as i am. as i am.

josephine doherty. 34. london-based web developer and business owner. originally from belfast, northern ireland. one of seven siblings.

[joxdoherty-blog]

cyrus-webb:

“You’d think I’d be grateful for a bit of summer vacation away from the six classes I normally teach. But I just have nothing to do besides watch Maura, who mostly just sleeps and cries. Infants aren’t exactly the most exciting yet… but she’s learning how to rip up napkins so that’s interesting.” Cyrus grinned. “Please tell me your life has been more exciting than mine lately?”

“Mmhm. You really can’t do much with little babies, can you? Sleeping and crying is sort of their lifestyle for the first few months.” Jo smiled in a way she hoped was mostly sympathetic, “but it will pass. Babies are hugely entertaining once they get a bit older,” she added without much of a pause. “I mean, I’ve been eating loads of ice cream while doing very little. That’s hardly exciting. Just involves less crying, you know.” 

[joxdoherty-blog]

rileyheartfield:

“Even being flicked at you? Because I promise you I’ll do it” she replied with a laugh, glad she could at least make the other woman smile, despite all that had happened. She wasn’t expecting anything major, that would be unfair. “I’m the worst person to ask, still trying to figure that one out myself. “I asked my dad once, how he coped with negativity. He said he threw himself into work…unfortunately to the point he was there almost 24/7 and the station had to phone papa to get him to drag him home. I had a point… oh, it’s that I think not knowing is very human. We’re never really taught how to do it, he’s a grown man with grown kids, and still can’t”. 

“Especially being flicked at me. It’s only my favourite way to consume any sort of sweet treat,” she stated jokingly and moved few old newspapers from the sofa table just to keep herself busy and moving; otherwise she would only end up fiddling with whatever she could lay her hands on. “Yes, I’ve heard of those people. I suppose I do it sometimes. Computer codes don’t have human emotions. It’s sort of comforting,” she admitted, crossing her hands on her lap as she looked around aimlessly. “Well, being adult is difficult. Everyone expects you to have it all figured out but you very rarely do, huh?”

[joxdoherty-blog]

wanderingnix:

Nix had been wandering the city streets for hours as they tried to get themselves acquainted with their new home. They didn’t mind the crowds that shoved them lightly as they made their way. Everyone had a place to be in a hurry, it seemed. They crossed the road, not hearing the speeding truck, but narrowly making it to the other side without getting hit. They sat on a nearby bench, visibly shaken from the encounter.

Jo had sat down on the particular bench some minutes ago, now busy reading through a trade magazine she had been carrying around in her bag for weeks. She looked up and smiled briefly when she realised someone had sat next to her but went right back to reading before realising her new companion looked positively rattled. “Excuse me? Are you quite alright?” 

[joxdoherty-blog]

mrtobyemerson:

“So I lost some weight and got myself a trainer who I hate with the passion of a thousand suns. and now all I eat is Kale, which tastes like crispy toilet paper, on occasion, I go to a bar and smell the alcohol and then I go to the bakery and smell the cakes but I can’t eat any of them or my boss will fire me. Enough about me, how are you ?”

“That sounds truly tragic. I’ve heard adding lemon to the kale makes it, uh, nicer? Can you make kale nice? I don’t know.” Jo shook her head slowly, horrified by the very thought of changing her own lifestyle to the point of not being able to eat cake. “Well, I’m currently taking some time off work - haven’t done that in years - so I’m sort of eating all the cake?” 

[joxdoherty-blog]

carterdewinter:

“Mmm good luck” well he wasn’t going to stop her from going home, or wherever it was if that was just some excuse. She’d at least eaten something so that was a bonus. He wasn’t sure how long it would last but he knew dealing with loss was a nightmare. Just as long as she tried to look after herself, that was all.

Jo blinked onceas desperately tried to fight the urge to cry in front of so many people. She gathered her things with shaking hands and stood up slowly, as if too delicate to move any faster. “Thank you for listening. I do appreciate it,” she breathed out while cleaning up the tiny pieces of paper napkins. “Yeah, well, I need to go now. Have a good day.” 

[joxdoherty-blog]

thestoryofren:

“It’s okay. I was sleeping in public, so maybe me getting woke up is a good thing. “ Ren gave her another smile. He honestly didn’t mind that he was awake now. “Right? The poor kid is usually a happy bundle of energy. I’d do anything to see him back to his usual self.”

Jo simply nodded before taking a sip of her coffee, pulling a face as she realised it was still piping hot and not agreeing with her mouth. “Colds tend to pass quite quickly. It’s draining for sure, watching little ones be so miserable, especially when they don’t really understand the whole point of staying in bed and drinking loads of liquids. I turn into a little kid when I’m ill so I feel like I have plenty of experience.”

[joxdoherty-blog]

bexleyrosabellemitchell:

Bexley was behind the counter of the cafe wiping down the open space as she hummed and sang softly along with the music that was playing on the radio throughout the shop, she had looked around at the semi-empty place and smiled at how comfortable the customers looked. Bexley had just gotten off stage from her nightly performance and was now running on sunshine. She always had that bounce of energy every time she was done singing, it brought a sense of happiness to her. She stuffed the rag that she was washing the counter with in the pocket of her apron before hearing footsteps approaching, “What can I get for you?” She asked while she kept her eyes down on the clean counter checking to see if she had somehow missed a spot.

A regular caffeine fiend, Jo had definitely familiarised herself with the cafe Bexley worked at. She was constantly dropping by, often ordering comically large drink after a sleepless night or a particularly stressful day at work. Now, however, she was feeling quite relaxed and wasn’t relying on her fix of coffee to get her through hours of coding and simply wanted to check on her friend while wandering about the neighbourhood. “Surprise me,” she replied with a bright smile and took a quick look around the space to see how many familiar faces she could spot. “What’s really fun here? I’m usually downing these huge buckets of black coffee and I kind of want to get out of my comfort zone. Can you help me with that?” 

