Papa murphy's little falls mn

(Hey everyone! Finally out of the shadow realm! Im reposting chapter five here, 6 is still percolating away in my head, but in the mean time, enjoy! Comments are appreciated!)
4-LOM rolled up to the holotable, the aging shipbuilder looking over the various fleet and division commanders.
4-LOM was an old Mk1 astro robot, his main body was a sphere, with four mechanical arms extending from his body, two large and bulky, and the other two smaller, more nimble and accurate, more dexterous, with a cylindrical lower body leading down to his treads, which were angular, tank like in shape, designed for heavy lifting. His head was flat, with a duo of square optics, a set of welding shields flipped up, ready to flip down when and where needed. His backpack was open, with tools sticking out, ready to be grabbed and used.
Looking around, he noted that the Saurians had their Admiral, a middle age Rox, their massive, tyrannasauric form still managing to tower over most of the others, even in holo, while Serano stood next to him. Nearby, Hota sat, nursing a coffee, rubbing his head, while one of the chief science officers hologram glanced at him nervously.
Another door entered, and a Mk12 frame entered, standing at the table. At first glance, the frame looked pristine, but 4-LOM wasn't fooled. He wasn't a shipwright for nothing, and he could see the pitting under the paint where plasma weaponry had uselessly splashed off, taking with it little layers of metal with it. Despite how new the frame looked, it was clear it had seen some action, recently as well, judging by the fresh coat of paint.
More holograms of fleet officials, and the bridges, or representations of their ships, flickered in above their shoulders. Serano looked like he had an old sailing ship floated there idly, a representation of the Enterprise. Some had wasps, while one captain had a cartoonish Barbus fish, with an old style white sailors cap and a belt of dynamite.
And then a small black hole flickered into view in front of his faceplate, making him roll back with a start. Getting a good look at the now pulsing black hole, he seemed to frown, one of his welding shields rising higher to simulate a eyebrow raise….. "Horizon? Is that you, little lass?" He said, with a thick, Scottish accent as his other shield rose up to join the other in shock.
The holographic black hole bobbed up and down in the air, two arms extending out from its corona and spun, as if to represent it, no, her, spinning in happiness. For a moment, 4-LOM was silent, before he began laughing, reaching up, even as his servo passed through the holo. "Ach, what I wouldn't give ta be in the Link with ye, lassie! I'm glad ye survived." He said, as the little ever hungry representation of the ship spun around him, before it shot off, floating near the Mk12, who looked at it.
The 12s head tilted more, as it listening to what the ship was saying, while 4-LOM felt a bit of possessiveness flair. Horizon was one of HIS creations, his and his wife's. Their ships were like children for them. Rolling over, he mentally began preparing a bit of what his wife would call the shovel talk, something they used to do with Captains that took on their vessels……
"Did you need something, Grandfather?" The machine said, domed head snapping to his, taking the wind out of his sails, and stare blankly at the taller, thinner machine.
Behind him, he heard Serano chuckle behind him, even as the Rox raised an eyeridge, while the Saline sat his mug down and placed his head in his hands.
"Grandfather- oh. I see…." He said, gaze turning flat as he gave a glare at Horizon. "I see the little gremlin is still able to make me short a fuse or two. Void knows Maria's hair turned white before she had to move bodies due to someone's antics." The little black hole pulsed sharply, as if squawking. "Would have appreciated a warning she made herself a captain…. Lassie, ye best be teaching him self preservation instincts." Catching the snort from the Rox and the sigh from Serano.
Slowly, his head turned around to face the two, one shield twitching, and finally saw Hota looking up with a flat look. "Too late on that one. I'll pass you the after action report later, AFTER the meeting." Serano said, hiding a smile. "If you want a first hand account, ask Hota. From what I understand, he had a front row seat for the Chaos the two caused."
She wasn't a little ship anymore, she wasnt- ah kriff it all. She was still his little lass. He'll talk with her later…preferably with Maria there…..after he grabbed his wrench and had a….. talk….. with whoever was their crew.
/------------------/
All the admirals and fleet commanders were soon in place, Asimov standing to the side, near the Admiral Serano, Horizons representation floating next to his head as his own panned about, looking at the assembled species. Several robotic ones, not Astro Robot series, called Glinch, looked at him curiously, while he picked out several different….Saurians, a few Roxes, several Trikes.
Several were pale, white skinned humans, bald, be they male or female. Clones, like himself, but with organic bodies, accompanied by nat-born humans, and several more advanced Astro Robot series units, these ones looking everything from near human, to large and bulky, armed with cannons, inbuilt missile launchers on their upper arms, and massive treads, or slimmer, almost skeletal ones with modules that could be swapped out at a moments notice.
"I appreciate ye all for coming on such short notice" 4-LOMs voice said, cutting over the gentle hubbub of the side conversations. "I had hoped that we wouldn't be facing them again, but here we are." The robot said as one of his smaller limbs tapes a command into the console, pulling up images of Everwatch stations current…condition. "Those of yeh from Federation space are more familar of the old stories, battle videos and the like. The Demons, as the Human Federation calls them, have been returned. It's only thanks to the work of Representative Hota that we have this information….. and had stumbled across an old Ace that had woken back up in time for this chaos." 4-LOM said, nodding to the Saline, getting the attention of his compatriots, who he shook his head to.
"Our opponents are equipped with biotech vessels, and are known for appropriating technology to forcibly integrate it with their own. Which means keep an eye out for a worse hodgepodge of weapons than a pirate vessel after its crew hits a pound of Spice and then gets drunk at a star port." 4-LOM said dryly, as various, old, images of the vessels and a few of the newer ones. "That being said, expect the sheer firepower jammed onto each of these ships to be on the higherside. However, they need long recharge periods, likely due to whatever power source used overloading, or the capacitor banks running dry and needing to recharge. Don't be fooled, they do have some form of biological armament, acid spitters, spike launchers, the works." He said, as images flicked up organic turrets, tentacles, and what looked like maws.
"As of right now, several of our larger vessels are being inspected and repaired, resupplied, and upgraded as needed. Several older vessels are being pulled out of mothball for the same reason. All civilian vessels are being drafted for emergency roles, receiving refit with hardware that will allow them to fight in a pinch, though their primary objective will be escorting transport ships and acting as emergency evacuation ships. We won't be expecting them to fight, but we need every ship we can get."
An image flickered into view of what amounted to the humans old museum of warships and deep space vessels, revealing it to be a hive of activity. Many other races had laughed at humanity for keeping their old vessels, rather than scrapping them, but now, now there was a reason why humanity had.
"Patrol fleets are to be at least one Saline Sensor ship, two to three Buckler class Trike Shield Bearers, one Rox Artillery ship, one Vohle capable human vessel, Two human PT ships, and three Raptor Swift claws." 4-LOM said, "these things aren't to be taken lightly. Sensors pick them up, call it in and engage. Stall for time if needed for reinforcements to arrive. Intercept fleets are to consist of five Trike Aegis class Shield Bearers, six Swift claws, one Rox supercarrier, three Rox artillery ships, two Saline Auxiliary ships, one Saline Medical cruiser, one Human Vohle Super-carrier, eight human PT ships, two Human Iowa class destroyers." The elderly bot belted out, making several Captains and admirals wince. Those weren't lightweight ships. The 'patrol' fleet could have been considered a planetary invasion force.
Before anyone could make any arguments or questions as to why the fleets were set to the Human classic of 'Maximum Overkill', and before any more ridiculous fleet deployments could be called out, a slightly panicking human sprinted into the room. "Sir! Confirmed hostile assault on Tisan-4" the human said, breathing heavily. "The Demons made planet fall, looks like a small invasion force that had left before the incursion field went up."
4-LOM stared….and then sighed. "Well, Caliburn had been itching for a fight." He sighed and placed a servo over his optics.
/-----------------------------------/
WARNING: Hostiles detected. Match confirmed; species D-65.
Threat level:Apollyon. Combat systems:unlocked.
That was what appeared on the Colony Managers terminal as alarms screamed across the Colony, alerts screaming on PADDs, sirens spinning as bunkers opened up.
An aging Wargen bared his teeth as he rapidly tapped at his terminal, as the younger human clone stood grimly at her manager's terminal.
"Civilians are filling out the bunkers, tunneling charges are set and ready to clear escape routes." The elderly, wolf like Wargen said, his muzzle splitting into four as he spoke, one part vertical, the other horizontally. "Colonial militia are manning hard points and connecting to systems now."
"Understood." The Colony manager said and let out a long breath, before opening the PA system. "All hands, brace for Activation procedure. I repeat, all hands, brace for activation procedure." She said, before securing herself in on one of the chairs, even as the commander buckled himself in across from her, even as terminals all around them flickered and the building shuddered and shook, new lights came online all over.
"And the other races call our alliance insane for building the bunkers" The Wargen muttered under his breath as the command room became a flurry of activity, sensor teams working together in an attempt to get data on their opponents. "Our people are safe. That's what matters, commander." The clone said softly, looking at her long time friend, even as the hidden defense system of the Colony woke up.
/------------/
Outside, the demonic army approached, on a slow, steady March, disgruntled at the lack of organics they had found to use. They needed biomass to fuel their war machine, to create their bases, their armies, their ships. And while they didn't care much about the sheer number of ships they lost during planet fall thanks to the orbital defenses, they needed to deal with the local defense computers. There had to be a way to broadcast an all clear signal and allow their other ships past.
Before them sat a large, fortified structure, looked like a massive cathedral, really. The irony was not lost on them as ports on the castle-like structure opened up, and began spitting metallic shells at them, exploding after punching through their infantry, leaving craters behind, destroying more of their forces.
The ground shook as their massive siege beast began forming from the splattered biomass, like some strange, oozing horror, slowly forming into a quadropodic creature.
The beast was mostly just a giant mouth in legs, with a long, worm like body lined with eyes, teeth, spikes, and tendrils, flinging said teeth at the structure.
Warlord Gistle ground his teeth as he stared at the cathedral as it held its own, his forces decimated by the attempted rain of metal. Said rain changed to one of scalding plasma as the castle changed tactics to try and burn the bodies to prevent them from forming additional, stronger units.
"Battle lord." Hissed one of the smaller battle chiefs said, as they stepped up next to Gistle. "The Seekers have not located where the miserable Frails have hidden themselves. Our efforts would be best put to entering the fortress ahead." The chief said, pointing at the massive fortress as the siege beast brushed off the weapons fire.
"No need, we will be inside soon en-" Came the guttural voice of the Warlord, before it was interrupted by a computerized voice, echoing out.
"THREAT ASSESSED. ASSUMING COMBAT MODE."
There was a rumble, everyone grabbing onto the stablest thing around them as the ground tore apart, the siege beast stumbling back, as the building tore up its own foundations as steam hissed out, and part of the building lifted up, and then slammed into the ground, and then the other side, slowly pulling itself up….and up…and up……
The structure wasn't a structure. Not any more. Towering over them, looking like a massive hunchback stood the cathedral, it's towers opening, revealing to be cowling around massive artillery cannons. It's arms, once covered with flat pillars, opened up to reveal a set rotating barrels, slowly spinning up, and a bulky duo of MAC batteries on the other arm. Sticking off the side of its upper arms were smaller hardpoints, each turret armed with four barrels, small and accurate, sniping ground units with horrifying accuracy, the soft metal shells ripping away to reveal their incendiary cargo held within steel mesh, allowing the coilguns to spit them out rapidly.
The head section looked like a sphere with three optics in a triangular formation, around a cannon that locked onto the siegebeast and whined, arcing brightly, before it fired, a bright flash seen as the cannon went off, it's round leaving behind a trail of fire as it raced through the air, punching through the beast, making it howl, and began trying to heal the injury that pierced it, ripping open a hole below it.
It's bipedal legs were thick, armored, and just as equally armed, it's lower legs armed with rotary cannons that spun, the lower pair foring a heavy stream of plasma, one barrel firing and then cooling as it spun, the others keeping the pace up, while above them, physical artillery was spat out, helping pierce armor for the plasma to scorch and burn to uselessness. More cannons sat on the sides and back of its legs in, taking aim at the surrounding armies, making sure to add on their screeches of rage.
Hanging off the underside of the platform that held the Cathederal sat more turrets, each swiveling around and adding to the chaos, their mini MAC armament chattering as they fired, picked a new target and fired again. On the top of the platform were AA cannons, taking aim and firing into the air, altering the timing of their rounds so that they acted as impromptu artillery, while more cannons, on four turrets, covered the monstrosities back, preventing them from sneaking up behind it, as if the cannons on the back of its legs weren't enough to cover it.
"TARGET ACQUIRED."
Warlord Gistle hissed in shock. The Frails had been LIVING in a Siege beast of their own!? Hidden partially underground, deceiving them to make it seem as if it was nothing more than a fortification!?
"Have all expendable units merge with our Siege beast, NOW! if the frails continue to pick our forces off one by one, they will never be able to reinforce our beast after they fall!" Gistle roared, even as around him the battle chiefs barked out the orders……..
/-------------/
The massive machine stared down at the hostile forces as they turned into a thick, biological slurry, short of the Demons themselves, and oozed towards the horror before it.
The monster seemed to absorb the substance on contact, growing larger and larger with each passing moment, howling and hissing.
He could feel his crew cursing in their heads, humans and otherwise, lighting the slurry up with plasmafire, burning some of it, but not enough. Caliburn agreed with them, as his Plasma getting cannon spun up, the five barrels glowing brightly, the heatsinks by the ends of the barrel glowing as the machine poured plasmafire from the barrels, searing into the beasts body, burning it up as it grew, stunting its growth heavily, and forcing it to consume more biomass to make heavy, chitenous armor, layers burning away under the assault.
Caliburn could feel the dust coming off as his gears spun, and he stepped forward, swinging the glowing arm as it cooled down, making the horror screech as he spun his upper body to add to the force of the blow, digging the glowing heating into the beast's face and knocking it back, buying time for his crew to deal with the horrific slurry around them, which still tried to fuse with the horror, chasing after it with a single minded determination.
As his upper body slowed down and he was facing forward again, he saw the beast setting up, snarling. His other arm came up, and he could feel his capacitors burning as he began firing his MAC arm at it, the massive, vehicle sized slugs punching into the beast, knocking it back farther, punching holes in the chitin it tried to grow as armor, making it hiss and move rapidly, trying to put distance between itself and the machine.
Unfortunately, the beast had the advantage in land speed, as it had four legs, while Caliburn only had two and lumbered slowly forward, his aging systems relishing the taste of combat after so long. And now he had far better weapons then a simple crane arm, like he had last time he fought a creature like this.
Because the beast had put distance between itself and him, it managed to absorb the last of the biomass, and began bounding forward, it's maw open, teeth spinning like some sort of Cuisinart….
A target he couldn't miss. His head cannon barked again, not as powerful as last time, but this time, he wasn't trying to rip it apart from the inside. The shell detonated on contact with the teeth, shredding them, tearing into the soft flesh within, making the beast howl and close its maw, it's chitin armor weathering the plasma splashing off, hardened to withstand the smaller weapons fire his crew spat at the creature.
His arms pulled their shrouding back around them, as he drew back and swung, hard, again using his body spinning to his advantage, striking the beast, the heavy weight of the heatsink and the weapon itself burying the shroud covered arm inside, the end opening up. Unfortunately, thanks to the partial shrouding, he wouldn't be able to spin his cannon, but all he needed was one shot inside it, and let it fly, ripping his arm out as it howled, smoke billowing from its new hole it tried rapidly to heal.
The tendrils it had tried to dig into his arm burned away as he kicked it up from below and began unloading both arms, fully unshrouded, the heat coming off both of them making steam hiss up into the air, as the beast took a heavy slug and then a plasma bolt, one after the other, deep into its stomach, sending it onto its back.
Loud popping sounds were heard as its limbs reoriented, allowing its former belly to become its back, the holes sealing slowly as it circled the walking cathedral, even as Caliburn scanned it, his upper body following its every movement. His command crew were breaking down every schematic and scan he gave them, working hard to figure out a way to kill the horror.
In the mean time, Caliburn and his crews would do their damndest to stall the beast and continue on their current plan. Burn it down, slowly.
He could feel his crews tracking the retreating demon forces, listening to the mental chatter within him as the artillery crews happily worked together to figure out their path, searching for the enemy command position, even as sensor crews watched as the rapidly approaching flood of biomass and machinery charged for them, some of the artillery crews already letting loose N-4 shells, the 'super-napalm', as the crews nicknamed them, impacting and exploding, burning into the biomass, unquenchable, even as the biomass attempted and failed to smother the burning substance, only serving to make it worse, melting the weaponry it carried with it.
The only reason why the crews could get away with it was because the biomass wasn't near the Bunkers exits or near infrastructure. Or Burnable items.
Command soon had a viable target, a sort of brain mass it had, separated throughout its body in a vain attempt to make sure it could still operate when a few of them were destroyed.
Several had been burned away by the plasma bolt going off inside of it, but many more remained, and it was attempting to make more/replace the burned away ones. They needed to eliminate the command signal….
Jubilation and grim satisfaction bloomed in his sensor and artillery crews, as he felt the mad scramble for bunker busting shells, before they were let loose into the air. Even as he blocked a tail strike from the beast and managed to crush its head under one foot, letting his landing engines ignite for the first time in decades to burn the creature more, his crews targeted the command bunker, shelling it with deadly accuracy, smoke rising from the hill they were tucked away behind in the distance, making Caliburn burn with satisfaction and praise for his crew.
/---------------------/
Gistle ran as fast as his hooves could move him, teeth barred as he snarled.
Around him, their command temple shook and shuddered, veins bursting, cables arcing wildly as the biomass contracted involuntarily or simply sagged, turning to biomass.
"Warlord, they are heavily shelling our position, we won't be able to retreat at this rate!" Hissed one of the Battle Chiefs at his side, hissing in fear, even as he snarled at the Pitiful, compared to him, creature. "We won't be taking everyone, only the essentials. The Everlasting King must be notified of this development. King be damned, the frails took the time to prepare for our arrival again." He growled as he came out to a hanger area, and ran into a small, fast ship, even as the others ran into larger, bulkier, slower ships.
Soon, the chitin that served as the door opened, and they shot out, erratically flying, trying to avoid the artillery shells, and now AA fire joining the fray.
He kept close to his compatriots, using them as a living shield as he twisted the small vessel around, smirking as he dodged the fire while they took it..
They were almost to space, soon, they could tear a Gate and get the fleet-
Reality tore open above him as a massive ring shaped vessel pushed itself into real space, disgorging hundreds of smaller vessels, bearing down on their positions, others engaging the floating fleet around them with aggressive assault runs, the sudden appearance in the system allowing them to have the element of surprise.
Weapons fire began filling the space around f them, tearing at their vessels faster then they could repair them as little, frail vessels zipped in and out of line of fire faster then they could shoot, track, or react, unloading slugs, plasma, torpedoes in a flurry of activity before diving away, allowing their munitions to wreak havoc amongst them.
Already, the larger vessels were disabled before Gistle managed to sacrifice one, smirking as it warped, it's biomass fueling the Gate, as he flew through, hoping he was in friendlier territories, unaware of a sensor torpedo flying in behind him.
/------------------------/
Down below, on the surface, Caliburn flung back his opponent again, arms blazing as he shelled it.
It was bigger then it had been, managing to absorb the biomass from the surviving landing ships and the remains of the command center they shelled out. It's armor was thicker, and was flinging out dozens, hundreds of calcium spikes, spitting its unknown energy weapons, only to splash off his shields, for the energy weapons, and his ar.or foe the calcium spikes, even as his weapons screeched.
The beast had holes all over its chitenous armor, from his shells punching in, or his artillery crews shelling the beast, his plasma following close behind as he sought to burn the creature out from the inside, going so far as to ram his plasma cannon inside and unload it, the rotating barrels helping tear it up from the inside as the heat sinks burned it.
Ships began dropping down from above, doing strafing runs, dropping smaller caliber explosives, distracting the beast as he tore another hole in it by spinning his upper body, one shrouded cannon arm striking the beast and ripping in, just as a gunship fired a Cleaner into it, just before it healed.
A burning flash of light, a horrific scream from the beast as it howled, body jerking as the explosive did its job…. Before it swung down, still alive, though just barely, it's armor shattering rather then buckling on the next strike from Caliburn, a facsimile of a uppercut, before the barrels let loose again, even as the plasma cannon dumped bolt after bolt into its lower body, searching for, burning the neural clusters as he found them.
The beast wrenched itself away from his grasp, snarling as it looked at him, the beast snarling as it tried to heal from the most recent injuries.
Caliburn felt his crew snarling back, his cannons swiveling around as they gave their response in munitions as he lumbered forward, the ground shaking from his steps and the escape ships erupting out of the ground around them, his rotary cannon screaming as it fired, the MAC on the other arm barking as he hit it again and again as it charged forward.
The beast no longer cared for its injuries, all it cared was to take the metal monster before it down, spitting acid out of it as it tried, and failed, to blind the machine, even as said machine swung its smoldering plasma cannon up and brought down the burning barrels down on its head, smashing it into the ground, pinning it there as it's crew continued shelling it out ruthlessly.
Caliburn refused to let the beast survive, he refused to let the thing get to the civilians. His crew snarled their agreement as the beast tore the pinned head off its body, even as it burned away to nothing, and tried to charge again, blindly, only to smash against the MAC arm and receive a pair of heavy slugs to the neck stump for its troubles, sending it somersaulting back, trying to reform its head.
It was much, much smaller now, now matching Caliburns size, due to all the biomass loss, it's head reforming as it snarled.
Caliburn seemed to roll his pauldrons and twitched his MAC, as if saying 'come at me'. The beast howled and charged forward, razor sharp tentacles erupting from its sides, whipping about wildly, only for turret crews to blast the tentacles off at the base, and for his artillery crews to shell it down from above, flattening it into the ground again with explosive shells.
Again, the beast began pulling itself out of the ground, only for another strafing run from aircraft , this time dropping standard napalm canisters onto the beast, making it howl as it healed around the canisters, and began burning from within.
It thrashed and writhed, tail and body whipping about, even as Caliburn kept firing, not letting up, shells puncturing the chitin bubble it was trying to form around the napalm to contain it, keeping it burning into the beasts body.
At last, the beast tried to fling itself at Caliburn, thinking that it could at least burn out the mechanical monster with it, only for Caliburn to swing and strike it, flinging it away again, the beasts body unable to get back up, and laid there, slowly burning away at last……………

