Lyra / Comments

Sometimes. She's an annoying little shit 90% of the time. They just don't want to have to make an effort. Goddamn assholes. I'm just.. incredibly... Hermione Grangerish. I don't even know half of what I'm learning. I just know that I am 100% determined not to get bad grades. Last year I got a 96% on my mid-term and I completely broke down and had to go speak to my school counselor because I cried in class. Like ommigod. It was really embarrassing but I legitimately thought I was a failure because I got marked down and they didn't tell me why I got marked down. It was horrible. I'm so glad I take classes online now and I can cry in my room when I don't get the grade I want. Although that hasn't happened since.

That's what I'm majoring in. English: Language and Literature. Though I haven't gotten to those classes yet. I'm on Personal Finance right now and I hate it. I miss History too actually. But to be honest I think I've learned more about history outside of school than I did when I was there. But the last time I took a history class was in high school and we already discussed how that didn't work out. I would love to be a forever student. I decided if I ever get rich and make a lot of money I'll continue to go to school. Maybe I'll get my doctorate. Study astrophysics just for the hell of it.

Yeah, I try not to hide as much as I do. And it's exactly as you said. I love individuals but I hate people. I'd just like to start from the bottom and build my own family. I can work on me and my son and then maybe find someone later who I can start fresh with. In any kind of relationship setting. Not necessarily romantic. Just like a friend. I've never had a best friend. At least not one that lasted.

It just upsets me because I'm 27 and I don't know how to do anything on my own and it makes me feel like a complete failure. I know I should have been more responsible with my life regardless of what my family did to kick me back down. It was still my job to do something with myself and I haven't done it yet. :/

Aw, thank you. ^.^ I hope so. I can already see my dad's behavior influencing him. Especially with the way he talks to me and treats me. He has no respect for me as his mother because he recognizes my dad as the authority figure and not me. He has more respect for men than he does for women. All my dad has to do is say something sucks or it's gross and my son is 100% against it. Like this kid used to always eat his veggies and potatoes and stuff. And then one day he overheard my dad saying he didn't eat vegetables and now my son won't touch them. My dad says something is too "girly" and my son won't touch it. My dad calls him "girly" and he cries. He's already trying to teach him that girls are inferior and worthy of ridicule just for being girls. He picks on him constantly and I can't do anything about it without getting yelled at. The last time I stood up for him I got kicked out and had to come back and apologize just so we didn't have to sleep at the park. I just... ugh. I want to protect my son.

God, I hope! My husband already said he'd help me get my own place but there's no way I can do that yet without having a car and stuff. So it still just depends on whenever my dad feels like fixing up that loft apartment for me. He hasn't even started yet.

^.^

@ Indigo Umbrella
You must be proud of her! Of course you had a part to play in that. And everybody learns differently, and sometimes teacher and the school system forget that. They'd prefer to leave someone behind to struggle, than take the time to figure out if the problem is with their method. And nothing below 96%? That's incredible. I was more of an average student for the most part, except for when I was able to be more creative. I think my best subject in college was literature. In school History and English were my best. God, I miss learning history. My little bro will ask my questions, and I realise I've forgotten what I've learned. It's so depressing. Like,if I could, I'd be an eternal student. I wish I could be in college forever.

Yeah, some people just make you lose faith in humanity. It's hard to get over an aversion to people though. The way I see it, I like individuals, but I hate people. They're just so...mean. Some are lovely, but it only takes one person to ruin your day. I wish I could just work from home and never have to deal with people. It would be so wonderful. Criticism can be tough to take, especially depending on what it is that's being criticised. Some people can be unintentionally personal, even if they're being nice.

One day you won't have to rely on your family. It's a shame you have to miss out on opportunities because they're unwilling to help.

I would put it down to you just being a good person. Good people always see wrong, and know not to go down the same path. You're obviously strong, and you didn't let them drag you down. You should praise yourself for that- not many people could say the same thing in similar circumstances. As for your son, I wouldn't be so worried. With you as his main influence, and the person he looks up to, he'll learn how to be a good human being.

I really hope to see a blog from you soon saying you've moved away. I can only imagine how free you'd feel without the pressure from your family.