[joxdoherty-blog]

michaelshxrp:

“Ay caramba! Mi cabeza!” Michael whined as he held the back of his head. “Do you mind lowering your voice a little? I’ve got a massive hangover and if you keep talking that loud, I swear to god, I’m gonna vomit all over you..” He warned as he closed his eyes, taking in deep breaths to avoid actually puking. “Fuck, that’s the last time I’m gonna drink that heavily..”

“Oh, shite,” Jo gasped, her words just above whisper as she did her best to keep her voice as low possible. “I didn’t even realise I was being loud. I usually am,” she admitted and flashed an apologetic smile before shoving her hands in her jean pockets. “Can I help you with that? I could get you some water or painkillers.” 

[joxdoherty-blog]

“I’ve spent the last few years so tied to my job I sort of forgot what taking time off feels like. I mean, small business owners don’t exactly get loads of holiday days or anything but I’ve somehow managed to sort an actual summer holiday for myself. What do I do now? I’m kind of tempted to take the world’s longest nap but surely that’s really bloody boring.” 

[joxdoherty-blog]

thepoetdustin:

   “even if it is just making one person day it helps and one never knows. It could be a domino effect”

Jo nodded enthusiastically, her smile equally ardent. “That’s what I try to remember when I’m feeling a bit low. Being nice or at least generally pleasant isn’t that difficult but it might really help someone who’s dealing with something really difficult.” 

[joxdoherty-blog]

saisonmatthews:

“My father,” He said as he turned his head to look back at the woman. “Things happened between him and my mom and he left us, when I got older I went and managed to find him and when I did, things didn’t really go as I had planned.” Saison chuckled lightly thinking back to that certain day. He had wished he could say a lot of things to his father but his father had moved on and was living a new better life.

“Your father,” Jo repeated and glanced down briefly as she looked for the right set of words. “I’m sorry to hear that. That must have been really painful. I can’t imagine anything more traumatising than your own parents abandoning you. Was that really harsh of me to say?” she asked hurriedly, worried she had overstepped her boundaries. “Can you really plan out that sort of a thing? I mean, surely it’s such a huge, emotional situation.” 

[joxdoherty-blog]

jacksonblakeney:

“What do I think?” Jackson repeated, staying silent for a moment as he tried to think of an answer. “I think I got bored and stopped listening”.

“Wasn’t talking to you, sir,” she informed, eyes all but glued to her phone as she typed away in a hurry. “Phone call. I am sure you’ve heard of them. And since it was a work thing, I didn’t think I would have to aim for something that would’ve been entertaining to you.” 

[joxdoherty-blog]

dogsandguns:

Daniel stopped looking at her a bit confused at first “Wait, Guinness is a beer?” he has an embarrassed smile on his face before shaking his head “Thought you were actually talking about the  Guinness World Records…”

“Of course it’s a beer,” Jo replied, almost shocked despite looking thoroughly amused. “The really dark stuff with a light foam on top of it? I’m sure you’ve seen people drinking it. Well, I mean, the book was sort of started by some guy who was the managing director of the Guinness Breweries back in the day.” 

[joxdoherty-blog]

thepoetdustin:

   “True. That’s why i always try to be nice, kind and helpful to people. You never know how one can someone hope about the world”

“I wish we had more people like you. It really is lovely you try and do your best to be a force for positive change, even if it can be sort of exhausting and difficult at times.” 

[joxdoherty-blog]

julietdevalois:

“Oh god, my feet are killing me.” Juliet spoke softly as she kept rubbing her temples, she was completely exhausted thanks to rehearsals. She kept walking down the street not really paying attention to where she was going until she bumped into someone. “Oh I’m sorry, totally my fault.”

Jo turned around almost immediately as she simultaneously yanked out her earbuds. “Excuse me?” she asked, clear she had missed the woman’s apology. “I should’ve paid attention. Alas, I was too distracted by my music. Anyway, I hope you’re not hurt.”

[joxdoherty-blog]

wyatt-plum:

“I do like her, yeah. She’s been helpful. Good for… working through things.” He smiled gently, walking with her at a comfortable pace. Wyatt had been dealing with quite a lot and had been told not to stress himself out because it would make healing even worse. And yet here he was, getting threatened and assaulted by some friend of his ex, stuck in some weird will-they-won’t-they. He was tired. Wyatt leaned into Jo a bit with a soft smile. “Does this place had ice cream? I’m really in the mood for ice cream. Or if they have alcoholic milkshakes? That would be brilliant.”

“That’s nice to hear. Sometimes it’s bloody impossible to find the right therapist. I’m really glad you didn’t have to hunt for one, especially since you’re already going through so much.” While Wyatt’s situation was anything but ideal, he certainly seemed appreciative of the help he was getting and that alone was enough to convince Jo he would eventually be fine. “What sort of place doesn’t have ice cream during the summer? I would never visit such establishment,” she scoffed jokingly and rolled her eyes. “I’m not sure what their current menu is like but we’ll see soon enough.”

[joxdoherty-blog]

nikolasambrose:

“ Please do so I can get this cracked repaired.” He smiled. “ I’ve been alright took a few days offs to have a little vacation. I need a break from London but I’m feeling better and decided to come back. I also missed my store and it’s been closed for two weeks now so I think it’s time to open it up again.”

“Absolutely. I’ll find out the name of the place and text it to you. It’s not too far from here.” Jo had wrecked her fair share of phone screens so she absolutely knew what she was talking about. “Ah, a little break must have been nice. London can get so loud and chaotic sometimes. Well, I’m glad you’re back. There really isn’t a bookshop like yours in whole of London.”