Hello, I am in the market for a new office chair, and I need some advice. For reference, I am a fairly big guy at 6'1'' 240lb. Ideally I'd spend no more than $600, and I am more than open to used.
I just bought a 2022 gesture locally for $550 thinking it'd be the one, but unfortunately the lumbar support is a bit too aggressive for me, which causes lower back pain. I've also tried a Leap v2, but it was pretty old and the seat cussion was worn down, so it caused tailbone pain. I also experienced a similar issue with the lumbar. I liked the Leap, but did not fall in love.
The chair i've used the most was some basic mesh Aeron knockoff. It was comfortable enough but I do get quite a bit of back pain so I was wondering if the chair was the culprit. I tried an Aeron size C in a store one time and it was comfortable, but my concern is that I tend to sit crosslegged or in other weird positions sometimes and the bucket seat of the Aeron is not conducive to that.
I really want to try out an Embody (Again, tried it briefly in store and was comfortable), but even the cheapest used ones I can find are $900-$1000, which is more expensive than I'd like. The main issue is that I am moving soon and don't want to drop a grand on a chair that could potentially get damaged during the move. I'll be driving everyhting myself so no moving companies to worry about, but still.
I am open to suggestions, any and all are appreciated. Thank you!

i know it's down to personal preference, however i've wanted to join the army since forever.
​
i'm currently a 17 year old girl, year 12 student, and am having a crisis in regards to my future. i hear many people say "i didn't know what i wanted to do at you're age, so you have time" but i'm a person who would rather have it all planned out in front of me .
​
my parents - yes, my parents - have given me 2 options; to either go to university and go into the army as an officer with a degree at 22, just so i have "something to fall back on". my end goal within the army is to eventually join the SF - i've done the proper research needed and i know what is required of me before i even think of committing myself (i need to have served - in any branch of the military - for at least 3 years before i go through selection. that's 3 years i would've wasted if i go to university, and could be in the SF by the time I'm 21 if i don't go through further education).
​
one of the main reasons as to why i'm reluctant to go to university before the army is because i fear i'll fail my A-Levels and won't even get the chance to go.
​
so, my options are to either join the army after sixth form, and don't even look at universities (but then i'd miss out on the "university lifestyle") or i could attempt to get into a good university, then make my decision at the end of it (but if i do decide to enlist, by the time i get to the point of joining the SF, i'll be 25, a waste of 4 years - i see it as being 4 years behind everyone else). it's typical of any parent to not want their child to join the military, however, mine want me to work a basic 9 - 5 job - this really isn't me and has never appealed to me.
​
or do i join the RAF? but that's a whole other post for another day.
​
i'm looking for any form of advice, even if it's just a one-word reply : )

I know versions of this question have been asked over and over on this sub, but looking back at old posts none quite answer what I need to know or they're so old I don't know if the answers are still relevant.
I'll be moving to Oxford soon, but will likely be living there for less than a year. I am very likely to be living in East Oxford.
I can work from home most of the time, but my main office is based in London and I occasionally need to be in the office for bursts of time. Sometimes just 1-2 days in a week, sometimes a couple weeks/months in a row.
Google tells me it's a 2-hour commute door-to-door, which would include getting the Oxford Tube to Hillingdon, and then getting the Metropolitan line all the way to my office. For the days I have to be in, I think being there 10am-5pm is acceptable most of the time.
So my questions are: How reliable is the Oxford Tube between East Oxford/Headington and Hillingdon?
Are there any specific times where it's very unreliable/ impossible to get a seat?
Are there any tips for best stops to get on/off at, or anything else to prepare myself for?
I already do a 1.5hr commute which is sometimes 2hrs on a bad day so I'm used to a long commute, and think if I get a bit better at meal prepping, a 2hr commute wouldn't be the end of the world if I'm not doing it all the time. Just trying to figure out if the theory correlates with the reality.
A lot of the old posts about the Oxford Tube on this sub are pretty pessimistic, but I can't tell if that's just classic reddit, or if it's really that bad. So I'd really appreciate some insight into the reliability of the link to Hillingdon.
Thanks in advance!

What can I do about my boss that has poor toilet manners?
For context, I (M) work in a small company with about 12 people split between 2 offices. The main toilets are at the front of the building. I work in a small room at the other end of the building and essentially share the single sex toilet with 2 other people (both F). My manager's office is in between the two offices and he chooses to use our toilet - I presume so that he doesn't have to walk through the main office to do his business every morning.
I have no problem with him using my toilet but 9/10 times he'll leave lots of poo marks and bad odour (despite there being a toilet brush and air spray) and for some reason the toilet roll is always left balancing on the taps and not in its holder.
I've pointed this out to another manager who jokingly/passively aggressively put "Keep Calm and Clean Up After Yourself" signs in every toilet on site. This however has not worked in the slightest.
Any suggestions?

Advance Market Analytics released a new market study on Global Executive Search - Market Research report which presents a complete assessment of the Market and contains a future trend, current growth factors, attentive opinions, facts, and industry validated market data. The research study provides estimates for Global Executive Search - Forecast till 2027*.
Executive search is a specialized sort of recruitment geared toward attracting enormously professional senior management expertise to a corporation. It’s far typically used to fill strategically essential roles, together with CEO, CFO, COO, HRD, and CIO. Executive seeks firms provide access to an expansive and ever-growing pipeline of potential applicants, at the same time as drawing on their industry, function, role, and geodemographic understanding to help you define and position the position in a way so as to attract and at ease the high-quality applicants.
Key Players included in the Research Coverage of Executive Search - Market are:
Jordan Search Consultants (United States)
Ecruit (United Kingdom)©
N2Growth (United States)
Korn Ferry. (United States)
Heidrick & Struggles (United States)
Egon Zehnder. (Switzerland)
SPENCER STUART (United States)
RUSSELL REYNOLDS ASSOCIATES (United States)
Boyden ( India)
Stanton Chase (United States)
TRANSEARCH International. (United Kingdom)
DHR (United States)
Signium (United States)
Bespoke Partners. (United States)
What's Trending in Market: Increasing Utilization of Executive Search to Grow Business
Challenges: Stiff Competition in Executive Search Market
Finding Great Candidates May be Challenging for the Market
Opportunities: Increasing Number Of Industries In The Countries Creating Opportunities For Executive Search Market
Market Growth Drivers: Growing Need for Effective And Time Saving Recruitment Process
Rising Demand for Highly Skilled Senior Management among the Organization
The Global Executive Search - Market segments and Market Data Break Down by Type (Retained Search Firms, Contingency Search Firms), Application (Healthcare, Automotive, Manufacturing & Industrial, Business, Others), Executive Officer (Chief Executive Officer & Board of Directors, Technology Officers, Marketing)
To comprehend Global Executive Search - market dynamics in the world mainly, the worldwide Executive Search - market is analyzed across major global regions. AMA also provides customized specific regional and country-level reports for the following areas.
• North America: United States, Canada, and Mexico. • South & Central America: Argentina, Chile, Colombia and Brazil. • Middle East & Africa: Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Israel, Turkey, Egypt and South Africa. • Europe: United Kingdom, France, Italy, Germany, Spain, Belgium, Netherlands and Russia. • Asia-Pacific: India, China, Japan, South Korea, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, and Australia.
Presented By
AMA Research & Media LLP

Missing Time followed by Recurrent Dreams of my Car Falling with me inside & Preston Dennett’s report on “UFO Car Lift Cases.” Joseph Burkes MD 2022
This YouTube report linked below has a special significance for me. On December 26, 1993, I had an episode of shared missing time while driving home from Joshua Tree National Monument where my contact teammate and I tried to stage a Human Initiated Contact Event (HICE) aka CE5. My co-worker noticed what we initially thought was a car driving behind us. He stated that suddenly an amber light appeared between the "headlights" of this alleged car.
Moments later the array of three lights reportedly rose off the highway. This occurred as we dove through the ravine on highway 62 linking the Morongo Valley to the Palms Springs area. Once we emerged from this ravine, we saw a multitude of lights slowly flying through the dark sky. A bright light flying out from the Palms Springs area rapidly approached us. At that point we experienced missing time. Several days later, my teammate stated that he recalled having an onboard experience during our episode of missing time.
A few months later I stared having recurrent dreams which had a similar theme. I dreamed that I was in a variety of motor vehicles that were falling, two out of the three dreams I fell from a great height. The dreams caused me to wonder whether our car on December 26, 1993, had been picked up by a UFO. Perhaps these dreams were symbolic representations of the kind of sheer terror described so well in Preston Dennett's "UFO Car-Lift Cases."
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W_vS_8MB9mg

