Apartments on aldine bender and 59

Hi all, first time posting here, but i just had a quick question. I left a very large tech company in late March to pursue other things and focus on my mental health. I should note, I worked remotely from Illinois for my job located in Texas, so i did not have direct access to our office. Anyways, now a ways down the road I’m in a tough spot financially and am looking to sell some unneeded items around my apartment for help with rent.
Today i came across my old work laptop from when i worked at this company. I honest to god didn’t even remember that i had it. So much has happened in the last 2 months it just completely slipped my mind. I went back through my emails to see if they reached out about it and i missed it, but there hasn’t been a word. I haven’t received an email, text, or call from anyone within the company.
I’ll be completely honest here, i understand the “right” thing to do would be to reach out to a contact i have within the company and have them figure out what i should do, and that may be what i end up doing, but i wanted to see if there was any legal reason keeping me from wiping the laptop and selling it. It was sent to me when i was hired (already remote) but they never registered the serial number to my name as far as I’m aware. If i had any notion they’d reach out about the device, I’d wait on it, but they’ve already deactivated my work email and any way for me to see previous instruction.
Couple things i guess i should note - This company is massive and actually manufactures the device in question. When it comes to money, they aren’t counting Pennies so i don’t think the cost of the device is relevant imo.
Any advice is welcome! Sorry if this is all kind of scrambled, it’s hard to mash a lot of info into a little post. I’m normally not the kind of person looking for a loophole of ethics and legality, but i really am struggling with money and this could keep me afloat so please don’t judge too harshly on my willingness to screw over the trillion dollar corporation. Thanks!

