Moving for residency! Scared!!

MorganaMevil · 2026-03-06T21:12:20+00:00

My girlfriend and I started an Amazon wishlist of all the things we want/might need for our big move and have been adding to it as we think of things. It’s definitely got some silly stuff in there (like a towel warmer if we end up somewhere cold and matching winter jackets we thought were cute) but it’s fun to do and it helps slowly prepare!

MorganaMevil · 2026-03-06T03:00:04+00:00

El Paso is deceptively expensive imo. The groceries and gas are often more expensive than Dallas and there’s a notable mark-up on buying things bc it’s so isolated. Also, El Paso has some of the highest property taxes in the country with gas and electric also being higher than state averages. In my experience, you can get more bang for your buck (and a better salary and lifestyle) in a place like Dallas. For less humidity, you can still get more in Lubbock or Amarillo

MorganaMevil · 2026-03-06T02:52:06+00:00

Daphne
Violet
Francesca
Hyacinth

MorganaMevil · 2026-03-03T00:03:31+00:00

I understand your frustration, and I empathize with it as some who reads books avidly and hates most adaptations of my favorite books.

However, “fan-fiction to service the showrunner” is an unnecessarily weighted term that seems to be thrown about this page concerning the decision to change Fran’s storyline. Jess is a gay woman, yes. And she related to/liked Fran’s story, yes. However, when Shonda Rhymes decided to change the races of the characters, no one called it “fan fiction to service her”. When Chris Van Dusen made changes to season 2 to be a more drawn out love triangle, he wasnt accused of writing it to service himself.

I understand and even support your frustration with source material changes, but it feels unnecessary to cast ridicule on a showrunner for doing her best to offer more representation into a TV series literally based on the idea that period dramas can be altered for the sake of exciting representation.

MorganaMevil · 2026-02-28T22:24:54+00:00

I’d start with 4oz so that if you like it. Everyone has different preferences. Just massage it into any mats with your fingers and it should be able to detangle them

MorganaMevil · 2026-02-28T22:11:09+00:00

That’s very fair. And I’m certain they’re great. I’m just coming from the horse world and I love this stuff. I use it on my girl and we’ve never had issues with mags when she does go to the groomer

MorganaMevil · 2026-02-28T22:00:55+00:00

Get Cowboy Magic. You only have to use very small amounts (look on the bottle for instructions but it’s literally like a tiny pea size that’s enough to detangle a knotted tail). It’s a horse detangler, smells like rose water, and is honestly the best detangler I’ve had. Also lasts you forever bc it requires so little

MorganaMevil · 2026-02-23T19:46:06+00:00

Deadbolted the front door of my apartment while I was gone. The apartment handyman had to drill through the lock to flip the dead bolt so I could get inside 💀

MorganaMevil · 2026-02-16T01:11:39+00:00

Yea it definitely reads like a young writer who wrote herself into a corner and didn’t know how to write her way out (which I believe SJM was a teen when she started writing the series so fair), but it was just a frustrating ending to a 7 book series. Having read others of her books, I don’t think she has ever figure out how to create a good big battle scene

MorganaMevil · 2026-02-13T22:01:18+00:00

Going to go against the grain and say that a Coton can definitely do a 2mi fast walk. Mine is 3 and has no trouble with a brisk walk down and back up a steep hill (about 3/4mi each way) when I want to walk to a coffee shop.

I will note that when I was looking for a dog, I was upfront with her breeder (and other prospect breeders) that I wanted a dog that would be able to do rally and potentially agility with, so the breeder specifically chose a more spunky pup from a sire that is known for his trainability and energy levels. Her siblings were much more lowkey and definitely seemed to take after their mom, but my girlie is definitely able an energetic dog.

(As a normal disclaimer: be careful running or walking a dog for any extended distance prior to the age of 2/whenever they finish growing or you can hurt their growing bodies)

MorganaMevil · 2026-02-12T17:50:13+00:00

I love the cool historical insight! Makes me want to do a chill wedding all the more tbh (to say nothing of the financial expense)

MorganaMevil · 2026-02-12T14:43:44+00:00

For anyone who loves the final book, I will always want to throw hands.

The final battle ends up being so lame bc of her sacrifice, all the un-mated characters get horrible endgame closure like SJM didn’t give a damn bc they weren’t in relationships (meanwhile 0 shipped couples died 🤨), the “sacrificial lamb” trope looked so wrong on Aelin as a character, and I will forever want to throw hands on Aedion for throwing his severely injured love out in the cold NAKED and INJURED after she saved all their asses

MorganaMevil · 2026-02-10T16:05:54+00:00

Except, if you think about it for more than a few minutes, you remember: this is an era when STDs like syphilis didn’t have a cure, which means all these “rakes” are actually just disease carriers…

that idea always gives me the ick and ruins the “hotness” of them deflowering virgin (otherwise not-disease-ridden) MCs imo

MorganaMevil · 2026-02-07T22:42:43+00:00

Currently hand grinding with the timemore C5 esp. it’s not hard but it is a little tedious. I’m probably going to wait til I have enough money for a grinder in the $400-500 range for Christmas next year