Missing Time followed by Recurrent Dreams of my Car Falling with me inside & Preston Dennett’s report on “UFO Car Lift Cases.” Joseph Burkes MD 2022
This YouTube report linked below has a special significance for me. On December 26, 1993, I had an episode of shared missing time while driving home from Joshua Tree National Monument where my contact teammate and I tried to stage a Human Initiated Contact Event (HICE) aka CE5. My co-worker noticed what we initially thought was a car driving behind us. He stated that suddenly an amber light appeared between the "headlights" of this alleged car.
Moments later the array of three lights reportedly rose off the highway. This occurred as we dove through the ravine on highway 62 linking the Morongo Valley to the Palms Springs area. Once we emerged from this ravine, we saw a multitude of lights slowly flying through the dark sky. A bright light flying out from the Palms Springs area rapidly approached us. At that point we experienced missing time. Several days later, my teammate stated that he recalled having an onboard experience during our episode of missing time.
A few months later I stared having recurrent dreams which had a similar theme. I dreamed that I was in a variety of motor vehicles that were falling, two out of the three dreams I fell from a great height. The dreams caused me to wonder whether our car on December 26, 1993, had been picked up by a UFO. Perhaps these dreams were symbolic representations of the kind of sheer terror described so well in Preston Dennett's "UFO Car-Lift Cases."
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W_vS_8MB9mg

Missing Time followed by Recurrent Dreams of my Car Falling with me inside & Preston Dennett’s report on “UFO Car Lift Cases.” Joseph Burkes MD 2022
This YouTube report linked below has a special significance for me. On December 26, 1993, I had an episode of shared missing time while driving home from Joshua Tree National Monument where my contact teammate and I tried to stage a Human Initiated Contact Event (HICE) aka CE5. My co-worker noticed what we initially thought was a car driving behind us. He stated that suddenly an amber light appeared between the "headlights" of this alleged car.
Moments later the array of three lights reportedly rose off the highway. This occurred as we dove through the ravine on highway 62 linking the Morongo Valley to the Palms Springs area. Once we emerged from this ravine, we saw a multitude of lights slowly flying through the dark sky. A bright light flying out from the Palms Springs area rapidly approached us. At that point we experienced missing time. Several days later, my teammate stated that he recalled having an onboard experience during our episode of missing time.
A few months later I stared having recurrent dreams which had a similar theme. I dreamed that I was in a variety of motor vehicles that were falling, two out of the three dreams I fell from a great height. The dreams caused me to wonder whether our car on December 26, 1993, had been picked up by a UFO. Perhaps these dreams were symbolic representations of the kind of sheer terror described so well in Preston Dennett's "UFO Car-Lift Cases."
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W_vS_8MB9mg

​
This YouTube report linked below has a special significance for me. On December 26, 1993, I had an episode of shared missing time while driving home from Joshua Tree National Monument where my contact teammate and I tried to stage a Human Initiated Contact Event (HICE) aka CE5. My co-worker noticed what we initially thought was a car driving behind us. He stated that suddenly an amber light appeared between the "headlights" of this alleged car.
Moments later the array of three lights reportedly rose off the highway. This occurred as we dove through the ravine on highway 62 linking the Morongo Valley to the Palms Springs area. Once we emerged from this ravine, we saw a multitude of lights slowly flying through the dark sky. A bright light flying out from the Palms Springs area rapidly approached us. At that point we experienced missing time. Several days later, my teammate stated that he recalled having an onboard experience during our episode of missing time.
A few months later I stared having recurrent dreams which had a similar theme. I dreamed that I was in a variety of motor vehicles that were falling, two out of the three dreams I fell from a great height. The dreams caused me to wonder whether our car on December 26, 1993, had been picked up by a UFO. Perhaps these dreams were symbolic representations of the kind of sheer terror described so well in Preston Dennett's "UFO Car-Lift Cases."
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W_vS_8MB9mg

I have previously written two posts about gay (sex)adventures in Tokyo about 6 months ago, they are HERE and HERE. I just made another trip last week, this time more focused on general tourist activities, including a side trip to hike near Mount Fuji. But nothing would stop me from exploring the night and sex life of the city. Hope you'd find the additional information useful:
About bars - as a mature Asian muscle bear myself I again ended up going to first to Tokyo Eagle, then off to Eagle Blue to see a gogo dance performance by a group called Bear Train. Both places are in the middle of Shinjuku's gay district Ni-chome. Eagle Blue is more of a basement club than bar, and it was packed full of people that night. It'a a cover charge of ¥1,500, but you get one big drink up to the same price. They do serve drinks in big plastic cups. The atmosphere was great, so if you happen to be in Tokyo during the weekend go check out their Twitter to see if they have any performance.
As it was still early I decided to also go check out Dragon Men, which has a more professional troupe of muscle gogo dancers. This is a legit club and I read the weekend before the US singer Lil Nas X was there having fun after a promotional tour in Japan. I gotta say the performance there was way better than Bear Train's. So unless you, like me, have a thing for bears, Dragon Men is probably more entertaining.
A few people have asked me about "masseurs" and "escorts" in Tokyo. This is not something I usually go for but since Yen is now really cheap against USD, one can get a full service massage for only between ¥15,000 (around USD110) to ¥20,000. I was traveling with 2 other buddies this round and one of them knows more about the scene than me - here is what he did. There is actually a website that lists all the independent "masseurs" through out Japan. You can see their basic information and there are links to their Twitter accounts and websites to find out more. The main website is in Japanese and English, and you can set your browser to auto-translate from Japanese to English when viewing their own webpages.
Most masseurs prefer you contact them by emails first. You can use English and from what my friend has shown me they have no problem replying in English too. You should also contact them at least half a day in advance. Some of them regularly update their availability on Twitter. For some reasons Twitter is still very popular with Japanese and local businesses too. My friend hired one for an afternoon massage; he was so happy afterward that he is still talking about it. But please be mindful that this is a list of "masseurs" even when some are very explicit in what additional services are being offered. Use your own judgement and be respecful when setting up an appointment.
Since I was sharing a room with a travel buddy, we did decide to stay in more expensive hotels this round. The first one is in Ginza, and the second one is a "hot spring" hotel in Shinjuku right next to the gay district Ni-chome. It has a large bath in the basement with one big hot pool of hotspring water that can sit up to 8 people comfortably. There are also two smaller ones in an sealed off "outside" area. If you like the experience Japanese hotspring bathing this place is a very good deal, with the additional bonus that since it's also close to Ni-chome, it's popular with gay tourists and locals alike. All of us have encountered some very discreet cruising.
I don't encourage anyone to cruise in a public place that is not meant to be exclusively gay, but a smile and a friendly nod to the right person can definitely make your trip more interesting. I did exactly that and ended up in another hotel guest's room one evening.
Much as I wanted to visit at least one gay sauna or sex club this trip, I decided not to. Monkey pox is still a concern in Japan, and people are getting infected despite being vaccinated. This is just my personal choice, but you can still read about the 24 Kaikan sauna chain and various sex clubs in my two previous posts.
It's still really cheap to visit Japan now, but its economy is recovering faster than everyone else. It may not be cheap for long.

