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#but i went online on Monday and got it on Wednesday and it was 15 minutes away
mythologicalmango · 6 months
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September 2023
Once again a terrible month.
My grandmother fell and broke her hip the afternoon of Friday, September 1st. (more under the cut)
My grandfather could not be left alone. So my mother, her sister and brother, and I all rotated shifts at the hospital with grandma, and sitting with grandpa at his apartment. He also needed someone there at night. Luckily they had twin beds, so we could stay in grandma's bed.
Surgery went really well on the afternoon of the 2nd.
The post-op PT and OT team were TERRIBLE. I get it was Labor Day weekend, and people were off, and they were behind, but I swear they were in for about 30 minutes total. 15 minutes on Sunday Morning (when they told her they would be back that afternoon for more) and 15 minutes on Monday Afternoon. No other visits, and Grandma got discharged to a rehab on Wednesday afternoon.
They were mean and callous, and some people do respond better to a 'tough-love- suck it up buttercup' approach, but you can't start there and go back to encouragement. Start with positive reinforcement, and then go to tough love, but yeah. They were mean.
In the meantime, my grandpa cognitively declined and physically declined a LOT. He was falling out of bed so much that we decided to give him my mattress and I would get a new one (already planned for 2024). We all slept on the sofa after that. And we decided to move him to a memory care facility on Wednesday September 13. After grandma got discharged, we planned to get her a room in the same facility and she could come and go as she pleased.
Except grandma threw a wrench into the plans and died on September 11.
My aunt said she had a bad morning, so Delaney and I went to visit after work, and she really wasn't looking well, so I called my mom. And it was pretty apparent that she was going to pass. So the ambulance took her to the hospital because we hadn't got Hospice online yet, and the hospital could help her with the pain and anti-anxiety meds. It was my night to stay with grandpa, so I put him to bed, and told him it was probably going to happen. My mom, aunt, and uncle were all there, and right when my mom called me to come, Grandma passed, and my mom had me on the speaker phone and my voice was the last thing she heard.
We still moved Grandpa that week, and the new place is great and they've helped us a lot.
The memorial service was yesterday, and it was everything Grandma would have wanted. We hung up all her favorite banners and paraments she made for church over the years, and sang Girl Scout Songs. We all wore jewelry that she had gifted out to us from her collection, and I read the poem she told me to read. After, we had cookies instead of sandwiches.
She was cremated, and her urn will be placed at the cemetery where I work "So [I] can visit [her] everyday and have lunch with Grandma."
It's just devastating, but I know she's released from Pain, and that's wonderful. But oh holy moly am I truly upset. And exhausted. This has been a month from hell.
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upismediacenter · 1 year
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LITERARY: Dream Diary
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Hello.
I am a person just like you. I won’t tell you my name, age, sexual orientation, or where I’m from, but I do want to tell you a few things about me.
The thing is I am a person, just like you. Well, not exactly like you. What sets me and you apart is my photographic memory. I discovered it when I was a kid, because every time my parents asked me about an event that happened in my life, I just seemed to remember every detail of it. It just occurs naturally, like remembering how many steps I took yesterday, or memorizing the tracking numbers of the items I ordered online. But something that has been a passion of mine is dreams –knowing if my photographic memory works in dreams. What? You don’t believe me? Fine. I’ll write down my dreams and thoughts to prove it. It might also help me learn more about myself—what’s been boggling me and if my unique skill can help with it.
Are you ready to know them?
Here we go:
Saturday, October 8
11:46 PM I dreamt about my life as a college student. I feel anxious. I feel nervous. Although I already feel ready for college life, mine won’t start till next year.
Sunday, October 9
12:19 AM Something’s on my mind. I’m sweating bullets and I have never felt this feeling before. What if I don't get accepted into my dream college? What if I regret the courses that I picked? Who will be my friends? Will I even have friends? There’s a hundred thousand questions running through my brain. I hope I can still sleep tonight.
12:43 AM How many schools should I apply to again? 1? No, that’s probably too risky. But I would be mistaken to think of it as just a game. That’s right, at least 4 schools have opened their gates for brand new students. I think I’ll try all of them.
1:06 AM I think I will start praying again, and I’ll pray like I’ve never prayed before.
Monday, October 10
12:06 AM The most remarkable dream happened tonight, and it was filled with trains and robots. I was at a train station with my friend, and we were running away from something. I don't know what it was, but my friend was yelling, “We have to get away before it kidnaps us!” We bolted inside the next bullet train that stopped by, and we went on our way to escape. It sounds like a good science fiction/action movie in my opinion.
12:18 AM I remember my dream friend’s name: Monte. While we were on the train, he told me that he used to work for a company that develops artificial intelligence in hopes that it will help people in their everyday lives. But things changed when the company experimented on combining humans and robots (they’re called man-droids/robot-men) to the point that they had to kidnap people because nobody was willing to volunteer for trials. He said that we’re lucky to escape, but warned that they’re always watching.
1:15 AM I can remember waking up in a bed with strobe lights (this is different from the first dream that I had). I was in an apartment with a great view of the city skyline. It just stops there.
Tuesday, October 11
12:00 AM “Will you take this man as your loving husband, and promise to cherish your love forever?” “I…I do—” “STOP THE WEDDING!”
12:46 AM Something has been boggling me. Social issues. Why am I thinking about it in my sleep? My brain can’t comprehend all of this.
12:48 AM Update: It’s 2022, why are there still people with big egos? Grow up please, don’t act like you’re always the center of attention when you’re in public.
1:14 AM Do I know someone named Bobby? Or is it spelled like Bobbie? I think he was my neighbor who moved out three years ago because of divorce.
No, I think it’s the pizza delivery rider.
2:23 AM Another thing on my mind: it’s 37 minutes before the witching hour. I have to sleep now or I will get nightmares.
Wednesday, October 12
12:09 AM What’s a good isekai anime name? I think it should be creative and crazy at the same time.
12:30 AM Ok, I have narrowed it down to two titles: That Time I Got Reincarnated as A Human to Go Outside for the First Time During the Pandemic and That Time I Got Reincarnated to Write A Story About Why Pineapple Belongs on Pizza. They both sound familiar, I can’t put my finger on it as to why.
1:46 AM I dreamt about something that felt important. I saw a star. It was up on a mountain very far away from where I was. Something (or someone) told me that it was my destiny to capture the star and protect it. But they also told me that a lot of other people want it too. Some of them are stronger, smarter, and faster than me. I didn’t know who these people were, but I had to accept the challenge and I manifested it in me that I would be the one to get that star.
Thursday, October 13
12:02 AM I have been thinking about the dream I had yesterday. What did it mean? Why did I dream about it? Is it some sort of symbolism of the events happening in my life? I will not lie, it is a very good dream, but something tells me that my mind has a message for me, and I just cannot interpret it properly.
12:55 AM I dreamt about… John Krasinski? Why was I dreaming about him? This is a first for me.
12:58 AM Update: I think I was dreaming about John Krasinski and Emily Blunt. I think I’m still amazed to this day that they’re husband and wife. But every time I see John Krasinski by himself, I would never think that Emily Blunt is his wife. And every time I see Emily Blunt by herself, I can never tell that John Krasinski is her husband. I know I have photographic memory, but why do I have to keep reminding myself about it? That part makes me laugh.
(I will say though, John Krasinski is a good-looking man. Emily is lucky that she married a guy like him.)
1:21 AM I dreamt about two queens on a stage standing before me. I said that it was their last chance to impress me and the judges in order to stay in the competition. I wished them good luck, and hoped that they would not mess it up.
Friday, October 14
12:07 AM Yesterday I wished at 11:11 pm, hoping that I would pass all of the college entrance exams that I will take. I also wished for more blessings for my family. I hope it works.
12:27 AM Just like Doctor Strange, I have been thinking about all of the possible paths that would shape my college life. A lot really depends on which university I will go to: the course that I will take and the people that I will meet. But my intuition tells me that the one path I hope to take will be traveled, and I know my intuition is always right.
1:44 AM Ducks. I just spent 30 minutes dreaming about them. I found out that it is better to raise ducks when they are in a group, as they are social animals.
I think that’s cute. Quack quack.
2:18 AM Since it is almost the weekend, I get the chance to stay up late and sleep whenever I want. But I have to be prepared because next week is the most stressful week I will face (so far).
It is the calm before the storm.
Saturday, October 15
12:03 AM Someone just spoke to me. They did not have a face, so I will just classify them as an entity. This entity said that I have been brave this week. Why? Because I faced all my fears that I knew past me would never try to dive into. They knew that a lot of emotions were being expressed, and they thought that I, a nobody, could be so stressed and happy (and sad and energetic) at the same time. They were so proud of me. But alas, this is only a dream, although I think I can recall this scene from Detroit: Become Human.
12:59 AM Quack quack. Quack quack. (Note: I’m sorry, I can’t stop dreaming about ducks.)
Well, I can conclude that all of my dreams and thoughts this week have been….interesting, to say the least. I guess college admissions really stressed me out. Could I possibly have been a duck in my previous life? Wouldn’t that be funny? A duck with photographic memory quack quack —Anyway, I hope that I proved you wrong, dear reader. Dreams can be remembered, and it just goes to show that every dream is different depending on what you were feeling before you slept. On that note, I think you should try and take note of what you're dreaming about, and then look back on it the next day.
Until then, I will see you soon. It was nice talking to you.
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TLDR: I'm so fucking over basically everything. I'm still waiting to even get the generic Namenda to see if it'll help much if at all with the fibro and chronic migraines.
I scheduled my first of what's supposed to be two ketamine infusions in August; I had the first one September 26th and it helped my pain levels a bit while it was in my system. I was supposed to have the second one November 14th but I had to cancel it because my ride fell through and I couldn't find an alternative one. I rescheduled it for December 21st (it might have to get cancelled again, due in part to not having a ride) and scheduled a follow-up appointment for November 9th. I saw a different doctor at the pain clinic but he agreed to let me try generic Namenda for the fibro (and it can also help with the chronic migraines) while waiting to see if I can do the second ketamine infusion so hopefully the insurance would cover it for off-label use.
Starting November 11th, I'd been trying to get it from the pharmacy I usually use. A bunch of bullshit and redtape ensued. November 21st I think it was, I checked my mailbox and saw that I had a letter from the insurance saying that they were denying it; it was dated November 15th, so I have no fucking clue why it took so long to get to me, especially because the doctor's office was supposed to be doing a prior authorization after that fact so IDEFK how that works. I called the pharmacy back for the zillionth time and asked the dosage, amount, and their out of pocket price for it before checking GoodRX and SingleCare to compare prices nearby.
The supermarket pharmacy I use sometimes, in the supermarket I usually shop at/at the location I can get to and from by bus, had the better price and then I got $15 off my first prescription for signing up for a free account. I was sick of making phone calls, so I went there in person on Wednesday and said I wanted to transfer it over, that my insurance wasn't going to cover it, and that I was going use GoodRX. I was told they didn't have it in stock, that they had it in their warehouse, and that it would be ready by no later than 2 PM yesterday. I checked online and then on their app a zillion times since Wednesday for an update. I called a bit ago for an update because it was still saying it was being refilled. I didn't know that I was going to need to put in the prescription number and scrambled to open the app to write it down so I could input it, but I didn't do it fast enough for their system so it was like oh hold on while you're transferred to a person. Someone answered just to say that there were two people ahead of me and to hold. I was on hold for like 10 plus minutes before I got a person again. I was told bullshit about how they were trying to get a prior authorization, how it was like $600 without insurance and they wanted to make sure I could pay for it before they ordered it, etc. I was even more pissed off at that point because I'd said when I went in that I was transferring it because my insurance wouldn't cover it and their price was better on GoodRX. Oh no, it's their policy to try to run it through the insurance first and apparently I was supposed to give the member ID for the GoodRX coupon when I went in, even though I wasn't fucking asked for it then and would've pulled it up on my phone and given it to her in a heartbeat if I'd fucking been told that. So of course they didn't fucking order it in. I gave the woman on the phone the member ID, a different woman than the one who picked up after I was initially put on hold. I was told that it would be ready by 2 PM on Monday, but I'm not holding my breath. And the GoodRX coupon is only good through Monday, so it better fucking be ready on time and it not be too late for me to feel comfortable going out and back by bus to go get it.