The human pulled to a stop, huffing and puffing, hands on his knees as he took in great big breaths. Krill could see ribs through his skin as the great bellows expanded and then contracted. Sweat slicked the skin as the body desperately tried to cool itself.
"Heart rate 165."
The human straightened himself out, coughing once or twice to clear his throat, reaching out and wiping his face with a towel.
He threw the towel over one shoulder and stretched the large muscle groups in his chest, stomach and back, pulling tight.
Sunny leaned against the wall just to their right, both sets of arms crossed over her chest,
"So, what is this supposed to be for? Is this like a dominance thing or something?”
The human wiped his face again and raised an eyebrow,
"It's exercises, Sunny. You know? So I can be fit enough to pass the UNSC PT exam, or perhaps so that I can do my job better, or maybe because I look better when I'm more fit.”
Sunny turned her head to look at him, her eyes scrunching down a little, as Krill went to take notes on a clipboard.
"You mean... You didn't just grow to being that size?”
The human glanced down at Krill incredulous,
"IS she serious? Do the Drev like, not have to work out?"
Krill shook his head,
"Drev do not have subcutaneous fat deposits like humans do. Any acquired deposits are stored below the carapace between the connective tissue, padding them down and giving them more protection."
Sunny looked between them in confusion,
"Wait, hold on... I'm confused."
The human toweled off his hair,
"I have to work out to look like this Sunny. If I don't use it, I lose it."
She turned to look at Krill.
He tucked the holo-pad under one arm,
"You see, Sunny. Humans are meant to adapt. They can adapt mentally, and they can adapt physically. The body changes to match the requirements of its environment. Sometimes this takes years to do, for instance if you take a light skinned population of humans and put them somewhere with a lot of sun, and keep that population in complete isolation, after a few generations, the skin will darken to compensate for the increased UV light. However, these things happen on a smaller level. The body fluctuates to adapt to the amount of physical work which is required."
The human nodded,
"Exactly. Running strengthens the heart, and it increases the hemoglobin in my blood, so that I can run for a longer time with more oxygen. If I were to stop running, I would lose all of that and have to work back up."
Sunny stared at him incredulous,
"So, you have to force your body to be able to perform correctly. Like, it can't just DO what it needs to do, but you have to convince it over years of training to be able to do what you want?”
The man shrugged,
"Well anything sucks when you phrase it like that."
He turned and motioned them to follow,
"Historically, humanity was evolved in an environment with little food. We ate a diet heavy in proteins, fiber, and natural carbs from fruit. Fat is an essential part of a human's diet, but it is relatively difficult to find in nature. Because of this, the body adapted to make humans love and crave fatty and sugary foods for energy. Well since well into the twentieth eighteenth century, fatty foods were becoming commonplace, and easy to get our hands on, but the body wasn't aware of that, so it continued to treat these new fatty foods the way our bodies would have treated them back when we were huntegatherers storing every last bit up for use later."
Sunny followed after in fascination,
"I see, so now you have... Too much of a food that your body craves."
The human looked over his shoulder,
"You got it, and the body doesn't know when to stop storing fat. It'll just keep going. So, if I were to sit on my ass all day eating chips, I would lose the muscle and I would get bigger as fat deposits were stored up for energy."
Sunny shrugged,
"What is the problem with that?"
The human tapped his chin lightly,
"A few things, I guess. For me, at least, if I were to just stop working out, I wouldn't be able to do my job as well, I wouldn't be able to run as far, or to jump as high, or to lift as much. And lifting myself up in a pullup would be impossible, and considering the amount of times we have all almost fallen off a cliff, or had to haul ourselves up rope, you would think that would be a bad idea. Not to mention that the larger you are, the harder your heart has to work as the blood supply is forced to expand, and since you aren't working out your heart it gets weaker but has to do more work, which –in turn– increased the risk of heart issues. Compounding all that I wouldn't be able to sit in a cockpit or pilot a jet properly."
Sunny shook her head,
"That seems like a very... annoying model. You can never just relax. You always have to work to keep your body where it should be. And the amount of self-control you have to have..."
The human laughed,
"You have no idea how much self-control I need when a box of doughnuts gets in my way."
He sighed,
"Keeping my abs has been a real struggle, but luckily the UNSC drilled some self-discipline into me when I was still young."
"So, you weren't always this big?”
The human snorted,
"No not in the slightest. In fact, I was so skinny, you could see my heart beating through my rib cage.”
Sunny grimaced.
"Yeah I know, kinda gross. Those are your two directions. If you don't work out your either super scary skinny, or you get a bit big. If you're working out right, you get muscles."
He turned around, flexing proudly for them to outline the lines of his biceps, chest and stomach.
Sunny would have rolled her eyes back into her head, but she supposed, now that she knew he had to work for it, she was at least somewhat proud of him.
"Ok, I have a question then."
"Shoot."
"Can you get bigger?"
More laughter,
"Oh yeah, totally, but I'm not THAT dedicated."
They were just coming around a corner when the commander skidded to a halt, eye to chest with an absolutely massive human.
Even Sunny stepped back in surprise.
This human was large enough to look Sunny in the eye, with shoulders about as wide as her, and a chest that looked like it could have benched a small car.
It was almost comical, a moment ago Sunny had assumed that the commander was a large human.
"Wow there, big man. I'd rather not get steamrolled today, thanks."
The large human glanced down at the commander.
"Sorry sir."
He grunted, before stepping around and walking up the hall.
Sunny watched him go,
"What do you have to do to get that big!?”
"You practically have to live at the gym."
They turned the corner, walking into a large room, with strange machines of unknown use.
And in here there were humans of all sizes and shapes, but most of them absolutely massive. Those who lacked height, did not lack muscle.
Male humans, female humans, all of the above.
A tiny female human stood at one of these machines, carrying a bar on her shoulders with enough weight that sunny assumed it might crush her. Instead, she squatted down to the floor and stood back up.
The captain blinked and motioned towards her
"Holy shit."
"She squats more than me by the way. You see these guys are insane. I work out to maintain, these guys do it because it’s their hobby."
Krill floated upwards to whisper in Sunny's ear,
"For the muscle to enlarge, the fibers must tear open, and then the body comes back and repairs the tear to withstand the pressures that tore it in the first place.”
Sunny stared at Krill incredulously,
"So you're telling me, they just... Tear themselves apart to get like that?”
The commander left them standing in place, walking over to the wall and jumping upwards, catching his hands around a black bar welded to the wall, the muscles in his back, just below the shoulder blades flexed as he pulled himself upwards, the muscles in his shoulder blades rolling under the skin.
They continued to watch as the commander did his set, a little bit of everything for demonstration purposes. Getting off one of the leg machines, one of these large female humans walked past, sitting where he had just sat, reaching out, pulling out the peg and bringing the weight almost to the bottom of the plates.
The commander leaned in,
"See her, she could probably crush your skull using just her legs."
He sighed,
"Man, I only WISH I could be that badass."
”Yeah, I am sure THAT’S whats you are wishing when you see those thighs…”
He looked up at Sunny,
"Sometimes I come here just to knock myself down a peg."
Across the room, one of these massive humans was hauling a huge bar, lined with weight on either side up over his head like it was nothing.
"You see that, that would probably invert my spine if I tried to do it."
"Must you be so graphic?"
"Yeah, because that's how much of a wuss I am."
Looking around, Sunny wasn't convinced entirely of his status as a wuss.
He had all the requisite muscle groups of even the largest humans, and more than some. There were great swatches of the human population who, even here, were missing some things.
A few of the humans had large arms, but small legs, big legs, but small arms, no chest, or chest and no abdominal muscles.
Yes sure, he may have been smaller than their largest, but he WAS well rounded…Arms, chest, stomach, legs, back and shoulders.
She found herself surprised at the smug satisfaction in comparing her human to the other humans.
Sure, her human couldn't bench THAT much, but he also had better legs, so there.
"You ok, Sunny?"
She turned her head to look at him.
"Just thinking."
She said and he shrugged at her and returned to do his workout.
It's hard to be a human.
They have to work for everything they have, especially when it comes to their body.
Previous First [Next](link)
Want to find a specific one, see the whole list or check fanart?
Here is the link to the master-post.
Intro post by me
OC-whole collection
Patreon of the author

On this day of all days was the symbolic ending of the Kalmar Union as King Gustav the First entered Stockholm after having defeated the Danes.
The Kalmar Union was the great success of one of history’s forgotten, and unsung, rulers Queen Margrete I.
How did a woman ascend to such power in the late 14th century? How did she manage to build this union among enemies and what made it finally fall apart?

