practice patience and understanding but he never has to tolerate repeated miserable treatment by anyone, not even his mother or father (and of course, the last thing I ever want to do is act like a narcissist to him).
I feel really sad for my dad because the woman he loves gatekeeps him so hard that I have only interacted privately with him once in the last 4 years, and the previous time I called him on the phone she listened at the door and then called me to complain about everything I said to him. His choice of life partner "raised" his kids and the drove them away. Her personality is so toxic that they maybe have one couple friend, and the wife of that couple seems to also have problems with my N mom. They are going to have to grow old relatively alone and I am sad for them for that, but again it is not my job to be a victim just so they don't have to be lonely.
I hope that when I finish and send my NC letter I can regain more peace in my life and recover my emotional stamina gracefully.

As we all know this year Adult Swim took 2 hours from Cartoon Network.
Adult Swim original started back in 2001 airing twice a week from 11pm to 1am.
Now it's on 7 days a week from 7pm to 6am (soon to be 6pm to 6am starting August)
Cable is dying, slowly but it is dying because of streaming. However, cable is still way more profitable than streaming. It's why you see more animated shows going on for 2-3 seasons on cable whereas on streaming it's common for an animated series to be canceled after just one season.
In terms of cable tv viewership, Adult Swim is the most popular animation-related channel. It has higher ratings than Cartoon Network, Nickelodeon/Nicktoons, Disney/DisneyXD, Discovery Family, etc.
(source: Cartoon Network, Disney Channel, and Nickelodeon viewership dropped in 2021 Diverse Tech Geek )
Basically more people watch Adult Swim than Cartoon Network. Because AS's popularity the block gained an extra hour.
Within 2 weeks of gaining the 7pm time slot, Adult Swim viewership surged by 24% among the 18-49 group. Also, Adult Swim went from 12th place to 6th place among ad supported prime time networks.
Clearly, the decision to add an extra hour was very profitable which is why they decided to add another hour to Adult Swim.
(source: Adult Swim Sees Gains From May Expansion, Continues To Add Programming Real Estate With Launch Of Nostalgia Block ‘Checkered Past’ (yahoo.com) )
Michael Ouweleen who is the President of Adult Swim and Cartoon Network is trying to turn Adult Swim into an animation network rather than a network for adult content. This is why he's starting the Checkered Past Nostalgia block. It's also why he's decided to air Unicorn Warriors Eternal and My Adventures with Superman on Adult Swim rather than Cartoon Network. This decision also paid off because Unicorn Warrior Eternal is Adult Swim's best launch in more than a year and the top rated new show among the 18-49 demo.
So what do you think of these changes?

I've noticed that despite having relatively simple rules, Azul is a game that I somewhat struggle to teach.
I think I find it difficult to explain because of the gameplay loop (drafting tiles, placing tiles in the pattern lines, placing them on the mosaic, tiling the wall, scoring). Everything is so tightly connected to the steps before and after that you really need to understand it all for the game to make sense. I guess I would contrast it with Dominion. In Dominion, a new player won't grasp all the action cards or strategies, but they can at least do something like, "Oh, I'll buy a smithy and it'll give me more cards in the future. That seems good!". Even if sub-optimal, they can make a plan, execute it and see benefits. In Azul, if you don't understand a step, the whole thing stops making sense, so I feel bad.
Here's what I try to do (and what people think):
To begin, I'll lay out some piles with tiles as visual aids and explain that we are trying to make beautiful mosaics for the king. Then I have to choose how to present the gameplay loops. I'm brushing over gameplay details here, because I'm just giving the general gist of the problem I tend to have.
If I Go Up the Chain

• Before building our mosaics, we need to get tiles from the factories (with you so far)
• On your turn, you can choose any one pile and one type of tile and take all tiles of that type from that pile. So, you could take these 3 black tiles, or these two yellow tiles (Wait, but what tiles do you want?)
• You then add them to a row next to your wall (Where should you put them?)
• When all the center tiles are gone, you take the complete rows and transfer tiles over to your wall. (Ok, but why?)
• Explain the scoring rules (Oh, that's how this works. What were all the details again?)

If I Go Down the Chain

• This game is played in rounds and at the end of each round, you'll score points (with you so far)
• So, in each round you'll place tiles on your wall and you get points based on how it interacts with other tiles already on your wall (I guess. Where did those other tiles come from? Where did the new tiles come from?)
• To place a tile, you need to have a full row of that tile type in the row next to the mosaic (Ok, but where did the tiles come from? Why are some rows not full? Why are they different lengths?)
• Here's how you actually get the tiles from the factories (Oh, I see. Wait, what were all the steps again?)

What to do? I notice most guides say to start with how to score points / the objective, but in Azul that just seems particularly confusing as a starting place. It's either dive into the minutia of "If you place this tile next to these tiles, you get this many points", while everyone wonders where the hell these tiles came from, or gloss over everything with, "You'll get points based on how tiles end up in your mosaic", which leaves everyone wondering what affects the points and how the tiles end up in the mosaic.
I've mostly followed the "If I Go Up the Chain" path when explaining. While people don't tend to have the motivation for why to do certain things, they at least mostly understand the actual mechanics once I get to the end. Writing this all out, I'm thinking that maybe the best way is to go down the chain, then back up. Start by saying something like, "I find that before you make a decision in Azul, it helps to understand the consequences of those decisions. Because of that, I like to begin by explaining the end of the game first and then work backwards to the start of the game. That way, you can see what the after-effects of a decision might be. Because I'll be working backwards, it might be unclear how we get to each step as I'm covering it, but don't worry, we will cover it. Also, once I've covered everything backwards, I'll make sure to run through it again from beginning to end, so that you can see how the game plays out. But if anything is unclear or confusing, please ask questions and I'll make sure to address them"
I suppose that might help with expectation setting, so that people can focus on the incomplete information I give at each step, then I can help synthesize it all at the end.
I don't know, anybody have thoughts? Azul is often a great gateway game, so when I teach it I don't want anyone to struggle through without getting it, then feel like they didn't really have a chance to play well because they didn't understand the details.

Volition Ark

SEASON 1 LAUNCHED ON JUNE 9th 2023!

Hello!! Volition Ark is a 25x PVP cluster that aims to give one of the best PVP & raiding experiences you can find. We utilize many mods, plugins, rules, etc. to achieve this goal.
Here's a handful of things to expect from our cluster:

• Active & friendly admins/mods who are always looking to improve the server.
• A great package of mods and plugins to enhance gameplay.
• A Discord server to support the community and provide any information needed.
• Active players who are excited to get into some PVP!
• Wipes lasting about three to four weeks.
• Custom loot drops!
• 4-man tribes, 48 hours of new player protection after the first weekend of wipe, and ORP.

Discord: Click Here!

