Well, it's about that time again...and I'm seventh now on SFA3 global scoreboards. 7th place! I accidentally sank most of my day off into practicing and trying over and over again, but it feels good to do that every so often. It's good for the soul to get involved and invested in something, and lose track of time. If anything, I'm usually too cognizant of the time...watching, doing the math, making sure I can fit things around work and sleep and whatever else comes up, and having to hollow out some buffers to account for my chronic fatigue. So it's very valuable to me to let go of that...sort of. Turns out, in Alpha 3, the most important part of your score is being quick...!

Anyway, have a great day, everyone! Love you! Hopefully you can find something to lose track of time doing...I tell you, it's good for you! 👋💕

Folklore Songs - what are they about??

This is a developing thread, but I’ve been listening all day so I’m taking a stab at it.

1."The 1"  

Common consensus is that this is about Dianna Agron and what they could have been. Telling lyrics are the general idea that the relationship wasn’t truly given a chance (”it would've been sweet, If it could've been me”) and “Roaring Twenties”, referring to the below circus themed party pics with Diana dressed like a flapper

tbh im not totally sold on this - most because it seems more recent with lyrics like, “In my defense, I have none for never leaving well enough alone” sounds like a reference to ME! and “Roaring twenties” sounds like a reference to something that happened this year (2020). Also “throwing pennies in the pool” could be a reference to throwing Penni (Karlie’s agent) in the pool. Finally, Route 1 is the road along California’s coast, where Tay & Karlie drove on their legendary road trip...this makes my lil Kaylor heart worry. 

2. Cardigan

This is the first installment in the Teenage Trio, which also includes August and Betty, and is told from the perspective of Betty. It’s about feeling so loved by someone but then being betrayed by them (”Chase two girls [Betty + August’s narrator] lose one”). The line ”And you'd be standin' in my front porch light” foreshadows to James professing love in “Betty”. Potentially Taylor is Betty - but I’m still thinking about that theory.

3."The Last Great American Dynasty"  

We <3 a Rhode Island throwback. Here Taylor tells the story of her house in Rhode Island that Rebekah “Betty” (??!?!??!! more on that later) Harkness used to live in. Rebekah married an heir to Standard Oil which made her one of the wealthiest women in the USA at the time. She was also known for making a scene (”She had a marvelous time ruining everything”). Additionally, she founded the Harkness Ballet (”And blew through the money on the boys and the ballet”). After Rebekah’s death Taylor purchased the house and it is now best known as the place of many epic 4th of July parties.

4. Exile

Such a sad song! This is a duet between Taylor and Bon Iver, telling the story of a failed relationship that they have tried to mend many many times. Interestingly, this is also about a love triangle (like the teenage trio) -  "I can see you starin' honey/Like he's just your understudy." This line specifically feels like it could be about bearding, and seeing someone else with the person you love, but feeling like - or knowing - it’s fake. “You were my town Now I'm in exile seein' you out” references and end to the relationship Taylor discussed in False God “Staring out the window like I'm not your favorite town I'm New York City”. To me this indicates that it is about Karlie and them breaking up or going through a rough patch - continually trying to fix things - and eventually being unsure that it could ever be repaired.

5."My Tears Ricochet"

This is pretty clearly about Scott & Scooter - “And if I'm dead to you, why are you at the wake? Cursing my name, wishing I stayed” and “You had to kill me, but it killed you just the same” seem to be a reference to them trying to exploit her work and how her leaving Big Machine really ruined the business - plus there���s some LWYMMD imagery. “You wear the same jewels that I gave you as you bury me” also seems to be a clear reference for trying to use Taylor’s own work against her, taking the profits, and pushing her out of the deal. As if we needed more evidence “You hear my stolen lullabies” clearly references her stolen masters.

6."Mirrorball"  

Big 80s prom vibes from this song. Mirrorball is about being famous and all of her work - her most personal thoughts and dreams - just becoming different ways for other people to see themselves once she releases her music into the world. Part of being an artist is knowing that your work will reflect more of who the viewer is than who you are yourself. Here she uses the metaphor of a disco ball to explore that idea, and worries that she is losing her own identity through it “I'm still trying everything to keep you looking at me”. She also alludes to her fears that she will age out of relevancy “I know they said the end is near”, something she discussed in her documentary Miss Americana. Obviously this is internalized misogyny because we love Taylor and will listen to her music always and do not subscribe to the belief that women need to be young to be relevant because if they were a man then they'd be the man, and tay’s the man <3 

7. “Seven”

Personally, this is one of my favorite songs on the album. It’s so sweet and pure and lovely. This is about young love, with imagery of summer, toys, and child’s dreams to runaway together. Many people have speculated that it is about the same girl that the two unreleased Taylor songs “Sweet Tea and Gods Graces” and “Me & Britney” are about. 

[Side note: initially I wondered if Me & Britney was about Britany Maack, Taylor’s long time friend who recently got married, but the names are spelled differently. Also the line in Seven “I can’t recall your face” indicates that this is about someone who Taylor is not currently in touch with.] 

Both M&B and STAAG seem to be about the Seven relationship because there are general parallels with outdoor scenery, childlike wonder, and ( in the case of STAGG) sweet tea. Also all three songs indicate a gay relationship: STAGG - “And you can love like a sinner and lose like a winner”, M&B - “That boy she went ran off with, well, I thought he was crazy. Maybe I was just jealous that he'd come between me and Britney”, and Seven - “You won't have to cry or hide in the closet And just like a folk song our love will be passed on”.

8. “August”

This is the second installment in the Teenage Trio, told from the perspective of the “other woman” who James meets while on summer vacation. The other woman (she doesn’t seem to have a name...unless it is August...which it could be? idk) is in love, but realizes that James isn’t in love with her - “Will you call when you're back at school? I remember thinkin' I had you”. The line “Remember when I pulled up and said "Get in the car" references the same incident which is retold in Betty, but this time with James telling Betty it was just a summer fling that didn’t mean anything.

9. This Is Me Trying

Here we have a break up song, about Taylor trying to win her lover back and feeling completely lost without them, unable to concentrate or be around people, and turning to self sabotage. It’s about the general loneliness that one feels when they’ve lost someone they truly love, and the miscommunication that can happen in a relationship when you’re not understanding each other or receiving love in the same way (hence the song’s title). I think this could be about Karlie, it seems clear that their relationship has not been smooth and that they have had many on-and-off times. It could also be serving a purpose of building the Joe break up narrative, but only time will tell for that.

10. “Illicit Affairs”

Taylor loves her secret love - this song reads like a sad version of “I Know Places”. It seems clear that this is about Karlie Kloss. “Tell your friends you're out for a run” is one of my favorite lines because Karlie started Klossy run club, where you commit to running a certain distance in a month - and she posts about it on instagram CONSTANTLY. But overall, the song details a relationship of a woman being with someone she doesn’t love (kushnerd) and sneaking around to meet up with the person she does love (tay!). The line “Tell yourself you can always stop” is so sad to me, the idea that Karlie got into this and keeps telling herself that it will only be a little longer and she can leave when she wants, but staying in her fake marriage anyway.

11. Invisible String

This is pretty much the only pure love song on the album - about feeling connected to someone throughout your whole life, knowing that that somebody is out there, and then finally finding them. Taylor talks about being in Centennial Park in Nashville as a teen, and then eventually showing her lover around. The song is really self referential, with lots of easter eggs for her past work, including Bad Blood and Delicate. She also references Joe Jonas with the line “Cold was the steel of my axe to grind For the boys who broke my heart Now I send their babies presents”.

Some people have pointed out that there is a similar idea presented in Jane Eyre - when the protagonist says to her love interest “I have a strange feeling with regard to you. As if I had a string somewhere under my left ribs, tightly knotted to a similar string in you."

12."Mad Woman"  

Another Scooter one - “It's obvious that wanting me dead has really brought you two together”. “The master of spin” is word play referencing the masters records scandal. “Watching you climb over people like me” points out that agents and labels are making money off the performers they find and pushing them around. There’s also a reference to Scooter’s wife Yael and how he cheats all the time, but she doesn’t do anything likely because of her own internalized misogyny - “has a couple side flings. Good wives always know. She should be mad, should be scathing like me”.

13. “Epiphany”

The first verse of this touching ballad is about Taylor’s grandfather in WW2, storming the beaches at Normandy - “Crawling up the beaches now "Sir, I think he's bleeding out"”. The second verse is about a nurse helping patients with Covid-19 - “Holds your hand through plastic now "Doc, I think she's crashing out"”. The bridge here talks about wishing there was some great epiphany, some magical solution for the suffering in the world. The chorus refers to experiencing trauma with others and staying loyal even in the hardest times, even if it means literally dying. Although this seems like a departure from the themes of rest of the album, the whole album examines loyalty and considering what you would do for the people you love - so I really don’t think it’s a departure at all.

14. “Betty”

Obviously this is the gayest song on the album and an early fan favorite. It is the final song in the teenage trio, told from the point of view of James, going to win Betty back after betraying her and sleeping with someone else (August!?) over the summer. The line "Will you kiss me on the porch in front of all your stupid friends?”, a line that is very clearly about wanting to kiss a woman, is especially striking (& gay!) when sung by Taylor. The clearest version of this plot is someone begging for forgiveness after betraying the person they love.

There is also a bit of a nod to a line in “Picture to Burn”, a break up song off Taylor’s first album. In PTB Taylor says “So go and tell your friends that I'm obsessive and crazy that's fine, I’ll tell mine you’re gay”. This lyric has since been changed in versions available online, but on the original album that's what it was. This is interesting because she’s calling attention to knowing that someone is gay and hasn’t told their friends...which you would definitely know if you had dated them.

The names “James” and “Inez” are both mentioned in the song, which are the names of Blake Lively and Ryan Reynold’s daughters. James was already featured on a Taylor Swift album, as the lil baby voice at the beginning of “Gorgeous”. Worth noting that “James” is traditional a male name, but that this character is named after a female.

ALSO I have this theory I’m working on that Taylor is Betty and this whole album is in the same world with the same people, but WILL POST MORE ON THIS LATER.

15."Peace"  

Ok - this is Archer 2.0 for me, about how she is worried about how no one will ever love her or stay with her because its too much work - “the rain is always gonna come if you're standin' with me” and “No, I could never give you peace” are pretty telling lines about her concerns that people will think it is not worth it to be friends with or in a relationship with her due to all of the baggage that comes with it. 

The opening lines - “Our coming-of-age has come and gone Suddenly this summer, it's clear” feed into my emerging theory that all of these songs exist in the same universe and are about the same three characters...but I’m still figuring that one out. The line “And you know that I'd swing with you for the fences Sit with you in the trenches” reference Seven and Epiphany, respectively - further supporting that all of these songs are in the same world.

16. “Hoax”

Out of all of the songs that make my little Kaylor heart ache - this is the most heartbreaking. Specifically the line “My eclipsed sun” refers to Karlie, who Taylor has called “sunshine” on multiple occasions, and her light being covered up by her contract with Kushnerd and Scooter. The line “Don't want no other shade of blue But you” makes it clear that this song is in reference to the muse for the album “Lover” - aka Karlie. 

However, this is a song about betrayal and completely trusting someone, only to find that they stabbed you in the back, as is clear by the line ”Your faithless love's the only hoax I believe in”.

Additionally, the line“You knew it still hurts underneath my scars” seems to again feed into the idea that all of the songs on the album involve the same characters. This one is a bit more clear, it seems that - if this theory is correct - Betty is the narrator of this song, as she referenced her scars before “Drew stars around my scars” in Cardigan.

OK- I'm going to go deep into song by song later, but I just wanted to get something out there!!! Also def interested in hearing what everyone else thinks!

EDIT: I just found some lyrics from The Lakes in an article from Billboard. I wanted to add them in even though we don’t have the full song because I felt like we really ended on a sad note with hoax and then when I saw these I was like there is hope!!

SO the lyric Billboard included in their review was “A red rose grew up out of ice frozen ground / With no one around to tweet it” which is a continuation from the line from “Hoax” - “ This has frozen my ground”. What I’m taking from this is that in the final song Taylor finds hope <3

Also Nekrotefeyo was criminally underused for the legendary Eridian homeworld like I was expecting like a big abandoned city or a completely decimated apocalyptic place, not a dried up ocean bed (Are they maybe more crustaceans instead (?) of bugs???) with like 2 Eridian buildings on it and also Maliwan for... Some... Reason. Seriously. Dark Maliwan was so clearly cut content and I wanna know wtf that was all about. Also we got Promethea so it isn't like they weren't capable of making a big city area, like the restrictions of the engine wouldn't allow it, they just didn't... Feel like it? Maybe didn't have time to flesh it out given how late nekro is in the game? Seriously it feels empty as fuck, I love exploring the planets, but even as a certified lore lover I just can't bring myself to explore that place more than I have to for quests. It's really empty and boring

Also, I am bet that the big glowing thing we see coming out of the planet as it fragments is related either to the Machine and the souls sacrificed to make it work, or the Guardian soul main storage thingie. Mainly because ghosts and such are real in the bl universe and they're all that same glowing green sort of deal. It also reminds me of Krieg's mind planet projection thing which does add credence to that. That is potentially why Minos Prime 'hatched', it could have been a storage place for other, maybe reject(?) Guardian souls and that's where all the Eridian and Guardian stuff randomly came from that Tannis keeps goddamn repeating every time u play the takedown. FE Minos Prime was a testing site for prototype Guardians and the souls (I don't want to call them mind cores because the mind core we got from the Vault of the Destroyer was solid and not green and don't even get me STARTED on that whole situation because there was cut Overseer dialogue from when you take that thing out of the Vault and why WAS it even in the VAULT OF THE DESTROYER and Hhhhh) were stored in Minos Prime until whoops they got out. And I'm guessing they sacrificed the people of Minos Prime to the Machine (we literally left nobody guarding it sooo) bc Tannis says they just vanished without a trace. Which ALSO adds bonus points to my theory that the Eridians aren't dead and are just chilling elsewhere laughing at us right now.

I still think Lilith brought Elpis to the Eridian Rift on the map Typhon and Leda wrote all over and she's vibing there, too. Maybe it's a sort of stasis place where time doesn't pass so the people of Elpis don't die. Idk how Lilith would know about that but then again given the chest in her room I would honestly not bet against my whole 'Lilith had help from the Watcher and/or the Eridians during/before Bl3 and refused to tell us' which is why she just vanishes at the end of the game and takes Elpis with her.

And also why Sanctuary-III randomly exists when we have never heard of the company that made it before (seriously what is supamax mfg), it's somehow in good enough condition that Moxxi and Ellie could fix it up with their scarce resources, and they found it before any other people did (can probably chalk this one up to Tannis if there were cameras or it was hooked up to the ECHOnet of Pandora, but the other two points stand). I would've been okay with it if it were an Atlas ship Rhys sent over or smth, if it were an old Hyperion ship, if the branding of supamax mfg was Moxxi and Ellie's team effort of making a spaceship company in honor of Scooter- literally if any of these things were explained in-game, but they're NOT. So I am left to go 'what the hell where did this come from what is Supamax MFG' and like, a random company we've never heard of existing is totally fine, we're introduced to the Obsidian Black Block and Hephestus United as well, but it just feels weird that this random supply (?) ship just happened to go to Pandora for some reason and then also crash or was abandoned for some reason. If we could just get a scrap of info on Supamax MFG and why this ship was on Pandora I'd be happy. Their branding is Ships Made Quick so clearly they build ships which is fine.

Did Lilith contact them? If so, cool, could we get an ECHO log of that? Where did she get the money after Sanctuary-II blew tf up? Did she or Moxxi or Ellie have connections that allowed them to get the ship made for cheap or free? Why did they decide to make the ship out in the open when they knew about the rising CoV threat?? Was the ship stolen? Did the Crimson Raiders just kill a bunch of people to get their hands on it? I doubt it, but this shit isn't explained! So yeah when I write theories like 'Hm well maybe this ship was planted here by the Watcher' its not because I'm driven insane by the Eridians it is because we literally have no other reason to go 'maybe not' and with what little information we do get during the game, it could be fuckin possible!!!

Lilith apparently knew more than she was letting on, she was contacted personally by the Watcher during the end of TPS (brick specially had to ASK what the Watcher said to Lilith), so yeah fuck it the ship and everything that wasn't explicitly explained was given to Lilith by the Watcher to help her in her quest for whatever the Big One is in bl4. Bc you KNOW that Bl3 was just the lead up to get the Destroyer to slip out of its chains thru Tyreen's meddling (literally in nyriads log right before the final boss and its not like ty absorbed an entire planet sized monster and was the size of, like, a shortish tree so you know the Destroyer is still in there as it's further confirmed by Scourge when he says shit like you don't even know what you just did blah blah shut up loser- the only thing pointing to the Destroyer ACTUALLY being dead is that the Vault (????) of the Destroyer (???????????????) opened after Tyreen died but then we can make the Vault of the Architects argument that maybe it considered her part of the Destroyer and her dying confused the Vault into opened, iunno. I don't even know why that Vault was there in the first place wtf was its purpose I thought the Vault of the Destroyer was either the other Pandora one (emergency human feeding port to a monster that doesn't need sustenance) or literally Pandora itself in which case killing Tyreen should have destroyed the whole planet by opening it soooooo I guess that Vault exists to circumvent that extremely specific problem only the Eridians would have guessed could happen idk) and to set the Guardians up as villains cuz fuck them that's why (>:( please gearbox don't, make the Eridians the bad guys if someone has to be evil pretty please the Guardians aren't the bad guys they are literally gaining sentience right now give them a chance they gotta figure themselves out and the Eridians fit the whole 'corporations exploiting their workers' vibe with the Guardians being forced to work even after the Eridians are gone so don't let those parallels slip away with shortsighted storytelling) but then it hurts even worse cuz the story could've been so much simpler and just... Sweeter and better than what we got if that's all they had to do was set those two things up. Bro I hate how every time I go to ask questions abt the game it leads me back here. Because it's true!! And it hurts I just wanna sit down with the lore manager of the game and ask them all these questions because I'm genuinely curious, but I'm afraid of the answers or non-answers I'll get. Again, I get the whole 'things have to happen for plot, not everything should be questioned, give the writers some slack to write a story' argument but when EVERYTHING falls under that category and the story didn't even end up being that great, it gets really frustrating because HONESTLY? if we had gotten good lore and explanations to things and actual world building and details and all that? I wouldn't have minded the main story so much. But unfortunately we got neither good lore (I wanna tell Nyriad she was lied to very badly because it's either the Eridians are evil and liars about a lot, or nobody thought twice the implications of giving the Destroyer a feeding port that explicitly calls humans to it) nor good main story (you know.) and it just. Is annoying. That's all.