Hey there, fellow Redditors!
We are thrilled to introduce you to a groundbreaking project called Ofero Network. Our team of dedicated professionals has been working tirelessly to redefine the blockchain experience and empower individuals and businesses in the Web3 world.
At Ofero Network, we have developed a suite of seamless Web3 products designed to revolutionize how we interact with the blockchain. With the collective expertise of our team, we have created the Ofero Wallet, Ofero Exchange, Ofero App, and xBoost, making it easier than ever to engage with the power of blockchain technology.
Our mission is clear: to empower users like you through the transformative potential of Web3 products. The Ofero Wallet provides a secure and intuitive interface for managing your digital assets. Our Ofero Exchange offers a highly efficient trading platform, while the Ofero App provides pioneering Web3 payment solutions. And let's not forget about xBoost, our innovative staking solution that takes the earning potential to new heights!
Stability is at the heart of our ecosystem. Our team is dedicated to building a resilient and thriving community where innovation thrives and the possibilities are endless. Together, we can shape the future and embrace a world of limitless possibilities.
One unique feature of the Ofero Network is our Ecosystem Rewards program. As a valued member of our community, you'll be rewarded based on your calculated (𝓥) Value within the ecosystem. Aegises, Validators, and Validated Users can earn impressive annual percentage rates (APR) of 15%, 10%, and 5%, respectively. It's our way of giving back to the community and ensuring that everyone benefits from their participation.
But what truly sets Ofero Network apart is our unwavering commitment to trust and transparency. Our team has worked diligently to develop the innovative Proof of Trust and Transparency (PoTT) protocol, which serves as the foundation of our entire ecosystem. In an industry where trust is vital, we have created a safe and trusted environment where you can confidently engage and interact with our platform.
If you are as excited about the Web3 revolution as we are and want to be a part of it, we invite you to join the Ofero Network. Let's work together to unlock the true potential of Web3 products and empower ourselves to thrive in the blockchain realm.
For more information and to explore the features and benefits of Ofero Network, visit our website at https://ofero.network. Our team is here to support you and answer any questions you may have. Together, let's make this journey an extraordinary one!

I bought an edger from Lowe's thinking that I could use it but I'm not sure. So I got the edger pole attachment. When you look at the instructions, it looks like you undo a wingnut in order to take apart one of the other attachments like the trimmer and add this edger attachment.
I have the 56 V trimmer and there's a clamp but there's no wingnut.
Is there something else I need to have to make this work or are there instructions on how to attach this edger with my set up?

