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@ellette-giselle ok thanks!
"When in doubt, eat cheese crackers."-me to my charries who don't even know about cheese crackers
HAPPY 4TH OF JULY!!!
I hope y’all have a great day!!! It’s been such a blessing to get to know several of y’all this past year!! May God bless you today!
Here are some great quotes to remember amid all the fireworks and fun!
“The cost of freedom is always high but Americans have always paid it.”
~John F Kennedy“The real fire within the builders of America was faith, faith in a provident God whose hand supported and guided them, faith in themselves as the children of God, faith in their country and its principles that proclaimed man’s right to freedom and justice.” ~Dwight D. Eisenhower
“When people forget God tyrants forge their chains.”
~Patrick Henry“Freedom is never more than one generation away from extinction, we didn’t pass it to our children in the bloodstream, it must be fought for, protected, and handed on for them to do the same or one day we will spend our sunset years telling our children and our children’s children what it was once like in the United States where men were free.”
~Ronald Reagan“If We Ever Forget That We Are One Nation Under God, Then We Will Be One Nation Gone Under,”
~Ronald ReaganAnd this is my favorite version of the star spangled banner if anyone is interested. I feel like it really draws out the mood of the day the song was written.
h ttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i3HDhOqxNFg
And those who were seen dancing were thought to be insane by those who couldn't hear the music
@ellette-giselle those are great quotes!!
"When in doubt, eat cheese crackers."-me to my charries who don't even know about cheese crackers
Happy Fourth!!!
"Don't shine so that others can see you. Shine so that through you, others can see Him." ~ C.S.L.
Oh my goodness @felicity I just saw you were online recently when I was checking my friends list lol! I think about you sometimes, hope you’re doing well :3
"Past or future... let them be."
@ellette-giselle @whalekeeper @keilah-h @loopylin @highscribeofaetherium @hybridlore @savannah_grace2009 @any-other-KP-girls
Feel very free to ignore. I am ranting a lot in this post, it will be long, and it most likely will be boring.
I need help with something not at all related to writing.
My 16th birthday is on July 28th, and I haven’t had a birthday party with all my friends since 2019. I hadn’t even really considered a birthday party much over the past year (or more), and I probably wouldn’t be now if it weren’t for the fact that I haven’t seen or talked to any of my friends except you on here, and Andrew, for at least 2 months to a year (depending on which friend). I know, I know, not healthy at all. I’m a little hermit crab who stays in her room a lot, drawing and writing and talking with charries instead of real people.
So I kinda figured it was time I reached out and tried to re-connect, especially since, from the lack of connection with my friends (which has mostly been on my part), I’ve reached a point of insecurity where I’m not sure if my friends are really my friends anymore, or if they have only hung out with me and talked when we could because they don’t want to tell me they don’t want me around anymore. There have been little things that make me think this, but I’m not sure if I’m just paranoid. I don’t want to talk to my friends about it because I’m scared they’ll see me as someone who constantly needs confirmation that I am still wanted around because I am very insecure. I actually am, in fact, one of those people to an extent. But I kinda hide that since I see it as an issue with my mental health and I’ve kinda kept most of that type of thing swept under the rug from them (again, not healthy. I kept my issues hidden from even my parents and it almost completely destroyed my life). One of my friends (Jess) knows about my troubles with (undiagnosed but looking back, I had all of the symptoms so I’m pretty sure I had it) depression and Prolonged Grief Disorder, none of the others do, and I haven’t told Jess about my insecurities.
I don’t know if I will somehow magically find out if I really am not one of their friends anymore or not at my party. I don’t even know what I expect from my birthday party (if I even have one this year). I don’t even know what to do for my birthday party!
That’s why I need help. I need something that would be fun, could be done as a group of 4 to 8 teenage girls, and would be relatively inexpensive. I used to always do swimming and blueberry pie, but I live in Connecticut which is infamous for its dirty and polluted waters (I literally got sick after swimming in a portion of the Connecticut River when I was like 9. The things they’ve found in that river is nauseating.) We did have places where we used to swim, but lately, those lakes have had troubles with bacteria and algae blooms to the point where all swimming was banned in them the past couple years or so (not sure about this year). I just don’t want to take the risk. And the place that is very safe and clean to swim in, happens to be a lake that is private to all people but those who live on the shore. We do know two people who lets my family swim in that lake, but they don’t know my friends, so I don’t want to inconvenience them with crazy teenagers they don’t know. So I think I’m gonna scrap swimming.
Problem is, I don’t know what else to do. I’ve already ruled out biking. Or hikes.
I can’t do horses (even though I’d love to, and it would fit me so well) because my current stables would not feel comfortable with it, and sadly a lot of other stables I don’t see as safe (since they often have nervous, overworked, and incorrectly trained horses) or would want to be involved with because I am against whips, spurs, and most bits and if you know anything about the horse world, a lot of stables you will ever go to will have an excess of those.