And no need to thank me. I love the story, and I believe on commenting on stories that I read and love. Thank you for writing it my dear!

She's sixteen now and she's a straight A student. So hopefully I contributed to that. :P But yeah, I know how that is. I think that's the way it was for me because a lot of teaching methods didn't fit with my learning style. And therefore I never learned anything. I was always failing, I was always behind, there was no way I was going to graduate. And then when I was older and started teaching myself I realized that I wasn't stupid at all. And then when I figured out what my learning style was, I realized I'm also a damn good student. I just have a different way of learning. Since I've been in college I've never gotten anything below 96% period. Ever. And basic education made me feel like I was a complete moron because no one wanted to take the time to figure out how to teach me properly.

Oh my god! This is why I hate jobs that deal with people. And people always tell me to get over it because it's part of life. But people are so goddamn rude and I can't handle even nice criticism. I just want to hide in my room and make money somehow. Hahaha.

Yeah, and my son's preschool offered that too. If you put in enough volunteer hours you could move up to a paid job. And I was really looking forward to it. But being that I had to rely on my dad to take me to volunteer, that never happened.

I try to be humble, to be honest. But when it comes to my family I think the same things a lot. And I hate saying that but I have no clue where the hell I came from or how I managed to turn out this way. I don't know if it's genetics or just my family being so shitty that I realized it was wrong. No clue. Not complaining though. My worst fear is that my son is going to be so influenced by them that I won't be able to save him from being a total asshole when he grows up.

That's why I just want to go away. I want to move to a city where I have no family and I can just be in their lives from a distance. I can say "Sorry I can't loan you money. I don't have any." And they won't know the difference. I can just focus on me and my son and not have to worry about anyone else. That's all I want. I'll clear the debt with my financial aid money but the sooner I get away from everyone, the better.

Thanks! And thanks for all the comments too. I really appreciate it. :D

@ Indigo Umbrella
IT's pretty crap all right. Your sister is lucky she had you to help her with the basics, once a child starts to struggle in school, it can be hard for them to catch back up, so they get left behind.

Oh man, I once had a woman throw coins at me one Christmas. Why? Because the woman behind her in the queue had pushed her trolley up too far, so she couldn't move her trolley back down with her to hand me the money from a reachable distance(why she needed to, I don't know). She then threw the money, which included coins by the way, at me. She then said it was because she couldn't move, which was bullshit. She just couldn't move her trolley to where she wanted. Another woman, again at Christmas, accused me of 'throwing her stuff' and told me 'I needed to learn manners'. I was pretty good at being nice and polite, and lots of customers commented on how pleasant I was. I almost cried, because I was only covering someone who needed the bathroom. I was supposed to go on my lunch, and instead I get abuse. Some people are just out to be mean and rude.

:( Hopefully you'll get a car one day so you can do it! Volunteering would still be amazing though, and at least it would lead to a paid job eventually.

Yeah, they were jackasses all right. I'm just so happy I don't work there anymore. Such a horrible place to be in.

Wow, the more I hear about your family, the more I feel for you. Some people just get the rough end of the stick. It's amazing you turned out to be such a sweetie and an amazing human being with all those people in your life. She doesn't deserve to be in your life, and you and your son are much better off without her.

I understand not taking your stepmother to court I suppose, but that really sucks. How can she not see how wrong it is, especially when you obviously need to clear the debt?

The story is amazing hun. Every update is perfect! <3

Oh man, that's lame. It makes me really sad actually. I want to have more kids some day but I don't think I can even afford one. :/ I just have to do the best I can with him. And yeah, this program here is really great but the branch in Florida is terrible. They don't do shit to help anyone out. My sister was enrolled in that program and my parents had to pay out of pocket and they didn't really do anything other than standard preschooling. Which failed because I ended up coming to stay with them the summer before she was supposed to start kindergarten. She had been in preschool for a year and was on summer break. Kid didn't even know how to spell her own name. Didn't know her ABC's. Didn't know what numbers were. I was the one who sat her down and made letters and numbers for her to trace. By the time she started school in September she could spell her name, knew her ABC's, and could count to ten. I taught her that. Not preschool. And honestly, when my son started preschool he already knew most of that stuff, because of me. But he did improve a lot in preschool and they helped him with his speech. So I have no complaints. But he already knew how to spell his own name and how to count to ten when he got there.