FYI, this is a story COLLECTION. Lots of standalones technically. So, you can basically start to read at any chapter, no pre-read of the other chapters needed technically (other than maybe getting better descriptions of characters than: Adam Vir=human, Krill=antlike alien, Sunny=tall alien, Conn=telepathic alien). The numbers are (mostly) only for organization of posts and continuity.
OC Written by Charlie Stastarrfallknightrise,
Typed up and then posted here by me.
Proofreading and language check for some chapters by u/Finbar9800
Future Lore and fact check done by me.
Keep in mind: never skip leg day!
Previous First [Next](link)
Want to find a specific one, see the whole list or check fanart?
Here is the link to the master-post.
The human pulled to a stop, huffing and puffing, hands on his knees as he took in great big breaths. Krill could see ribs through his skin as the great bellows expanded and then contracted. Sweat slicked the skin as the body desperately tried to cool itself.
"Heart rate 165."
The human straightened himself out, coughing once or twice to clear his throat, reaching out and wiping his face with a towel.
He threw the towel over one shoulder and stretched the large muscle groups in his chest, stomach and back, pulling tight.
Sunny leaned against the wall just to their right, both sets of arms crossed over her chest,
"So, what is this supposed to be for? Is this like a dominance thing or something?”
The human wiped his face again and raised an eyebrow,
"It's exercises, Sunny. You know? So I can be fit enough to pass the UNSC PT exam, or perhaps so that I can do my job better, or maybe because I look better when I'm more fit.”
Sunny turned her head to look at him, her eyes scrunching down a little, as Krill went to take notes on a clipboard.
"You mean... You didn't just grow to being that size?”
The human glanced down at Krill incredulous,
"IS she serious? Do the Drev like, not have to work out?"
Krill shook his head,
"Drev do not have subcutaneous fat deposits like humans do. Any acquired deposits are stored below the carapace between the connective tissue, padding them down and giving them more protection."
Sunny looked between them in confusion,
"Wait, hold on... I'm confused."
The human toweled off his hair,
"I have to work out to look like this Sunny. If I don't use it, I lose it."
She turned to look at Krill.
He tucked the holo-pad under one arm,
"You see, Sunny. Humans are meant to adapt. They can adapt mentally, and they can adapt physically. The body changes to match the requirements of its environment. Sometimes this takes years to do, for instance if you take a light skinned population of humans and put them somewhere with a lot of sun, and keep that population in complete isolation, after a few generations, the skin will darken to compensate for the increased UV light. However, these things happen on a smaller level. The body fluctuates to adapt to the amount of physical work which is required."
The human nodded,
"Exactly. Running strengthens the heart, and it increases the hemoglobin in my blood, so that I can run for a longer time with more oxygen. If I were to stop running, I would lose all of that and have to work back up."
Sunny stared at him incredulous,
"So, you have to force your body to be able to perform correctly. Like, it can't just DO what it needs to do, but you have to convince it over years of training to be able to do what you want?”
The man shrugged,
"Well anything sucks when you phrase it like that."
He turned and motioned them to follow,
"Historically, humanity was evolved in an environment with little food. We ate a diet heavy in proteins, fiber, and natural carbs from fruit. Fat is an essential part of a human's diet, but it is relatively difficult to find in nature. Because of this, the body adapted to make humans love and crave fatty and sugary foods for energy. Well since well into the twentieth eighteenth century, fatty foods were becoming commonplace, and easy to get our hands on, but the body wasn't aware of that, so it continued to treat these new fatty foods the way our bodies would have treated them back when we were huntegatherers storing every last bit up for use later."
Sunny followed after in fascination,
"I see, so now you have... Too much of a food that your body craves."
The human looked over his shoulder,
"You got it, and the body doesn't know when to stop storing fat. It'll just keep going. So, if I were to sit on my ass all day eating chips, I would lose the muscle and I would get bigger as fat deposits were stored up for energy."
Sunny shrugged,
"What is the problem with that?"
The human tapped his chin lightly,
"A few things, I guess. For me, at least, if I were to just stop working out, I wouldn't be able to do my job as well, I wouldn't be able to run as far, or to jump as high, or to lift as much. And lifting myself up in a pullup would be impossible, and considering the amount of times we have all almost fallen off a cliff, or had to haul ourselves up rope, you would think that would be a bad idea. Not to mention that the larger you are, the harder your heart has to work as the blood supply is forced to expand, and since you aren't working out your heart it gets weaker but has to do more work, which –in turn– increased the risk of heart issues. Compounding all that I wouldn't be able to sit in a cockpit or pilot a jet properly."
Sunny shook her head,
"That seems like a very... annoying model. You can never just relax. You always have to work to keep your body where it should be. And the amount of self-control you have to have..."
The human laughed,
"You have no idea how much self-control I need when a box of doughnuts gets in my way."
He sighed,
"Keeping my abs has been a real struggle, but luckily the UNSC drilled some self-discipline into me when I was still young."
"So, you weren't always this big?”
The human snorted,
"No not in the slightest. In fact, I was so skinny, you could see my heart beating through my rib cage.”
Sunny grimaced.
"Yeah I know, kinda gross. Those are your two directions. If you don't work out your either super scary skinny, or you get a bit big. If you're working out right, you get muscles."
He turned around, flexing proudly for them to outline the lines of his biceps, chest and stomach.
Sunny would have rolled her eyes back into her head, but she supposed, now that she knew he had to work for it, she was at least somewhat proud of him.
"Ok, I have a question then."
"Shoot."
"Can you get bigger?"
More laughter,
"Oh yeah, totally, but I'm not THAT dedicated."
They were just coming around a corner when the commander skidded to a halt, eye to chest with an absolutely massive human.
Even Sunny stepped back in surprise.
This human was large enough to look Sunny in the eye, with shoulders about as wide as her, and a chest that looked like it could have benched a small car.
It was almost comical, a moment ago Sunny had assumed that the commander was a large human.
"Wow there, big man. I'd rather not get steamrolled today, thanks."
The large human glanced down at the commander.
"Sorry sir."
He grunted, before stepping around and walking up the hall.
Sunny watched him go,
"What do you have to do to get that big!?”
"You practically have to live at the gym."
They turned the corner, walking into a large room, with strange machines of unknown use.
And in here there were humans of all sizes and shapes, but most of them absolutely massive. Those who lacked height, did not lack muscle.
Male humans, female humans, all of the above.
A tiny female human stood at one of these machines, carrying a bar on her shoulders with enough weight that sunny assumed it might crush her. Instead, she squatted down to the floor and stood back up.
The captain blinked and motioned towards her
"Holy shit."
"She squats more than me by the way. You see these guys are insane. I work out to maintain, these guys do it because it’s their hobby."
Krill floated upwards to whisper in Sunny's ear,
"For the muscle to enlarge, the fibers must tear open, and then the body comes back and repairs the tear to withstand the pressures that tore it in the first place.”
Sunny stared at Krill incredulously,
"So you're telling me, they just... Tear themselves apart to get like that?”
The commander left them standing in place, walking over to the wall and jumping upwards, catching his hands around a black bar welded to the wall, the muscles in his back, just below the shoulder blades flexed as he pulled himself upwards, the muscles in his shoulder blades rolling under the skin.
They continued to watch as the commander did his set, a little bit of everything for demonstration purposes. Getting off one of the leg machines, one of these large female humans walked past, sitting where he had just sat, reaching out, pulling out the peg and bringing the weight almost to the bottom of the plates.
The commander leaned in,
"See her, she could probably crush your skull using just her legs."
He sighed,
"Man, I only WISH I could be that badass."
”Yeah, I am sure THAT’S whats you are wishing when you see those thighs…”
He looked up at Sunny,
"Sometimes I come here just to knock myself down a peg."
Across the room, one of these massive humans was hauling a huge bar, lined with weight on either side up over his head like it was nothing.
"You see that, that would probably invert my spine if I tried to do it."
"Must you be so graphic?"
"Yeah, because that's how much of a wuss I am."
Looking around, Sunny wasn't convinced entirely of his status as a wuss.
He had all the requisite muscle groups of even the largest humans, and more than some. There were great swatches of the human population who, even here, were missing some things.
A few of the humans had large arms, but small legs, big legs, but small arms, no chest, or chest and no abdominal muscles.
Yes sure, he may have been smaller than their largest, but he WAS well rounded…Arms, chest, stomach, legs, back and shoulders.
She found herself surprised at the smug satisfaction in comparing her human to the other humans.
Sure, her human couldn't bench THAT much, but he also had better legs, so there.
"You ok, Sunny?"
She turned her head to look at him.
"Just thinking."
She said and he shrugged at her and returned to do his workout.
It's hard to be a human.
They have to work for everything they have, especially when it comes to their body.
Previous First [Next](link)
Want to find a specific one, see the whole list or check fanart?
Here is the link to the master-post.
Intro post by me
OC-whole collection
Patreon of the author
Thanks for reading! As you saw in the title, this is a cross posted story written by starrfallknightrise and I'll just upload some of it here for you guys, if you are interested and want to read ahead, the original story-collection can be found on tumblr or wattpad to read for free. (link above this text under "OC:..." ) It is the Empyrean Iris story collection by starfallknightrise. Also, if you want to know more about the story collection i made an intro post about it, so feel free to check that out to see what other great characters to look forward to! (Link also above this text). I have no affiliations to the author; just thought I’d share some of the great stories you might enjoy a lot!
Obviously, I have Charlie’s permission to post this and for the people already knowing the stories, or starting to read them: If you follow the link and check out the story you will see some differences. I made some small (non-artistic) changes, mainly correcting writing mistakes, pronoun correction and some small additional info here and there of things which were not thought of/forgotten or even were added/changed in later stories (like the “USS->UNSC” prefix of Stabby, Chalar=/->Sunny etc). As well as some "biggemajor" changes in descriptions and info’s for the same stringency/continuity reason. That can be explained by the story collection being, well a story collection at the start with many standalone-stories just starring the same people, but later on it gets more to a stringent storyline with backstories and throwbacks. (For example Adam Vir has some HEAVY scars over his body, following his bones, which were not really talked about up till half the collection, where it says it covers his whole body and you find out via backflash that he had them the whole time and how he got them, they just weren't mentioned before. However, I would think a doctor would at least see these scars before that, especially since he gets analyzed, treated and goes shirtless/in T-shirts in some stories). So TLDR: Writing and some descriptions are slightly changed, with full OK from the author, since he himself did not bother to correct these things before.