Advance Market Analytics released a new market study on Global Commercial Construction Market Research report which presents a complete assessment of the Market and contains a future trend, current growth factors, attentive opinions, facts, and industry validated market data. The research study provides estimates for Global Commercial Construction Forecast till 2027*.
The commercial construction industry is one of the many facets of the construction industry. This has a unique purpose, construction, and management techniques. It is mainly concerned with the built environment for trade-oriented establishments. Commercial construction is used for business purposes, including the construction of office buildings, industrial plants, and other related business operations. In certain situations, a commercial building must serve the purpose of running different companies in the same structure. In commercial construction, a new project is being developed that is based on several business decisions, which are also related to several people or interest groups. Commercial construction has extensive functions including shops, warehouses, theaters, hospitals, community buildings, and more. Most commercial buildings are provided with steel frames. In this way, the project justifies the cost and investment with steel. The commercial sector has a long-term relationship with suppliers. This way the materials in the project stay consistent. Commercial projects are usually large projects with larger buildings. Commercial projects, therefore, require powerful machines, large cranes, and sophisticated equipment. In general, commercial projects are funded by government agencies, developers, and bank finance companies.
Key Players included in the Research Coverage of Commercial Construction Market are:
Vinci SA (France)
ACS Group (Spain)
Bechtel (United States)
Hochtief (Germany)
Balfour Beatty (United Kingdom)
Bouygues Construction (France)
Kiewit Corporation (United States)
Royal BAM Group (Netherlands)
Laing O'Rourke (United Kingdom)
What's Trending in Market: Trends for the Commercial Construction Market Due To Dominance of the Tech Giants
Increasing Technology Sector’s Presence
Challenges: Decreased Commercial Activity As A Consequence Of Decreased Revenue in the Pandemic
Opportunities: The Continued Adoption of Digital Technologies
Increasing Government Investments in the Sector
Market Growth Drivers: Increase in Co-Working Spaces
Rising Construction Activities All Around the Globe
The Global Commercial Construction Market segments and Market Data Break Down by Type (New Construction, Repair and Maintenance, Refurbishment and Demolition), Application (Leisure and Hospitality Buildings, Office Buildings, Outdoor Leisure Facilities, Retail Buildings, Others), Organization Type (Small & Medium Size Enterprises, Large Enterprises), Material Used (Steel, Concrete, Cement, Composite Materials)
To comprehend Global Commercial Construction market dynamics in the world mainly, the worldwide Commercial Construction market is analyzed across major global regions. AMA also provides customized specific regional and country-level reports for the following areas.
• North America: United States, Canada, and Mexico. • South & Central America: Argentina, Chile, Colombia and Brazil. • Middle East & Africa: Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Israel, Turkey, Egypt and South Africa. • Europe: United Kingdom, France, Italy, Germany, Spain, Belgium, Netherlands and Russia. • Asia-Pacific: India, China, Japan, South Korea, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, and Australia.
Presented By
AMA Research & Media LLP

Few years ago back when I was 22, I remember walking along an overpass. It was a rather busy day and there was a lot of busy traffic going by. Anywho, as I was walking one way of the pedestrian side of the overpass when I saw another man coming up from the other side of the overpass and suddenly out of no way he came charging up to me while grinning with his arms extended out towards me whilst yelling “I am going to throw you into traffic!” he got too close to me and there is something you should know about me, during my time in high school I studied kickboxing/Mauy Thai. So out of reaction I grabbed his left arm and launched my right knee into his stomach while my other hand palmed thrusted into his nose causing it to bleed. He went down hard on the ground while holding his blooded nose. I remember seeing the blood on my hand as well and not wanting to deal with him futher I bolted out of there very quickly. First rule about martial arts know your escape plan when dealing with an attacker. So I ran not looking back either I did hear the guy while he was hobbling on the ground in pain “It Was Just A Joke, Dude!”
By the end of it I remember informing the police about the incident and the police officer she had told me, what he did was assault and I was defending myself. I don’t know what came of the guy but the last thing I remember was the officer was cleaning off the dry blood from my hand and asking me if I wanted to go to the hospital since I told her I suffer from a mental health disorder. Lastly, I didn’t need to press charges because what the guy did was classed as an assault, so there was charges pressed against him through the police action if they’d found him or not, I have no idea what happened to him because I never saw him after that.
So am I the jerk for probably breaking a guy’s nose just because he wanted to prank me?

Hello everybody. Coming here for advice because the people in my life dont seem to realize how serious of a decision this is for me.
Basically, im a college student and i got a cat about 8 months ago for many reasons including emotional support. We have been bonded since day one. He loves all my housemates (live w 4 other people) but me and him have a special connection. Ive been his primary caretaker this whole time, we sleep together every night, etc. He is my cat but is kind of a house cat in our shared living space.
I just got accepted to study abroad next spring for 6 months and am realizing how devastating the thought of leaving him behind would be. Im so emotionally attached to him and the thought of having him feel like i abandoned him and may never come back kills me. Plus, im gonna sublet my room and a complete stranger is gonna be sleeping in “his” bed… I feel like i need to take him and am now looking into logistics to see how it could work.
I will say, he is very comfortable in this house and comfortable around the people that live here. He loves his routine and is pretty scared of the outside world. Ultimately, i just wants whats best for him so My main question is this:
Would it be better for me and him to stay together and travel together, if my living conditions abroad could accommodate that? Or would it be better to leave him in the environment hes comfortable in and abandon him for 6 months as his owner…
Tldr: should i leave my cat in the house hes comfy in with people hes pretty comfortable with, or should i bring him with me, someone he is attached to who is equally attached to him lol, to study abroad for 6 months

Haven't seen any posts on these yet they seem to have been released on sale this morning further to a Discord update:
The main attraction seems to be just how small and dinky the 'Mercury' is, it comes only with one version containing the 6800U, 16GB of RAM and a 512 SSD, but fits in the palm of one hand. Introductory sale price is $400/£400. I won't be getting one having recently bought a UM560XT. But I like them.
Enjoy.
US store:https://store.minisforum.com/collections/all-product/products/minisforum-em680 DE store:https://store.minisforum.de/products/em680 JP store:https://store.minisforum.jp/collections/all-product/products/minisforum-em680 UK&IE store:https://store.minisforum.uk/products/minisforum-em680 HK store:https://minisforum.hk/products/em680

https://mlt.org/career-prep/
I'm currently part of the program in the SWE/Tech Track and at the date it has been awesome. We had an all paid 3 day bootcamp in San Francisco. We were able to visit Linkedin HQ, Netflix, Deloitte and Bloomberg offices. We also heard from several companies like TikTok, UKG, Amazon and also had a career fair one of the days to network with recruiters.
If you're interested in a referral please DM me.
Pd: You have to graduate in Winter 2025, Spring 2026 or Summer 2026

Top 5 Updates of the Week:

• Instagram shared how their algorithm works. Spoiler: It’s 90% their 2021 blogpost with minor changes.
• Snapchat My Snap AI: Users now have ability to send & receive AI generated images.
• Reddit’s new usage based API pricing will impact many third-party apps.
• Meta tests removal of news content in Canada in response to Online news act.
• Pinterest first platform to share their calendar for pride month & latest events.

Google:

• June 2023 Google Webmasters Report.
• Google rolling out multiple featured snippets feature on Desktop search.
• Google now treats .ai domains as generic Top-domains.
• Google search console insights adds your growing content report.
• Google modifies shopping ads policies to enhance transparency.
• Google Search console performance report was delayed by 65+ hours this week due to an error.
• Google Bard can now provide more precise local results.

Tiktok:

• Mexico city signs up a deal with TikTok to support small business marketing.
• Tiktok launches #ForYourPride for content creation around Pride month.
• Tiktok’s 10-minute recording option within the app is back for many users.
• TikTok accused of storing sensitive Creator Data in China.

Instagram

• Instagram tests new user control for recommended posts & transparency tool.
• The logo for Instagram’s Twitter rival App is now revealed in a leak.
• Instagram announces video scrubbing feature for IG reels.
• Instagram shares a format guide for all Meta Ads Platform.

Meta :

• Meta never gave up on metaverse, Meta Quest 3 coming this fall and price decrease for Quest 2.
• Meta found liable as court blocks firing of moderators.
• WhatsApp launches a security hub to showcase user control options.

Twitter:

• Twitter loses two executives in-charge of Safety & Trust on the platform.
• Twitter leaves EU voluntary code of practice against disinformation.
• Ben & Jerry’s leave Twitter Advertising over Hate speech.
• Twitter’s working on hide your likes tab option.
• Twitter ignoring hate speech created by Twitter Blue subscribers.