Same here. I once cried at work because this lady came in and bought like a chemical cleaner and some food. And she wanted a paper bag. So I told her I was going to put the cleanser in a plastic bag so that it didn't mix with the food. She got mad at me and told me she didn't want that. Well we didn't have smaller paper bags to separate them with. We had a standard size. She said that was fine. So I was like "Whatever. This is what you want." I put the chemicals in the same bag as the food and she fucking lost it. She was screaming at me in the store about how stupid I was because you're not supposed to put them in the same bag and there was nothing I could say that could convince her that I FUCKING TOLD HER THAT. And I was looking at other cashiers like "wtf? You saw that right? You heard me ask?" Didn't matter. I was the stupidest piece of shit in the universe for following her orders. Fuck that shit.

Yeah, the only problem with that is that I don't have a car. :( And I'd have to do a great deal of volunteer work before they'd start to pay me. and they're only seasonal since it gets so cold here. So the zoo is only open from May to September. :/

Oh my god, that's horrible. I would not have been able to handle that work environment at all. The more you tell me about this place the more terrible it gets.

Oh okies. Yeah... this whole thing with my mom is still completely crazy to me. And I still can't get through to her. She's been telling everyone about how ungrateful I am and my family is mad at me for not talking to her. But like... I don't know what I was supposed to be grateful for? She fucking abandoned me. Literally. On my birthday even. She left me in a house with no phone, with my 4 year old son, had the power shut off, had someone come and change the locks. Didn't bother to tell me that she was leaving, because apparently she'd been planning it beforehand. And literally the day of my birthday I had to spend it alone, struggling to find a new place to live on a short notice. I was able to steal wifi from the neighbors, my cousin had to pay my phone bill so I could call my grandparents for help. And I'm supposed to be grateful for that? And I actually HAVE tried to contact her. Like my grandpa got pissed off that we weren't speaking to her. But it's the other way around. I did try to talk to her and I told her I was sorry for what I said and how I reacted, which I should never have had to apologize for. And she had her husband write me back pretending to be her telling me what a shitty mom I am and that I was just jealous of her and her super hot husband because he "rejected" my "advances." Because you know. 50 year old meth heads are right up my alley. Me. The girl who turned down a date with a guy who drove a fucking Transformer! The girl who can't even talk to people I KNOW comfortably.

And my step-mom. I don't want to take her to court because it'll be just another situation where my family will completely disown me and just make my life hell. I don't know what to do in that situation because she's still part of my life and I don't want to lose her because she's the only mom that I have. And I know that she's never going to resolve it. :/

Heck yeah! I will PM it to you because there's a lot of me rambling in the recipe because it's a base recipe that you can add to. So yeah, I'll go do that. Lol.

Yay! I hope they build the story either way. I like the story so I'm not complaining. I just didn't realize how many there are. Lol.

@ Indigo Umbrella
It's shit expensive here too, it costs about the equivalent of $1200 a month per child, and here you get no help at all. The only thing you get is a free preschool year, which is for 3-4 year olds, giving them 3 hours a day, Monday to Friday. We have a 'back to school' allowance and 'book allowance' when a child is in primary (elementary) school, but before then, you get nothing. The welfare here isn't too bad, but the cost of living is really high, so it can be tough if you need any help for your child outside the public system. The waiting lists are so long here, it takes forever for your child to been seen. Programs like you mentioned are great and it's fantastic you got the help you needed, but there isn't much of them here, so a lot of children and parents are left behind.

I'm really socially awkward, and don't handle pressure and people being angry at me very well. I was fucking awful at the job, not because of the people necessarily, but if I was stressed or panicked, my till would be screwed at the end of the day because I would kind of lose my ability to think properly. I'm in the same boat, the jobs I'd be suited for won't hire me due to no experience, which is crazy as you can't get experience when no one will hire you. The unemployment crisis here basically kills off anyone's chance of breaking into a new field, as there are so many others who have experience ahead of you. It sucks. Working in a zoo would be amazing, it's one of those dream jobs!