Rant & long post ahead Trigger warning - Elder Abuse
A bit background - I 32F have been taking care of my mother (55F) who has kidney & heart failure & on Hemodialysis thrice a week & also a mentally ill person. No siblings or any relatives who are even bothered to even listen to our problems leave alone helping us! I lost my father in 2018 to an illness. My mother is frail , weights only 39kgs & was hospitalized atleast 18 times in last 3-4 years for both her physical & mental illness.
I have reached a simmering point when dealing with her behavioral issues. I am very patient & I love my mom dearly & I can manage her physical health conditions. But I have reached a point where I can no longer deal with her behavioral issues. My mother is docile person but I have to shout a bunch of times to get her to wake up , then make her brush teeth, then go to toilet. Each of these steps requires me to shout & drag her....she is very messy & lacks hygiene & we only manage to make her take bath on alternate days. Throughout the day....I just have to do things for her...then shout at her to do things that I cannot do for her...like putting food in mouth etc . My mother constantly repeats the same words again & again....eg. I won't take bath today or I don't want to eat etc like a 50-100 times continuously & if I don't listen she would repeat my name untill I get irritated & threaten to punch her. Everyday I have to shout a few hundred times for basic things.
Things have escalated to such an extent that I burned her skin with a spoon I heated on stove top , hit her on the face , almost poked her eye & stomped on her feet which caused purple discoloration. I have been dealing very heavy handed with her a lot & also blacking out throughout the day due to stress. I am constantly losing things & not able to recall recent events. I have been seeing a psychiatrist since last year & have been put on three different anti-depressants/SSRI and sleep medications.
I am a calm & very Introverted person by nature , always avoided confrontations & rarely ever raised my voice but I am noticing my behavior changing a lot in last 3 years after dealing with my mother. Everytime I hurt her...I regret immediately & try to be overly affectionate to make up for my guilt.
I recently attended a relatives wedding & my aunts were literally irritated dealing with my mother for 1 day! Meanwhile my career has gone downhill & I have been barely holding on to my job.
I cannot detail the amount of PTSD I had trying to manage job , visiting mom at the hospital where she used to be hospitalized for weeks , talk to the doctors for updates & then going to office by afternoon for 10 hrs & barely surviving on biscuits for meals. All my life I have saved every penny I could, took trains/buses to travel all the time , never bought any expensive phone or a vacation since I started working. We live in a rundown house without ac or even geyser. I don't remember the last time i went to a restaurant!
Coming back...my mother just takes the abuse. She just behaves like a helpless little child. Also If I were to fall down & hurt myself in front of her....she doesn't react or show any concern.
I go through moments where I am extremely concerned about her well being & bending over backwards to make her safe & comfortable & also those moments where I am raging at her. My grandma also gets fed up & tries to occasionally slap my mother. This same grandma wouldn't even hurt tip of my mother's nail a few years back!
I am literally in tears typing this but I just wanted to rant. I have no one to share my burdens & I just wanted to confess this. I am also afraid I might do something that would injure her seriously or even kill her. I would never do such thing but there are moments where I actually imagine doing such thing & get horrified about it a moment later.
Note - I hire a stay at home maid for 3-4 months in a year but can't have them all the time does to financial reasons. Even when we had a maid...I had to step in all the time in helping them handle my mother as she is stubborn. Rest of the year it's just me with a little help from my 75yr old grandma who stays with us. I have already started therapy...I just wanted to rant here.

Good morning! So a little confused if where I live could be considered part of the NorVa/Richmond area but here I go!
Does anyone have any ideas for parks near Beaverdam, VA that could serve for a 1-2 hour wedding ceremony in the Fall? I was exploring Deep Run park (I’ve been to several family reunions there in the past) but I couldn’t find a lot of technical information for a small private event. Is it a first-come, first-serve basis where I set up and hope other park goers won’t crash the party? Guest count would be 60 or less. Thank you!

Hey all,
Been doing a lot of solo gaming and hope to change that. I play PC almost exclusively with a little bit of switch here or there but that's a ratio of 95% PC/5% Switch.
I'm not the greatest when it comes to online competitive games, but I am a hardcore casual gamer. I enjoy doing almost anything and everything cooperatively and don't mind a little competitive thrown in as long as its known whatever team I'm on, we're not gonna win (lol).
Some samples of games I play and like are but are not limited to:
- Insurgency: Sandstorm - Fall Guys - TMNT Shredder's Revenge - CoD MWII remake - Age of Empires series (love a good RTS) - Castle Crashers - Among Us - Jackbox Party Games (own all of the packs) - Anything retro via emulator and parsec - I also own a VR headset (Oculus 2) so love things like Pavlov or sports titles
WHAT I'M NOT LOOKING FOR: - To join a discord server that has 20+ people where if I were to fall off no one would really notice - To join a group that's competitive/a clan - Hang around people who do nothing but talk about getting high - A group that mostly operates on the other side of the planet. I mostly game in the evenings and on weekends and play out of Central United States.
If interested, please reach out or DM, thanks

What’s going on everyone? So basically I transferred to CSULB last year during the fall semester and was having the time of my life…for the first 2 weeks lol. Lo and behold, my national guard unit got the word that we were deploying out of the country, so I unfortunately had to get my admission deferred. Well 9 months later and I’m still hanging out here in lovely Kuwait, but I’m only a couple months out from going home, and getting ready to re-apply for the spring 2024 semester. My VA counselor told me to fill out the return from military leave form when I was ready go back to school, but the instructions seemed a little vague. School applications do t start until august so I still have some time, but I didn’t know whether to fill out the form now, or after I applied to the school again, or what. Was wondering if anyone else has been in the same boat as me? Thank you, have a great rest of your Sunday y’all

Hi there! Recently, aka the past few weeks, i’ve completely revamped my spiritual journey and basically started from square one. Mentally, i’ve been doing better than i ever have and even catch myself actively accepting and replacing negative thoughts in a way i never thought i would be able due to anxiety and depression.
I thought my manifesting could also start from square one so i decided to try and manifest something small yesterday.
A little background: currently me and my brother share a room and a bed (i have a double bed) because his room is getting renovated and his bed needed to be throw out. Now me and my brother are close so this doesn’t bother me that much but what does bother me is that this dude kicks in his sleep and moves around like he’s running a marathon. So i decided to see if i could manifest me sleeping by myself in my room for one night and have the bed to myself.
I went around doing my usual affirmations and my own manifestation techniques that i’ve seen work and i did it!
I had the entire room to myself up until about 4am when my brother came into my room because my mother came home.
I only know this because i was on the verge of falling asleep to a meditation i like and usually fall asleep to until this dude STEPPED ON ME.
But anyway i still would like to regard this as a win considering i haven’t been able to manifest a single thing for a really long time and this manifestation came within 24 hours.
I guess if anyone has any tips or advice on how to manifest a little better i would love to hear it!
Thank you for reading and have a blessed day or night 🧿

