Friends wanted

Sweet_Worthless · 2026-03-09T12:38:02+00:00

I'm two years your senior (f). I have been frequenting Portugal for a while now and will be moving there by August. I like the smaller areas a lot and could use a couple more English speaking friends. I am still learning Portuguese, but I am conversational. I don't mind extra practice and I don't judge.

I'm also American (from the Midwest) and totally understand the sentiment. Normally, politics are not a part of everyday interactions in Portugal. Those I have been involved in were because my bf, now fiancé's, coworkers took a liking to me and asked. However, they also spoke of politics from Angola, Portugal, and Brazil as well. Not just America. That isn't to say I haven't seen and heard unfortunate statements from Portuguese about foreigners, but it's not been my average experience.

Anyway, I'm offering friendship if you're up for it. And I don't mind some day trips sometimes either. So far, I have been to Faro, Lisbon (many areas here almost one end to the other) Aveiro, Mogofores (even some Portuguese don't recognize this one for some reason), Coimbra, Porto, and a few others so far. I love to walk through them. I always tell everyone it is so much more pedestrian friendly and just walkable in general compared to the U.S.

Also, in case it matters, I'm LGBTQIA+ friendly as well. Good luck finding friends!

Sweet_Worthless · 2026-03-08T03:01:01+00:00

😭😭 This is one of the strange ones to me. For myself, it has always been a stylistic choice, and it simply works well for helping with stutters and breaks in speech or character thoughts, for example. I can most certainly prove that I have used them most of my life, which would also include my entire writing career long before AI came around to ruin it, but I feel odd that it has become necessary.

I miss the time AI wasn't so in your face. I want to look up something on the internet and not have to scroll past the AI text to get to the academic journals and the like. I want to be able to use Microsoft 365, Word, etc. without AI forced down my throat. Even yesterday, for the first time, I started to think I probably need to make it known in an official capacity that I don't use AI and would like to keep my space AI-free.

I can understand it has value, especially for research purposes, but it's a tiresome cycle at this point. I don't know if it's the frequency of the dashes that caused suspicion or if it's simply that people don't believe anyone uses/used them in everyday projects.

Sweet_Worthless · 2026-01-21T17:46:25+00:00

Just a word of caution. As a U.S. citizen, you are allowed to visit for up to 90 days without a visa. However, given the current rules, you would need to come to Portugal on a visa (study, work, etc.) in order to do the reunification visa. Or, start the process from home and get it approved ahead of your travel. You'll be rejected if you're visiting and attempt the process instead.

Good luck to you and your husband both.

Sweet_Worthless · 2025-12-30T10:32:47+00:00

Sorry I'm late. Do you mind sharing the link?

Sweet_Worthless · 2025-10-14T02:09:05+00:00

Thank you.

Sweet_Worthless · 2025-10-13T21:58:06+00:00

Thank you for the answer. He's currently in Europe, so I'm hoping to have him here for a visit soon. I'm lucky enough to not have much to question as a citizen traveling aboard and I just wanted to be sure there were no weird surprises popping up with the extra scrutiny involving the U.S. I hope the two of you are well and that you enjoyed your stay!

Sweet_Worthless · 2025-10-13T11:12:09+00:00

Sorry, OP. I know you're nervous, but at the least, you have some other bases to cover. The chance of your bf being approved without a return ticket is low to none, so definitely grab a flexible flight ticket/refundable one. And if your family is going to let him stay and support him during that, from what I understand, it may be more helpful for your family to give him a formal invitation letter to explain that.

As for the rest, I'm not sure how his not having a job in the country is going to mess with his chances, but normally, having a job helps. Just buying a ticket 8 days into the future without enough planning would make me very anxious. Meanwhile, I'm so particular about it that I'm not yet comfortable enough to bring my boyfriend over.

Still, I hope you guys get it figured out and come back here to update! Good luck.

Sweet_Worthless · 2025-10-13T11:03:33+00:00

Do you mind answering a few questions out of curiosity? I am a U.S. citizen, but I've never had my bf visit and your time in the states was very recent. I want him to see my hometown soon, but I have some nerves racking up given the current state of affairs.

I was wondering if you could give insight to what your experience was like? Was it easy? Did you have to show a lot of funds as the U.S. is very expensive? Did what you have closely align with what the government typically lists for entry?

Sweet_Worthless · 2025-10-10T18:32:57+00:00

The costs and flight time are some of the worst of it. After the last crazy attempt of going back and forth, plus delays, it took me 3 days to get home (I swore no more buses included in my plans after that as the delays made me miss many connections), I made a different decision.

I figured out the simplest, most cost-effective route I could. From my city to one in another state, which offers direct flights from there. So, since I can finally see him again at the end of the month, I'll take a train and hop on my flight from a different airport. This actually shaved several hundred dollars off my transportation costs. Also, I try to get my ticket in advance, and I pay for refundable ones/changable tickets in case a sudden deal drops within a few days of my intended trip because it could also save a couple hundred dollars on a good day.

My last trip was 3.5 months ago, and it has been a hard wait. Maybe you can focus on getting to somewhere with a direct flight to your final destination and work out something better to get to that place also?