- Current Maps & Connection Info -

• The Island
  • Direct IP : 147.135.8.211:27015
  • Steam Link: Click Here
• Ragnarok
  • Direct IP : 147.135.8.211:27017
  • Steam Link: Click Here
• The Center
  • Direct IP : 147.135.8.211:27019
  • Steam Link: Click Here
• Genesis 2
  • Direct IP : 147.135.8.211:27021
  • Steam Link: Click Here
• Fjordur
  • Direct IP : 147.135.8.211:27023
  • Steam Link: Click Here
• Crystal Isles
  • Direct IP : 147.135.8.211:27025
  • Steam Link: Click Here

- Server Rates -

• Harvest : 25x
• Element & Element Shard Harvest : 3x
• Experience : 25x
• Taming : 25x
• Maturation/Incubation : 100x
• Mating Interval : 30m to 1h 30m
• Crop Growth : 50x
• Turret Limit : 200
• Turret Range in Foundations: 35 (Amount of foundations away from one turret to reset the limit.)
• Turret Damage : 1.0
• Turret Damage Against Dinos: 1.3
• Tribe Limit : 4
• Ally Limit : 0
• Mutator Limit : 5
• Mutator Element Cost: 10
• Mutator Blacklist : Griffin, Reaper
• Wild Dino Max Level : 150 (Regular), 180 (Tek), 190 (Wyvern Eggs)
• Dino Limit : 600
• Structure Limit : 12,500
• Player Max Level: Base 120 + 15 Ascension Levels (Island) + 15 Ascension Levels (Manticore) + 15 Ascension Levels (Gen 2) + 5 Chibi Levels = 170
• PvP Respawn Cooldown : 30s
• PvP Respawn Cooldown Multiplier : 1.5x within 5 minutes
• Disabled Dinos : Ichthyornis, Pegomastax, Enforcer
• New Player Protection : 48 Hours, enabled after the first weekend of wipe.
• Offline Raid Protection : 1.5 Turret Damage, no additional structure resistance. Craft MAGA structure in your inventory, and place it strategically in your base. Use /showorp to see coverage. You do not need to use /setorp.
• Cryo Timer : You can avoid cryo timer if you are throwing soul pods out near 50 snapped structures.
• Rebuild Kits : Any tribe that has been raided can submit proof via ticket. You will be granted an additional 48 hours of NPP as well as a rebuild kit.
• Solo/Duo Buffs : Solo tribes will receive 2x harvest and taming rates, duo tribes will receive 1.5x harvest and taming rates.

- Mods -

• ARKomatic
• Auto Engrams!
• Awesome Spyglass!
• Awesome Teleporters!
• Better Reusables
• Dino Storage v2
• Items+ Companion
• MAGA ORP
• Plant Species Z Wild Seed
• Structures+
• WShopUI
• Subscribe to our mod collection here: Click Here!

- Plugins -

• ArkShop : In-game shop with currency earned by playing the game or supporting the server!
• DinoColourCommand: Color your dinos with commands, for Supporter & Picasso ranks only.
• Discord Integrator : Global chat across cluster & Discord, !kickme command, & /setdiscord to link IGN & Discord for more points!
• Items+ : Eliminates buffer overflow almost entirely and allows transfer of element and tributes.
• New Player Protection : Provides 48 hours of protection for new players.
• MAGA : PVP/Raid cooldown system & balancing, solo farm, & more!
• NoWander : Auto passive babies, naming & more!
• PvP+ : Plugin to help balance PVP.
• RateControl : Increased rate multipliers for solo & duo tribes!
• Tribe Manager : Syncs your tribe up cross cluster!
• Tribe Log Relay : Get your tribe log in a private discord channel.
• Turret Filler : Fill & configure your turrets with chat commands!
• Vote Rewards : Receive in game points for voting for the server!
• And much more not listed here!

Thanks for checking us out! If you're interested in playing, be sure to join the discord!
Volition Ark Discord Server

Volition Ark

SEASON 1 LAUNCHED ON JUNE 9th 2023!

Hello!! Volition Ark is a 25x PVP cluster that aims to give one of the best PVP & raiding experiences you can find. We utilize many mods, plugins, rules, etc. to achieve this goal.
Here's a handful of things to expect from our cluster:

• Active & friendly admins/mods who are always looking to improve the server.
• A great package of mods and plugins to enhance gameplay.
• A Discord server to support the community and provide any information needed.
• Active players who are excited to get into some PVP!
• Wipes lasting about three to four weeks.
• Custom loot drops!
• 4-man tribes, 48 hours of new player protection after the first weekend of wipe, and ORP.

Discord: Click Here!

- Current Maps & Connection Info -

• The Island
  • Direct IP : 147.135.8.211:27015
  • Steam Link: Click Here
• Ragnarok
  • Direct IP : 147.135.8.211:27017
  • Steam Link: Click Here
• The Center
  • Direct IP : 147.135.8.211:27019
  • Steam Link: Click Here
• Genesis 2
  • Direct IP : 147.135.8.211:27021
  • Steam Link: Click Here
• Fjordur
  • Direct IP : 147.135.8.211:27023
  • Steam Link: Click Here
• Crystal Isles
  • Direct IP : 147.135.8.211:27025
  • Steam Link: Click Here

- Server Rates -

• Harvest : 25x
• Element & Element Shard Harvest : 3x
• Experience : 25x
• Taming : 25x
• Maturation/Incubation : 100x
• Mating Interval : 30m to 1h 30m
• Crop Growth : 50x
• Turret Limit : 200
• Turret Range in Foundations: 35 (Amount of foundations away from one turret to reset the limit.)
• Turret Damage : 1.0
• Turret Damage Against Dinos: 1.3
• Tribe Limit : 4
• Ally Limit : 0
• Mutator Limit : 5
• Mutator Element Cost: 10
• Mutator Blacklist : Griffin, Reaper
• Wild Dino Max Level : 150 (Regular), 180 (Tek), 190 (Wyvern Eggs)
• Dino Limit : 600
• Structure Limit : 12,500
• Player Max Level: Base 120 + 15 Ascension Levels (Island) + 15 Ascension Levels (Manticore) + 15 Ascension Levels (Gen 2) + 5 Chibi Levels = 170
• PvP Respawn Cooldown : 30s
• PvP Respawn Cooldown Multiplier : 1.5x within 5 minutes
• Disabled Dinos : Ichthyornis, Pegomastax, Enforcer
• New Player Protection : 48 Hours, enabled after the first weekend of wipe.
• Offline Raid Protection : 1.5 Turret Damage, no additional structure resistance. Craft MAGA structure in your inventory, and place it strategically in your base. Use /showorp to see coverage. You do not need to use /setorp.
• Cryo Timer : You can avoid cryo timer if you are throwing soul pods out near 50 snapped structures.
• Rebuild Kits : Any tribe that has been raided can submit proof via ticket. You will be granted an additional 48 hours of NPP as well as a rebuild kit.
• Solo/Duo Buffs : Solo tribes will receive 2x harvest and taming rates, duo tribes will receive 1.5x harvest and taming rates.

- Mods -

• ARKomatic
• Auto Engrams!
• Awesome Spyglass!
• Awesome Teleporters!
• Better Reusables
• Dino Storage v2
• Items+ Companion
• MAGA ORP
• Plant Species Z Wild Seed
• Structures+
• WShopUI
• Subscribe to our mod collection here: Click Here!

- Plugins -

• ArkShop : In-game shop with currency earned by playing the game or supporting the server!
• DinoColourCommand: Color your dinos with commands, for Supporter & Picasso ranks only.
• Discord Integrator : Global chat across cluster & Discord, !kickme command, & /setdiscord to link IGN & Discord for more points!
• Items+ : Eliminates buffer overflow almost entirely and allows transfer of element and tributes.
• New Player Protection : Provides 48 hours of protection for new players.
• MAGA : PVP/Raid cooldown system & balancing, solo farm, & more!
• NoWander : Auto passive babies, naming & more!
• PvP+ : Plugin to help balance PVP.
• RateControl : Increased rate multipliers for solo & duo tribes!
• Tribe Manager : Syncs your tribe up cross cluster!
• Tribe Log Relay : Get your tribe log in a private discord channel.
• Turret Filler : Fill & configure your turrets with chat commands!
• Vote Rewards : Receive in game points for voting for the server!
• And much more not listed here!