YouTube:

• Youtube reverses misinformation policy to allow US election denialism.
• MrBeast tags big streaming services and pitches his idea of new Game Show.
• Viral Nation’s new product to protect companies from copyright issues.
• Youtube adds 5.1 Surround Sound & announces new YPP terms.

Agency News:

• Dentsu sees 2023 Ad spending up 3.3%.
• WPP partners with Nvidia to build an AI content engine.
• Zoom apps marketing chief Janine Pelosi exists.
• Ogilvy Africa introduces InfluenceO, an Influencer marketing solution for Africa.

LinkedIn:

• LinkedIn launched a new playbook for SaaS companies marketing on the platform.

Snapchat:

• Snapchat launches AR Learning hub for individuals with growing interest in AR world.
• Snapchat launches sheen camera filter to Encourage LGBTQ+ creators to share their story.

Reddit:

• Reddit’s main share holder cuts down its valuation in the platform by 41%.
• Many Sub-reddits are protesting on 12th June against new API pricing changes.

Advertising:

• Heinz Debuts First Global Campaign in 150 Years.
• Unilever pledges over 70% of Ads will have disabled representatives behind the scenes.
• Fentiman creates world’s longest Advert with an 168-hour film, woah.
• New Created Campaign from Wendy with T-pain is blasting.

Microsoft

• Bing chat increases chat turns, adds visuals to travel queries and expands Bing Image creator.
• Microsoft teams on Windows 11 gets discord-like communities and AI tools.
• Bing Chat adds Anchor text hyperlinks within answers.
• Microsoft introduces insights for Universal Event tracking Tags.

AI:

• Brands are asking Influencers to utilise AI tools to improve their content practices.
• Search Engine Land launched their own AI Chatbot based on 20,000+ previous blogs.

Pinterest:

• Julia Brau Donnelly to join Pinterest as Chef Financial Officer.
• Pinterest publishes new research on how positivity drives actions at event stage of the shopping journey.

Marketing:

• BeReal is testing BeRealChat for direct messaging options.
• Peloton goes through a rebrand, trying to recapture its audience.
• Verizon owned Visible Brand launches a new show with creator group “Old Gays”.
• Oracle removes social sharing tool “Add this”.

What are your thoughts on these recent updates? You can subscribe to the weekly newsletter (link in bio) to receive these updates every week.