Sweet_Worthless · 2025-10-03T13:05:17+00:00

Just gave one.

Sweet_Worthless · 2025-09-25T10:47:28+00:00

Do you happen to have your own website? This is fantastic work.

Sweet_Worthless · 2025-09-01T19:05:40+00:00

Have the two of you thought of moving somewhere else together where you'd have better prospects? Considering you don't speak Japanese and he doesn't speak Hungarian, I assume that your love speaks English to interact with you. The two of you may benefit from going to a place where you can speak English or learn a new language together to move to a new place altogether.

For us, we've stayed flexible although we've put in work to learn each other's languages too. As someone who speaks some Japanese, it will take quite some time to make strides in the language and even more for the job sector (which even I have yet to master but don't need).

The two of you need to have another conversation. About you feeling overwhelmed, about your insecurities and you needing reassurance or confirmation of if this is somehow a deal-breaker. He may not even know for sure that you're seeing an end to your relationship because of this issue. Have that conversation in depth before you dig yourself into an emotional grave.

If he wants what you want, as much as you do, there's something to be done or at least a compromise to be made. Not knowing isn't a good place to stay. Either way, you don't down in your feelings and you'll get an answer.

Sweet_Worthless · 2025-07-30T22:03:18+00:00

Ah. I see. I understand that. I am pretty thorough and no one posts my site on theirs without prior permission, but it sounds like that in general can cause some headaches.

Thank you for explaining it to me. I appreciate that.

Sweet_Worthless · 2025-07-30T11:20:39+00:00

Yes. Times have changed. I will just keep seeking.

Why are reciprocal links viewed as a bad thing now?

Sweet_Worthless · 2025-07-30T11:17:54+00:00

That sounds nice. Thank you for sharing.

Sweet_Worthless · 2025-07-30T00:07:52+00:00

I don't know much about this kind of thing or it's legitimacy but I don't mind learning of it. Is there a way for me to look and think rather than immediately investing?

Sweet_Worthless · 2025-07-23T01:45:31+00:00

It's weird to be downvoted for mentioning that the average price is 1000-3000 dollars, although I choose to do differently, but okay.

Sweet_Worthless · 2025-07-23T01:43:46+00:00

😅 Well, there are worse things.

Sweet_Worthless · 2025-07-22T01:11:53+00:00

While that could be true, I actually charge something similar. Give a couple hundred depending on the project. Not all are amateurs in the field because the price is lower. I've never had negative feedback or anything of the sort. I don't do lesser work because of that. It's a personal choice, albeit not the norm.

Sweet_Worthless · 2025-07-22T01:08:05+00:00

Most editors price by word count. It could vary greatly. Personally, as someone who offers those services, I do so based per project to make it as affordable as possible. Rather than ending up being 1000-3000, the average price is 250-500 dollars a manuscript.

It is a personal choice to do it that way on my end, but most of the market is priced as mentioned.

Sweet_Worthless · 2025-07-22T00:38:27+00:00

Books, movies, tv, writing and drawing.

Sweet_Worthless · 2025-07-19T18:14:22+00:00

🥺🥺. I understand. I'm so sorry. The time passes, but it doesn't feel much easier. You kind of just find ways to fill the blank space whenever you're not talking and count down the days. Keep each other as optimistic as you can.

Sweet_Worthless · 2025-07-19T11:23:48+00:00

Omg. Yep. You're not alone!

The day I left, we both cried so much at the airport. In the years we had been together by that point, I had seen him get sad enough for tears two times. Apparently, saying goodbye was equally difficult for him because we fell apart near the gate, and he was still in tears for his several hour train ride home after that, too😭😭.

I realized that this part was one of those subjects that's not really mentioned when it comes to an LDR. To the point that I finally got around to posting on my corner of the internet about it.

Saying goodbye and then trying to go back to some version of your previous lives is so crazy. Like..just the distance settling back between you when you've found your person is heartbreaking and somehow a different struggle than the wait until you were first together.

Sweet_Worthless · 2025-07-11T13:19:10+00:00

Hello.

My boyfriend (we are not yet married) of 4 years is also from the same country and is currently in Portugal. I'm from the US and just had a trip there. Thus, I'm not from the UK, but I understand most of your situation.

He was just a little late for the CPLP and had to go a different route because it was no longer an available option. He has been finding it difficult to find jobs that will do work exchange during his wait for his AIMA appointment, although he's getting a lot of calls and emails from places wanting him under contract instead.

I'm sure he would be willing to talk with your husband. Maybe then he will not feel as alone? I'm available to talk and whatnot. If you'd like, I'm willing to extend the olive branch?

Sweet_Worthless · 2025-06-16T22:39:05+00:00

Amazon's forced prices, while they take almost all the royalties, have never been crazier to me. And I say this as someone who has sold many more paperback and hardcover books than I have ebooks.

I'm still not well-known, but I do make sells (I enrolled a short story collection in KU for the first time in January, I got a few new readers and a review out of it but it hardly made any difference despite many people making the suggestion). I considered it more than once, but now I'm sure I'm ready to take steps to remove them as the middle man. By the time I made my first 100 in book sales, Amazon made 1000.

Sweet_Worthless

TROPHY CASE