Yeah, thankfully he got the message quite quickly. It sucked though, and made the rest of my time there really uncomfortable. Thank god I'm out of there. A lot of the guys there were dicks, and some of the stuff I heard coming out of there mouths was unbelievable. Like, one of them had the nickname '5 to 9', in reference to the rape sentencing guidelines, because he had sex with a girl who was passed out drunk, (in other words, raped her), and it was a joke to some of them. I lost my fucking cool when I heard that. How the fuck is it funny, or worthy of a pat on the back, to have sex with a passed out girl? Oh, and to top it off, he did it because she 'was a bitch'. I probably should have reported it to management, and in hindsight I wish I hand, as it's beyond unacceptable. Thankfully that guy had left by the time I heard about it. Fucking misogynistic asshats who exemplify everything that is wrong with how victims of rape of viewed.

You didn't make me think about it, it was already on my mind due to having a family get together and my parents having a blazing row after it (my mother always brings it up when they fight, even if it's nothing to do with the fight). It's sad that you can't have a relationship with your mom. It boggles me that a parent would rather not have their child in their life that try to fix their behaviour so that they can stay with contact. I think some parents feel an entitlement, that just because they brought you into this world, that you owe them, no matter how they treat you. And your step mother sounds horrible! Can you not take her to court over it? I mean, its $400 dollars, she shouldn't be able to get away with stealing your identity and leaving you in debt! I don't blame you for wanting to be alone- your family don't sound very nice at all. Hopefully one day you'll be able to get away and just live your own life. You don't need people like that. I think it's so sad, cos you seem like such a nice person, and you definitely don't deserve to be treated the way they treat you.

Ooohh, can I get the recipe for it? If there's no veggies in it, I'll love it!

Fillers are a necessity sometimes, so don't worry about it. Plus, your fillers are still awesome, so it's not a biggie.

I have no clue about daycare. I just know that it costs an assload of money and there's hardly any government help for it. In California getting my son into daycare cost as much as my entire month's wages. I would have been working just to have him in daycare and that's pretty much it. Luckily here in Idaho they had preschool for low-income families and since I had absolutely no income, he got to go for free. And I will love that program until the day I die. They gave my son speech therapy. They bought him fucking shoes and underwear and they were always giving out free socks. When we first got him signed up they gave us a voucher for a local thrift shop to buy things like mixing bowls and sheets that we didn't have. And when my son got in speech therapy they put him on the bus so we didn't have to drive him. They even got a driver's handbook for me so I could study for my license. The only thing they wanted in return was volunteer work. So a few days out of every month I volunteered in the classroom. Like I'm so sad that he's going to kindergarten after summer is over because these people were so damn good to us. In the future when I have money to donate, it's going to that program.

And I hate that ideal because being someone with severe anxiety, those kinds of freaking job are hell on my mental health. I can't handle them. And they do make it out like you should be grateful they're giving you the chance to work. But I always fuck it up because it turns me into a complete mess. The only jobs I can find that aren't hell on my anxiety either won't hire me or they require years of experience, that I don't have because they won't hire me. Ugh. I hate it. But I might volunteer for the zoo this summer. Because if I volunteer long enough they might hire me full time. And I'd be totes cool working at the zoo.

Yeah, I understand. It sucks to be put into a position like that. But it's good that he didn't bother you anymore. I don't know how to handle situations like that. They make me really nervous.

Aw, I'm sorry for making you think about it then. :/ My mom's a lot like that too. That's why we don't talk anymore. I hate not talking to her but she's always the victim and never does anything wrong. Whenever I got hurt and needed to go to the hospital it was like not taking me was my punishment for getting hurt in the first place. And that sounds like my step-mom too! She used my name to open up a gas account several years ago before I moved here. She ended up charging $400 on the bill before shutting it off and opening the gas back up in her name. Now I can't get the gas turned on until I pay this $400 fee. When I asked her about it she said they must have just "left the gas on" when they moved out. Even though we have like 4 people living in one household. The gas covers our heat, our water, and our cooking, and we only charge up about $5-$15 a month. That's it. There's no way the gas would have gone up to $400 because she forgot to have it shut off. She just never paid the damn bill. And she said she'd take care of it but it's been over a year and I haven't seen her do shit to help me. So when I move out I'm going to have to shell out $400 out of my pocket to cover this gas bill for a house I never even lived in. And then people wonder why I never talk to anyone and I just want to be alone for the rest of my life. Jfc.