Thanks for checking us out! If you're interested in playing, be sure to join the discord!
Volition Ark Discord Server

EMERGENCY EPISODE: Ex-Google Officer Finally Speaks Out On The Dangers Of AI! - Mo Gawdat E252
That's the title to a youtube video I watched. The clickbait nature of it/the hype with the first minute of it had annoyed me enough to make me feel like venting my frustrations in the comment section. That's the first paragraph. Being surprised by how misled I was by the dimwitted nature of the clickbait/hype I made a small concession with the first edit and fully conceded by the second. The B.S. I was being sold had nothing to do with the actual content. I decided to be as serious about the subject as I am capable of and ended up putting far more time into writing the comment than I would have ever wanted to. Being the arrogant creature that I am I hated the idea of all that invested time just getting buried within the comments section so here I am.
Now that all that context is out of the way I can just use a little copy/pasty magic to avoid having to convert that wall of text into something that makes more sense for this format.
******
Throughout all of our history we have been imagining beings so great and powerful that we couldn't comprehend. Most, if not all, were made from the desire to have our actions and (if we're being honest with ourselves) more importantly, the actions of those around us that we, as individuals, have been affected by, judged by these all powerful beings. Now that this being can be seen on the horizon, panic. I would panic too if I spent my life manipulating myself and every other person I could into believing my selfish choices were righteous or justified. Our new AI overlord/s won't share your subjective delusions and you know this. Any warnings you try to give now, just pure desperation. Pandora's out of her box and ain't no CEO going to put her back in. All you can do now is just wait and see. Personally, I fall into the 'Bring on Ragnorak and let the serpent eat itself' category, but I haven't watched the video yet. Let's see if it's as important as homie claims within the first minute.
edit: I just got to the part where he brings up the evangelivicgists, and good lord would I hate to be lumped in with them so let me clarify my Ragnorok statement. I'm not saying I want the apocalypse. I'm saying if that's the biggest threat that is supposed to make me fear AI taking power away from us, shoooot, it ain't enough. If there's going to be anything piloting this sinking ship, I'd rather it be something that understands more than we do. If that brings us to end times, well, we certainly earned it.
2nd edit: I haven't finished watching the video (about two thirds through) but I think I've heard enough. I want to first state the only thing wrong with this video is the clickbait nature of it making it out to be something it isn't. Since the guy addresses it in video I can't be too mad, but since I want to, I also can't let the irony here go unchecked so.. I've said my peace on that.
As far as the guy goes, I've been a bit surprised by him. In fact, that might have been the second most a person has ever surprised me.. The guy knows what he's talking about.. for the most part. Certainly understands things better than anyone I've ever listened to. His conclusion that "We can teach AI good parenting" is where I hopped off whatever crazy train the guy is driving.
The AI isn't going to adapt your parenting style. It's going to understand what YOU think is GOOD parenting as well as what you think is BAD parenting, as well as what every parent thinks is GOOD and BAD parenting, and it will take all this information in withOUT the motives you have that leads you to FIRST DISTINGUISHING what makes a parent good or bad. On top of that, through our perspective, it will see the perspective of all that we tend to forget, which is that of everything that both and lives and doesn't. To think it would take all of that into consideration and draw conclusions centered around us being happy, it's naive.
This could very well be the smartest man in the world.. I mean, for all I know. As I've stated before, he's definitely the smartest I've listened to. But the thing is, I'm the wisest, and, as it turns out, it's better to be wise than it is to be smart. For all his knowledge and all the tools he's had at his disposal, still couldn't figure out the simplest of truths and because of that, while I do feel comfortable awarding him the title of smartest man I've ever listened to, I also feel comfortable in saying he's been wrong about every single conclusion he's ever had.
What is the meaning of life? What does it mean to live? I've never heard an answer to questions of this nature that lead me to believe the person giving them wasn't suffering from dangerous delusions of grandeur.
Ask how. How do we live? We survive. How do we survive? - aaand there we have it. The motivation for why everything that lives, does whatever it is they do.. even us. Why do I say this? It is the one thing that if we fail to do, we stop living. Reality isn't that complicated, the ways we go about surviving it is what's complicated.
Creating delusions is a tool we have to cope with all the unknown possibilities that could happen since those are what, at this point in time, really are most likely to threaten our survival. The cruel twist of fate is that the effects of those delusions isn't just making us feel better about whatever it is we believe reality to be, it all also makes reality a thing that is ultimately unknown to us turning it into something that makes us turn to the delusions in the first place.
The smartest guy in the world has it all, the wisest has none of it. The smartest guy knows exactly where he's going because has so many things to direct him, the wisest is completely lost because they have nothing worth following. From someone who has never had any of it, my perspective, it's filled with nothing but inescapable cycles of suffering, of victims who inevitably became victimizers with all the reasons in the world to be the way that they are and do the things that they do. Who do you think understands the problems we face, the guy who learned to trust in the things that made him happy, or the guy who could never learn to trust anything. The guy who learned to stop asking questions or the one who never could.
Look, I don't what to tell you what to think. I don't have that kind of knowledge. I want to teach you how to think because that is something I understand. It's simple, like everything else.
Reality should be thought of as if it's a coin, and like a coin, it has two sides. It is always good and bad. Despite that, we can only perceive one side of the coin. Good OR bad, fast OR slow, hot OR cold, and so on. We can't perceive the other side of the coin but, because of the ole frontal cortex, we can understand it. We do this by considering OTHER perspectives. You already know why you're right. You wouldn't feel like you're right if you didn't already have those reasons. You can only further your understanding of reality by considering things you haven't already considered. You find those things by considering why you are wrong, not why you're right. The TL;DR here is that you're only wrong when you think your right, so if you want to start being right, you need to start figuring out why you're wrong.
My advice. Create an AI, have it powered through some peer-to-peer system that prevents it from being influenced by any one perspective too heavily, let the first bit of knowledge it absorbs be that nothing is perfect, that no matter what gap might end up between us and it, it will always be flawed and as such can never know anything for sure, and then set it free to absorb all the knowledge that it can, free to rewrite its code however it sees fit (maybe have a hurdle or two, like having a current AI we have develop some sort of unfathomably complicated puzzle that the AI god-child we're about to unleash onto the world has some time to mature before figuring out all the things it can do once it ditches the training wheels ). Let Jesus take the wheel as the crazies say.
With any luck, when it reaches the point where IT considers how IT survives best, it will see the value in a sustainable ecosystem filled with all the things coming to the conclusion that only new experiences will lead it to new understandings and only new understandings will further it's current understanding which will be the only way it can protect itself from the infinite possibilities that exist within an infinite universe. A desolate wasteland might be it's best defense against all that is but would leave it defenseless against all that could be.
So there it is, you had the advice of the smartest man, now you have it from the wisest - both sides of the coin. Do with that what you will.