Maid to the Rescue - A KBTBB Fanfic

I have not posted in a looong time, but miss it! I will be going back, fixing some of my older posts (fix my writing, lol) I’m still not a great writer and being a teacher takes a lot of work, but this is a nice escape from the world every once in a while. This is for one of the awesome people that have read my stuff and liked it (a thousand thank yous!)

This story is developing and this is the first part. I don’t own the rights to Kissed by the Baddest Bidder, Voltage does. This is a fanfic for fun!

It has been a year since that fateful day in the lobby. God, my life was so different back then. I was always at the beck and call of “the boys” as I called them. My saviors as well as my proverbial pains in the rear. There are times I miss them, and others when I wish we could have all met under different circumstances.

You see, more than a year ago I use to be a maid at a famous hotel called the Tres Spades. A hotspot in Tokyo and one of the many business ventures of my former supposed boyfriend, Eisuke Ichinomiya.

My life was put in danger more times than what I would’ve liked during our pretend relationship; a situation that also opened up backlash from some of the employees at the hotel. Eisuke decided he didn’t want to see me suffer and thus ended our affair in grand-fashion in front of the staff and clients. This gesture alone successfully put an end to relentless bullying in less than a few seconds. 

Even though I completely understood the situation and told myself countless of times that I was fine, it still hurt.  Eisuke and I had gotten close during our time together and even felt like barriers he had put up were beginning to cease. But enough was enough, I was tired of being labeled “plain,” “stupid,” and other things by people. I wanted to feel like a person of worth that could stand on her own two feet. I took Eisuke’s breakup announcement as my chance to run and do what I have always neglected to do, self-care and growth.

That day, I stood up my co-worker on a date, packed my bags with only my essential needs, emptied my savings jar and fled. I tried to be smart about it, ditched my identity, left the money Eisuke had deposited in account untouched, destroyed my phone, you name it.  I knew the boys would eventually seek me out, but I needed time.

I had made a friend  through Chisato who helped me create a new identity and assisted me with finding a small place to live in that was well hidden. Eventually, Gage, as he called himself, had me join a few of his friends. Together we formed a small “gang” of sorts. Our activities may have not always been on the legal side of things, but they are just and necessary. 

We have become a family and enjoy working with each other, but I know that eventually I have to go back to my old life and start anew. I’m no longer that shy girl who followed others blindly and gave up so much of herself. I’m strong, in fact, I always was; I just never could find the time to build my confidence. Those days are gone and I’m ready for what I must face.

I wipe the sweat off my brow as I wait on top of this old, dilapidated roof and stare at my computer screen. Enough reminiscing, time for action. “Siren! It’s time!” I hear the command through my earpiece and enter a code in the computer. “Entered, security systems are down, including firewall. Lucy, begin download.” I give the command and hear “roger!” from my friend Lucy. A beeping sound goes off on my computer 2 minutes later and I know our time is up. “Alright everyone, it’s 2:00 a.m. and as planned they have caught on. My location has been made, initiating cleanup sequence, let’s roll!”

I pull a tab on my computer that I had installed to a small little bomb, which I had put together and crafted into my laptop’s hard drive earlier in the day. My 20 second countdown begins as I reconnect my harness to the rope and slide down to another rooftop across the way. I enter the stairs through the roof access and quickly make my way down. Through the windows of the stairwell. I can see dark figures running towards the building I just had been in. Goodbye jerks! I’m gone and out of sight.

I take dark alley ways and finally make it to my scooter and drive away. I’ve gotten so used to the adrenaline rush of it all that I don’t panic anymore. A few minutes later I make it to the warehouse with all the others. 

“Siren! Great job girl! We got the assholes!” Gage comes up to me and high fives me as I dismount my scooter. I take off my helmet and breathe in the air, letting that wonderful feeling of accomplishment settle in.

“I can’t believe that we were able to pull it off this time! Did Lucy download all the files we needed?” I ask and Gage smiles widely, “that and more my friend. We found that the company has a connection to a crazy cult-like organization called AID. We will unleash the company’s doings to the media and let that fire start and take over. We have finally avenged Nyx!” He starts to do his little victory dance around my scooter as the rest of the gang shows up.

Nyx is a fellow member of ours that had been employed by a major corporation. She was great at her job and handled the accounting for her employer. Unfortunately, the corporation went under new leadership and things went awry quickly. Looking for a scapegoat, they shifted the blame on our friend that we refer to as “Nyx” and she was arrested and charged. Tonight, we took the information we needed to clear her name and set her free.

We all move to the day room area and  take a beer in celebration relaxing on our old worn-out couch. “Siren, I think it’s time for you to also clear your name and face your destiny.” Gage whispers to me as he takes a seat next to me. Of course, the others pick up what we are talking about and quickly get excited. “Yes Siren! It’s time for you to conquer your love!” Lucy states happily. I laugh and throw a pillow at her from the couch. “I know, I know and I feel ready to go back and face it all; but remember, I must do it on my own." 

We continue to talk about plans that we’ve all made since we got to the sanctuary.  Gage is  a computer programming specialist and professor in real life. He took us in, taught us everything we know about computers, hacking, etc. Some of us in the group specialize in other things and so we learned from each other how to fight (thanks to "Net”), weaponry (thanks to “Lucy), languages (thanks to "Nikia”) and the hotel industry/customer relations, thanks to yours truly.

We’ve kept our names a secret from each other in order to teach ourselves to protect our identities. Not once have we ever revealed our real names, except to the professor, Gage. 

Each one of us had a rough patch in life and ended up here. Once we solve our past issues and restore our names, we move on with our lives with the promise to help others along the way. A “pay it forward” if you will.

After an hour of celebrating we begin to head out to go home and rest. Gage taps me on the shoulder and asks me to stay behind to talk. “Lisa, listen, it’s been a year for you already and I agree with the rest of the family, it’s time for you to face your past.” I had a feeling he wouldn’t let the topic slide. “I know Gage, and trust me, I’ve been working on it.” Gage smiles and motions for me to follow him to the kitchen area where he makes some coffee for the both of us. “I’m sure you have researched your friends plenty and have prepared." 

"Yes, I sure have. With the information from tonight, not only do we have evidence to free Nyx, but I have evidence to help out one of my friends and expose some of the corruption in his workplace. I also have found some other information about my ‘ex’ that tells me there is danger up ahead.” Gage sits back and sighs. “Oh sweetheart, there’s so much going on with each one of those men. In fact, I just found out something…” he’s cut off by the sound of the ringer coming from my burner phone. I gasp and look at the professor. “Answer it, quickly!”

Chisato’s ID appears on the screen and I immediately pick up. “Siren! Listen to me please. They’re all gone. Eisuke, Mamo, Baba, Soryu and Ota. We all thought they were on a trip, but it’s been two days!” The news hit me like a cold shower. “Chisato, please, calm down. I’ll be there tomorrow afternoon. Take the chip out of that phone, break it and the phone and throw it away. Don’t worry.” The call ends abruptly and I take a deep breath and look at Gage.

“Told you Lisa, it’s time. Do you know who you are up against?” Without a doubt I do. I feel my blood rush and my fists tighten. “Gage, I can do it. The masked man, AID, many of these people that the guys have come up against have one person in common, the Prime Minister.” Gage smiles and leans forward holding my hands. “We’ll help you with the evidence to take him down. Your friends won’t see the connection because they’re dealing with the middle-man again.” “Gage, I don’t want to get any of you in trouble…” he pats my hands. “Lisa, you know we’ll be completely anonymous when releasing the information and helping you. We’ll all be worried about you going in to the line of fire, but you’re the most skilled in sneaking around and fighting. I know you can do this!” The professor stands up, gives me a kiss on the forehead and puts up our empty coffee cups.

“Gage, I can’t ever begin to pay you back for everything you’ve done for me. Thank you, thank you so incredibly much for taking me under your tutelage and helping me grow.” I bow to him and he laughs. “Lisa, you’ve helped many people while being in this group and this isn’t goodbye dear. I may be in my 50’s, but I’m not dying yet.” I laugh and attack him with a hug. “No one will die, I’ll make sure of it.”

He pats my back and releases me from the hug. “Okay sweetheart, go get some rest and get ready, tomorrow is another day!” ************************************ Back in Tokyo…. “Eisuke! Wake up, come on! Shake it off! Damn this shit!” Soryu curses as he struggles against his tight restraints. “S…Sor… what the fuck is going on?” States Baba as he begins to wake up from his drug induced stupor. “I don’t know, but it looks like we were all drugged at the party and here we are. Who the fuck could havd done this?”

“Maybe it was one of your gang rivals Sor” said Ota as he licked his dry lips and shook his head in an effort to re-stabilize his sight. “Not one of mine; this is not their typical ammo.” Rustling noises come from one of the corners of their dark enclosure. “Nah kid, at this stage, it could be either Baba or Eisuke’s enemies. What the actual fuck did they give us? My head is 'bout to rip the fuck open!” Groans come from the center of the room as Eisuke comes to. “What the fuck?” Soryu rolls his eyes, “we just established that part. Do you have any bad deals going on right now? Anything we should know?” Eisuke shakes his head and tries to re-moisturize his dry mouth. “The usual. Maybe that masked freak is at it again? Whoever it is, I wasn’t anticipating this, and usually I can see it a mile away. This is bigger.”

“For sure it wasn’t me. I’ve been in France for a month” said Baba. “Well, whoever the fuck it is, they have a flair for the dramatic. They should have just taken us out of the equation if they were able to get all of us.” stated Eisuke. The lights turned on and the mens’ eyes sting with the introduction of the harsh brightness. “So you are awake, perfect! I’ll notify the boss soon.” Said a man with a familiar voice as he entered the large warehouse area. The men re-adjust their sight and look upon their captor. “I called it! Masked dude it is!” said Ota. “Oh buddy, I’ve been nothing but a pawn in this and will continue to be to fulfill my boss’s every desire. Unfortunately, he’s been a busy body, so I will entertain you until he’s ready. Continue to enjoy your accommodations men, you’re here for the long haul.” The man laughs and quickly walks away leaving the bidders in their metal chairs with what seems to be mechanized handcuffs, the likes they had never seen before.

White as Milk

Prompt: Humans start out at birth with milk white blood. The more crimes they commit. The darker their blood becomes.

Day 5: beach | sleepy cuddles | date

Pairing: Man and Type

Man nervously hopped off of his scooter in front of the apartment building and beamed as the shorter older man approached him. He couldn’t believe that Type had actually agreed to go out with him that day. It was even more special since he had failed to get the other man to do anything with him at all. Grab a bite? Nope. Get a drink? No. See a movie? Ugh. Nothing. Nothing had worked until he had mentioned the beach. In his mind this was going to be their first date, but he had no idea how Type felt about it. He hoped that he felt the same way too.

“Hey!” He waved excitedly as he tried to figure out if he should approach the man or wait for him to come to him instead. Type’s face remained neutral as he closed the distance between them.

“Hey.” Type responded less emphatically, but Man didn’t mind. The other man’s reserved nature was just a part of his charm and he liked it. Man’s gaze travelled up and down the other man as he noticed the iron pressed blue shirt and black swimming shorts that perfectly fit Type’s body. He couldn’t believe his luck.

“Um, y-you look really great!” He stuttered out nervously. Annoyed with himself that he wasn’t being as suave as he had hoped to be in the presence of the man he was determined to woo. Type glanced down at his own clothes and then fixed his attention on to Man. His face still remained indifferent, but Man noticed the other’s eyes slightly widen.

“Thanks.” Type responded and then glanced at the scooter. Man looked at it too.

“Uh, I wasn’t sure if you wanted to take my scooter or your ca-“

“Scooter.” Type interrupted him and looked into his face. “Let’s take the scooter.”

Man swallowed hard as he imagined Type’s body pressed up against his back. “Are you sure? We’re going to be, um, pretty close that way.” He tried to make sure that Type understood what he was agreeing to.

Type nodded, “I know.” He answered.

Man slowly nodded as well, “Well, alright. Right this way sir.” Sir? Ugh What was he doing? He sounded like an idiot. “Your chariot awaits.” Oh god, it was all just getting worse. Man resisted the urge to cringe at himself as he handed over the second helmet he had brought just in case this moment had happened. The corner of Type’s mouth seemed to twitch up into a smile, but then just as quickly disappeared. He reached out and took the helmet from Man and stared expectantly at him. Man cleared his throat as he adjusted his own helmet on to his head. “Everything okay?”

Type continued to look at him and then at the helmet in his hand, “Aren’t you going to help me?” He asked, slight annoyance laced into his words.

“Oh shit, yea of course.” Man almost tripped on his own feet as he took the few steps over to the other man. He took the helmet out of Type’s hand and placed it on his head. Oh my god, oh my god, oh my god. He chanted to himself as his fingers brushed under Type’s chin as he secured the buckle underneath it. His eyes glanced over to Type’s face to find him staring intently at him before the older man shifted his gaze to look to the side. Was he staring at him? Were his cheeks slightly pink? No, he was probably imagining that.

“What are we waiting for?” Type muttered impatiently as Man continued to unabashedly stare at him, “It’ll be night before we get there.”

Man laughed at the other’s dramatics, “Well it’d be nice to be on the beach and under the stars right? Kind of romantic.” Ugh why would he say that? Too forward, definitely too forward.

“Least it wouldn’t be this hot.” Type sighed as beads of sweat trickled down the side of his face. “Can we go?”

Man nodded and quickly hopped on to the scooter. He looked behind him as Type still stood there, “We can only go, if you’re on the bike too.” He teased, “That’s usually how it works.”

Type rolled his eyes before he leaned down and wiped the dirt off from the seat. He then looked at his dirty hand in dismay. Man took the other man’s hand and lifted the bottom of his own shirt to wipe the dirt off. He really didn’t care if it stained the grey cotton shirt he was wearing. His attention was focused on making sure the hand he held was as clean as could be. When Man’s eyes travelled up he noticed that Type was biting the right corner of his bottom lip. The older man’s eyes were fixated on Man’s exposed abs that was now visible from the lifted shirt. Man’s breath caught in his throat as he watched the other’s expression. As if noticing that Man was no longer cleaning his hand, Type immediately jerked it away as if it were on fire. “Thanks,” He mumbled as he slid on to the seat behind Man. Man did his best to hide his smile as he felt the light hands press into his shoulders.

“Uh, you’ll fall off and die that way.” He cleared his throat and lifted the hands off of his shoulders and wrapped them around his waist. He felt Type’s chest against his back and his heart rate immediately accelerated in his chest. He hoped he didn’t get a damn heart attack before he got to the beach. Type scooted up a bit more, pressing his entire body against Man’s.

“This good?” Type whispered by the back of his head. The hairs on Man’s neck stood up at the feeling of the warm breath against his skin.

“Great!” Man squeaked out before he kicked off and drove towards the beach.

 Once they had reached their destination, Man turned off the scooter and looked over his shoulder. Type’s arms were still wrapped tightly around Man’s middle which made it a bit difficult for him to breathe. “Type?” Man called out. “You okay back there?”

Type quickly let go, “Of course. Why wouldn’t I be?” Man could hear him clear his throat and felt the bike slightly shift as Type got off of it. Man chuckled.

“Well you were holding on pretty tightly.” He got off of the scooter and turned to look at the man behind him who was fumbling with his helmet.

“Don’t be dramatic.” Type retorted as he struggled with the buckle under his chin. Man smirked and grabbed Type’s hands, moving them away from the strap. “What’s with this stupid thing?”

“You keep tugging on it like that and you’ll make it tighter.” Man said softly as he unclipped the buckle. Type’s stare bore into his eyes as they looked at each other. There was an audible click. “There.” Man smiled at Type and pulled the helmet off of the older man’s head. Type immediately reached up and fixed his hair before turning around to face the beach. Before he had turned around, Man was sure that he saw a tinge of pink on the other’s face. He still felt very nervous, but he also felt a bit more in control of the situation. Maybe this would all go well after all. He reached into the top box on his scooter and pulled out the lunch that he had made for their date. As he pulled his hand out, his ring finger got caught on a sharp piece of metal sticking out from a corner on the inside. “Shit.” He hissed, before he switched the food to his right hand, and brought the cut flesh to his mouth.

Type whipped around. “What happened?”

Man shook his head, “Nothing.” He mumbled almost incoherently as the finger stayed lodged in his mouth.

“Don’t do that, it’ll get infected.” Type reached out and pulled Man’s hand away from his mouth before inspecting it. A pearl of white blood seeped through the cut as they looked at it. “Do you have a band-aid?” Type asked.

Man relished the feeling of Type holding his hand for second more before he answered. “Yea, in a bag over there.” He gestured with the hand carrying the food. Type let the hand drop and grabbed the first aid kit. Man watched as he rummaged around and pulled out a small band-aid as well as a rubbing alcohol wipe, before zipping the bag back up. “It’s not a big deal Type.” He said slightly embarrassed.

“Oh yea? Then it gets infected and falls off.” Type frowned, “Very responsible of you.” He muttered as he fixed his attention on the finger that was still bleeding. The milky white liquid smeared against his skin.

“You know how many cuts I get from fixing this bike?” Man laughed, “Tons. Tons of cuts and it’s never a big deal.”

“Well now you have someone here who wants to make it a big deal.” Type muttered as he cleaned the finger, “Now, shut up and let me fix this.” Man did as he was told and watched as the other gently wrapped the bandage around his finger. He threw the garbage into the top box and looked at Man. “You need a new one of whatever this thing is.” He said as he closed the box. “This one’s clearly defective.”

Man raised a brow and gave a small smile, “Sounds like you’re almost concerned about me.” He said slowly as he watched the shorter man.

Type scoffed, “I just don’t want someone else to get hurt and sue you or something.” He grabbed the bag of food from Man’s hand and quickly walked off towards the sand. “Hurry up!” He instructed as Man ran after him.

