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wudlund · 1 year

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GROWING UP LEGACY CHALLENGE

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| by wudlund

i wanted to create a legacy challenge that focusses on the parent-child relationship and how that impacts their adult life. (i know growing together would be the perfect pack for this challenge, but i can't afford it rip)

-> this has not been playtested so pls let me know if anything is too difficult or doesn't work :)

-> included packs: get to work, outdoor retreat/jungle adventure, city living, get together, seasons, cats & dogs, discover university, high school years, parenthood, strangerville, island living, paranormal stuff, snowy escape, cottage living, nifty knitting, eco lifestyle (if you don't have a pack, just exclude that part of the challenge)

-> for each generation, they should complete their aspiration, master any skill(s) i've outlined, complete a collection and master their career (if relevant) the recommended world is only my opinion, you do not have to live there :)

-> whenever 'parent' is mentioned, i mean the founder/heir before as some generations do not specify a spouse (they are secondary characters here, babes)

GEN 1: The Parental Scriptures

You grew up hopping between various foster parents and children’s homes. You vowed to adopt as many children as you could handle as an adult and make them feel as loved and welcome as possible. Incorporating your passion for writing, you write novels about each of them throughout their lives.

Traits; Family Oriented, Childish & Good

Aspiration; Big Happy Family

Career; Writer

Collection; Postcards (recieved from grown up children living in different locations/worlds)

Max Skills: Parenting & Writing

Recommended World; Henford-on-Bagley

Start as a Young Adult

Have an 8 sim household (can be a single parent for ‘hard mode’ or married), adopting 6/7 children

Write 6/7 books (corresponding with however many children you have)

Name each book after the child that it's about

Hire a nanny to help with the children

Celebrate every holiday fully (e.g. decorate to the max)

Help children with homework and interact with them as much as possible

Take lots of pictures of each child at each life stage (e.g. toddler, child) and decorate your house with them

Go on holiday to a vacation world every summer with all your children

Buy all grandchildren a toy for their first birthday (aging up into an infant)

Don’t die before becoming an elder (this will be important later !)

GEN 2: The Malevolent Amalgam

Growing up, you despised your parent. They were so overbearing and involved in your life, something burned inside you. You channelled your rage into criminal activity and found a love for experimental dishes. You hatched a nefarious plan to get revenge on the parent that you hated so much.

Traits; Evil, Mean, Hates Children

Aspiration; Public Enemy

Career; Criminal

Max Skill; Mischief

Collection; Experimental Food Photos (inspiration for murderous plan)

Recommended World; San Myshuno

Have 2 best friends in childhood who you pull pranks with

Skip school/play hooky regularly

Have a child by accident with someone who is similar to your parent (at least 2 of the same traits)

Have one child who you are very distant from

Have other parent of child die by cowplant or denizens pond ("accidental")

Never celebrate holidays (cancel them when they start or remove from the calendar -> however you may want to keep them for future generations)

Instead, go on vacation to any vacation lot without your child or partner

Learn Pufferfish Nigiri

Kill parent with dish

When your child moves out, give them 1200 simoleons

GEN 3: The Questioned Innocence

Throughout your childhood, you were very close to your grandparent, who died under very mysterious circumstances. Once you were old enough, you dedicated your life to investigating the death of your grandparent, finally finding out the truth. You begin to wish you’d never started investigating.

Traits; Genius, Loyal, Paranoid

Aspiration; Strangerville Mystery

Career; Detective

Collection; Fossils (clues about grandparent's death)

Max Skill ; Logic & Medium

Recommended World; Strangerville

Start with 1200 simoleons (after purchasing lot)

Keep the toy/soft toy from your grandparent for the rest of your life

Have 3 children

Buy them all a newer version of your favourite toy (different swatch)

Live on a remote lot (to avoiding your investigation being detected)

Complete the Strangerville Mystery

Confront and fight your parent in adulthood and have max negative relationship when they die

Contact your grandparent from beyond the grave and have them move into the household as a ghost

GEN 4: The Sidelined Affinity

Your parent loved you but never had much time for you, being so absorbed by their work. You maintained a positive relationship with them, but decided to take your life in a different direction. Beginning freelance work at the start of your adult life, you quickly realised animals had your heart.

Traits; Cat Lover, Dog Lover, Clumsy

Aspiration; Friend of the Animals

Max Skills; Veterinarian & Dog Training

Collection; Feathers (mementos of your pets)

Recommended World; Brindleton Bay

Meet someone as a child and date through your teen years until the start of young adulthood

Regularly get boba tea with your pets

Always have one cat and one dog in the household

Work in any freelance branch you choose through young adulthood

Have one child by accident in young adulthood

Buy a vet clinic on your birthday into adulthood (cheat for money - it's a gift from your parent)

Adopt another child later

Marry a spellcaster as an elder and become a spellcaster yourself

Take in your grandchildren after their parent dies

GEN 5: The Regimented Defense

You grew up seeing how unattached and careless your parent was. You hated it. Life is meant to be structured. There are rules. You always knew you were destined for bigger, better and more organised things.

Traits; Hot-Headed, Perfectionist and Proper

Aspiration; Bodybuilder

Max Skills; Fishing (only peaceful time in your life)

Career; Military

Collection; Fish

Recommended World; Oasis Springs

Join the Scouts as a child and get all trophies

Marry childhood sweetheart in early young adulthood

Have 2 children, use strict parenting methods

Sign both children up for after-school clubs

Both children must earn Good Manners trait from childhood

Set an early curfew for both children

Mount one of each fish you catch

Your spouse has an affair in adulthood and elopes with their partner

Have the workaholic lifestyle

Die in adulthood (you can cheat this to be any death - like dying on duty)

GEN 6: The Detached Secrecy

You learned early in life how unpredictable and fleeting life is and how futile attachments are. You decided to never allow yourself to get tied down and live life as meaningfully and freely as possible. Any commitment scared you, leading to you exploring all corners of life and finding out what it truly means to live.

Traits; Adventurous, Noncommittal, Loves Outdoors

Aspiration; Serial Romantic /Live Fast

Collection; Frogs (exception to the rule of 'no attachments')

Career; Secret Agent

Max Skill; Rock Climbing

Recommended World; Mt. Komorebi

Do not complete your aspiration as a child (can be any aspiration)

Complete the Live Fast aspiration as a teen

Drop out of High School early and move out of your grandparent's house

Never marry, date different people sporadically (never for longer than a week)

Have triplets - you will probably have to cheat this :)

Give them names beginning with the same letter or names that are very similar

When one child demonstrates an interest in fame, actively discourage them

Have a frog that you are a little bit too attached to

Retire and move worlds (must be a different climate to one you were living in - e.g. mt. komorebi to sulani)

GEN 7: The Unsatisfied Luxury

You actually might have had the most average, normal childhood ever. One of three children, you didn't even have individuality to your name. Nothing spectacularly out of the ordinary. Although, you never did find out what your parent’s career was… probably something normal, right? You set your sights on something a little less ordinary. You wanted to be rich.

Traits; Materialistic, Self-Absorbed, Ambitious

Aspiration; Fabulously Wealthy/Admired Icon

Max Skills; Charisma & Dancing

Career; Retail Store Owner

Collection; Crystals (imagine they are rare jewels etc.)

Recommended World; Del Sol Valley

Have lots of friends as a child/teen

Be Prom Queen

Work on the Admired Icon aspiration as a teen

Own a retail store, selling very expensive items

Become famous (at least Rank 4)

Have 4 children with a big celebrity

Own a fancy dog (e.g. poodle, bichon frise, pomeranian)

Have a messy divorce from the parent of your children, fighting regularly

Lose relationships with children

When you die, have no strong relationships (no more than acquaintances with anyone)

GEN 8: The Inspired Modesty

You got to see first hand what a life of money and fame does to a person. You knew you wanted something more modest, finding your purpose in life through painting. You had a turbulent family life growing up, so you channelled those feelings into paintings.

Traits; Art Lover, Gloomy, Lactose Intolerant

Aspiration; Master Painter

Max Skills; Painting & Cross Stitching

Career; Painter

Collection; Seashells (you find beauty in everything, no matter how small)

Recommended World; Sulani

Buy most of your clothes via thrifting

Join the cheer team but move to the football team later in high school

Live on a 20x15 lot

Dumpster dive for furniture etc.

Use the recycler for trash

Sell your work on Plopsy

Find your soulmate at work (also a painter)

Have 2 science babies

Have close relationship with only your first child

Paint portraits of your spouse and children

Make cross-stitched hoops as gifts for your children's birthdays

Have spouse die just after second baby is born

Never remarry

Heir must be the second child

GEN 9: The Broken Machinery

After your parent's death, you detached yourself completely from your family, swore off relationships and delved into your studies. Your remaining parent tried to connect with you but you felt incomplete, missing someone you never knew.

Traits; Genius, Geek, Socially Awkward

Aspiration; Computer Whiz/Whiz Kid

Collection; Voidcritters (as a child)

Max Skills; Rocket Science & Robotics

Career; Engineer

Recommended World; Britechester

Complete the Whiz Kid aspiration as a child

Join the Chess Club in High School

Have one best friend growing up (never speak again after school ends)

Attain Distinguished Physics Degree from Foxbury Institute

Meet another friend at university

Get a cat after leaving university

Be friends for at least 2 months before starting romantic relationship (fearful to lose them like you lost your parent)

Have a child together in late adulthood

Your partner must be revealed to be an alien after you become romantically involved

Build rocket ship

Travel to sixam with your partner

GEN 10: The Last Hurrah

You admired your parent for being so skilled and intelligent but you just weren’t up for that. To be honest, you didn’t have the energy for it. You never aspired to much but you were happy.

Traits; Lazy, Cheerful, Unflirty

Aspirations; Party Animal/Joke Star

Max Skills; Charisma & Comedy

Collection; Gardening (have a little herb garden)

Career; Odd Jobs

Recommended World; Henford-on-Bagley

Go to prom with your best friend

Have a games room in your house

Never marry but have multiple long term relationships

Have no children

Have a big dog

Have lots of close friends and party with them regularly

Create and maintain a club

Attend the Henford-on-Bagley village fairs (you do not have to compete, just engage with it)

Visit every bar and have a drink in every world at least once (like a pub crawl)

Have the people person lifestyle

Live on the same lot the founder lived on (the house may be different)

if you play this, pls use the #growing up legacy challenge tag so i can see your posts <3 - essie xo

#growing up legacy challenge #gulc #ts4 #ts4 legacy challenge #sims 4 #sims 4 legacy challenge #wudlund #new legacy #legacy challenge #new legacy challenge

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leupagus · 4 years

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My Stationery Box, or: The Douche Chest, or: How I Learned To Stop Worrying And Love Being A Terrible Parody Of Myself

So I really love to write letters, and have since i was a kid — when i cleaned out my grandparents’ house I found a few I’d written in grade school, and my parents’ files are chocablock full of the weird collage type things I sent to them in college.

I’ve also been a huge insufferable fucking snob about stationery since way too young (yes I did have a fountain pen phase, no it did not go well) and have been collecting fancy paper and cute cards and assorted weird writing paraphernalia forever. Up until recently, things were just kind of haphazardly stuffed in various drawers and shelves and I could never actually find any said fancy shit when I wanted it; but a couple of months ago I discovered an adorable little chest of my late mom’s that had previously housed, I think, her knitting and has mostly just been collecting dust since. And voila: The Douche Chest was born:

(Pictured with my elderly laptop and coffee with my coffee warmer, which I STRONGLY ENCOURAGE everyone to buy one day when we’re not under worldwide quarantine, seriously it will change your life.)

Keep Reading for some top tier stationerdery

First off, the stuff that helps me write! I still use my family address book, which was purchased sometime in the early 80s and has the name and address of everyone my parents ever cared enough about to want their name and address, which is actually not that many people. I keep it updated and have added a few people, but mostly rely on my phone’s address book. Mostly I like it because it’s got a lot of my mom’s handwriting.

My planner, which has a whole correspondence section where I keep a record of who I write to regularly, when I write to them, and what kind of stationery they usually get (because there are different types and you don’t want to give a correspondence an inconsistent letter-reading experience! Yes I know, I can’t believe I’m like this either) indicated by the m, s, x, l, b notations. That will be relevant later. Also yes the planner is where I scribble down both story ideas and my gratitude journal. This is what I’m saying in re: yikes.

At my own house, I have a whole huge box of letters I’ve gotten over the years, mostly organized by sender and date. Since I’m at my aunt’s house for quarantine, my correspondence is all being kept in my dad’s old... I dunno what to call it, basically it’s a trapper-keeper type thing that I literally never saw him go to work without. (A running theme of this tour is that a whole lot of this stuff is inherited from/given to me by my parents and grandparents.) Inside is also various labels that have come in handy when addressing packages etc, as well as our local neighborhood directory.

Next up is my pen bag, which is — I mean, it has my pens. I prefer writing with a black .5 tip rollerball type pen, and by “prefer” I mean “I cannot abide writing letters with anything else and will go to Staples and buy a new box rather than use a ballpoint pen except obv not right now, which makes the bag real important for keeping track of all my special pens.” Also pictured: my grandpa’s ancient letter opener that I’m pretty sure he stabbed multiple people with, and my blue Le Pen which I use to annotate my letters when I’m reading them through before sending. I KNOW.