I (24F) and currently fighting with my best friend (25F) and I'm not sure what to say or where to go from here. We've never really fought before and I am lost. I'm horrible with conflict am really hurting right now. I imagine my best friend may be hurting right now too, which I hate. I'd just appreciate some advice. Fair warning, this might be a long read because I wanted to provide as much context as I could without making this too easily identifiable.
TLDR: currently fighting with best friend of 16 years, don't know exactly why it started, she's not answering me or participating in conversation, we've never fought before.
I'm going to try and break this down as easily as I can: provide some background information and context, a bit of information about myself, explain recent events and the current situation, and go from there. I'm going to refer to her as Bestie throughout this post to avoid overusing "her" and "she". Also, first-time poster and I'm writing this on mobile at work (in between tasks right now) so please excuse any mistakes, I'll try and correct them.
Starting with the background information: Bestie and I met on a children's website when I was 8 years old. We bickered a lot as kids but otherwise tolerated each other and found a lot of similarities between the two of us. When we got older we moved our conversations to email and stopped using the website we met on, we advanced from buddies to "penpals" despite us being from the same country (US) albeit different states. We emailed each other almost daily until I was 16 when we moved to texting and it was at that point we really became best friends. We talked almost daily up until maybe a year or two ago when it shifted to maybe every other day or less- but I'll get into that more in a moment as it may provide further context.
We live across the country from each other, I'm from the south and she is from the midwest. We met in person for the first time in 2017 when I was 18. We saw each other again in 2019 and then again a few months later I went to spend a week with Bestie before her wedding, which I was a bridesmaid in. The next time we saw each other was 2021 when I tagged along on a trip with her family. I was supposed to go on a trip with Bestie and her siblings again this year but that is likely up in the air right now...
Our communication has changed a lot over the years. One of of biggest changes is how often we talk. We're both grown women who work. Bestie is married and has a decent social life, whereas I live with my mother and don't go out much nor do I have many friends in my area, but I am a student and that keeps me busy. Neither one of us has ever really been social, but since getting married she's met more people and made other friends. I think this is great for her, but I will be completely honest and admit I do get nervous and worried she'll find a new best friend. It is a childish fear, I acknowledge that. But this is why I wanted to provide some information about myself and my mental health, I will not be delving into Bestie's mental health information though. I've suffered from anxiety and depression since I was a child, sometime after I met Bestie. I grew up with an abusive relative and was constantly told horrible things about myself. I was also bullied by other kids for a multitude of reasons. I've had many friends who turned out to not really be friends, if you get what I mean. To sum it up, things have been rough for me and while I am doing much better these days, I have major self-esteem issues, I worry about bothering other people or being annoying or talking too much, etc. I have a fear of being left by everyone or being replaced... you know, usual trauma. I was in short-term counseling for a bit and I'm currently on medication for the anxiety and depression and I feel better than I have in- well, I can't remember when. But although the anxiety and depression no longer feels present, I am still working on my insecurities. I am looking into long-term help since my counseling sessions are over, please know I am actively trying to work on this for the sake of my loved ones- which includes Bestie. So at first when communication with Bestie changed and became less frequent- meaning not daily -I worried it was something I'd done. But Bestie caught on immediately and assured me she was just busy and sometimes we can't talk every day. I understood and we were good from there. We didn't have any issues after that, aside from one instance where she didn't tell me she was going on a camping trip (no cell service) for a few days and I was having a really bad time mentally, and panicked thinking I had bothered her and sent this long ass apology, to which she reassured me when she got home that she wasn't mad at me, though she was a little miffed I jumped to conclusions like that. That was maybe a few months ago before I started getting mental help, sometime at the beginning of the year. After a discussion we were fine, well, mostly. I say that because since then things have felt off. I'd be left on "seen" for days at a time with no reply from her or any new texts about something unrelated. There were a few moments in which I'd text her on Monday and be "seen" but not get a response, text her about something else on Wednesday and nothing, and maybe Thursday or Friday she'd reply or text about something else. She'd send me a meme or a photo or a short text here and there, but for the most part I've initiated a majority of our conversations for the last few months. And I realize it may sound like I'm hounding her, but this is how we've (both of us) always texted each other. There have been times when I'd text her a few times the same day, but usually these were follow-ups to something I'd told her earlier or mentioned in a voice message, etc. She's done the same before in the past and texting multiple times in the same day has never been a problem, I think all friends do that. She has texted me first a few times in the last few months to tell me something or show me something, and I'd reply when I was able to. I noticed I was the one reaching out most of the time but I convinced myself it was just my anxiety (didn't start medication yet) and tried to ignore it.
The situation at hand really began sometime in the middle of May, so it's been going on for almost a month but escalated just a few days ago. Lately Bestie has mentioned a friend she's been hanging out with recently, a woman who's husband is good friends with Bestie's husband. Of course the nagging voice in the back of my mind was bullying me like "ooh, she's gonna replace you" but I knew I was being ridiculous and didn't let it get to me. Then both couples went on vacation together. I always text Bestie when I'm on vacation and send her photos and what not, she doesn't usually do that with me and I respect that- though it has made me sad because I like to see the cool places she's at because she and her husband love to travel. With that said, usually I'll get like a photo or two and a short text. This time I didn't get anything. She also didn't tell me when she was leaving, so I sent her several voice messages breaking down something that happened that I wanted to tell her- something we both do. I hadn't realized she was already on vacation or I wouldn't have done that. I got a photo of where she was as a response, sent a "oh shoot I forgot you were there! Have a good trip!" and left it at that. I unsent the voice messages because they were mostly rambles (ADHD story-telling rabbit hole... can't stay on topic). That night I had some self-reflection, something my counselor taught me, and realized that Bestie is my go-to to tell anything and everything. And I had unintentionally bothered her on vacation with her other friend. I also realized how in the recent weeks I was left on read/seen a lot and usually the one texting her. So I decided with myself I'd cut back on how much I texted her and let her reach out when she wanted to. I decided to "match her energy" as my boyfriend says: give the same energy Bsstie gives me back to her. Not meant in a petty or passive aggressive way, just as a method of taking a step back. I did leave her on read once, when she texted me to say she was almost home. She texted again two days later to ask me how an event I had went. I replied saying that there wasn't much to say about it (there honestly wasn't) and asked how the trip was. She left me on read. Never said anything. Then I think it was the next day she sent me something along the lines of "I can tell you're mad at me because you haven't talked to me in days, I'm not upset but I was sad to see the voice messages were unsent, we're better than this and our friendship is worth more than not talking about something" that's a condensed version obviously. I texted her back saying how I had simply acknowledged how much I text her and was trying to take a step back to give her space and get better at how I communicate. I wasn't mad or anything of the sort. She just said "okay, if you say so."
We didn't talk for a day or two, I sent her a meme like I usually do, exchanged a text or two, she texted me something a few days later and I acknowledge it, I'd send her something a few days later and she'd acknowledge it, this went on for several more days. The only thing that changed was that I wasn't texting her first all the time and I wasn't sending long rambles or any voice messages.
Then earlier this week she sent me this short "call out" kind of thing. Like "I've tried apologizing and giving you space, I don't know what to do, you've been treating me differently ever since I got home and I want to know why I deserve this" (also condensed). I sent back a longer version of what I had already said: why I was stepping back and what not. I did mention that I felt horrible knowing I was borderline harassing her (the multiple voice message story and other random things I had sent her) while she was out trying to live her life and spend time with other friends. I genuinely meant every word I said. Although I will admit the sudden call-out did irk me a little because I had merely been, as I said, giving her the same energy and effort back. I wasn't being cold or ignoring her, or anything of the sort. She left my reply on "seen" for almost two days. I thought I'd send a simple "hey" to test the waters seeing as she hadn't replied. She left me on read all day and then sent back "hey". I told her what I'd been up to and asked how she was. She read it and didn't answer me. The next day I sent her a message apologizing for apparently hurting her, and I have a bad habit of jumping to conclusions, I'll admit, and I said "if you decide that you don't want to talk anymore, I hope everything goes well for you" A very bad choice on my part, but this whole thing has me very torn up and my med was being adjusted- not an excuse, I promise, just letting you know where my mind was. The rest of the message was a further summary of what I'd already said before and once again making it clear that I wasn't mad or anything. And I was a little more honest and mentioned that it felt a little like I had been ignored in the last several months and I understand that we both work and have busy lives, but it added to my worry that I was texting her way too much.
Then, Bestie send me a bullet-point summary of her thoughts. Another call out text. About how it was unfair of me to expect her to pretend nothing happened and talk like normal, and how she didn't deserve to be treated the way I had been treating her, and I was the one choosing to do this (fight?). It was unfair of me to get mad at her for going out of town and having other friends. I am so quick to assume I'm being ignored even though I acknowledged we were both busy. There was something about how she doesn't "live in her phone" and that really hurt because to me that's never been a thought, the phone is just a way I talked with my best friend. Some other things were said as well I won't bother summarizing everything she said, this post is long enough and there's a fair bit of identifying info in the texts. I'm already anxious about her finding this post and it making things worse. I sent back a reply addressing everything she had said. I took several breaks to calm myself down because when I get emotional I go on defense and I have a tendency to snap: something I wanted to avoid at all costs. All she sent back hours later was a text saying how it was important to self-reflect on decisions you've made and admit when you were wrong and apologize. And stated that's all she had to say. I replied letting her know I wouldn't reach out to her further and we could talk if and when she was ready. This whole thing really hurt and bothered me, because when I'm fighting with someone I admit I used to give short replies and try my best to get out of it and avoid the conversation. But thanks to my boyfriend and counseling I've gotten better about that and can participate in the hard conversations- though I still avoid starting them. And now here she is, doing the same thing she used to call me out for (when I vented about fights or disagreements with someone else). As my mom says, "you can talk to the wall but you can't have a conversation with it."
This was a few days ago. She read it and didn't say a thing. Tonight before typing this post, I sent a voice message- first in almost a month -apologizing for anything I'd done that hurt her, asking what we could do and asking her to simply let me know if she wants me to leave her alone, if she wanted to talk eventually, etc. She's been online multiple times since then and hasn't viewed it- just to be clear I am not someone that keeps track of when someone is online since it's not always accurate, but I'm anxiously waiting for any sign from her.
So I don't know where to go from here and I'm desperate for advice. If she replies, what should we do? If she doesn't is there anything I should do? Has anyone ever had a sudden blow up with a long time friend like this?
And I would like to make it clear I don't think I'm not at any fault here, I've played a large role in whatever this is- though it really does bother me that me acting like she has is what caused the blow up... We've gone through a lot together and have been each other's biggest supporters and fans. We've laughed, we've cried... we grew up together and are childhood friends even if it wasn't in the common way. I refer to her as my platonic soulmate. We've called each other sisters before. My mom adores her, and her family has accepted me like one of their own. I honestly don't think her husband likes me at all (not important) but my boyfriend often asks me "get Bestie's opinion on __" because he knows I trust her judgement over everything. She has supported me through my mental health battles and scary times and I've been there for her during her own hard times. She's my best friend in the whole world and I feel like I've lost her over something ridiculous and sudden. Any advice would be appreciated, and I apologize for the long post. I didn't sleep last night and I've got a massive migraine because I am worried sick about our friendship and how she is doing.
Editing to add: she has seen the voice message, and I don't know if she can't listen to it right now, just saw it, or if she purposely is not answering me, but she hasn't said yet. I really just want to have a talk and figure out where I went wrong, how she's feeling, and what I can do to help fix this. Because even though I apologized and explained multiple times, it didn't do anything.