I just bought a Leviton GFCI combo light switch/outlet to replace the light switch in the bathroom of our rental apartment in a 1955 2-story 2-unit walkup. Thankfully I didn't open it yet as this might not be possible, at least without the landlord approving it and paying an electrician to do it properly, so I can still return it for a refund.
The problem is that when I took out the existing switch (after shutting off the breaker and confirming there was no power), there were just 2 wires, no neutral or ground. I think it's what's called a "switch leg drop" or something like that, basically a switch that opens or closes the hot wire going into the light fixture, which is where the neutral wire is connected.
So to make this work, I'd have to somehow either reroute or pigtail the neutral to the switch box, AND find a ground wire or connection and route that to the switch box as well. The existing box is metal, but nailed into a wall stud so it's not grounded. It's a really basic setup that probably wouldn't pass code today.
If I remove the light fixture and find the neutral, is it possible to use one of the leg drop wires that go to the switch box to snake all the wires I'd need at the switch box to the switch box, by temporarily connecting them at one end and then pulling them there?
Another complication is that the light fixture is on a wall that's at a right angle to the wall where the switch is, each around 2-3 feet from the corner, and for all I know the switch wires are fixed to an interim stud that I can't access so using them to snake the new wires wouldn't work and I'd have to use a snaking tool, which I don't have.
I'd also have to find a way to get a properly grounded wire to the new outlet, or else the outlet wouldn't be grounded and GFCI obviously wouldn't work and that's both illegal and dangerous.
Which I why I think this may be complicated enough that an electrician is needed, all the more so given that we rent (although if I manage to do it myself, properly, he'd never know and just assume that the previous owner, from whom he bought the building a few years ago, had had the work done, as he never did a proper inspection when he bought it).
If this doesn't requiring punching holes in the wall and at most a snaking tool and new wires (I have all the rest, wire cutters & strippers, wire nuts, etc.), then I'm pretty sure that I can handle it, though. I've run Romex and replaced switches and outlets before without issue.

My now husband and I returned from our honeymoon last night after about 15 hours of travel. We are riding that tired glow of post vacation bliss having had a phenomenal trip. His brother, J, picks us up from the airport.
J offered to fly to our state, stay at our home and pet sit our dog while we were on vacation. This made us so happy! J and my MIL still live together in a different state and have a toxic, codependent relationship that is destroying both of them and deeply painful for my husband. At the age of 24, J had never held a job, plays video games all day, has no in-person friends, does not exercise, and gets an allowance. J has also struggled with depression. My MIL cooks every meal for him, cleans everything, and pays his allowance just for existing in her home. She relies on him entirely for emotional support following the divorce.
So when J offered to help us and be apart from MIL, we thought this was a huge step towards independence. We paid him handsomely, excited since this would literally be his first ever job.
While on our honeymoon, J reached out and asked us where the bandaids are. It turns out he got a small cut on his hand from our fence. We got the message too late, and by then he had asked MIL where the bandaids are. She would have no idea where these are...At the first hint of being needed, she buys a ticket and comes to stay at our house and texts us AFTER, not asking for permission but telling us she will be at our house. I have no bed made for her, no clean towels, nothing.
She gets to the house, and immediately decides to walk our 90 pounds, 2 year old dog. My MIL is also around 90 pounds and the age of 65. J tells her he pulls and that she shouldnt take him. J should have taken him since 1. J is close to 270 pounds and 2. We had specifically tasked him with caring for the dog. And 3. Because we had been with J to show him how to walk the dog. We told J, be careful with our dog around her when she informed us she would come. She steps out the door, our dog sees a rabbit in our yard, and CRACK, broken collar bone.
J spills the news of all this as we drive back from our honeymoon. I am ashamed that our dog isnt well trained. I know this reflects on us. But I am also enraged that she was here in the first place.