I am open to something drawing themed, but most of my friends, while they do dabble in drawing, are not artists. It’s basically just Jess and I who are and I never can do a good drawing in front of other people. It’s like trying to write my story with someone looking over my shoulder *shivers*.
I can’t really think of anything really writing themed we could do. All my friends at least have dabbled in short stories, I’m the only one serious about publishing, and Jess doesn’t think her writing will ever be good enough (I disagree, she can write wonderful fantasy, like I think she could be like Tolkien if she found her passion and confidence).
I hesitate to try something really active (I know I was thinking of swimming earlier, I am still open to active ideas, I just hesitate) because as some of you know, I’ve had troubles with my health, and so some days I get very fatigued. I don’t want to risk my birthday being one of those days, but again, still am open to active ideas.
I was considering getting these things called ClayMoo (will link it to the name if you want to check it out) that are Beginner foam clay kits with really cute designs that Chloe Rose Art (from YouTube) reviewed and it looked like the kits were awesome. I think it’d be really fun, but to make sure I have enough kits for everyone, it’d be $100 since I know my Dad would not pay for it and where I’m trying to save my money for both publishing and something else that is like $800 I don’t really want to pay that right now. I might if I don’t have any other good options.
I also considered doing a sleepover type thing, but camping. I’m just not sure how the adults would feel about it. Obviously, we’d want at least a couple adults there or nearby with us, but I know my parents can’t do it, and I’m not sure about my friend’s parents. It seems like an awesome idea, like I’d love to spend my birthday making my first s’mores (yes, I have never made s’mores before or had them). But the other problem with that is, the only camping sites that I am familiar with are up in New Hampshire/Vermont which obviously means a long drive for everyone and we’d be pretty far away and I don’t think my friend’s parents would be okay with that. I don’t even know if my Dad would be okay with that. We do have a backyard that is big enough to turn into a camping site, but our fire pit as is would not work with so many people, and our yard and house in general are not ready for visitors at the moment. Maybe that will change in the next month but I doubt it since this is the time of year my Dad always has multiple projects going and multiple projects planned, so I am assuming that our yard will be a warzone for the entire summer. Plus, we also have a lot of old fencing and metal objects that if you’re not familiar with where they are, you can easily get hurt and the chances of getting tetanus on our property is higher than other places.
As you can tell, I have thought about this a LOT.
As for food, I kinda want to do something where everyone brings their favorite food and then obviously my family and I will provide food to fill in the gaps (especially since I assume we’ll have a lot more snacks than actual meal foods, which is fine, but we need more than snacks). I like this idea a lot for food options because 1) I am very curious what my friend’s favorite foods are now and what it tastes like (when we talk, we usually ask each other outlandish questions, not so much common, simple ‘get to know you’ questions) and 2) it’d give us a very good variety of different things (even if all are snacks).
For a birthday ‘cake’, I have traditionally done blueberry pie since that used to be my favorite (I’m not sure anymore, I haven’t had it in years). I did do Peach crisp one year, which was awesome and I kinda liked a change, but I’m not sure if I want to do that. I might do an actual cake this year, but I’m also not sure if I want to do that.
I am so split on what I want, because this is a milestone age to me, and I’m not sure if I want to experiment with some things on my birthday, or if I want to go my old ways. I have changed so much since 2019, and while I know I will forever love certain things, I know I will still change a lot in the next year as I get a driver’s permit, get a real job, maybe start a small business, maybe publish a book, and get closer to God.
I am not even sure if I am actually gonna have a birthday party with my friends. I’m going to decide if and when and what we are gonna do by the end of next week, so I have plenty of time to talk with my parents, my friend’s parents, and create invitations.
Okay, I’m done with my rant. So now that I have probably talked all your ears off, I finally ask my question clearly and simply: do any of you have any ideas what I can do for my 16th birthday?
Thank you so much to people who actually read this entire thing. Thank you also to people who only skimmed it but still help me out (I don’t blame you, I would skim or completely skip my own posts too.)
Confuzzled, RAE
(PS. Pfp by SelkieSeal on Unvale. My dear Chase ❤️?)woah, that turned out longer than I thought it would.
It also sounds like some kind of reddit post.
Confuzzled, RAE
(PS. Pfp by SelkieSeal on Unvale. My dear Chase ❤️?)It also sounds like some kind of reddit post.
lol
For some reason I thought you were the same age as me, or within a year at least.
I don’t have much advice though, sorry. All of my birthday parties these days are me getting my writer friends to come over and we joke around about our stories and do some painting. My family is big on trips, though, (one big one a year, usually, maybe two if we have the money for it, interspersed with several small, more local ones) so if you have a place you want to go, and you decide not to do a birthday party, you could always bring that up.
