Hoping this week goes better than last week. The terribleness of it all peaked on Saturday, when I was rudely checking my phone at the funeral of someone who died in a very sudden, tragic way, because my dad was having emergency surgery >1000 miles away.

I'm sorry to hear you are struggling. It may take time and it may be a tough road, but you can absolutely dig yourself out of this hole.

I'd recommend focusing on one loan at a time, if the whole makes you feel overwhelmed. While I'm not the biggest fan, Dave Ramsey suggests paying loans off using something called the snowball method. I think this can help you, because it will allow you to have wins and see progress faster. Since it sounds like you are struggling with motivation and seeing progress, this method will be the most useful. Small, achievable goals are important!

Basically, you pay the minimums on all of your current loans. Then you pay any extra on your loan with the lowest balance. Once that is knocked out, you take what you were paying for the first loan (minimum payment plus the extra) and put it towards your second smallest loan. A secondary benefit with this approach is that you will reduce your required cash outflow if you do end up losing your job. Good luck!

At the end of the day, you know deep inside what the right choice for you is. The unknown is scary, but the future is always unknown, no matter what you choose.

I went the route of going back to school for a fresh start, after my first career attempt didn't work out. It was absolutely the right choice. I went from feeling stuck in a bad situation and absolutely miserable, to a career that allows me to live my best life and I am infinitely more happy.

I didn't know what was going to come out of the change. I knew I couldn't keep doing what I was doing. When I went back to school, I did as many different internships as I could, since I knew what I didn't want to do, but I didn't know what I wanted to do anymore. I ended up falling into a career field I never even knew existed, but matches up to my strengths perfectly. Bonus points for being paid more than I ever imagined I could make (I basically tripled my income from my old job when I started my current one).

Life's short. Change is constant, no matter what you choose. Do what makes you happy, even if it's scary. We all end up as worm food, do you want to live your life as a series of "What ifs?" Or do you want to take a chance and try new things?

As far as I'm aware, booby traps are illegal everywhere in the US. Here's a source that states it's explicitly illegal in Texas if they are designed to seriously injure or kill someone. I'm not a lawyer, but certainly this falls into the definition of a booby trap? Can whoever ordered this be charged under this law, or even be charged with murder?

I'm here for the people. I don't want to be a part of a community that is bots talking with bots, which is what I felt like places like Reddit had become. When I found Beehaw, it was a breath of fresh air to actually see intelligent conversations between real people. I'd hate to see that be lost.

Most recently... empanadas.

But there are so many foods i hadn't been exposed to but absolutely adore. We didn't have much "ethnic" foods as a kid, so there's been a lot I've tried as an adult and loved. Butter chicken has become a staple for me. Saag paneer. Pad see ew is another great one. Savory pies in former British colonies (I had a butter chicken pie at a takeaway in NZ that was incredible). The list goes on...

It sounds like a platform private companies can use to develop instantaneous peer-to-peer money transfer, as opposed to a true service run by the feds. Either way, the fact that it would allow someone to make a direct payment to another person's bank account anywhere would be a huge upgrade.

Teal

Though I've always loved all the cool colors: Blue, Purple, Green

Something like Hitchhiker's guide to the Galaxy

Yeah, that sounds like it would be a textural nightmare with how thick and heavy peanut butter is.

It's very rare to eat peanut butter on its own. It's most famous for the way it pairs with other flavors. Peanut butter and jelly (strawberry jam is a classic), peanut butter and honey, peanut butter and chocolate, or if you want something super extreme peanut butter and marshmallow fluff.

I would bet you'd like it more if it hadn't been peanut butter only.

I was walking my dog earlier this week and came across a cat that had most likely been killed by a coyote. It was incredibly upsetting to see and completely ruined my day. That cat did not need to live it's last moments in fear and fighting for its life, if only it's owners had kept it inside/supervised it when outside.

On a better note. I once saw a woman walking down the street and her cat was just following her along (no leash). It was super cute and you could definitely tell they had a fantastic bond. More cat owners should be like that lady.

My current go to for the past few years is oatmeal. I mix oats, dry milk powder, frozen cherries, and water. Then I throw it in the microwave for a few minutes to cook. Once it's done, I add cinnamon and a handful of chocolate chips and mix it all together. It's probably not the most healthy option, but it's tasty and reasonably nutritious.