I'm not even holding my breath that it'll help much if at all/that I won't just end up with unbearable side effects, especially because I have such shitty luck with meds. And I still need to call next week to reschedule the follow-up appointment for the end of December. Oh and I was on the phone for 19 minutes and 6 seconds just to get even more pissed off at their bullshit. I got off the phone, screamed really loudly, and then cried my eyes out because basically everything is just too fucking much and I'm so sick of basically everything. So now my head hurts more and my throat hurts a bit.
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tobthoughts · 4 months
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oh, 2016
wednesday, december 6th, 21:19pm
listening to: wake up - arcade fire
i was watching tiktoks earlier, and one came across my for you page that said “at the end of the day its the friends you made on the internet when you were 13”, which in turn made me think about the internet friends i used to have. i still follow them on instagram, the ones who really mattered, but we never really talk or interact with eachothers’ posts.
i met them when i was 11. i got a shitty old hp laptop for my birthday and slowly went from there. i was obsessed with samgladiator’s ‘yandere high’ minecraft roleplay on youtube, so i followed all the cast members on twitter (twt used to be THE app). one day i saw one of the members - amy okamiartist for anyone who cares - was promoting a minecraft server that they hosted so i decided to check it out. another person, significantly more famous, was grian! we used to get together on mondays for “minigame mondays” and be in massive group calls on teamspeak. teamspeak is like discord but older, i think. i mean i know discord was around, but all our mgm’s were hosted through teamspeak. i used to love poking people for no reason. other than amy and grian, who were (are?) really cool, i met some other people who frequented the server and we became friends! there’s three key people - kien, ivo, and amelia. obviously at the time i was calling them by their in game names but eventually we did grow out of that.
all of them were builders on the server when i joined, and significantly closer with the server hosts, so i thought they were like… the coolest ever. we used to play minecraft together ALL DAY. i’d get home from school and race upstairs to go on my laptop, and we’d talk for hours and hours into the night. we were similar in age, i was the youngest at 11, then ivo was 12, amelia 13, kien 14 or 15 i don’t remember. i even ended up with crushes on two of them, and me and amelia dated at one point, but that didn’t last long. amelia and kien live in the uk, so i was lucky enough to meet them at a gaming convention. this was when i was… 12? so we’d known each other for about a year. mostly we just dicked about, my auntie was there with me so it wasn’t crazy, but we were such little nerds. me and amelia played catch with an umbreon plush named timothy and it hit grian in the face (we were all there as a little group from the minecraft server). it’s sort of really cute, in hindsight. i miss it more than ever right now - life was so simple. all that mattered was minecraft, bob ross, fuckin… i dunno, rick rolls. i guess rick rolls still matter but whatever. you know what i mean.
but yeah. i’m thinking about them. when i first realised i was trans they were the people who i talked to. we were talking about names and i knew i was gonna be tobi, but when they said it… it was so euphoric. ivo is bulgarian, so they pronounced it a little funny, but it made me laugh. they helped me feel better when i moved schools. they taught me how to play stardew valley, which is one of my favourite games now, and i even sewed a jumper for amelia and posted it to her. then when i’d been out for a bit, i helped her with her transition too. we were honestly really close. but we stopped talking, properly talking, around 2019. i was in a relationship so was spending less time online, amelia was mid a-level, kien was probably starting uni at that time… ivo i have no idea. but yeah, we just kinda slowly stopped messaging. i still think of them relatively often. after i saw that tiktok i decided to message them, all 3. we’ll see how it goes.
ah.
2016, huh?
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fandomadicted · 6 months
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Ok this was a long week so I found out I got a part in are school play so I’m excited about that. So Monday I gave my speech. I didn’t do great but whatever then we washed out dishes from pork loin dinner in food science. I didn’t do my shadowing/internship thing because it was her day off in yearbook I worked on picking some of the fun academic classes to put in the yearbook Tuesday was the same except I did my internship. It was fun I got to talk to this little girl who had a meltdown in class and got to help her find a way to go on the rest of the day. I also almost fell asleep in my first 2 classes. Wednesday we went to farm science review which was really fun didn’t come back to 15 minutes before school was over. Yesterday was a early release so we worked on are new speech in class then in food science we had to make a online poster about are experience at FSR and in yearbook I honestly forget what we did. Today we listened to a TedTok in public speaking and I finished the poster about FSR yesterday so in food science today I just worked on my speech outline. Then in yearbook we started figuring out what page each class should be on and what classes should share pages. And ya that was my week! Have a good day or night!
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robertlaskarzewski · 1 year
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Fifth Week
Hi, my name is Robert Laskarzewski, and I am currently a sophomore at the Darla Moore School of Business studying International Business and Marketing. I’m a part of the International Business Responsible International Leadership (RIL) program and will spend the Spring and Fall semesters at the ESSEC Cergy campus. I was born and raised in California, about an hour away from San Francisco. I chose to attend the University of South Carolina specifically because of the RIL program and the amount of time abroad that was offered. Once I was accepted, it was an easy choice to choose to pursue my studies there.
Saturday the 28th, I woke up early so that I was able to catch my train to Dusseldorf. The two things I wanted to see were the Dusseldorf boat show, one of the world’s largest boat shows, and a soccer game between Bayer Leverkusen and Borussia Dortmund, two renowned German soccer teams.  
My train was due to leave at 10 AM, so I was sure to leave by no later than 8. There ended up being some problems with the Paris metro, so I had to reroute and take a slightly different route into the Gare du Nord.
Once I got to the train station, I patronized the stores inside and settled on a magazine for the train. I boarded my train and settled in for the roughly 4 hour train ride to Dusseldorf, passing through Brussels, Liege, Aachen, and Cologne. I was greeted by aging infrastructure and industry on my way into Dusseldorf (which didn’t fill me with confidence). Once I got out of the train station, I was able to get a good look at the city of Dusseldorf, a rather busy city with lots of history. My first objective was to eat some real German food at a restaurant called Heimwerk Altstadt in the old section of Dusseldorf (Altstadt meaning “old town”). After a filling meal of carbohydrates, I went back to my hotel room and had a good night of sleep.
The following day, I took a train to the convention center where I would see hundreds of boats and boat related products. I was even able to see some larger yachts that I had never previously had the chance to see or step foot on. In total, there were more than 15 buildings that held different exhibitions and seminars. After spending a few hours there, I went back to my room to rest a little before going to the soccer game between Leverkusen and Dortmund. As I stood on my train, I watched as we passed the BayArena stadium – and didn’t stop at the Leverkusen Mitte station, the stop I was supposed to get off at. The train wouldn’t stop for another 5 or 10 minutes leaving me all the way in the next city, Cologne. After spending 30 seconds to admire the huge cathedral in the center of Cologne, I took a cab to the stadium where I was greeted with a thundering chant that could be heard from far outside the stadium.
Monday, I woke up early so that I could catch my train back home into Paris. The journey home was uneventful.
Tuesday, I had my classes online due to train strikes in France. One of these classes is called “People & Organizations” the other was “E-Business”. This day in People & Organizations we discussed how management should operate to ensure their employees are actually motivated and engaged as well as how important these things actually are for a functioning business. In my E-Business class we discussed how IT infrastructure plays its importance in business today as such a large part of business now involves huge amounts of data and internal storage.
Wednesday, I had just my EU history class (European Kaleidoscope), a class that I enjoy thoroughly. We went over the institutions of the European Union as well as how they function to operate in synchrony with one another (ideally). On Thursday, I had my French language and culture classes.
Friday, I had my responsible marketing class where we discussed the dangers of companies “dedicating” their profits to a good cause. For example, a company may declare that they are “carbon neutral” although this can just be a buzz word which really has no effects. Furthermore, we worked on group work for cases assigned by companies, for example my group has to work on a case about sustainability from Longchamp’s (others include Biotherm, Adidas, and ESSEC itself).
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Sheep video on the bank of Rhine river
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matineemonsters · 3 years
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Got my first vaccine yesterday and have been mostly fine, though I slept even more like the dead than unusual and the lymph node in my armpit is super sore
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pucksalotguys · 3 years
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What A Time- Ch 1
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WORD COUNT: 5k
College. Sidney Crosby was going to college and not just any college, he was going to one of the best hockey schools in the states; Arizona State University. To say he was shocked was an understatement, going from an amazing high school to now a D-1 college was anything and everything he would’ve ever hoped for. He could remember clearly how excited his parents were for him when he got the acceptance email, they were always happy for him but this level of pride he had never seen and it made him feel damn good. In less than a month he was set to move and leave his hometown of Cole Harbour, Nova Scotia. Oh and not to mention he was getting to do it with someone very special to him...his best friend Nathan Mackinnon.
Nathan is a guys guy, he loves hockey and still can’t believe he has a chance of playing in college. He’s not the brightest guy but he’s determined to make it and make his family proud. He’s been compared to Sid their entire childhoods and finally has a chance to make his own mark
Two good friends who get to have the chance of a lifetime playing for an amazing school. Hockey, education and sharing a dorm with your best friend. Life truly can’t get any better, or so he thinks it can’t until he meets a girl who’s like nothing he’s ever experienced before. 
Isabella Garcia is your typical college girl. She has a loving family, good friends, brains and beauty. She has it all truly, but what happens when she meets 2 hockey players from Nova Scotia who are going to show her friendship and love.
(For this fic Nate and Sid are the same age (18) and there’s no mention of the NHL yet :). Also we’re just gonna pretend covid isn’t a thing) Just wanna give a big big thank you to @spine-buster​ and @princessphilly​ for giving me that push and encouragement I desperately needed. I hope this is something you enjoy !
Beginning of August 2021 “Hey dude your mom let me come up” Nathan grinned as he went inside and plopped down on his bed “All good” Sid chuckled at his best friend. That’s right, he was about to move to the states with his best friend for college, while some would say Nathan was less than bright Sid never saw him any different. “Ready for the big day ? In exactly 2 weeks we leave this place and go to sunny Arizona bro ! Aren’t you excited ?” “Yeah” he nodded “but nervous as hell too, it's a whole different state and I mean we kinda only know each other right now, we haven’t even met the team yet. We’re the new guys coming in, do you realize we’re the only freshman on the team ?” Nate nodded and shrugged “We were the only freshman good enough to make the team, ASU came all the way to Shattuck when they heard about us. It’s kind of a big deal Sid” One month later- Move in day “Jesus bro, Taylor in here or what ?” Nate groaned as he set the last box down on the floor in front of their dorm “I brought clothes, you brought your entire room” “Don’t” Sidney wiped the sweat off his forehead as he looked for his key in his pocket. Move in day had been a nightmare to say the least and one thing he severely underestimated was the Arizona heat. Summer’s in Nova Scotia were one thing, warm but still doable but Arizona ? In the dry desert ? He was in purgatory for all he knew. “Finally” he muttered as he got the room open widening his eyes at the small space and even smaller beds “No fucking way” Nathan muttered as he stepped in ahead of him “Wait is that our closet ? Are we supposed to share this thing ? I get the bunk bed !” he exclaimed as he threw his bag over it to claim it “You’re a child” Sidney said under his breath as he brought all his boxes in and began to organize his belongings properly. All his things had a certain order, his family pictures would go on his desk, his clothes in the drawers under his small bed, his hockey gear on his side in the corner. He had a specific order for everything, much unlike his best friend who just shoved things everywhere and called it a day and laid down on his bed. They were complete opposites yet somehow things worked out well for them in their friendship and with hockey. “We’re supposed to meet some of the guys tonight for some team dinner, we should start getting ready” Nate nodded “See if we can meet some girls too, get to know this place better before we officially start Monday” Sidney chuckled and shook his head “How about we focus on just getting to know the guys and go from there ?”. Back home he was so well known he couldn’t even go to the grocery store by himself before getting asked for pictures. His mother often told him it was because he looked like a soap opera star, that always made him laugh for two reasons. First one being, he can’t act and the second one being he never thought of himself as handsome. At 18 he felt like the most awkward person, he still had “bunny teeth” as Nate liked to say and his body was weirdly proportioned. Nonetheless, he tried his hardest to come off as confident off the ice. He shook his off his thoughts and sighed as he realized he still needed to tell Nate about their schedules “Um by the way since we met up with counselors and stuff earlier in the summer and you mentioned wanting to make sure we had classes together and stuff and well….” Nate raised a brow as he put his phone down “Well what ? Spit it out man” “Nothing….nothing just that our schedule is Monday-Thursday, So first thing Monday is an um...a 7 am women's studies class-” he stopped as a pillow hit him in the face and grimaced “what the hell man ?” “BRO !” Nathan exclaimed “Fucking 7 am ? Are you insane ?! And women’s studies ? What the hell are you and I doing in a class meant for chicks ? Nah fuck this, I’ll take a W before showing up in a class like that”  “You’re not withdrawing” Sid said sternly as he turned towards him “We needed one more class to ensure we had full time credits, if you withdraw you’ll be down 3 credits which means you won’t be able to play for the season. You want that ?” “No.”