this honestly is like the hardest thing i had to deal with. i (18F) was dealing with this guy. (19M) We lived miles apart, i was okay with long distance. I was a virgin when I met him, he knew this. I sent him money in the beginning of our relationship & in October-November anytime i insisted on anything that was bothering me I would get ghosted. We didn’t get really serious (in my mind we were serious, silly me) until about December when I flew to go see him. Everything was all good in december. When i flew to see him it was the most consistent I had ever seen him, i even had to beg him to make time for me (please don’t make fun of me.) & i know that i was foolish; i told him that if this was casual sex, I was okay with it. I was fine with it, he insisted he wanted a relationship. & would ghost me for about 2-3 days because he was dealing with “things.” Trip is fine, it’s all good & as soon as i’m on my way back to Ohio, i just completely freaked out because I knew inside of my gut, that this was the end & that he was just going to disappear, he broke it off & he did just that. Then in january/february he hit me up implying he misses me, then we began talking, then he ghosted me again after i talked to him about things that were bugging me & he broke up with me also because of my instagram pictures, how i never sent him any pictures. But when i did send him pictures, he would ghost me and wouldn’t even compliment me, or critique my photos & my angles. I became very insecure, i didn’t know what i did wrong. Then he blocked my number because he said i was blowing his phone up while he was at an interview; i just sent him two-four messages & then i hit him up a month later asking him why he blocked me, then he told me we would be a fire couple now, i was confused. I told him can we just be friends because we never work & he’s inconsistent. He insisted he would be consistent & he just wasn’t. Never made time for me, would always post on instagram & never message me back, would never call me neither. We got into it & i caught him in a lie about blocking me, he said it wouldn’t matter because I would’ve reached out anyway, i was just hurt at this point. March & april rolls around and i had a guy friend of mines give me an ultimatum that i had to stop dealing with him, or our friendship was broken off. I didn’t break it off with the guy i was seeing, but i just lied and said I would let it go. I didn’t talk to anyone about it. In may, i finally broke it off, i was pouring my heart out & he was just one wording me & showing all of my messages to his homeboys and told me that I was unattractive & that that pushed him away. Did i get lead on?

Hey, sorry if this is a stupid question but I’m on a few group chats for uni & people seem to be getting freshers tickets now as apparently they all sell out. I have my grades and the tickets are refundable so that’s not a problem but it seems rather far in advance but just wondering if this is normal? I feel kinda pressured into getting them now but I also don’t know who I want to go with in freshers week yet as I obviously haven’t met anyone apart from messaging the group chat people.
Basically can someone explain how freshers week works cause I’m confused here!
Thank you

I was having this conversation with this lady and it was going all good and everything, but in the middle of the conversation I asked her "do you live in a house or an apartment" because she mentioned she had a lot of DIY projects
And then she goes "That is a weird question, in a house of course"
The reason I sought to ask is cause she was buying a power drill(yes Ikea sells drills, no they're not a 3rd party brand, they're in house), but this was part of an already going conversation, I try to be friendly and sociable to my customers, I don't try to be the stereotypical serious minded and anti-social customer service associate, plus working for Ikea part of the expectations placed on us are to show a sense of welcoming to our customers anyways, if I come to lethargic and uninterested in my customers then that gets used against me
Anyway, she makes it about gender and goes "would you have asked the same question if it was a guy?"
And I go "Uhh, yes, but what does gender have to do with your housing situation?"
I kinda almost lost my shit lmao, but I really didn't care for the most part, that's as long as she doesn't use the question against me and report it to the higher ups
Too many people have so much free time on their hands lmao I swear
We had a customer play the race card too, but that was awhile back tbh, if I recall she was doing something wrong with a click n collect order, click n collect is where we encounter a lot of rude customers as well.
Keep in mind this was an already-rolling conversation, it wasn't just a question that came up out of nothing.

So being apart of the overnight squad got a couple of months now, tonight was the first night I legitimately hated it to the point I wanted to walk out, so management decided to let the produce TL take his vacation, (produce had a full crew of 3 people at all times) at the time, leads to today 2 out of 3 quit third went on lunch and never came back, to make matters worse the minor that they hired didn't know how to do shit because the three didn't train him. So when the tl comes back from his vacation he'll be like wtf happened lol.
To edit they hadn't hired anyone to replace the three that they lost and to add that I came from produce to overnights for more $$$ and that department went to complete shit after we'd left produce for overnights, were talking rotation on hands cvping, culling, worst one of it all was a shelf was a whole shelf of raspberries and strawberries full of mold 🤮