"When in doubt, eat cheese crackers."-me to my charries who don't even know about cheese crackers
Aww, girl. <3 I think you need a pick-me-up.
Insecurities and attachment issues don’t mean you aren’t an amazing choice for a friend. Sometimes I question whether I am friends with somebody too, even if I’ve known them forever. All of us go through those phases. Don’t feel ashamed, just be aware of yourself.
Now, I can’t give you much advice about looking for confirmation. But it will almost certainly help to think of yourself as worth it. Your value is not unstable in other people’s eyes because of things you’ve gone through. You haven’t failed anybody by hiding in your room, because you were subconsciously trying to be there for yourself during a very hard time.
So, let’s see… Here is what I do for my birthday. I make up a combo of smaller things to do, all at my home where anyone can just lounge if they need to. For example, abstract painting where each girl gets her own canvas, or a picnic outside with some outlandish snacks. Those activities give the guests room to chat without doing things that are too active or boring. I’m the kind of person who wants some solid conversation during my party so I know we’re still friends. (I’m like you in that regard. :])
When the sun sets, we put on pajamas, turn on a pile of movies, and try to stay awake as long as we can. Thus it also counts as a sleepover. XD
Maybe you don’t like movies, since you didn’t mention them. But they can be helpful conversation starters. If you think the beginning of your party will be awkward because you haven’t talked to your friends in a while, you can start with a movie and then ease into other casual activities.
All of that is contingent on whether or not your house is clean… so if you do this, talk to your parents about it?
In fact, if you feel comfortable with it, you should tell your parents how you feel about this. <3 I know it’s difficult, but parents often understand more than we give them credit for.
Hope that helps!
I am out of signature ideas
My mom suggested maybe board games? That’s kind of our go-to for hangouts. You could always do a game night with them and go until 10 or so (or sleepover, if you wanted. A movie would work great with that too.) I guess it really depends on if you’re able to host people over at your house or not. Board games can be a great way to warm up to each other if you haven’t seen them in a while. But I would try not to overthink it—chances are you guys will have fun no matter what you do, as long as there’s something to keep you occupied so you don’t get bored.
"Don't shine so that others can see you. Shine so that through you, others can see Him." ~ C.S.L.
One of my friends even had a birthday party where all everyone did was talk before eating dinner (and then set up a Jackbox game for a few minutes towards the end.) Those can be good for parties too. If you’re eating dinner, that will take up a good bit of the time (as will cake and presents, if you open them in front of your guests.)
I hope you figure it out! Happy early birthday, by the way! Sixteen is a fun number to celebrate, but don’t let it become stressful. You don’t have to make your birthday special or different just because of the year.
"Don't shine so that others can see you. Shine so that through you, others can see Him." ~ C.S.L.
Well first off, Happy Early Birthday!!!
Second, here are two thoughts. 1.) you don’t have to make it an all day thing, you know. Often times with my family on a kid’s birthday it’s something simple. Such as, “Hey, ***** wants to go for a bike ride for his birthday. We’ll be at the trail head at 3:00 and we’ll bike until 5:00, then possible get ice cream if anyone wants to” Or, “Anyone want to come hang out for two hours on ***** birthday?” etc. Like something lose and relaxed.
Now, I have no idea your personality (fully) or what would seem fun to you (entirely) So I’m shooting in the dark here. (slightly) ?
I’ve only had two parties in my life. (Not counting 2 year-old party when it was just me and my folks could afford parties)
For my 13th our family did an open house and set up a backyard fair. It was really fun inventing and running all the games!!!
For my 18th I hosted a masquerade ball.
I don’t think either of those would work for you, but here’s a fun idea I always wanted to try. Pick a fun, girly movie. Like Cinderella live action. (the good one with Kit) or Beauty and the Beast, Pride and Prejudice, Princess Bride, The Young Victoria, etc. etc. Something like that. Then have people sort of dress like the time period, or as close to it as they can get. Not buy any costumes or anything, but make something up with the clothes (and even costumes) that they have. Then have a more formal feeling dinner (not food wise) but in your manners. Have everyone bring something, either a favorite, or something that fits the movie. (for instances, when a group of girls from church did Cinderella, one of the older girls did strawberries and made them into mice with chocolate chip ears) Then you could watch the movie afterwords.
Or, something simpler would be just get a bunch of girls together, crash in the leaving room and eat snacks and play games, (or watch a movie)
If your mom might possibly feel stressed at the idea of doing a meal, you could have it as an after dinner, or between lunch and dinner event. (We always do any party that way. It saves a TONE of money)
A great idea would be to sit down with your parents and ask them for ideas and you three can make a list or something.