“Alright then just suck it up and I promise I”ll help you for whatever you need okay ? Now our schedule is Monday and Wednesday’s 7-8:45 am Women’s studies, 9:30-12 English 101, and Statistics from 1:15-3. Tuesdays and Thursdays are our shorter days with only 2 classes and a much later start so we got Political Science from 1-2:30 and then a World War 2 history class which is hybrid so one week on campus the next online from 3-5. That’s it” he grinned at his friend who looked confused as hell
Nathan rubbed his face with his hands and groaned loudly, getting up from his bed “Let’s go meet the guys come on, I need to get drunk” He sighed and grabbed his hoodie and followed him out of their dorm and towards the other hall where his team awaited them. Hearing horror stories of freshmen being hazed on the team, stories that made him wanna not come to ASU at all but part of him knew he could handle whatever would be thrown at him “Hey” Nate said as he stopped him before going into the building “We’ll be cool alright ? If you wanna leave just let me know and we’ll get going okay ? Don’t do anything you don’t wanna do” Sidney sighed as he ran his hand through his curls on his head “You don’t need to be my babysitter man, I’m all good alright ?”
“If anyone fucks with you or tries it, they’ll get handled” Nathan said simply as he walked alongside him and went inside
“Chaos, this is chaos” Sidney thought to himself as he kept a close eye on his red solo cup, covering it with hand as he pushed his way through the crowd and stepped outside to get fresh hair as he let out a deep sigh and felt even worse as the Arizona humidity slapped him in the face. Parties weren’t his thing, especially not college parties with alcohol everywhere and guys being drunk messes. His moment of silence was interrupted by Nate who came back out sipping a bottle of water “Let’s get going, shit’s getting too crazy for my liking plus got some girls number already” he smirked Sid’s eyes widened “We share a dorm. I don’t wanna see or hear anything between you and a girl” “Aww, Sid the virgin is upset” Nathan teased “Very funny Nathan” he rolled his eyes opening the room up and sighing contentedly at the air conditioning hitting his sweaty body “Some of us don’t have time to have endless sexual encounters with girls, some of us wanna graduate college and have a shot at you know….making it ?” “We’re gonna make it Sid, I know it” he grinned as he laid in bed and turned off his light “Don’t you doubt that, we’re gonna make it and nothing will ever stop us or come between us” Sidney smiled and leaned his head back against his mattress “Nothing, nothing ever” First day of Classes- Fall semester of 2021 Monday came way too quickly as Sidney heard his alarm go off at 5:30 am sharp and groaned, maybe he had majorly fucked up in choosing a 7 am class for them. It didn’t help when he turned his light on to see Nathan staring at him with red eyes and the most pissed off look he had ever seen on him “I fucking hate you bro” “Love you too dogg” he chuckled, rubbing the sleep from his eyes. 
The first day of college had arrived and he was excited, school was something Sid had always done fairly well in. At Shattuck he wasn’t a brainiac by any means but he was above average and got pretty good marks, good enough to get him a full ride to where he was now. Hockey was why he was there, but getting a good education was the icing on the cake.
He jumped in the shower and changed, sighing when he saw Nate still passed out in bed “Nathan come on, it’s already 6:15 and it’s a 20 minute walk to Building B and I don’t wanna be late man”
Nathan sighed as he whipped off the covers and rubbed his palms on his thighs trying his best to wake himself up. College wasn’t where he was supposed to be, he knew it deep down. The day his counselor called him up 3 months before graduation he was certain it was to tell him to get his act together but instead it was the opposite. Nothing had shocked him more than getting told he had the chance at a hockey scholarship at an amazing school, and to have a chance to do it with his best friend alongside him. Yeah he fucked around here and there and liked having a good time but this time he was gonna give it his all, he was gonna try his hardest to do well academically and make himself and his family proud.
“Dude, come on !” Sidney sighed as he threw some jeans and a shirt at him “Nathan, you have 5 minutes exactly or else I’m leaving without you”
“Sorry” he huffed throwing his clothes on and grabbing his backpack 
“You owe me breakfast by the way”
“There’s a coffee kiosk by class” he grinned grabbing his books
“Someone’s got some pep in their step” Nathan chuckled as they headed down campus “You’ve got way too much energy for someone who’s about to sit in a 7 am class on a Monday”
Sidney shrugged and gave a small grin as he paid for their coffee’s and took a sip “Just ready to see what this semester brings us, the season doesn’t start for a few months and practice doesn’t start till next week so it’s gonna be a bit more calm”
“You’re right” Nate nodded, grabbing his cup “Well here’s our building, 3rd floor room 27. Let’s see what this is all about”
They both headed up the stairs and walked down the long hallways quietly as they approached the room and peeked inside before going in. Sidney finally deciding to be the first one to head in and zooming to the first empty seat he spotted 
“Well jeez thanks” Nate muttered as he sat in the corner seat beside him “Guess we’re in the back for this one, good call man. I can just chill and pretend to take notes”
“Or you could you know….take actual notes” he recommended as he took out his notebook and read through the syllabus one last time “The fuck is that ?” Nate whispered a little too loudly looking over at his packet 
“The syllabus ?” Sidney answered confused “Oh you asshole, you didn’t print it out ? I told you yesterday in the afternoon when we were getting our books to make sure you print it out man. This professor is known to quiz on this thing every morning of class, look” he showed him “Page 4, paragraph 2 it says it right there” “Fuuucckkk” Nathan groaned as he laid his head on his desk “I’m such a dumb ass” “Well that’s not very kind to say about yourself, nor is it very nice to stress someone out on a first day of class now is it ?” a soft voice said, making Sid and Nate both turn their heads almost immediately. 
“I-I…Hi” Sidney said softly at the girl in front of him. The first thing he noticed was her smile, gosh her smile was the nicest smile he had ever seen. Of course on the first day of college he’d meet a girl in the most embarrassing circumstance “Hi, I’m-”
“You’re Sidney and he’s Nathan” she answered with a grin “Hi, my name’s Isabella, Isabella Garcia” “How do you know our names ?” Nathan asked confused looking her up and down discreetly
“My dorm is right next to yours” Isabella chuckled “I saw you guys bringing in all your stuff and left you those Gatorades by the door, I wanted to introduce myself but you guys sounded pretty intense with all the organizing”
“That was you ?” Nathan smiled softly “Well thanks, and yeah I’m-I’m Nathan Mackinnon well you can call me Nate and he’s Sidney” “Call me Sid” Sidney said quickly as he offered his hand, not realizing just how awkward he was being “Or Sidney or you can call me Crosby it’s my last name lots of people call me by it...or whatever you want really” Isabella grinned up at him and shook his hand “You can call me Belle, you too Nate” she gave him a soft smile and reached in her backpack “here, I have an extra copy of the syllabus” “You’re a lifesaver” Nate widened his eyes and patted her shoulder without thinking “I owe you, whatever you need that doesn’t involve academics, I’ll do it”
“Maybe don’t knock the wind out of her next time” Sidney muttered
“Shit, sorry Belles” Nathan apologized profusely, going to give her a gentle pat and reaching his hand back with blushing pink cheeks “All good” Isabella grinned rubbing her shoulder to tease him. “First day is a mess for everyone, especially those who thought it was a great idea to take a 7 am class to start the day. I love the topic but seeing as it’s 6:45 and I’m struggling to keep my eyes open, I’m regretting my decision”
Sidney laughed softly as he took a sip of his coffee and nodded “I’m the one who thought it was a great idea for us to take this class”
“Yup” Nathan nodded making sure the p at the end was enunciated “So uh forgive me here but um you mentioned your dorm is next to ours….are other girls there too ?” “So the dorms we stay at are co-ed, so everyone is all together on the same floor. It’s not as weird as I thought it’d be honestly, though one of you snores really loud. I’m betting it’s you” she chuckled and gave Nate a look Sidney looked at them and grinned, the first day of classes and already Nate had the upper hand. He always had the better luck with girls, on weekends when they had the rare day off from practice he’d be off in his dorm finishing some homework or practicing on his own in the rink while Nate was out with the other guys on dates or going to parties. He was never one to indulge in those activities and sometimes he wishes he had. “Oh there’s Professor James, I heard she’s really nice and does a great job at making her lectures interesting” Isabella leaned in to whisper to Sid gently He blushed and nodded “Well that’s cool, I know you’re probably thinking what the hell 2 dudes are doing in a women’s studies class but I promise we’re not creeps. I thought the class might be interesting to learn about while here”
“No need to explain yourself” she responded “I don’t take you or your friend Nate as creeps, plus considering you two are the schools big shots it’s kinda cool”
“How do you know we play hockey ?” Nathan blurted out, interrupting her and Sid’s conversation
“Maybe because on Saturday night at Justin’s welcoming party you and a bunch of the players got up on tables and performed Backseat Freestyle by Kendrick Lamar”
Nathan turned red at her words and looked around “I uh...I uh...I was drunk”
“Ferda boys am I right ?” she smirked and gave Sidney a wink, turning back into her seat
Sidney smiled so wide, his cheeks were starting to hurt “Please tell me you have video proof of this Belle ?” “I’ll show you after class” she chuckled “But for now, let’s get this first class done boys” Class went by rather quickly for his liking, Sidney liked his professor and her way of explaining topics that some would find uncomfortable. As he put his notebook back in his backpack he raised a brow seeing Nathan speaking to Isabella by the door. “Well there goes my shot” he sighed quietly to himself ******** “Listen I just wanna say, if I did something stupid towards you Saturday night I’m sorry, I would never wanna purposely be an asshole” Nathan apologized as he stood next to Isabella “Oh my god did we kiss ?” he gasped She laughed and covered her mouth when she saw his wide blue eyes bulging out of their socket “No, god no ! Nathan, nothing happened at all I swear. You were just a drunk idiot having fun, you didn’t insult or hurt anyone” He let out a deep breath and leaned against the wall and nodded “Sorry I just….I don’t wanna give the wrong impression to anyone, especially you” Isabella grinned “You’re a good dude I can tell, what’s your schedule like for this semester ? Maybe we have other classes together ?” Nathan grinned and took his phone out as he showed her “Sid picked them out for us, I wanted to have all my classes with him so he could help me out if I needed it. I’m not too sure about stats though, that one’s gonna be a struggle for sure since I suck at math”. He rubbed his chin nervously, it wasn’t a lie. Had Sid not forced him to study senior year every day after practice, he’s not sure how the hell he would’ve passed Algebra 2.
“I can tutor you if needed” she shrugged “I’m good at math, and I saw we have Political Science together so we can work something out if needed. Plus we’re neighbors, remember ?”