A little about me - I was a class topper till 10th, and was genuinely interested in computers, so I opted for JEE. My JEE journey didn't start off smoothly due to some reasons. In the first few months of 11th, I burnt myself out. Lost all interest in studies. My scores in tests were not bad, but I just felt like running away from JEE. Even most of my batchmates were selfish people, and the few that were okay considered me competititor first, friend next. I felt lonely all the time. I made the mistake of giving up all hobbies, all non academic things I did before 11th and only study all the time. I rejected the offer to get promoted in the star batch of my coaching, and had almost accepted that I was mediocre. Then I realised the importance of taking breaks, doing things that I love doing and knowing that the whole "16-18 hours of studying" is a big fat lie. Slowly I did regain interest in studying, and eventually I started to have fun. But who knew that the real hell was about to start.
One fine day in the middle of my 11th, I and my mother suddenly found out about my father's extramarital affair. Before this, I had lots of respect for my father, I wanted to be like him - honest and hardworking. I was even worried that I would end up to be a disappointment for him. I consider that day the end of my childhood. This was followed by fights in the house every other day, hurtful words being thrown around at each other between my parents. I was already having a hard time accepting what I had just found out about my father, and all this just broke me on the inside. Every single day. How was I supposed to focus on my studies while my family and and my life broke apart? This went on for more than a year. There were times I wanted to just end my life, just wanted to run away from my house, but I was a coward to even do that. I was scoring good in tests, but JEE wasn't even my most important target in life. I just yearned for peace and a happy family. Two days before my January attempt of JEE Mains, I remember my face was buried in my pillow, and I was weeping, at a time when I was supposed to keep myself calm and only focus on my exam. Now that I look back, I made a few mistakes too. Of letting myself get overly affected by all this. Of falling in deep spirals of overthinking. Of getting severely distracted by all this. There were countless sleepless nights, nightmares, nights when I cried badly, panic attacks and what not. I am really very glad all of it is over today. But why am I thanking you guys?
I found this sub around the time JEE dates were announced. I didn't have a Reddit account but used to occasionally visit. Many of the things you posted, be it motivational posts, AMAs, just rants, exam updates, memes, resources - I can't express how much all of it helped me survive and feel less lonely. It made me realise that I wasn't really alone in feeling horrible and terrible by this mentally exhausting preparation. That there were so many people who felt what I felt. So thank you very, very much for making me feel a little less lonely.
A big big big thank you to u/VLintheRatRace , for sharing your JEE story here. Your story opened my eyes and made me realise that no one in this world has a life with zero problems. Before reading that, I genuinely thought everyone except me were truly happy in life, without any problems or hardships or struggles. Now I know that problems come and go, but one is supposed to overcome them and become stronger. Thank you very much for inspiring me not to give up and work hard.
I know he can't read this, but thank you u/thewickedkarma . For telling me that JEE really isn't everything. I know you fought both of your life's wars like a warrior. You made me realise that I have many things to cry about, but far more things to be grateful for. Rest in peace, man.
And a special thank you to u/Maths___Man. I scored the same as you in first Mains (248) but had a bad score in Maths. I had almost accepted that Maths, the subject I used to love and adore, was now way out of my reach. Then I saw your 100 percentile. I wasn't jealous, but I thought to myself - If someone scoring the same as me can get 100 percentile in maths, then maybe it's not impossible for me either. And then I did it - scored 100 percentile in maths in April attempt!
I got a miraculously good rank in Mains - something I had never even dreamed of. I'm happy that all my hardwork and struggle didn't go to waste. I am glad Advanced is now over too. I hope I get a good rank in that too. In a few months I'll move out of my house for college, something I have been desperately waiting for since the last 2 years. Things are not the same at home, but at least better than the worst. As of now, I am tired of life, very very tired. I see many flaws in myself. But the last 2 years have taught me an important lesson - to not give up no matter how bad the circumstances are, irrespective of whether I succeed or not. Just work hard because something good will definitely come out of it. I have a new source of motivation now - to give my mother, World's best mother, the life filled with happiness that she deserves and doesn't have at the moment.
So long story short - Thank you very very much to all of you.

My mom and my dad have been divorced since i was three so i care if they date and i usually enjoy their partners and like hanging out with them. My parents promised me that they would never get married again and i didn’t really mind but it has always stuck with me. My mom went out on a date with this guy (lets call him carl) and my mom seems to be really happy and im glad since shes been a little lonely recently since she last broke up with her ex. she didn’t tell me she was dating this guy which i was a little annoyed with but shes an adult so its fine. Later in the day she was taking a selfie and asked if she looked good in it(it was the typical mom selfie if you know what i mean) so later she told me she sent that selfie and i was said “oh i didnt know you did you don’t really send selfies on messages” i obviously didn’t intend to mean it in a rude way. she then starts shouting at me infront of 19 of my other friends saying how disrespectful and messed up child i am and that i cant tell her what to do. When i didnt tell her what to do i just gave her advice. I then see her texting carl saying “(MN) saying j look ugly and that im embarrassing her) which is exactly what i didn’t say so im pretty pissed of at this point and say “why are you talking about me to him” and then she says “its non of your business but we are thinking of getting married and you are the only “obstacle” in the way since you cant let me be happy. I am in shock at this point since i never said anything about them not getting married. And she went off at me and sent a photo to the family gc saying that she raised a disrespectful daughter. i dont know what to do so i told her please stop spreading lies on the family groupchat and left. what should i do AITAH

Because roleplaying is primarily a 1st person experience, where we think and speak as a particular character, it can be easy to forget about a vital tool DMs are constantly using in other modes of the game, which is to describe the actions of a character objectively, as if someone else was observing them. This is particularly useful for a few reasons:

1. Move the scene along! If an RP scene is starting to drag, you can press the gas by switching to a descriptive mode of the NPC. Describe the barkeep getting into an altercation with an ornery customer, or have him get called back into the kitchen to tend to a grease fire. Either of those moments are potential hooks for your party, as well, and the scene may evolve into them helping the barkeep, but it also gives PCs a chance to move forward with the story by leaving the scene.
2. React properly. It can be very hard to roleplay certain emotions or reactions very well. For example, the parent who cries tears of joy when their child is returned to them is usually not very satisfying RP, but players will get a better payoff if you zoom the camera out and describe the reunion between the NPCs objectively. And again, these moments serve as very effective prompts. The players usually have an emotional disconnect to the father who weepingly thanks them directly, but if you present the scene of the reunion from a distance, the PCs have a wider variety of reactions they can go with. Perhaps this is the perfect time for them to leave. Perhaps the scene switches gears here, and the party begins to question the father, or maybe the greedy PC in the party smashes the moment (and generates new drama for the game) by demanding payment for the child’s rescue.
3. Encourage players to focus on their own PCs actions. In dungeons, or in combat, players are very used to this mode of description for their own characters. But it is no surprise that, just like DMs, the default mode of RP is something akin to first person play. But the more you demonstrate NPCs taking objective actions, the more you will see your players start to as well. Soon you will be building scenes together where your players use their PC's actions and even body language to participate, and communicate, in RP scenes. And when PCs want to take more objective actions in a scene, they start seeking more interactive elements of the world– windows to break, chessboards to throw, keyholes to peep through, and all of this adds up to a more dynamic experience.
4. Summarize an NPC's position or approach. If an encounter has run its course, or if a conversation has nowhere else to go, zooming out is the perfect way to signal this to the players. “No matter how much more the barbarian smashes the farmer’s knuckles, his only response is to whimper and shriek that he knows nothing.” “You’ve made all the arguments you have to the queen, but she furiously stalks back to her throne and waves you off without looking at you.”
5. Flavor the character. Actions speak louder than words. Active NPCs are one of the core elements of making your game world come alive. Once you start activating NPCs, their personalities become more apparent. The things they want to do start to paint a more detailed picture of who this NPC is. And if the NPC is recurring, now you have a tool you can use during prep to move the world along.

Here’s an example: When the party first meets the blacksmith, he is in his house instead of at work. They knock on his door and find that he is in the middle of preparing a cake for someone’s birthday. Now the blacksmith has a hobby, he has a relationship with whoever’s birthday it is, and the celebration marks the passage of time in this world. Your players now have extra material to react to and to use if they interact with the blacksmith again. But let’s say, for simplicity’s sake, it’s a straightforward scene. The PCs peel the blacksmith from home so he can sketch out a new shield for the fighter. Two weeks later, the party will come back.
In prep for the next game, we have some decisions to make about the blacksmith. In addition to developing him from whatever interactions and details emerged during the game, we have some questions to answer regarding that cake. Whose birthday was it for? Let’s say his… neighbor! An old woman with a missing leg who can’t get around much, and also the one who taught the blacksmith how to bake in the first place. Now we are adding more developments to this character!
So, the party shows up a second time, and the blacksmith is working. His neighbor is down in his shop too, and guess what they’re doing: In between hammering the fighter’s shield, they are eating from a loaf of bread she baked (and the bread can be offered to the party), and the blacksmith is taking notes on a little piece of parchment, getting her recipe down to each detail and asking lots of questions to learn more (a moment the players can either participate in, cut off halfway through, or allow to happen while they observe). Doesn’t that seem a lot more real than a blacksmith perpetually beating on an anvil until the party enters his shop to pull him from his craftsman’s slumber? All of that comes from a simple cake.
Now the blacksmith is much more alive because he has a friend, an unlikely friend, and he’s got the humility of a student and the love of a son for this lady who taught him how to bake. So we can develop it further. Maybe they rely on each other in some way. There’s a nice little story that is starting to build. Maybe the party picks it up, and maybe they don’t. Maybe they start to like the blacksmith a lot, or maybe all this picture painting doesn’t do anything directly for the story other than to act as window dressing for the start of the scene with the Blacksmith and the party. Even then, I argue, the technique is worthwhile because detailed NPCs stick to players’ minds, and sooner or later, your players will be drawn to one of them.
So, imagine that our party has taken a liking to the blacksmith, and vice versa. They’ve exchanged work, maybe even one of them has cooking proficiency and so the game develops there (or better, make the blacksmith’s hobby relevant to one of the PCs tool proficiencies at the outset!). What if you want to escalate the blacksmith's story, and thus the world of the game? There’s obvious answers, but at this point, the situation has so flared my imagination that I’d prefer to make a hotlist.
What happens next? Roll D10 1 Githyanki slavers steal either the lady, the blacksmith, or both. 2 The lady reveals she is a celestial being sent to protect the town from a demon. 3 An oblex moves into town and takes over either the blacksmith or the woman. 4 The blacksmith enters a baking contest in town but loses to the corrupt mayor. 5 The lady falls ill with sepsis. 6 The lady's runaway bandit son returns badly wounded; bounty hunters are after him. 7 The blacksmith burned his hand at work and the lady is tending to him. 8 Both blacksmith and lady are being evicted by their dwarf emerald baron landlord. 9 The smithy was robbed by night goblins. 10 The blacksmith and lady together are baking many goods for a holiday.
The goal with the above list is to expand the range of possibilities with the modest baking blacksmith and his granny companion. If you’re not looking to hook an adventure through these NPCs, you could keep their growth subtle; they’re pieces of the background, as opposed to the meat of the drama. But if they live in a world that is impacted by the greater events of your game, like a demon incursion, or a cataclysmic storm from space, then you have fully humanized story-telling elements that you can use to direct the punch of the drama right into your party’s gut.