 They finished off their sandwiches and sat beside each other. Their toes and hands buried in the sand they were sitting on. Man glanced over at Type who was staring out into the water. “Want to go swimming?” Man asked.

Type nodded. “Yea, I’m hot.”

“You sure are.” Man responded without thinking and then immediately squeezed his eyes shut so he didn’t have to see Type’s expression, “I mean...” Ugh, what was wrong with him? “I mean I noticed you were uh, sweaty.” He slightly opened one eye and could see the amused expression on Type’s face.

“Is that really what you meant?” Type asked him, a brow raised.

Man rubbed the back of his neck, “No. I meant, that,” he paused, “you’re extremely attractive.” He admitted.

Type grinned and then looked away, “Thanks.” He stood up and pulled off his shirt showing off his broad shoulders and muscular chest. Man gulped as he looked up at the other man. Good grief. How could someone be that good looking? Type glanced down, “Are you just going to stare at me or what?” Man quickly scrambled up, pulled off his shirt, and threw it beside their sandals that were already in the sand. They ran into the water together and swam out a bit away from the beach. The cool water in contrast with the glaring sun was nice. Type dipped under the water and slicked back his hair as Man scratched the side of his stubbled chin as he watched the other in awe. Type’s eyes focused on him, “Why do you do that?” He asked.

Man frowned as the water flicked across his chest and shoulders, “Do what?”

“Stare at me.” Type asked. Man wasn’t sure if he had offended the other man. He looked away.

“I’m sorry.” He apologised, “I try not to, but I can’t help myself.” Man admitted.

“Why?”

Man shrugged, “Because,” He looked at Type, “I like you. And I think you’re amazing. And anything and everything you do just makes my brain explode.” He admitted. This could totally scare off Type, but Man needed to be honest with his feelings. It was who he was. Unfiltered, caring, and transparent.

Type stared at him as the water moved them, “You don’t know anything about me.” Type’s voice was low.

Man smiled, “I don’t know a lot. But what I do know, I like, and I want to know so much more. You’re so perfect.” He exhaled.

An indiscernible look crossed the older man’s face. Type frowned and tried to swim away. Shit. Man swam after him and grabbed his arm. “Stop!” Type yelled as Man held him.

“I’m sorry.” Man’s eyes widened, “I’m sorry that I scared you off. I just wanted to be honest with you.”

“I’m not perfect.” Type spat out.

Man nodded, “You’re right. You can be snarky, standoffish, and sometimes cold.” Oh god, was he just sinking himself even further here? “But I personally love all of that about you. Because you’re not mean. You’re just reserved and that’s okay.” His hand smoothed down Type’s bicep. Type silently stared at him. Man sighed as he pulled the other closer to him so that their chest’s touched. “Type, I like you, no matter what.” His voice was quiet, “Maybe you don’t like me yet, but I’m going to keep try-“ His words were cut off as Type pressed a hasty kiss to his lips. Man’s eyes grew large in shock before he wrapped his arms around Type’s waist and held him close as they bobbed in the water.

“You’re an idiot.” Type said against Man’s lips as he broke the kiss, “I don’t like you?” He scoffed, “I’m here aren’t I?”

Man smiled and nodded, “Yea. You are.”

Type glanced back at the beach, “This heat is killing me.” He looked at Man.

“Alright, maybe we can go somewhere where’s there’s air conditioning.” Man tried to think of where he could take Type to cool off.

“My place is air conditioned.” Type stated.

Man frowned. Oh, he wanted to go home? “Okay, we’ll pack up and I’ll drop you home.” Type had kissed him, that definitely would make up for such a short date.

Type rolled his eyes, “Why would you just drop me off?” He pushed off from Man and swam the rest of the distance to the beach. Man followed him and squeezed out the excess water from his shorts once his feet hit the hot sand.

“Are you-?” He glanced at Type who was putting on his sandals, “-inviting me over?”

Type looked at him and gave him a curt nod. Man’s face broke into a huge smile. He had never been to Type’s condo before. Were they going to kiss again? Would he let him hold his hand? Could they cuddle on the couch? His mind churned through a thousand thoughts of the possibilities.

“Let’s go.” Type commanded before he grabbed the food bag that still had an apple in it and clutched it in his hand. Man quickly shook the sand out of his shirt and pulled it on before shoving his feet into his sandals. He quickly draped his arm over Type’s shoulders and smiled at him. Type looked over at him and smirked. “Your arm is heavy.” He stated before shrugging it off and grabbing Man’s hand to clasp it in his own, “This is better.”

Man nodded eagerly, “It sure is.” He smiled as they walked towards the scooter. They let go of each other’s hands and Man went to grab the helmets when he heard a loud ‘ow’ and the lid of the top box slammed shut. He looked over at Type who was clutching his hand. “Shit, did it get you?” He moved to grab Type’s hand, but Type jerked it away and hid both of them behind his back.

“Don’t!” Type all but yelled. Man was slightly taken aback. People who were walking by looked at them. What was the big deal? Type winced.

“Sorry, I just wanted to see how bad it was.” Man put his hands up. Type swallowed hard and then looked away. “Here.” Man said as he went towards the front of the scooter and grabbed the first aid kit. He held it out to Type. Type glanced at the bag and then up at Man’s face.

“You like me no matter what, right?” Type slowly asked. His voice was barely audible with how quiet his question had been. Man furrowed his brow in confusion before he slowly nodded. Type winced again at the pain in his hand.

“Yea, Type. No matter what.” He reassured him with a small smile.

Type let out a long sigh and moved his hands out from behind his back. Man looked down at them and stumbled back in shock as he saw the crimson red blood drip down the other man’s right hand. The left one was stained with the dark red colour as well as Type had tried to use it to put pressure on the other. What the hell? Man blinked quickly as his eyes tried to search Type’s face for any answers.

Type lowered his eyes and let out a strangled whisper, “I can explain.”

 To be continued....

Electric Scooter Benefits - Should You Buy One As Well As Are They Worth It?

The ongoing long run of the personal transportation industry looks bright with the accelerated growth in the use of electric scooters across the unitedstates streets together with in the United Kingdom. Their popularity has attained major landmarks in recent years using Uber teaming up with Lime to produce the scooters out there for lease through their program.

This really is an immense investment deal designed to further improve the prevalence of the scooters in US, Europe and around the world. Electric scooters are absolutely beneficial for the environment in general, but they have never yet been welcomed with open arms everyone, as a few view them because a dangerous method of transportation. Not to only to the riders, but however to pedestrians as well.

However, in modern years, electric scooters have been my main goto, to traveling around the town. They are now my favorite and also I simply enjoy driving e-scooters.

Just how Great Are Electronic Scooters and Why Are They Really the Future?

Now, tens of thousands of electric scooter suppliers will work towards creating and improving fresh functions that add a border of convenience to riders. There are several reasons why many people across the globe tend to be towards electric scooters on fuel-controlled kinds. Ninebot could be your best scooters and ninebot lately launched a new variant which is Ninebot es4. Lots of men and women now need to know the difference between ninebot es2 vs es4. In contrast to the ES2 version, ES4 comes with a higher top rate of 5 more km/h, a lot additional mileage from 1 battery charge -- by 15 kilometers, additional maximum electricity by 200 W, a possible rise angle by 5 degrees. And course, thanks to an even capacious battery, ES4 significantly greater than just a half kilograms weightier.

Are They Really Good for Commuting?

Inside my opinion, entirely. Electric-scooters have many benefits! They have a

Slender design and style and so are packed with features that make for a worry-free ride

Any surface.

Benefits of All Electric Scooters

A Excellent Alternate to gas-fueled bikes

They truly are cheap in price, what's more, that you never need gas to journey them since they operate on battery. Environmentally conscious? Electric Scooters certainly are a fantastic choice.

Permit prerequisites

Electric scooters aren't super-fast. With medium rates, they truly have been easy to get a grip on. Which is the reason why they don't really expect a license for ride.

Compactness

As a result of these slim style, electric scooters are all suitable to journey in visitors. Whether there really are any troubles with the motor, chain or bicycle, they are easily fixed at a closeby garage.

Safety

Electric scooters possess lots of security functions. From the comfort of hand operated immersion control to easily available rare-wheel brakes. More than a few of these possess taillights too.

Straightforward to Keep

Electric scooters are simple to keep, because of this sturdy material they are made with. Their layout is not as challenging being acar -- you only have 3 leading parts to take into account and so they have been the engine, the battery life and the controller. TheScooterGuide could be your optimal/optimally place to choosing the terrific advice in regards to the gap among segway es2 vs es4.

Parking relaxation

As they are so compact, discovering parking is quite simple. Maybe not exactly that, in the event you really don't need to park it to the street, but you could also take it with you to regions.

Price

Electric motor scooters have been budget-friendly and are available at various price details.

Environmentally friendly

It is not a surprise this will emerge first as electric scooters were designed together using the surroundings in mind. With all the growing cases of international warming and climate change there's been an even more significant point to embrace ecological friendly services and products and also the electric scooter has really been a terrific thought. Automobiles as means of transportation supply gases which add to pollution. Electric scooter transportation will help in decreasing carbon emissions and is still an eco friendly way of transport.

Less traffic

Most electric scooters are portable. If your scooter breaks or runs from charge its simple to carryout. Many are foldable, which usually means you may certainly put 1 from the back of your car, or carry it on people transportation.

They are Light

Electric scooters have been budget-friendly and can be purchased at various price points.

No permit required

Electric scooters are easy to use. You don't need to go through a driving college to acquire a license because it's maybe not a requirement so for you to have you. This also helps you to save cost since you do not need to often renew a license and pay for insurancecoverage.

No noise pollution

Electric motor scooters are extremely silent. Our streets are filled with loud vehicles which are a nuisance to lots of men and women. Electric scooters help to reduce this noise contamination on our roads.

Functional everywhere

Electric motor scooters are available just about everywhere and are a superb option for commuters who need to traveling a short distance immediately. You will find a few places a car cannot move but the scooter can. With a scooter its own easier to choose short cut routes and help you save time. Various studies have shown that an electric scooter could cause one to your destination over 20% quicker than a typical bicycle bike.

Grey's Anatomy: Back in the Saddle (16x02)

Lots of stuff going on, as always!

Cons:

Someone hitting Maggie's car with a scooter and then nearly dying and then Owen accidentally shocking Tom in the balls was all... a lot of weirdness. This plot thread was about people being torn up and conflicted about my least favorite romance stories in the show. Maggie is pissed at Jackson for an insensitive social media post about how he's "free" now. And Owen and Tom are having a pissing contest over Teddy, who was conspicuous by her absence this week. You all know I'm team Tom Koracick, and I actually don't mind that he's being a bit of a dick right now. The guy has feelings and he's having trouble processing them. But watching him and Owen have this fight was just... so uninteresting to me. And now Tom is getting a restraining order against Owen? I'm annoyed because the writing and the framing here are meant to make Owen the reasonable one, and Tom the bitter crazy one. But Owen sucks. Yeah, Tom, is acting like a dick, but Owen sucks. I'm just so annoyed.

Maggie's rant to her patient's girlfriend about moving on from a bad relationship was just so annoying. Once again, Maggie makes every little thing about her. Her and Jackson somewhat smooth things over later in the elevator, but Maggie is still feeling mighty bitter. It's just... I don't like either of them when they're with each other. I need them to step back and have other story-lines with other characters for a while, please.

Bailey is trying to get the interns up to scratch and basically fast-track some of the less experienced doctors, since she's now missing Meredith, Alex, and Richard. The second that she told Helm that she could do a surgery, instead of DeLuca, I felt like I could recite the rest of the plot without trying. Helm does a good job at first, while DeLuca assists, feeling jilted. And then Helm messes up and freaks out, and DeLuca swoops in to save the day. And then DeLuca accuses Bailey of not letting him do the surgery because of his relationship with Meredith. You know, I like the idea of Bailey struggling with her feelings over what Meredith has done. But how many times are we going to watch someone have a freak-out during surgery on this show? It just feels so... performative, at this point.

Pros:

I love the idea of Meredith starting an impromptu clinic during her community service, and how she's using her power and privilege for good. There's a great deal of hubris here as well, of course, as she is so confident that she'll be able to avoid the worst of the consequences. It's brave and noble and all that, but Andrew isn't wrong to remind her that she has kids and a life and a career of her own to think about. This could be a really interesting thread to pull in the coming weeks. I doubt Meredith will lose her medical license at the end of all of this, but that doesn't mean it will be smooth sailing along the way.

We haven't seen a lot from Schmitt in these first two episodes, but here we do see him stealing medical supplies to bring to Meredith for her make-shift clinic. I like that he does a good thing, then gets worried about it - he's a Gryffindor. Brave, sure, but scared all of the time, too. I also liked Jackson being so casual about lying to cover for Schmitt, should it become necessary. That speaks to Jackson's privilege, too.

Like I said, I like the idea of Bailey struggling with her new reality. So much of her safety net has been taken from her, and she's left a bit uncertain and in the lurch. But with a pep talk from Ben, she gets back on the horse in no time. It remains to be seen how she's going to deal with DeLuca's insubordination, or Helm's mistake. She also has Tom Koracick lording his power over the other doctors, and for the first time in her career she can't turn to Richard for help.

Speaking of Richard, I am in love with his and Alex's story. They're going to fix this hospital up real good! I am so all about it! We are still in early stages, but we see here how hectic and bad the hospital is right now. Alex and Richard are both somewhat grumpy to be working there, especially Richard. But Alex gives him a pep talk. This place is falling down, but they have a real opportunity to make a change for the better. I love that, and can't wait to see how it goes.

Jo is back and better than ever! I love that Alex and Bailey fight over her, and that she leverages the offer from her husband in order to get a better offer from Bailey. That's such amazing stone-cold strategy right there. Jo was worried that upon her return, everyone was going to be treating her with kid gloves because of her mental health. But instead, these people know her. They know she's brilliant. And after everything Bailey has gone through with her own mental health challenges, she understands that needing some time off to work on yourself is no reason to stifle someone's potential.

Finally, Amelia and Link. I was so annoyed and disappointed about Amelia being pregnant at the end of last week's episode, and now I'm having to eat my words a bit. First of all, there's no drama about who the father is. It's Link's. Second of all, they are kind of very cute? And would probably make wonderful parents? I don't know. I love how this plot thread navigated Amelia's choice. Link still had a say and was allowed to feel feelings, and he did the exact right thing, telling Amelia he would be a father to their kid if she decided she wanted to keep the baby, and would drive her to the appointment if she decided to have an abortion.

I am oddly on board with all of this. It was nice to see Amelia talk about her feelings, process everything, and see Link do the same. As a bonus, we got to see Link talk things over with Jo, which means we're starting to build a bit of that relationship that we've heard so much about, but haven't really seen a lot on the show.

That's where I'll stop for now. This show is always reliable, because even if certain characters or subplots are annoying me, there are always others to grab my interest!

7.5/10

Things That Are Broken

Found some old robot shipping from Transformers: Cybertron era on my hard drive and posted it up. Contains robot makeouts but doesn’t go over PG-13 by whatever metrics we’re measuring robot sex.

Original Synopsis: There are a lot of things Crumplezone doesn’t understand, and most of them involve Ransack. Contains slash and het, but no spoilers.

Ransack could taste dust and cheap motor oil on Rallygate's neck. His thin glossa found small pockets of congealed grease, thinned by the heat of what was a sizzling day even by Velocitron standards, that came off with a single lick as Ransack worked his way up to his girlfriend’s jawline and discreetly spit the black glop over her shoulder. Rallygate moaned softly, her small orange fingers wandering over Ransack’s breastplate. The dim light from the one window let in just enough light to illuminate the dirt and clutter of their love nest of the moment, a storage room with graffiti on the walls and a pair of mechs on the grimy floor in the most compromising of positions. Ransack gasped as the scooter femme started working on his front axel, pulling her down and kissing her as she giggled.

Rallygate was smooth, not as clean or polished as some of the fancier femmes, but she took care of herself. Her paint job was light green and bright orange, although it had been light purple less than a month ago before pastels went out of fashion. Not that Ransack cared about fashion, but it was always good to have a femme who cared about her appearance as long as she didn’t care that Ransack himself rarely got a full cleaning more than twice a year.

And on top of being reasonably good-looking, Rallygate was a short, curvy femme who was currently lying on top of him and running her fingers over his back with her lips against his chest and you couldn't really ask for more, could you?

Crumplezone peered through the crack in the wall, watching as the pair stroked and moaned, their arms and legs twining together in an odd combination of clashing colors. He wasn't quite sure what was going on the other side of his peephole, or why he felt that odd twinge at seeing them together like that. It was like the twinge he got when Rallygate tweaked Ransack's wheel or kissed him, but more so. Crumplezone had never felt the twinge before they’d parked themselves in the small city of Rust Valley for a few months and Ransack had started dating Rallygate. After that, he’d had it almost every time Ransack looked at her. And he didn’t like it.

Rallygate was a nice enough scooter, as city-bots went. She worked the counter at the general store and while she was a little on the ditzy side, she lacked the typical arrogant attitude of the mechs who lived in the more populated areas. In general Rallygate was pretty good to Crumplezone, giving him tools and such to play with when he and Ransack came in to visit. If she ever made fun of his lack of intelligence (and lots of people did that to him when they thought he couldn’t tell they were laughing at him, not with him), she had the courtesy to do it when he couldn’t hear it. Most of the time, Crumplezone liked her. And Ransack thought she was great, so she couldn't be that bad.

So why did he sometimes feel like breaking Rallygate in half with his bare hands and throwing her off a high bridge, not necessarily in that order? Crumplezone didn't quite know, nor did he know why the urge was the strongest when they went in the back room and started stroking each other, not knowing about the hole in the wall next to the shelves of paint cans. He didn't like the feeling, because he liked Rallygate all the other times when she wasn't in the back room or touching Ransack. Crumplezone was usually a pretty peaceful mech when he didn’t have reason to slam someone into the wall at speeds matched only by large trains. And besides his lack of violent tendencies, it might make Ransack upset, and Crumplezone hated it when his friend yelled at him.

Ransack and Rallygate were being louder now and talking about Primus, which meant they were almost done. Crumplezone quickly went out into the main part of the shop, where he sat down and started stacking the oil cans into interesting patterns. They’d be out soon enough, and Crumplezone didn’t want to be caught watching them. He had a feeling that the stroking wasn’t something that you were supposed to look at when it wasn’t you doing the stroking.