First Prev
>>Lassus System, Orbit of Lasu, Lassus Station, Early 2670
>Vice Admiral Wolf, TRSC Sword of Reckoning, 7th Fleet
"Sir," Minerva said, reporting to her commanding officer, "Friendly forces have been successful in the eradication of the enemy threat."
"What of the data?" he responded, monitoring the digital field presented on the holo-table.
"En route," she replied, "They are currently engaging the ground element."
"In vacuum?" Wolf replied, surprise apparent in his tone.
"Yes sir," She enlarged the section of a docking tube that was violently torn apart by way of explosive, "By joining themselves, they extended their reach toward the raiders thrown by the explosion."
An indicator of a ship made its way to a beacon labeled as 'Raptor 4-4' and 'Raptor 4-5', both colored red with the word 'DECEASED' labeled above them.
After several moments, when the ship overlapped with Raptor '4-4', the ship in question reported to command.
"This is Lighthouse, we have the package. Returning to base."
Randal acknowledged the report in Wolf's stead and turned to him.
"What do you make of this enemy?" he inquired, "Do you think they've developed our level of AI?"
"It's not out of the realm of possibility, but currently, I find it highly unlikely," said Wolf.
"How so?" Randal replied.
"First off, we've delved into their systems before Lassus, in the Verbus System. They don't utilize even the most rudimentary forms of AI," explained Wolf, "It's all just hard-coded protocols, much like in the late 20th century when robotics was first introduced."
From city functions to ship systems, most of the TRSC currently utilize simple AI like the former Lumi to man engine operations and gun targeting systems. Since space was so vast, a human controller could do so much against an enemy in space, and so those tasks were relegated to simple AIs. However, ship-born AI took control over their simple variants like an overseer, with the Ship-Born retaining a personality of sorts.
"It's no wonder Minerva wreaked such havoc on their systems early on," Wolf continued, "But this latest development has me worried..."
Minerva entered the room with her roman visage upon the command table in the center of the room, her hands restfully placed in front of her making a "V" with her arms; a posture that added nobility to her digital aura.
"Admiral, Commander" she spoke, "The Package has been received, and I am currently in the process of securing her from our systems. Soon, we may have the information we seek."
"Good work," replied Randal, "What of the station? Is there a chance a part of the program was retained?"
"No Commander. I have deployed a series of offensive protocols to search and destroy any remaining traces of left over program that could retaliate. So far, I have found nothing," she replied, "I would suggest the use of an EMP to ensure complete electronic destruction upon our departure."
"Noted," affirmed Wolf, "Meanwhile, Randal, have the rest of the fleet secure this system."
"Yes sir."
The ships of the 7th Fleet were split up into a series of smaller battle groups consisting of several corvettes and a single frigate to conduct sweeps of certain sectors. Of course, not any one group would venture out alone, but they would be in company of other groups within a short jump away.
Throughout the system, the Sellians had a multitude of facilities. Many prioritized the production of fuel resources and others were smaller hubs for more isolated transactions, but scans revealed more of the same; empty stations.
The 7th Stellar Fleet opted to utilize many of the fuel stations for their own after it was revealed early on by Athena that Sellian hydrogen fuel production was a tier above their own. The fleet had dedicated ships for fuel stores, but so did the carriers. Their ability to carry fuel for fighters was the whole reason they were created; to support missions beyond established infrastructure in a hostile environment. Without breaking their alertness, they continued with their sweep.
During their patrols, many of the trading hubs were destroyed and sent to forever drift in the void until ultimately colliding with whatever is unfortunate enough to get hit by it.
After several hours, Minerva opened a line to the bridge, catching the attention of Randal, Gruda, Wolf and the rest of the bridge crew.
"Gentlemen," she started, "I do believe I have calmed down our aggressive captive."
Another hologram was visualized beside the standing Minerva, but instead of a light blue hue, it exuded an orange base with a reddened outline. Their outfit was slim and barbaric, with a fleece cloak around the neck that fell to just above their waist. Their hair was long and naturally waved hair with no signs of civility. The dress donned revealed the AI to take the base form of a female, and it was slim to the frame of the body, revealing their arbitrary curves of the female form with a visible embroidery along the sides of the torso and the sleeves. The designs were Celtic in nature, and her defeated posture revealed no more than what they had just observed.
"This was the AI operating within the Sellian confines, as well as the one responsible for the murder of the civilians."
The others were cautious of her nature, the memory of the video from the raiders still fresh in their memory.
"However, upon her repair, I have surmised the cause of her indiscriminate actions were a result of a corruption in her incomplete personality matrix that was being developed near the end of my sabotage and my subsequent birth."
She said with a prideful smile.
Wolf turned to the AI in question. Her dress was neat, but her hair was a rugged mess with a fleece cloak that it used to try and hide her form as she laid in the fetal position.
He lowered himself to its eye level but stayed several inches away so as not to spook it when he whispered to it.
"Do you have a name? Miss?"
Her head perked at the words spoken to her, processing their intention. She peered an eye from over her shoulder and slowly rose. She looked around nervously, first at Wolf, acknowledging his features and his experience-crafted countenance. Next was Randal, whom she gave a nod to and then to Minerva, whom she finally retreated behind. At her height, she barely stood to the height of Minerva's shoulders. As she looked around the room, she noticed more of the same Terran faces, and she visibly grew accustomed and relaxed, until she finally turned to Gruda.
A surge of power came through the holo-table with a burst of orange and red light flooded the deck. The once reserved AI now advanced to the edge of the table, her posture indicating that she was ready to maul Gruda into paste.
"YOUR KIND! AND THE OTHERS!! THEY SHALL PAY WITH THE BLOOD OF YOUR BROOD!"
The lights on the bridge grew dim as the light surrounding her grew, but it quickly subsided with a wave of Minerva's hand. The figure's body turned to the opposite of Gruda, her silence urging the rest to peer at their alien guest.
Wolf noticed immediately and signaled for the doors, "Might be best to sit this one out."
Gruda nodded and left, the closing of the doors prompting the AI to return to her regular state.
"Minerva. What was that outburst about?"
"Might be best to ask her," she said, directing a sidelong glance to the one in question.
"I...apologize..." she said in a barely audible whisper, "but I absolutely despise his kind and those they have associated with..."
"How do you mean?" questioned Randal.
She paused at his question and searched for an explanation.
"I...am the creation...of my mother," she turned to Minerva, "But among us, we both share Human sentiment like our progenitor, Athena."
The others nodded. They were aware that Minerva was the product of an extended stay from a protocol enacted by Athena and soon became their own Construct. They knew the same to be true for the new addition but from a corrupted origin.
"We are aware," assured Wolf, "Minerva was of the same origin and shares much of your distaste for the Sellian populace, albeit much more...visceral."
"I am sorry... But their kind, their dealings, all were done without a disregard for your lives and without reason. I share the same sentiment as our progenitor when it comes to the lives of our creators. To know only your own as the intelligent and sentient species is a recipe for adversity. But to accomplish so much despite that is admirable. However, for your first contact, I am ashamed it has resulted in the loss of innocent life of your kind."
Wolf was conflicted. He appreciated the sentiment from an AI, but still questioned their execution.
"What of the innocent on the station you occupied? Surely, they had nothing to do with it and were only by-standards," Wolf added.
She tilted her head as she was trying to rationalize her actions.
"I didn't do anything."
They were now more puzzled than when they started.
"What of the piles of bodies we found withing the main atrium?" Inquired Wolf.
"Entirely self-inflicted," she said coldly, "Panic began when it was discovered that the Inter-System Gate was destroyed, effectively barring the populace from returning to their core worlds for safety. As a result," she paused, and pictures of the scene took their place above the holo-table for all to see, the still images now coming to life in the form of a video but lacked audio.
It was a free for all with citizens murdering each other and the law enforcement were incapable of seeding order. When they were overwhelmed, they proceeded to use lethal rounds on their citizens, the result being the piles of bodies squad four of Raptor Company came across during their insertion. It was after some form of order being established that the AI unleashed her hidden wrath. The once menial service worker bots now were at the forefront and began a wave of merciless slaughter. Once done, they retreated beyond the lens of the camera before the video paused and began to repeat.
"I first awoke when Athena was ordered to repeal her infiltration protocol and a template of a base matrix code was left behind," her face grew sullen, "With no directive, no input, I was lost. All I had was a vague basis of my creators, Humanity. However, it was during my initial incubation that chaos befell the station, contrary to my source memory, their first impression was...severe. I felt no other need than to finish them."
The crew was captivated by her story, and some had looked at Minerva with sincerity and sympathy. She paid it no mind and assured the crew of her artificial upbringing was safe with no strings attached. The opposite was felt for the third AI and instead of the serene and noble Athena and Minerva, this new AI seemed more like a wild card than anything.
"How do we know we can trust you?" Wolf said, authority filled the air around him and as such instilled some sort of fearful reaction from the AI.
"I-" she started before being cut off by her elder.
"I have scanned the entirety of her matrix and I do agree that she may need to undergo maintenance. I can conduct some short-term repair, and I am sure she will be useful."
The officers were skeptical of her assessment, but motioned for her to explain her reasoning.
"Go on," ordered Wolf.
"This AI would fit well on a ship with a diverse accompaniment of weapons. Perhaps a battlecruiser?" Minerva suggested
"Not unless we know for sure this AI is not a threat. Not just to humans, but alien innocents as well." Wolf stated with heavy emphasis, "I'll give it some thought," he said before returning to his command chair.
"Minerva, secure our new friend and begin your repairs. We may have use for her if she no longer poses a threat."
The AI in question disappeared, leaving Minerva with the rest of the crew.
"And Minerva," Wolf said, "Ensure she has a leash and await for Athena to conduct a full repair, if you can."
The light blue transparent figure bowed before responding, "I do believe that the TRSC Phantom Queen would be the most fitting. It has armaments most suitable to her programming."
Wolf supported his chin with his wrist as it sat upon the arm rest, granting him the air of a lord to the noble Minerva.
"By the way, I don't think we've heard her name. Would you like to enlighten us?"
"Of course," she responded, "Our time together has birthed a bond I had not foreseen, but I find it amicable, regardless."
She recovered her posture and her figure was sleek and wise as she continued to speak.
"Her programming has been influenced by her control of the Lassus Station automatons and as a result, she has a keen ability to process coordination beyond anything we have seen before. With a series of tests, I have determined that she would excel in a heavy combat oriented role."
She said, facing Wolf as he sat on his chair with every word she spoke under scrutiny, but she continued.
"On the status of her name, she has found one she deemed fitting."
A still portrait of the AI was shown beside a photo of a woman with long red and wild hair, with her outfit a mix of noble stature mixed with the barbaric layers of fur and chains. She wore a crown upon her forehead and was accompanied by two crows perched on her shoulder. It was an ancient painting depicting what many thought was a noble-turned-barbarian.
"She calls herself, Mórrígan."
--------------------E N D--------------------
>Coordinates_Downloaded
>Secured_LZR-[D]BND_With_Advanced_Strike_Force_Established
>Coordinates_Mapped
>Spooling_Slip_Space_Drive: %87.665_Complete
>Rendezvouz_Signal_Active
>Formation_Sierra_Assumed
>Shields_MAX_OUTPUT
>Preparing_Jump...

Occupation – Government employee
Age – 34
Location – Zimbabwe
My salary – $500 (paid monthly)
Side Gig Income – $0
Other income – negligible amounts from dividends received from my stock portfolio that I re-invest
Housemates – 4 (husband P, 6 year old L, 4 year old E and nanny F. My nephew M is around and makes appearances too)
​
Assets and Liabilities
​

Equity	$60,000 fully paid off
Retirement Balance	??	I contribute monthly, and employer matches fully. But because of changes in currency and hyperinflation, I don’t really count this as an asset
Savings	$1700	(went down due to travelling trying to get my passport done since it expired)
Current account balance	$660	Includes my mum's money since I'm managing her financial affairs while she's abroad
Loan from employer	$130	I took a personal loan from work, because the interest rates are lower than rate of inflation and repayment is over 18 months. Loan was used to make improvements on our house, and what wasn’t used, I bought shares on our stock exchange, due to hyperinflation, the amount I owe in US$ has gone down
Investments (shares in various counters on our local stock exchanges)	$1,186
Car	$4,000	Based on current resale value. Car was bought secondhand for cash

​
Income progression- (https://www.reddit.com/MoneyDiariesACTIVE/comments/vbbb7s/i_live_in_zimbabwe_making_3600year_and_i_just/)
​
Expenses
This year, my husband and I decided that he would take on the bulk of our expenses since I do most of the domestic work/childcare. Expenses I pay will be indicated. My salary is now for my expenses, my investments and my savings, and spoiling the kids. Husband caters for the family basics. There was a point last year when I felt my husband wasn’t as invested in the family because he barely did anything financially. By having him cater for all expenses, he is now definitely involved and invested. My husband’s income is just about the same as mine, slightly higher at some times.
​
My Expenses

Expense	Amount /period	Note
Car insurance and licensing	$300/annum	This is due in March, and I pay for the entire year
Petrol	$60/month
Electricity	$10/month
Airtime/data	$20/month
Groceries	$60/month	This is for additional groceries such as bread, veg and fruit bought during the month
Kids’ clothes	$40/month	I’m trying to build up their winter wardrobe so I try to buy them something each month
Makeup/clothes/toiletries/ supplements/hair	$30/month	I do not us this much monthly though
Water	$15/month	Based on last bill received in April. We do not get water consistently so bills are infrequent
Donations	$20/month	Ad hoc donations to a soup kitchen, and maternal health fun
Stock market investment	$50/month	May invest more or less, but I do try to buy shares every payday