This is my assorted letter-writing stuff storage box (no we’re not even at the cards yet this is TERRIBLE); please note that I sort of jerryrigged this box together myself, which will be another running theme of this tour. Glue, roller whiteout thingies, washi tape (which I don’t really use but people keep sending me?) post-its and my address stamp because no matter what I do, the fuckin’ Audubon Society refuses to send me a single donation request with cute stickers showing my address even though they’ve sent my deceased dad like three THIS YEAR. Anyway. Also please note the incredibly awesome initial stamp thing — I came up with the rough design in college and use it in place of my name a lot, but I went to leoniebunch and they transformed it into this super professional and lovely design that I want to use for the rest of my life. Not pictured: the fucking wax seal I also had made with that design, because yes, I’m like this.

WE’RE STILL NOT DONE WITH THE PARAPHERNALIA: here’s the other misc. stuff that I use on the regular. Cup with sponge because we’re not really licking envelopes these days: tons of weird stickers that I’ve collected, YET MORE PENS, including rainbow ones because one of these days I’m going to write to one of my friends with alternating rainbow colors and they’ll have to murder me. Also pictured: the letter opener which I forgot to put back in the pen bag, as well as my dog’s nail clippers and brush because that’s a handy place to keep them. Also also pictured: my dog, who does not help in any way with letter writing.

OKAY FINALLY ONTO THE STATIONERY, Jesus just writing this all out is making me both proud and ashamed.

I’m sure you noticed in the first pic how everything is meticulously, not to say monomaniacally, labeled. Some stuff might require a little bit of explanation; some stuff is pretty wysiwyg though. For example, BEAR CARDS, which:

(These are sent exclusively to my nephews, who go absolutely apeshit over them every time. Come to think of it, I have a LOT of cards/letter stock/etc that is just for one person or one set of people, which maybe I should talk to my therapist about.)

PUN CARDS are likewise exactly what you think they are; they’re the most recent addition to my hoard, having found them at Powells when I went to Portland in February. They are extremely My Kind Of Thing.

Then you’ve got things like BIRTHDAY CARDS, THANKS, POSTCARDS which like — guess what:

(Please note that of these birthday cards, all but two were actually inherited from my grandmother who passed away in 1986. See if you can guess which two are my purchases.) (Also I’m running out of thank-you cards but to be fair I am rarely grateful so this should last me another few years at least.) (Also shit, I didn’t take a picture of the postcards I don’t think? Whatever, they’re postcards that I’ve either inherited from my parents or collected over the years. There’s also a very odd collection of wolf-themed cards that SOMEONE in my family collected, and that I have been using exclusively for allighater because she’s the only one who could ever appreciate them enough.)

Then there’s the BLANK CARDS and BLANK AND WRITTEN CARDS WITH/WITHOUT ENVELOPES, because sometimes I just need to know what I’m getting into before opening the boxes. I’d say a good 50% of these were inherited from my folks, with the cutsier ones being my own purchases. The cards that these boxes originally contained are looooooooong since used up but they’re nice boxes and that meme about adulthood being an endless debate over whether or not you should keep a box because it’s a really good box is accurate as all hell.

(There are a lot of cards in here that I bought when I was like, in college — those square ones, for example, were purchased at Faces in Northampton when I was in college and I’m probably never going to actually send them which is kind of ridiculous but see: this entire post.)

And finally, the actual letter-letter stationery! Which I also have an embarrassing amount of! First up is what’s labelled MADOC TREE CARD/LETTER because I honestly had no idea how else to describe it; it was inherited from my grandma who everyone called MaDoc (on account of her being both a ma and a doctor, go figure) and it’s really lovely. I doubt it’s the original intention, but I like to unfold the paper and use both sides of it, because I always have a lot to say. These are used only for family members on MaDoc’s side, and of those, only the ones I really like, which accounts for there still being a lot left.

Then there’s the X-LARGE paper, which isn’t actually that large — it’s just normal computer-sized — but in context is the biggest stuff I’ve got. All of this paper is from my mom, who loved using cute themed paper, and I use this stuff mostly for the friends of hers I keep in touch with (which is actually kind of a lot).

Then there’s the letterhead I use for — okay, so like, we know by now that I’m deeply weird, but this is probably just DEEPLY WEIRD, but whatever, you came this far. So I found a metric shitton of 6 3/4 envelopes in amongst my parents’ office supplies — I have literally zero idea why they had about 5 100-count boxes of these envelopes but I’m one of those people who can never, ever throw shit out, so! I gathered together all the letterhead that they’d also collected over the years from the various universities and hospitals they worked at, cut said letterhead down so that it a) didn’t have University of Tacoma or whatever still on it and b) perfectly fit a 6 3/4 envelope if folded three times. The resulting shape is a little... odd, I’ll admit, but it pleases me greatly and that’s the important thing. In fact this has been my go-to correspondence choice for a couple of months now.

(Also pictured: the cover for this hinky-ass box I made out of a Beekman 1802 box from when we went to their store for their Rose Apothecary popup shop. Zero regrets. Not pictured: the really cute pad of paper I also use for these envelopes that’s a more normal size and shape because where’s the fun in showing you normal stuff?)

And finally, my pride and joy, my Crane Stationery, some of which I have had since I was in high school and my mom bought me a box of it for my birthday (I told you, running theme). It comes in small, medium, and big; yes, I absolutely have rules as to who gets what size of these, too. The medium box kind of fell apart a few years ago so I cobbled a new one together; Crane stationery is notable for not being as exciting as that cover might imply. I’m also kind of pleased that I still have the airmail stationery that I got in college that apparently isn’t sold anymore, which I find baffling because what the fuck is the point of international correspondence if you don’t have to use special stationery? Anyway:

(In re: the lined sheets — I actually have them for every size, because I loathe lined paper but also loathe writing crooked, hence these guides that I put under each sheet as I write. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ )

So that’s the complete guided tour! If you aspire to have a collection as viscerally unnerving as mine, feel free to send any questions my way. You’re welcome/I’m sorry.

#'you're welcome/I'm sorry' is ALSO a running theme #anyway a whole three people on twitter wanted this so tadaaaa #stationery station

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strawberrysoup · 4 years

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Let’s Review || Chapter 5

Peter Parker knew that his big sister would do anything for him to be safe and happy. She’d given up everything for him twice over already and would do it again in a heartbeat. And that’s why, when the criminal mastermind Tony Stark started inextricably following him around, he didn’t say a word. Because he knew without a doubt Penny would do whatever she had to if it meant keeping Peter safe. He had to protect her, just like she always protected him. He never considered what would happen if Stark decided both Parker siblings were worth taking. Never considered who else in Stark’s inner circle would agree. He just wanted to protect her and yet somehow, they both ended up with needles in their necks.

relationship: Steve Rogers/Original Female Character/Bucky Barnes, background Peter Parker/Tony Stark rating: Explicit warnings: Dark Steve Rogers, Dark Bucky Barnes, Dark Tony Stark, Dark Avengers, kidnapping, non-con/dub-con elements, underage Peter Parker, emotional and psychological abuse, very dark

Tony looked down at his cell as a text came in from Bucky, that they’d kept Penny busy for as long as they could but Steve had stuck his foot in it and she’d ran off. He definitely Didn’t Roll His Eyes but he did scoff, shoving his phone back in his pocket. It wasn’t a big deal necessarily, just meant their timeline was moved up a bit.

“Rhodey, we should be expecting Penny pretty soon,” he shouted from the Parker’s kitchen to where Rhodey was in Peter’s room, “the Winter Wizards chased her off and she’s probably going to be heading back.”

“Thought she wanted to get her nails done?” Rhodey called back curiously, examining a giant Lego spaceship on the dresser.

“Bucky thinks she’s probably freaked out enough to forgo her original plans, I guess they got a bit handsy.”

“Do you want me front and center or should I stay back?”

Tony hesitated in thought for several moments before sitting down at the kitchen table, arranging the laptop to angle the webcam for the best view of what was to come. Everybody back home would want to watch.

“Stay in the bedroom for now,” he gave a quick thumbs up to the camera before moving to look through the trunks that doubled as an end table and a coffee table near the couch.

Most of Penny’s belongings were in the trunks, several outfits and a few pairs of shoes. She didn’t own very much, just a couple of books on gardening and cooking and a pair of knitting needles but no yarn. A stack of what she probably considered important papers were at the bottom of one, her and Peter’s birth certificates and social security cards, the bill of sale for her car, the scholarship agreement for Peter’s school.

There was also a stack of printed pictures, none in frames, neatly tucked into a corner. They were of Peter and of their family, old photos of their parents and aunt and uncle and what looked like grandparents. He’d seen several of them before, saved on Penny’s Pinterest, but he left them out on the couch to make sure they’d be taken with them upon leaving the apartment. They wouldn’t need any of their clothes, but keepsakes would be important in the coming months. Both for comfort and as incentives for good behavior.

He was still digging through the trunk-slash-coffee-table when he heard the key turn in the lock of the front door. A quick, careful breath steeled his nerves and he sat down on the couch, casually crossing one leg over the other and began flipping through the pictures.

There was a change in the air the moment Penny realized something wasn’t right in her apartment. Tony got goosebumps, the anticipation running through him as he listened to her very quietly set down her purse and keys, creeping through the hallway towards the living room. She stopped in the doorway, a sharp inhale betraying that she’d seen him.

“Why don’t you come sit down with me sweetheart,” he called without looking over his shoulder, curious to see how jumpy she would be after her run in with the soldiers.

“How did you get in my apartment?”

“I’m willing to answer all of your questions if you come sit down.”

The hesitation was obvious, he imaged he could almost smell how scared she was, but in the end she came shuffling around the side of the couch. She stopped again, hovering for a moment before pulling one of the chairs away from the kitchen table and sitting down a fair distance away from him.

He snorted slightly but nodded, “I guess I didn’t specify that you had to sit by me, did I?”

Penny didn’t move a muscle in response, she was hardly breathing with how stiffly she sat. Tony sighed and stood up from the couch, one hand going into his pants pocket while the other still held the pictures.

“I got into your apartment by picking the lock,” he stated, answering her earlier question, “Even the new deadbolt you bought is pretty easy to pick, sweetheart. Although that security bar sitting next to the door would’ve been effective if I tried to break in while you were home. How much was it, $20? $30?”

A moment went buy before she realized he actually expected an answer and Penny inhaled rather sharply, “$50.”

“Ah, you must’ve splurged then, hm? I know an extra 50 bucks probably wasn’t easy to come by,” Tony deliberately looked around the sparse apartment, “but I know Peter’s safety is your top priority, right?”

“Always,” she sounded on the verge of tears and Tony smiled softly, crossing to stand directly in front of her.

“Take deep breaths, baby, we still need to talk,” he took her hands into his and pulled her up off of the chair, leading her to sit on the couch, “now, that’s more comfortable, isn’t it? Well, not by much. This is probably the most uncomfortable couch I’ve ever sat on. That’s why you make Peter sleep in the bed, right? Because the couch isn’t good enough for him.”

Penny didn’t answer, her pretty face was pale and frightened and Tony sat next to her gently so she didn’t startle too much. Her muscles tightened in response, especially when he dropped his arm around her shoulder and tugged her closer to his side. She was smaller than he remembered when he first saw her, smaller than she looked on the webcam footage. She fit perfectly under his arm and if she’d just relax a bit, she’d tuck right against his chest with her head under his chin.

“You know, Peter lied to me, when I first met him,” he stated quietly, turning his head just enough to brush his nose against her temple, “he told me that he didn’t have any family. No parents, no siblings, he lived on his own after his aunt died. When I saw that he actually did have a guardian, I was furious that he lived in such a shit hole.”

He hadn’t really thought it possible, but Penny stiffened up even more under his arm. It might’ve been anger or discomfort or sadness, he didn’t know, but he did know she bit down on her lip, hard, to stop from responding.

“I figured that anyone who made him live in a place like this must’ve been a monster. Who would let a kid live in this drug den? Did you know that the week I saw you for the first time, there had been 23 drug related police calls to this location? In just a week! Knowing my boy was—”

Penny broke away from his grasp swiftly and with more strength than he’d anticipated, launching herself off the couch to stand in front of him, “He’s not your boy! Peter isn’t your anything, you fucking pedophile—”

“I’m almost glad I won’t be the one teaching you your manners,” a low, dark chuckle escaped his lips and Tony stood up, causing Penny to stumble back several steps towards the window, “but only almost, baby, I promise. I think the freezer burned beef-cakes are going to take good care of you, but if they don’t I’m gonna steal you back in a heartbeat, I promise.”

“Get out of this apartment,” Penny thrust her arm out, showing her cellphone with 911 dialed but the call not yet placed, “I swear I’ll call the police if you don’t get out, I swear—”

“I’m actually positive that you would, if you didn’t already know that I have 99% of the NYPD on my payroll,” he reached out and plucked the phone from her hand gently, shutting it before turning it around in his hand curiously, “this is ancient, sweetheart.”