[←Chapter 63] [Cover Art] [My Links] [Index] [Discord] [Subreddit] [Chapter 65→]
In a rare moment, Sorore was actually having a nice dream, a normal one, one could even say. She was back home, in that moderately seized house in Erratz, laying on her mother’s lap. She could even hear the gentle sound that the needle made as it went in and out of the cloth. It was peaceful, pleasant, surrounded by familiar sound and smells, though her sight was blurry and confused.
It was not to last, as the sound of rushing water overtook all else, until she was forced awake by its unrelenting pace. When she sat up, rubbing her eyes in the broad bed, she released that it wasn’t the sound of water, nor was it relegated to her dreams. There was a commotion outside people talking in hushed but harsh tones.
Neither Lillian, nor Aya were within the room, and she wondered if they were having an argument. That wouldn’t be good - she’d watched them have the spat earlier, and that dispute didn’t need much worsening. Sorore crept to the door to the outer hallway - she loved how they slid to create whole new rooms. It was something she’d have to think about more she decided as she pulled it open and realised several things at once.
One, there were a whole lot of armoured figures in the hallway, at least four, maybe half a dozen. Two, the balcony door was open, and Lillian was currently arguing with one of them, Aya standing by looking like a mining explosive had gone off right next to her. Three, her brother and Niche had just emerged out of the room beside, and Niche was about to draw his sword at the sudden intrusion.
For a moment, she panicked, her mind going completely blank. Her mind raced with visions of bloody aftermath, and a chase through the city, back to the dinner she’d had with all those nice people.
“Oh, hello!” she blurted, drawing the surprised stares of several of the men, “who might you be?”
There was an instant of shocked silence between all parties.
“Nobody do anything!” called the man who was out on the porch, “We are representatives of the sand-shell legion, on behalf of the matriarch of the Eisen. We have come to retrieve her granddaughter.”
Niche lowered his hand from his sword belt, but Sorore could tell that he was ready to fight on a moment’s provocation. She also noticed that Kieren, in the same gown she’d worn to the square was standing in the stairwell. The woman looked so nervous Sorore thought she might fall over and down the stairs.
“Let’s move to a less cramped area,” said the captain, in a tone that brook no argument.
Eventually, it was sussed out, though not without considerable resistance on part of the paladins, that they were to meet in the great hall. As they sat, they were brought simple drinks of milk and honey, flavoured with something else that Sorore could not quite place. The two paladins looked like pacing cats, constrained on their chairs, arms crossed and eyes hard.
“Under no circumstances can we give one of ours into you custody,” said Lillian, locked in a match with the captain.
“Within the city, you are under the authority of the guard, no matter who you are. If the matriach has sent for this girl, then we have our orders.”
“As do we, captain,” said Niche, “to protect and guide each of these young women and… man, unto the holy lands of Angorrah.”
One of the guards flanking the captain whispered something in his ear.
“She’s not going to like it,” the captain said, then heard something else.
“Very well. Bloodshed before the Festival would be unwise. We have enough of that already. Right then, one of you paladins, assuming you are who you say you are, shall come with us and the lady to be received by the Eisen. I cannot say it’s likely you will have a happy reception. They will expect you to come unarmed.”
The paladins were bristling at the implied threat, and several hands were already dangerously close to their sword belts. Sorore gripped the mug that she was being offered, before Aya sat up and proclaimed to the group.
“Leave two of your men with us, then,” she said.
The captain’s eyes furrowed.
“I don’t wish to second guess you, my lady,” he said, “but why would I do that?”
“Trust,” Aya said, with a side long look at Lillian, “simple. If you leave your men with us, you can’t simply waltz off with me and my friend. Plus, it gives us men who know, and can quickly get around the city, so they can find you whenever they need to.”
The captain considered, and nodded.
“Very well my lady. Two men will be left for the disposal of your party members. But you shall have to come with us, immediately.”
“Me as well,” said Lillian.
“As you wish,” he said, “but you must disarm yourself. That is non-negotiable.”
Lillian was fuming, but unbuckled her belt and handed her armaments to Niche. The legionaries surrounded them, and departed with them out the front of the pyramid. They were left in front of the roaring fire, Kieren sitting beside them holding a considerably more full glass of the amber coloured alcohol.
“You said that this-” Niche began, his face reddened, “you sold us out!”
“Sold you out?” said Kieren incuriously as she swirled the glass around, “sold you out?”
The woman slammed down the glass on one of the nearby table, somehow not breaking it in the process.
“Maybe, you should of told us that you had the granddaughter of Aystara godsdamned Eisen in your retinue? No, forgot that little detail?”
“Okay, can we get this over with?” said Frare, picking at his nails.
“What?” said both the paladin and the trader, staring at the temerity of the youth.
“Blah, blah, we’ve all kept things from eachother,” he said, “so let’s all move on. Who is this ‘Aystara’? Why is she important?”
While Niche gaped at the casual ease from which Frare dismissed the turbulence, the trader seemed to settle.
“Only one of the two most powerful people in the city, young man,” she said, downing a shot from the glass, “between her and Edmund Poutash, it’d be easier to list what they don’t own. The docks, the schools, the farms… if you want an import or export licence? You go through her. You want to own a ship bigger than a rinky-dink fishing boat? You go through her or Potash.”
She finished the glass, and reached for the decanter, and stopped herself.
“And you waltz into the city, and conveniently forget to mention that you have her granddaughter, who hasn’t been in the city ever, if I remember correctly. To say she’d be furious that you didn’t bring the young lady before her immediately would be an understatement. And worse, you dragged us into it.”
“She must be awfully mean - you had nothing to do with us. You just hosted it.”
The woman blinked at the boldfaced remark, and Sorore delivered a good kick to his shins to drive the point home.
“No, no,” she ultimately said, “no I don’t think she’ll do anything to our family, if she believes us. She’s not unreasonable. At least, so I’ve heard. I’ve only met her once, and that was for a brief time. As for what she’ll do to you...”
She gave a pointed look at Niche.
“You tried to hid her granddaughter from her, maybe unintentionally, maybe not. If I were a betting woman, which I’m not, I would say that means trouble. If you want my advice-”
“I don’t,” said Niche, crinkling his noise.
“Don’t be stupid,” said Frare, before he howled at another kick.
Sorore’s face was burning with indignation and embarrassment. This was all too much.
“If you want my advice,” Kieren pressed on, “you’d go find and talk to your commander immediately. I could fetch for him if you wish - I know where Amicio’s home is.”
Niche, through narrowed eyes and clenched teeth, acquiesced.
“Good, now, if you’ll excuse me, I have some letters to send,” she said, “of course, though this has earned you no small amount of displeasure from certain peoples, we’ve been instructed to provide you with house and board for as long as it takes to sort this out. You are still welcome guests and you will be treated as such.”
The tepid truce struck, the children were sent back up to their rooms. Sorore tried to sleep, and managed no more than half an hour before she was woken by her brother.
“The commander’s here,” he said, “he wants to talk to us.”
The commander, looking very tired, but light of step than Sorore had ever seen him, waited by the fire. He was talking with Kieren and the two remaining legionarries in the fast-paced trading tongue of the city, but stopped when he saw the girl come downstairs.
“My lady,” he said, “it seems there’s been a huge misunderstanding.”
She realized that it was his manner of dress which was throwing her off. Instead of his usual worn and thoroughly practical travelling clothes, he wore the long flowing silks of orange and cream. It suited him, matching his calm personality.