I never thought I would have any withdrawals at all. I only took one 5g dose once a day for 3 years.
As soon as I stopped, I kept getting hit with anxiety and heart palpitations. Couldn’t even smoke a little bit of weed without my heart going crazy. Couldn’t have any nicotine or caffeine or even too much sugar.
Every morning I was woken up at 6am by a tinge of anxiety and could not fall back asleep.
Literally 44 days of this with no sign of any improvement. Then, this past Friday, I smoked weed for the first time in weeks, and it made me feel relaxed and happy. No anxiety or heart pounding. Woke up this morning around 6 but closed my eyes and went right back to sleep and woke up at 8! For WEEKS I was only able to sleep in 10 minute increments after waking up at 6am (which, dear god, Inwould have 12 vivid dreams every morning that were incredibly bizarre)
I’m finally getting back to my normal self. I was legitimately worried for a moment there that I’d never be the same again. This shit REALLY messes up your brain chemistry and makes you feel like you’ve broken yourself forever.
For anyone else struggeling with no improvement, just keep going! I’m normally a very positive guy but PAWS had me groaning “my life is awful now, I’m miserable, I’ll never go back to normal” to myself EVERY DAY.
What got me through was this sub, and users here assuring me that everything I was feeling was temporary. It’s the same for you. There are no permanant withdrawal symptoms. They can last up to two years at most but they WILL go away.

So I'm still really new to this MS diagnosis although it's suspected I've had it since 2011. I am still learning not only about MS but WTF my body is actually doing, so please excuse me if my questions seem really exceptionally stupid at times haha.
Anyhow about two weeks ago I had a weird burning sensation down the back of my left thigh. Kind of felt like a continuous electric shock in a thin line. That went away after a day or two and left my entire leg feeling heavy for lack of a better description. I can fully feel my leg and move it, but it feels like it's dragging and weighted. I called neurologist twice, first time his nurse told me that he wanted me to just keep an eye on it and my first Ocrevus infusion was coming up in couple days and to see how I felt after. The second time was Thursday to let him know that the sensation had changed from the initial burning to just a heaviness that was annoying and I was a little worried. I haven't received a callback but I assume I will tomorrow.
Anyhow the reason for my post is Friday night I fell. I have a short walled baby gate that blocks off the parameter of my kitchen and my leg decided that it wanted to hangout on it. As I stepped over with my right leg my left one didn't come up as it should and I went flying a good distance. I banged up my toes, thigh, breast/ribs, wrist and have a pretty good bruised lump on my forearm to elbow as well as some rug burn as I didn't land in the kitchen haha. I feel like I was hit by a truck but nothing feels broken other than pride. My well intentioned neighbor told my husband that anything like an accident or fall that causes bruising or swelling can cause a relapse and that I should go to ER or neurologist right away. I feel this is a huge overreaction but I also honestly don't know (I refuse to tell hubby this, I simply told him they were both nuts and to go drink their iced tea.) So I guess that's my question, can something as simple as bumps, bruises or sprains cause anything more than possibly my daily ms stuff?

For a little background, I (34f), have been at my job for about 10 years now and in my current role for 4 years. This job was an office job until the pandemic hit, and now we are permanently work from home. Our job requires us to meet a certain quota each month and we have been provided with a target number of how many pieces of work to complete per hour as a baseline to help us gauge if we're on target. The work must be done by the end of the month, so typically anyone who finishes early/on time will be asked to help those that won't make their goal before they explore other options like overtime. This has led to some people regularly needing support towards the end of the month, as well as frustration from those that finish early as they feel they're being "rewarded" for their efficiency by getting more work piled on them. We can see daily/weekly/monthly progress of the team as well, so it has become pretty clear when someone's falling unreasonably behind (exceptions obviously when someone's on PTO or leave).
My boss recently came to me and said (their words, not mine) that I am a consistently averaging double the amount of work expected per hour, and audits of the quality of my work came back without issues so they know I'm not just purposefully rushing anything to meet the numbers. They asked if I'd be willing to do a time study for a week (basically start a timer when I begin a piece of work, stop when I'm done, and record how long it took/the type of work). The leadership will use this data to see how it compares to others and determine if their expectations on the amount of work they expect of us is reasonable since so many need support to finish the month, or if there's maybe some behavioral issues amongst the team that need addressed (like too much idle time or general slacking if some have grown to expect the assistance at the end of the month). I agreed to do this as, to be honest, I am one of the ones feeling frustrated always having to bail others out (note: I didn't share my frustration with my boss). I was told that I am not the only one participating in this time study either, and that someone else was asked to do this as well.
A co-worker of mine found out I was asked to do this and freaked out. Basically, I have shared with them how I get through the work so quickly before being asked to do this time study, and they told me they are simply unable to do what I do and they'd literally be unable to do this role if they did. They get through their work just fine without doing things the way I do, but are now afraid the expectations may be raised. I told a friend about the situation as well, and they also called me an AH, saying I put our position at risk of going back to the office in case this time study leads to the realization we aren't productive working at home. So, reddit, what do you think? AITA?