Neighbors, it hit him at that moment that she was just on the opposite side of his wall and could finally have someone other than his friend to talk to and be around. He grinned and nodded as they walked down the stairs together coming to the realization Sidney wasn’t with them. “Oh shit, I left Sid behind”
“He’s so sweet,” Isabella said softly, taking a sip from her water bottle “Is he like your best friend ?”
Nathan smiled and laughed “He’s my absolute best friend, we’re actually from the same hometown and went to a prep school here in the states together for hockey. It’s how we got this scholarship too, we’re the only 2 freshmen on the hockey team”. He didn’t know why but he felt comfortable even if he had just met her, he didn’t have the best track record with girls but he knew with her things were different He walked with her back out to the cafe area and looked around “We have English 101 in like 10 minutes” he sighed “Not exactly my best subject either, let me give you my number so we can get together for tutoring. That way when the season starts I’ll be on a good schedule and stuff” “Oh for sure” Isabella grinned and handed him her phone “I should be done by like 6 so we can meet up then”
“Sounds good” he grinned and went up to find his class hastily, spotting Sidney in the back row “Found you ! I was talking to Belles and then I didn’t see you anymore man, where’d you go ?”
His smile slowly turned into a frown as Sidney ignored him and went back to reading his book “Shit were we supposed to read for this class ?!” Nathan panicked as he looked around “Holy shit everyone’s reading something, jeez dude why didn’t you remind me ?” Still nothing, not a word or even a look given in his direction “Fine be a jerk bro” Nathan muttered under his breath as he read the syllabus via his laptop and sat up when his professor walked in “Good morning class, my name is Richard Johnson and I will be your English 101 professor for this semester. Now if you could all just sit and relax for a bit while I make sure everyone’s here and catch up on on the reading, that’d be great” Nathan stared ahead as he heard the door open and a familiar voice, grinning when he realized it was Isabella and nodded his head towards the last empty seat by him “Hey, you didn’t mention you had English with me when I showed you my schedule ?”
“I got wait listed on my 2 o’clock one and noticed there was one last opening when I checked the portal a couple minutes ago and got added literally just now” she chuckled “Makes it easier for me since now I have a longer break before my Psychology class, and I don’t need to be in class till 6 anymore”
“Nice” Nathan grinned “This means we have our morning classes together now, which makes me kinda grateful considering I uh...I didn’t do the reading. I don’t even have the book” he admitted quietly
“Then we’ll share” she said simply and opened hers up scooting her desk closer to his “It’s actually a good one, To Kill A Mockingbird. The syllabus said it was just to start the semester on something a bit more simple for us like a refresher course.
 “Belles you’re gonna have to help me out” he whispered “Sid’s mad for some reason and won’t talk to me, I have no idea what this book is about and knowing my luck I’m gonna get called on and won’t know what the fuck to say.” These were the moments that made Nate panic, he hated being seen as the dumb hockey player and knew this was all on him but couldn’t help but feel the nerves creep up on him as he faced Isabella “I think he’s a little bothered you kind of just left him after class and walked with me….which probably means he’s not the biggest fan of me” she mentioned faintly as she turned to look at Sidney’s desk in front of hers ********** Sidney flipped the page of his book quietly as he overheard them, it wasn’t Nate’s fault at all. He knew eventually he’d get someone else, he just didn’t expect it to happen so soon and he sure as hell didn’t expect it to be a girl who had gotten his attention within minutes of meeting. Isabella was way out of his league “Just don’t dump me after class next time and I won’t be bothered” he turned towards them and rolled his eyes “I hate when you’re petty bro, you always take shit too far. You know how I get” Nathan rubbed his face
He turned his head towards Isabella who was giggling, gosh her giggle was adorable. She’s so pretty Sidney thought to himself, taking in her features
“Isabella, I...I didn’t mean to come off like such a jerk a bit ago” he apologized “I got bothered and acted like a child, it had nothing to do with you. You’re really nice and funny, and-” “And ?” Isabella asked, grinning up at his deep brown eyes
Before he could finish his statement, he looked up at his professor who had laid down a whiteboard maker in front of him
“Mr. Crosby, I saw you reading before I walked into class. Would you mind going up to the board and writing your 3 key themes from what you’ve read so far and explain why you believe those are important so far ?
Sidney gulped and nodded as he stood up “o-of course professor”. He straightened his hoodie as he got up and began writing, the silence looming the classroom as he heard whispers behind him
“So I wrote down Innocence, Racism and Moral Complexity. Innocence to me is a big one because of Scout and Jem and how they react to lots of things that go on, next is racism which clearly is a huge part in this with Atticus defending Tom and the town turning against him and of course moral complexity which speaks for itself with everyone in the book” he grinned as he nodded at the professor and felt at ease as he got a nod back “Very good Sidney, you chose 3 great ones, now Nathan what about you ? I saw you and ms.Garcia speaking just a moment ago. Why don’t you both come up and write down some examples of motifs you found ?” His face reddened as he jotted some down on a sticky note and gave it to Nate “here, you have this and just improvise alright ? I’ll ask you questions to make it look like you know” he whispered lowly to his panic stricken friend. He sat quietly in his desk making eye contact with Isabella and found himself blushing as she gave him a small wink “So um to start um I got...I got the mockingbird of course” Nathan spoke up with a cough trying to hide his nervousness “It uh it represents the innocence and beauty” “In a chapter of the book….” Sid speaks up as everyone turned their eyes towards him “Miss Mauddie tells Scout and Jem how it’s a sin to kill a mockingbird right ? Why is that ?” Professor Johnson raised a brow at his question and turned towards Nate and Isabella “Sidney asked a wonderful question, would any of you like to answer why that is ?” “Well” Isabella said, “The mockingbird is a bird that causes no harm to anyone or anything around it, it sings. It doesn’t cause any kind of pain, it brings music to people's ears which goes back to what Nathan said about representing innocence and beauty” “Amazing” their professor smiled “Wow alright, I have to admit I called you two up because it seemed you were chatting about something other than the reading but I gotta say I’m impressed. Take a seat and let’s get to the real stuff” Sid grinned and hid a laugh as he rubbed his lips together to keep from laughing at Nate’s relieved face “But I’m petty right ?”  “Fuck all the way off bro, I was nervous as hell. I could’ve shat my pants right then and there, I never wanna be in that position again” he whispered to him as he took a huge gulp from his water bottle “I gotta thank Belles for helping me out too, you think I should take her to dinner ?” “What !” Sidney exclaimed loudly, thankful everyone else was in their own conversations “Dinner ? You just met her ? It’s the first day of classes ?” Nathan scowled as he looked at him and stared “Bro….dinner at the cafeteria here, we gotta eat sometime you know. I just wanted to pay for her food as a thank you for having my back and for offering to tutor me. That's literally it, you’re being weird man” He shook his head “I just...I thought you didn’t want distractions this semester is all and she’s a girl and girls are….girls are distractions remember ?”. Lies, all lies. More than anything he wanted to be the one who asked Isabella out for coffee or some food, after all he was the one who acted like a jerk towards her for no reason. “She’s my friend ?” Nathan said back confused “She’s OUR friend, we can have friends and still do good in school and hockey you know ? Now come on, class is over let’s go chill before dumb ass stats class starts” he patted his shoulder and got up with him “We have like 2 hours” Sidney walked with him, thinking of his words over and over again “we can have friends and still do good in school and hockey”. He wanted all those things, and he was willing to do whatever to get them….or her. *Notes- Face claim for Isabella available upon ask !
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theladyoflove · 4 years
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The Athenian Calendar 🏛️🌿📅
There was no standard calendar in ancient greece, however the most written about and commonly used one by modern reconstructionists is the Athenian Calendar! This calendar can be easily incorporated into the Gregorian Calendar as well (in my opinion)
I would like to thank @hermesmystic for creating a beautiful lesson on our Hellenismos Online Temple discord server! It helped a lot with this post ♥
It’s a long one so brace yourself!
D A Y S 🌇 The days in the Athenian Calendar begin at sunset. This was important for being able to observe festivals or holy days, if they were to begin at midnight like it does for us, the Greeks would have had a much harder time practicing their religion.
The main Olympians have sacred days of the week which can be used if you would like to make small daily offerings. Weekdays have two gods and weekends have three. A week in review would be: Monday: Artemis and Demeter 🏹🌾 Tuesday: Ares and Athena ⚔️📜 Wednesday: Hermes and Hephaestus 📬🛠️ Thursday: Zeus and Hera 🌩️💍 Friday: Dionysus and Aphrodite 🍇🕊️ Saturday: Hestia, Hades and Persephone 🕯️💀 Sunday: Apollo, Posedion and Amphitrite ☀️🌊
Obviously you don’t need to change your clock and begin living your life around this BUT it is useful to remember.
M O N T H S 🌑 The months are where it gets a little complicated! So we’ll begin with the way the months began and ended and that is with the new moon.
Most Athenian months will fall between two Gregorian months, and sometimes a Gregorian month can have two full moons. A rule of thumb to remember with this is an Athenian month begins on the last (or only) new moon of a Gregorian month and ends on the first (or only) new moon in the next Gregorian month.
The Athenian Calendar also has seasons like the Gregorian calender, and these seasons have three months within them.
S u m m e r: 🌻🏄 Season Theme: Setting foundations and goals Hekatombion (holy month of Zeus 🌩️) - Falls between July/August. Theme: Planning and getting your life sorted Festivals for this month are the: Aphrodisia (6th), Kronia (12th), Synoikia (15-16th) and Panathenaia (28th)
Metageitnion (holy month of Demeter 🌾) - Falls between August/September Theme: Securing foundations from the previous month This month doesn’t have confirmed festivals but these are believed to fall under this month: Metageitnios (Unknown), Herakles Emera (Unknown)
Voedromion (holy month of Hestia 🕯️) - Falls between September/October Theme: Focus on spiritual/religious comfort Festivals for this month are the: Genesia (5th), Kharisteria (6th), Boidromia (7th), Eleusinian Mysteries (15th-21st)
The Eleusinian Mysteries was the most important festival in the Athenian year held in honour of Demeter and Persephone. What happened during this festival isn’t well known so it’s challenging for a modern Hellenic Polytheist but for the ancient Greeks acknowledging the festival was important, acknowledging meant to observe the festival, in the modern sense this can be doing a personal ritual.
A u t u m n / F a l l: 🍂🥧 Season Theme: Tackling hardships, the gods challenge Pyanepsion (holy month of Ares ⚔️) - Falls between October/November Theme: Time for tackling hardships Festivals for this month are the: Proerosia (5th), Puanepsia (6th), Oskhophoria (7th), Theseia (8th), Stenia (9th), Thesmophoria (11-13th), Khalkeia (30th)
Maimakterion (holy month of Artemis 🏹) - Falls between November/December Theme: Time for taking care of yourself through hardship Festivals for this month are the: Maimakeria (unknown), Pompaia (20-end)
Poseideon (holy month of Poseidon 🌊) - Falls between December/January Theme: A time to prove work ethic (or arete) to the gods Festivals for this month are the: Poseidea (8th), Rural Dionysia (last two weeks of the month), Haloa (26th)
W i n t e r: ❄️☃️ Season Theme: A time to recover and revise goals Gamelion (holy month of Hera 💍) - Falls between January/February Theme: Time to reconnect with the gods Festivals for this month are the: Lenaia (12-15), Gamelia (26)
Anthesterion (holy month of Haephestus 🛠️) - Falls between February/March Theme: Time for ingenuity/finding creative solutions Festivals for this month are the: Anthesteria (11-13th), Diasia (23**/28th)*, Lesser Mysteries (unknown)
Elafevolion (holy month of Athena 📜) - Falls between March/April Theme: Reflecting on potential weaknesses and improving Festivals for this month are the: Elapheblia (6th), Asklepieia (8**/9th)*, Greater Dionysia (9-13th), Pandia (14/17th**)*
S p r i n g: 🌷🐣 Season Theme: Strength and Hope! Mounikhion (holy month of Aphrodite 🕊️) - Falls between April/May Theme: Celebrate the progress you’ve made! Festivals for this month are the: Feast of Eros (4th), Mounikhia (6/16th**)*, Olympieia (19th)
Thargelion (holy month of Apollo ☀️) - Falls between May/June Theme: Faith and Divination, working hard Festivals for this month are the: Thargelia (6-7th), Plunteria (Last week with the peak on 25th)
Skiroforion (holy month of Hermes 📬) - Falls between June/July Theme: Making goals for the new year, devotion Festivals for this month are the: Arrhephoria (3rd), Skirophoria (12th), Dipolieia (14th) 
[* means it can be observed on either day] [** means that is the prefered date to observe it]
Each month has an 11 day transitionary period from one to the next called the Neos Minas, each day (except one) has an event that help to fully transition spiritually from the theme of one month to the next.