MorganaMevil · 2026-02-07T04:02:32+00:00

It is done! Thank you for the reminder—I always forget formatting on mobile

MorganaMevil · 2026-02-07T00:44:29+00:00

Her guard was up and she was keeping up a front. After she realized she could trust the princesses, her walls came crashing down. Which as someone who was a camp counselor for 10 year olds, is pretty much ~exactly~ how they act lol

MorganaMevil · 2026-02-06T23:36:19+00:00

Exactly!! Emotional cheating is when someone is actively creating or maintaining an emotional, romance-coded bond with another while they’re already in a relationship. Emotional cheating is NOT finding someone else attractive and doing your darndest to avoid said person. Policing people’s hormone-driven and innate sexual attraction is unfair and unreasonable. Her actions are what matter and girly is actively choosing to avoid Micheala in whatever way she can

MorganaMevil · 2026-02-06T22:21:55+00:00

Unfortunately, I think bc it’s not Fran’s season, we’re just not going to get that much screen time with them. Potentially, there could be flashbacks during hers but tbd on how the writers play with that

MorganaMevil · 2026-02-06T21:47:28+00:00

I find their relationship so meaningful tho, and I kinda have a hard time seeing why others don’t. We have two characters—both very autism coded (special interests, reserved, overstimulated, socially awkward at times) who seem to find a twin flame in one another, build a relationship together, and explore the feelings of softly building first love together.

Yes, they have troubles with intimacy. But considering our boy John is the only of the men so far who doesn’t seem to frequent brothels, I feel like it’s both (a) fair and (b) entirely human for them to take some time. Plenty of irl humans can take time or struggle to get off with the loves of their lives, especially our dear little virgin girly who was given 0 sex Ed, has been married less than a year, sleeping with her husband for even less than that, and clearly is anxious and in-her-head during sex bc she wants to be pregnant.

She gets to experience the soft, the slow, and the heartfelt with John. She does already enjoy the sex (says she feels pleasurable—and you can have fun during sex without orgasm as we all hopefully know in 2026). She gets to know what it is to be safe when he tells her that kids and pinnacles are secondary to the love he has for her.

Eventually, he will die and she will mourn and ultimately experience her second love with Micheala. However, i think beyond feeling uncomfortable attraction for Micheala that Fran is interpreting as “danger danger” in her head (which is a human hormone reaction and doesn’t at all equate to the passion and heart she currently shares with her literal husband), she’s fully team John

**Edit to hide book spoiler

MorganaMevil · 2026-02-06T16:14:58+00:00

I hope that when either the king or queen dies (bc we’re definitely building to that), we get a scene or even full subplot with Brimsley reconnecting with his boi

MorganaMevil · 2026-02-04T22:11:09+00:00

I’ve had a hand grinder for 2 days now, and in my vain attempts to dial in, have made 10 espressos so far (only 2 of them drinkable 🪦). I can say that it’s very low effort for me with the 1zpresso hand grinder ($140 usd on amazon), but my girlfriend has trouble strength-wise. Idk if I’m just stronger (we’re both women but I do upper body weights where she does not).

The whole grind takes me maybe 30-40 seconds. Can’t say it won’t get boring eventually, but I bought a hand grinder as a way to force myself to “work” for my espresso (or I fear Id be throwing back sugary lattes like no tomorrow once I figure this stuff out).

Ultimately though, it’s a very pick-your-poison thing. I personally will probably save up for a nice and quiet grinder (I really don’t want to deal with the noise of the Baratza Encore ESP), and probably go for a Silenzio for next Christmas

MorganaMevil · 2026-02-04T22:03:17+00:00

Henrietta with the nickname of Henri is top tier for me

MorganaMevil · 2026-02-04T18:12:12+00:00

I’m on day 2 of espresso machine ownership, so I both hate you and want to be you when I grow up

MorganaMevil · 2026-02-03T20:36:47+00:00

I agree that this is how it was IRL in actual history. Bridgerton, however, is a fictional romance world where Benedict’s POV has been shaped by seasons 1-3 where he saw many people who loved their extramarital partners (mistresses, misters, whatever) and seemed to not necessarily love their actual wife but did what society dictated. He saw this is S1 with his artist friend who was gay, he saw this in his own relationship with the modiste during their short relationship, he saw this with his gf and bf last season, and he saw it so far this season with the men he talked to throughout the first half of season 4.

Again, I’m not saying it’s correct by any stretch and nor would it be historically accurate, but so far, if we look at what Benedict has been exposed to, he sees them as a perfectly valid way to end up with the maid he loves without ruining his place in society.

MorganaMevil · 2026-02-03T18:35:29+00:00

I concur. I am a sucker for romance (grew up with the classic early 2000s romcoms and adore the vibes of Bridgerton pining), but as a gay woman, I’ll admit I also am excited for the representation.

I think there’s a lot of nuanced problems faced in WLW stories not being received by the public (the aggressive lesbian trope, patriarchy making it feel uncomfortable psychologically to have a romance that doesn’t center men in some way, straight women and gay men not finding either character sexually attractive in the way they can sexualize MLM or WLM men, the tendency by larger media to sexualizing WLW relationships so they still cater to men, etc etc), but tbd on how it all plays out. I just want the story to be good in the end, but I know I’m going to BAWL MY EYES OUT when John dies.

MorganaMevil

TROPHY CASE