We Are All Lost Souls

Steph. 32. Amsterdam. she/they. married. little one.

[str-ngeloop]

you will struggle to say the unsayable thing for five years straight. and then it will suddenly become easy on a Wednesday morning

[believeinlostsouls]

07-07-2026

I saw you in my dreams last night. When I asked you if there were things about our relationship that you missed, and you said “no”, I was pretty gutted. I don’t know why it affected me so much. I suppose there are things about you that I appreciated, despite it all. Despite the bad. There was a lot of that.

Maybe I wonder how you’re doing nowadays. If you also fill your time with 40-hour work weeks and a mortgage, like myself. I’ve got that big rock on my finger, like I wanted, and we’re planning for babies, not really a when yet but that we want them together is a sure thing. As sure as anything, you know.

I’ve got a list of requirements for us to finalize beforehand, things like savings and getting the house ready and maybe a trip to Japan if we can swing it. We’re also off to Sweden soon, in an old camper van. There are so many things I’m grateful for nowadays. Practicing my hobbies in peace: hitting the gym, gardening, reading and gaming. Our physical health, and the health of our families. This old ass house with all its character and issues.

I don’t miss you, not like that. I’m happier with him, for one because it’s more stable. He went to therapy, for himself and couples too. I really feel like I got everything I wanted in life, and I’m coasting a bit. The three and a half years sober is also a treat.

Remember when I was there and you and your “best friend” offered me gummies when I tried to get sober. That kind of shit still blows my mind. Or the fact that we were always fighting and that was normal to you. Anyway, I digress, I don’t want to get into it anymore.

I dreamt about you and it made me wonder how you are, is all. I’ve gotten less of these dreams over the years. Maybe at some point the wondering fades out entirely. Probably better that way

[girlslashers]

having fun

[copperbadge]

On Saturday I said to my partner, as I have said for months, "A ten thousand dollar a year raise would solve so many of my problems."

As of this morning I was reluctantly looking for jobs because I love my job and don't want to leave it, but see: $10k raise problem solver.

As of noon today this was no longer an issue, because my boss called me with the news that I was getting a $10K merit raise.

I feel like a huge weight has been lifted off my shoulders. This is roughly $200 extra per paycheck. Enough to pay off debt faster, rebuild my savings, and spend a weekend a month in Milwaukee getting obscenely laid. The sex I'm going to have on $200 extra per paycheck. You can't even.

May all of you get the $10K raise your soul has yearned for. And whatever level of sex you can be satisfied with for $200.

[vergess]

hey bestie i think ur post might be charmed 'cause you aren't gonna fuckin believe what happened today

[thelove-r]

[evolvinggreywolf]

Sunday vibes

[unfuckyourhabitat]

Emergency cleaning: Unfuck your whole house in the shortest time possible

So, your landlord/parents/home inspector/favorite movie star is dropping by, and your place is a disaster. You don’t have much time to clean it up. You’re in emergency mode. Let’s get started.

Don’t panic. Panic leads to fear, fear leads to procrastination, procrastination leads to the dark side. You can do this, but you have to stay calm.

Unlike maintenance cleaning, we’re not looking to completely unfuck one space at a time. Instead, we want to decrease the overall mess in stages, spread evenly across the whole area that we’re concerned about. If you think your home is at Level 10 filth, we want to bring the whole thing down to a Level 9, and then down from there. One really clean spot in an otherwise messy home is not going to be helpful here.

Get prepared. You’ll want to shut the computer down (or turn the modem off if you need your computer to play music). Trust me. Get your music going. Gather up trash bags, your vacuum and mop, some rags or paper towel, sponges, and other cleaning supplies. Use what you have on hand. Don’t get distracted running to the store and spending an hour browsing cleaning supplies. A multi-purpose cleaning concentrate or a jug of vinegar will be just fine.

Breaks are very important. Depending on your time constraints, work in 20/10s (20 minutes working, 10-minute break) or 45/15s. But take breaks because otherwise you’re marathoning, and marathon cleaning is no one’s friend. Keep hydrated, don’t forget to eat, and check in with yourself frequently to make sure you’re physically doing OK.

Make your bed. This will be your home base if you get overwhelmed or need somewhere clear to take a break.

Start with the garbage. Going from room to room, throw out anything that is obvious trash. Once you fill a bag, take it out. Repeat as many times as necessary.