Day 1: Chthonia 1 - the 3rd day before the end of the old month 🧹 Day 2: Chthonia 2 - the 2nd day before the end of the old month 🧹 Day 3: Hekate’s Deipnon - last day of the old month 👻 Day 4: Noumenia - First day of the new month ✨ Day 5: Agathos Daimon - 2nd day of the new month 🎉 Day 6: Tritomenis - 3rd day of the new month / Athena’s birthday 📜 Day 7: Tetras - 4th day of the new month 💖 Day 8: Rest Day - 5th day of the new month 🥱 Day 9: Birth of Artemis - 6th day of the new month 🏹 Day 10: Birth of Apollo - 7th day of the new month ☀️ Day 11: Poseidonas - 8th day of the new month 😤
M o n t h   1 3 ? Occasionally there will be two new moons in a Gregorian month, this was a dillema for the ancient Greeks as well and their solution was to add a 13th month! Mounikhion has to begin and Elafevolion has to end on the same day but there are two new moons... what do we do? Who do we honour?!
DIONYSUS TIME BAYBEEE 🍇🍇🍇🍇
Dionysus would be given a month whenever this issue would arise and it fit his theme perfectly, to come in and cause chaos! This month never had any festivals as it was so sparadic in length or time of year, routine went out the window! In even more Dionysus fashion this month isn’t named after him! It’s called Duo Poseideon and has nothing to do with Poseidon’s month!
Y E A R S 🎉 Years in the Athenian calendar begins in the summer, giving the Greeks plenty of energy to honour and celebrate. The final day of the year was always to honour Athena and Zeus for blessings in the new year
To keep with the theme of four seasons, the years were also grouped into fours called Olympiads 4 years = 1 Olympiad. The way to write the year would go as such: “Year 4 of the 704th Olympiad” Once the year is complete this summer it will become “Year 1 of the 705th Olympiad”
The years also come with their themes, they follow that of the seasons.
I hope this post was helpful! Sorry if I got anything wrong but I hope you can add some of this information to your worship and have fun with it! Don’t worry about trying to follow the calendar perfectly.
Gods bless xx ♥
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itsrubberbisquit · 3 years
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Trust and Other Disasters (7/?)
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Summary:  A week from hell.
Pairing:  Walter Marshall/OFC
Word Count: 5.1k
Warning:  Some child murder.
Metaphorical Tag List: @summersong69​  @omgkatinka​  @rn7rocks @introvertedmouse​  @musicartmayheminmyheart​​  @mel-the-fangirl​​   @posiemax​ @mis-lil-red​​ @thetaoofzoe​​​
If you’d like a tag post a note or send me an ask.
Author’s Note:   OKAY LOOK.  I didn’t mean to take this long to update.  For some reason Anna has spent six weeks sticking her tongue out at me and mocking my hubris, thinking I know how to write.  But.  Here we are.  I have a whole plan for another chapter so damned if I know what’s going to happen next.  I love you all so much.  Thank you for sticking with me.  Also, bonus thanks to @pensieve-foryour-thoughts​ and @thetaoofzoe​ for checking in and giving some writer’s block advice.    
Masterlist Previous Chapter Next Chapter
Act Two 
Chapter 7: The Time Before The Next Time
Monday.  
 Anna passed her marksman certification without a problem.  The smug smile on her face was probably a little overkill when she handed her paperwork over to Harper, but fuck it.  He’d demanded her obedience and she’d obliged, spending an actually enjoyable fortnight down in the shooting range with Marshall.  
 Harper rolled his eyes at her expression before snatching the paperwork from her.  “You could have faxed this up to me.”  She widened her grin even further; she sure could have but what would have been the fun in that?  The shorter man gave her a long and expectant look.  When she didn’t budge he barked at her to get back to work and she scampered off.  He did spare her a sidewise smile when he noted the perfect score at the top of the page.
 Marshall had done wonders for her accuracy.
 He’d done wonders for her happiness as well.  She had a distinct hop in her step as she moved farther down the hall on the third floor. She could see Marshall’s name on a tag, hanging out into the hall and it made her smile.
 They’d texted a few times since Saturday but they hadn’t talked.  She couldn’t wait to tell him how well she’d done.
 There was no response at his door when Anna knocked and she peeked inside, just to be sure he wasn’t there. The room was empty and she sighed. He’d been radio silent all day and she could take a hint.  She wandered over to his desk and grabbed a sticky note.  She left a ‘just missed you’ message in her sprawling handwriting and went back to Cyber Crimes.
 As she passed the bull pen she noted that it was quieter than usual.  That was an indication that they’d picked up a new case, a bad one.
 Tuesday
 Marshall hadn’t texted her about her post-it and he hadn’t responded back when she’d tried to invite him out for lunch early that morning so when noon rolled around, Anna sat in her chair in contemplation.
 She could bring him food. That was friendly and they were friendly.  More than friendly, he’d promised more. A shiver ran up her spine at the thought, like it had ever time she’d remembered the soft look in his eyes from Friday.  It was hard to believe it’d only been a few days.  It felt like weeks since he’d crowded her into a divider and made her want.
 Damn the man.
 She shifted, mentally quieting the dull ache in her loins.  This wasn’t the time.  
 And it certainly wasn’t the place.
 “Hey, Anna, I’m so glad you’re here.”  She looked up from her computer to find Glasgow with a murmuring Mirabelle cradled in his arms.  She stood and instinctively held her arms out.  It’d been a while since she’d held the baby and she cooed at the infant.  “I just got the text, but Stephanie just dropped Mira off, and I’m going to lose my mind if we have to stay late tonight.”
 Anna just nodded along at her coworker, her smile still teasing for the baby.  “What text?  Did we get a case?”
 Glasgow stopped digging through a drawer and looked back at her.  “You haven’t checked your phone.”  He sounded a little resigned.  Resigned and sad.  “The whole department has a case.  Two missing girls, 12 and 13.  Reported missing Sunday and Monday.  They just turned it into an endangered persons case.”  He turned back to his desk, muttering about his iPad.
 Anna frowned because that was awful.  Upgrading a case from missing to endangered meant someone hadn’t gotten lost.  That meant foul play and foul play meant homicide. She swallowed heavily and shifted Mira’s weight to her other hip.  Small, sticky fingers came up to play with Anna’s curls but she ignored it.  “Is there a meeting?  Do I need to go?  What do we know?”
 Glasgow had freed his iPad from the desk.  He looked ready to bolt.  “No, the message was for me to join, as the senior ranking member of the division. We’re meeting like five minutes ago and then I’ll let you know what we’re going to be doing.”  He turned to go and then remembered his manners.  “Can you watch her?  God, I didn’t even ask-.”
 Anna waved him off, Mira chortling happily at her side.  “Go. We’ll be fine, won’t we Little Mirabelle?”  The baby cooed and Anna watched her face as her father rushed off.
 An active missing persons case would explain Marshall’s absence from her life for the last few days. And those girls were young. Faye’s age, come to think of it. Her heart wrenched, hard, at the thought.  She grabbed her cell and maneuvered to her messages with one hand.  There was the precinct wide alert to check the case postings.
 It was going to be a long week.
 Wednesday
 Anna didn’t really like the missing persons cases.  
 Scratch that.  She didn’t really like any of their cases when there was a victim but the missing or endangered persons cases were probably the worst.  She knew she was in for a lot of data crawling and some sleepless nights.  Her last endangered person case had been a sex worker in her twenties.  The woman had been cat-fished on a site and because of the nature of the laws, Anna wasn’t able to obtain her geo-tracking information until the victim had been dead for almost a day.
 Anna hadn’t slept much for a while after that.
 She tapped her pencil against her bottom lip, a behavior she had established during her sophomore year in high school to help center her thought process.  It was a time tested and trusted method to organize and sort thoughts; to really key in on what she should be thinking about.
 Little 15 year-old Anna could have never imagined that one day it’d help her think about the last couple days from hell.  She would have never imagined digging through the social media trail of a couple of young girls, hoping that they hadn’t been random kidnappings.  
 She hadn’t found anything of substance yet.  No creepies in the inbox, no shadow in the likes on any of the websites.  If they were being tracked online, the perp was smart. It made her heart hurt to think about and she closed her eyes in frustration.
 She was so damn good at tracking people online.  She was a master at maneuvering the dark underbelly of the internet.  No one could hide from her online.  But this crime wasn’t digital.  This asshole hadn’t found either victim online.
 Anna’s eyes snapped open and she ran one more Hail Mary search through Harvester.  Her fingers flew over the keyboard, a bevy of search terms pouring into the engine.  She hit enter and leaned back, waiting for her results. Her head tipped to the ceiling and she shut her eyes, sending up a prayer to whatever God was listening to give her something to work with.
 Statistically, rates of domestic violence against partners of peace officers rose when homicide had an active case.
 Minneapolis wasn’t a huge town but they really weren’t likely to go more than a few weeks without an active murder.
 Or kidnapping.
 Anna rubbed at her left eye before she blinked both open.  If she could just . . . readjust herself she could see whatever pattern she was missing.  And she was missing a pattern.  That was for sure.
 It was 4 PM on a Wednesday, four days after Marshall had kissed her and honestly she wasn’t thinking about that but it was a good temporal marker.
 A knock on the door snapped her out of her revelry and she smiled, almost sadly, at the man who hadn’t been consuming her every waking thought like she’d expected him to.  
 His looming form brought a smirk to her lips.  Walter Marshall had kissed her and kind of liked her and that was some sort of strange and wonderful, now wasn’t it?  “Anything new?”  Her quirky smile slide into a pained frown at the tense question and she shook her head. No.  She hadn’t found anything.  That was both a blessing and a curse.  
 She didn’t know whether to stand to welcome him into the office and instead she made a vague gesture to the chair on the other side of her desk.  He took direction well enough, his large frame collapsing into the cheap plastic with a relieved sigh.  It’d been a week since he’d kissed her but this was realistically the first time she’d seen him in more than passing.
 The smudges under his eyes were telling.  The defeated slope of his shoulders was also indicative of his mind set.  She wanted to give him a tight hug and tell him it’d be okay.
It would be a lie but it would probably be good for both of them.
 Instead she brushed aside a spare monitor to have a clear view of him.  Then she leaned forward, bracing her chin on her palm, and regarded him with a concerned head tilt.
 She was growing far too attached to his mental wellbeing.  Too attached and way too fast at that.  She deftly moved past that concern with her years of conflict avoidance.
 “You look tired.”  Her words made his lip twist and he glanced up from his lap to give her his full attention
 “I am.  I don’t sleep well during cases.”
 She could see the exhaustion creep a little deeper, creases deepening around his eyes and it made her heart clench.  He'd said next time he’d kiss her proper and then next time had ended up never happening because they- they had jobs that didn't always coalesce into the type of situations that made for great relationships.
 What she wouldn't give to wrap him up in a hug and tell him everything would be okay.