I don't know. But when I get out on my own I'm fucking leaving this family behind. I'll talk to them and visit them on occasion. But I will not be as close to them as I am now. If I ever make decent money these people are going to suck me dry and I'll be living on the street so my dad can have fucking lobster for dinner or because someone used my name to open some random ass account. Fuck these people. Just me and my boy. That's all I need.

Nah, my potato soup doesn't have veggies in it. Just potatoes, garlic, milk, butter, and potato flakes for thickness. Sometimes meats like bacon or ham. And spices like basil and sage. But otherwise no veggies. :D

I hope so! Because I just edited the next chapter and realized it was just another boring filler and I was like "Oh my god, these people are going to hate me."

Thank you for your comment on The Seventh Side of a Die. I'm glad you like it. I just started re-writing it.

@ Indigo Umbrella
I completely agree. Working in Daycare, where your job is a big responsibility, yet only worth minimum wage (over here anyway, I've no idea if it's better paid in the US), they expect you to do more than what you're getting paid for. They want to to dedicate yourself,work unpaid overtime and work in unsafe conditions, for crap pay and no thanks. Retail is the same- you're expected to give up holidays, work overtime, and yet you get no thanks and awful pay. It's like, the lesser paid the job is, the more grateful you're expected to be to have a job because it's more likely to be unsecured and with no benefits, so if you mess up or stick up for yourself, you can be let go with nothing to fall back on. It sucks. I don't drive either-I always walked or got the bus when I needed. I'm going to change that once I get a new job though.

I would have reported it, but then everyone would have found out, and I wasn't going to get dragged into gossip. The guy knew a little dirt on me too (ie, I slept with his friend, the asshole I mentioned to you before which I didn't want to get out). If he had done anything else, I would have reported him. Plus, he had a kid- I didn't want to kid to suffer cos his dad is a jackass.

It did suck, especially when my mom was heavily pregnant and we had no food. She was in and out of hospital as well, but my dad just couldn't pull himself together. Stress was his trigger, and nothing is more stressful than kids.I just try not to think about it, cos I don't want to hate my dad, especially since he's trying now, but it's hard when something just reminds me, you know? My mom had a tough time, and now she's just in a fantasy world. I used to think it was stress over my dad, but as I got older I realised she's just in a world of her own, where nothing is her fault, she does nothing wrong, and she's an eternal victim. She complains they have no money, but she won't work and leaves my dad to pay all the bills. She wants to lose weight and is diabetic, but she eats crap. When they thought my little bro might have Aspergers, my mother blamed the stress my dad caused her during pregnancy, and it was nothing to do with her smoking during the pregnancy. She's delusional, which is almost worse as she denies everything wrong she's done. She's borrowed money off me, saying she'd pay me back, then denied I ever gave it to her. We're talking €100, which was a lot of money. To be honest, it's no wonder my older brother is a recovering alcoholic who tried to kill himself last year.

I may have said this before, but you're dad sounds so nasty. I mean, at least my dad will do stuff for us, although he does have a thing with money, where he'll remind you how much it cost him and stuff, cos he's money on the brain. I never understood how some people can just be so selfish, especially when it comes to family. I wear my heart on my sleeve, and I try my best to help everyone, and I don't mind doing favours if and when I can. I mean, we're all humans just trying to get on with our lives and do the best we can, why would you treat someone like dirt, or just be plain mean? As his daughter, you'd think he's want to help you, not make your life awkward and do you out of money, especially when you've your own child to support. He sounds like a hard person to live with, and it must be tough for you. *hugs* And how do you mix up coconut and lobster?

At least you learned how to make it. I'm not a fan of potato soup myself, as it tends to have veggies in it, which I hate. Me and vegetables are long term enemies.