Move on to dishes. Gather the dishes from all over your house and bring them to the kitchen. If you can, start them soaking in a sink of hot, soapy water or start loading the dishwasher. After the dishes are all in one place, spend one 20/10 getting started getting them under control.

Now it’s time for your flat surfaces. Countertops, tables, dresser tops, etc. Clear them off and wipe them down. Don’t get distracted in too much sorting and organizing. We’re in crisis mode here. There will be time to get in-depth once this is all done. The same applies to cabinets and closets. Unless you have reason to believe people will be opening closed doors, leave these alone for now.

Attack the floordrobe and shoe pile. Get your clothes either put away or in the hamper. Start a load of laundry if you need to, but keep in mind that laundry and dishes have three steps: wash, dry, and put it away, goddammit!

Get random stuff up off the floors. If something is trash-worthy, throw it away now rather than just move it around a bunch of times. Otherwise, put stuff where it belongs.

Take another 20/10 or 45/15 to catch up on more dishes, if needed.

Head into the bathroom. Pour some cleaner in the toilet bowl, fill the sink with hot water and cleaner, and either spray the tub and shower with cleaner, or fill the tub up with some hot water and add cleaner and let it soak. Put everything away that’s out and shouldn’t be, clean the mirror, counters, and toilet seat. Sweep or dry mop the floor. Wipe down the sink and tub/shower, and give the toilet bowl a scrub. Mop the floor.

Sweep and mop the kitchen floor.

Vacuum everything you can, and sweep everything you can’t.

Walk outside of your house (don’t lock yourself out, please). Walk back in and see what catches your eye first. Go and deal with that.

If you’re being inspected or your landlord is coming in for repairs, spend time on whatever area they’ll be focusing on.

Give the whole place one more once-over and pay attention to anything you’ve missed so far.

It’s an old trick, but if your place is a little funky-smelling, put a pan of water on the stove on low heat and add some citrus or cinnamon or vanilla. Don’t leave it unattended or forget about it.

Take a shower, put on something clean, and eat something.

You can do this. It’s overwhelming, yes, but it is not impossible. You just need to do it. You have a list. You have directions. You have a whole bunch of Internet strangers who have been there before and who are cheering you on. You can do this, but you need to get started.

Why are you still here? GO. START. NOW.

[river-b]

the number of times in my past that I desperately wanted/needed someone to sit me down and tell me this stuff. I will never get back the hours and hours lost to headless-chicken mode, but it’s nice to know that in the last year I’ve learned so many coping mechanisms :D

[mournfulroses]

Albert Camus, from a letter to María Casares featured in Correspondance, 1944-1959

[sinni-ok-sessi]

I do think the ability to emoji-react is a net win for human communication. not only does it give you an outlet for 'I see and acknowledge this but don't have a verbal response' but it also adds a pleasing alethiometer element to things

my coworker announces that he's off to the dentist. someone reacts with a tooth emoji. is this a statement of dentist solidarity? a wish for my coworker to return with more (or fewer?) teeth than he set out with? simple word association? who can say

[homunculus-argument]

you: Oh no I can't write this, my writing is too generic and derivative, it's all just a copy of a copy of a copy with nothing original or unique to it. I suck and I have no original touch. also you: Oh no I can't write this, my writing is too self-indulgent and tailored to only please my own specific preferences and interests. It's too weird and perverse and nobody else writes weird shit like this. I suck and I must be more normal.

[homunculus-argument]

also some of you you: I have this weird fetish I cannot speak to anyone about, because it's so obscure and far-fetched that I've never even found porn about this specific thing. I'm the only person in the world who even has this kink. I hope nobody notices that I've let some of that slip in here. the second person in the world who has that kink: [vibrating with lust hard enough to be used as paint mixer] H-hho-hhooll-hollyyyyy sh-hhh-hhhiiiiii-iiit

[selkiese]

wawa

[sarahs-delights]

Wisteria by Adalyn Grace

The Knight and the Moth by Rachel Gillig

Howl's Moving Castle by Diana Wynne Jones

The Floating World by Axie Oh

Best Hex Ever by Nadia El-Fassi

Heavenly Bodies by Imani Erriu

The Glittering Edge by Alyssa Villaire

Darker by Four by June CL Tan

Broken Souls and Bones by L.J. Andrews

The Half King by Melissa Landers

Immortal by Sue Lynn Tan

The Starlight Heir by Amalie Howard

Cruel is the Light by Sophie Clark

A Curse of Blood and Wolves by Melissa McTernan

[titsay]

[macgyvermedical]

Homemade Electrolyte Mix

Guess what, folks! It's summer! And it's gonna be a hot one, because they all are, recently :(

Did you know you can lose about a liter of water, a gram of sodium, and 300mg potassium in an hour of profuse sweating? If you're working outside in the heat, or even just existing in a very hot and humid environment, you're gonna want to replace the electrolytes you're losing, and you're gonna have to be purposeful about it.