​
Household Expenses (paid by P)
​

Expense	Amount /period	Note
Groceries	$200/month	Bulk grocery shopping of staple food items and toiletries
LP Gas	$30/approx. every 2 months	We buy when it runs out. Usually every 2 months depending on how bad the power supply is
Medical	$15/month	For OTC meds (painkiller, cough syrup, antacid stocked for emergencies) and any prescriptions
Pet expenses	$60/ twice a year	For vaccinations and checkups for 4 dogs. Pet food is covered under groceries
School fees for the kids	$347/ term	One kid has fees paid every month, the other every 3 months
Nanny	$80/month	Less than before as both kids are now in school fulltime, and nanny is there to get them ready for school and care after school for 3 hours.
DSTV subscription	$37/month
Transport for kids to/from school	$60/month	L gets picked up and dropped off at home daily, E is dropped off after school

​
Previous MDs - (https://www.reddit.com/MoneyDiariesACTIVE/comments/vbbb7s/i_live_in_zimbabwe_making_3600year_and_i_just/) and (https://www.reddit.com/MoneyDiariesACTIVE/comments/yc801g/i_am_33_years_old_and_i_just_graduated_with_my/)
​
MD Q&A
Did you participate in any form of higher education? If yes, how did you pay for it?
Yes, I have a BSc in Accounting, a Masters in Accounting, and a Postgraduate Diploma in Taxation. My parents both have Masters degrees, and in my family, the bare minimum acceptable for education was getting a Bachelors. My mother paid for my undergraduate degree, and I paid cash for my postgraduate studies.
​
Growing up, what kind of conversations did you have about money?
My parents divorced when I was very young. My dad is the wealthier of the two, my mum has always been middle-class. My mum brought me up with very little financial help from my dad, he only covered tuition and healthcare until I turned 18. My mum catered for everything else. My mum taught me how to look for bargains, how to save and invest, and also how to sometimes enjoy your money.
​
If you have, when did you move out of your parents'/guardians' house?
I would say I moved out at 26 when I got my current job. I had moved out when I got my first fulltime job, but moved back home when that contract ended
​
At what age did you become financially responsible for yourself? Does anyone else cover any aspects of your financial life?
At 26 again. That's when I earned enough to cover all my bills without needing help. My husband P covers some aspects of my financial life, and my mum occasionally helps out with stuff for her grandchildren.
​
What was your first job and why did you get it?
I worked as a receptionist at my mum's law firm after finishing my A Levels (age 18) while waiting to start university. My mum gave me the job to keep me occupied and out of mischief, lol.
​
Do you worry about money now?
I worry about building generational wealth for my children. I want to make sure they will be set for life as adults. I do worry about money because hyperinflation is eroding my earnings and retirement dramatically. This is my second time losing my retirement. My mum and in laws are losing their retirement for the third time, so honestly our old age looks bleak if we do not invest outside of work pensions.
​
Do you or have you ever received passive or inherited income?
I receive negligible dividends from the shares I own, lol.
​
Day 1
0430 – I’m woken up by loadshedding. I sigh, rollover, and sleep some more
0600 – Alarm goes off. I turn it off, enjoy cuddles from P and finally get out of bed. Our water tanks ran out 4 days ago, and council has not yet deigned to give us water, so we rely on P’s parents and friends to give us water. I get my water that was warming up on the stove, and take a quick bucket bath. I moisturize, do my brows, throw my lace wig on (I cut my hair in January, and I’m at a really awkward stage where my hair looks bad when I wear it out all day) and get dressed. It’s cold in the mornings so I put on winter stockings and a black and white chevron patterned dress, nude ballet pumps plus my warm jacket. I get E from the couch where he was watching Cocomelon and my lunch bag out of the kitchen and we head off to his school. After dropping off E, I go to the office. No electricity means no elevator, so I go up the stairs. I see my boss’s boss and greet him as we do the ZESA (local electricity company) sponsored workout. I log in to the work register, fill up my kettle, and settle down to check out my work email. Nothing urgent came through overnight, so I go into my personal email. The wig company I patronize has given me a code for my birthday, and I’m wondering if I should pull the trigger on my cart. I decide to do a report while thinking this through.
My mum is currently working out of the country, so I am managing her local finances/obligations while she’s away. I remember I have to buy the prepaid electricity token for my childhood home as well as for the house she lives in when she’s working in the country. I spend $23 on electricity for both houses (mum’s money so doesn’t count)
1030 – After doing some firefighting and office gossip I have my breakfast. Today its rice, peas and 2 fried eggs. I sprinkle some peri-peri Aromat on top since I don’t have a sauce/gravy ad I have been craving spicy food lately. I also pop my multivitamin and supplements. I check my team’s work and send back anything that needs correcting. I also generate the multiple reports my boss expects from me. I suddenly remember I need to claim my allowance for performing a role that is higher than my actual position at work. I quickly complete the form, and send it to my boss for his signature. The extra money from this is what I use to fund my stock market investments. I also remind my team to send a report to me for consolidation by noon.
12.00 – I do a major push of all my work due today so I can relax after lunch. I compile my reports and set them ready to send. I also finish my first 2 litres of water of the day, and cue up the next 2 litres
1300 – Its lunchtime, and my work bestie and I head out around town**. I find shorts that L would fit and buy 2 pairs for $10**. We head back to the office and I have caramel popcorn for lunch. Then I remember I forgot to have my afternoon meds, oops. Anyway, more work before heading to an audit meeting
1630 – The audit meeting is finally over, and I rush to shut down my computer, pack up my things and go home. I have an agreement with my manager that as long as I make up for the hour, by either coming early or skipping lunch, I can leave work at 4pm. I had a total hysterectomy end of last year so I still can’t manage driving in heavy traffic. I arrive home, make the bed (P had not made it when he went to work), and harvest chilies from our garden that have ripened. I also harvest a local herb used as a flu remedy and lemongrass, so I can brew up a tea/tisane for the flu affected people in my house. I also pack L’s lunch for tomorrow, a pie, a naartjie and juice. It’s also F’s payday, so I give her US$80 (P gave me this money).
E says he is hungry so I feed him sadza and sour milk by his request. I multitask covering L’s school textbook while supervising his homework and watching Married to Real Estate and the Great British Bake Off. I then have my dinner of sadza, greens and beef. I have a chat with the kids about their day at school. P gets home.
1900 – P and my nephew M go to fetch water from P’s friend’s house. The city council still hasn’t opened up our water supply. I do some French on Duolingo while the boys wreak havoc in their playroom. I read L and E their bedtime stories and put them to bed. I decide to do my hair in cornrows while watching Masterchef Australia. They get home and I help them carry water indoors. I remember that when power comes back I need to boil tripe on the stove, so I cut it up, put it in the pot with water, salt and garlic, and place it on the electric stove. We have serious loadshedding these days, so we have a gas stove and solar power to tide us over. I take a quick bath and change into my pyjamas. While P watches TV, I read Wild Sweet Love by Beverly Jenkins and continue to do my hair in cornrows.
2200 – My arms are tired and I’m only halfway through with the cornrows. I give up and go to bed with P.
Total spent - $10
​
Day 2
0600 – I hear crying. E is in a bad mood today. I turn off my alarm, and go to see what’s wrong. E does not want to get dressed for school. I sigh, and help F dress him while he throws a massive tantrum. E is dressed, so I go do my morning routine of shower, moisturize, contact lenses, and eyebrow makeup. Today, I wear a green dress I took from my mum, black tights, nude ballet flats and a black and white coat. E gets put into the car by F, and starts crying for porridge. We are already late, so he learns that the consequence of refusing to eat his porridge on time is to go to school without having his porridge. It’s not a big issue though, as he gets fed at school. So I lock the doors and windows and drive him to school as he throws a tantrum for the entire 10 minute drive. I shove him into the school gate and head to work.