Arsenal 22/23 A Season Review Part 1 Of 3: August-World Cup: A Stunning Start.
The 2022/23 season is Mikel Arteta’s 3rd full campaign in charge of Arsenal and as well the 3rd of his managerial career. His 1st game in the hot seat came on Boxing Day of 2019, a 1-1 draw at Bournemouth which saw Arsenal drop down a place to 12th in the table. Just a few months into his reign and Arteta was the first high-profile figure in English Football to be diagnosed with Covid-19, the virus which drew the Premier League to a standstill for 3 months and the wider world for a much longer time. It was to empty stadiums which Arsenal played out the remainder of their season which eventually concluded on the 1st of August. An 8th-placed finish was the club’s lowest since 1995. However, there was joy to be found as there so often has been for Arsenal, in the FA Cup. In the one and only Covid FA Cup Final played in front of no spectators Arsenal came from behind to defeat London rivals Chelsea for their record-extending 14th FA Cup, after reaching the final with an unlikely triumph over Manchester City in the semis. Arteta’s first half-season had ended brilliantly and his first full-season started in the same vein with more silverware following as Arsenal defeated Premier League Champions Liverpool to win the Community Shield. Tough times quickly followed and Arteta may have been somewhat grateful for the empty stadiums, as it’s questionable whether the board would have held their nerve and kept faith with such a young manager through this dreadful period had the fans been inside the ground and able to voice their frustrations. On Boxing Day of 2020, not only did Mikel celebrate the 1 year anniversary of his first match in charge, he celebrated a 3-1 victory over Chelsea, his side's first league win for nearly 2 months. It was the first time Saka, Martinelli & Smith Rowe all started a league game together for Arsenal. It was to prove a seminal moment, but it wasn’t enough to move his team up from 15th in the table. It was never so bad again for Arteta and his Arsenal team, with the side eventually settling for a repeat of the previous season’s finish, again coming in 8th. Failure to win the Europa League (exiting the competition to Villarreal in the Semi-Finals, who were incidentally managed by Unai Emery, the manager sacked prior to Arteta taking the job) meant that Arsenal would be without European football for the first time since the 95-96 campaign. And the 21-22 season would begin horribly with Arsenal bottom after 3 matches in which they failed to score and conceded 9 goals. However as the season progressed Arsenal began to find some resilience, quality and self-belief. The sides upheaval came not coincidentally around the time club captain Aubameyang was stripped of that duty before being allowed to depart for Barcelona in the January window. Aubameyang had been the team’s standout performer when winning the FA Cup, but since those performances had seen him rewarded with a new bumper contract which made him by far the club’s best-paid player, his attitude and performance level had become a problem that needed to be dealt with.
More so than any win, it was actually a home defeat to Champions City which perhaps best demonstrated this new Arsenal which was beginning to emerge. They took City on and pushed them all the way only to eventually lose in the 93rd minute, whilst being a man down for the final half-hour with centre-back Gabriel being harshly dismissed. The fight was on with local rivals Tottenham for the final Champions League spot and it was firmly in Arsenal’s hands until a run of 4 defeats in 5 allowed Spurs back into contention. The Gunners appeared to retake control with a run of 4 straight wins before losing tamely away at Spurs and then Newcastle, in the end missing out by 2 points. Throughout the season Arsenal had spells of real high-quality football, and the fans had taken to the project with more passion and belief than they had in the final years of Wenger’s reign or during Unai Emery’s short-lived stint. In the end, though they missed out on the prize of Champions League football due to a combination of injuries to important players and the inexperience of a young group.
Despite the significant setback of missing out on a Champions League spot having held it in their hands for many of the season’s final months, Arsenal still entered the summer of 2022 with plenty of reasons for optimism. Bukayo Saka and Emile Smith Rowe had emerged as the real breakout stars of the prior season and Gabriel Martinelli wasn’t too far behind. There had been some clearly smart signings made by the club, in particular, those of Martin Ødegaard and Ben White, signed from Real Madrid and Brighton & Hove Albion respectively. The July purchases of Gabriel Jesus and Oleksandr Zinchenko for a combined 75M from Manchester City seemed yet more smart business, in them, they had picked up two quality players with four Premier League winners medals each, and both arriving aged 25 they seemed in the perfect age bracket to become big players for Arsenal not just for the immediate but as well the foreseeable future.
Jesus’ Arsenal debut came in a 5-3 friendly win over FC Nurnberg in which he scored twice. He followed this up with another in a 2-0 win over Everton as Arsenal continued their pre-season with a tour of the USA. Arsenal played 3 matches in America and won all 3, by far the most impressive being a 4-0 trouncing of Chelsea. The Gunners made it 5 pre-season wins from 5 when they returned home the following weekend to beat Sevilla 6-0 at the Emirates, a hattrick from Jesus meaning he had netted 7 goals in his first 5 appearances in Arsenal colours. Arsenal would get the Premier League season underway away at Crystal Palace, under the Friday night lights of Selhurst Park. No Premier League side would have envied them this difficult fixture, Arsenal had experienced just how tough it was 4 months prior when a 3-0 loss away at the ground began a torrid run of results for the Gunners. Arsenal had also begun the previous season away on a Friday night and come unstuck against newly promoted Brentford. Again Arsenal was straight back under the Premier League spotlight to see whether they had grown and matured from such damaging defeats last season. The Arsenal quickly proved they were up to the test, starting right on the front foot and keeping Palace penned back in their own third. Jesus immediately highlighted the new dimension he was going to bring to Arsenal’s attack, when his strength and then neat dribbling fashioned a great chance out of nothing, a chance Martinelli should have done much better with, his side-foot finish going the wrong side of the post with the goal gaping. The Brazilian would make up for it in the 20th minute when a corner was headed into the six-yard box by Zinchenko, who was picked out by Saka to deliver a free header. His head found Martinelli’s and from close range, he was able to notch Arsenal’s first of the league campaign. That was to be the only goal in the game for the next hour, but despite Arsenal’s slender lead they rarely looked in danger of being pegged back. On the instances that keeper Aaron Ramsdale was called into action, he was ready and dealt with Palace’s occasional threats soundly. The game was put beyond Crystal Palace in the 85th minute when Bukayo Saka’s dangerous ball across the six-yard box was headed into his own net by Guehi. This made certain of 3 richly deserved points for the Gunners.
Jamie Carragher for one was particularly impressed with the start Arsenal made to the game saying afterwards: “Arsenal played like a big team. When I say a big team, I’m talking about a Man City or Liverpool, a team who wherever they go, dominate the opposition. I felt like we were watching City or Liverpool in that first 20 minutes, half an hour.” Fellow Sky Sports pundit Gary Neville was more impressed with Arsenal in the second half saying: “The question mark about Arsenal will be whether they’ve got that robustness and resilience, physicality to get through that difficult 15 or 20 minute periods in away matches, and they got through that (tonight) and that impressed me.” Saliba was also singled out for praise with Carragher adding: “He looked the real deal. He adds something, we’ve always felt they were weak, at Brentford last season they got bullied and here last season, his physical stature will certainly help them in tough away games.”
Arsenal’s first home league game of the season was against Leicester City. The opening goal began with Jesus tormenting Johnny Evans tight to the touchline, after beating him he fed Martinelli who was able to get into the penalty area and find Xhaka, the Swiss international touched it first time back into Jesus who took a touch to steady himself then teased it over the head of Ward in the Leicester goal and into the net. It was an angle he had no right to try from, let alone score from but such was the Brazilian forwards confidence in front of the goal he fancied his chances from anywhere. The goal was nominated for Premier League goal of the month. Jesus got his second to double Arsenal’s advantage in the 35th minute, this time in a much simpler fashion. A corner across the six-yard box was not dealt with, a Leicester head on it only sped up its path to Jesus who was waiting to nod home from practically on the goal line.
Later in the first half, Leicester thought they had a way back into the game when referee Darren England pointed to the spot having judged Ramsdale to have brought down Jamie Vardy. However VAR advised him to check the monitor, and after re-watching the incident it was clear there was no contact made and the penalty decision was reversed. Leicester did still manage to half their deficit early in the second half though, a long ball was flicked on leaving Saliba in a difficult situation to deal with. Ramsdale was advancing but wouldn’t get there first and Vardy was waiting on the French defender’s shoulder, leaving him no alternative but to try and head the ball clear whilst facing his own goal. He only succeeded in diverting it into the net. This could have been a moment when the Arsenal crowd got nervous and frustrated. They had allowed a soft goal and their youngest defender was at fault. However the crowd immediately rallied behind Saliba and his teammates, he and the team needed help putting that mistake behind them and the crowd’s noise in the aftermath of conceding will have been reassuring to the players.
Demonstrating this, Arsenal went straight up the other end and scored, Ward made a meal of a cross, dropping it at the feet of Jesus who squared for Xhaka. The Swiss midfielder was being deployed in a new, more adventurous role where he was spending more time in the opposition box, he got his reward for this new tactic with a simple tap-in from right in front of the goal. Leicester would again reduce the home team’s lead to one however when Iheanacho found Maddison, who was able to shoot straight through Ramsdale. The young English keeper will have been disappointed at being so easily beaten from such an angle, his wide-open legs presenting the opportunity to the Leicester midfielder. Again Arsenal immediately responded to the setback by going up the other end and scoring again. This move began with Martinelli winning the ball back and feeding Ødegaard who moved the ball on to Jesus, who carried it forward before finding Martinelli who shot low from outside the box, he beat the outstretched Ward and hit the bottom corner, with the ball hitting the inside of the post on its way in. It had been a good day at the office for Arsenal and a great day for Gabriel Jesus, though despite scoring 2 and assisting the other 2 of Arsenal’s 4 goals, according to his manager Jesus left the field disappointed because: “he thinks he should have scored 4, that’s the sort of mentality you need. I wouldn’t like to play against him. He’s so mobile, intuitive, sharp and proactive in any moment or phase of the game.”
Arsenal next travelled to newly promoted Bournemouth. It took The Gunners just 5 minutes to take the lead and again it came from the phenomenal centre-forward play of Gabriel Jesus. A loose touch from White saw the ball launch high into the air, the Brazilian reacted first, beautifully controlling the ball whilst at the same time using his considerable body strength to hold off the Bournemouth midfielder, with exceptional balance he then dribbled around two other Bournemouth shirts until he was on the edge of the box facing their defence, with a lovely disguised pass he then fed Martinelli who was free to his left, his shot was saved but it fell straight at the feet of new captain Martin Ødegaard who was on hand to notch his first of the season. Rightfully though the praise went to Jesus with commentator Alan Smith saying: “You won’t see a better example of centre forward play than this.”
Ødegaard had to wait just 6 more minutes for his second of the season, a cross along the floor from White found Jesus who was free, his first touch wasn’t the best but it allowed it to set up nicely for the Norwegian to strike first time, which he duly did and the ball flashed into the net. Early in the second half and Arsenal had a third goal, with Xhaka setting it back to Saliba just inside the penalty area. Saliba struck it beautifully the first time, keeping his shot down under the bar and too perfectly placed for the keeper to do anything about. It was just Saliba’s second goal in senior football but he had finished it with the class and composure of a player who had scored 200. The strike drew Zinchenko to his knees, clutching his head in disbelief at the quality of the finish and unsurprisingly it was voted as Arsenal’s goal of the month. Jesus thought he’d netted Arsenal’s 4th but a VAR check ruled the goal out for offside, so the North Londoners had to settle for a 3-0 win in what had been an excellent away performance.
The Arsenal faced more newly promoted opposition the following week, this time back at home against Fulham for Arteta’s 100th Premier League game in charge. They would be without Zinchenko and Partey who had picked up injuries and were replaced by Tierney and Elneny respectively. The best chance of the first half went to Saka who got beyond his marker to face Leno one-against one, but he was unable to beat the keeper. It would be Fulham who took the lead however with Arsenal falling behind for the first time in the season. From the full-back position, Saka flighted a ball into Gabriel, who unnecessarily played himself into trouble. He never seemed to have the ball truly under his spell, and his second touch invited Mitrovic to try and take it off him, the defender then got his body positioning wrong, and failed to protect the ball allowing the forward to nick it from behind him and then the Serb was able to keep his composure and finish past Ramsdale.
Fulham’s lead lasted just 8 minutes, Martin Ødegaard lodging Arsenal’s response. There was a degree of good fortune about the goal, with a big deflection on the strike. But there was no doubt the Norwegian had deserved it, he was having an outstanding game with all of Arsenal’s danger coming through him. He was constantly creating, with inventive passes and dribbling runs. In this instance, a clever stepover had bought him the space for the shot. Ødegaard continued to lead Arsenal’s push for a winner with he, in particular, deserving to be on the winning side, and the winner did come though not until the 86th minute. Leno failed to deal with a corner, missing his attempted punch clearance and the ball fell at the feet of Gabriel who was able to gain the perfect redemption for his earlier error by securing all 3 points for his side. The goal kept Arsenal at the top of the Premier League as they remained the only team with a 100% record.
Arsenal finished August with another home game, facing Steven Gerrard’s Aston Villa. This presented Arsenal with a chance to win their opening 5 league games for the first time since 2004. Saka passed up a golden opportunity to give Arsenal the ideal start when Martinelli’s cross found him completely free at the back post, it was set up perfectly for Saka to hit on the volley, which he did but he got too under the ball and lifted it horribly high and wide from inside the six-yard box. An Arsenal opening goal felt inevitable however and it came on the half-hour mark when Emi Martinez could only push out an Xhaka shot as far as Gabriel Jesus, who was on hand to punish him. Martinez did go someway to redeeming himself later in the half with an excellent stop to deny a brilliant half-volley from Martinelli from 25 yards out.
Arsenal dominated the first half and continued their domination in the second but could not increase their advantage, it was instead Aston Villa who got the second goal of the game, in a somewhat controversial fashion. A corner from Douglas Luiz went straight into the net with Ramsdale unable to reach the ball due to his path being completely blocked by Kamara, who also limited the keepers’ movement by having both arms wrapped around his back. The goal stood but Arsenal cancelled it out in their own way, by going straight up the Villa end and retaking the lead. Saka coolly picked out Martinelli who struck it the first time on the half volley, Martinez clawed desperately at the ball but could not prevent it from going over his goal line and The Gunners were able to see the victory out. Arsenal’s player of the month was unsurprisingly Gabriel Jesus with 3 goals and 3 assists in 5 games. Arsenal’s maximum points after 5 games saw Mikel Arteta pick up Premier League manager of the month.