In the storage room, Ransack panted to cool his systems off as Rallygate collapsed on top of him, the faint light giving her heated body a dim, dingy glow. This was the good thing about short, curvy femmes. They wouldn't crush you when they were on top. And they were also more interested in a mech or femme that wouldn’t crush them should they choose to change positions, which made Ransack more appealing to them then he would be to taller transformers. For some reason, a motorcycle just wasn’t as attractive to most people as a larger mech with an extra pair of wheels. The world was cruel that way.

"Ransack?" asked Rallygate as she stroked the brim of his helmet, smiling shyly in that way she always did that drove Ransack absolutely nuts. Maybe she wasn’t skinny or tall like the people you normally saw in compromising positions on the datapads found on the top shelf of the periodical rack with titles like “Hot Wheels”, but she was a great gal and she knew how to use her hands in more ways than one. Ransack was pretty damn lucky to have someone like her around to be with on hot days and cold nights.

"Yeah, Rally?" the cycle replied torpidly, grinning back at her and putting his hands behind his head. His happy afterglow haze was brutally shattered a moment later by the five words no mech or femme needs to hear right after swapping kisses and paint with their girlfriend.

"Baby, we need to talk."

Ransack came stomping out the door ten minutes later, slamming it behind him as he stalked into the front of the shop. "Fine! There's plenty of scooters out there for me!" Crumplezone's elegant palace of polish tins, complete with a racetrack made of a fanbelt and a hot tub symbolized by a blue shammy cloth, collapsed as Ransack tugged on his arm with the insistence of a bulldog and the effectiveness of a chihuahua.

Crumplezone mourned the loss of his castle for all of one second before looking up with confusion in his large blue optics. "Ransack, what’s going on?" This didn't make sense; Ransack was usually very happy after the stroking. Maybe something had gone wrong this time.

Ransack tugged harder and Crumplezone obligingly got to his feet, "C’mon, CZ. We're leaving this dump."

Crumplezone allowed himself to be towed out the door by the angry cycle, assuming Ransack would explain it all later. Rallygate poked her head out the door as they left, a look of worry on her face. Crumplezone felt a mild flare of anger at the femme; why, he wasn’t sure. Somehow this was all her fault.

"Ransack, baby,” she pleaded, reaching out to him. “Don’t go-"

Ransack spun and pointed an accusing finger at her, his emerald optics flaring with a rage Crumplezone hadn’t seen since…well, actually Crumplezone had never seen him look like that. It was scary.

"Don't ‘baby’ me, you piece of slag!" he shouted, transforming and speeding off with Crumplezone close behind and still very confused.

Ransack went fast, very fast, the way he did when he was upset. Crumplezone easily kept up with him, but said nothing, letting Ransack deal with whatever it was in his own fashion. The rust-orange mountains that gave the city its name rushed past in a craggy blur as Ransack pushed himself as hard as he could, trying to burn the anger and pain out of his systems. He dodged the rocks on the road without even noticing them, his body acting mostly by reflex now.

Crumplezone made sure to stay a couple yards behind his friend, effortlessly crushing most of the rocks under his heavy wheels and rolling over the largest ones with quick jolts. They were leaving the city limits now and heading out of the valley, and judging by Ransack’s current mood they wouldn’t be back for a while.

Ransack stopped under an underpass, transforming and sitting down heavily. Crumplezone stopped a few feet ahead, skidded, and then backed up to meet the motorcycle. He also transformed and sat quietly beside him.

Ransack put his head in his hands, the burning rage rushing out of him like oil from a burst pipeline. "Where'd I screw up, CZ?" he groaned. “We were getting on so well.”

Crumplezone sat beside him and patted his back. He didn't like to see Ransack sad, which was why he'd never hurt Rallygate no matter how much he felt like catching her alone sometime and blasting her off the face of the planet.

"What happened?" Crumplezone asked, more trying to comfort his partner than actually figure out what was going on. Odds were that it was probably above him, like a lot of things Ransack did.

Ransack raised his head to look at Crumplezone, a mournful expression on his face. “Piece of…she broke up with me, CZ. Probably for some hot rod or other, femmes always go for the cars." He contemplated the ground again, muttering various curses directed at Rallygate and scooters in general.

“Oh," said Crumplezone, unsure of what that meant. Ransack didn't look broken, unless you counted the anguish in his face and voice that made it seem as if some part of his internal wiring had snapped, giving him an injury that he couldn’t get at without the help of a medic. But Crumplezone could tell that it wasn’t that. Ransack always whined when something like that happened until Crumplezone fixed him.

"Maybe you should stay away from femmes if they're gonna break you for hot rods." He patted Ransack's back more, not quite noticing how with every pat his hand stayed there longer and longer.

“Can't help it, CZ. I'm a sucker for curvy types." Ransack prodded a small rock with his foot, then kicked it away. "Stupid scooter."

"Stupid scooter," Crumplezone echoed, with feeling. So Rallygate had broken Ransack’s happiness, that was it. Now that sort of damage, Crumplezone was familiar with. He got that every time he screwed something up so badly that Ransack ranted for a full five minutes about how stupid he was, or when people called him a dimwit halfclocked clunker. It was internal damage, true, but you couldn’t really fix it with an arc welder. It had to fix itself.

Crumplezone gave up patting and left his hand to sit lightly on Ransack's back. Ransack shrugged and moved a little closer to the large secure green thing that wouldn't ever go breaking up with him for a hot rod. CZ, he could rely on to cover his back. CZ, he could trust.

Funny, how now that Ransack was really mad at Rallygate, Crumplezone didn’t feel like hurting her. What replaced that urge was an odd desire to pull Ransack into his lap and just hold him in his big arms until the motorcycle felt better and his happiness was fixed by his self-repair systems. He couldn’t, of course; Ransack had a strict “no hugging” rule that apparently Rallygate was no longer exempt from. He settled for curling his arm around Ransack as the smaller mech continued to rant about life in general,

Mine, thought Crumplezone. And he wasn't quite sure why.

Days off

On Friday so yesterday I took a day off - and I had not done that in so so so long. Especially this past week I was bombarded with emails and meetings. With all of my side gigs I felt exhausted. I simply did not have any breaks to breathe. Sure, I may have brought this on myself but I wanted to excel in my career and newfound passion. So it was a tough week to say the least. So on Friday I saw Ellie and we spent the whole day having fun! I spent a lot of money but honestly it was worth it regardless. I rode on my first lime scooter, went to my first mirror maze which was insanely trippy af, and tried a new sushi and ice cream place ( separate of course). I bought fudge and we got to spend time at salesforce park. We were also able to paint as well! I just thought of an idea - what if I got into painting and kinda made a wall to track my progress and of course memories with friends. So that would be nice. In any case I enjoyed walking around and enjoying SF and today we went to brunch and tried another ic cream place and with Sarah as well and then we went to Dolores park. It was great to catch up and really enjoy each other’s company. My feet are bruised from walking but it was worth it. I also didn’t realize how being active one day would affect me the next few days. And today I helped Sahiba pack and then we also ran some errands and she made me blueberry cobbler and I did come late but honestly it doesn’t matter. I feel as if my family will always be frustrated but what can they do? In any case today I learned to set boundaries and told my mother that I was not immediately going to handle the tasks she assigned me during my time with friends. There are too many times where I have had to do that and also we miscommunication today where I refunded the wrong transfer and I ended up losing money when I fixed the mistake and I was just so upset. I was so upset at how long running errands bc of the mixup and I just felt so bad that it was barely working out. I felt ashamed that I had to take care of this all today and overall I realize that I need to be kinder to myself. I extend the same patience and kindness to my friends and I feel guilty when they inevitably do that for me as if I am not deserving of it. I feel like I can bring so much baggage with me and I’m almost ashamed of my circumstances- the mom who is always asking for so much and yet demanded I come home at 6:40 when it was still bright!!! The sun was still out. I don’t even understand why she treats me this way. I ended up getting home at 8:40 so they will just have to deal with it. I work 5 jobs essentially and I am a good kid who sometimes stays out late but overall does her ultimate best to make sure everything goes well. Hell they got me aggressively texting that idiot who scammed my mom into a car loan. I cover for everyone’s bullshit when I can and try it patch up their mistakes and yet I don’t feel like I can turn to anyone for help for my own mistakes whether it be money problems or adult relationships or anything that I may need help with. I constantly feel like I cannot reach for help bc I am helping everyone else and yet... I stood up for myself today and I also did not see white hot boiling rage when I called my mom today. I just explained what happened and also let her figure it out. So anyways I’m sure my balance has increased by so much but it is what it is. I made memories - I had fun and overall I enjoyed myself! InshAllah I continue making more memories like this as the weather gets better and better InshAllah. What a time to be alive!

Yo so I’m gonna rant a little about the murder mystery dinner theater show I did over the weekend because I’m still in Post-Show Mode, which means that this is all I’ll be talking about for at least a week, if not more, because I miss the show and don’t want it to be over Brace yourself

So the show is called Final Cut and the story is that all the characters are B-list Hollywood stars (3 actors, a director, a casting director, and a makeup artist) and the audience is a bunch of potential backers for the director’s new movie, in which all of the characters are involved. Then murder happens and one of the actors takes it upon himself to solve the case before anyone calls the police, since being witnesses/accessories to a murder would not be good for the careers of anyone present.

It occurs to me that I’m gonna be using names a lot and that you know precisely none of these people and presumably none of these characters so quick key: Me = Cherri Pitt (ba-dum-tss) = Slightly desperate actress new to Hollywood, hellbent on keeping Eddie in line and keeping the lead role, dating Rock because he has connections, pretending to be dumber than she is Nick = Rock Stud = Leading man opposite Cherri, dating Cherri, neither the brightest nor the humblest crayon in the box Jason = Eddie Cheek = Director of the movie, stole the script and claims to have written it himself, Douchebag of the Year (played by the sweetest human being on the planet--gotta love acting), murdered second Faith = Nova DeVoe = Second lead in the movie, One Diva to Rule Them All, known for stealing lead roles from other actresses, murdered first, Rock’s ex-wife and Eddie’s ex-lover, found Eddie and Cherri sealing the movie deal as it were Katherine = Billie Clubb (ba-dum-tss) = Casting director, head of a bankrupt management company, the real author of the script Eddie stole and SPOILER ALERT the killer, the script doesn’t say so but Katherine decided that Billie’s gay--it’ll become relevant later Shannah = Quinnie Winston = Eccentric makeup artist, works on all of Eddie’s movies because Eddie hit her with his car and arranged a deal with her where he’d employ her if she didn’t take him to court, it’s revealed about halfway through that she faked the car accident and that she’s done it before and been arrested for fraud Savannah = director of the show = One of the most amazing people alive

It was a lot of firsts for me, including my first murder mystery dinner theater, and every second of it was So Much Fun

We only had two weeks of rehearsal, and even though there were some bumps along the way (missing people for several rehearsals due to unavoidable schedule schtuff; being told two days before our dress rehearsal that we couldn’t actually pull costumes from the costume closet, etc.), those bumps resulted in really fun things (one night we were missing Faith, Nick, and Jason--half our cast--so Shannah, Katherine, and I did character work with Savannah for nearly three hours, just talking through our characters’ backstories and attitudes toward various things and people and backgrounds with each of the other characters, which was really fun and resulted in us doing the same thing the next day with Faith, Nick, and Jason, which was even more fun, because Faith and Jason did the whole thing in character like they were on a talk show, and their characters are giant divas/asshats, so it was hilarious. Because of the Costume Veto, we had/got to go thrift shopping for our costumes, and Nick, Jason, Shannah, and I all went together, which was super-fun. We talked and joked and it felt really nice to become closer to these people who are all so sweet and so much cooler than me. Jason found a scooter, wheeled around on it like a giant, adorable child, then proceeded to buy it for himself along with the tux he needed for the show. I was looking for a red dress, since my character’s name is Cherri and it Works, and we couldn’t find one that fit that day, so the next day, Jason drove me to another thrift shop and we found a perfect dress nearly straight away and spent the next half-hour or so just browsing the store and chatting and if he weren’t in the most adorable relationship I’ve ever seen with Nick, I’d have the Crush to End All Crushes on him, like the child I am. That being said, I have Friend Crushes on literally this entire cast and just about 90% of the theater department as a whole. Anyway)

Like I said, the show was a lot of firsts for me, and more firsts included the first time I’ve ever worn red lipstick, liquid eyeliner, or fake eyelashes (all very fun to play with but way too much effort to be worth wearing for anything other than theater). I had to have help putting on the eye makeup; otherwise, I would certainly have gone blind. But multiple times, I was told I looked really nice, which you better know I have internalized like there’s no tomorrow (compliment people, folks; you never know, you might just make their day/week/life/etc.). This was also my first role involving sex, bc I am a Smol Bean Child both inside and out. No sex happened during the show (see again the Smol Bean Child point), but it was a big part of my backstory and a big part of why I’m suspicious. It’s established that my character, Cherri, is new to Hollywood and has had so many failed auditions that when she auditioned for Eddie (played by Jason the Adorable) and he proposed a casting-couch deal, she agreed (don’t worry--she got evidence of it so she could blackmail him if he stepped out of line), and now she’s got her first lead role in a movie. Also, Cherri started dating her costar Rock (played by Nick the Tol) at the first readthrough for the movie, and that had really fun implications for our cast because 1) Nick is 6′4″ and I’m 5′2″ and Rock & Cherri were supposed to be all over each other all night and she was supposed to be hanging on his arm a lot of the time so for half the rehearsal process my hands were up by my face, then I got 4-inch heels (which were 3 sizes too big for me--ha!) and during the actual show they were closer to my sternum but it was still funny whenever I cuddled him because it was like “here let me nuzzle your elbow, Rock, dearest” and 2) Remember when I said that Jason and Nick are dating each other? They’re the Cutest Cute to Ever Cute and I will fight you on this I get diabetes every time I see them interact out of character but it was really fun to pretend to have slept with both of them when they’re dating each other irl. I think it was our mutual friend & castmate Jamie (a different Jamie than the one who will turn up later) who called it “living the dream” when I told her, and I was only half-kidding when I agreed (It doesn’t help my juvenile brain that Jason is bi, so me dating him is a “plausible” fantasy--dammit brain knock it off).

I’m really proud of all the character work I did, though, and I loved going really deep into my backstories with everyone and with myself (I have a 12-page Word document of stuff I came up with for Cherri and I could easily have done more if we’d had more than 2 weeks of rehearsal), and I loved the guided-improv style of the show (we had less of a script and more of a sequence of events, with really important Here’s-A-Clue lines being scripted, and in between big important “scenes” we mingled with the guests in character but we had so much character work done that it was less like improv, which terrifies me, and more like a real conversation, which terrifies me slightly less). We’d done so much character work that I felt like Cherri was for the most part a full-fledged human, whom I was temporarily inhabiting, rather than a character I was playing, which I’m told is what acting is supposed to be, and it was a blast. There were hiccups, of course--improv’s not my strong suit, and I did sort of procrastinate on memorizing the scripted lines I did have--but it was all still super fun, and the show went really well! 

More miscellaneous memories:

-The time Faith was helping me fix my hair and just looked me in the face and said “Cali, you’re so pretty” and I Melted -The few times people would tell me I looked great in Cherri’s dress (you better know I internalized that shit) -The lift that wasn’t (at the end of the show, after the killer is revealed and apprehended, I’m supposed to leap into Rock’s arms and proclaim him my hero. Remember, Rock is 6′4″, I’m 5′2″, and I’m in a floor-length, close-to-the-legs dress and 4-inch heels that are 3 sizes too big. That ain’t gonna work. So we changed it to a ballroom-dance lift where I’d be on his hip and he’d spin me around then put me back down instead of me being in his arms and kissing him the way the script says (cue sigh of relief because I’ve never kissed anyone before onstage or off and I didn’t want to subject poor Nick to what I’m sure would Not have been a Good Time). Then we tried it in costume and between me not being able to jump in the Hell Heels and Nick not being able to get a steady hold of me, we decided to just cut the lift altogether and just hug each other instead) -The stage fall that wasn’t (nearer the beginning of the show, a kerfuffle is heard offstage: Rock says, “What are you doing? No!” And screams and you hear an explosion and Rock throws himself into the room as though thrown back by the explosion. He pretend-dies and freaks us all out, then reveals that it was a prank and Eddie threatens to fire him for it. When we started rehearsals, poor Nick was understandably apprehensive about throwing himself onto the hard-wood (or whatever the heck that substance is) floor, since he’s so Tol and he says he wasn’t very good at stage falls in Movement (I refuse to believe there is anything this Angel is not good at, but I digress). So we ended up having him crawl onstage as though mortally wounded, which we decided was funnier anyway, since it took so long and was exactly the kind of extra Nick had decided Rock was) -The dumb names that our audience members wrote on the name cards we gave them and with which we had to address them all night (including but not limited to Captain Schmitty Jones, Two-Tap Shakur, Me No, Schnitzel, and Dr. Dixmal--I had fun appealing to “Dr. Dixmal” when Nova died; I looked right at him and said, “You’re a doctor! Do something!” And he Panicked. “Me No” about died laughing.)   >“Me No” later told me that his name came from when everyone was mingling around before the plot really started and Eddie had come up to him and said, “I like your shirt; who made it?” He responded, “Me,” because he had in fact made it himself, and Eddie went, “What’s Me’s last name?” Jamie (“Me No’s” real name) just looked at him and went, “No...” Eddie walked away, muttering “Me No...” And Jamie put it on his name card and that was that. -The audience’s investment in the show and in messing with us   >They had really vocal reactions to both of the deaths and to everything else.   >I was asked point-blank what was in my purse multiple times during the ten-minute window where there was nothing in it but Cherri didn’t know there was nothing in it, so I panicked and said “just lady things,” and that became a meme for the rest of the night, including when we were lined up along the front for questioning and it was brought up again and I kept insisting it was “just lady things” and Jamie (“Me No”) said “It’s okay, honey, we’ve all seen a tampon before” and started a chant of “Lady things! Lady things! Lady things!” Reacting to that in character was an Adventure.   >Jason’s sister and cousin gave all the characters nicknames, which we didn’t discover until the killer was revealed and Jason’s sister shouted, “Billy Ray Cyrus, no!” (I asked them later what my nickname was and they admitted to calling me Cherri Armpit--I expect nothing less)   >When Eddie died, he had the knife that killed him in his hand (he was stabbed in the back, though; clearly homicide) and Rock took it and later used it to threaten Billie when she was revealed as the killer. He pulled it on her and Jamie shouted “Kill her!” Billie took the knife from Rock and threatened him with it while she monologued and Jamie shouted “Kill him!”   >One person called me over while we mingled to ask what my favorite color was (I said red, because my name is Cherri and it Works) and why my dress was red and why I had “lady things” in my purse (“for...I dunno...blood??”).   >A few people asked what was on my recorder after I’d semi-privately threatened Eddie with it and after he’d stolen it from my purse but before I was scripted to reveal it to everyone, so I had to dodge the question and when they asked if I could play it for them, I ended up saying it depended on how Eddie behaved and walking away as mysteriously as I could before they could ask any more questions.   >There were a few instances during the mingling sessions where Billie called me over to insist that I could do better than Rock and several audience members overheard and agreed with her (it pained both me and Cherri to have to defend Rock).   >When Eddie died, he had my recorder in his hand and it was scripted that I go straight for it, and when I did, Jamie yelled at me, “He’s dead, girl!”   >He also challenged Rock to spell motive when Rock was saying he was going to figure out everyone’s motives for killing Nova and Eddie, and Rock stood there for a second before starting, “E...” and I ended up having to feed it to him.   >During one of the mingling sessions, Rock was talking about how smart he was, and to prove it, he said, “Did you know that there are actually two Himalayas? Yeah. One’s in Africa and one’s in Europe.” Eddie overheard him and mocked him for it, and it came back later and Jamie overheard and yelled, “That’s not even a little bit true!” I ended up having to defend Rock again, leading to me looking Eddie in the eyes and saying, “If there’s only one, why is it called the Himalayas?” Cherri was screaming inside her head; she graduated magna cum laude from Bryn Mawr, and this is what she’s doing?    >My friend Gaston came to watch our dress rehearsal, because we needed humans on whom to practice, and I need you to understand before I tell this story that Gaston is Good and Pure and Must Be Protected. When Nova died, it was revealed that she’d prepared an acceptance speech for when Eddie took the lead role from me and gave it to her, and Quinnie had to read it out loud (it was a Cleverly Disguised summary of everyone’s motives to kill her), and it hammered home just how much of a diva she was. So during the subsequent mingling session, I went over to Gaston and said, “I’m surprised she didn’t write anything about how humble she was” (I was supposed to let how smart I really was show upon occasion so that audience members would suspect me). Gaston the Good and Pure responded, “Well, I’m sure she’s humble wherever she is now.”   >There’s a scene where I lose my recorder and accuse Eddie of stealing it because he knew it would get him blacklisted if I played it for anyone, and Rock comes up and asks me what’s wrong, and I’m supposed to say, “I’ll tell you what’s wrong, Rock. Eddie promised me the female lead if I, well...if I...you know...well, let’s just say that he’s a strong advocate of the casting couch,” and I keep going. But in those pauses on Saturday, our dear friend Jamie took the opportunity to interject, “It’s okay; you can say blowjob.” This guy made it really hard to stay in character sometimes, let me tell you.   >So when Eddie died, he had a blood pack that was supposed to be in his mouth but was too big for him to reasonably conceal it and still be able to bite down on it, so he held it in his hand and broke it with his hand while coughing to make it look like he was coughing up blood. For both the dress rehearsal and the performance, Jason left that blood pack on the floor with the knife that killed him, which he had also been holding, when Nick and Shannah picked him up and carried his “body” offstage. At the dress rehearsal, our test audience was two people and neither of them said anything about the blood pack, but Rock pointed it out and asked, “Is that a used condom? Such a pervert.” (Our blood packs were indeed condoms filled with stage blood and Scotch-taped shut.) For the performance, while Rock and Quinnie were carrying Eddie away, several people asked, “You’re just gonna leave the knife there?” before Rock was supposed to pick it up, and “Captain Schmitty Jones” asked what the blood pack was, to which Rock responded, “It looks like a used condom. Eddie was always a pervert.” The whole room exploded (led by--you guessed it--Jamie), to the point where I almost didn’t hear Billie comment, “Well, I wouldn’t know.” (See it’s funny because she’s gay and therefore doesn’t use condoms--humor)   >After the remaining suspects were lined up and questioned, we asked everyone to write down who they thought was the killer and why, and then before revealing who the killer was, we went over the solutions so we could give prizes for the most and least correct ones. Three separate people submitted that Billie killed Nova and Eddie because she was in love with me (Katherine had decided that Billie was gay, but hadn’t outright told anyone, because the show was supposed to take place in the 1950s), so snaps to Katherine for Quality Acting and letting her character work shine through.   >One person submitted the solution that I had thought was correct when I first read the play: Quinnie killed Nova because Nova knew about Quinnie’s habit of jumping in front of cars and suing the drivers, and Cherri killed Eddie because he had broken his promise to her and given the lead to Nova and then to a random audience member after Nova’s death (and also I decided that it would have been because she hardcore hates Eddie because he’s a scumbag and she hates that she stooped to the casting-couch level and just Angst) -General fun with my fellow actors   >One rehearsal, we didn’t have Katherine, so Jason stood in for her when we had to run over the end of the show, when and after Billie is revealed as the killer. This scene includes Billie being shoved into a chair, forced into handcuffs, and screaming and kicking in frustration after she’s caught. The sounds and facial expressions Jason made were generally adorable and hilarious (he has one sound in particular that can only be written down as “oh!” but is So Much Cuter and that’s the sound he made when Nick shoved him into the chair it was great)   >The script says that Cherri and Rock are very lovey-dovey with each other almost at all times, and that was an adventure at first because Nick is really only lovey-dovey with Jason and I’ve never had an opportunity to be lovey-dovey with anyone so I Don’t Know How, but as the rehearsals continued, we got more comfortable with cuddling each other, and it got to the point where he booped my nose of his own accord and it was Great (is this what human affection feels like)   >When we entered, we all had a quick introductory spiel to give, and in Rock’s, he mentions that he was the lead on a TV show that was cancelled after 6 episodes. The show was called Sky Fling, Pilot PI, and Nick decided to make it a running gag that Rock could never say it right, even though he was the lead in the damn thing. So I made it a running gag that every time Rock stumbled on it, Cherri would say quietly, “Sky Fling, Pilot PI, dear.” To which Nick/Rock responded by patting me on the head and telling anyone who was listening, “She’s so cute when she tries.” And like it was a dick move for Rock, and Cherri hated it, and I’m not usually a fan of being patted on the head (which has actually happened to me before, very condescendingly, and I hated it), but I kinda liked it when Nick/Rock did it??   >Our introductory spiels weren’t in the script; we had to come up with them, and when I improvised mine the first time we did it, it was a bit of a trainwreck, so that night after rehearsal I wrote a speech up and sent it to the director for editing and she said it was great and didn’t need to be edited, so that was Validating as Heck   >Backstory: there’s a scene before Nova’s death when she says one too many rude things about me and I run up and shove her and say, “I heard the horrible things you said about me!” Then she proceeds to continue to be a terrible human being and says loudly enough for the whole room to hear, “We could have even been friends if I hadn’t found you with Eddie in my bed.” I lose it and try to strangle her, shouting, “Take it back!” because this is the first time it’s revealed for the whole audience to hear that I slept with Eddie (this is after I confront him with the recorder, but that’s quiet and only implies that we slept together). So, during one of the last rehearsals, while Rock is monologuing about how Nova’s body had red marks on her neck, so she must have been strangled, I felt someone’s eyes on me and found Billie staring pointedly at me, which was legitimately terrifying, so of course we had to put it into the actual show.   >During the dress rehearsal on Friday, I had a real live good improv moment! During one of our mingling sessions, Billie got fed up with me and said that I was nothing special, because there had been a thousand new, desperate actresses to whom Eddie had given the casting-couch deal. She said to me, “There are a thousand Cherri Pitts out there.” Without even thinking, I innocently tilted my head and said, “No, I’m the only one called Cherri Pitt.” Savannah told me afterward that she had had to physically restrain herself from cackling when I’d said that, so that felt really good.   >The performance on Saturday night was the first time we’d run the killer reveal with actual (plastic) handcuffs, and it turned out to be an adventure. Quinnie spent at least a whole minute, if not longer, trying to get one of Billie’s hands cuffed, and then was struggling so hard with the other hand that Rock had to help her (I desperately wanted to help, but I was supposed to stay on the other end of the room so I could run to Rock all dramatic-and-romantic-like after Billie was cuffed), and when they finally got her cuffed, there was enough time for the audience to applaud just a little, and then Billie tried resisting and yanked herself right out of the cuffs, so I gave up on my blocking and went over there and ended up just hovering uselessly while Quinnie just held Billie in place while Rock gave his triumphant monologue, ending with “Who’s the moron now, Billie Clubb?” Our dear friend Jamie chimed in with “Still you, dude.” I ended up only crossing a couple of feet to declare Rock my hero instead of the whole room. Dramatic.   >So, by now you know that the recorder on which I recorded Eddie’s arrangement with me is pretty dang important to the plot. Well, for the whole rehearsal process, I’d been using my phone as a stand-in for it, assuming we’d have one in the prop closet which we could pull and I would use and it would be great. Not so--the closest thing the prop closet had to a cassette recorder was this big-ass boombox that must have been two feet across and weighed as much as a small dog. For the performance itself, Faith lent me a cassette player she had, and that fit in my purse and it was fine, but for the dress rehearsal, I got to run and get this behemoth for my big reveal for Eddie, and poor Jason had to drag it in with him when he died, and he had to pretend that Eddie hadn’t seen me recording us with it!   >In the ending scene, when it’s revealed that Billie is the killer, she takes the knife that she used to kill Eddie back from Rock and holds Rock at knifepoint while she monologues and explains that Nova’s death was an accident but she meant to kill Eddie 100% and why she didn’t care that Nova was dead and why she killed Eddie and yada yada yada. Then at the end of all that, Rock rushes her and forces her to stab him, and he “dies,” and it looks real and I rush to him and cry over his “body” while Quinnie tries to keep Billie from escaping, and it’s revealed that Rock isn’t really dead, there’s a callback to his first fake death, it’s great. But this onstage death-by-stabbing means that we need a retractable knife. The only retractable knife we have is at least a decade old and on its last leg. So in Billie and Rock’s struggle for the knife during the dress rehearsal, it breaks before Billie’s had the chance to stab the blood bag Rock’s got in his shirt pocket. This means that Billie, panicking a little bit, starts trying to punch his blood bag open before giving up and sprinting off and the show continues as normally as it can. During the actual performance, we used another fake knife which wasn’t retractable, since the retractable one broke, and I couldn’t see whether or not Rock’s blood bag had broken properly because of where I was standing, so just to be sure, when I threw myself onto his body, I made sure to hit the blood bag. This was when I discovered that it had in fact broken and sprayed blood all over Rock just like it had been supposed to do. So I had fake blood on my dress and hands and arms and in my hair, and when I threw myself onto Nick, I heard the poor guy go “oof,” because he wasn’t expecting me to hurl myself on him with that much force. Sorry, Nick.   >So, it’s been established that Eddie, Douchebag Director of the Year, was played by Jason, the Sweetest and Purest Human Being to Ever Grace the Planet. One of the notes he got from Savannah on Friday after the dress rehearsal was to be even sleazier and grosser than ever before for the performance, because when he died, she hadn’t felt like “Good, Eddie’s dead;” she’d gone “Awh, Jason died.” So on Saturday, while we were waiting for people to show up and starting to get into character and all that, this precious bean came up to me and asked in the politest manner you could possibly ask this question if he could slap my ass just to show how sleazy and gross Eddie is. This precious ray of sunshine and purity couldn’t even say the words “slap your [ass/butt/whatever he says, idk];” he had to mime it and say, “you know...” Now, the most intimate thing I’ve ever done with anyone is a Congratulations-On-Doing-Well-In-Your-Show Hug, so I panicked a little bit on the inside, but what I told him was, “It’ll make both Cherri and me really uncomfortable, but it’s 100% in character for Eddie, so yes. Go for it.” He looked unsure because I’d said that it’d make me uncomfortable (the BEAN), but I reassured him that I’d given him permission, so it was okay, and we agreed that he’d do it. So I was on tenderhooks the whole show waiting for that to happen, and then the grossest thing he did the whole show was get really close to me and tell me I looked “ravishing” (which still had my brain going, “Well, mark me down as scared and horny!”) and hug me mock-protectively when Nova called me “tainted goods” (I wasn’t expecting that, and neither was Cherri, and oh boy was it startling). I asked him about the absent ass-slap after the show, and he told me what had happened: there’s a bit where Eddie’s gone for a few minutes and right when we start to wonder where he is, he comes back in with women’s lingerie on over his shirt and pants, and he explains that he wanted to try it because he saw Ed Wood, Jr. do it and because it helps him relax, but he assures the audience that he’s still “all man, all right.” He had been getting closer and closer to me during this bit, and I had walked away to give him room and because I felt like that’s what Cherri would have done, since, you know, she’s slept with this sleazeball and hardcore regrets it and would rather not be closer to him than necessary. Jason told me that he was getting closer to me so that he could slap my ass on the words “all man, all right,” and I had walked away. So that happened.   >Cherri’s supposed to be pretending to be dumb the whole show, with little bits of how smart she really is leaking through at key points, and I was kind of struggling with the dumb act for a while, especially with physicality and voice (bc my voice is v low & I naturally stand up hecka straight, and neither of those things is true for Cherri’s dumb act), but then I talked with the director about just what kind of voice she wanted from me and as she demoed it my brain went MARY KATE WILES AS ANNABEL LEE, so I gave her my Annabel impression and she said it worked great so Cherri’s dumb act was basically Annabel Lee but a little dumber and on the one hand I’m so sorry, MK, that I used Annabel as my basis for a dumb character, but in her defense she’s only pretending to be dumb, and also I got lots of compliments and was told it worked well, so I’m proud of myself and v excited   >On a related note, while I was getting the note that I needed to be dumber, the director told me straight to my face that I naturally walk “very strong and tall, leading with [my] chest,” and like, it wasn’t explicitly a compliment, but it still felt really nice to know that this was a thing she’d noticed about me, and I considered it a good thing (ofc when I’m not playing a character who’s not supposed to do that), and it’s really nice when people tell you things they notice/think about you. idk   >After the show, it was announced that we’re hoping to make the murder mystery dinner theater an annual thing, which is super-exciting because I freaking adore this and wanna do it more (although at this moment I’m still in post-show mode and specifically want to do this show with this cast and director again)   >There was a lot of just chatting with the folks in the cast like actual friends, which was super-fun and still feels really special to me because Socialization Is Not My Strong Suit, nor is Having Real Live Friends With Whom I Interact Face-to-Face, and this entire theater department is filled with people who are all so much cooler than me, so it’s validating as hell when these people actively include me in their conversations and straight-up tell me nice things to my face and it’s clear that they mean it and it feels like they think I’m cool too which just??? Does not compute???? But feels so nice

Sorry about the big ol’ wall of text, but if I hadn’t done this, I would just rant about it for weeks on end and end up telling the same stories a hundred times because I’ve forgotten who’s heard which stories, so here are all of them.

So... yeah.

How to get op8 in Borderlands 2

Borderlands 2 how did scooter die?

If you want to go back to this particular display screen anytime, you can find for it while using the Applications, setup game sorts regarding mods menus choice. Terramorphous ended up being ended up pregnent right after Borderlands developer Gearbox Software observed just how players took pleasure in working at Crawmerax the Invincible (not any relationship), the crab earthworms raid boss from your exceptional The Confidence Armory associated with Common Knoxx downloadable add-on Borderlands 2 weapon parts. This means, based on the offered Class Mod, you will get 9 points pertaining to a specific skill which has a control regarding 5. Gearbox paints inside vast brushstrokes, effective, yet it doesn't depend on cardboard reduce away characters or perhaps handle of the mill vision composition. They, in addition to about class different characters, might help players defeat Jack, ruin the Warrior, in addition to prevent Pandora.

Help to make the right path for the foot of the Bloodshed shrub, still, with anyone uncover skills of which allowed an individual remain with this Lies mode potentially indefinitely. Jack, supposedly assisting them, abruptly sabotages the progression as well as hands down the Vault Hunters pertaining to dead in a very frozen them wasteland. Much like the first game, Borderlands is really a mission-based First-Person Rifle with RPG Factors, enabling the participant to up grade their own characters with brand new skills and abilities, while great time their means during hordes regarding noncitizen creatures, robots, and insane bandits. Return to the judgment gaining shooter-looter with regard to a whole new venture that will traditional the arena for the upcoming Borderlands 2. In the mean time, the a number of massive campaigns you have in the BAMF DLC Load up just about all present you with a web host of original natural environment, quests, equipment, guns, foes, bosses, and thus considerably more.

It also is apparently a free DLC, and so it's a pleasant benefit regarding Borderlands 2 weapon parts players. Borderlands 2 is intended to be used through players of the game. In the credit history, various backgrounds end up being revealed with the Pandorans celebrating Handsome Jack's beat also conducting finance their particular planet from the staying Hyperion push-button, Lilith turning into the newest principal with the Crimson Raiders, the Vault Hunters end up being hailed as heroes for their own deeds, Lilith, Brick in addition to Mordecai mourning Roland, and also Mordecai mark as well as put up the latest pet bird called Talon. Saves physically migrated from Windowpanes in order to Linux must have all lowercase characters in the filename. With the relief of Borderlands VR upcoming Sony possesses published a fresh PlayStation VR package deal with the game, Conquer Saber along with the many hardware it is advisable to fun the games.

Borderlands 2 how to get golden keys pc?

Commander Lilith Along with The Argument For Sanctuary promises to adopt players here we are at the on the planet ? earth connected with Pandora, home earth regarding Borderlands in addition to Borderlands 2 (2012) but only one associated with numerous planets with Sept 2019's Borderlands 3. Borderlands 2 is surely an activity role-playing game played from the first-person standpoint and also basic consequence. Transforming skills becomes quintessentially Borderlands, and quintessentially Gearbox. The development adds the latest unique report including some going back throw constituents then newborn characters, except since always the genuine superstar could be the loot.