My now husband and I returned from our honeymoon last night after about 15 hours of travel. We are riding that tired glow of post vacation bliss having had a phenomenal trip. His brother, J, picks us up from the airport.
J offered to fly to our state, stay at our home and pet sit our dog while we were on vacation. This made us so happy! J and my MIL still live together in a different state and have a toxic, codependent relationship that is destroying both of them and deeply painful for my husband. At the age of 24, J had never held a job, plays video games all day, has no in-person friends, does not exercise, and gets an allowance. J has also struggled with depression. My MIL cooks every meal for him, cleans everything, and pays his allowance just for existing in her home. She relies on him entirely for emotional support following the divorce.
So when J offered to help us and be apart from MIL, we thought this was a huge step towards independence. We paid him handsomely, excited since this would literally be his first ever job.
While on our honeymoon, J reached out and asked us where the bandaids are. It turns out he got a small cut on his hand from our fence. We got the message too late, and by then he had asked MIL where the bandaids are. She would have no idea where these are...At the first hint of being needed, she buys a ticket and comes to stay at our house and texts us AFTER, not asking for permission but telling us she will be at our house. I have no bed made for her, no clean towels, nothing.
She gets to the house, and immediately decides to walk our 90 pounds, 2 year old dog. My MIL is also around 90 pounds and the age of 65. J tells her he pulls and that she shouldnt take him. J should have held him since 1. J is close to 270 pounds and 2. We had specifically tasked him with caring for the dog. And 3. Because we had been with J to show him how to walk the dog. We told J, be careful with our dog around her when she informed us she would come. She steps out the door, our dog sees a rabbit in our yard, and CRACK, broken collar bone.
J spills the news of all this as we drive back from our honeymoon. I am ashamed that our dog isnt well trained. I know this reflects on us. But I am also enraged that she was here in the first place.

TL;DR: A year after infidelity, my wife’s alters retaliated against our vow renewal and my mistakes via a sexting spree that retraumatized us both.
WHEN THERE WAS HOPE
Fast forward a year since the two affairs. Despite ongoing issues, AP1 displacing me as uncle substitute gave True Wife vital epiphanies: everything that she finds attractive and attributed to my uncle belongs to me (e.g., scholarly poetic nerd in a library), and I was always her true dreamboat, projected onto the pedo worshipped by her idol (my grandmother)! The uncle-specific shit is strictly trauma. She actually Loves me MORE as I shed the mimicry and become authentic! We felt thrilled to know AP1 wasn’t a destructive vandal—he was a liberator from childhood lies. Her sex alters went dormant. True Wife was eager to rediscover Her Husband directly, sans any uncle mix.
During Our Anniversary (mid-April), True Wife was a trembling ball of remorse and begged for an impromptu vow renewal. Her turn was a meltdown of impassioned apologies and fervent promises to never forsake Our Love again. She convinced me of her redemption. Hope was rebuilt.
After this, I concentrated on processing my grandmother trauma, as she was driving me nuts and preventing us from properly processing the betrayals, kicking out AP1, etc. Grieving Narc abuse left me vulnerable and I took the opportunity to get in touch with emotion, other pains, etc. True Wife offered to join, as most issues are intertwined. We wrote in trauma subs and began drafting our posts on AP1. True Wife rejected new online dudes too. We seemed en route to healing. One problem: we didn’t have sex.
CRASH AND BURN
Avoiding sex was incredibly stupid. I didn’t realize that WW’s alters, though dormant, still felt owned by uncle because I never reclaimed her. AP1 reset WW’s sexuality like a factory restore. The beautiful new things needed reinstallation before it was safe for WW to face her rape trauma. My failure to do that made alters restless and our reconciliation was seen as a challenge to the fortified abuse programming. Worst time for WW to post in a rape support sub.
In minutes the creeps descended, and a mere 38 days after vowing never to betray me again, WW met a pedophile whose recounting of toddler rapes woke the sex alters. WW was in denial about any risk and texted me: “Affairs revealed truth about my alters and abuse. This man is helping me too. I am gaining awareness about my programming as I tell him what happened to me and understanding your uncle’s mentality, why he hurt us. I shall make sure this does not get too personal. It is not a real affair. I am just researching.”
My heart was pounding but I tried to trust that she will stay within (barely tolerable) boundaries. NOPE. As the explicit abuse texts veered into BDSM, her alter started pleading the pedo to describe what HE would do to HER as a little girl. He whet her appetite with an explicit fantasy before ghosting. WW was left unfulfilled in the sudden need to feel used. Though still ‘herself’ she appeared on autopilot.
WW ran for relief to a BDSM Redditor previously identified as a sanity risk. She sighed: “I am a crazy masochist! I hope he doesn’t respond!” When he did, she was scared shitless and obligated to engage. The sadist proceeded to demolish WW’s barriers via manipulative language and commanded her to write old tortures until they plunged her into slave mentality. The moment WW called him “Master”, it was over for me.
I stepped back to observe the trainwreck, feeling no sympathy. WW invited the new exploitation and made a conscious choice to immerse as if AP1 taught her nothing. I was dejectedly amused listening to the circus: “This is research, I learn my mind by interacting with men—OMG I DON’T KNOW HOW MUCH LONGER I CAN SURVIVE THIS FILTH! I WANT ONLY YOU! Oh, another client needs my trauma for pleasure! Got to go!”
I felt too drained to realize that this was stirring my trauma. Another oversight.
THE RIDE THROUGH HELL
From May 27-28th, 2023, her alter was a snowball down Mt. Everest, sucking me into old hell. A tsunami of sickos verbally plundered WW while she did explicit photoshoots right next to me in bed. Against all expectation, these e-rapes catapulted me back to boyhood: helpless to intervene, and too horrified to close my eyes. I knew what would happen once their words bit in and trauma started bleeding. Despite that, my body was physically paralyzed, only able to watch sharks rip apart the one I Love, over and over. Taking the phone didn’t cross my mind, nor did anything else besides memories of BDSM acts. I was braced, stunned, and in AFib agony till my exhausted WW passed out. Eerily, I lost the ability to make sound (any speech, sobs, grunts). It was the most oppressive nightmare in years.
As if forced memory lane wasn’t enough, this possessed wife also became my grandmother. She would look at my tears and CACKLE—same sadistic cackle the did narc as she drove me to breakdowns. As soon as my subconscious linked my wife to that bitch, I was screwed. My narc’s trauma program dictates that I must oblige whatever she wants; this includes watching her affair unfold (as a teen, I was my grandmother’s phone sex assistant). If one regular betrayal is akin to child abuse, what do you call serial infidelity that forces the betrayed to relive ACTUAL childhood abuses!?
As the ultimate insult, WW then spent 12 HOURS building an AP1esque EA with a Redditor. By the end of it the alter was talking about him as a potential boyfriend. In her deluded head, the sexting they arranged for nightfall was going to cure the rest through ultimate satisfaction plus bring True Wife back to Our Love, as this guy makes her finally feel that she is “with you instead of your uncle.”
I WAS RIGHT NEXT TO HER!!!!!! WHY THE FUCK WOULD SHE NEED A SUBSTITUTE ME IF SHE WANTS ACTUAL ME!? WHAT THE HELL!? Excuse me as I short-circuit.
INSANITY SLAMS TO A HALT
That afternoon, my wife finally jolted out of the binge-fucking. How? She noticed my distress, 5 days too late. I watched her first comprehend this is hurting me, then struggle to reset consciousness, then remember that Love exists. Out of nowhere she stopped and scolded the ‘client’ viciously, projecting Self-hate onto him. That helped her regain footing.
My jittery wife proceeded to freak about the disseminated pussy photos and spiralled into a suicidal state over betraying me again. She refused to look me in the eye, cancelled every sexting appointment, shut off DMs and spent a lot of time begging Divinity for forgiveness and help. Afterwards, she collapsed into defeated grief from which she is yet to recover. I think we talked once. She apologized profoundly but it’s a blur.
Continued in part 3.