Arsenal started September with a chance to go 4 points clear of City in 2nd, after just six games. Standing in their way was Manchester United who would be hosting the Gunners at Old Trafford, a ground Arsenal had only won at once in the league since 2006, that one as well being without fans during the Covid season. Arsenal was boosted by the return of Zinchenko but had to start with their 3rd choice midfielder Sambi Lokonga for the Partey role after Elneny had followed the Ghanaian onto the treatment table. Regardless of the blow, Arsenal appeared to have made the ideal start when Saka threaded the needle and put Martinelli clean through on goal. The Brazilian finished brilliantly to give Arsenal the lead, but VAR advised the referee to have a look at a potential foul in the build-up. On review, the referee judged Ødegaard to have won the ball from Eriksen unfairly and chalked the goal off. The intervention made by Lee Mason on VAR was later judged by a Premier League review to be an incorrect one, the minimal contact not penalised in real-time by the ref was judged not to be a clear or obvious error. The review came too little and too late as far as Arsenal were concerned as they’d lost their lead and instead found themselves trailing at half-time after a good move from United culminated in a debut goal for Antony who finished past Ramsdale.
VAR’s intervention in the Arsenal goal was always likely to prove a vital one as remarkably United had not lost at Old Trafford when leading at half-time since 1984. This showed the size of Arsenal’s task going into the second half, but they continued to probe and ask questions of United and they got their equaliser on the hour mark when the ball broke to Saka in the penalty area after Ødegaard had looked to thread one through to Jesus. United dealt with that immediate threat but could only clear as far as Saka who slotted through the legs of Martinez for his first of the season. Arsenal looked to be in the ascendancy, but they were only level for 6 minutes. Overcommitting bodies forward left them without a midfield and after winning it back United was able to counter-attack with Bruno Fernandes who looked and found Rashford in behind the defence and he put United back in front. Arteta reacted immediately by looking to chase the game, giving a debut to summer recruit Fabio Vieira. The changes appeared to backfire however as Arsenal were left with even fewer defensive bodies on the field and in the 75th minute they were cut through once more, with Eriksen and Rashford both left in acres of space as United hit Arsenal once more on the counter-attack. It was a horrible goal for Arsenal to concede, it reminded of the worst years of Wenger with everyone so committed to attacking they had no thought for defending. Arsenal suffered their first defeat of the season going down 3-1.
There were some positives to take in how confidently and capably they had passed the ball around, however, United had defended their penalty area very well and counter-attacked effectively. The frustration for Arsenal was how they had helped them in that regard, by leaving key areas of the midfield devoid of players. Partey had been very badly missed, and to a lesser extent so had Elneny whose defensive intelligence would not have seen him vacate his position as often as Lokonga did. The third goal conceded was perhaps the responsibility of Arteta who had gone all out attack mode too early, given the counter-attacking success United were already enjoying.
Arsenal got the chance to put the defeat behind them 4 days later when they began their Europa League campaign. They were placed in Group A alongside PSV Eindhoven, Bodo/Glimt and FC Zurich, and would kick off against the latter away in Switzerland. Summer signings Matt Turner and Marquinhos made their competitive debuts, and Vieira would make his full debut. Arsenal did some counterattacking of their own in the 16th minute when Vieira found Nketiah who travelled down the wing before playing a great ball across the box which found Marquinhos who expertly finished the first time into the top corner. The hosts equalised on the verge of half-time however when Nketiah was judged to have committed an offence in his own penalty box. The death of the Queen being announced during the first half led to the unusual circumstance of a minute’s silence taking place before the second half. When it did kick off, Arsenal regained the lead in the 62nd minute through Nketiah who was found with a delightful ball by Marquinhos who had made a fine debut. That’s how the score remained. Arsenal would not be in Premier League action that weekend, with their home game against Everton being postponed due to the Queen’s passing. Also delayed was their home game against PSV the following week, so the team were not back in action until 10 days after the Zurich game when they travelled to Brentford.
Arsenal dominated the games opening and took a deserved lead in the 17th minute when Saliba’s header from a corner struck the inside of the post on its way over the line. Just shy of the half-hour mark and Arsenal had their second, again with a header, this time it was Gabriel Jesus who rose to meet Xhaka’s perfectly placed ball. The Gunners then got the ideal start to the second half, when Vieira, making his first start in the Premier League in place of the unavailable Ødegaard, struck a beauty out of nowhere from well outside the box for Arsenal’s September goal of the month. Arsenal was in cruise control, always looking like the more likely team to score whilst barely giving Brentford sight of their goal. In the final minutes, Ethan Nwaneri came on for his Arsenal debut, aged 15 years and 181 days he became the youngest player to ever appear in the Premier League. After the match, Brentford Manager Thomas Frank was one of the first to tip Arsenal for a title challenge saying: “I think they will do brilliantly. I think they compete for the title now.” Xhaka was the resounding winner of Arsenal player of the month picking up 83% of the votes. A once deeply unpopular player, his turnaround best exemplified the strides in the right direction Arsenal were taking.
After the international break, Arsenal returned to action in the North London Derby against hated rivals Tottenham. Arsenal went into the fixture just one point above their opponents. Spurs were content to let Arsenal have possession whilst aiming to contain them and spring counterattacks. They kept Arsenal at bay until the 20th minute when Thomas Partey shot from over 20 yards out and hit it so perfectly that Lloris couldn’t get so much as a fingertip to it, the ball flew past him into the net for Arsenal’s goal of the month. Spurs responded in the 31st minute however after a good counterattack between the front three of Kane, Son and Richarlison saw the latter presented with a chance to cross from inside the penalty area and Arsenal did not effectively deal with the situation, a loose touch from Xhaka put his side back in trouble and Gabriel was panicked into conceding a penalty. Kane stepped up and of course, scored for the 7th time from the spot against Arsenal. This sent the sides in at the break-level pegging.
Arsenal regained the upper hand early in the second half after a shot by Saka was spilt by Lloris to his centre-half Romero who, under pressure from Jesus, looked to return it to the French keeper. Lloris missed the ball, it travelled under his body and then Jesus reacted first to poach it home. Spurs hopes of drawing level for a second time were damaged when Emerson Royal was shown a straight red card in the 62nd minute for a stupid and unnecessarily bad tackle on Martinelli. Arsenal quickly punished this ill discipline getting their third 5 minutes afterwards, with Granit Xhaka rifling past Lloris. At this stage Conte retreated to avoid a hammering, he accepted defeat and took off his offensive players, bringing on defenders to ensure the score line didn’t get embarrassing and Arsenal saw out a comfortable 3-1 derby win. Arsenal next returned to Europa League action putting Bodo/Glimt to the sword with a 3-0 win, goals coming from Nketiah, Holding and Vieira, the latter after brilliant footwork in the box from substitute Jesus.
Next up for Arsenal was another tough test at home against Liverpool. With a win, Arsenal would return to the top of the Premier League. Arsenal had faced Liverpool 4 times the previous season, failing to win any, losing 3 times including twice at home. They had also failed to even score against Liverpool in their last 6 meetings with them, but they needed just 58 seconds on this day, with Saka finding Ødegaard, whose ball between Van Dijk and Alexander Arnold put in Martinelli who finished beyond Alisson. Liverpool recovered well from the nightmare start however and was the better team from that point until they got their deserved equaliser in the 34th minute through Darwin Nunez. It was Arsenal however who went into half-time with the lead when Martinelli led a brilliant counter-attack from a Liverpool set piece, finally taking out both Arnold and Henderson by cutting inside and finding an unmarked Saka who slid in to put his team back in the ascendancy.
Again Liverpool responded well, equalising for a second time early in the second half through Roberto Firmino. From that point on though Arsenal found another level, they searched feverishly for a winning goal, looking to pass Liverpool to death and calving many openings. The noise inside the Emirates had reached deafening decibels as the fans urged their team on. The golden chance came with just under 15 minutes to go when Thiago was judged to have caught the back of Jesus’s foot inside the penalty area, having been beaten to the ball by the striker. Saka stepped up and held his nerve, confidently dispatching an excellent spot kick. Arsenal held out for what was in the end a deserved win after an excellent second-half display. In a decision that had raised a few eyebrows, Tomiyasu had been drafted in for a first league start of the season to go into an unfamiliar left-back position, the move paid dividends as the Japanese international had a fine game up against Mo Salah. The result put Arsenal 14 clear of Liverpool who had endured a dreadful start to the season.
“These are broad shoulders, this is courage. A sporting moment in time. Bukayo Saka.. Such poise! such noise!” – Peter Drury as Saka beats Alisson Becker from the penalty spot.
Four days later Arsenal made it 3 wins from 3 in the Europa, with an away win in Norway on the artificial pitch of Bodo/Glimt. A sole goal from Bukayo Saka was enough after he got on the end of a one-two with Lokonga. His initial shot was blocked by a defender but the ball then deflected in after coming back off the Arsenal winger. Bodo calved out many good chances for themselves but was let down by woeful finishing, squandering chance after chance by blazing high and wide of the target. Arsenal then returned to Premier League action at Elland Road against Leeds, though 40 minutes behind schedule after a power outage just after the game had initially kicked off caused the game to need restarting once power had returned.
Again Saka was the only man to get himself on the scoresheet, his goal coming after Jesus had passed up a golden chance to open the scoring failing to hit the net from close range after Ødegaard had found him with a backheeled flick. Jesus attempted to lift the ball over the keeper, but he lifted it too high and it ended up over the crossbar. Arsenal did not let Leeds off a second time however and punished them after a sloppy cross-field pass from Leeds midfielder Rodrigo only found Saka who headed it into Ødegaard’s path. Ødegaard’s return pass then asked a lot of the winger, but his speed allowed him to reach the ball first. Saka was faced with a tight angle, but it didn’t phase him one bit and he picked out the top corner hitting it high into the roof of the Leeds net.
The second half was full of drama, first when Bamford thought he’d equalised but was instead penalised for a foul on Gabriel. The Leeds striker received a second chance though when Saliba was found guilty of a handball in the box after the referee had checked the monitor. Ramsdale guessed correctly in his dive, but in the end, he wasn’t required as Bamford’s penalty went wide of the post. Arsenal continued to suffer in the second half, struggling to cope with the Leeds onslaught and maintain their slender advantage. Through fatigue and pressure from the home side, Arsenal had lost all ability to pass the ball and could do little else but stay in their own half and try to defend. Ramsdale proved his worth to this Arsenal side with his best performance of the season to date, right when his team needed him most. It appeared as though Arsenal had got the job done when crazily they conceded a second penalty of the half in additional time. Patrick Bamford was nowhere near the ball which was safely back with Ramsdale when Gabriel was penalised for a kick out in the box on the Leeds forward. As well as a penalty, the Brazilian centre-back was also dismissed. However on a VAR review, it was clear that Bamford had fouled Gabriel first, barging him to the floor, so rightfully the decision was reversed and Gabriel’s red card was rescinded. Arsenal held on to a win they’d scarcely deserved and it proved an even bigger win later that day when City lost at Anfield meaning The Gunners stayed 4 points clear after 10 games.
The following Thursday Arsenal were back in action in the Europa League. They were originally scheduled to host Manchester City in the league that mid-week, but the Queens’ death led to the postponement of Arsenal’s fixture with PSV, and it was re-arranged to this game week. Arsenal battered their Dutch visitors, in the end mustering 25 shots to Eindhoven’s 4. As was often the case Saka and Jesus were the standout performers. The young English winger was unstoppable in his direct dribbling runs, unstoppable that is without resorting to fouling, which PSV defenders did time and time again after being skinned by Saka’s great ball control when running at speed. Jesus was similarly dangerous, doing his usual thing of fashioning chances out of nowhere with his quick thinking and somehow even quicker feet. In the end, though the deadlock was broken by Xhaka in the 70th minute when Tomiyasu found him in space 15 yards from the goal. He hit the shot down into the ground and it bobbled just at the right time to go under the keeper and past him.
Next Arsenal travelled to struggling Southampton looking to make it 9 straight wins across the Premier League and Europa. They started fast, and when Xhaka finished off White’s cross with a brilliant volley into the back of the net in the 11th minute, it looked like it would be a case of how many, as it wasn’t the first good chance Arsenal had created. For the first 20 minutes, Southampton couldn’t get out of their own half, Ødegaard cleverly found Jesus with a lifted return pass but his volley was straight at Bazunu in the Saints goal. Jesus was in again after a long ball flighted over the head of Caleta-Car putting the Brazilian clean through until the defender dragged him back using both arms. There seemed to be enough contact for 3 separate penalties in there, but unbelievably the referee Robert Jones didn’t point to the spot and nor did VAR intervene. One of the most inexplicable decisions of the season, and that’s saying something, meant that Arsenal went in at the break only a single goal to the good.
The Southampton defence must have felt encouraged from not being penalised inside the box, as the fouling continued on Jesus outside the box for much of the second half, Lyanco getting away with man-handling Arsenal’s striker time and time again, wrapping both arms around his body whenever the ball was anywhere near the Brazilian. Jones did not however ignore perceived ‘diving’ from Saka showing him a yellow card for simulation, even though there did appear to be some contact. A one-sided refereeing performance and poor finishing from Arsenal allowed the home team back into the game and they got the equalising goal with 25 minutes to go through Armstrong after a swift move cut through Arsenal’s defence. In the 78th minute, Ødegaard thought he’d put Arsenal back in front but Tierney had just carried the ball beyond the line before he was able to cut it back into his captain’s path.
The Gunners had to settle for a point and an end to their winning run, paying the price for not scoring more in the first half. As they began to tire in the second half Southampton calved out some good chances of their own, but there’s no doubt the visitors were also harmed by a dire refereeing performance. The dropped points cut Arsenal’s lead at the top down to two. Another away game followed for The North London side as next they travelled to Eindhoven. With 2 group games remaining, they needed just 1 more win to secure the top spot which would mean they progressed straight through to the final 16, without the need for a playoff game. However Arsenal’s performance was poor, PSV were the better team for 90 minutes and good value for their 2-0 win.