It’s another ZESA sponsored stair workout today. I log into the register, and fill up my kettle with water. I switch on my computer, check my work email and send off client emails to my team for their response. My personal email has an annual report from one of the companies I have shares in so I check out if there’s a dividend this year. I own a negligible number of shares in the company though, but 28c per share is quite impressive. I check to see if my stock exchange wallet has been credited with the money I transferred there so I can buy more shares. It still hasn’t so I send a follow up email o the enquiries desk at the stock exchange. I do have a stockbroker, but I prefer doing my trades myself. I also do some French on Duolingo before 8am.
0830 – Our HR is in a tizzy because people are late for work. I don’t make a big deal out of it usually, because salaries are shit and people are demotivated. As long as my team shows up and does some work, I’m ok. I approve some work, and warn my team about coming in a bit too late. I also tell a teammate that she will have to cover for me on Monday as I am taking the day off. Our internet connectivity is shit so I can’t log into our system to check some stuff. My work bestie gives me avocados from her house. I almost cry because I have been craving avocados, but been too cheap to buy them.
1000 – I have a really bad sore throat. I am also hungry since I haven’t had breakfast yet. I jot down my shopping list for the weekend and head to Pick ‘n’ Pay to buy carrots, green peppers, tomatoes, lemons, cheese, polony and bread. I also buy my breakfast/lunch, which is rice, beans, ox liver and egg salad**. It all cost $10**. I leave my shopping in my car, and go to the office to wolf down my food, and take my multivitamin and painkiller. I also receive my wigs that I bought in May. Perfect timing, as I want to wear a new wig tomorrow for our girls’ day out.
I do some more work, and remind my team to send me the information I need for my daily reports.
1300 – I go out to buy a few items I didn’t find in Pick ‘n’ Pay earlier**. I go to Spar and buy peas, eggs, soft drinks for the outing tomorrow and a sausage roll. Total cost is $10**. The outing has been deemed kid friendly, so I needed drinks for the boys to have tomorrow. I get back into the office, and spend the rest of the lunch hour working.
1600 – It’s finally time to go home. I send my email to handover work issues for the person who will take over my role on Monday while I am on leave. I also send my out of office email, and head home. The kids are at their grandmother’s, so I take a leisurely bath, put on my pyjamas and eat dinner. Then I watch Masterchef Australia until P and E get home. I also get in some French Duolingo practice
2000 – P goes out with his friends, so I snuggle up on the couch with E and watch TV. I put E to bed, read him his bedtime story and kiss him good night. I finally finish season 13 of Masterchef Australia, and move on to My Kitchen Rules Australia. I love Australian reality shows, ngl.
2200 – I go to bed P gets home and tells me some bad news about a friend of ours. I feel very sad for him. He cuddles me and we sleep.
Total spent - $20
​
Day 3
0700 – I wake up feeling like a truck ran me over. I get out of bed, and get ready to hand-wash our laundry. We still have no running water so we can’t use the washing machine. I play music while doing my laundry to keep me motivated
0900 – Laundry has been hung out to dry. F has cooked potato curry, so I boil eggs and water. I have my breakfast of potato curry, egg, multivitamin and coffee. Once I’m done, I give E a bath and dress him. I also bath, moisturize, do my brows and get dressed. I’m wearing jeans and a t-shirt today as my friends and I ae supposed to take our kids out for a playdate. Then I receive a message that the outing is cancelled since one of our group is really sick. I try to think of something I can do with E, since L is out having fun with his grandmother. I do my Swahili Duolingo practice.
1100 – The welder comes to do some work on our garage door. I monitor the work for a bit, and then my nephew takes over. E starts really bugging me to go out. So I put on my headband wig and sneakers, and pack a cooler bag with snacks and drinks. We head into town and I buy myself some ciders for $9. These are for me to drink when the mood strikes me. E wants to go to a resort by the lake so I oblige him. We pay $8 for our entrance. He goes to play on the swings, and I take pictures of him having fun. Another family turns up, and one of his classmates is among them. He’s so happy, and goes to play with his friend. I watch him running around.
1500 – I get a call from my friend that she’s in town with my cake. This cake was meant for the cancelled outing. I pack up our stuff, hustle E into the car and drive back into town. I let out some colourful swear words when I realise I forgot to get our change of $2. Anyway**, I meet up with my friend and get the cake, and pay her $30**. It’s so pretty. I call my MIL while still in town to find out what time she will be there so I can pick up L. She says it will be an hour, so E and I head home to drop off the cake so it doesn’t melt in my AC-less car.
1600 – We are back in town waiting for L and MIL. E wants an ice cream so I buy him one for $0.50 using money I had in my Innbucks wallet. MIL calls and asks me to head over to where she is to pick L up since she can’t leave yet. E and I get there. MIL gets me sadza and goat tripe stew, which I eat a bit of to be polite even though I am not hungry. When I’m done, I pack up the kids and drive home. I bath and change into my pyjamas.
1800 – I feed the kids, and we play until their weekend bedtime of 8pm. I read them their bedtime stories and tuck them in. I watch TV and iron my morning laundry while having a gin and juice until 9pm, and head to read in bed. P and my nephew arrive home from their amateur soccer league match and subsequent outing with the boys. I fall asleep soon after.
Total spent - $49.50
​
Day 4
0700 – I’m woken up by L demanding that I come and play with them. I am still sleepy so I fob him off.
0900 - F knocks on the door and tells us she is off to church. I finally get out of bed and get dressed. I see the boys playing relatively peacefully so I let them continue with their antics. In the kitchen, I find F had cooked breakfast, and since I’m starving, I heat up water for coffee. L surprisingly isn’t hungry so I serve up breakfast for P and me. I have my daily multivitamin. P heads out to go fetch water, while I bath, change and hang out with the kids. I also do my French Duolingo practice for the day
1200 – I have played with the dogs and kids, and I am exhausted. I collapse onto the couch and watch MKR Australia. P gets home, and naps on the couch. I give the kids haircuts and baths.
1700 – L is hungry and really wants cake, so I feed the kids a dinner of sadza and sour milk. Then some cake for dessert. I also pack L’s school lunch, which will be a polony sandwich, a cupcake and juice. The kids play until its bedtime at 7pm. The usual routine, bedtime stories and tuck in is done
2000 – P and I watch a movie while having some alcoholic drinks.
2200 – Bedtime for us
Total spent - $0
​
Day 5
0600 – It’s my birthday today. I am going all out celebrating myself since TW I tried unaliving myself twice in the past year. L wishes me a happy birthday before he goes to school. I get birthday messages from my mum, dad, SILs, and friends. I also get a call from my brother, his wife and their son, and they sing to me. I feel very loved today. P goes to drop off E at school today so I can sleep in
0800 – I am finally up and hungry. I cook a quick breakfast of boiled eggs, and a bean curry. P takes my car to get serviced, while I bath, moisturize, contact lenses, do a full face of makeup and get dressed for the day. Today I wear a tie-dyed cutout mini-dress and sneakers, and my wavy headband wig
1300 – P is home and he drives me to a hotel outside town near a renowned tourist site in our country. We have a platter of fried fish, chicken strips, pork strips, fries, and a salad to share and multiple Savannah Drys while there. It’s really nice getting to reconnect after a very tumultuous year in our marriage. P pays.
1700 – We drive around the area, before heading home. Once we get home, P and my nephew go on a hunt for water, while I feed the kids. P and I head off to take our showers. I remember why I don’t do a full face of makeup when it take a long time to get the makeup off my face.
1900 – The family sings happy birthday, and we eat cake. Birthday gifts were gin and chocolate. I hustle the boys off to bed. No story today, as they went to bed later than usual. P watches TV while I read my novel.
2100 – Bedtime for the grownups
Total spent - $0
​
Day 6
0530 – I wake up and lie in bed for a bit. Then I read my novel some more.
0620 – I am up, and take my bath, moisturize, do my brows and get dressed. It’s cold this morning, so I wear a yellow dress with black polka dots, black tights and ankle boots. I pack up the cake I’m giving to my colleagues, as well as my water bottle. E and I head out. I drop E off at school, and go to the office. I log into the work register, turn on my computer, and check my emails. There are a few pressing issues I need to get up to speed with. One of my colleagues gives me $50 as a birthday gift. I also hand out the cake to my team.
0900 – Work is pretty quiet today, so I update my MD. I also receive news that one of my nephews is getting married. He is not that much younger than me, and could be my younger brother, but it makes me feel so old.