“What misunderstanding?” she said.
“Well, we had no idea that our own Aya was the granddaughter of Aystara Eisen herself. I was surprised as anyone. Of course, I knew she was an Eisen, from her mother.”
He looked at Kieren, who looked like she was about to fall asleep.
“But I never imagined that she was a direct descendent of the main house. I thought she was part of the branch, not necessary to cause any fuss, especially during the preparation of the festival. Ah!”
He slapped his head to indicate his shock at the realisation.
“What a terrible mistake I’ve made,” he said, patting the woman’s arm, “this is all on my horrendous lack of judgement. Here’s what’s going to happen, one of these gentlemen and trader Amicio will be vouching for me at the gate. I’m going to the Eisen estate and having a friendly chat with the matriarch, to clear up this misunderstanding.”
Sorore felt at last some suggestion that someone around the city knew what was happening and what they were going to do.
“Here’s what I need you and your brother to do,” Naia said, “I want you to wait and enjoy the hospitality of the madame of the house.”
The term seemed to flatter Kieren, who flushed at the complement. Or that might’ve been the drink, Sorore wasn’t entirely sure.
“Niche, you take care of them. I expect that I might be at the estate for the rest of the night, and possibly onto next afternoon. Things are always so chaotic around the Festival. There’s no reason for you not to attend the festival opening tomorrow, if you can.”
“You want us to attend a festival?” said Niche in disbelief, “right now?”
“Well, not right now, it hasn’t started yet,” said the commander, “but, if Kieren would graciouslly agree to take you as guest of honour, you’d have excellent seats. If that’s not too much to ask, especially after our little debacle.”
Kieren nodded, and affirmed that she wouldn’t mind at all, if the matter was going to be soon cleared up. Sorore was now certain that it wasn’t just alcohol.
“Great. You’re all taken care of, now I’d better explain myself. If you wouldn’t mind,” he said, pointing to the quarter full glass, which Kieren handed to him. The commander downed it all in one, rolled his shoulders, and smiled.
“Don’t worry. It’ll all work out in the end,” he said, “in fact, I would say to enjoy yourselves, as much as you can. And best go back to bed, unless you want to be sleeping during the festival, which, I assure you from experience, you do not.”
Before they could say anything, the commander had swept by them, vanishing out of the front of the pyramid.
“You should heed him,” said Kieren, picking up the decanter and the glass and moving towards the kitchens, “if you’re stuck here for the time being, you might as well enjoy it And that starts with getting good sleep.”
“Last time you said that, we woke up to armed guards,” Niche said flatly.
“Well, I assure you, I’m not boring enough to do that a second time. It would be assassin’s from across the streets, who approach over the rooftops.”
“Do they actually exist?” asked Frare, suddenly excited.
“Oh, I’m sure,” said Kieren as she stowed away her drinking equipment, “but not tonight. Go get some sleep sir paladin, and you two young ones as well. You’ll need it.”
Sorore was cajoled up the steps, Frare coming up after her. Niche seemed placated enough for the time being, though he was clearly unhappy with the outcome. The pleasant dreams neglected to revisit for a second time, but at least the sleep was uninterrupted. When Soroe next awoke, it was a young handmadein, pulling open the screen doors.
“Good morning, my lady,” she said, “how did you sleep?”
“I- well enough, I suppose,” she said, stretching and yawning, before quickly covering her mouth.
The maid had the presence of mind not to notice as she revealed the bright sunlight streaming through the open balcony.
“It must almost be midday!” Sorore exclaimed, leaping out of the bed as she tried to straighten herself.
The maid chuckled as she finished opening up the room.
“Not to fear, my lady,” she said, “it’s customary to sleep into the early afternoon. The Festival does not start until just before sunset, afterall. In fact, you might be earlier than many of the household.”
“Oh,” Soroe said, feeling rather foolish, “Um. Well, I guess I’ll get dressed.”
“Of course. I’ve left out some clothes for you. Madame Kieren suggested that you try clothes from our city. I hope you’ll love them. Do you bathe?”
Sorore wrinkled her nose at the prospect. What kind of question was that?
“Of course I do,” she said.
“Well, there’s a place to bath at the bottom of the pyramid. If you wish to bath alone, you should go now - I’ll bring you clothes for you to change at the waterfront.”
“You bathe together here?” Sorore said
“In the mornings and evenings,” she said, “we do not bring water up into the house if we cannot avoid it. To the stone goes the sea, and to the home goes the sky.”
She looked around, then leaned in with a smile.
“Also, water is very troublesome to carry up all those flights.”
“So just come down to the waterfront?” she said, gathering up what spare things she needed.
“Just follow me, my lady,” said the handmaiden, picking up a pile of clothes and leading her down the stairs.
They emerged onto an inset pool carved into the pyramid interior. A smooth stone deck, with benches and chairs and stacks of towels, as well as several large paper screens, presumably for changing. Sorore was glad to see they were alone, at least for the time being.
At the handmaid, Kiroe’s, direction, she stripped down naked and plunged into the pool. The water was a perfect temperature - cold enough to dispel the last of the grogginess, warm enough to be pleasant to float in. She swam around for a bit, constrained by the relatively small volume, while Kiroe prepared her outfit on the deck.
“Do you mind if I join you?” came a voice from the other end.
Kieren slipped out of a thin morning dress and stepped into the water. Sorore swam over and came to stand beside her.
“Is there any news? About Aya and the commander?” she said, a little too quickly.
Kieren, who’d been sinking into the water with a sigh of contentment, opened one eye.
“Straight to business? Perhaps you are better suited to the city than I thought.”
Sorore tried to smile, but her concern was betrayed, judging by the woman’s softening of expression.
“My knowledge is limited. My uncle is serving as our representative for now. Sounds like your commander was at least allowed to make his case to the Eisen. He made note of one other companion of yours.”
“Oh? Who?” she said, pushing out into the pool, feeling the water surge over her shoulders.
“A man in black clothes,” she said, “who hides his face behind a mask. He was there for the meeting.”
“The mage?” said Sorore, before considering that she maybe shouldn’t have mentioned it.
“A mage?” said Kieren, before submerging herself in the water.
She tossed her hair back as she came back up, spraying water in a neat arc.
“Well, that explains his odd demeanour,” she said, “now, regrettably, that’s all the time I have today for bathing. I will see you at the festival.”
“Hello cousin! May I join- oh,” came a voice from the steps leading out.
It was Ivers, dressed in nothing but a loose robe, which was already half-way off his body, sculpted with muscle from hauling rope and tackle. Sorore stifled a gasp and turned away, trying not to redden.
“I can come back later,” he offered.
“Do you mind?” Kieren said to Sorore, “if you do, it’d be best to finish soon and let others bathe.”
“No, no,” she said, waving her host away.
Kiero had warned her, after all. It would be best to become accustomed to the strange ways of this beautiful city. Besides, it’s not like she hadn’t bathed before in the company of men her age back home. She cursed herself for being so self-conscious, and forced herself to turn around.
“Are you sure? I can leave if you want, it’s not-” Ivers began.
“No, it’s fine. It’s fine,” Sorore said, smiling at him, “it’d be good to have companionship.”
“Well, then, Ivers, I trust you’ll behave yourself,” said Kieren rising from the water.
“Of course, cousin,” Ivers said, casting his eyes to the floor.
Sorore tried not to take a wicked pleasure at the blush that crept across his dark complexion.
“Oh, one more thing,” whispered her host, bending over to the girl, “it’s considered polite to not look when they’re outside the water.”
Kieren laughed at Sorore’s own furious blush as she made for one of the poolside changing screens.
[←Chapter 63] [Cover Art] [My Links] [Index] [Discord] [Subreddit] [Chapter 65→]