Penny’s back was nearly pressed against the wall beside the window but Tony continued to approach, his steps slow and methodical. The goal would be to herd her back towards the hallway, where Rhodey could approach from behind. It would be the best way to get her carefully drugged without too much of a struggle, but Tony was fully capable of subduing her by himself if necessary.

“You’re upset and I understand why, I just want you to understand that no harm is going to come to you or your brother,” Tony stopped a few paces away and put his hand back into his pocket, along with her phone, and gestured around with the other one, “all I wanted to begin with was to get Peter out of this hell hole, he deserves so much more, don’t you think? Peter deserves everything, doesn’t he?”

“P… Peter deserves to grow up, l-like a normal kid,” she stuttered after a moment, her feet shifting unconsciously away from the man in front of her, “he deserves to graduate high school a-and go to college and be whatever he wants, he deserves to live in p-peace, without being stalked or—”

“You’re not very good at manipulation, are you sweetheart?” Tony smiled, watching her gear up to run from him, “That’s okay, you don’t need to be. I know that all you want is for Peter to be safe and happy. You want him to have all of the opportunities you and the rest of your family didn’t get.”

“L-Look, you’re right, okay?” Penny once again found herself putting her hands out in front of her, palms out as she tried to discourage the man from coming any closer, “I just want Peter to be safe. I just want him to be h-happy. So please, please leave him alone. I would do… I would do anything if it meant you’d leave him alone. Please, Mr. Stark, please leave my brother alone. H-He has so much potential. He’s going to go on to do… to do amazing things. He’s so smart, he can do anything he wants. Please, tell me what I can do to make you go away? To leave him alone? Please.”

A small sigh escaped Tony’s lips as he reached out, grabbing her hands as he stepped closer and tugging her into his chest. Her muscles pulled so tight she started to shake. Three men in one day had laid their hands on her, had thought they had the right to touch her when she didn’t want them to. Tony’s grasp wasn’t as tight as Steve or Bucky’s had been, but it was somehow firmer. It was scarier, there was more potential for violence in this man’s arms.

“You’ve spent a pretty long time giving up everything for Peter. I looked into you, you know? I saw when you dropped out of high school because your aunt didn’t make enough to support you and Peter without your uncle. You had to settle for a GED so your brother wouldn’t go without. Started working dead end job after dead end job to support him. And then when your aunt died, you dropped your classes all over again, and picked up even more work. Everything you do is for him, huh?”

He rested a hand on the back of her head, making her lean her forehead against his shoulder and tugged out her hair tie. The waves of dark brown hair spilled down over her shoulders and brushed against his suit. He slipped his fingers into the dark locks, gently rubbing over her scalp and sighing. Penny felt so small, trembling against his chest.

“You’ve taken such good care of my baby boy, Penny,” he tilted her face back slightly with his thumb, making her meet his eyes, “you did such a good job, keeping him safe and happy for me. But now its my turn to keep him safe and happy, and I promise I’m going to do my best.”

“N.. No, please, no, listen to me,” Penny pushed against his chest in a panic, trying to twist out of his arms but only succeeding in twirling them both around, “Please leave Peter alone, please don’t take him from me, I need him, I love him, please—”

“You’re so precious baby, so sweet,” all of a sudden, his grip around her shoulders and on her face tightened, slowly and carefully forcing her to bend her neck to the side, “I’m not taking him from you, I’m taking both of you. Now stay still, sweetheart, take a deep breath.”

“No… No, no, no, please—”

Rhodey pressed himself against the young woman’s back, one arm coming around her torso to help Tony steady her attempts at thrashing. They had expected a fight, but Penny was surprisingly tough to hold. Maybe it was her adrenaline, the combination of thinking she’d gotten her wallet stolen, what happened with the Ancient Aliens at the coffee shop, the whole situation with Tony Stark overall.

Penny Parker had been gearing up for a fight for a solid month, whether she realized it was going to come to physical blows or not. A full fucking month of anticipation and fear and fury.

“No!”

Neither of them had expected Penny to drop her weight. Both ended up fumbling, trying not to let her hit the floor but in the process, she kicked her leg out and up, nailing Tony directly in the junk. Rhodey was suddenly left with all of her weight in one arm and shifted to the side to compensate, putting himself off balance only to have Penny suddenly regain her footing and force them back. They both fell into the trunk in front of the couch, Rhodey breaking Penny’s fall.

Both men were winded, left gasping, as Penny shot to her feet and went to jump over the couch. Rhodey just barely managed to reach out and grab her ankle, his grip slipping almost immediately but it was enough to keep her from landing on her feet on the other side. She hit the floor with a bang, having tipped head first over the couch. There was a low groan but they knew she wasn’t down for the count despite the fact that they couldn’t see her; she was crawling across the floor, towards the hallway that went to the front door.

“Penny,” Tony forced himself to move despite the almost nauseating pain, she’d kicked him hard enough he’d be sore for days, “don’t make this any harder, sweetheart.”

The brunette didn’t respond, instead focusing on using the wall to pull herself to her feet. She hadn’t locked the front door behind her when she walked in, if she could open the front door it was a straight shot to the stairs, she could run to her car, go pick up Peter—

Tony grabbed her tightly from behind and pressed her face first against the wall, one foot stabilizing his balance while the other locked around her own. Rhodey’s back was on fire from hitting the trunk dead on, but he quickly crossed the living room.

“Shhh, princess, calm down,” he used his own weight against Tony’s back, pressing both of them harder against the wall and almost completely immobilizing Penny, carefully forcing her head to the side once again.

She was screaming again but neither paid any mind, knowing that any calls to the police at this location would go unanswered for at least the next several hours. With careful, steady hands Rhodey adjusted the already prepared needle and slid it gently into Penny’s neck, her screams reaching a crescendo of terror and pain for several seconds before she began going limp.

“There you go now, baby,” Tony murmured quietly as Penny slumped heavily against the wall, “you go to sleep and when you wake up, everything will be better.”

Tony pressed a careful kiss against the top of her head and turned her to face him, sighing at the tears running down her face as she fought the drug coursing through her system. She’d put up a hell of a fight, had injured both of them in her escape attempts, but he couldn’t be mad. Poor thing was terrified of them, scared for her brother and herself. No amount of reassurance would do anything until she experienced her new life.

“You okay, Tones?” Rhodey couldn’t help but laugh slightly as his friend swept Penny up into his arms, reaching over to adjust her head against his shoulder, “she got you pretty hard there.”

“Let’s just say it’s a good thing I wasn’t planning on making any babies,” Tony snorted fondly, leaning down to brush his lips against her forehead, “she’s a fighter, Old Man 1&2 are gonna have their work cut out for them. Your back alright?”

“Gonna have some real fucking bruises,” he stretched his back with a groan and a wince before shaking his head, “little lady tried to take me out there. Naughty thing.”

A laugh escaped Tony and he nodded in agreement before adjusting her in his arms slightly, “let’s get her back to the tower, Peter won’t be home for several hours. She’s going to be pretty uncomfortable when she wakes up, we need to at least make sure she’s in a nice bed.”

“Surrounded by super soldiers?”

“Honestly I don’t know if I’ll be able to hold them off, so probably.”

#steve rogers x oc x bucky barnes #steve rogers x oc #bucky barnes x oc #dark!steve rogers #dark!bucky barnes #dark!tony stark #dark!mcu #let's review #lets review chapter 5

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i-am-a-bad-influence-writes · 3 years

Text

Hayloft - Part 4

Series Masterlist - Bucky Masterlist - Full Masterlist

Summary: A young girl finds a soldier hiding in the hayloft on her father’s farm. Intrigued, she visits him more and more until her father finds out and puts him to work. As they grow closer, something else grows too.

Pairing: James Buchanan “Bucky” Barnes x OC Jenny Richelle “Ricky” Hill

Warning: Strong language, inaccurate war description

Author’s note: Based on the song Hayloft by Mother Mother and the lovestory of my grandparents. I am Dutch and the war was a bit different here, so I will be basing this on the stories I’ve heard about my grandparents.

Word count: 1947

‘We’ve been sneaking around for months, I need to know if they’re okay with us being together,‘ she mumbles, ‘because I really want a future with you.‘ He sits up and takes her hands in his. ‘If that is what you want, then we’ll talk to them.‘ ‘Thank you.‘

‘You thought we didn’t know,‘ mister Hill laughs at the two young adults sitting in front of him, looking as nervous as one could ever be. Misses Hill takes her daughter’s hand and looks her gently in the eyes. ‘Sweetheart, for as far as I know he treats you wonderfully and if you love him, than I’m fine with it,‘ she tells her daughter. ‘James is a hard worker,‘ mister Hill nods, ‘much better than those boys you used to sneak around with.‘ ‘W-what?‘ Jenny looks like her soul has just left her body. ‘Honey, you are really, really bad at keeping secrets,‘ her mother smiles, ‘you’re in love and we can see it. You’re our daughter.‘ James has to suppress his laughter, but gets a stern look from mister Hill. ‘Don’t think you’re any better boy,‘ he says, ‘you’re terrible at finding secret spots. You’d be a terrible soldier, I’m glad you ran away.‘ Jenny finds herself bursting out in laughter, knowing how cocky James can be. He looks a bit red, but he pretends like he’s fine. Misses Hill can’t help but chuckle behind her hand at the lovesick children. ‘Take care of her son,‘ mister Hill says with a pat to James’ shoulder. He smiles. He expected to be shot, send away, brought to the army. Never in a million years had he expected that the farmer who’s daughter he’s been sneaking around with would accept this. He has to admit, he’s done something like this before and he got shot at by the farmer. They sit together a little longer when the dreaded conversation comes. ‘Say James, how’d you end up here,‘ mister Hill asks. Under the table, Jenny grabs his hand knowing that he’s probably uncomfortable talking about it as he hadn’t even told her yet. ‘I- ehm,‘ he seems to really struggle to find his words, but he finds courage in Jenny’s gentle eyes, ‘my mother passed just after they started getting everything together. I have been in the army since my eighteenth birthday, but she asked that I wouldn’t fight in this war and I wanted to grant her this last wish.‘ ‘I’m so sorry James,‘ mister Hill says, feeling bad for having asked, ‘were you her only son?‘ James nods. ‘So I’ve been running from place to place,‘ he tells them, ‘I’ve struggled, but I honestly think my mother is still looking out for me because I couldn’t have found a better place or a more wonderful girl.‘ ‘Were you dating anyone when you left,‘ misses Hill asks carefully. ‘To be honest, I wasn’t the cleanest of the lot,‘ he smiles a little bit, ‘I was the kind of boy you’d kiss behind the church to piss off your parents. So i didn’t really date anyone.‘ Misses Hill laughs. ‘I married that boy,‘ she tells him, patting her husband on the back. He smiles and nods at James. ‘I’m certain you’ll turn out fine.‘ James chuckles. ‘I’m a stowaway.‘ ‘But with good reason.‘ He lets his head hang a little. Jenny starts rubbing the back of his hand with her thumb to comfort him.

The conversation comes to a natural end. While her mother cleans up the kitchen, Jenny drags James along to the hayloft to talk. They settle on top of the blanket that lays there permanently now. ‘Do you want to talk about it,‘ she asks him, settling against his chest. He takes a deep breath. ‘It’s just,‘ he pauzes, ‘I miss Steve, I miss my mother, I miss my old life. Don’t get me wrong, I’m incredibly happy to have found you but it’s just-‘ ‘You miss your best friend,’ she hums, ‘that’s totally understandable. I don’t blame you for that.’ ‘But I feel like a bad friend,‘ he groans, ‘the one time he accomplishes something he worked so hard for, I’m not there for him. I’m not there to cheer him on.‘ ‘Don’t beat yourself up about it,‘ she smiles, gently taking his hand in hers. He admires the size difference for a second. Het gentle, dainty hands in his rough, callused hands. It’s like the princess and the monster. ‘You told me you think Bucky suits me better,‘ he hums, ‘why do you still call me James?‘ ‘You told me it was Steve’s nickname for you. I didn’t know if it was my place to call you Bucky.‘ ‘You can call me Bucky if you like.‘ He sees a grin on her face. ‘Bucky,‘ she says, ‘where does it come from?‘ ‘I’m called James Buchanan Barnes,‘ he tells her. ‘My full name is Jenny Richelle Hill,‘ her eyebrows knit together, ‘would that make me Ricky?‘ ‘Ricky and Bucky, Jenny and James,‘ he mumbles, ‘sounds good either way.‘ She moves a bit to get more comfortable. It spreads a warm feeling in Bucky’s chest. ‘I like it.‘ ‘Me too.‘

‘Good morning lads, it is the tenth of March,‘ Ricky chirps as happy as every, ‘so happy birthday Bucky!‘ He groans and tries to roll the other way, but she drops down on his bed because of which his blanket can’t move any further. Another move would leave him exposed completely. ‘Quiet down Jenny,‘ Johnny grumbles, ‘it’s not even five yet.‘ ‘Oh but it is,‘ she smiles, ‘it’s actually six already.‘ He lets out an annoyed sound and sits up on his bed. ‘Happy birthday James,‘ Timothy mumbles. ‘Thanks man, I appreciate it,‘ Bucky smiles, looking at his girl. She has heart eyes when she looks at him. He grabs her by the back of the neck and pulls her down to press a kiss on her lips. ‘Good morning angel.‘ ‘Morning,‘ she grins, ‘sit up, I got you a present.‘ ‘You didn’t get my anything for my birthday,‘ Johnny whines. ‘I got you a crate full of books,‘ she sasses back at him, ‘you asked for that, so don’t even try to say that that’s a shit gift.‘ Bucky chuckles while he sits up. He quickly pulls his shirt over his body. ‘Here you go,‘ Ricky gleams as she gives him the small box. He shoots her a quick glance, completely confused by the size of the present. He opens the box and finds a golden necklace with a small engraved pendant. ‘She loves him passionately,‘ he reads quietly, ‘from Of Sons and lovers, right?‘ She nods. ‘Turn it around.‘ It reads Ricky. He puts it on and pulls her in for another kiss. ‘I love it.‘ ‘It gets better,‘ she tells him with a cheeky smile on her lips. She unbuttons the top button of her blouse and fishes out a matching necklace. He carefully grabs the pendant and reads: “His soul seemed always attentive to her.“ And when he flips it around he sees his nickname in cursive. ‘Honestly, that’s the best gift I’ve ever gotten,‘ he smiles and wraps his arms around her. ‘You guys are disgusting,‘ Johnny whines, ‘get a room.‘ ‘How’d you get this,‘ Bucky asks her, completely ignoring Johnny. ‘I had some money saved.‘ ‘You shouldn’t spend your money on me angel.‘ ‘I was going to buy jewelry anyway,‘ she whispers in his ear, ‘and I wanted you to remember you’re mine when I’m away.‘ ‘Not so much of an innocent girl after all,‘ he teases, ‘I’ll see you tonight?‘ ‘Always.‘

Ricky walks into the post office, takes a look at the board and turns to ask Michelle about it but only to find Michelle isn’t at her desk. She walks over behind the desk and finds a letter with her name on it. Curiously, she opens it.