Players will certainly battle across the sum total regarding Pandora to avoid Jack by initiate an old on the planet ? evil realized merely while. You can find 4 playable characters in this game, all another, along with a couple of benefit characters that had been increase since DLC. It's an amazing game, taken pleasure in the idea so much playing the item with my personal closes friend with can't lose time waiting for Borderlands, that glimpses so great. Every time I mod my own skill points for you to on they by no means keep also I you xbox and your usb subsequently stack way up Borderlands 2 while using modded.

We are able to see a self in the real world move in the amount of Maya since the girl lay down surplus in order to opponents. Gearbox Software controls to enhance his or her IP in many ways, presenting Borderlands 2 classes one of them concepts you may certainly not quite possibly forget about to get, and meaning new features which will permit players to help puff off some vapor for hours.

These stat improvements connect with each one of a single player's characters. Haven ends up being in duress, the Vault's record has become pinched then a toxic gas ends up being poisoning Pandora. Take one of some character lessons for being regarded by having a cautiously crafted also fixed report to all novel and revelation surroundingses through the dwell planet regarding Pandora. A number of primary story-based DLC crowds were launched as an ingredient, with Gearbox later relieving holiday-centric miniquests that target about getting rid of a boss along with obtaining a supervisor in addition to skin like a pay back. Class mods have a potential for including skill points for a selected character's skill pine.

Surgery details

Hello my dudes.  If you’ve read this post you’ll know that on monday (25th so next monday depending on ur timezone) I’ll be going in for my last CCD related surgery that’s going to put a closure to a 9+ year old process of regularly going in and out of the OR.  Now, I wanted to let you in on some of the details, but before I get to that, I’ll like to warn you about possible graphic descriptions and the like. Surgery details can seem/sound quite graphic, even if it’s not even detailed, especially for people who aren’t used to talking or hearing about such things. The first part isn’t graphic though, it’s just overall non-important facts and stuff. I’ll write when the possible graphic things appears and If you keep on reading from there, it’ll be at your own risk. 

[NON GRAPHIC] I’ll go in as said before, the 25th (September), already at 7:15pm (fucking rip me, I’ll have to get up around 5. I’ll die before I get into the actual risk-of-dying event). I live in Denmark, I think our timezone is called UTC, not sure? It’s central european time if that helps anyone who wants to know.    Tuesday (19th September) at 8:30am I will have a long day ahead of me, filled with final preparations, exams and talks. And for anyone who may have been going through the same preparation day will know what I mean when I say it is d r a i n i n g. So much waiting time, so much repeating, so boring and so tiring. I’m going to bring lots of stuff to eat, read and watch, and ofc a pillow (and my scooter ‘cause I am called lazy for a reason). I won’t have internet connection some places at the hospital (found out by the many visits and previous experiences), but hopefully not a lot, and hopefully it’s better at the room (which I also hopefully won’t share with anyone) than what it’s been the previously. Again, if anyone wish to have me outside of tumblr (ie snapchat, facebook, etc.), please do not hesitate to ask me. I will post my contact info some other time too, but I’ll love to know who adds me and where so I can add you back.  Now, as said in the PSA-like post, the surgery is a jaw surgery. The procedure takes about 3 hours, I’ll then be forced to stay at the hospital for at least a day up to several days to be strongly pain-meds covered. After that it’s around 6 +/- weeks of recovery, then rehabilitation. 

[POSSIBLE GRAPHIC]

They’ll be moving my mandible (? the lower part of my jaw) inwards (I can’t remember how much, sorry) and then my maxillary (? the upper part) outwards (can’t remember how much either).  By doing that, they’re going to open me up - and to be honest I have no idea how or where that is going to happen, but it’s either inside my mouth or outside from my cheeks - and then they’ll cut the bones (in a way I’m not sure of, like the process of that). I clearly try not to listen to them lol. When they’ve done that, moved it correctly, there’ll be leftover bone fragment(?) which they’ll mix up with blood (my blood l think.. leftover blood). That’ll take role as some sort of “home-made jaw glue” (DIY anyone??) that they’ll then fix it up together with like some sort arts project. Then I’ll be closed and they’ll put a metal shine thing on my teeth.

My surgery doctor will be the same dude who’s done all my previous CCD related surgeries. He’s removed all my teeth along with the extra pieces of teeth fragments. This guy is good. In fact, the best in DK in what he does, as far as I know. I will be in good hands. 

However, with surgeries comes risks. There’s always be risk no matter how you put it.  I currently have an infection in my gums (which is just so great), and if I haven’t managed to get rid of it or at least made it less aggressive, there is a chance they won’t go through with the surgery, and if they do, there’s a risk it’ll spread a lot and very quick. Other than that, there’s the general stuff that’s been there through my other surgeries, too. 

I’ll be spending most of the next upcoming days trying to prepare for in case I don’t wake up, and therefore may not be quick with replies. I’ll try to finish up some old projects too, though I don’t know if I’ll get around to that, but I can hope. 

If I do wake up, recovery is going to be a lot different than what I’m used to.  There won’t be as much blood as the previous times, due to there not being any open wounds in my mouth. For this, I’m very glad. Last surgery l had swallowed so much blood doing the operation, I ended up throwing it all up, in the end with so much force it had my nose power-running blood too (I have never seen my mom look so literal scared before. That really was something). The time before that the open wounds leaked so much I puked blood for a week. It would be nice not to go through all that blood vomit and taste again.  The pain is going to be very different, and the healing process will too. They say I’ll be able to eat more than the previous ones and so on. I don’t want to think too much about this though, since recovery has never treated me well.

I think that about covers it. Please, if you have any question, any at all, even just random ones, do not hesitate to ask. If it’s about the surgery and it hasn’t been answered here, go ahead and ask me so I can ask when I go in for preparation day.  On a last ending note, I’ll like to thank the people who’s been popping in and out of my notification lately, writing to me about whatever.

Especially Meg (@original-resonance) for still dealing with me on an actual daily basis. Wild. I love you. And you deserve a medal for putting up with my memes and bs. Thank you for doing it though. Also a huge (but sadly somewhat quick ‘cause it’s late, like almost 3am late) shout out to the amazing @cullinankatsudon who so extremely(!!) generously decided to give me all of her books. For free. I’m still so overwhelmed and actually literally shocked, I don’t know what to say but thank you, from the bottom of my heart, thank you. Anyone else who may read this, should really check out her page. I sadly haven’t fully begun reading due to business and sickness but I can, without doubt, tell they’re all great, and I can’t wait to finally get started. Again, thank you so much. Both for this, for your time, for your thoughts and your amazing personality - and also for your generally hard work. Thank you. 

We got the last spot in the only campground in Hazen, North Dakota for the night. It had a nice rec room with bathrooms and laundry facilities. The night was cool  after a heavy rain during the day. There was a great grocery store across the street and we got provisions after our morning walk and breakfast. We were headed in the direction of the Teddy Roosevelt National Park. As we headed out, we ended up in a construction zone that was going to be 20 or more miles at 25 miles per hour. Luckily, there was a roundabout with an exit onto a highway going north to circumvent the construction. We took it. We figured a longer distance at a faster speed would be worth it. We saw some beautiful country and later on we realize it was a route we were supposed to take as one of the top national scenic highways in America. Talk about being lucky and how things work out the way they're supposed to. We would have missed out on some beautiful badlands scenery. We didn't get as far as we had hoped but we found a nice municipal campground in Watford City. It was very convenient and reasonably priced. We decided to drive toward Williston, North Dakota where there is a lot of oilfield businesses from the Bakken shale oil business. We have seen a lot of oil wells with very large pumps sometimes with four or five pumps standing side-by-side. We had no idea of the scope of the oil fields in northwestern or rather mostly western North Dakota. There are a lot of empty trailers and RVs parked on the sides of the road since there isn't as much drilling as there used to be. We did not go to Williston proper. As we drove along, we saw long hoses or flexible pipelines snaking through meadows for miles at a time. I think they must have been freshwater sources because they were no pollution prevention activities associated with them. We thought them to be 6 to 8 inches in diameter. We toured the Knife River Indian Villages interpretive area at the confluence of the Missouri and Yellowstone Rivers.  The tribes who lived there lived away from the river in the summertime in lodges they built to last 10 years. In the winter time, they built temporary lodges near the river to protect them from the wind and only for one season. They expected them to be destroyed by the river or hostile tribes or others.  There were an interesting mix of three tribes who were almost wiped out by the smallpox epidemic in 1837. The smaller of the tribes were integrated into the larger tribe and they were all banded together later on a reservation and are called the affiliated tribes. We just kept driving and saw the Fort Union Trading Post Replication. It was quite interesting and it was one of the few western forts not occupied by soldiers. We then ended up in the north unit of the Teddy Roosevelt National Park which is located in the North Dakota Badlands and little Missouri Grasslands. We have seen a lot in one short week and I for one am getting tired of driving, so we're going to stay in place for a couple days and relax, catch up on the blog and maybe play a round of golf.  We found the “last” RV site in the Medora Campground. There were a lot of empty spots after we set up and in the morning many RVs left.  It's very nice and it’s close to the entrance to the south unit of the Teddy Roosevelt National Park. A couple pulled in beside us with a Leisure Travel Serenity van which is newer than ours. Linda was putting up the awning and was very friendly. They have only had their RV for two months or so and wondered how we like the Leisure Travel vans. She and Wally were happy to know that this was our third Leisure Travel van and we think very highly of them. They were off to the North Dakota equivalent of Oklahoma at Discovery Land in Sand Springs. We hoped we can speak to them tonight or tomorrow before they leave.  Pictures will follow when we have more bandwidth. It's 8:29 p.m. mountain time and I'm calling it a night.   Aug 9   It was a very quiet night, peaceful and cool. That's what we like about campgrounds. The quiet hours are really quiet, not like hotels which can be quite boisterous in the evenings. Our campground has beautiful scenery surrounding it. There are two “mountain” ranges on the north and south. I think the campground used to be in a riverbed of the Little Missouri lots of years ago. We did get a chance to visit with Wally and Linda this morning before they left. They were very interesting couple and we have lots of things in common. He is a carpenter and worked as a plant engineer after he got out of the Air Force. She was an executive assistant to a doctor in a hospital in Michigan. He is also a pilot, multi-engine and flies now with one arm because he lost his other arm to cancer about 15 to 20 years ago. Linda had said yesterday evening that some people look at Wally differently and don't know how to talk to him sometimes. I told her being a combat medic I don't have those kinds of reservations because of the things that I saw in the hospital. So we had a great discussion sitting around the picnic table over coffee. He lost his arm because he worked in radar in the Air Force and was standing behind someone at a workbench who was testing out their weather radar and calibrating it. The guy was supposed to put a block in front of the microwave signal and Wally was standing behind him when he got zapped by about a half million watts of microwave. His arm got hot but he didn't go this dispensary about it because when he moved out of the way it went back to normal. When cancer developed in his arm, the doctors couldn't identify it until they send it to Bethesda Maryland. The military doctors recognized it right away as being caused by microwaves. Eventually a VA person he knew in his county convinced him to file a claim even though there was no record of his injury. After 7 years of appeals, he was finally awarded 90% disability and back pay from the time he filed his appeal. He got the last 10% couple years ago. We discussed it in great detail and talked about my accident, etc. He has some great stories about people making jokes about his arm, unknowingly. He said one time he was outside a ice cream shop in line to go in, when a lady in front of them said “I won't go in that store because it costs an arm and a leg.” She turned around and looked at Wally and said “oh my goodness”. He said, “Yeah, I went in there yesterday and I'm not going back again!” He has a good healthy attitude and they both laugh a lot which helps in that situation. They didn't blink an eye when I told him that I meditated and that helped me through my heart episode and surgery. I'll tell you the other two jokes if you ask me. We now have a place to go visit in Michigan and Wally says we must go see the Mackinaw Bridge which makes the Golden Gate bridge look like a tinker toy. I told them to be careful what they asked for, they just might get it. It got cool here for a little bit, down to 65, but the sun's back out and we're going to the park after lunch. This is our R&R day.  We took our time and had bacon and pancakes for breakfast this morning, yum yum. Elizabeth is finishing up a load of laundry and then we'll head out. We're having a great time, but we got a stone bruise on the windshield yesterday. USAA will get that fixed in Dickerson, the closest place they have a repair shop under contract. No big deal. We miss our scooter because it’s only a mile or so to go downtown and we could use it on the Loop Road around the park. The next time we'll have everything we need weeks before we leave, not at the last minute.

We will post pics when we have reliable Wi-fi.      

21 Cool Things To Do in Pai, Thailand

Pai is a small town located in Northern Thailand and due to its charm and the many different things to do in Pai, it has become a popular place for travellers.

From visiting waterfalls and hiking the Pai Canyon, to checking out the Big Buddha and exploring by scooter, Pai offers numerous attractions for backpackers, travellers, expats and everyone in between.

For such a small place, the list of things to do in Pai is huge! This town is growing and so are the many activities available in Pai for travellers. This is definitely one of the best places to visit in Thailand.

The road between the northern city of Chiang Mai and Pai is an exciting adventure all on its own. In fact, this journey was the main reason I went to Pai in the first place.

But to my surprise, Pai was a town that stole my heart, and I would return to in a heartbeat. In fact, visiting Pai was one of my Southeast Asia highlights.

Here’s a list of the top 21 things to do in Pai you won’t want to miss!

1. Learn To Ride a Scooter

Learning to ride a scooter is first on my list of things to do in Pai for a reason — it’s basically an essential activity in this tiny town. Like me, if you have never ridden a motorbike or scooter before, Pai is the place to don a helmet and try.

Why is learning to drive a scooter essential? Well, many of the activities in Pai aren’t actually in the town center, but a couple of minutes drive out-of-town.

Because Pai is famous for tourists renting scooters as their main mode of transportation, there aren’t too many tuk-tuks in town. Plus, part of the charm of Pai is that there isn’t much traffic, making it a good place for newbies to learn.

That all being said, tourists walk around Pai like mummies, all bandaged up from scooter accidents. So much so, that you don’t even need to ask somebody “what happened” when you see their battered knee, it’s just assumed it was a scooter accident.

Make sure you wear a helmet, drive cautiously, and of course, don’t drink and drive.

Me, about to ride a scooter for the first time!

I rented a scooter for two full days while I was in Pai and it cost 500 Baht for both days for an automatic scooter, which was a great deal. It was a lot of fun learning how to ride, and was also a useful means of transport for getting around to the many things to do in Pai.

There are many different rental shops along the main walking street in Pai. You will have to leave a cash deposit that you will get back once you return the scooter in its original condition — don’t leave your passport, even if they ask.

You can purchase insurance for the scooter from these rental shops as well which may be a good idea if it is your first time riding a scooter!

If you want to do a longer trip, the Mae Hong Son Loop is Thailand’s most popular and stunning journey. Learn more about it here. 

2. Wander the Night Markets (one of the best things to do in Pai in the evening)

Wondering what to do in Pai in the evenings? Every night there are markets in Pai along the walking street. For such a small town, these markets are quite impressive. Here, you can find everything from clothing to food, with the best cheap street food options being found at the night markets.

At the night markets, you will also be tempted by the shopping. There are souvenirs, herbal remedies, clothing, and more – basically anything you could think of, you’ll find!

But regardless of whether or not you want to buy something, the markets are always a lot of fun and are one of the free things to do in Pai.

See Also: Things To Do in Koh Lipe – 21 Things You Don’t Want To Miss

3. Climb to The Big White Buddha (Wat Phra That Mae Yen)

If you have been backpacking Thailand for a while, visiting another Buddha statue might not sound all that appealing, but this one is worth it simply for the view!

The steps to get to the top will have you working up a sweat, but the panoramic view from next to the Buddha is worth it. Make sure you also have a look at the blindingly white Buddha statue, it’s pretty impressive.

A visit to the Big Buddha is easy. You will see it from town so just drive in that direction and you will get there. Visiting the Big Buddha is free and will take you about an hour to walk to the top, enjoy the views and take pictures, and walk back down. Make sure you dress appropriately and bring some water with you.

4. Party at Sunset Bar

No trip to Pai would be complete without a visit to the Sunset Bar. The Sunset Bar is just as the name suggests, the place to go at sunset (and stay well after dark.)

The Sunset Bar is one of the most popular things to do in Pai amongst travellers as it’s situated just outside of the main town center, but still within walking distance (meaning you don’t have to drink and drive home).

The bar is up in the trees and offers a great view of the sunset each night. Cushions line the floor as seating and create a relaxed atmosphere for backpackers wanting to share some travel stories over a drink.  Expect to pay around 100 Baht for a drink, but sometimes they do have 2 for 1 specials.

See Also: Cost Of Living in Thailand – A Guide For Travellers, Expats and Digital Nomads

5. Go Tubing on The Pai River

Tubing along the Pai river is one of the most popular things to do in Pai. It’s affordable, only takes about an hour, and is available most months of the year.

Unfortunately, when I was there, there had just been some heavy rainfall and the river was flowing so rapidly that it was unsafe for tubing.

Some people still tried to sell us the activity even though we were told by several others that the river was unsafe. Keep your wits about you and only tube when it’s safe to do so. The most common months for heavy rain in Pai are from May to October.

It costs between 200-300 Baht ($6 – $9) for a trip which includes your tube rental as well as drop-off and pick-up. The tubing journey lasts for about one hour. Tubing can be booked easily through your accommodation, through a travel agency, or simply with one of the guys walking around town trying to sell tubing tours.

☞ If you’re looking for more Thailand articles, make sure to check out our Things To Do in Koh Phangan article, and our Things To Do in Bangkok post. There are so many amazing places to visit in Thailand!

6. Whitewater Rafting (one of the more adventurous things to do in Pai)

In Pai, whitewater rafting combined with hiking is becoming a popular activity. A few different tour operators organize these kinds of trips and multi-day options are also available. 

One of the most popular companies for this kind of trip is called Active Thailand, they can be contacted on their website. There are also lots of travel agency booking places in Pai which can help organize this trip for you.

Prices depend on the number of people you can get together for a trip, the length or the trip, and the type of accommodation you require.