Hi all, I recently posted here looking for helmet suggestions and I've decided on the Zamp RZ-59. Unfortunately I can't find any sort of reviews so I was wondering if anyone had any experience with that model or any other zamp helmets, specifically with how well they cope with the visor steaming up

New to reddit and this subreddit, forgive any novice info or amateur formatting.
PC Specs: GeForce RTX 2080ti i7 CPU MSI Motherboard 32GB RAM 750W PSU 2TB SSD 2TB HDD Corsair Crystal Series Case Corsair CPU Cooling
On boot, my monitor will respond by turning on to its default black screen, no display. My GPU will power up normally, before after a few seconds its fans ramp up to max RPMs, the LED on the side going blank.
I went to troubleshoot my GPU in another tower after working on my own for hours, where in which it worked. My friend could boot with my GPU fine. So we then throw my GPU back in my tower where my PC boots just fine.
I come back to my apartment, and the issue returns.

I am awaiting my official ASD diagnosis but I know what’s coming. I’ve known for a while and avoided getting tested because it brings up so many uncomfortable emotions. Mostly, anger and sadness. I am reeling from how it’s possible that it’s taken 40 years for someone to recognize my ASD traits. Life has been so hard for me, so painful and difficult to navigate, and I’m sad and angry that I’ve been in so many therapists offices - even as a child - and nobody, not one person, remotely picked up on it. It took my partner who has been raising neurodivergent children to gently start bringing it up with me.
At first, I was so offended that I pushed back on her suggestions hard. Without any previous knowledge or learning of ASDs, it felt like she was saying I was defective. Now, I realize that many of the people I connect with most and like the most are on the spectrum. They (we) are beautiful humans.
ASD explains so much about my history, my patterns of immense struggles in traditional school and work/cubicle environments. My difficulty in building and maintain friendships. My crushing discomfort and stress in busy, loud, crowded places. My isolated behaviors. My social anxiety. My emotional outbursts that I know are irrational but can’t seem to stop during stress. My incessant daydreaming and how off balance I feel when I can’t have my time to daydream in private. My anxiety and panic during times of change/transition. My rewatching the same movies for comfort rather than watching new ones. My obsessive researching. My stimming. My difficulty with and having to teach myself how to offer and receive physical touch in relationships. The list goes on.
I have beaten myself up since I can remember for “what’s wrong with me.” I have internalized all of it, going from therapist to therapist, picking apart every small and big trauma, thinking I could just fix the way I seem to be wired with enough hard work. I’ve learned really good skills along the way and have somehow managed to mask enough to be extremely successful professionally, but I’ve clawed my way here on my hands and knees.
I’m so tired. Chronically tired. I don’t know how to process that a formal diagnosis is probably coming soon - one that doesn’t have a “fix.” What’s kept me going all these years is believing that with enough work and healing, my struggles in this world would get better. I don’t know where to turn for community and support for all of this except here.
Are there some good books, podcasts, or other resources for adults on the autism spectrum you would recommend? I need some hope and connection.

I ran into this problem the other day in the apartment I'm living at and I'm still shaken up about it. Essentially I was 1-2 min late collecting my laundry and someone decided to remove all of my stuff from the dryer and put it on the counter (where everyone sets their dirty bags and detergent powders). I got really upset and ended up re-washing all of my stuff again, but I wanted to know if anyone else has had an experience like this. I'm just very possessive of my stuff and I really don't like it when people touch it without even asking.
I understand people have their reasonings for removing people's laundry (which is a whole other discussion), but I'm more interested in if anyone else has anxiety/stress when it comes to sharing that environment. For me, it's just frustrating that in that environment it's considered socially okay to touch someone's personal property as I don't feel safe taking my clothes there but I don't really have any other options.