“Dear Jenny,

I am sorry I didn’t tell you about my leave. I finally got the courage to go back to my family thanks to you and I thank you with all my heart. In the break room are all the books and other things I could not bring with me that I thought you might like or need. The office knows about my leave and should send someone new today. I hope you get along with them as much as we got along. I dotted down your address, so I will send you a letter when I arrive.

Thank you for all you’ve done for me.

Love,

Michelle.“

Ricky’s heart swells while reading the letter. She did it. She actually did it. Out of curiosity she walks to the back and finds two duffel bags. One filled to the brim with books, the other filled with clothes and shoes. The clothes look a bit outdated. Probably from Michelle’s past, but there’s no time to dwell on it as somoee is calling for assistance. ‘Hello sergeant Winter, how have you been,‘ Ricky asks cheerfully at the now familiar face of the sergeant. He has two other soldiers with him this time. ‘Good morning miss Hill,‘ he smiles, ‘Michelle isn’t here today?‘ ‘No, I don’t know where she went,‘ Ricky says with a bit of a frown, ‘she’s normally here before me. I was just about to ring her house to see if she’s ill.‘ ‘Lets hope she’s fine,‘ the sergeant says with a smile, ‘we are putting up some more pictures. Could I maybe take you up on your offer from last time?‘ ‘Coffee? Yes, of course,‘ she smiles and heads into the back to make some. She comes back with four cups of coffee and biscuits. ‘Here you go. Take a seat if you’d like.‘ When he does, the air feels off. There’s tension that’s normally not there when he comes around. He stares her down. ‘How is your fiancé miss Hill,‘ he questions. ‘I wouldn’t know I’m afraid,‘ she answers, trying to look saddened, ‘he hasn’t written in a while.‘ ‘I’m sorry about that.‘ ‘It’s okay. There’s nothing we can do about it,‘ she shows a friendly smile. ‘What’s that,‘ he asks about the duffel bags you can see from the break room. ‘Oh, Michelle left those for me yesterday,‘ she explains, ‘but they’re quite heavy, so I left them here yesterday.‘ ‘What’s in them?‘ ‘Well, Michelle recently cleaned her house, so she found some old clothes she thought might fit me or my sister,‘ Ricky explains, ‘and the other one has a lot of books in it. Michelle and I regularly exchange books.‘ ‘Those are fairly large amounts to bring you for something you do often,‘ he says, but Ricky can tell he’s suspicious. ‘Sergeant, if you’re trying to accuse me of something, just say it outright,‘ she tells him. ‘Michelle is missing,‘ sergeant Winter tells her, ‘just a day before her husband returns home.‘ ‘What does that have to do with me?‘ ‘Do you know where she went?‘ ‘I do not,‘ Ricky tells him, ‘we rarely ever spoke of serious topics.‘ The door opens again and another woman steps in. ‘Good morning gents,‘ she says with an intimidated smile then she turns to Ricky, ‘hi, I’m here for the opened position.‘ ‘Oh hi, of course, please have a seat. Do you want coffee?‘ The woman nods timidly. ‘I’m sorry I can’t help you sergeant. Please excuse me.‘ The man nods with an aggravated look on his face. The three step outside mere seconds later, but don’t seem too satisfied with the whole exchange of words. Ricky feels like she’s walking on her toes, trying to keep her head above the water. That could’ve been bad. Very, very bad.

#bucky fanfic #bucky fic #bucky #bucky barnes #bucky barnes fic #bucky barnes fanfic #james barnes #james barnes fanfic #james barnes fanfiction #marvel fanfic #marvel fanfiction #marvel

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devinsfm · 4 years

Text

joe keery. cis male. he/him. ／ jack devin just pulled up blasting video killed the radio star by the buggles — that song is so them ! you know, for a twenty - four year old radio show host, i’ve heard they’re really impulsive, but that they make up for it by being so captivating. if i had to choose three things to describe them, i’d probably say obscure vintage horror comics, blurry photographs of mysterious figures in the woods, and vivid descriptions of spine - chilling tales . here’s to hoping they don’t cause too much trouble ! ( sam, 23, est, she/her )

hey there, demons ! *ba tum tss* i’m sam and i never do this, but i really felt like it was time for a change, so i drew lots of inspiration from some of my favorite ocs and i love what i’ve come up with ! character info is under the cut and please feel free to message me if you would like to plot !

i. stats

𝔣𝔲𝔩𝔩 𝔫𝔞𝔪𝔢: jackson willard devin

𝔭𝔯𝔢𝔣𝔢𝔯𝔯𝔢𝔡 𝔫𝔞𝔪𝔢𝔰: jack, spooky guy, the night watchman

𝔥𝔬𝔪𝔢𝔱𝔬𝔴𝔫: salem, massachusetts

𝔡𝔞𝔱𝔢 𝔬𝔣 𝔟𝔦𝔯𝔱𝔥: ocotber 31st, 1995

𝔷𝔬𝔡𝔦𝔞𝔠: scorpio

𝔬𝔯𝔦𝔢𝔫𝔱𝔞𝔱𝔦𝔬𝔫: demisexual

𝔬𝔠𝔠𝔲𝔭𝔞𝔱𝔦𝔬𝔫: host of the graveyard shift, a radio program airing every weeknight from 12am to 5am

𝔭𝔬𝔰. 𝔱𝔯𝔞𝔦𝔱𝔰: captivating, witty, resolute.

𝔫𝔢𝔤. 𝔱𝔯𝔞𝔦𝔱𝔰: impulsive, gauche, naive.

ii. history

jackson willard “jack” devin was born on halloween day ( yes, really ) in salem massachusetts ( yes, really ). his mother stayed home with him as he was growing up while his father is a boston cop turned sheriff of the county and he’s an only child.

outside of the popular tourist spots, his hometown has a very close - knit, stuck in the 80s vibe. it’s the sort of place where everyone knows everyone for their entire lives because no one ever leaves and no one new ever moves in. phone and internet signals are nearly impossible to come by, so the local arcade and the video store still have quite a booming business in the year 2020. jack grew up in a not - so - typical small town suburban gothic environment, his dad’s income being just enough for them to get by every month.

he was an energetic kid who cycled through all sorts of interests, trying out everything from little league ( disaster ) to music lessons ( not as much of a disaster, but he wound up getting bored of it ). nothing seemed to really stick until he got his first horror comic : a vintage issue of tales from the crypt with tattered, yellowing pages. he was five years old and paid five cents for it at an elderly neighbor’s yard sale and from that moment on he was hooked. it started with the comics, but he quickly expanded his horizons to movies, books, and television in the genre of horror.

he got intro drawing and that was the only thing besides his newfound interest in horror that he could sit still for. at first he would just try to re - draw the panels in his comic books, but soon he was drawing anything and everything that caught his interest and he was getting good. he was being homeschooled by his mother at the time, but once friends and family and, well, everyone took notice of his skill, they were encouraging his parents to nurture his talent.

his parents fought about it. his dad didn’t see the value in his skill and wanted him to instead focus on academics, aspiring towards his son one day becoming a lawyer or a businessman or even following in his footsteps. jack never wanted that for himself. he was homeschooled by his mom up until then and she believed in him. it was with her blessing that he would go to a real school for the first time at the age of fourteen, starting off his freshman year at a high school that was a thirty minute train ride away in boston and catered exclusively to youth who demonstrated an exceptional talent in some area of the fine arts.

jack did well in school, but his grades probably would have been a lot better still if he didn’t start purposely acting out as his relationship with his dad got worse and worse. he started skipping classes, getting caught trespassing in cemeteries at 2am, and smoking a lot of weed.

when it came time for college, jack planned to attend art school. he swears he did. he looked a few schools on the west coast to get away from his dad for a few years yikes and planned to apply, but on the deadline date he got so high that he forgot to submit his portfolios. yes, really.

he loaded up his van ( a turquiose monstrosity he painted to look like the mystery machine ) and headed out to california anyway after telling his parents that he would be attending UCLA. of course, they quickly found it that it was a lie and his dad was furious. the two got into a huge fight over the phone and things were said. the result is that jack and his father haven’t spoken to each other ever since.

he did lots of odd jobs while he was on the road and basically lived in his van, which didn’t change right away when he decided to settle in LA, but he eventually got a job fetching coffee for the late night employees at a local radio station.

it was the typical, cliché story : the regular late night host called out of work at the last minute, there was no one else around and they were going to be on air in ten seconds. jack was thrown in front of the microphone and told to think fast !

he did, and the listeners loved him for it. whether it was his ramblings about horror movies or his thick boston accent or his reckless use of swear words on live radio, he turned out to be a massive hit. the successful night earned him a gig as an occasional substitute deejay, and with each broadcast he grew more and more popular, and about two years ago he was finally given his own program.

the graveyard shift is a radio program that airs every weeknight from 12am - 5am in the los angeles area and on apps such as iheartradio. jack hosts the show as his ( thinly veiled ) alter ego the night watchmen and discusses topics such as the paranormal, conspiracy theories, and all things horror. it’s one of the most popular programs of the time slot in the country.

it’s something that he never expected or picturing himself doing, but now he can’t imagine doing anything else. he’s become really passionate about revitalizing the field and bringing radio into the 21st century. he signed a HUGE contract with the studio when his show first started and now he’s a quite well known radio personality in the area and across the country.

iii. extras

huge stoner. high as fuck 90% of the time, and the other 10% of the time he’s probably still high, just not as fuck.

well known for his on air antics. he’ll light a joint in the middle of his radio show, he’ll prank call a friend and broadcast it to the entire city, he’ll curse in every single sentence and skate by on the after hours excuse when he’s reprimanded for it. he’s so outlandish and bizarre and like nothing that’s ever been heard on the radio before, and it just draws people in.

he often seems shy in person, but it’s more like he’s just a little socially awkward, something which also shines through in occasional non - malicious but blunt remarks and general lack of regard for what people think of him. he really just...doesn’t care.

genuinely seems to believe it’s either halloween day and / or the year 1986 at any given moment as that’s about as recent as his pop culture references get. he’s never heard of the k*rdashians, he doesn’t know what the mcu is, and the phrase yeet means absolutely nothing to him. mention any of it to him and he’ll just stare blankly bc he honestly doesn’t have a clue.

HOWEVER, he did start the area 51 meme from last summer. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

still draws. especially if he has to still for a stretch of time, then he’ll take out his latest sketchbook ( he goes through a lot of them ) and start doodling. he’s still quite good, mostly in his favored comic - esque style.