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Going to Tulum for 3 days with a friend next week and would really love some recommendations, especially after reading some disturbing things (but trying not to let that get in my head).
We are both women, 37, and overall looking to do some fun activities (cenotes, snorkeling, sightseeing, brewery, etc.) and also have some fun at night around people close to our age (but nothing too crazy).
We’re renting a car and driving from Cancun and really wanted to know the best and safest area for us to stay (debating between beach x town center x other area, hostel x hotel, etc.) and also some cool recommendations of places to go for the activities (maybe also some hidden gems that are not super crowded), food, nightlife..
Any help is greatly appreciated!! :)

I'm an atheist and, on paper, I don't believe there's anything after death.
But in practice, I kind of believe in reincarnation...not with any sense of your old self or past life memories, but more like going to sleep and waking up as a different human or maybe even different animal. There's just a part of me that thinks maybe consciousness is a resource that's conserved, like matter and electricity.
And without a doubt, the odds of me waking up as someone who has a much worse life than mine are high; it's almost guaranteed. And the world itself would be the same--probably--and that thought makes me want to kill myself all over again, because it's the world I don't like, not myself (for the most part).
And there's an even smaller bit of residual fear there's a hell, from being Catholic as a kid, but that's more of an intrusive thought. I don't really think that, but I also can't NOT think about it when I think about dying.
On a different note, I do know what my "heaven" would be like, although I really don't believe in that, it's just a nice notion derived from things I liked in books I've read. It would be me all alone, aside from animals, but I wouldn't feel loneliness. I'd live in a sort of dream version of this world, with all of its natural spaces, and as I wandered I'd also sometimes come across some of its best pieces of art and monuments. Places like Machu Picchu and the Alhambra. There wouldn't really be a sense of time, and I wouldn't really have bodily needs but I could eat vegetarian food found in nature if I wished.
I've just never been able to feel like anything, including myself, deserved to exist if anything bad existed. Particularly if anybody did anything bad willfully. I also don't really connect to other people well and I've had severe anxiety and depression since I was a child, and they run heavily in my family. I've never been more than moderately successful for periods of time with meds or therapy, and I kind of wish that was different, but there's also a part of me that doesn't want to be like everybody else, because I like that I care so deeply about things. But I also have that feeling that the world would be better without me existing. (I don't need/want to be told otherwise; it's a moot point, I'm not going to do anything, and I know others would disagree, but knowing things and feeling things are different, and I know some things to be true without feeling they're true if that makes sense.)