For a two-day, 1 night trip with basic accommodation (sleeping in a jungle camp on bamboo with mosquito nets) expect to pay about 3,500Baht or 100 USD.  For the outdoor adventurer, this would be one of the best things to do in Pai.

7. Walk the WWII (Memorial) Bridge

The WWII Bridge was built by the Japanese back in 1942. The bridge was used to transport weapons and supplies to Myanmar during WWII. Out of all the places to see in Pai, this bridge has the most historical significance.

But besides its history, it’s also just a nice place to go for a walk. The bridge crosses a gorgeous river making for some good photo opportunities. Going to the WWII Bridge is free, but keep in mind that it is a popular tourist hotspot so it can be very busy.

8. Eat Healthy Food

Unless your Southeast Asia trip has included Canggu Bali, you are probably craving a good salad complete with avocado! There are several different places in Pai where you can get that healthy food fix.

A café called Earth Tone is a very popular restaurant serving high-quality vegetarian food. They have amazing waffles with fruit, sandwiches, salads, smoothies and more. Earth Tone is just one of the many places to eat healthy while in Pai. In fact, you’ll find vegetarian and gluten-free options in cafes all over town.

9. Eat Street Food

While the healthy options are great in Pai, the unhealthy street food options are just as good! When the sun starts going down many different little street food stands open up and cheap food takes over the bustling daytime café scene.

Like anywhere in Thailand, Pad Thai and various other noodle dishes are available for only a few baht. But in Pai, the locals are a little more creative with their street food, with stalls selling donuts and Indian food! Western food options like pizza and hamburgers are also readily available as well.

However, since one of the best things to do in Thailand is to eat Thai food, it’s recommended that you sample the local eats, you won’t be disappointed.

10. Practice Yoga

Pai is a perfect little town for yoga lovers. There are few different yoga retreats around, but there are also places in Pai where visitors can just drop in for a class or two.

The Famous Pai Circus Hostel offers yoga classes most morning at 9:30 am. The Swadasee Pai Resort also offers yoga classes most mornings. I recommend asking at your hostel or hotel when you arrive about current yoga classes in the area, as the class times and locations can change.

See Also: Things To Do in Koh Tao – Top 21 Things For Travellers

11. Hike the Pai Canyon

In my opinion, out of all of the things to do in Pai, hiking the Pai Canyon is the best! The Pai Canyon is a beautiful canyon with various hiking trails and lookouts over the countryside.

You will need a scooter or tuk-tuk to get out to the Pai Canyon as it is a few minutes drive out of town. Once you’re there, you’ll enjoy walking along the canyon ridges and being out in nature.

It’s really a beautiful place to visit. Many people explore the Pai Canyon at sunset for even more spectacular views. Entrance to the Pai Canyon is completely free. Just make sure you wear good walking shoes and bring plenty of water.

12. Have a “ Love Strawberry” Milkshake

The Love Strawberry farm and store is a fun stop on the way back into town from the Pai Canyon. It is a bit of a tourist trap, but that doesn’t mean it isn’t worth visiting!

When I was there I had a strawberry milkshake which was delicious. Exploring the property and taking some pictures are definitely some of the most touristy things to do in Pai.

13. Visit Tham Lod Cave

The Tham Lod Cave is huge (more than 1,600m long and 50m high), with a visit here being one of the most common things to do in Pai – but for good reason. Due to its sheer size, this cave is known as one of the most impressive in Thailand.

Inside you’ll find many limestone stalactite and stalagmite formations hanging from above (and some bats!), and since the Lang River flows through this cave, a portion of the cave is only accessible by bamboo boat. Because of this, a guide is mandatory in order to enter.

From Pai, it’s possible to visit Tham Lod Cave on a tour or to go on your own with a scooter. Either way, the drive takes about 45 minutes. Expect to pay about 600 Baht ($18) for a full-day tour from Pai including the guide once at Tham Lod Cave.

If you want to go independently, you will still have to pay for a guide once at the cave. The price depends on your group size but expect to pay about 200 Baht ($6) per person for the cave guide. Tham Lod Cave is one of the top places to visit in Pai, don’t miss it!

14. Sai Ngam Hot Springs

The Sai Ngam Hot Springs is also known as the “Secret” Hot Springs as they are a little outside of town and less developed than some of the other hot springs around Pai. But honestly, they are no secret and can be quite busy!

These hot springs are right in the jungle making them feel tranquil and a perfect place to relax away from the hustle and bustle of Pai. 

The beautiful natural surroundings of the Sai Ngam Hot Springs combined with the low cost makes them one of the top things to do in Pai for both locals and tourists.

Sai Ngam Hot Springs are easily reached by scooter only 30 minutes from Pai. They are along the same road that leads to Tham Lom Cave so both of these activities could be done in one day. The entrance fee is 20 Baht ($0.60).

15. Explore the Santichon Village

Santichon Village is a small Yunnan cultural center about 5km outside of Pai, reached with a fun (very windy) road. This village was settled by the Chinese who fled the revolution of Mao Tse Tung, and after all these years, descendants of these settlers still live here making it an interesting place to visit.

There are a couple of different things to do at Santichon Village. The first would be to wander around and check out the clay houses and eat some of the traditional Yunnanese cuisine. Fried shiitake mushrooms and steamed black chicken are just a couple of the popular dishes.

Walking around the village you will see beautiful buildings in typical Yunnan style, and some fish ponds as well. It’s possible to buy fish food and feed the hundreds of koi fish, which is surprisingly a lot more entertaining than I expected it to be. Santichon Village is completely free to enter.

16. Ride the Human Powered Ferris Wheel

At the Santichon Village, there is a human-powered Ferris Wheel. We couldn’t get it going ourselves but then a local came and helped us out. While it seems a little dangerous it was a lot of fun! We probably spent a lot longer than we should’ve playing on the children’s toy.

17. Yun Lai Viewpoint

Just past the Santichon Village is the Yun Lai Viewpoint. It is accessible only by a very bumpy road. Once there, it costs 20 Baht to enter and then you will have a view overlooking Pai. This is one of the best places to visit in Pai for sunrise. 

18. Go Piranha Fishing

This is one of the most unusual things to do in Pai. At the Piranha Fishing Park, there is a series of man-made lakes for fishing. You pay for a select amount of time and the workers will show you how to fish for the piranhas.

You are given a fishing rod as well as bread and a net. I was having some trouble at the beginning but the workers were super helpful and taught me the tricks. We only managed to catch one small piranha during our time there but some other people manage to catch some huge ones.

This is purely a recreational activity and all of the piranhas are released back into the lake once they are caught. They only use barbless hooks.

Prices depend on the season and length of time you want to go fishing but expect to pay around 200 Baht for three hours worth of fishing including some bait.

19. Swim at Mor Paeng Waterfall

Only 7km outside of Pai is the three-tiered Mor Paeng waterfall. While there are many waterfalls near Pai, Mor Paeng is one of the most popular due to its easy access, and because of how fun it is to swim and slide there!

Mor Paeng is best reached by motorbike along the same road as the Santichon Village and the piranha fishing. It’s a free activity but the local kids will want a small tip if they help you climb the waterfall and slide down.

There is a small area here for parking your bike, and from the car park it’s about a 200m walk through the jungle to get to the waterfall. If you’re looking for something to cool you off, visiting this waterfall is one of the best things to do in Pai.

20. Drink Mojitos

I personally loved the mojitos in Pai! One afternoon, some friends and I walked the streets of Pai in search of some good “happy hour” deals. What we found was that happy hour existed everywhere, but not for just one hour, for most of the day – and often featured Mojitos.

I simply couldn’t turn down 2 for 1 Mojitos and needless to say I had a great evening full of rum and sugar!

Pai is a very social place for travellers. The atmosphere in pubs and restaurants is friendly and inviting, and I’m almost certain that you will make many friends over a mojito in Pai.

21. Drive to Chiang Mai

There are many fun things to do in Chiang Mai as well, so once you’ve checked out Pai, make your way there. The road between Chiang Mai and Pai is famous for being very scenic, but also for making people very car sick!

Before we left Chiang Mai for Pai, other travellers cautioned us about the many turns and how everyone pretty much is guaranteed to get at least a little motion sick.

Regardless of how uncomfortable the ride might be, it is truly beautiful! I would recommend renting a motorbike and driving yourself in order to stop as frequently as you want.

However, if you are not an experienced rider then don’t do this as it is a road in which locals drive very fast and the many sharp turns could be a problem.

If you don’t want to drive a motorbike there yourself, you could hire a driver to take you, or simply just catch a bus. While the buses are not comfortable and don’t stop often, it is still a fun ride and gets you from point A to B. The drive takes approximately 3 hours without stopping.

See Also: Things To Do in Chiang Rai – A List Of The Best

Now You Know What To Do in Pai!

Based on this list of things to do in Pai, you can probably tell that it isn’t your typical town in Thailand. There are no beaches, island parties, or streets fully dedicated to night-clubbing, but this is what makes Pai a unique place to visit.

With that being said, it is still a charming town where tourists feel comfortable, making it a popular place for backpackers to visit while in Thailand. I hope this list gave you some ideas for things to do during your trip to Pai. Happy travels!

Images in this post are courtesy of Shutterstock. Learn more about their royalty-free images here.

Goats On The Road Recommended Resources

For Pai, Thailand

✓ There are so many adventurous things to do in Pai. It’s important to make sure you have adequate travel insurance before embarking on any trip, but especially one where you’ll be partaking in outdoor activities such as snorkelling, diving, kayaking, hiking, etc. World Nomads covers almost all adventurous activities that you can think of. Click here to get a free quote and learn more about this popular travel insurance.

✓ We recommend purchasing eco-friendly products for your stay in Pai. We’re personally trying to reduce the amount of single-use plastic that we use, and encourage you to do the same during your travels.

To avoid purchasing plastic water bottles while in Pai, consider buying a water bottle with a built-in filter such as LifeStraw or GrayL, or get yourself a Steri-Pen. In terms of utensils, this bamboo set is great for picnics, while these glass or metal straws are perfect for cocktails, fruit juices or a glass of water. Say no to straws and plastic utensils, bring your own. 

✓ There are numerous affordable places to stay in Pai. Goats On The Road uses and recommends Booking.com due to their excellent prices and cancellation options. We also frequently use Airbnb when we want to book a short-term apartment. Click here to search for accommodation in Pai on Booking.com, and click here to sign up with Airbnb (you’ll receive a free $35 credit!).

Top Hotels, Hostels & B&B’s in Pai

Budget: 

Pai Porpeang Guesthouse – rated “Wonderful” 9/10. The cute bungalows here offer guests a private balcony, ensuite bathroom and shower, and lovely garden views. Shops, restaurants and bars are all within a few minutes walk from here. Bungalows go from $12/night. Click here to learn more and book.

Hommy Camping Room – rated “Wonderful” 9/10. If you’re into camping…indoors…, then this is the place in Pai for you. Here, tents are set up in a room so you can share with friends, but still enjoy your privacy. Some rooms offer air-conditioning while others are fans only. There’s areas for chilling out and breakfast and coffee are served here. Tents for two people go from $8/night. Click here to learn more and to book.

Midrange: 

Le Mont Resort – rated “Exceptional” 9.5/10. This tropical property offers guests accommodation in wooden bungalows, complete with private balcony and mountain scenery. There’s air-conditioning, hot water showers and a minibar inside each bungalow. If you’re looking for comfort and affordability, this is a good option. Bungalows here are from $30/night. Click here to learn more and to book.

Tarnjedton Pai Resort – rated “Exceptional” 9.6/10. The beautiful cottages here are set in the mountains, offering a peaceful stay for visitors. Rooms include a fan, ensuite bathroom, private balcony, TV and fridge. Breakfast is included in the room rate, which starts at $39/night. Click here to learn more and to book.

Top End: 

Pai Village Boutique Resort & Farm – rated “Wonderful” 9.1/10. The property here is stunning! Set along the banks of the Pai River, the wooden cottages offer guests views of the mountains or garden from the private balconies. The ensuite bathrooms have hot water showers, and the rooms have sitting areas and kettles for guest’s use as well. You’ll have access to the property’s private farm which is 5 kilometers away, and after a day of enjoying all the things to do in Pai, you can relax with a massage. There’s also an onsite restaurant. Breakfast is included in the room rate, which starts at $85/night. Click here to learn more and to book.

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21 Cool Things To Do in Pai, Thailand

Pai is a small town located in Northern Thailand and due to its charm and the many different things to do in Pai, it has become a popular place for travellers.

From visiting waterfalls and hiking the Pai Canyon, to checking out the Big Buddha and exploring by scooter, Pai offers numerous attractions for backpackers, travellers, expats and everyone in between.

For such a small place, the list of things to do in Pai is huge! This town is growing and so are the many activities available in Pai for travellers. This is definitely one of the best places to visit in Thailand.

The road between the northern city of Chiang Mai and Pai is an exciting adventure all on its own. In fact, this journey was the main reason I went to Pai in the first place.

But to my surprise, Pai was a town that stole my heart, and I would return to in a heartbeat. In fact, visiting Pai was one of my Southeast Asia highlights.

Here’s a list of the top 21 things to do in Pai you won’t want to miss!

1. Learn To Ride a Scooter

Learning to ride a scooter is first on my list of things to do in Pai for a reason — it’s basically an essential activity in this tiny town. Like me, if you have never ridden a motorbike or scooter before, Pai is the place to don a helmet and try.

Why is learning to drive a scooter essential? Well, many of the activities in Pai aren’t actually in the town center, but a couple of minutes drive out-of-town.

Because Pai is famous for tourists renting scooters as their main mode of transportation, there aren’t too many tuk-tuks in town. Plus, part of the charm of Pai is that there isn’t much traffic, making it a good place for newbies to learn.

That all being said, tourists walk around Pai like mummies, all bandaged up from scooter accidents. So much so, that you don’t even need to ask somebody “what happened” when you see their battered knee, it’s just assumed it was a scooter accident.

Make sure you wear a helmet, drive cautiously, and of course, don’t drink and drive.

Me, about to ride a scooter for the first time!

I rented a scooter for two full days while I was in Pai and it cost 500 Baht for both days for an automatic scooter, which was a great deal. It was a lot of fun learning how to ride, and was also a useful means of transport for getting around to the many things to do in Pai.

There are many different rental shops along the main walking street in Pai. You will have to leave a cash deposit that you will get back once you return the scooter in its original condition — don’t leave your passport, even if they ask.

You can purchase insurance for the scooter from these rental shops as well which may be a good idea if it is your first time riding a scooter!

If you want to do a longer trip, the Mae Hong Son Loop is Thailand’s most popular and stunning journey. Learn more about it here. 

2. Wander the Night Markets (one of the best things to do in Pai in the evening)

Wondering what to do in Pai in the evenings? Every night there are markets in Pai along the walking street. For such a small town, these markets are quite impressive. Here, you can find everything from clothing to food, with the best cheap street food options being found at the night markets.

At the night markets, you will also be tempted by the shopping. There are souvenirs, herbal remedies, clothing, and more – basically anything you could think of, you’ll find!

But regardless of whether or not you want to buy something, the markets are always a lot of fun and are one of the free things to do in Pai.

See Also: Things To Do in Koh Lipe – 21 Things You Don’t Want To Miss

3. Climb to The Big White Buddha (Wat Phra That Mae Yen)

If you have been backpacking Thailand for a while, visiting another Buddha statue might not sound all that appealing, but this one is worth it simply for the view!

The steps to get to the top will have you working up a sweat, but the panoramic view from next to the Buddha is worth it. Make sure you also have a look at the blindingly white Buddha statue, it’s pretty impressive.

A visit to the Big Buddha is easy. You will see it from town so just drive in that direction and you will get there. Visiting the Big Buddha is free and will take you about an hour to walk to the top, enjoy the views and take pictures, and walk back down. Make sure you dress appropriately and bring some water with you.

4. Party at Sunset Bar

No trip to Pai would be complete without a visit to the Sunset Bar. The Sunset Bar is just as the name suggests, the place to go at sunset (and stay well after dark.)

The Sunset Bar is one of the most popular things to do in Pai amongst travellers as it’s situated just outside of the main town center, but still within walking distance (meaning you don’t have to drink and drive home).

The bar is up in the trees and offers a great view of the sunset each night. Cushions line the floor as seating and create a relaxed atmosphere for backpackers wanting to share some travel stories over a drink.  Expect to pay around 100 Baht for a drink, but sometimes they do have 2 for 1 specials.

See Also: Cost Of Living in Thailand – A Guide For Travellers, Expats and Digital Nomads

5. Go Tubing on The Pai River

Tubing along the Pai river is one of the most popular things to do in Pai. It’s affordable, only takes about an hour, and is available most months of the year.

Unfortunately, when I was there, there had just been some heavy rainfall and the river was flowing so rapidly that it was unsafe for tubing.

Some people still tried to sell us the activity even though we were told by several others that the river was unsafe. Keep your wits about you and only tube when it’s safe to do so. The most common months for heavy rain in Pai are from May to October.

It costs between 200-300 Baht ($6 – $9) for a trip which includes your tube rental as well as drop-off and pick-up. The tubing journey lasts for about one hour. Tubing can be booked easily through your accommodation, through a travel agency, or simply with one of the guys walking around town trying to sell tubing tours.

☞ If you’re looking for more Thailand articles, make sure to check out our Things To Do in Koh Phangan article, and our Things To Do in Bangkok post. There are so many amazing places to visit in Thailand!

6. Whitewater Rafting (one of the more adventurous things to do in Pai)

In Pai, whitewater rafting combined with hiking is becoming a popular activity. A few different tour operators organize these kinds of trips and multi-day options are also available. 

One of the most popular companies for this kind of trip is called Active Thailand, they can be contacted on their website. There are also lots of travel agency booking places in Pai which can help organize this trip for you.

Prices depend on the number of people you can get together for a trip, the length or the trip, and the type of accommodation you require.

For a two-day, 1 night trip with basic accommodation (sleeping in a jungle camp on bamboo with mosquito nets) expect to pay about 3,500Baht or 100 USD.  For the outdoor adventurer, this would be one of the best things to do in Pai.

7. Walk the WWII (Memorial) Bridge

The WWII Bridge was built by the Japanese back in 1942. The bridge was used to transport weapons and supplies to Myanmar during WWII. Out of all the places to see in Pai, this bridge has the most historical significance.