And you have to set up the story, of course. I understand. It'll just make his entrence all the better!

I love Sam Wilson! I was thinking of making him his own story but I don't have a plot figured out just yet. But it will take place in the same universe as these ones. So if I do it, Jo will probably have a cameo. :D Anyway, yes. I feel bad for making Bucky finally arrive in such a late chapter. But there was so much story I had to set up before I could get to him. But soon! :D

I think most jobs suck when you have kids who rely on you. Like I'm sure there are more high level jobs that are more flexible. But when you're working shitty minimum wage jobs they seem to want you to dedicate your life to them and not your family and the only reason you have the fucking job in the first place is for your family. It's lame. And yeah, I don't have a license. I've never even learned how to drive. So I'm stuck constantly relying on others to get me around. I hate it. But my husband is going to help me get situated. :/

Eyu! That's horrible! That's sexual harassment, dude! Bro should have been fired for that shit. And that's freaking sad. Ugh. That makes me sick.

Oh man. That really sucks. I'm sorry to hear that. I had a similar experience with braces. My grandparents took me in and figured it would cost them $200 a month for a year, out of pocket to cover them. So they decided it was my parents duty to pay for the braces. $100 a month for each parent and I could have straight teeth. But my mom couldn't risk her drug money and my dad's just a cheap bastard so I never got those either. I understand that too. My front teeth are the ones that seem to be getting the worst of my wisdom teeth's wrath. Yeah, my dad is a recovering addict too and he's a lot better in that aspect. But he's the most horribly evil selfish person I've ever met. He legitimately will not do anything for anyone unless he gets something in return. Which was why it was so hard for me to get to and from work. Because I had to pay him gas money every day, he would drive all over town and use up all the gas, and then the next day it was more gas money and "I don't feel like taking you." So I'd have to buy him lunch and pay for his gas to both go get the lunch and take me to work. One day I took him to lunch just so I could go grocery shopping. I let him pick, which was my mistake. And I was thinking like McDonalds or something because he doesn't like being out of the house for too long. But this mofo picks this fucking sitdown buffet. We go there for breakfast a lot and at most I thought it would be like $20 for all of us to eat there. But no, lunch ended up being $35. Then he proceeded to get bitchy with me because I didn't add a lobster dish TO the buffet fee. Like... of fucking course I didn't buy lobster, I'M GODDAMN ALLERGIC TO THAT SHIT! And he got all "Well I like lobster. You didn't even ask." And I had to remind him "MOTHER FUCKER IF YOU BROUGHT THAT LOBSTER TO OUR TABLE MY FUCKING THROAT WOULD HAVE SWELLED UP YOU INSENSITIVE FUCKWIT!" So yeah, dude wanted to risk my goddamn life for a fucking meal he wasn't even paying for. Speaking of which, yesterday they were giving out free samples of coconut frozen yogurt at the grocery store and my dad told this lady that I was allergic to coconut. And I was like "Wtf, I'm not allergic to coconut." He got coconut and shellfish confused. How does that even happen? It's a good thing I cook all the meals or he'd probably kill me.

We were pretty pleased when he went out of business. Their potato soup was pretty damn good but I learned how to make that shit myself. So no worries.

@ Indigo Umbrella
That must have been really frustrating. I think it's a shame that employers can get away with that shit. I mean, I've had my employers do that to me, making me stay for an extra hour. More than once, I was only told I had to stay on 15 mins before clocking out. That used to really bug me, I thought it was so inconsiderate. I mean, for me, it wasn't so bad, 'cos I don't have kids, but if I did, that shit would be unacceptable. That's pretty shitty about the no shows, that's why I always refuse to rely on others to get to and from work, 'cos al it takes is for them to fall asleep or forget about you, and you're screwed.