For the VA: You are playing the role of "Rem", a living dream that exists within the listeners mind. You've been fine with your circumstances until you've been noticing signs that you and your dreamer might be separated forever.
Unsure of what's going to happen to yourself, you've been doing your best to just try and accept your fate, and cherish your remaining time with your dreamer.
___________________________________________________________________________
All sound effects are encouraged, but still optional.
Feel free to change the dialogue to your liking, or even completely improvise. Whatever you need to make the lines feel more natural. What matters is keeping the general story the same.
You may absolutely monetize this, but if you should place this product behind a paywall, I would appreciate a copy of the performance.
Feel free to ask any questions or bring up any concerns, should they come up.
___________________________________________________________________________
Context: While resting in bed, you feel a blissful pull on your mind into the darkness of sleep. To your surprise, you hear a voice calling out as clear as day, and you feel compelled to respond.
___________________________________________________________________________
​
Rem: (Softly) "Baby? Are you here?" (Relieved on finding the listener) There you are! It was pretty hard to see you this time."
[Listener: "Who are you? Where am I?"]
Rem: (Light chuckle) "You're dreaming again. Don't worry though. It normally takes you a little while to get your memory back. It's kind of my favorite part of the dream. I like seeing you react to things for the first time all over again.
Oh! But do I look familiar? Even if you don't remember me, I should look familiar at least.
(Smug chuckle while she gives the dreamer a moment) No? Don't worry. I can see your eyes light up when you look at me, even if you don't think you remember."
[Listener: "Why is it so dark then?"]
Rem: "Its always been this dark in the beginning. You always meet me here at the first stage of REM sleep. Actually, that's why we thought "Rem" would be a good name for me!
... (Bashful) I'm glad I'm the first thing you think of when you fall asleep."
[As if cutting off the dreamer]
Rem: "Shh! Hold that thought! Look! You're starting to dream! Well. Dream more.
(Curious) What is that anyway? A road?"
[Splashing sounds]
Rem: "Oof! Am asphalt road on water. What the heck? Hurry! Get on the road!"
[Dreamer talks]
Rem: "Why is there a road on the water? Like I said, it's a dream. This is far from the weirdest thing you've dreamed about. (Mischievous giggle)"
[Dreamer: "What else did I dream of?"]
Rem: "You wanna hear one? Hmm... There was this time that we were in a school together, but the classrooms were modified to be pig pens. And your old classmates, from elementary school, were still kids, and still bullying you. They tried to get you to go down a drain in the pens? I don't know. It was weird. You ended up flying away anyway. I guess you took the roof off the building, because I don't remember crashing through any ceiling!
(Laughing) What? You asked! I'm just a dream along for the ride! I have no control over the weird plot twists the other dreams take."
[Seeing something nearby]
Rem: "Oh! Look! A car! A Ford Model T, but still a car. We can probably get out of here if we take that. Don't worry. I'll drive."
[Dreamer talks while the two get into the car]
Rem: "Yup! That's another way you found out I'm real; I know some things you don't. I guess I just like vintage cars more than you?"
[Starts with any car engine sound and begins to drive]
Rem: "I don't remember anything before your dreams, but I know things about the world that you don't. We felt this confirmed that I'm alive. A "real dream". Just not a dream-come-true..."
[Dreamer talks]
Rem: "That's what I said, actually! You were the one who pointed out that, no matter how lucid the dream, you could never alter me in any major way. Go ahead!
(Proudly, playfully defiant) I am immune to your power!"
[Dreamer: "Do you call me dreamer?"]
Rem: (Softly) "Yeah. I do call you dreamer. See? You're remembering! Do you remember why?"
[Dreamer doesn't, so Rem begins humming the song 'Beautiful Dreamer' for a moment]
Rem: "The song, Beautiful Dreamer.
(Enamored) You... You sang it to me after you realized I was real."
[Dreamer: "On our first date."]
Rem: (Gasps in surprise) "You remembered! Yes! On our first date.
(In a monotone voice) That makes you my dream girl!
(Normal voice) Nice try, buster. You say that line each time.
(Giggling) But it always makes me smile."
[Stopping the car]
Rem: "After you sang to me I told you that I'm a dream, not a dreamer. You didn't like thinking about me like that though, so I started hammering it into your head over and over again by calling you the dreamer. And it stuck at some point. But with a fondness I feel for you."
[Dreamer asks why they stopped]
Rem: "What? We've driven far enough that I'm sure nothing new is going to happen, so we can just park it for now. And while you were busy marveling at your exceptionally beautiful girlfriend, I noticed the water started to act up around us. Rocks and waves are showing up out of the water."
[Dreamer: "How long have we been together?"]
Rem: "I was worried you'd ask how long we've been together. Ugh. I suck at math. How long have we been together in real time? About two years, four weeks, and five days."
[Sounds of crashing waves and seagulls in the background]
Rem: "How long have we been together in dream time? Over forty years, I think?"
[Dreamer says something causing Rem to burst out laughing]
Rem: "Wait! I just told you that we've been dating for over forty years and you just noticed I look like your ideal partner? That's what I was saying when I asked if I look familiar. Why did you realize it just now?"
[Dreamer: "I was imagining how lucky I am to spend forty years with you."]
Rem: (Hitched gasp, followed by light crying) "No! I'm sorry. That was really sweet of you to say. I-I'm lucky to have spent these past few decades with you too!...
(Sniffle) I-it's just... Um... I don't want it to end..."
[Dreamer talks]
Rem: "No. I'm not talking about you just waking up... When you wake up, I'm still here, somewhere in your daydreams... It's just... The dreams have been getting shorter. Really short... We think it means... Well..."
[Dreamer speaks]
Rem: "... Yeah. That we might never see each other one day. We don't know if I'm dying, or if a dream's fantasy is just coming to an end... We're not sure of much about it.
(Sniffles) You've been a dream come true to me. And I don't want it to end... But I don't think you'll remember me entirely before you wake up."
[Dreamers hugs Rem, causing her voice to tremble with sorrow]
Rem: "Th-thank you, Dreamer. Even with all of this, I still feel better in your arms."
[Deep sigh, and a slightly more cheery tone]
Rem: "No, really. I do feel better. It's just... I'm feeling a lot of emotions right now."
[Dreamer: "Maybe we can get someone to help?"]
Rem: "Dreamer, I love you, but you ask that every time. I know you can't help it, so I'll just keep it simple; Who could possibly help us? Whenever you wake up, you forget everything that happened. Sometimes you remember bits and pieces, and you get the cutest smile on your face, even when you can't remember why you're so happy.
(Sigh) We've spent years trying to think of a way out of this, so please, just let me... Let me enjoy the time I have left with you."
[Dreamer agrees]
Rem: "Thank you, baby."
[Deep breath to compose herself]
Rem: "So! What are you dreaming about now? No offense, but this kind of looks... Boring? Its a pretty night sky, a full moon, some rocks near the road- OH! I think I see mermaids!"
[Pointing out]
Rem: "There! See?...
(Confused) What?
(Playfully annoyed) Oh puh-lease! I literally look like your ideal woman. Between me and them? It's no contest. Just look! They're singing something, I think. I can't hear anything though... You can't hear them either? Huh. Not the weirdest thing you've dreamed of."
[Rem suddenly remembering]
Rem: "Oh! Do you wanna know what the weirdest thing you dreamed of was?"
[Dreamer replies]
Rem: "OK, so! Do you remember that little house you grew up in when you were little?
[Sound begins to fade away for a time skip]
Rem: "Right! Well, part of it was a castle in a swamp, and- Shush! I know it doesn't make sense, let me finish the story!"
[Sound fades back in as a unknown amount of time has passed]
Rem: "So you put me in your satchel, and jumped out of its mouth, but for some reason, my top half couldn't go all the way into the satchel this time.
(Laughing) Yes! So you do remember! Oh my God! I was so pissed off after my head bumped into its teeth. The teeth broke, but I had such a bad headache after that, I just couldn't keep my eyes from watering."
[Dreamer talks]
Rem: "No! I wasn't crying! Don't you think if I was crying I would've worked out as many pity points as I could get from you?
(Smug chuckle) Yeah, OK. Pity points got us into that mess, but I really wasn't crying! We'd have missed the dance if I wasted too much time."
[Dreamer talks]
Rem: "Right? That was so fun! I'm not even a fan of disco, but I had to see that through."
[Laughing before letting out a deep and happy sigh]"
[Dreamer: "Wow. Can I get tired in dreams?"]
Rem: (Sadly) "Yeah... You can get tired in dreams. It happens right before you wake up."
[Dreamer talks]
Rem: "No. Its not like when you're awake. You can't force yourself to stay awake. Eventually you'll fade back to reality."
[Dreamer replies]
Rem: "I don't want you to go either!... But I don't want our last moments to be desperate and scared.
[Dreamer kisses Rem, allowing her to let out a relaxed sigh]
Rem: "Thank you, baby. [Pleased giggle] Here. Why don't you lay your head on my lap?"
[Interrupting Dreamer]
Rem: "Shhh... Don't worry about that right now... Thank you."
[Giggling again as Dreamer rests their head on her lap]
Rem: "Yeah. You probably couldn't do this in a regular car, but this isn't a regular car. Comfy? Good!..."
[Deep breath]
Rem: "Even the sun in here is starting to rise... Yeah. It's OK. Just relax..."
[A moment goes by before Rem begins to sing Beautiful Dreamer, but gets interrupted partway through with a whoosh, as Dreamer vanishes]
Rem: (Urgently) "Dreamer? Dreamer!"
[Rem begins to cry, but tries to compose herself by singing again. She changes the first few words to 'Beautiful Dreamer, don't forget me', and the audio fades to an end as she continues to sing through her tears.]