it has been a while!

I have arrived in Canada! Twice actually, since my last update. I had a short visit in May for my 26th birthday: Jo's mom was out of town visiting family so we had the place to ourselves. We went out for sushi for my birthday and a drag show just for fun. Did you know they ask you if you'd like a double when you order drinks here? Where I'm from, it's up to you to ask for it.
For the Summer I headed back South, worked my ass off doing DoorDash for a couple months — shout out to my parents for letting me use their car when my AC was broken — and got back to Vancouver in time for Halloween. I've saved up enough money to last until the end of March, which is when my visitor's visa expires. But I'm hoping to stay permanently because...

I am engaged! After 4 and a half years together, Jo and I will be getting married in a civil ceremony in late December. I was planning to propose Summer of next year, but we mutually decided to get engaged last month so that I can stay with them in Canada. I'm living with them now and we live so well together. We're taking care of ourselves more than before, things are getting done around the house, and our communication skills are still going great. I love them a lot and I'm overjoyed that we're finally together in person. I can't believe we were long distance for most of four years.

Obviously, there has been a terrible election in my home country. What the fuck? Even if he wasn't a fascist (which he is), he was a terrible president the first time around. This time, he has that Project 2025 crap to pull from. I'm also blown away by the total Republican control in the House and Senate, and I worry about what the implications of that plus a cabinet of yes-men and cronies will be. I'm glad that I got out, but I feel like all I can do from here is watch.

Other updates, let's see...I've been self-managing my mental health without meds since June-ish and it seems to be going well. I'll start taking them again if I feel I need to, but I've been good with only occassional anxiety med doses for 4/5 months. I have applied for 50 jobs since I got here — remote in the US or local in Vancouver — and haven't gotten a single call back; I've heard people in the US and Canada are applying for hundreds before getting one. I'm taking it one day at a time, and it's serving me just fine. My background anxieties are running out of money or getting deported, but as long as I stay responsible neither of those things will happen.
On the casual front: The Homestuck roleplay that I've mentioned here before has reached page 100 on the fanventure, but it's tough to keep everyone involved. I'm still playing Lethal Company every Saturday and have now hit 100 hours in the game. Recently decided to 'git gud' at MarioKart, starting with the Leaf Cup.

As for the future of this website...well, there will be one! I plan to keep updating. I'll update some pages (namely music and opinions) very soon, while other pages will update later on my own time. I definitely want to get some additions to leftpol about mutual aid before the election.

In lieu of a bonus meme, check out this October 1982 National Geographic I found at Value Village! Leave a message in the chatbox if you want to see scans.