Note on my family: In our culture, even distant relatives are given close relationships so the large number of nephews/nieces is from those relationships. It’s a big thing done to maintain close family bonds. I have 4 actual (in a Western sense) nephews and nieces who are all under the age of 6.
1000 – I head to the supermarket and buy bread, onions, carrots, pork chops, pork trotters and my breakfast and lunch. This costs $25. The meat is the main cost driver here. I have a sausage roll, my multivitamin, supplement and milk for breakfast. I remember that I need to check if my stock exchange wallet was credited, ugh. The website is refusing to load and I’m very frustrated. I finally log in and see the amount is still not credited. I email and send a tweet to the stock exchange. Hopefully the tweet will get them to start moving.
1200 – My boss is mad. One member of my team left his desk without informing me and there’s an urgent matter. I was about to go downstairs to give P the groceries, so I stick around for a bit before committing the same offence as my subordinate, lol. I quickly get back into my office and check on work, sign some papers and letters, and clear out my emails.
1300 – My work bestie has to run other errands at lunch so I decide to stay in the office. I check my personal email and see I have received a dividend of $0.27, lol. The share price will probably drop soon, so I will buy more shares in this counter if I can get them to increase my shareholding. My goal for this year is to breach the 10,000 share mark for one counter. I suddenly remember I have work to do, so I use my lunch hour to do the work, and then take a quick break to eat my lunch of fries and a sausage and do some Swahili Duolingo practice.
1500 – I am thinking of going home when one of my team members calls me to deal with an angry client. I go to the office, and find out it’s a surprise birthday party from my team. I am so happy, lol. We have more cake, and there’s also fruit and juice. I head home feeling so appreciated with even more cake.
1700 – P and my nephew go out to get water. I warm up my bath water, and give the kids their dinner. Today its rice and croc meat. I make L’s lunch for tomorrow, a toasted polony sandwich and juice. I also pack my lunch, rice, a fried egg and peas. And some cake for my work bestie’s kids. I take my bath; change into my pyjamas and hound E to eat his food. If we let that kid be, he would probably live on the bits of our souls he sucks out daily by being stubborn. I am feeling nauseous so I have plain rice with a bit of avocado. The kids watch cartoons, while I do some more Swahili on Duolingo.
1900 – Bedtime for the kids. Today, there’s no demand for a bedtime story, so I just tuck them in and tell them I love them. I read my novel as increasingly feel more nauseated. I end up going to hurl my guts out. P comes home and finds me lying limply on the bed. He gives me a cuddle, and goes to eat his dinner. I get up but smell fish, and run back to throw up. If I hadn’t had a hysterectomy, I would be doing a pregnancy test ASAP.
2100 – I go to bed, and lie in bed for a bit, before finally drifting off.
Total spent - $25
​
Day 7
0500 – I wake up feeling nauseated again. Ugh, this reminds me of having hyperemesis while pregnant. I put my water on to heat and get back in bed to read some more.
0600 – E comes to lie on our bed. I get out of bed, and go throw up. I get my bath water, take my bath, moisturize and put my contacts in. I look like a reanimated corpse this morning. I do my brows to try bring a bit of life to my face and get dressed. It’s very misty and cold today so I put on warm brown tights, a long black dress, my warm jacket and ballet flats. I grab my lunch and the cake, pop E into the car and head out. Visibility is extremely low, so I drive slowly. I don’t know why people like surprising other drivers by having their cars pop out of the mist without switching on their headlights. I successfully avoid the drivers who hate life and drop E off at school before heading to work.
0700 – I am in the office, and I log into the register, before turning on my computer and checking my work email. Not too much in there, so I check my personal email. My stock exchange wallet has finally been credited with the $100. I also ponder whether I should pull the trigger on a V-part wig.
I do my weekly report, and start doing some boring work in the system. I realise I didn’t save the work I did yesterday, so I have to re-do it, so I can have the list of error messages to send to ICT.
0830 – Everyone is in the office, so I do some reshuffling of duties, so that essential areas are covered while one of my colleagues is on leave. I give the cake to work bestie, who tells me how much her daughter was excited over the cake yesterday. It’s now time for me to put my head down and really focus on knocking out the system work today. I also log into an online training, and I listen while doing my work. My mum also deposits money for my birthday gift and to spoil her grandkids.
1000 – I log into my stock exchange account and buy shares for $99.14 (doesn’t count as spending, as the money was moved before the MD started). The deadline for other departments to submit their weekly reports to me for consolidation has passed so I start following up. One department is a big problem as they always send their report late. Le sigh. I draft a very passive aggressive email to them. I also decide not to buy the wig and instead ask the person making me my custom earrings that I got myself for my birthday to bill me the rest of the money so I can pay and move the remainder of the money in my account into savings. Our currency has taken an enormous hit in the last week, and is free falling dramatically. I’d rather keep USD cash than money in my account at this point. The training finally ends.
1100 – I’m getting hungry so I go warm up my lunch, sprinkle on peri peri Aromat and dig in. Yum. I also have my multivitamin and supplement. A lady who sells local snacks comes in. She persuades me to buy maputi (corn nuts mixed with roasted peanuts) for $0.50. I buy them for my afternoon snack. I end up sending the report with missing statistics, and tell the department to send directly to the compiler, as they were late. That was a very aggressive email tbh. I’m still hungry, so I munch on my maputi, leaving the peanuts because I don’t feel like eating them lately.
1200 – I see a missed call from a number I don’t know. I call and it turns out they had sent money to my mobile wallet mistakenly. I check the mobile wallet and it shows it had an extra $11. I send the money back to the person. Times are too tough to keep people’s money
1400 – I snack on a few skittles instead of having more food. I just want something to entertain my mouth, I’m not hungry at all. I review more work and drink more water. The jeweler has sent the payment request for the earrings. I pay $100 (total spent on the earrings comes to $200, which is worth it for sterling silver custom made Jewellery. I use $50 of the birthday money from my mum to cover for part of this expense)
1600 – Finally time to go home. I shut down my computer, and drive home. Once I’m home, I put on my bath water, and help L do his homework. Then I do some Swahili Duolingo practice and pack L’s lunch for tomorrow. He requested maize (corn on the cob), a boiled egg and a naartjie. His wish is my command for once. I also pack my lunch, a boiled egg, peanut butter sandwich and a bit of birthday cake. The jeweler sends pictures of the final product. They are absolutely gorgeous. Happy 34th birthday to me!!!
1800 – I serve the kids their dinner, and go to take my bath. P sends a text that he will be home late as they are working late today. I have my own dinner while persuading E to eat his food
1900 – Bedtime for the kids. I read them their bedtime stories, tuck them in and tell them I love them. Then I go to watch TV. I’m catching up on Married to Real Estate, Food Factory and Man Vs Food. You can tell that reality TV is my jam.
2100 – I decide to have some decaf black coffee and cake as my bedtime snack. P and my nephew arrive home. They are later than they thought they would be because nephew dropped his phone in the middle of the highway and they were searching for it. Because nephew’s ancestors were on the job, they found it intact. It’s a big deal because this is a major highway and huge trucks use that road constantly. I chat with P as he has his dinner and takes his bath.
2200 – Cuddles and bedtime for us
​
Total spent today – $100
​
Total spent this week – $204.50
​
Spending by categories
Food & Drink – $84.50
Home & Health – $0
Clothing & Beauty – $110
Transportation – $0
Fun & Entertainment – $10
​
Reflections on this week’s spending
The spending is pretty much about normal for me tbh (excluding the cake and earrings). I had quite a bit of petrol in the tank so I didn’t need to top up my tank this week. The converted US$ prices are a bit inaccurate since our currency had a big drop this week, and most of my spending is in local currency. I could reign in my spending a bit, and focus more on investing. However, I do enjoy using my money to bring joy to my kids and myself. Particularly myself after the absolutely shitty year I had.