BIG CHAOTIC ENERGY and ZERO IMPULSE CONTROL

a chatterbox with friends but don’t be fooled...he’s been giving his own dad the silent treatment for almost seven ( 7 ) years now. it’s his preferred method of expressing anger towards someone because he isn’t really a fan of confrontation, but he’s maybe a liiiittle bit stubborn.

most of the time he’s a really easygoing person, a good friend and very loyal to the people he cares about. well - meaning, not the best at advice but he’s more likely to try and cheer a person up anyway.

he has a pet pied ball python named the crypt keeper ( tkc for short ) who he sometimes just carries with him because he likes to just chill wrapped around jack’s hand and arm.

iv. wanted connections

maternal or paternal cousins ( their grandparents probably live in boston or new england but otherwise anything goes for this )

close friends

friends

guests on his radio show

fans / haters of his radio show

people who don’t like him / find him annoying

exes ( 1 - 2, can be on good or bad terms )

“casually dating” but it might get real complicated soon - allie james

( these are just ideas and i’m trash at coming up with stuff, so please don’t feel limited by what’s listed here. )

#excess:intro #drugs tw #i decided that i needed something new but i just ''created'' this ''new character'' instead #countdown until i mess up his name has officially begun

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gl0wupdiaries · 4 years

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Novena for the Month of May

My grandmother was born on the 25th of August 1937. She grew up with five other siblings (she is second to the eldest), all of which are female, to a Spanish mother and an Ilocano father. She lived a simple childhood in their town, and like any other typical Filipino child during her time, one of her earliest memories was when she managed to place her right hand over her left ear, which meant that she finally qualified for elementary school. There she would learn how to sew, knit, garden, manage poultry, and many more.

A picture of a brusque lady, Norma is usually seen playing a competitive game of softball in the muddy fields of her hometown—wearing her bloomers, and is often picking fights with the boys in her class, like that one time when she punched an aviation officer’s son during recess for making fun of her elder sister. Leaving a reddish and swollen mark on his nose, my grandmother got called to the principal’s office, forced to explain herself in front of the aviation officer after her incident with his son. In a coy and mischievous manner, my grandmother, who was then 10 years old, explained that his son was simply wrong for assuming that he can make fun of anyone he likes just because his father is in position—and that the school doesn’t need students like him. Putting the aviation officer to shame, my grandmother was punished for her disrespectful act by receiving more homework and schoolwork than the rest of the kids for a week.

She always looked forward to her math classes, enjoying the challenge that it gave her, and would often compete with her sisters at night to see who would finish their maths homework the fastest. Under the warm light of their lampara, they fought, laughed, and pestered each other as their mother watched them while waiting for their father to come home for dinner. Living most of her childhood years under the Japanese occupation, most nights for her and her family consisted of dimmed lights, quiet conversations, and tightly shut doors and windows, fearing that they might be seen and located by the Japanese soldiers. Her father, often wary and vigilant, slept near their house entrance, in case intruders try to come in.

She lived in a simple bungalow. The outside façade of their house was full of herbs, plants, and flowers that her mother grew, they had a basement containing pigs and poultry for their livelihood, and their main house consisted of two bedrooms for her parents and her sisters, a living room, and a kitchen. She would often recall the homeliest part of her childhood home: the kitchen. There, she spent most afternoons with her mother, who was frequently sick, learning about Kapampangan dishes, house chores, and life lessons. She distinctly remembers the short bamboo poles placed at a corner of their kitchen, where their glasses were placed for drying.

Growing up, she looked up to her grandfather, Tatang Kiko, and would always visit him in his home after school. He is frequently seen riding his kalabaw with a wooden cart attached to its back, which they called gareta, containing fruits and vegetables that he harvested as a farmer and sells on the market located at the heart of their town, or bayan. He was kind to her, giving her apples, mangosteens, and even tomatoes to bring home for her sisters, taught her majority of what she knows about gardening today, and even showed her the proper way to ride a kalabaw. Almost every day, during her elementary and early high school days, she would visit her Tatang Kiko, and would enjoy his company and humor. She found a sense of comfort with his presence, a feeling that she had a difficult time finding in her own home, because of the tension within her family caused by her mother’s sickness and their poverty-stricken life.

One hot summer in the month of March, when the camachile (Manila tamarind) trees were in full season and being picked by the local children of Floridablanca, my grandmother was on her way to visit her Tatang Kiko after a long day in school. Taking her usual route in the sandy roads of their baranggay, one of the local vendors of their market ran towards my grandmother, bringing with her devastating news. Her Tatang Kiko was on his way home from a kaningin session with his friend; he was seated at the trunk of his friend’s truck filled with sugarcane. As it passed by the rocky portion of the mountain, he fell out of the truck. His friend, still clueless, continued to drive his truck, not knowing that he ran over Tatang Kiko.

My grandmother, crying, dropped all her stuff on the ground and ran as fast as she could to her Tatang Kiko. Not once did she stop to catch her breath; she kept running until her heels and ankles developed calluses. She reached the mountain, and there, she was faced with his dead body, his white shirt covered in blood and his lifeless eyes staring at nowhere. Holding her Tatang Kiko with her bloodied hands, my grandmother lost one of the most important people in her life within an instant. Screaming for help, not once did she let go of her grandfather, crying in his arms. She went home without any fruits and vegetables that day.

In the early 1950s’, my grandmother met my grandfather, who was then a Liberal Arts major, and my grandmother a fourth-year high school student. She met my grandfather while he was on vacation in her hometown at his brother’s house. My grandfather courted my grandmother for about a year. Within those days, they enjoyed their afternoons together, picking camachiles, mangoes, and whatever is in season, and had those for their merienda. Sometimes my grandfather would let my grandmother sit at the back of his bicycle as they explored the town, going to places such as the palakol river, this place called “Riverside”, and many more. At the end of the day, my grandfather would escort my grandmother home, oftentimes receiving stern looks from my great grandfather, something that my grandmother laughs a lot about now.

My grandfather lived in a large house together with his three other siblings: the eldest brother a priest, his second brother a pre-med student, and his youngest sister an elementary student, who will later on become a nun. My grandmother always talks about the big foyer in my grandfather’s childhood home, and how beautiful it was; it had huge black and white marble tiles, large windows, tall white walls, and beautiful antique furniture. There, my grandfather would often play the violin, accompanied by his second to the eldest brother who plays the piano. My grandfather’s family was influential during that time, because his brother was a priest, which was deemed as a high status and position back then.

My grandmother wasn’t able to go to college because her parents couldn’t afford then, and so she went to beauty school, which proved more affordable. After she and my grandfather finished their studies, they got married and had four children. They lived a simple life, moving from town to town, until they finally settled down in a small city by the bay. There, they bought a big empty lot in a small barangay for 10,000 pesos and built their home there. Throughout the years, they both worked hard--my grandmother as a government employee, and my grandfather as a Base employee--in order to sustain their four children. Soon enough, all of their four children graduated college and started their own lives.

When I was born, I lived in my grandparents’ house until I was five. Back when I was two, my grandfather died because of gastric cancer, and left my grandmother devastated and depressed. During those years, I spent most of my days with my grandmother, because my mother had to work. She wasn’t loving, nor was she sweet and soft spoken, she was short-tempered, and would often shout at me and my cousins whenever we’re playing at her garden, saying that if we ruin any of her flowers, she’ll spank us and send us home. I used to not like her because of how different she was from my mother who was gentle and nurturing. As a kid, I often dreaded it when I had to visit her, because all she did was scold me and my mother. But as I got older, I started to understand her more, over and beyond her harsh external.

She is very religious, as most of our grandparents are, and goes to church every morning, much less nowadays due to her weakening health. Sometimes she gets a bit vocal, especially to our housekeeper and other people serving us. She has the habit of insulting them—her intentions are good, but she has a harsh way of showing it. She cooks a lot of kapampangan dishes too, that’s why I never leave the house with an empty stomach. One time, I asked her why she makes such a big fuss about what meals are going to be prepared for the day, and her answer was simple and short: “I don’t want my family eating bad food, because it’s bad for the soul.” Despite us two not getting along most of the time, there are times where she makes me realize things too.

One evening in May, as I was reading a novel in our living room; my grandmother approached me and asked “Marunong ka ba mag basa ng Tagalog?” (Do you know how to read Tagalog?) And I told her that I can. I asked her why, she walked towards me and said “basahin mo yan,” (read that,) as she placed a small booklet on our coffee table. When she left the room, I took a look at what she placed on the table; it says: Novena ng Santa Rita (Novena of Saint Rita). She is a devotee, and even offered her house once as a place for the almost five foot tall Santa Rita relic. It made me laugh at first, but then I realized that I’ve read lots of books, but I have never really taken the time to read anything about my religion, regardless if I believe it or not.

A few weeks after that evening, my grandmother was sent to the hospital because of a major blood infection. She was straddling life and death, and the doctors weren’t sure if she’d survive. I wanted to tell her that I was sorry and that I’m ready to listen to and bond with her. And as I recall that short-lived connection that we had in the living room, I felt regret; I should have asked her what that novena was about, why she’s so attached to our religion, what she feels whenever she prays—all these questions that I never bothered to ask because of my closed mind.

She survived that hurdle and is enjoying her life at 83 now. Though she isn’t as sharp as she used to be, she is still the strong woman that she was when she punched that boy in her class. This is the story of how I got to know my grandmother, not only as the person that I see in the kitchen, but as the strong figure that keeps our family together, and a role model that I will forever look up to.

Nowadays, I talk to her about stories from when she was young—the stories that I have written here—and spend as much time with her as I can. Sometimes, I would join her in the kitchen and help her with her work. And I stayed, no matter how harsh her criticisms may be. And on rare occasions, I join her in her praying rituals too, without sulking.

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pixiealtaira · 5 years

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Checking It Twice

Hummel Holidays day 19: shopping 2016

pairing: Kadam of course...

“What do you want for Christmas, Adam?” Kurt called from the kitchen as he was making lunch one afternoon.

“It’s August. I haven’t thought about it.”

“Can you think about it so I can finish my shopping list? I mean I know I’ll have to add some things closer to Christmas, but I’d like my main shopping done by the start of October.”

“You’re doing your Christmas shopping now?” Adam asked.

Kurt snorted. He came out and stood next to where Adam had been working on a paper.

“I started my Christmas shopping for this Christmas on the 26th of December last Christmas.” Kurt said. “I get better deals this way. In May, I found 80 dollar cashmere scarves on sale for 6 bucks…men’s scarves. They also had hats and gloves, good gloves, on sale as well. And 90 dollar women’s basic longer length cable knit sweaters in nice solid colors…for 2 bucks. No snags or holes or anything…just out of season. But Carole doesn’t care and neither do most girls I know, so those were a great find. And I got the Kitchen aid mixer Carole’s been wanting…for 1/3 the price because the color is now out of fashion.”

“Well, there are some board games I’d like to get…and I’ve been wanting to pick up my cello again but I need lessons and haven’t gotten around to getting those. And my cello won’t be getting here until Christmas when it comes with my family. Oh…my family will be here, so tickets to things we could do.”

“Your family will be here?” Kurt said quietly.

“Yes. Remember, I asked if you were staying so you could meet them?”

Kurt nodded.

“I think I thought you meant over Skype or something. I need names and likes and lists, Adam. I need lists! Who will be here? Who is staying in England? Sizes? Colors they look good in? Allergies? Kids? Kids will need presents under the tree.” Kurt was sounding more and more frantic as he went on.

“Darling, Hush now!” Adam said.

Kurt stopped and breathed deeply.

“It’s just…I have to make a good impression, Adam. I love you…and if they don’t like me, then what?” Kurt asked.

Adam smiled and pulled Kurt down to him, kissing him deeply before pulling back and kissing Kurt’s nose. “I would tell them all where to go. I love you and my family’s opinion won’t change that. Got it?”

Kurt nodded. “Got it.”

“Grab a pencil…and some paper.” Adam said, pushing Kurt up again. He waited until Kurt was back with a notebook and pulled Kurt into his lap fully. “Now, number one…everyone is flying in so not a lot of things or a lot of big things. I’d tell you nothing at all, but I know you my dear…and that would not happen.”

“Hey!”

“Can you actually convince me otherwise?”

Kurt shook his head.

“I thought not. Number two...you, my love, are helping me entertain them for TWO WEEKS…consider that.”

Kurt nodded.

“And finally…my family already adores you because I believe you hang the moon and the stars and that the sun revolves around you. You wouldn’t need to get them anything. However…my family are such huge tourists. Seriously…get them all New York things and everyone would be happy. Anything with New York splattered across it.”

Kurt glared at Adam, who laughed.

“You can glare at me now…but when the littles are looking at you asking for a New York bottle opener…you’ll see.”

“Bottle opener?” Kurt asked.

Adam nodded. “It had an apple on it. Their mother intervened…it was pokey.”

Kurt laughed.

“So…who will be here?”

“My mother and father, my grandparents, and two of three siblings and their families. Ava is the only one who will not be able to make it.” Adam said.

“Ava is the one closest in age to you, right?” Kurt asked.

“Yes, she is taking classes during the winter break. She is two years younger than me.”

“Close to my age, then?”

Adam nodded. “Emily is four years older than me and she has three kids. Twins, Piper and Philippa and Thor. Thor is about a year and half…and the twins turn four in January. Her husband is Ashton. Paul is seven years older than me. He has Evelyn who is seven and Joselyn who is five. They are from his first marriage. His current wife is Pansy. She brought with her Luke. He is seven as well. They have Briar, who is maybe 6 months…but I don’t think even that old…and they’ve been married three months.”

“Is Paul’s first wife in the picture?”

“No. They were divorced when she died though…and the girls hadn’t even lived with her alone. She died here in the states from a drug overdose. She left Paul only a few months after Joselyn was born…just took off one day. There is actually a wife between the girls’ mum and Pansy…but they didn’t have kids.”

“What do the kids like?”