If the house not being cleaned up is a problem, you could offer to vacuum, sweep, dust, mop, whatever, and put away as many things as you can, if your mom would be willing to help with the things you can’t get cleaned up or don’t know where the things go. (I’m sure if you approached her like that she’d be more than willing) If you need to, shut some doors and just say those rooms are off limits.
Or you don’t have to “do” anything as much as just invite people to have a relaxed hangout time.
Another fun idea would be asking your friends to each bring a fun game or unique activity.
I hope any of these are helpful/appealing. Let me know if not, or which ones you kind of like, and I can think up more.
Make sure to tell us all what you decide. I’m sure we’re all interested. (I know I am)
And those who were seen dancing were thought to be insane by those who couldn't hear the music
@rae I’m interested in how it turns out too!
"When in doubt, eat cheese crackers."-me to my charries who don't even know about cheese crackers
Birthdays can be tough. My twin and I had such an elaborate coffee themed idea for our 16th. Then that birthday rolled around and it no longer fit. Life had changed. We were stuck between choices, not wanting a huge party, but not wanting to let another milestone slip by. We ended up doing a small Jane Austen themed tea party with some friends. It was so much fun and one of my favorite birthdays. Really, there’s a lot of wiggle room on how you celebrate a birthday, especially as you grow up. One of my eldest sister’s was a day excursion to a nearby city where we visited all her favorite restaurants and stores, then met at our church for games.
So yeah, you have some great ideas! I think you could make several of them work really well. Food is always a good idea. XD Making it part of the activities by having them bring their favorites sounds fun!
I don’t really have advice beyond what the others said. I’ve struggled with feeling like I’m a terrible friend or helpless against letting friendships disappear. There’s definitely a dreadful cycle of insecurity that can build when you don’t reach out. So be brave and reach out, even through the trepidation. Do it! Have fun. Blueberry pie and peach crisp both sound fabulous. I hope it’s a blast!
An idea dump:
Tea parties and picnic styles are fun and can offer a lot of room for smaller activities of various exertion levels. A sorta slumber party would be fun too..
Also, with some good tea lights or clean fuel s’mores are totally possible without a fire pit. We’ve done them so many ways, and it’s always fun.
You could do an artsy birthday and it still be appealing for those who aren’t into drawing. Maybe a small craft together like painting mugs/pottery/shoes, abstract art/create your own rendition games, and scrapbooking. There are quite a few budget friendly options out there.
You could meet at your house, or at a park, or at a store. Or at a mix of the two, if you wanted to eat outside in your yard but do other stuff inside(or vise versa).
Also, do any of those who don’t write read instead? If they do, then you could make it story themed. Game/activities could be similar, but not strictly writing. “Bring a favorite book” for a guessing game(who brought what). Play a structured form of Rigamarole where you fill in a template to make the “best” story possible, or where each person has thirty seconds to continue the story before it passes to the next person, for a specified number of rounds. (That way there are bounds to the game.) Even a themed Madlib game could be fun.
You have listened to fears, child. Come, let me breathe on you... Are you brave again? -Aslan
weird little writing prompt that randomly appeared in my brain last night and made me cry cause of how sad it was:
so anyone who’s seen Infinity War and/or Endgame remembers that planet where they get the soul stone from, where someone has to die in order for the other to get it?
pick two of your closest characters. Could be siblings, could be a couple, could be best friends, or parent and child.
Who would be the most likely one to take the fall and sacrifice themselves for the other, and why?
Out of my characters:
–If it was down to Sniper and Huntress, it’d be Sniper. She’s the only person who cares about him that’s still alive, and he’d want her to go home to her brother and the rest of the team, to complete the mission without him. She’d fight pretty hard, and would never emotionally recover from it (and there’d definitely be something along the lines of her screaming “I don’t want a stupid orange rock! I want him back.” at the sky when she wakes up with it in her hand), but yeah, that’s how it’d go.
Of course, knowing the TF2 universe, Medic would probably take advantage of it and be like “y’know what Huntress? I am gonna march over there myself and trade one of my eight lives for his instead, will that make you happy?” (his real motive is just seeing if he can scam this guy as part of the “cheat death or someone symbolizing it in every universe speedrun” that I’m sure he’s trying to do) but I doubt that’d work unless he has a really convincing argument for the ghost guy.
which he probably will cause that’s just how he is.–Same goes for if it were someone like Crosshair and Omega (Crosshair would definitely sacrifice himself for her), but if it were Crosshair and Feather, it’d be Feather. She’d be totally okay with dying to save him and whoever else they need the stone for. He’d would get over it a little easier than Huntress would lol, but he still would have immense survivor guilt. It might drive him forward though, to want to finish things in Feather’s memory.
I’d say more but I don’t have the time, my family’s gonna go watch a movie in a couple minutes.
"When in doubt, eat cheese crackers."-me to my charries who don't even know about cheese crackers
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