TLDR; I need help not getting attached to a new interest!
I (31F) am supposed to be taking time to recover from a double breakup that happened in April (polyamory things) and getting back to enjoying my life. I hop on tinder just to find some local, safe fun to ease my mind and wound up having anxiety attacks because I’m not a hookup girl, (Nothing wrong with it, I’ve just learned that’s not my jam lol) so I redefine what it is that I need and get back out there. I met this guy that is really sweet and kind. He’s funny and super cute to me. And he’s a great listener.
The problem is I don’t want to fall head first into love. I haven’t been in very many relationships because I love too hard. Before I dated the married couple, I was single for four years following a 6 year relationship.
I usually try to have fun and then the person starts liking me and then I just agree to date them because in my head that’s the natural progression. I like this guy, but I want to be more aware of myself this time around. He could be a great friend and casual partner if feelings stay out of the way, but I’m very aware of my healing post breakup. He’s not a rebound at all, I think I’m surprised to find someone like him so soon. I’ve already explained this all to him that I’m not looking for serious right now and he’s on the same page but I need help in my mind to stop planning the wedding lol. Even he talks about how well we get on. I won’t stop the feelings if they come, but I’m not trying to have him crossed up in post breakup emotions.
What are some tips and tricks y’all use to keep things casual at least for a little while?