But besides its history, it’s also just a nice place to go for a walk. The bridge crosses a gorgeous river making for some good photo opportunities. Going to the WWII Bridge is free, but keep in mind that it is a popular tourist hotspot so it can be very busy.

8. Eat Healthy Food

Unless your Southeast Asia trip has included Canggu Bali, you are probably craving a good salad complete with avocado! There are several different places in Pai where you can get that healthy food fix.

A café called Earth Tone is a very popular restaurant serving high-quality vegetarian food. They have amazing waffles with fruit, sandwiches, salads, smoothies and more. Earth Tone is just one of the many places to eat healthy while in Pai. In fact, you’ll find vegetarian and gluten-free options in cafes all over town.

9. Eat Street Food

While the healthy options are great in Pai, the unhealthy street food options are just as good! When the sun starts going down many different little street food stands open up and cheap food takes over the bustling daytime café scene.

Like anywhere in Thailand, Pad Thai and various other noodle dishes are available for only a few baht. But in Pai, the locals are a little more creative with their street food, with stalls selling donuts and Indian food! Western food options like pizza and hamburgers are also readily available as well.

However, since one of the best things to do in Thailand is to eat Thai food, it’s recommended that you sample the local eats, you won’t be disappointed.

10. Practice Yoga

Pai is a perfect little town for yoga lovers. There are few different yoga retreats around, but there are also places in Pai where visitors can just drop in for a class or two.

The Famous Pai Circus Hostel offers yoga classes most morning at 9:30 am. The Swadasee Pai Resort also offers yoga classes most mornings. I recommend asking at your hostel or hotel when you arrive about current yoga classes in the area, as the class times and locations can change.

See Also: Things To Do in Koh Tao – Top 21 Things For Travellers

11. Hike the Pai Canyon

In my opinion, out of all of the things to do in Pai, hiking the Pai Canyon is the best! The Pai Canyon is a beautiful canyon with various hiking trails and lookouts over the countryside.

You will need a scooter or tuk-tuk to get out to the Pai Canyon as it is a few minutes drive out of town. Once you’re there, you’ll enjoy walking along the canyon ridges and being out in nature.

It’s really a beautiful place to visit. Many people explore the Pai Canyon at sunset for even more spectacular views. Entrance to the Pai Canyon is completely free. Just make sure you wear good walking shoes and bring plenty of water.

12. Have a “ Love Strawberry” Milkshake

The Love Strawberry farm and store is a fun stop on the way back into town from the Pai Canyon. It is a bit of a tourist trap, but that doesn’t mean it isn’t worth visiting!

When I was there I had a strawberry milkshake which was delicious. Exploring the property and taking some pictures are definitely some of the most touristy things to do in Pai.

13. Visit Tham Lod Cave

The Tham Lod Cave is huge (more than 1,600m long and 50m high), with a visit here being one of the most common things to do in Pai – but for good reason. Due to its sheer size, this cave is known as one of the most impressive in Thailand.

Inside you’ll find many limestone stalactite and stalagmite formations hanging from above (and some bats!), and since the Lang River flows through this cave, a portion of the cave is only accessible by bamboo boat. Because of this, a guide is mandatory in order to enter.

From Pai, it’s possible to visit Tham Lod Cave on a tour or to go on your own with a scooter. Either way, the drive takes about 45 minutes. Expect to pay about 600 Baht ($18) for a full-day tour from Pai including the guide once at Tham Lod Cave.

If you want to go independently, you will still have to pay for a guide once at the cave. The price depends on your group size but expect to pay about 200 Baht ($6) per person for the cave guide. Tham Lod Cave is one of the top places to visit in Pai, don’t miss it!

14. Sai Ngam Hot Springs

The Sai Ngam Hot Springs is also known as the “Secret” Hot Springs as they are a little outside of town and less developed than some of the other hot springs around Pai. But honestly, they are no secret and can be quite busy!

These hot springs are right in the jungle making them feel tranquil and a perfect place to relax away from the hustle and bustle of Pai. 

The beautiful natural surroundings of the Sai Ngam Hot Springs combined with the low cost makes them one of the top things to do in Pai for both locals and tourists.

Sai Ngam Hot Springs are easily reached by scooter only 30 minutes from Pai. They are along the same road that leads to Tham Lom Cave so both of these activities could be done in one day. The entrance fee is 20 Baht ($0.60).

15. Explore the Santichon Village

Santichon Village is a small Yunnan cultural center about 5km outside of Pai, reached with a fun (very windy) road. This village was settled by the Chinese who fled the revolution of Mao Tse Tung, and after all these years, descendants of these settlers still live here making it an interesting place to visit.

There are a couple of different things to do at Santichon Village. The first would be to wander around and check out the clay houses and eat some of the traditional Yunnanese cuisine. Fried shiitake mushrooms and steamed black chicken are just a couple of the popular dishes.

Walking around the village you will see beautiful buildings in typical Yunnan style, and some fish ponds as well. It’s possible to buy fish food and feed the hundreds of koi fish, which is surprisingly a lot more entertaining than I expected it to be. Santichon Village is completely free to enter.

16. Ride the Human Powered Ferris Wheel

At the Santichon Village, there is a human-powered Ferris Wheel. We couldn’t get it going ourselves but then a local came and helped us out. While it seems a little dangerous it was a lot of fun! We probably spent a lot longer than we should’ve playing on the children’s toy.

17. Yun Lai Viewpoint

Just past the Santichon Village is the Yun Lai Viewpoint. It is accessible only by a very bumpy road. Once there, it costs 20 Baht to enter and then you will have a view overlooking Pai. This is one of the best places to visit in Pai for sunrise. 

18. Go Piranha Fishing

This is one of the most unusual things to do in Pai. At the Piranha Fishing Park, there is a series of man-made lakes for fishing. You pay for a select amount of time and the workers will show you how to fish for the piranhas.

You are given a fishing rod as well as bread and a net. I was having some trouble at the beginning but the workers were super helpful and taught me the tricks. We only managed to catch one small piranha during our time there but some other people manage to catch some huge ones.

This is purely a recreational activity and all of the piranhas are released back into the lake once they are caught. They only use barbless hooks.

Prices depend on the season and length of time you want to go fishing but expect to pay around 200 Baht for three hours worth of fishing including some bait.

19. Swim at Mor Paeng Waterfall

Only 7km outside of Pai is the three-tiered Mor Paeng waterfall. While there are many waterfalls near Pai, Mor Paeng is one of the most popular due to its easy access, and because of how fun it is to swim and slide there!

Mor Paeng is best reached by motorbike along the same road as the Santichon Village and the piranha fishing. It’s a free activity but the local kids will want a small tip if they help you climb the waterfall and slide down.

There is a small area here for parking your bike, and from the car park it’s about a 200m walk through the jungle to get to the waterfall. If you’re looking for something to cool you off, visiting this waterfall is one of the best things to do in Pai.

20. Drink Mojitos

I personally loved the mojitos in Pai! One afternoon, some friends and I walked the streets of Pai in search of some good “happy hour” deals. What we found was that happy hour existed everywhere, but not for just one hour, for most of the day – and often featured Mojitos.

I simply couldn’t turn down 2 for 1 Mojitos and needless to say I had a great evening full of rum and sugar!

Pai is a very social place for travellers. The atmosphere in pubs and restaurants is friendly and inviting, and I’m almost certain that you will make many friends over a mojito in Pai.

21. Drive to Chiang Mai

There are many fun things to do in Chiang Mai as well, so once you’ve checked out Pai, make your way there. The road between Chiang Mai and Pai is famous for being very scenic, but also for making people very car sick!

Before we left Chiang Mai for Pai, other travellers cautioned us about the many turns and how everyone pretty much is guaranteed to get at least a little motion sick.

Regardless of how uncomfortable the ride might be, it is truly beautiful! I would recommend renting a motorbike and driving yourself in order to stop as frequently as you want.

However, if you are not an experienced rider then don’t do this as it is a road in which locals drive very fast and the many sharp turns could be a problem.

If you don’t want to drive a motorbike there yourself, you could hire a driver to take you, or simply just catch a bus. While the buses are not comfortable and don’t stop often, it is still a fun ride and gets you from point A to B. The drive takes approximately 3 hours without stopping.

See Also: Things To Do in Chiang Rai – A List Of The Best

Now You Know What To Do in Pai!

Based on this list of things to do in Pai, you can probably tell that it isn’t your typical town in Thailand. There are no beaches, island parties, or streets fully dedicated to night-clubbing, but this is what makes Pai a unique place to visit.

With that being said, it is still a charming town where tourists feel comfortable, making it a popular place for backpackers to visit while in Thailand. I hope this list gave you some ideas for things to do during your trip to Pai. Happy travels!

Images in this post are courtesy of Shutterstock. Learn more about their royalty-free images here.

Goats On The Road Recommended Resources

For Pai, Thailand

✓ There are so many adventurous things to do in Pai. It’s important to make sure you have adequate travel insurance before embarking on any trip, but especially one where you’ll be partaking in outdoor activities such as snorkelling, diving, kayaking, hiking, etc. World Nomads covers almost all adventurous activities that you can think of. Click here to get a free quote and learn more about this popular travel insurance.

✓ We recommend purchasing eco-friendly products for your stay in Pai. We’re personally trying to reduce the amount of single-use plastic that we use, and encourage you to do the same during your travels.

To avoid purchasing plastic water bottles while in Pai, consider buying a water bottle with a built-in filter such as LifeStraw or GrayL, or get yourself a Steri-Pen. In terms of utensils, this bamboo set is great for picnics, while these glass or metal straws are perfect for cocktails, fruit juices or a glass of water. Say no to straws and plastic utensils, bring your own. 

✓ There are numerous affordable places to stay in Pai. Goats On The Road uses and recommends Booking.com due to their excellent prices and cancellation options. We also frequently use Airbnb when we want to book a short-term apartment. Click here to search for accommodation in Pai on Booking.com, and click here to sign up with Airbnb (you’ll receive a free $35 credit!).

Top Hotels, Hostels & B&B’s in Pai

Budget: 

Pai Porpeang Guesthouse – rated “Wonderful” 9/10. The cute bungalows here offer guests a private balcony, ensuite bathroom and shower, and lovely garden views. Shops, restaurants and bars are all within a few minutes walk from here. Bungalows go from $12/night. Click here to learn more and book.

Hommy Camping Room – rated “Wonderful” 9/10. If you’re into camping…indoors…, then this is the place in Pai for you. Here, tents are set up in a room so you can share with friends, but still enjoy your privacy. Some rooms offer air-conditioning while others are fans only. There’s areas for chilling out and breakfast and coffee are served here. Tents for two people go from $8/night. Click here to learn more and to book.

Midrange: 

Le Mont Resort – rated “Exceptional” 9.5/10. This tropical property offers guests accommodation in wooden bungalows, complete with private balcony and mountain scenery. There’s air-conditioning, hot water showers and a minibar inside each bungalow. If you’re looking for comfort and affordability, this is a good option. Bungalows here are from $30/night. Click here to learn more and to book.

Tarnjedton Pai Resort – rated “Exceptional” 9.6/10. The beautiful cottages here are set in the mountains, offering a peaceful stay for visitors. Rooms include a fan, ensuite bathroom, private balcony, TV and fridge. Breakfast is included in the room rate, which starts at $39/night. Click here to learn more and to book.

Top End: 

Pai Village Boutique Resort & Farm – rated “Wonderful” 9.1/10. The property here is stunning! Set along the banks of the Pai River, the wooden cottages offer guests views of the mountains or garden from the private balconies. The ensuite bathrooms have hot water showers, and the rooms have sitting areas and kettles for guest’s use as well. You’ll have access to the property’s private farm which is 5 kilometers away, and after a day of enjoying all the things to do in Pai, you can relax with a massage. There’s also an onsite restaurant. Breakfast is included in the room rate, which starts at $85/night. Click here to learn more and to book.

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Retrospective 2019

 2020

A quick summary btw in 2018 I did rent an apartment. It was more money than I could afford but it was my big experience for that year. In 2019 I decided to focus more on other things that are more everlasting. 

In 2019 I had several goals :

Health

Health was my main goal. To focus a lot on my health. I was struggling in a lot of ways. Migraines, low energy levels, nails breaking, weak hair and weak skin, worried about my weight, lack of muscle, worried that I had some illness and just now know about it, pain in my back and neck. And shoulders . Frequent pain at that and frequent migraines. Also pain in my mouth as all my entire life I have frequent cavity issues or other issues even tho yes I do wash my teeth every day several times a day. 

I think I saved absolutely nothing in January and February as I was dealing with the eye doctor stuff. 

In order to resolve these issues I focused on my health since January. In January I started with going to see a doctor and explain all of my symptoms. My doctor said that the migraines could be caused because it had been a long time since I updated my glasses. So I started with that. I took my time and my money and invested in some updated glasses as I have myopia. 

Básically I cannot see very well in a distance. I can't see people's faces if they stand a few meters away from me and I can't see buses destinations because they get blurred  and the lights at night kind  of blurry my vision even more

This with no glasses. But the glasses fix it. 

I then proceeded to fix my teeth I had like 5 cavities to fix. I did all these repairs I did a cleaning, cleaning is not whitening btw is just a cleaning, to totally remove your tartare if you have some. Because removing that keeps it longer from cavities appearing or any sort of issues. 

Fixing my teeth took several months. I only finished fixing them in May 2019. Took money and time. When I was finally done with this big health fixes eyes and teeth are very essential. I could finally maybe spoil myself a bit. And at the same time focus on another health sector. 

I looked for a doctor for my back shoulder and neck pain. And I started doing this therapy for it. 

It didn't seem to help a lot. Just helped a bit but not a lot so I decided this was not enough. When you Google online people recommend you exercises. And I kept feeling sort of weak and worried about maybe lacking muscle and worried that I would only get fatter over time. I decided to join a gym. My gym has their own therapists so I changed my therapist to the gym one. 

I did feel much better. Going to the gym Vs not going is really different. At least for me with my current lifestyle. Because I live in a city it's polluted crowded and it's kind of annoying to workout outside you have to keep playing Tetris when running outside...I think the gym is much better and you can just put headphones on and run or walk or use some machine and it's like this alone time you have. And then you can shower immediately. In the gym I go you can also swim or do a sauna. It's great, if you can find the time to go. 

Though it’s a gym that I can only use because I am working and it’s a partnership with my company and even so it’s very expensive. But I think it’s worth it because of the mental and physical health benefits. The trade off is worth it right now.

After this, so post-May I have been really focusing also in changing my room a lot and I finally finished, I had furniture that was over 30 years old and that is not the problem, the problem is actually that furniture was totally falling apart, broken drawers, I was afraid my desk would fall on me and that my bed would fall to the floor. So every month I got one thing from IKEA and dedicated a weekend to build the IKEA furniture. And finally, I got all the main furniture that I wanted. 

And there is only one more achievement

I learned how to ride a motorcycle. I learned, now I know how to. But I don’t have the licence yet. The licence at least that allows you to drive model of motorcycles that exists.

 But I do have the car license that allows you drive the 125 cc , these ones go to 100 km/h . and I got myself a scooter, is the actual only vehicle that I actually own. 

These were my achievements for 2019.  Health. Gym. Ikea and  Motorcycle. This on my personal life side. This was also the year  I did the more travelling ever in life but also it was because I did very fast and travels, like weekend travels or 2 days travels.  I stopped by Toulouse and Bordeaux in southern France. The longest holiday I took was Luxembourg, but I also took a bus from Luxembourg to Germany since I was close to the border anyway. Something like 5 days. I had 2 days in Switzerland, a weekend. And Germany also 2 days in frankfurt. I am really proud of this year 2019. 

I also joined french classes. So for idk, a few months now, I have been having a french class every 1h and 30m every week. I have an exam in the day 13h January. 

These were mostly the achievements for the year. I think it was probably my best year so far. In my life. 

Yet there was bad things and yet I am not happy and yet I am not where I want to be. As bad things are also part of life.

Something I tried but failed to do was being less negative, I tend to take a very negative approach towards life. 

I have this super negative approach because of my life up until now because of my past but that is no excuse, I wanted to be more positive this year but I failed for a long time I wasn’t. And I was lost and confused and I tried thinking over and over how could I make everything better but because I could never really see a path, I kept feeling really down. And sadly as I side not I do have some anger issues, as a side effect of the negativity, the whole feeling depressed the not seeing a way out of a bad place in life.  I think after the gym things got a bit better. And when I finally drew a plan for my life I felt much better too. 

But ofc sometimes because of things that happen in my life, bad things, it drags me down sometimes again . But I’ve tried really hard to really not have any unnecessary discussions with people. And honestly, I did get better I did have way fewer fallouts with people. And my plan is to have zero from now on. For real. I still had some this year. But I think way less as the year went by. I think where I failed the most for sure was with people, sometimes. Honestly. But it is not a justification but was a really hard year, really eventful and stressful and I failed to handle it in the best way. My father was in the hospital. I got sick several times too. I had problems with my family I had problems with work and I had problems with my relationships and I had problems with public transport that is constant, even my scooter had problems I had to fix. There was just a lot of a lot. And I couldn’t deal with it all.

And even so I say this was the best year so far of my life. Up until now. But I hope that the years to come can be better still. 

When it comes to things I haven't done, that I wish I did, honestly I did all I could do in the time I had with resources I had, this when it comes to getting things done I couldn’t do more than what I did. Even if I wish I did more which I do wish I had done even more, I have to also be realistic and not that hard on myself. 

I have this problem, I want to do everything I want to get everything done. And I get stressed out if I don’t get things done. And it’s a bad cycle. But I just can’t sit and wait around and do nothing I have this need of seeing progress and things getting done it’s not healthy but it’s the way I feel satisfied also in a way, knowing that I did things that I didn’t waste my time. I did wish I could say no more. And that I could do more things for myself more. A problem I have is sometimes I should say no and I don’t because I don’t want to disappoint people. Sometimes I end up sort of causing myself trouble because I couldn't say no when I should really have said no. And that is why for example my work situation is really not good right now, it’s because I didn’t say no when I should have and now my every day is miserable. Great job, me. All I can do now is come up with a plan to fix that. And endure my everyday now the best I can. Focus on my goals.

This go long. Wow. I am going to take a break before writing my goals to 2020. I also want to write my next goals for 2020 based on this retrospective of 2019.