But electrolyte drink mixes, while convenient, are surprisingly expensive for what they are. So I'm going to give you a top secret recipe that you can whip up for literal pennies that will replace what you're losing in sweat.

1 liter of water

1/2 tsp table salt (about 1g of sodium)

1/8 tsp potassium chloride salt substitute (about 350mg potassium. NuSalt is a popular brand, it's sold near the salt at the grocery store. If you don't have this, replace 6oz (180ml) of the water with orange juice or eat something high in potassium, like a banana, each hour you're sweating)

6-8 tsp of granulated sugar (you do actually need this and not a no calorie alternative- sugar helps speed up the absorption of electrolytes in the gut. You can omit if using orange juice for your potassium source, though!)

Lemon or lime juice for flavor, optional

Mix together and drink 1 liter for each hour you're profusely sweating. Adjust your intake so that your pee is light yellow.

If you want to make this mix ahead of time, put 1x the recipe of salt, sugar, and potassium, along with unsweetened Kool Aid powder or crystalized lemon or lime juice, in a small baggie. I do not recommend putting multiple servings worth in a baggie, as the ingredients settle differently and you might not get the right ratio.

NOTE: like any electrolyte drink, it works better if you sip it instead of chugging. If you chug it, you end up pooping out a lot of your electrolytes, even with the sugar.

Source: Where There Is No Doctor by David Werner

[headspace-hotel]

I had mistakenly absorbed so much bullshit about sports drinks being "unhealthy" that I learned the hard way that when you work outdoors chugging plain water will NOT rehydrate you properly. great resource thx

[junestrings]

a lot of people dont care about insect biomass collapse bc when they hear we are losing 2.5% of the insect biomass per year they just imagine the cockroach and housefly population decreasing by that much. they dont realize those are among the only ones that will remain unbothered

[junestrings]

you can make a little oasis right where you are, and it matters

[headspace-hotel]

every year of restoring native plants I see a great increase in the insect populations, and loads of new insects i never saw before (all of them harmless--the insects that are harmful or parasitic on humans are the main ones being unaffected by the decrease in insect populations)

(a large part of) the problem is Plant Sameness. we must restore plant diversity

[darilynnz]

why are we as a community not talking about cloak and dagger like. all the time. i feel like we should talk more abt them like LOOK AT THEM.. . THEYRE SO CUTE

[seekingstars]

HOW’S THAT HOUSE THAT RAISED YOU? - Lev St. Valentine

[inkskinned]

Actually life is beautiful because the sound I make while trying to breathe around hot food sounds like my dog trying to eat an apple. When I yawn my cat tries to put his face in my mouth like a little dentist man and when he yawns I put my finger in his obligate-carnivore trapzone and we both know he will not hurt me. When I do not fold my clothes, they do not hold it against me.

I am demonstrably sad, and lonely, and full of fear. But there are other people who will hold my hand, who will point out the hawk overhead, who will give you That Look in a public place. The other day at a coffee shop a child said "look! It's snowing!" so all of us strangers went to go look out the windows. It wasn't the first snow and it won't be the last but wasn't it lovely, like that?

How wonderful to live in a world where birds and frogs both say beep! How wonderful to have an ocean of beautiful sharks with their dinosaur teeth! How wonderful the moon and her changing face, how wonderful the bees and their dancing to communicate, how wonderful shrimp and their forbidden layers of vision! How wonderful, you, and what you will give the world! The way we love things enough to spend entire blogs devoted to them? How people will let me explain my Pokemon team to them? How we will both jump at the scare in the movie, how we laugh so loudly, how it feels to give someone your baking? How wonderful to be alive. I am sorry for forgetting.

This is the process of getting better. With wonderful people and wonderful strangers and wonderful friends: I am getting better, slowly. Thank you, whoever you are. In some way, you've been wonderful, and left a wonderful place in the world to ripple out to me. In some small way - isn't it beautiful - I promise, you've been helping.

[adarkerbeamoflight]

"How wonderful to be alive. I am sorry for forgetting."