“Evelyn loves to read. She asked for those American Girls books? I don’t know what they are…”

“Historical fiction. They have dolls, too. They wear period clothing, sort of.”

“Anyway…she is fascinated with those. Last I knew, all Joselyn liked was swords. I’ll have to ask my mum if her tastes have broadened. Luke hates everything. Piper and Philippa I have no idea about other than Philippa will only wear yellows and purples and black and jeans. Piper wears everything. Not a clue about Thor…they were here last December but Thor was not even sitting up on his own yet. He is no longer bald. That I do know. I’m not sure I’ve even seen more than one picture of Briar…and that was right after she was born. Pansy is high maintenance. Paul is just high strung…that one needs a real vacation. Ashton’s a bit of a snob and Emily is just….Emily.”

“What ever does that mean?”

“She would say that she is forgettable. She isn’t very good at anything or very bad at anything. She isn’t ugly or beautiful. Just is just average in all she does. Emily manages…she manages her family and mom and dad and the grandparents and clubs and community gatherings and parties and events. And she organizes. A bit like you in that area. I bet she has her shopping nearly done as well.”

Kurt nodded and wrote down notes of everything Adam had told him.

“I suppose it is good that I have Black Friday between now and your family visiting. Now…about your folks and grandparents…those might even be more important that your siblings and their kids.”

“My Nan is a bit…chipper. Much to chipper for her own good or anyone else’s really. Da says she was always that way and people had just best get used to it and don’t ever make her cry because it breaks everyone’s hearts until she is cheery again. She likes chocolate, but not American so don’t go with that. She likes warm and soft and fizzy things and paints and scrapbooks in an elaborate fashion. Pops likes gardening and has a small professional photography business. He takes photos of people’s pets. Rarely people. My father is of course a barrister and plays in the symphony orchestra. Da likes darts and would like to go bowling while here and also try out laser tag.”

Kurt chuckled.

“My mum likes quilting and singing, but she does neither very well. She is good at cooking and works at a local bakery. She wants to be that Duff cake guy when she grows up…her words not mine. She is an avid reader and will read pretty much anything. Her father is a retired professor and taught anthropology. He specialized in the Romans. Her mother taught as well, in primary school to the littlest ones. She likes Darts and is a card shark. They go gambling at least twice a year somewhere and my grandmother almost always comes home with more than they went with.”

Kurt smiled.

“They sound nice.”

“They sound a wee bit nuts, because they are. But they already adore you and will love you completely before they go home…and then drag you with us on next summer’s excursion. Mother wants to go to a rodeo…and all the grandparents want to see some of the more famous national parks. They’ve been saving for years and years.”

Kurt laughed.

“I’ve never been to any of them. It could be fun.”

“We’ll have to hike with youngsters and buy souvenirs.”

“We should see if my dad and Carole want to go to, if your family still likes me at the end of the two weeks. He’s always wanted to go to Mount Rushmore and Yellowstone.”

Adam beamed. “That would be wonderful.”

“So…will you help me with the shopping for them?”

“Of course, love. I actually adore shopping with you.”

Kurt beamed. “Now, what do you want for Christmas?”

Adam laughed.

“You, and a stocking full of goodies just for us and a hide away to play with them for a week…but that will have to wait for after Christmas…so…all I want for Christmas is you.” Adam sang the last bit to Kurt.

Kurt groaned. “Cheesy, my dear heart. Now you are getting socks and underwear.”

Adam pulled Kurt in for more kissing. “Don’t care if I have you, too. Is lunch done? Or rather…can lunch be postponed until…oh…a few hours from now…after we have retired to the bed for playtime and then come back out?”

Kurt smiled. “I was just making sandwiches and they can be put in the fridge. Let me up and I’ll meet you in the bedroom. We should have a more in depth discussion about what you’d like in your stocking after all.”

Adam released Kurt and watched as he sauntered to the kitchen. He saved his paper and raced to the bedroom…he had a few examples of things he’d like in his stocking to find before Kurt joined him.

#glee fanfic #kadam #hummelholidays

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deartreadmill · 6 years

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Gift Giving: A Rant

This is not a fitness related post, but I’ve got nowhere else to rant like this, so you get it.

Apparently 54% of people returned Xmas gifts last year, and that seemed like a startlingly high number.

Initially, I was reactive - what asshole is returning these gifts?! And then I realized me. I am that asshole. Last year, I returned $350 worth of gifts to Costco. Just Costco.

And my ire shifted.

$250 of that was items my in-laws purchased for us. Like the box set of books my mother-in-law had purchased for my daughter for the 3rd year in a row (that is NOT a joke). Or a mask and snorkel set that was $65 for a 10-year-old. Or a flimsy crappy not-hot-wheels garage and race track for my son. And various and sundry items for the kitchen that neither myself nor my husband would ever use, or already had.

Last Christmas was a bad year to become the focus of my rage. I had just lost my mother, and so understandably, emotionally, I was extraordinarily fucked up. Which made the insult of having to return gifts all the more hurtful.

Because it is fucking hurtful to me to have to return Christmas gifts.

I was raised in a family where you DID NOT return gifts. You grinned and bore it, like a good child, even if it was the weirdest, shittiest gift ever. I remember this fucking hideous ‘bumwarmer’ length sweater with matching leg warmers my gramma bought me when I was 9. It barely fit, and was FUGLY, and I wore that fucking thing until it was too small.

As a result, I grew into a very conscientious gift-giver. It took until I was a young adult to get it right, but I worked hard to know people well enough to give gifts that had meaning. Some of the best and most treasured gifts I have ever given anyone cost less than $10. So it has nothing to do with the cost associated with the gift, and everything to do with the thought behind it (true story: in my parent’s spare bedroom are two lighthouse prints I bought for my parents for Christmas one year when I couldn’t even afford groceries. They were 99 cents each, and the frames cost me an additional $6. That was nearly 20 years ago, and my mum redecorated an entire fucking room in her house around those goddamn prints.)

I put a lot of thought into gift-giving because I love giving a gift that will make someone happy. It makes me happy to give gifts that are appreciated. By contrast, I find it really hurtful when people give me a gift that has no meaning whatsoever.

My mother-in-law once gave me what I presume to me a compliment by saying “I don’t even know how you do it. Every gift you give is so thoughtful.” (Last year, I didn’t want to buy gifts. So instead, everyone got ugly christmas sweaters. I felt terrible about it!! I hadn’t put any thought into them, other than sizes and making sure they sorta matched their personalities... THEY WERE THE FUCKING HIT OF CHRISTMAS. My niece was DEVASTATED that she didn’t get one too)

Long story short - I am a great gift-giver. And you can be one too! It’s easy! Here are some tip, if you’d rather not have your gifts be part of that 54% that get returned:

Know the person you are buying for. No, I get it, secret santa situations don’t count for this one. But try to figure out the hobbies, interests, likes and dislikes of the people in your family who you are responsible for purchasing gifts for. Yes, even weird Uncle Ted.

If you don’t know someone well enough to know what kind of gift to get them, you don’t know them well enough to buy them a gift. Seriously. “But it’s my Grandma/Brother/Niece/Cousin/Boss and/or Favourite Coworker!” Yeah, I get it. But don’t buy them some weird-ass shit just because you feel you owe them a gift. Get them something generically thoughtful. Like a gift card - to the local mall, or Tim Hortons/Starbucks/David’s Tea, the new restaurant in town everyone is raving about, their favourite store. I fucking love gift cards and cannot endorse them highly enough.

Chances are, you actually do know them well enough. So weird, every time you call Gramma she’s complaining that missing coffee mug from her corelle blue onion old town set - not the teacup, mind, the coffee mug? Your niece dressed up as Raven from Teen Titans for halloween and no one knew who she was? Your boss is always sneaking off to play golf on Wednesday afternoons? Corelle Blue Onion Coffee cups (2) - $15USD on eBay. Teen Titans complete first season $10 on amazon.ca. Bag of 50 golf tees $3 on amazon.ca

Homemade gifts are always winners. Trust me. One of Mum’s coworkers would gift Mum a hideous and weird crocheted ornament every year, and even though we all thought they were hideous and weird, Mum put them on the tree every year - because in their own weird and hideous way, they were beautiful. J. had made them for my Mum because she knew Christmas was Mum’s favourite time of year, and the Christmas tree was central to that. I now have one of those ornaments, and every year I put it on the tree and think warmly about J. as we all giggle and point at the hideous thing. It’s beautifully hideous. For years my kids have given weird fucking art projects to their grandparents. Last year we didn’t. And I heard about it from my in-laws, but also my Dad. And holy shit, can we talk about those knit cotton dish cloths for a minute? Add ONE to a gift, if you know how to knit, and you will make someone’s entire Christmas. Give 4 and call it done. I fucking love receiving those things.

Memory books are a thing, yo. Honestly, Xmas has become incrementally easier since I realized all the grandparents really want is pictures of my kids. But this doesn’t just apply to doting grandparents. Did your family go somewhere amazing in the last calendar year? Did you have a camping trip that was a comedy of errors? Photo books are relatively cheap, and they are personal.

You have a smartphone, use it. Every time I come across something I think would be funny, fun, thoughtful or useful for someone, I make a note of it in my phone, along with the store it was at, and the price. If you refer back to my top two points, the reality it that you know those people well enough to buy them gifts - but Christmas is stressful and unless you are ready for the barrage of carols blaring over store speakers, bell ringers out front, eternal debate about happy holidays versus merry christmas, and really fucking rude shoppers, you’ll feel like you’ve failed and wind up with your gift returned. This leads to the next item:

“This made me think of you.” If it made you think of that person, it’s the right gift. Even if you have to explain it when they open it. My dad got me this awesome coffee mug 2 years ago at Christmas - it’s all crumpled like a balled up wad of paper, and it says something about having anger management issues. He bought it for me at work because work had been TERRIBLE that year. He was so sad when he found out I couldn’t use it at work because it wasn’t a sealed container (I crush a LOT of medication, and can’t have anything on my cart that med dust could fall into). He was so apologetic - but you know what? I didn’t care that I couldn’t use it at work because the cup reminded him of me, and made light of a situation that, with a few months distance, was comically bad. Every time I see weird outdoorsy string lights (fish, moose, lanterns, whatever), I think of my in-laws who love camping and love going hunting.

Honesty is also a thing. If you seriously can’t figure out what to buy that person, ask. This might be awkward, but it might also open up a bigger door to a cool conversation about something that brings you closer

Guinea Pigs make great gifts, or Charity gifts rock! One year, a charity sent me a gift giving catalog, and I ‘bought’ my in-laws $50 in vaccines for a 3rd world medical clinic, I ‘gave’ my brother 3 guinea pigs for a family in South America to start a guinea pig farm, and I gave my parents $50 in mosquito nets for somewhere that has malaria-bearing mosquitos. I’ve also donated to the local hospice and food bank in the name of someone. Because let’s face it - do any of us need more stuff?

Give a gift of thoughtfulness. This one I learned from my cousin. My Gramma turned 100 this summer. Instead of buying a 100-year-old who has been praying for death for the last 5 years a gift of more stuff, she gave her a gift card to a grocery store that delivers groceries.

Everyone loves bird feeders. Last, but not least, I’ve never had a single person return a bird feeder. The world needs more pretty birds at our windows to make our hearts happy.

If you already gave a bird feeder, give them seed. ‘Nuff said.

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nirah10 · 7 years

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All I have to say regarding Hunter Biden’s love life and a wonderful story to help you understand why...

For once, I’m going to put my comments/responses before the submission. First of all, I would like to thank Maddy-Jane very, very much for sharing her story. She does encourage people to comment as she is curious but please remember that you would be discussing the very intimate life of a person, not a random bit of code on the internet, and that, while differing opinions are fine, personal attacks are not acceptable and will not be posted.

Maddy, your family sounds amazing and I am so happy for all of you. I really wish that the world was the kind of place where your family could be open and free about who they are.

For those of you who may not know, there’s a lot of buzz regarding Joe Biden’s son, Hunter, because he has recently started dating his brother’s widow, Hallie. I’m sure you can work out that Maddy’s story includes a similar family dynamic and I strongly encourage you all to read it.

A lot of people asked what I think about Hunter Biden’s current situation and this is what I have to say:

1) I think this is a cruel move and a cheap shot by political entities to try and dirty the Biden name. Obama and Biden ran the country together for 8 years without a single sex scandal, and what few scandals did pop up were stupid and shallow and nobody really cared because they didn’t matter. It looks to me like Joe Biden’s political opponents and members of the public who dislike him as a political figure are desperately clawing at something perfectly normal and attempting to make it something ugly and scandalous. I have no respect for it and I strongly believe that those people should be ashamed of themselves.

2) While it is unusual, I certainly don’t believe that there is anything wrong with Hunter dating his brother’s widow. They are both single. They have no blood relation (so, despite what some people seem eager to claim, there is absolutely nothing incestuous about their relationship). They are not breaking any laws. They have full support from the family, so it doesn’t even look like it’s causing any kind of discord there--and even if there was, that still is no business of anyone’s outside of their family.