 It would be light platitudes and they both knew it.  The last lead Homicide had gotten had gone cold that morning and that was probably why Marshall had finally dragged himself into her office at the end of the day. The trail had gone cold and there was only so much she could do.  Only so many skip traces she could run on vehicles seen near the last kidnapping. “I’m sorry I can’t do more.”  She felt helpless in a way she hadn’t before, doing this job.  This was her first child kidnapping.  This was her first multiple homicide and they were all babies.
 He gave her a brusque head shake before leaning over.  It almost looked like he was going to reach for her hand but he stopped just short, his hand redirecting up to his wild curls.  “Times like this always feel hopeless but we just keep pushing through the steps and something will give.”
 It hurt.  The desperation in his voice pulled right at her heart.  Even now, after everything he’d seen to make him this big, gruff recluse, he still had just a bit of hope around the edges of his frustration.  “And if nothing gives?”
 Those beautiful blues gave her a long and calculated look before he exhaled in resignation.  “It will.  One way or another.  And then, maybe then I’ll take you out somewhere nice.”
 “Marshall, I-“  She was cut short by a series of short beeps emanating from his pants.
 They both paused and then he started, as though he’d forgotten that was the sound he’d set for his text message alert.  He dug the phone out and Anna watched, biting her lip in anticipation.  His face slid from exhaustion into frustration and then overwhelming sadness.
 She let out the breath she was holding, her heart breaking at the look on his face.  “What happened?”
 Marshall took a long time to look back up at her and when he did it was with a clenched jaw and anger written across his features.  “They found Elizabeth.  The twelve-year old.  Down by the south central train tracks.”  
 Anna let the words soak in, wrapping her in that inevitable grief that came with her job.  She made to stand but Marshall brushed her off. “I’ve gotta get on scene.  But, um, maybe we can get dinner tomorrow if it’s not too hectic.”
 She gave him a sad half-smile.  “Stopping for food while on the hunt?  That’s not your usual M.O.”
 Marshall’s return smile was just as sad and desolate.  “Even the hunters have to eat eventually.”  With a tight nod, Marshall disappeared out the door and Anna sighed with resignation.  She turned back to her work and refocused.  
 She had to be missing something.
 Thursday
  A/S/L
 12/F/Edina.   Elizabeth Markharm.  Deceased.
 13/F/Richfield. Hannah Frakes.  Deceased.
 13/F/Minneapolis. Ashley Cooke.  Presumed Alive.
 The clock ticked ever forward, each second rattling in Anna’s brain as she stared at the map in front of her.
 They’d found Hannah’s body early that morning and then when Anna had arrive at the precinct, she’d gone straight to work.  They were geographically close, but that was the only similarities between the girls anyone had turned up so far.
 10 AM rolled around and Anna was interrupted by another precinct-wide text.  Another girl had been reported missing.  13.  Same M.O. as the previous two.  And now Anna had three data sets to work off of but it still wasn’t leading her to any solid facts.
  She spent her entire day feeling like she was going to cry.
 After the sun was long set and everyone had left the office but her, Anna remained.  She began one more search, just one more, unaware that a few floors up, a certain detective was also deep into his own work with no intentions of going home that night.
 Friday
 Glasgow woke her at 9, when he arrived with some slamming doors and a briskly shut desk drawer.  Anna’s head popped up at the noise and she looked around.  This was Glasgow’s way of waking her up without explicitly judging her for sleeping at her desk.  It was a hell of a lot kinder than when Rachel used to yank the covers clean off her in college.  
 “Whassit?  What time-?”  She rubbed at her eyes and then focused on the wall clock.  Shit.  She felt like garbage and she hadn’t learned anything new anyway.
 “Go get a shower, Anna. We’ve got a meeting in 45 with the detectives.”  Glasgow was a smart man.  She nodded in agreement and drifted down toward the locker room.  Brushed and washed and more alert, Anna slid into the back of the conference room.  There was a buzz of anticipation in the air.  Not excitement, per say, more unease.  So far as anyone was aware there hadn’t been any breaks in the case and a meeting like this was a Hail Mary.
 Her eyes scanned the crowd, noting the familiar faces of the beat cops along with the few officers she knew up in psyche.  That pretty lady Detective was glaring at her phone over by the window and Harper was talking with the Desk Sergeant.
No Marshall.
 Anna frowned at his absence, a strong sense of worry starting to brew in her stomach.  He’d texted her at midnight, reminding her to eat. She’d sent a smiley back in response but that’d been it.  He’d looked so tired the day before.  His soul looked tired.
 They needed a break on this case, not only because the recovery window for both victims was shrinking real quick but because the department didn’t need another case like this. Not after the Twins.  
 Harper cleared his throat and stood, his eyes catching on his watch.  He ad his standard disapproving look on his face and it was a familiar expression for Anna.  “While we wait for Detective Marshall with the latest, we’re going to proceed with the facts for the morning.”
 So Marshall was just late. Weariness tugged at the edges of her vision and Anna rubbed at her eyes.  She hadn’t slept at a desk since college but this case was doing a number on her.  Detective Holly, the pretty one with a phone problem, stepped up to start the summary. She took her time outlining where the investigation had gone so far, all the various avenues they had followed and the few they had dismissed.
 There was nothing new. There wasn’t anything new for days.
 Anna’s throat was suddenly thick with the grief of it.  This wasn’t what she’d signed up for, all those months ago.  She wasn’t supposed to be finding missing baby girls.  She wasn’t supposed to spend hours staring at a murder scene-
 Someone settled on the wall next to her and Anna instinctively scooted over to give them more room.  Her ears registered Marshall’s soft hum of thanks just as her nose placed the sudden scent of pine as his.  She let her eyes slide to her right and gave the man a soft smile.  His return nod was short and she sighed in resignation at the frustration on his face.  Even with the beard she could see the pinch of his mouth.  Something bad had happened.
 “Hey.  Everything okay?”  She pitched her voice as low as she could, mindful of Holly up front.  
 “Hey.  Not really, but it’s the job.”  He gave her a speculative look.  “Did you eat this morning or did you just pass out at your desk?”  Her reddened cheeks were a dead giveaway and now his mouth relaxed into a rueful smirk.  “That’s not good for your back, you know?”
 “It’s not good for anything but I was working.  Or- I was trying to.”  There was that sad failure, coming back to bite her.  All her skills and she couldn’t do anything with them.  
 Marshall crossed his arms, his forearms emphasizing the size of his chest, and he suddenly looked like a mountain.  His shoulder was warm and solid when he leaned into her.  “Thank you.  I know you’re feeling less than helpful but running down leads is part of the grind. It helps us know which way is the right one.”
 His words lightened her mood fractionally and she gave him a smile.  Holding his gaze for a few seconds longer than socially acceptable in the situation, Marshall looked almost flustered when he finally nodded up at the podium.  “Did I miss anything good?”
 She huffed a quiet laugh at the segue and suddenly felt . . . playful?  Was that the right feeling?  “We had a precinct wide vote.  I’m afraid you lost to Ramirez for nicest ass.”
 He was silent for two beats before he let out an undignified guffaw.  A couple of the beat cops at the back of the room turned to give them the stink eye.  Harper caught sight of Marshall and made a ague gesture for the Brit to join the other detective at the front of the room.  Marshall gave a short nod of acknowledgement.
 Anna eyes widened when he didn’t straighten and walk off like she expected.  Rather, he leaned a little deeper, the hand tucked closest to her giving her upper arm a reassuring squeeze.  “It’s not great but it’s a break in the case.  Kind of.”
 Marshall looked steady as ever, marching himself up to the front of the room.  More than a few eyes followed that fine rear.  If they ever did have a vote and Marshall lost to anyone Anna was pretty sure most of the women in the precinct would riot.
 The break in the case was not good.
 They’d found the body of the second victim earlier that morning, not far from the first. Marshall didn’t meet her eyes when he made the announcement and her stomach roiled.  That certainly wasn’t great.  She was waiting for the part where it gave them a lead.
 In her head she was calculating distances.  Both dump locations were within the city’s parks systems.  This time of year people were out in force which meant the perp would be operating in that sliver of time between bars being let out and the joggers hitting the trail.
 Not a lot of time.  In an area that’s well traveled.  There were probably cameras.  In fact, if she remembered correctly most of the bars that sat along the trail system had installed security systems over the summer after a series of break ins.  She made a mental note to double check with Marshall to make sure they’d checked out the buildings.
 She wanted to linger after the precinct meeting was over but she couldn’t think of a reason.  Cyber Crimes had their marching orders and Marshall looked really busy.
 Twenty minutes and a latte later, she was queing up her search engine when a text pinged on her phone.
 Marshall:  I miss you smile.  I know I said dinner tonight but maybe tomorrow?
 Anna:  As long as we’re not too busy
 She let a smile flirt on the edges of her lips for a moment.  Work was fucking brutal right at that moment but Marshall was making her happier than she’d been in a while.  Since Mike, at the very least.  Her phone dinged again and she kept the smile on her face.  It was supposed to be Marshall with a witty comeback but it wasn’t.  It was assignment specifics.
 Buses.  They had her looking into buses.
 She rolled her shoulders and got to work.
 “Glasgow!  I- I think I have something.  Come check this out!”  Her voice broke the tense silence that had permeated the office since their morning meeting.  Her coworker crossed over to her work space and she replayed the transit map she’d recreated on her screen
 “Look, here.  The 319.  Normally it passes through victim one and victim three’s neighborhood.  Last week, construction on 15th forced it to make a detour through Richmond.  Two blocks from victim two’s house.”
 Glasgow nodded along, his finger pointing out the different houses.  “Well, that’s something else they have in common but did they all take public transit?”  
 Anna nodded and pulled up another screen.  “All three took public transit and Wednesdays, last Wednesday to be specific, they all would have been on the same exact bus for various reasons.  Elizabeth had a make-up test, Hannah was coming home from swimming, and Ashley was headed to her pastor’s house to babysit.”
 They watched the little bus make the circuit again.  Glasgow sucked in a breath after a few tense moments.  “Anna, this is something.  Did you look at the driver?”
 “The usual driver came back clean: Mirna Cushing.  Except that Wednesday she wasn’t at work due to a family emergency and no one bothered to tell the officers when they were canvassing.”  Her fingers flew across the keyboard until an image popped up.  It was a man in his late 50’s, skinny enough to be considered fit but gaunt enogh to be seen as wasting.  The name under the photo read Strieber, Timothy.  “This was the substitute driver.”  She caught Glasgow’s eyes, her eleation almost manic. “He hadn’t been seen at work since last week.  Before Elizabeth went missing.”
 Glasgow was already dialing Harper on his phone.  “Fuck yes, Anna.  You’re a genious.”
 She grinned, opening an email to Marshall and CC’ing all relevant officers.  She was running a couple of traces on Strieber that would hopefully give her a current address.
 It didn’t take long for the calvalry to arrive.  Anna was as calm as possible, twenty people crowded around her computer as she explained what she’d discovered and how she’d made the connection.  As she was finishing up her theory, Strieber’s personal information popped and she gave the room a grin.  “Now we’ve got opportunity and a location.”
 It shouldn’t’ have been enough for a judge’s warrant but with two dead girls and one still missing, no one was taking any chances.  She paced the office, waiting to find out exactl what was going to happen.  She felt relief, of a sort, knowing that if this was the guy and if he hadn’t killed Ashley yet, they would recover her soon.
 They would save at least one.  That was all she could hope for-
 A hand on her shoulder paused her movement and she turned to find Marshall.  Marshall in a flak vest with several firearms strapped to his body. He even had elbow and shin pads on, an indication that whatever was to come would be serious.
 “Are you guys going in?”
 He gave her a curt nod and stepped a little closer.  This close up she could see that freckle on his lip again.  Teasing her.  “We’re out the door in five.  I just wanted to come and see you.”
 Another step forward. Anna swallowed hard.  Marshall was generally physically intimidating.  With all his gear, leftovers from his SWAT days perhaps, he looked like a mountain once more.  “Be safe, okay?  The blue prints we pulled for the house are really straight forward but you never know what these sick fucks-.”