Oh, I will, most definitely. I'm still deciding on fan fic or original at this stage, but it will be done. Man, some of the stuff that happened to me when working in that place. I had a guy I worked with send me a picture of his dick. This guy was married with a one year old kid, not at all attractive in my eyes, and I had no idea why he thought I'd be interested in him. I mean, we talked a lot, and he told me how miserable he was in his marriage, and maybe some of our conversations were a little inappropriate, but none of it was flirting or encouragement. Here's the kicker- it wasn't sent to my phone. I was his only friend on a social networking site, and on a whim I logged on and checked my newsfeed, and there the picture was, with a note 'if a certain coworker wants to play with it, they're more than welcome to'. I wanted to vomit. There was two ways about it- it was meant for me. This guy then sent me a message the day after I saw it, saying 'did I do something wrong? You seemed annoyed at me'. I didn't reply, and I never spoke to him again. His wife always came to my till when she did shopping, and it was so awkward, cos she doesn't know how much of an asshole her husband is.

That's shit, man. My dad was a gambling addict who lost us everything, so I know having a addict for a parent sucks. We were left staving because he'd gamble his wages and leave us with no money, which is the tip of the iceberg. I understand the teeth thing a little. My dad actually took me off the national waiting list for braces cos he had an argument with the dentist.He said he would get it privately, but then my mom got pregnant and his gambling got worse, as it did whenever my mom was pregnant. So, I never got my braces. The worse part is that it's my front teeth (and only my front teeth) that are the problem, so it's noticeable. I never got the money up to get it done, cos braces are like, €2500 at the very least, but it could be up to €5000. I have mixed feelings, 'cos my dad has recovered now, and he's finally being the parent he should be to my little bro (who doesn't know what my older siblings and I went through cos of the huge gap), but it's hard to forget what he did, cos some of it was really horrible. I'm a daddy's girl when I forget about what he did, but when I remember, well, it's hard to not get so angry and resentful towards him. You can't choose your parents though.

The guy deserved to lose his business if he treats people that way. Maybe that's harsh, but stepping over people and treating them like shit should never be rewarded. Ever.

@ Lyra
That's when it pisses me off. Because I started working here at a call center taking surveys for various companies. And we weren't allowed to have our cellphones on the floor, which I can understand. But if my kid calls, I need to know what's going on. And they would like spring a shift change on you unexpectedly. My schedule was already preset, which was why I liked the job. And I only worked part time because my dad was working and he was my ride and I had to have him watch my son. But I would get to work and they would say "Oh, you have to stay until 11 tonight." So I would end up working a full shift with only my part time shift's breaks. And you weren't allowed to take breaks after 8pm. So you'd end up working a full shift instead of a part time shift. And you'd end up only getting two fifteen minute breaks instead of the two fifteen and one thirty minute break. Which they were not legally allowed to do. But they got passed this by shoving the extra hours on you unexpectedly. I fucking hated that. I didn't quit though until I stopped getting rides to work. It was too far to walk and people would fucking forget me and I'd have to walk home by myself at 11 at night in the fucking dark in a town with no street lamps. And then two days in a row my ride forgot to pick me up and I didn't have a phone, so I got two no-calls, no-shows. And I just said "Fuck it."

Hahaha. That's awesome! Do it!

Now I realize it was because my mom was on drugs and she had this fear that she was going to get busted for it. She also never did things when she was coming down. Like my teeth are fucked up because she was supposed to take me to get my wisdom teeth removed, but they set my appointment in the morning, because I needed the extra time to recover, and she was coming off of meth and didn't want to wake up. She ended up not getting out of bed until 8pm. And then I turned 18 right after that and got kicked off of state funded insurance. Now I'm 27 and I haven't seen a dentist in 10 years. I have even more crooked teeth and one broken tooth. And there's nothing I can do about it, unless I go into debt for the rest of my life. :/ God bless America. So yeah, basically my mom avoided hospitals, police, firemen. Any of those fucking helpful people. She also let my sister go into foster care because she was too afraid of going to court to fight for her.

Hahaha. Nah, I have no hate for Irish people. Lol. I think he just viewed my mom as a threat because she was so good at what she did and it was a new business, he was a new business owner, he didn't know how to run a restaurant and in comes this waitress who's telling him how the fuck to do his job. They ended up going out of business within the year. Which is sad because if they had kept my mom they probably wouldn't have kept going.