3) The fact that Beau named his son after his brother only means that they were close and nothing more. Anyone suggesting otherwise is desperately reaching to try and make it look like there was an extramarital affair, and they’d only be doing that because they know that their supposed “scandal” is weak and pointless. My mum named some of us after people she loved (though she did it with middle names, rather than first names). My brother is named after my uncle. My nephew is named after my brother-in-law (his uncle). My hypothetical baby names include naming my daughter after my sister and my son after my brother-in-law. People have been doing that for freaking ever and there’s nothing weird about it.

4) Think for a moment about how hard it would be to lose your husband--someone you love so completely that you wanted to spend the rest of your life with them. Not only is he gone, but he was sick and suffered and you had to watch him wither away. Now imagine what trying to create a new relationship (let alone a new marriage) would be like after that. It is a common problem for new spouses of widows to experience feelings of jealousy over the deceased, especially when kids are involved. They can feel like they are in constant competition with a dead person and then they feel guilty for feeling that way. It’s common for the widow and/or their children to feel like they can’t talk about the loved one they lost because they don’t want to hurt the new family member’s feelings. It causes strain and it can be hard for those who are grieving (and, trust me, things get easier but you never really stop grieving) because they feel like they need to bottle up their feelings about the loss and avoid sharing happy memories of the person they lost. It sucks. For everyone.

Now imagine that that didn’t have to happen. Your new spouse also knew and loved the person you lost. They share your grief with you. They share the happy memories. You can keep photos of the spouse you lost on the walls and mementos of them without feeling guilt. You can speak openly about them. Your kids can speak openly about the parent they lost--both the good memories and the sadness of missing them--without worrying about hurting the feelings of their stepparent because their stepparent has and is going through those experiences with you. They loved that lost person just like you and your family did. They miss that lost person just as much as you and your family do. There is no tension. There is no feeling of being left out or out of place. There is only another person to share that pain with while you all support each other move on with your lives.

Is it really so bizarre to think that a widow would find comfort with the brother of her lost husband? A person who grew up with him and loved him and misses him? Someone who might have his eyes or share his sense of humour and who probably feels proud to hear you think that rather than feel jealous that you were married to another man once? Someone who has known your children closely since birth, undoubtedly loves them, and who knows how to comfort them in their grief? You could move on as a family without feeling any kind of pressure to hide or try to forget the person who is missing.

If I found myself falling in love in that kind of situation, there’s no way in hell that thinking “maybe people will think that it’s weird” would stop me. My concern is what’s best for me and my kids, not public opinion.

5) I applaud Joe Biden for addressing the relationship publicly. One person commented that they thought it was a strange choice and could harm his political career, but I disagree. It would harm him if he tried to keep it private because it would imply shame. It should be private, because it is someone’s personal love life and is nobody’s damn business, but the Bidens are clever enough to know that that kind of privacy is simply not given when you’re a public figure. Joe standing tall and proud and saying he supports his son ends the gossip because it’s hard to gossip about something that isn’t supposed to be a secret and has no shame attached to it.

In conclusion: The Bidens have nothing to be ashamed of and I’m very happy for them. The people who should feel shame are the ones who are preying upon them and trying to make them seem depraved and incestuous and like they’re dishonoring the memory of someone they loved dearly--it’s no different than when people try to claim that gay people are sexual deviants riddled with STDs. It’s truly pathetic and despicable behaviour, in my opinion.

Maddy-Jane has welcomed conversation regarding her personal story so, please, offer your opinions (just remember to be respectful!). Hunter and Hallie Biden, however, have not given us that same permission. The concept of marrying a relative’s widow is open for discussion, but, public figures or not, the Bidens have a right to privacy and I’m going to ask that we not discuss their personal relationships any further.

I hope this covers everything and thank you once more to Maddy-Jane for sharing her story :)

From Maddy-Jane

The Joe Biden son thing that is all over the media (I’m sure everyone here has heard of it if they go on Facebook or listen to the news) and in a way it actually reminds me of my own childhood.

My mom and dad were childhood sweethearts.

They met when they were fourteen, dated for four years in high school, married just out of high school at 18, had my brother when they were 19 and I was born just after my mum turned 21, their is just less than two years between my brother and I.

My mom was amazing. Beautiful, smart, funny, lovely, pretty, kind and was just amazing. I was so young when she died but I have tightly held onto those memories. I still miss her so much everyday. She died just before her 28th birthday, I was six, nearly seven and my brother was eight.

My mum had a younger brother, who was nine years younger than her: he was nineteen years old when she died.

Same mom and dad, but the little brother was just a very (very) unexpected surprise when my grandparents were in their mid-forties. They already had two daughters (9 and 11) and hadn’t expected anymore.

Mom died in a car crash: my grandfather, my grandmother, aunt (29 at the time, unmarried and no kids yet) and my uncle were in a horrific car crash on the way to visit my grest great aunt in the state over, it was a long drive and to save money the five were car sharing. Grandad was driving and it seems he had a stroke and the car went into a tree.

My dad stayed home with us two kids as we didn’t really know how great great aunt enough (that they were meant to be visiting) to visit and we had school.

Four of my family members died that day. My aunt, my mom, my grandmother and grandfather. My nineteen year old uncle survived, but gained a spinal injury. The doctors thought he would never walk again. The injury looked pretty bad and they didn’t give him a lot of hope, but surprising things happen.

Every member of my mom’s family died expect my uncle, she only had her sister and parents and we didn’t really know anyone else. I was only six but I remember feeling like I had lost my whole world.

My dad was beyond repair it seemed. I was only six but I remember that part clearly. He and mum would had been in love since they were fourteen, married at 18, a kid at 19 and then another at 21 and still strong as a couple, and to lose her at twenty-seven when they had their whole lives planned out was a huge blow. I remember him crying at night. My brother and I would sneak into his room at night and listen, crying as well.

Little kids hear things they aren’t meant to. They are great at snooping. And I remember hearing my dad’s mom tell my granddad she was worried they were going to lose their son. I didn’t really know what it meant at the time, listening in, pretending to be asleep in the car, but I knew it sounded scary.

Anyway, my dad, despite his pain was still a good guy and knew someone else was really hurting.

Our nineteen year old uncle, who had been in his third year of university one day and then BAM the next day lost the ability to walk, lost his loving mom and dad and his two older sisters. He only had four direct family members, his parents and his two siblings and he lost them all and the ability to walk all on the same day at nineteen years old.

He wasn’t in a good state and tried to commit suicide in hospital. (I only found out about the suicide attempt recently and it shocked me). He refused to go back to university and fell into a depression the nurses and therapists couldn’t get him out of.

My dad didn’t really know his brother-in-law that well. With a nine-year age gap they hadn’t really had much in common or spent a lot of time together when they were younger.

But my dad knew mom wouldn’t want her baby brother to feel like he had no family, so dad got him to move in with us, despite my uncles protests at first that he didn’t want to be a burden on us.

So after months in hospital, our uncle came home with us.

The first year was hard as everyone was grieving and my uncle refused physical therapy at first.

But he started going, my dad starting helping him at home, and slowly he regained the ability to walk again. It took several years but he did it. He even started running in marathons deciding never to take his legs for granted again.

We went back to university at 22, and finished his law degree. He is a lawyer now.

I think it was during the time when my dad started helping my uncle with his physical therapy that they fell in love.

Kids notice stuff and it was about two years after mom died that my brother and I started to notice changes in the relationship between our father and uncle. We only only 8 and 10 at the times, but we knew something was developing. That something was changing.

People don’t realize how perceptive little kids are. But we noticed. Touches, smiles, and the fact our uncle despite regaining the ability to walk and going back to university was still living with us.

I don’t even think they realized they were falling in love.

They started dating about a year after my brother and I noticed they were acting weird. I would have been about 9 at the time and my brother about 11.

My uncle came out as gay and my dad came out as bisexual.

I was curious and I wanted to know if mom knew he was bisexual. Dad said she did, as he worked it out when he was about sixteen and already dating mom and confessed he had the biggest crush on Tom Cruise but would never cheat on her as he loved her (aw, teen romance). Mom also admitted she had the biggest crush on Tok Cruise. Who was hot back then I guess, it was years ago before Cruise went crazy.

Mom convinced dad to set up a LBTB group at school with her, they weren’t really a thing back then and they ran into trouble setting it up but eventually got it and their is a photo of mom and dad in the year book holding the LGTB club sign. Dad showed me the picture and I keep it today.

My mom was that kind of kickass woman. Straught but wiljng to fight homophobes in an act of solidarity with her bisexual boyfriend.

When dad and our uncle arrested dating openly they faced problems with dad’d own family. They didn’t get the fact he was bisexual.

They had four main problems with their relationship:

1.) a same sex relationship. Same sex marriage wasn’t even legal in Canada at the time.

2.) the nine year ago gap. When they started dating my uncle was 23 and my dad was 32.

3.) and the whole in-laws thing. They thought it was wrong to date your late wife’s brother. That was the biggie. Expect for the really homophobic relatives.

4.) us kids were brought into it as a reason as well, they claimed it would be confusing for us for our uncle to become a dad like figure. We loved our uncle though and us kids saw how close they were getting before even dad knew. So they couldn’t really try and turn us against them, as we were supportive. When you lose a big chunk of your family, you tend to hold onto the family you have left with your claws. And dad was dad and our uncle was a huge connection to our mother.

For little kids who had lost their mother and their mother’s family, for uncle was that childhood tie for us and in a way it made accepting him as our step dad easier. For us at least.

I wish my dad’s family was as supportive as Joe Biden was of his son. But they weren’t and they lost contact.

But wrbstuck it out. And my parents are still together today.

We became a family.

They entered a civil union (like a marriage) when I was ten and my brother was twelve.

We stopped calling him our uncle in public at about that time. We call him either dad or by his first name and simply to people call him our step-dad or dad.

They gave us a little sister when I was twelve and my brother was fourteen.

A friend offered to be a surrograte and they used my step-dad’s sperm. Lol, those nine months waiting for a little sister were so exciting for us.

My step-dad has the same eyes as my mom (while my bro and I have dads eyes) and our little sister was born with mom’s eyes as well. Or I guess technically great-grandma’s eyes if both siblings shared them.

So biologically our little sister is actually our cousin (our step dad was the sperm donar, not sure why, maybe because dad already had two of us and didn’t won’t a third little monster, lol :P) but despite biologically being our cousin she is really our sister. Dad raised her too and we were brought up as siblings. We consider her our sister and she had been raised since she was a baby as our sister.

I’m twenty-four now, my brother is twenty five and our little sister is ten.

Our parents got married in 2012 after it became legal in America but have been together for about 15 years now: and at ages 45 and 36 are still going strong and so in love. You would never guess dad is 45, being married to a 36 year old keeps him young I guess. :P

I looked after my ten year sister last week so my dad and step-dad could go away for a romantic weekend to celebrate their anniversary. My sister and I had amazing girl time, she is in grade four and is the cutest little thing ever. Despite the fourteen year age gap, I have a feeling my sister and I are going to remain really close. My brother and I are also close, and so is he and our. Little sister. All five of us are close, we are a knit knit family.

We still talk about mom a lot as a family and it is not weird.

My uni friend also lost her dad but never really talks about him at home, as her step-dad has no connection to him and gets jealous. And I feel dad for her as it makes her mom not really want to talk about him anymore and so she doesn’t hear many stories.

That doesn’t happen in our family, as our step-dad loves and adores our mom as well and we all talk openly about her.

Growing up we would hear our dad tell stories about mom.

And we would also hear our step-dad tell stories about mom, as his sister.

Dad tells high school tales and fun early marriage tales and our step-dad tells stories of mom as a little kid, some he saw himself and lots from what his parents told him about what his two sisters got up to when they were little . He tellss a lot about what mom was like with her family.

They both loved mom and there is not hiding mom in our family and we grew up with two people who loved our mom and who were always willing to share stories.

And the stories were different as they had different relationship with mom so they were always refreshing.

I am not sure what mom or our grandparents or aunt would think of our little family.

But I hope they would be happy for us.

As I honestly don’t think we would be this happy or tight knit if we didn’t have our uncle here.

He and dad helped each other at a very dad time. They needed each other, were both in a lot of pain and they helped each other thought it.

Both were really struggling and in a bad place and their love, both for the ones they lost and for each other was what got them though.

Mom might be angry or feel betrayed (or be app for them) or maybe our aunts and grandparents would be disgusted, they didn’t know our uncle was gay or dad was bisexual, so I am guessing they would be pretty dammed shocked, but I hope they would be happy for us.

My brother is getting married next weekend, and our little sister will be the flower girl and I love my family so much. :)

And our step dad and little sister is a huge part of that.

We don’t tell a lot of people about our family’s history. I wish my dad’s family was as supportive as Joe Biden was of his son.

And some people judge my dad. They think he’s some perv who was in the closest and went after his late wife’s barely legal little brother.

But it is not like that. Dad loved mom so much.

But people don’t understand. So I call my uncle my dad. And call my little sister my sister although she is biologically my cousin. As she is my sister and he has helped raise me since I was a little girl and is a dad to be.

Unstopped callif him my uncle as it confused people. Now he is just dad or step dad.

it is weird to others and so i don’t often talk about it.