 “Hey, it’s going to be okay.”  Marshall’s gloved hand was soft on her cheek as he calmed her suddenly anxious ramble. “We’ve got more than enough firepower. Don’t worry.”  
 Don’t worry, he says. Don’t worry.
 “Make you a deal?”  By now Marshall had crowded into her, one arm at her cheek and the other resting loose at her hip..  She could feel the cold metal of his sidearm against her thigh and it didn’t make her nervous like it would have just a month ago.  Instead it was a reassurance, a tool he was ridiculously effective with that would bring him back okay.  
 He quirked an eyebrow at her question.  “What kind of deal?”
 Her slid her hands up, past his ridiculously soft beard and into the curls at the back of his neck.  “You be safe and I won’t worry and tomorrow night we’ll get dinner?”
 Marshall’s mouth twitched, a barely contained smile peaking against the edges of his lips.  “Next time, eh?”
 There was a naked promise in his eyes and Anna forgot, just for a second, exactly why he was standing in her office wearing a full tactical rig.  Instead she gazed intently at that brown freckle in his eye and the soft expression he had for her.  He was really garbage at next times.  
 She rose, her lips brushing against his in a good luck gesture.  It was over before he had a chance to respond.  Marshall stood there dumbfounded for a long second, arms still held up like he had her close, and then he gave her a laugh.  “A deal sealed with a kiss.  I’ll take it.”
 It was time for him to go and they both knew it.  She didn’t dare step back to him, unsure if she’d be able to let him go again so easily.
 “We’re breaching at 8:45. So, in about 30 minutes.  We wanted towait for- well.  That doesn’t matter.  I’ll text you when I know something.  In the meantime go home and get some rest.  Promise me, a second deal, okay?”
 It was ridiculous for him to assume she’d be able to rest knowing what he was out doing but if it would make him feel better, she’d promise him the moon.  He took half a stride towards her after a second before growling and stalking out the door.
 Everyone else in the office was completely silent, having watching the entire drama play out before them. Anna colored when she realized everyone had quieted during her conversation with Marshall.  She curled in on herself and scampered back to her desk. It was probably for the best she go home and avoid any questions.
 Glasgow stopped her on the way out.  “Hey, uh, that looked intense.  Is that . . . okay?”  She’d looked at the employee guidelines.  She wasn’t breaking any rules with Marshall but it might have looked . . . off from an outside perspective.
 “Yeah.  It’s fine, I promise.  Just a long week.”  Her easy smile on the way out only half convinced him but he let it slide.
 Saturday
 The ice in her drink had cooled the glass enough that it was just the wrong side of slippery as she stared at the clock on her microwave.  12:06 AM.
 The sight of that six flipping over to a seven made her stomach sour even further.
 The raid would have been completed over three hours ago and there was no news.  No update.  No text that the operation was a success, that the victim, Ashley, was safe.  Anna tipped her head back, unable to look at the clock anymore.  It was a tease.
 It was a failure.  
 If it had worked . . . if her hunch had been good then she would have heard from him.
 She conjured up the image of soft, wounded doe eyes and an errant curl falling over his forehead. Weeks ago.  Months ago, now, really, she’d told herself she didn’t need complications like this in her life.
 Walter Marshall needed fixing and Anna wasn’t interested in putting a man back together with soft words and kind smiles.  
 Yet here she was. Drinking alone and waiting for word from a wounded man.
 This ice clinked gently as she raised the glass and drained most of it down.  The vodka burned but her anxiety burned more and as the clocked tipped farther away from midnight she imagined she should just find a whole new job.  She should leave this worry and waiting for a stronger person because tonight it was not her.
 Now empty she set the glass down on her counter, clock still telling her it was almost fifteen past. She should go to bed.  Clearly if she was meant to know what was happening she would have been contacted.  She was resolved as she pushed away from her kitchen island and reached out to turn the light off.
 A brisk knock on her door made her pause.  She took a deep breath in then glanced at the door.  She was drunk enough that she was immediately suspicious and her brain spiraled down all of the worst possible scenarios.  Marshall was dead.  The precinct exploded.  Her elderly neighbor had fallen and broken a hip.  Okay that last one wasn’t a concern because she didn’t have an elderly neighbor but knowing Marshall and the police department the first two were distinct possibilities.
 She hovered, hand still outstretched for the light switch, to see if the knock would come again.
  Three sharp raps had her feet moving towards the door.  She paused at the threshold, her heart beating a wild tempo in her chest and then she flipped the lock.  Her whole being collapsed against the door jam and an honest grin lit up her face.  “I was hoping it’d be you.”
Next Chapter
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cricketnationrise · 3 years
Text
ASL 101 - J. Kennedy - MWF 10:00 AM - 11:15 AM - Chandler Building Room 203
Jane Kennedy loves her job.  There’s nothing like watching people learn a new language and really figure out how to use a whole other part of their brain – how to use that language’s unique expressions to tap into meaning that just isn’t there in English. But even at a school like Kiersey there’s always those that think ASL is going to be an easy A. Every year there is at least one person who is panicking about their language requirement and decides that Sign Language is going to be their ticket to graduating on time.
So. She’s a little dreading ASL 101 this spring semester. She was teaching mostly upper level ASL last semester and isn’t looking forward to teaching those just there to coast along. 5 sections of it every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday.  
“Professor Kennedy?”
She looks up from her desk to find a ridiculously tall freshman with curly hair shifting nervously on his feet in the doorway of her office.
“Yes?”
“Hi ma’am, my name is Sebastián Hernandez, I’m in your Monday/Wednesday/Friday 10AM class. I wanted to talk to you about some conflicts I might have with the class schedule.”
Here we go. A big shot freshman with one semester under his belt who thinks he’s got it all figured out. Probably about to ask if he can miss classes on Fridays.
“I try to accommodate where I can Mr. Hernandez, but only to a point. If you miss too many there’s very little I will be able to do for you to actually learn the material.”
“Well, I’m on the hockey team and so we have a lot of roadies on weekends…“
Jane’s already tuning out and shuffling papers around her desk. Of course. Another jock who wants to sail through her course to get the requirements out of the way. She’s heard it a thousand times. She knows how to deal with this though, and she’s about to give him some tough love about college classes (that YOU SCHEDULE YOURSELF stop signing up for classes that conflict with your sports jesus) when what he’s saying filters in and its – different from how this script usually goes.
“…and the schedule is usually pretty smart about not impacting classes, but there are a couple Friday sessions that I’d already have to be on the bus for, so I was wondering if there was any way we could out how I’m going to learn the material from those days. Like are there videos online or could I sit on a different section? I really want to do well in this class.”
This never happens. Not once in ten years at Kiersey has someone with class conflicts actually managed to make her think they might actually care about Sign Language. She can give him a chance. Just one though.
“Here’s what we’ll do Mr. Hernandez. There are 4 other sections of this class Monday/Wednesday/Friday, and 2 others Tuesday/Thursday. If your serious about this class you can attend one of those, and if none of those work, we’ll schedule something during my office hours. If I get the feeling you’re not serious and just trying to get your language requirement out of the way with an easy class, you’ll be disinvited from those options. I don’t tolerate slackers in my classes and am even less inclined to help them pass.”
“Thank you so much Professor! I am absolutely serious and I won’t let you down. I have another class soon, but I’ll email you before the end of the day to figure out what’ll work best with the hockey schedule. Thank you thank you thank you!” And then he’s gone in a blur of backpack and jacket swirling behind him.
She’ll have to wait and see, but it seems like this one might actually surprise her.
----
It’s always interesting to see what signs people know when they walk into her 101 classes. Usually some of the alphabet and parts of one (1) song that they learned in elementary school choir. If she never has to see bad signing of “Winter Wonderland” or “Jingle Bells” again, it’ll be too soon. Once again, however, Sebastián has surprised her.
He kept his word and had a very polite email in her inbox when she went to check it at the end of that first day of classes, and luckily for him there’s a Tuesday/Thursday class that works perfectly for the few Fridays he’d normally miss. It’s the second day of this section so now it’s time to see where her students are with sign language, and make sure there aren’t any bad habits they have to unlearn first.
They go around the room and the students aren’t surprising with their small amounts of knowledge, it’s a beginner class after all, but Sebastián Hernandez knows more than the alphabet. Obviously concentrating on remembering the motions with his tongue sticking out, he’s busily signing “hockey,” “ice rink,” and “puck” which makes sense, she thinks, but then an incongruous “scarf” shows up.
Blushing sheepishly, he lowers his hands and says, “That’s all I can remember, is that okay?”
A little stunned, Jane says, “That’ll do just fine for starters.”
----
Sebastián continues to be engaged and eager to learn throughout the rest of the semester. He dutifully attends the extra sessions when he has to miss for an away game, and even stops by her office hours once, fidgeting the whole time, to ask for extra help. He also informed her when the hockey season was over, and is her best student in his class. Sebastián is still shy in class, but when he does contribute its thoughtful and usually clarifies something for the other students. He’s clearly putting in the work, and probably watching youtube tutorials for basic vocabulary words – his repertoire is eclectic and usually doesn’t follow the syllabus. Why would he know the signs for “Rhode Island,” “Michigan,” and “Canada” when they haven’t started on geography yet? She hasn’t assigned them to learn animal or insect names yet, but he knows the sign for “cricket.” Perhaps most confusing are the signs for “stage,” “singing,” and “cast.” It’s just a weird conglomeration of words. She’d think he has another teacher, but no one would teach that scatterbrained with vocab or grammar.
----
Beech? Why would Sebastián Hernandez, he of the hockey team and apparently an interest in drama, want to learn tree types outside of class?
----
It isn’t until almost the end of the semester that she figures out what has Sebastián so motivated to learn. As she’s walking back to her car one afternoon, she spots him on the quad, sitting next to a much smaller boy with reddish blonde hair. The new boy looks familiar, but she can’t quite place him until she remembers going to see Dear Evan Hansen last month. He played the lead. Quinn Something that she can’t remember right now. Sebastián looks absolutely besotted, but that’s not what’s revealing about the situation. At least, not by itself. Because the smaller boy is chattering away and she can see his hearing aids from here. She sees Sebastián visibly steel himself before he taps the other boy on the shoulder and starts to sign to him. It’s slow, a little off, and just about the day he’s had, but he’s determined. His tongue is sticking out again. She shifts her eyes to Quinn and sees his face light up with pleasure and surprise. He starts signing at deaf speed at first, but slows himself down so Sebastián can understand at least the more basic vocabulary. Sebastián puts his hands down and kind of shrugs apologetically, like he’s embarrassed he doesn’t know more, and the other boy launches himself at Sebastián. It’s obvious Quinn is pleased and she looks away as they start kissing.
Jane shakes herself a little as she realizes she’s been standing still staring at the couple for several minutes in the middle of the sidewalk. She continues on to her car smiling to herself. She can’t wait for next semester when Sebastián is in ASL 201. Even with his hockey schedule, she now knows why Sebastián wants to learn so badly. She’s definitely going to keep him in mind when she’s looking for a TA next spring. And if nothing else, at least she’s solved the mystery of the weird vocabulary. Other than cricket. She’ll probably never figure that one out.
---------------
@sincerelyreidburke here you go, I hope you like it :D
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chappedandfadedvds · 3 years
Text
Nov 16th, Monday 15:39
The phone landed somewhere to his left on the bed, when he had let it fall from his hands. Though he badly  had wanted to throw it against the wall.
Unfocused Jens tried to calm himself. He knew he overreacted, that it wasn’t actually something bad, that it wasn’t meant to attack him. He wished just that his body would understand this too.
Instead his lungs felt a little too tight to allow him to breath freely. His room was too bright, so he pressed the heels of his hands to his closed eyes.
Fingers then grabbed his shoulder.
„Jens?“
That was Lucas.
Right. The boy next to him was almost about to leave. Just after they finished this online class. Which remined him that he probably should have listened to that instead of chatting away on his phone with the broerrrs.