Hey again, I posted here a little while ago seeking tips on plates and plate carriers, and received some really good advice. I'm hoping you can also help me out with helmets!
I am a Critical Care Paramedic in Australia, heading to Ukraine in August to volunteer with an NGO, stabilising and evacuating battle casualties from the front. It is a self funded gig, and I need to supply as much as I possibly can.
Helmets are in short supply in Ukraine and my NGO tells me they are difficult to come by. So I'm looking for leads on sourcing one either to Australia from the US (I can get export permits) or in Poland. They also cost an arm and a leg in Australia, because there just isn't a market for them outside the military.
I would also like to know what is recommended in terms of NIJ level and style of helmet, being high cut or full. I'm not looking to necessarily stop rifle rounds, just shrapnel and falling debris etc. Hearing protection is also a factor.
What are your recommends??

My(childless) DH has SKS 18/15. SK18 will be going off to college in the fall. Historically we've had them EOWE/rotating holidays/2 weeks in the summer.
When SK18 got his license he stopped coming over to stay nights, mostly because BM lives closer to his "life". DH struggled a bit at first, but finally accepted that teens will be teens and it hasn't been an issue since. He still does a weekly dinner with them both and is always preaching quality over quantity as far as his time with them goes. They have a great relationship.
Well, SK15 will be driving before long and I'm already seeing a similar pattern. There has already been weekends where she has asked to stay at BMS because she has plans in that part of town, etc. I can pretty much predict she will follow in the footsteps of the 18y/o once she's driving.
DH has been very frustrated over this, moreso than with his son(18). I don't know if it's the gender difference or if the 15y/o is his youngest and "last" kid. Maybe a combination?
To me this is just a part of growing up and not a huge deal. Honestly anymore when SK15 is here on weekends she either 1. sits in her room the whole time and doesnt interact with us, or 2. spends chunks at friends houses which requires DH to drive her around all weekend. He is exhausted. The weekend is his only time off from his very high stress career and even then, he still often does work on his computer during the weekend. He has little time off to accommodate getting teens to all their activities. BM is closer to SKS friends, doesn't at all mind them staying with her, and works much less than DH so it isn't as taxing on her to haul the kids around to stuff all weekend.
The kids WANT to stay at BMS because it's easier for them too due to the distance between our part of town and theirs. But still, DH fights tooth and nail to try to have SK15 stay weekends here even though it doesn't make sense for anyone involved and puts a huge strain on not only him, but SK15. He discovered this weekend that she has an extracurricular all summer several days a week, so due to his work/travel schedule it will be impossible for him to have her for the normal 2 weeks straight as no one will be available to take her to her activities. He's now all worked up over this, grumpy, and refused to discuss alternatives when I tried talking to him about it.
How do I gently support him and his emotions during this time? It's hard for me because while I do love his kids, I'm obviously happy to have more time with my DH and it's not like we NEVER see them, as we do plan things with them outside the traditional CO, and I feel like what we've been doing is appropriate for their ages/activities and just what everyone has going on in life. Forcing them to stay here seems like such a waste of everyone's time when the only person really rooting for it is him. But I can't say that to him without being attacked obviously.
How do I get him to chill out and just let happen what will happen organically?

Hello! I'm a 21-year-old guy, and I've been on a search for a genuine and lasting connection. I believe that true friendships have the potential to blossom into beautiful love stories. I'm looking for someone who values daily conversations about our lives, someone who prioritizes our connection and understands me, inspiring the best version of myself. Mutual effort is crucial to make this work, with prompt responses and not leaving each other hanging for hours. Rest assured, I'll be equally committed to you, making you my top priority and brightening your day. Let's build a special bond, connecting emotionally and taking things slow. Who knows, we might just fall in love and see where our journey leads. I'm open to a long-distance relationship with plans to meet in person at some point.
Please only reach out if you're genuinely interested in forming a meaningful connection and cannot commit to LDR. Let's keep our conversations safe and respectful. If I don't respond immediately, I might be offline, but I'll do my best to reply promptly when I'm available.
A little about me: I'm a student who finds solace in music. Genres like pop, indie, rock, and dance are my daily companions. I enjoy immersing myself in nature and have a great affinity for the outdoors. Despite being introverted, I'm always up for an outdoor adventure that energizes me. Shyness has been a part of me since childhood, but I can easily form attachments with people. You can expect quick responses from me, so you won't have to wait long to hear back.
We can exchange pictures but give me sometime to be comfortable to send, don't pressure me into doing it please i just hope you understand.
About you: I'm interested in connecting with females between the ages of 19 and 23. Sorry, but I'm not seeking conversations with guys at the moment. When you message me, please include the word 'blue.' It would be ideal if you're in the GMT +1 or +2 time zone, as I value prompt and consistent communication. Let's put effort into responding quickly and keeping the conversation flowing. Your physical appearance doesn't matter to me; having a good soul and being understanding are what truly count.

Hello! I'm a 21-year-old guy, and I've been on a search for a genuine and lasting connection. I believe that true friendships have the potential to blossom into beautiful love stories. I'm looking for someone who values daily conversations about our lives, someone who prioritizes our connection and understands me, inspiring the best version of myself. Mutual effort is crucial to make this work, with prompt responses and not leaving each other hanging for hours. Rest assured, I'll be equally committed to you, making you my top priority and brightening your day. Let's build a special bond, connecting emotionally and taking things slow. Who knows, we might just fall in love and see where our journey leads. I'm open to a long-distance relationship with plans to meet in person at some point.
Please only reach out if you're genuinely interested in forming a meaningful connection and cannot commit to LDR. Let's keep our conversations safe and respectful. If I don't respond immediately, I might be offline, but I'll do my best to reply promptly when I'm available.
A little about me: I'm a student who finds solace in music. Genres like pop, indie, rock, and dance are my daily companions. I enjoy immersing myself in nature and have a great affinity for the outdoors. Despite being introverted, I'm always up for an outdoor adventure that energizes me. Shyness has been a part of me since childhood, but I can easily form attachments with people. You can expect quick responses from me, so you won't have to wait long to hear back.
We can exchange pictures but give me sometime to be comfortable to send, don't pressure me into doing it please i just hope you understand.
About you: I'm interested in connecting with females between the ages of 19 and 23. Sorry, but I'm not seeking conversations with guys at the moment. When you message me, please include the word 'blue.' It would be ideal if you're in the GMT +1 or +2 time zone, as I value prompt and consistent communication. Let's put effort into responding quickly and keeping the conversation flowing. Your physical appearance doesn't matter to me; having a good soul and being understanding are what truly count.