But I know some of you guys are big Joe Biden fans and this is all over the media and I worry this will gross people out and make them question their love of Joe Biden. Some have said this would have ruined Joe’s political career if he had actually decided to run for president as he was openly supportive of his son.

But I shared my story as I don’t think it is bad as the media makes it sound.

I’ve heard a LOT of bad stuff about the brother and wife in Television and in facebook comments and it makes me mad.

As people are judging without understanding the emotions and heartache that might be involved here.

People find each other in heartbreak. It doesn’t mean the Biden brothers didn’t love each other.

Sorry about my weird and long story.

I am just biased as I grew up in a similar situation?

Should the media stop judging Beau Biden’s brother for saying his brother’s wife? Or Beau’s wife for falling for his brother?

That family has suffered a lot of tragedy and by all accounts were very close. What do you think?

Should the media leave them alone? Should people stop saying Joe is a bad dad for supporting this?

Is my family’s story really that weird?

I’ve never really told anyone, since the backlash from dad’s side of the family when we were young. We normally keep it quite how close the family is realated.

I don’t mind people talking about my family if anyone has questions, I’ve been secret about it in public our of necessity to avoid judgment but I love and am proud of my family and welcome genuine questions from people who want to learn as some of these online responses to the Biden thing online makes me sad.

As people on facebook and twitter and news need reporters have been rather nasty and saying awful things about the Biden children and the wife/sister in law involved.

Sorry about that long post. I am just passionate about this as it hits close to home. All responses, positive and negative are welcome. It has been a long time since I have talked about this issue and I am curious.

#hello friend #this time it's personal #robron1994 #submission

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additionallysad · 5 years

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Holiday Gift Guides for Everyone On Your List (With Stuff under $20 – And Even $5!) https://ift.tt/2PrVYOI

As is the tradition, I’m a little late with this. Ha! But here it is! (I’m also late with my actual gift buying, so I better get cracking). We like to put all of our gift guides in one place, so below you’ll find the one we made for grown-ups, another one for kids, and (my personal favorite) one full of stuff that’s under $15.

Gifts For Grown-Ups

Here’s what we’re loving, either firsthand stuff we bought for ourselves and have really enjoyed – or things we’re getting for friends & family (or hoping to find under the tree).

1 / Adulting Award Ribbons (4/$25): It would be so much fun to have an “award ceremony” at a family gathering, complete with victory laps & acceptance speeches.

2 / Black Robe with Pockets ($78-98): I bought this robe to wear around the house & I’m OBSESSED. So soft, there’s a tie inside so it doesn’t flap open, and IT HAS POCKETS! I’m living my best life.

3 / Personalized Address Stamper ($28): Always love a personalized gift that makes things easier for people. No more writing out return addresses & they’ll think of you every time they use it.

4 / Customized Road Trip Ornament ($25): Another sweet personalized ornament that you can give to someone who went on an epic trip (also works for someone who moved).

5 / Zodiac Sign Constellation Necklace ($28+): I can’t get over how dainty and pretty these are. All you need to know is someone’s birthday and it feels totally unusual and sweet.

6 / Ugg Slippers ($63-104): I bought these & can’t get over how much I love them. Incredibly soft & well made – plus you can buy $15 inserts to keep them fluffy forever (I’ve heard from people who’ve had ’em 8 years!).

7 / Cheeky Mug ($18): A hilarious mug filled with candy, hot cocoa mix, or an adult beverage is always fun. Plus pants are super overrated.

8 / Cozy Plaid Pillow Covers ($20 w/ code CHEER): Love that these are colorful & interesting enough not to feel basic, but they’d work with practically any sofa, armchair, or bed.

9 / Faux Leather Tote with Matching Pouch ($49): I’m so into this cool metallic finish & that it’s two bags in one. Also comes in black, cognac, and a cool blue-gray.

10 / Men’s Puffer Vest ($30): John loves this vest he got for himself this year and we even found a matching long-sleeve jacket ($14 today!) for our son. Fun fact: when they wear ’em together my heart explodes.

11 / Wood Apple Watch Charging Stand ($42): When I asked John what he thought I should add to this gift guide, this is the first thing he sent me. Think it’s a hint?

12 / Dainty Name Ring ($22 – 30% off today): Yet another totally personalized gift idea, and it comes in rose gold, white gold, sterling silver, etc.

13 / Personalized Leather Keychain ($19): These stamped leather keychains come in tons of colors, and you can put someone’s nickname or even a place on it (like “Pink House” or “Smith Manor”)

14 / Bucket Tool Organizer ($29): Such a great gift for anyone with a home, pretty much. Suddenly you can carry 20 tools that would take 10 trips.

15 / Wubby Fleece Pullover ($50 – 35% off today): I don’t think I need to explain why this cozy fleece pullover would be everyone’s favorite, but I’ll just say this: it’s like wearing a cloud (with pockets!).

16 / Faux Leather Circle Clutch ($28): This is one of those items in your closet that pulls together tons of outfits and looks pricier than it is. That wood ring! Real leather! I’m smitten.

17 / Pocket Bluetooth Speaker ($20): I’d love a bluetooth speaker like this on the bathroom sink for blasting hiphop while I shower (comes in blue & gray).

18 / Coffee Table Dominoes Game ($21 – 40% off w/ code CHEER): These are so beautiful and actually functional! I’d put ’em in a pretty wood bowl on the coffee table for impromptu games.

Gifts For Kids

Once again we put things we actually own and love in here, along with stuff we’re buying our kids this year, or considering for other little cousins & friends.

1 / Sailing Ship Kit ($42): Words can’t express how much fun this would be to hang in kid’s room – and it’s an actual kite, so it can come down and fly.

2 / Personalized Crayon Set ($13): It’s so much fun to open a box and see your name in crayons – especially if you have a name that isn’t always found on those premade signs and keychains!

3 / Coloring Book Dress ($38): Who doesn’t want to color all over a coloring book dress and make it completely your own?! LOVE this!

4 / Instant Camera ($56): Such a fun way to get kids into photography, and see the world through their eyes!

5 / DIY Ukelele Kit ($39): Our daughter’s actually learning the ukelele in school (no more recorder concerts! They switched!!!). She’d LOVE THIS.

6 / Classic Lego Set ($28): Our kids have only ever had John’s hand-me-down Lego blocks from his childhood, so we love that they now sell these huge basic block sets (without the price markup for licensed characters!)

7 / Ada Twist, Scientist ($15): We’ve already got Iggy Peck, Architect in our library and it’s GREAT. Next I want this one.

8 / My Crazy Inventions Sketchbook ($14): We bought this book and our daughter filled it up with the coolest sketches & inventions – so great for imaginations & I’m keeping it forever.

9 / Wreck This Journal ($12): We recently found a YouTuber who documented her entries in this interactive (and destructive!) journal. It’s full of fun prompts and such a cool concept.

10 / Wooden Cash Register ($31): Pretend play is big at our house, so a cash register is one of those things that would get so much use. Love that it’s wood and has a scanner & a credit card you can slide.

11 / Unicorn Robe ($30): My robe lovin’ self has rubbed off on our daughter and she’s asked for a robe for herself! I LOVE IT.

12 / Dragon Slippers ($21): Not to be outdone in coziness, our son has dinosaur slippers that he wears nonstop. So as weird as it sounds, fun plush slippers can make a great gift!

13 / Felt Donut Play Food ($9): So cute and under $10! Everyone loves a donut… and you’d be amazed how many of these their stuffed animals will “eat” ;)

14 / Bear Body Pillow ($15): A big cuddly pillow that doubles as an animal friend is always a good idea.

15 / Unstable Unicorns Game ($20): This game says 14+ on box, but reviewers say 8 year olds enjoy it, so we think it’s a great option for our Exploding Kittens-loving 3rd grader.

16 / Metro Wooden Blocks ($90 now – it used to be $150!): Ok, this is just about the coolest block set I’ve ever seen! And I love that it’s 40% off right now.

17 / Custom Kid’s Letter Jacket ($26): How cute is this custom kids letter jacket?! Ours love anything with their names on them – and a jacket is so useful along with being fun.

18 / Girls’ Charm Bracelet Set ($5): Nostalgia forever!!! Our daughter has and loves her charm bracelet. And at $5 this one isn’t too precious.

Gifts Under $15

Here’s my favorite list to make each year, just because I’m always amazed at how many budget-friendly things are out there that’ll make so many people smile BIG.

1 / Hex Tile Monogram Mug ($10): These are basically the beach house master bathroom in mug form! Fill ’em with candy or cocoa mix & marshmallows and they’re great gifts!

2 / Lumps of Coal Dog Treats ($5.50): Can’t forget our favorite four-leggers and these dog treats shaped like lumps of coal made me snicker.

3 / Gold Palm Picture Frame ($10.49): Giving someone you love a personal photo (of their kids, you guys together, etc) in a lovely frame is always a hit. I’m also loving this scalloped bone frame ($10.49).

4 / Plaid Frame Ornaments ($3.99!!!): Such a great grandparent gift with a photo of you or your kids or even some art they’ve drawn. We give them to both of our parents every year.

5 / Mini Kitchen Tool Ornaments ($12.99): So cute for the chef or the baker in your life! The little wisk kills me.

6 / Triple Chocolate Chip Cookie Mix ($9): These make such great neighbor gifts. Just wrap a ribbon around the lid and you’re done!

7 / Beard Oil ($14.99): John’s a die-hard beard oil enthusiast. So if you know and love someone with a beard, give ’em some and watch their face light up with joy.

8 / Pink Resin Hoop Earrings ($12.99): I love the cool shape of these & they come in other colors (also love the white & the tortoise ones!)

9 / Question-A-Day Five Year Journal ($11.55): If you wish you journaled more, this makes it easy and shows you how much can change over 5 years. It’s lots of fun to go back and read it.

10 / Faux Leather Crossbody Bag ($12 – down from $25): I have a camel colored crossbody bag this size and it’s still going strong! Goes with everything and I love the little latch hardware on this one.

11 / Faux Fur Pom Pom Beanie ($9 down from $22): I love a little knitted winter hat with a pompom (surprise I have one just like this in black).

12 / Sprinkle Ice Cream Cups (4 for $4.97!!!!): I love gifts that you pair with something fun – so these cups all nested with a little container of sprinkles inside would be so sweet. And you can’t beat the price!

13 / Rainbow Catnip Seed Bombs ($14.95): I love the idea of planting these outside (or inside in a pot) to show your cat a good time. They also sell sets to grow wildflowers or herbs which also make good gifts.

14 / Nesting Heart Tray Trio (3 for $4.99!!!): Such a sweet gift for someone to put near the kitchen or bathroom sink for their rings. They also work for tea bags if you serve tea a lot.

15 / What Do You Meme? Expansion Packs ($12.99): We have and love the original game ($29.99), so we’ve been considering adding packs like this Housewives themed one ($12.99) or this Mean Girls version ($12.99).

16 / Plaid Pet Leash ($10.49): Another gift for a four legged friend in your life, and I love the design of this one. Fancy pup.

17 / Slim Wallet ($12.99): John bought this a few months ago and LOVES it. Keeps his pockets from getting too bulky, and it’s incredibly well reviewed.

18 / Ugg Sheepskin Shoe Inserts ($14.95): I mentioned these when I linked to my Ugg slippers, but even if you don’t have them… YOU CAN PUT THESE IN ANY SHOES TO MAKE ‘EM COZY! Rain boots. Flat old slippers. Winter boots. Etc. It’s a lifehack for real.

19 / Pocket Notebook (2 for $10): I love pretty little notebooks! Always useful for keeping in your purse or the car or by the bed.

20 / Gold Turtle Paperclip Holder ($14.99): So I have this thing with animal desk accessories…

21 / Tortoise Hoop Earrings ($12.99): I ADORE these so much I’m about to put them in my cart so they don’t sell out. Treat yo self!

And since there are some pretty great sales going on right now, here’s what I’ve found so far:

Pottery Barn – 25% off sitewide & free shipping – use the code JINGLE here

Crate & Barrel – Up to 70% off here

West Elm – 20% off furniture, 25% off rugs, and 20-50% off bedding, see it all here

CB2 – Up to 40% off furniture and holiday decor here

Target – Today only, 30% off home here

Urban Outfitters – Up to 50% off gift items here

Anthropologie – Up to 50% off ready-to-ship furniture here

Overstock – Up to 70% off & free shipping here

Rejuvenation – 20% off your order & free shipping here

World Market – Save an extra 30% with code REWARDFORYOU here

Serena & Lily – Up to 30% off here

Old Navy – Gifts from $4 and up to 60% the entire store here

Banana Republic – 40% off your purchase here

Gap – 40% off your purchase with the code WINTERFUN here

J Crew – 50% off your entire purchase with code MONDAY here

Psst – To see last year’s lists, a lot of which is still linked and for sale, click here

*This post contains affiliate links*

The post Holiday Gift Guides for Everyone On Your List (With Stuff under $20 – And Even $5!) appeared first on Young House Love.

#additionally sad home renovations

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vincentbnaughton · 5 years

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HOLIDAY GIFT GUIDES FOR EVERYONE ON YOUR LIST (WITH STUFF UNDER $20 – AND EVEN $5!)