„Did something happen?“ The fingers moved to cup his face and turn it, causing his eyes to fall free from the self induced pressure. He blinked his eyes open, trying to look at Lucas, who appeared to be puzzled, but not less worried. „Is there something I can do to help?“
„No, I’m just frustrated.“ That was a lie. Or was it? He definitely felt some sort of frustration, but he was sure it was more directed at himself and not at any of his friends.
„Okay.“ Lucas didn’t believe him, but didn’t say anything else, instead he his thumb began to slowly brush over his cheek. Jens was glad. That’s what he told himself. Aa a part of him wanted Lucas to ask him further. To question it. Even though Jens wasn’t sure if his answers would be honest. So perhaps frustration was the right word in the end.
„Moyo and Aaron are just assholes, saying stupid stuff about me having to go grocery shopping and Robbe hasn’t replied for an hour to defend me.“ Said out loud, it actually sounded childish and dumb. He felt incredibly stupid right now. God, what Lucas must think of him right now, getting worked up over some stupid comments.
For a moment there was only the sound of their teachers voice from the speakers filling the room.
„What did they say?“ Lucas looked at him, still being serious. He wasn’t laughing at Jens as the older boy had expected somehow.
„Nothing bad really. Just why I always have to do so much and have no time for them and our group any longer. Asking if they are no longer important to me. Bullshit like that. We spend basically all saturday playing games together. And Moyo often has to take care of the household and his little brother too. So why does he have to bitch about me? Bullshit.“ Jens groaned. He knew that it was unfair to compare them, like his friend had done in chat. That it was different. 
Yes Moyo had a lot of responibilities at home too. And he fullfilled those diligently. But usually just a couple days a week, not for months straight. And Jens wouldn’t even be in the position if he just simply told them. He was at fault he realised. He probably should apologise for texting them to fuck off and leave him the fuck alone. His exact words from five minutes ago.
He still was angry, so perhaps he could do that a bit later, when he wasn’t so damn emotional.
„That sucks.“ Lucas said, looking a bit at loss for how to handle the situation, Jens couldn’t blame him for that. Obviously he didn’t know the broerrs all that well yet and it did come a bit out of nowhere.
So Jens tried to smile, it had already been enough help, that Lucas had been around and listened to him. Jens actually felt already a bit better. Eating up feelings definitely never was a good idea, he had seen Robbe succumb to that last year. And now he proved them to be not better. 
Why was it so much easier to handle stuff as an outsider looking in and not vice versa?
„Do you want me to call and cancel the appointment with the caretaker? Because I would have to leave in like five to ten minutes otherwise.“ Lucas asked, pressing a kiss to Jens’s temple, brushing through his hair, before he leaned back and closed his laptop. Class was over, it was announced over chat. Lucas never took his eyes off of Jens though.
„Nah, I’m good. Otherwise I’ll call you later and complain for hours how fucked my life is. And you are not allowed to hang up until I say so.“ Jens slowly found his usual self again, smirking at Lucas, who nodded and smiled back.
„Deal!“ The boy proclaimed and then they both got up from his bed, Lucas to collect all his things, he had somehow managed to strew about the whole room, and Jens to put his schoolwork back on his desk. He would go grocery shopping first and do his homework later. Truth be told, later meant obviously not today or when the clock was running towards midnight.
„So I’ll see you on wednesday then?“
Jens almost was about to agree, when his eyes fell on the calender by his desk, the one he rarely used. Only to write his mothers appointments in, because they were important and he didn’t allow himself to forget about them. He couldn’t.
„Thursday?“ He replied therefore, daring to look at Lucas, who was busy packing his things. The younger boy sighed a little sad, but returned a smile at Jens nonetheless.
„Sure.“ He said briefly. Too brief?
„My mother has an appointment, that I accompany her to. I promised her. Sorry. It wasn’t on my mind til now.“ Jens felt the need to explain, unsure if Lucas would be dissapointed otherwise. Obviously he wouldn’t have been, as he looked over to Jens, before he got up and went to meet him at the desk. His arms wrapping around Jens’s middle.
„It is okay if you have other things planed, Jens. I do too, like with today or my own mom. So stop worrying. I can see it on your face. And I don’t want a wrinkly boyfriend, because he frowns all the time. Okay?“
Jens nodded, all his troubles shrinking away as he was being kissed by Lucas. He was so lucky to have this boy, who seemed to understand so easily. With Jana, Jens was sure, they would have fought every day. That made him notice something else.
„Did you just call me boyfriend?“ Jens asked, leaning back to see Lucas eyes go wide, as realisation hit him.
„I...yes?“ He tried cautiously, smiling awkwardly, as his cheeks blushed a faint red. „I mean. I don’t plan on seeing anyone else.“
„Me neither.“ Jens let the other boy know. „But it’s all a bit fast, isn’t it?“
Lucas shrugged.
„What isn’t with us?“
That was indeed a fair point the dutch boy made. And Jens was sure, that in his heart and mind they already were the first time they kissed, though never outspoken. They still didn’t know each other that long.
„My boyfriend then.“ Jens said, the world feeling odd on his tounge. Boyfriend. Who would have thought? Definitely not him. Weirder even, he loved the sound of it immensly. He could say it again and again. On repeat.
„Boyfriend.“ Lucas agreed, giggling softly as he let the word escape his lips and fill the air between them.
„Alright, you can go now.“ Jens declared, nodding towards the packed bag of Lucas next to the bed.
„Very lovely of you.“ Lucas joked, absolutely not offended in the slightest. They kissed again. And maybe one more time, before they broke out of their embrace.
„I guess I can finally start to be my worst around you.“
„So just the usual, huh?“ Lucas said, eyebrow raised, leaving Jens speechless. This boy always had something to hit back with. Always some last word to shut him up. So he simply followed Lucas out of his room and downstairs, giving him the victory.
They stood in the doorway of the entrance, Lucas dressed and ready to go, and yet both of them busy kissing lazily, enjoying their little intimicy.
„See you on thursday then?“ Jens whispered against Lucas’s lips, partly as a reminder for himself, pulling the boy’s closer. If it was even possible, but Lucas hadn’t yet stopped breathing, so perhaps it was still fine.
„Mhm.“ Lucas assured him wordlessly, pecking to more kisses to Lucas, smiling happily away.
„Alright, my beloved boyfriend, Mr. Van der Heijden, off you go.“ Jens tried to put some authority into his voice, ready to let go of Lucas, who, only clung stronger to him in return. Making them both laugh.
„I love when you do that.“ Lucas said quietly, looking away, as he did.
„What?“
„Call me by my last name. I don’t know, makes me happy and maybe a little excited.“ The dutch boy said, his confidence not yet back as his eyes searched for Jens’s again. 
Now that was something Jens hadn’t expected. He just started using it to make light of a situation, to get them back to the real world and do whatever they actually should be doing. Apparently it did had a different effect on Lucas.
„Dully noted.“ Jens said, his eyebrows raised mischievously. He could definitely make use of that. He snorted at how quick Lucas was to step out of his arms and open the door. It looked a bit like fleeing, if not his giggling betrayed him to let Jens believe Lucas was okay. So he let the boy leave.
„See you thursday. Can’t wait.“ Lucas shouted over his shoulder, walking up to the street.
„Me neither, Mr. Van der Heijden!“ Jens yelled after him, laughing as he watched his boyfriend trip over his own feet, trying to keep balance. It earned him a very agressive middlefinger before the door fell shut. 
The incident with his friends, not even an hour ago, completely forgotten.
__ __ __
tagged: @odi-et-amo85, @tayspots
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inkofamethyst · 3 years
Text
March 5, 2021
I register for classes within the first two weeks of registration being open!  I think that’s good?  It’s open for like, a five week period, and fewer people register in the Spring registration period because incoming freshmen do it during the summer so... so I think I’m looking pretty good?  I wonder if it’s so early because I’m a dual degree student now...  I definitely feel like that’s playing a role in why my time feels a lot earlier.  I mean also I’m a rising junior so that probably has something to do with it too lol.
I think the most fun part about even prospectively having classes in-person next semester is how I can close my eyes and just think about my route between classes.  On Monday, for example, I’ve got bio at 9, physics at 10, and theatre at 12 (according to my preferred schedule, of course), and I can close my eyes and think of me walking across the campus mall to get to bio at 9, then walking down the little alleyway by the parking garage to get to physics at 10, then walking up that little alleyway and around the football field to get to  the super fancy dining hall at 11 for brunch, then my short route from the dining hall to the building that my theatre class will be in.  There’s something so... sobering(?) about being able to picture all of that in my head and to know that I very well could get to experience it in... six months or so.  Another seventeen credit semester, but I should be taking two very easy classes, I think, so that should help (assuming I manage to get into themmmm).
AND LIKE
OKAY
I KNOW I HAD A BAD TUESDAY WHIch honestly made a ton of my week feel really negative bUT
I GOT AN EMAIL TODAy and like it really should not be a big deal bc it doesn’t really mean anythING BUT I’M GONNA BE INTERVIEWED FOR MY TOP CHOICE INTERNSHIP NEXT WEEK AHHHHHH
THEY SAID THEY WERE NARROWING DOWN THEIR SELECTIONS FOR THE SPECIFIC ONE I LISTED AS MY FIRST CHOICE AND THAT THEY LIKED MY APPLICATION WHICh is honestly kinda funny to me because it was, like, the third one I’d sent in and I’m looking back at it now and it’s... it’s a bit rough around the edges, I won’t lie.  Like, my later ones are a ton more polished in comparison.  Also, I sent it in at the very last minute and there’s no way that my submission time went unnoticed lol, but it is what it is anD APPARENTLY THAT DIDN’T MATTER BECAUSE IMMA BE INTERVIEWED NEXT WEEK WOO
AGH AND IT’S MY FIRST CHOOOOIIIIICE literally the one in [redacted: major US city] that I talked about... yesterday?  WHEW imagine my first acceptance could also be my first choice?  Ten weeks in an awesome location doing awesome research at an awesome facility with awesome (I assume) people...  That’d just be so cool.  And I might just get there :)
Alright alright alright I haven’t been accepted yet, but this is a bit of a good sign!
And, you know?  If this isn’t the one for me this summer, that’s okay too, as long as I’m not stuck at home again.  And if I happen to have to be stuck at home, I’d still prefer to be doing one of those online research internships so I won’t just be sitting around (and as long as I’m getting paid (speaking of which my first choice pays pretty handsomely I think by the way, it’s like $600/week + food + relocation + housing which is pretty sweet (I JUST DID THE CALCULATIONS AND IT’S LIKE $15 AN HOUR AFJDKSKD WHAT))).
ugh if only covid wasn’t a thing that would’ve been the one thing to make this whole summer so much better
Okay okay okay like I said, I’m not going to get too too excited (but, uh, you can probably tell that I’m at least a wee bit excited).
Oh and sort of speaking of interviews: this past Wednesday, I was a uni ambassador of sorts during the interview days for prospective students who’re up for the full ride and I had a lovely conversation with a young man for about forty minutes which was entirely fantastic.  Also,, I knew he was gay within the first five seconds of me joining the room with him.  Like, my gaydar is notoriously terrible, but this kid man.  This kid made one gesture as soon as I popped in and I knew and then he spoke and I double knew.  Idk I just thought that was really funny.  He was super nice, he had a great presence, and he had great questions, and I honestly hope he gets the full thing!
So, um, yeah!  I’m feelin pretty good?
Today I’m thankful for the interview offer, obviously.  I’ll need to come up with a few questions, probably basic ones about the research itself, hours, whether the facility will be expected to be open to the public by the summer, and probably some other stuff that I’ll think about.  But yeah!  It’s begunnnnn!!
(also my dnd-friend and I have been watching a CR episode synchronously every Friday evening for the past three weeks and besides the fact that it’s been awesome every week, we watched C2E125 this week and it was an episode like wowza a great one seriously)
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