@ Indigo Umbrella
Oh, it was the worse. Every day was just...awful. And because I wasn't living at home, I couldn't leave it when I really should have. That was just one of many mistakes I made! It's tough to plan around kids, and where I worked they weren't very accommodating. People left over not being able to get days off over their kids being sick and what not. It's really doesn't suit anybody who needs flexibilty. Man, I really want to write a story based on my experiences working on checkouts. I have the title for it and everything- I just need to finish my current stories first.

Wow, that's pretty bad that she wouldn't take you. Whatever about not liking confrontation, when someone needs medical treatment, you get it for them, especially when it's your child. I don't understand that.

That guys sounds like a dick! I hope it doesn't affect your perception of Irish people- I swear we're nice. He obviously just wanted to get rid of your mom, which is strange since she's obviously good at her job.

@ Lyra
I'll see what I can do. :P

@ Lyra
I am so sorry for your pain. That must have freaking sucked. I can't handle not having a set schedule. I have quit so many jobs over that. Back then it was just because it caused me anxiety. Now it's that plus the fact that I'm a mom. I have to plan shit in advance. I can't just call someone up a day early and say "Hey, I'm dumping my kid on you tomorrow."

I blame my mom for that one because she doesn't like confrontation and avoids the law and authority figures like the plague. Like the only reason I got her to take me to the hospital in the first place is because my grandma demanded she did. One time we got into a car accident and I was covered in blood and bleeding from the head, every single person who stopped said "She needs to go to the hospital." Someone called an ambulance and they said "She needs to go to the hospital." And she still wouldn't fucking take me. She took me to my grandma who taped my forehead back together.

America sucks. But hey, my boss was from Ireland! It was an Irish Pub! Hahahaha. No, but seriously. He fired my mom too because we worked together and he said my mom had the same "work ethic" problem. Which is the most bullshit thing I've ever heard because my mom has RUN restaurants. My mom couldn't go anywhere without someone recognizing her from waitressing. I hate that woman's guts but she was a damn good waitress.

@ Indigo Umbrella
I did checkouts for five years, and oh man, it sucked. We had to have an 11 hour break between shifts, but like you, we had no planned shifts, and hours were only put up a week in advanced, at most. Booking time off was difficult and not worth it.

Damn, they wouldn't get away with that here. Sometimes, I read stuff about people getting fired for ridiculous stuff in the US, and I'm like 'how on earth can they get away with it?" Here, we have strict enough employment laws, so if they had done that here, you would sue them no problem. Here, it would have to be something major to just get fired on the spot, like something criminal or really reckless where it's indisputable that you did something wrong . Otherwise, you have to give 3 warnings, including one written before firing someone. I mean, obviously sometimes people are fired unfairly, but you can take it to court easily.

@ Lyra
I didn't last very long on checkouts. I checked out of there real quick. I honestly didn't mean to make that pun but I'm not changing it. But mostly my reason for quitting because they would have me work until 8 or 9, which isn't too late. But then I'd have to get up and be at work at 4am. Just right after each other. And I never had a planned schedule. They would just print it out the week before and I'd be struggling to fit my life around it. I couldn't handle it. :/

Waitressing was worse though because I have severe anxiety and it was just way too stressful for me having to speak to people constantly and I'm like the weakest person when it comes to serving. I was constantly dropping shit and accidentally dunking my fingers into people's plates. And then I went and broke my rib, on the job, and was advised by my doctor to take at least one week off of work before I could come back, and I couldn't lift anything heavy until it healed all the way. But then they called and said I was fired for "bad work ethics." Because... I broke... my rib. And everyone and their mother said I should have sued because they couldn't fire me for being injured doing THEIR work. But I was a minor and my mom didn't want to deal with it.

@ Indigo Umbrella
I never did waitressing, thank god. Working on checkouts sucked though. Sitting there for nine hours a day, dealing with rude people and working shitty hours for shitty pay, and not getting off for my birthday 'cos it's in December, or my ex's mother's wake cos it was the day before back to school and there was a chance it would be busy. Fracking sucked.

Oh man. I had to work both jobs at different points in my life. I have to say I would much rather go back to working at a supermarket than having to waitress. I would much rather file paperwork for Hydra than have to waitress.