weeping

Supervisor: Worker 72094. You failed to meet your quota for 3 weeks in a row now.

Worker 72094: I can explain!

Supervisor: You're clearly burned out. I heard you moved recently. Take a mandatory two weeks paid vacation to readjust and report to me then.

Worker 11335: Is it because I badmouthed the company during lunch?

Shadowy Board Member: That is correct. We are very displeased, Worker 11335...

Worker 100100: What's with the mask?

Of course. All Hopeless Inc. employees are due-paying members of Mindless Drones United.

Play as Dr. Hannibal Lecter's new patient in this Choose-Your-Own-Adventure!

There's no question that he's one-of-a-kind. But, a small piece of advice? Try not to be rude…or too entertaining.

[New]

AS OF DECEMBER 20TH, 2023, WE HAVE BEEN INFORMED THAT OUR NEW LANDLADY WANTS US OUT WHEN OUR LEASE ENDS IN FENBRUARY. EDIT Dec 27th 2023: We just learned that she's adding an electric garage door to the garage. Her ex-husband is working on it with an electrician friend of his and I overheard them. She doesn't intend to move in, she wants to add the small ass garage onto the lease and thinks it's worth adding another $1K+ dollars to the rent.

[Old]

Dave just doesn't get how finances work. Because he's so unhelpful and doesn't fucking listen when people speak, he's whining about how after getting paid, mom has nothing left for the month. "But we don't have to spend $230 on the storage unit anymore!" "That went into other bills, Dave!" He thinks that cuz we don't have that one issue holding us down, we're going to be able to handle everything else easily and have money left over for whatever he wants to waste it on. Because mom has had to pay one bill and let another slide as a result every month. It's how she's had to handle our financial problems this entire time. And people all over have to do things like this, it isn't a new tactic.

Mom finally paid off the bank after Dave bounced her account several times last year. She's been paying $100+ a month for ages to get that handled. That should make things a little easier now.

The car insurance has increased by several dozen dollars so it's over $150 a month now. (EDIT: Dec, 2023: It was increased again.)

Her phone and Bethy's phone have to be kept on because of her schooling and we need a functioning phone number or else we'll be in big trouble in many ways. $100+ just for 2 phones. Dave is in charge of his own damn phone.

She has to handle her Discover and Capital One cards since she's had to use them to save our asses a few times. She NEEDS to pay them off so her credit score doesn't tank, and many places won't give you a chance if your credit is low. She's got monthly payments for those around $100+ in total.

The P.O. Box price has increased. Almost $50 now. (EDIT: Dec, 2023: We had canceled it since we finally got a place to live, and now we'll need to get a new one. I'm so tired.)

Dish Network has been on pause or almost 2 years cuz she can't cancel it before the full year she paid is used up or the fee is astronomical. They keep suspiciously unpausing it and trying to lob thousands in fees at us. (EDIT: Aug, 2023: Mom finally got it taken care of by going to the Better Business Bureau with dozens of emails of proof for her case and they came down hard on Dish Network. So we're fine on that front now.)

Then we have gas for a minivan, that Dave should be paying for, but isn't. A mostly full tank is around $80 every 4-5 days. Gas is average rn. So over $400 monthly in gas. (EDIT Dec, 2023: $20 gets 4 1/2 Gallons right now. It is hell.)

We need the part for the van which is $800+. The van is just so old that finding parts for something considered an antique now is damn near impossible, and not having the money up front makes it worse. (EDIT: Dec, 2023: The van is dead and despite how the alternator was replaced and the battery and starter are fine, there's no vehicle.)

She has to pay for her medication cuz we have shit medical. She's already going without many of them but some health problems, like Asthma, can't be ignored so the inhalers are prioritized. (EDIT Aug, 2023: Our medical changed out of nowhere at the beginning of the year and all of our doctors no longer take it. No doctors take it, in fact, so our attempts to get better help have to start all over again.)

Bethy needs school supplies regularly.

But Dave just thinks that she should have all this extra money left over at the end of paying everything off. Many of these things come out instantly on the 1st of each month btw. She has to then work through what is left for the bills that aren't instantly paid off. He thinks if he works with his friend for 3 weeks, he'll have enough money for an apartment, completely ignoring that he'd only have about $1800 for a full month of work with no breaks. The cheapest 2-bedroom in Delaware requires almost all of that, which is why we're waiting on housing which charges based on your monthly income. Even if he handled the monthly rent of $1400-$1700 for a 2-bedroom, mom still has all this stuff to worry about... and then gas, water, electric, sewage, etc... Dave doesn't listen. In public housing, those things are included. Outside it, they are separate expenses.

Other Posts About Life:

[1] [2][3] [4] [5] [6]

~.O.~

MARCH 2024: WE'RE IN A RUNDOWN HOUSE AND HOPING FOR THE BEST. IT NEEDS A LOT OF WORK AND I HAVE NO FAITH ANY WILL GET DONE. It's owned by some guy Dave's boss knows and it's hell.

~.O.~

[Ko-Fi] Commissions are open!

[GoFundMe] We need a new van.

[Venmo]

[CashApp: $Flame818]

[Amazon Food List] https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/21X3S24SCBWI1/ref=nav_wishlist_lists_1

[Wish List] https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/1ANXFMDFK0NUO/ref=nav_wishlist_lists_2

[Meal Train] We need groceries.

[Patreon]

[NEW: 25th Dec 2024]

Chapter: Partners

Jonah Graham (51, Unemployed) told Edward Dempsey (43, Administrator) that he has to find a girlfriend. (Kinda shocked to learn their ages, Jonah looks way better at 51 than Edward does at 43.)

Dennis Ward (56, Accountant) was very aware of me (Connor) when I was near. He shooed me away and didn't go back to his conversation until I was out of his sight.

Jimmy Peterson (37, Bar Owner) gave Christopher Gray (55, Unemployed) a drink, on the house.

Some bystanders didn't know someone actually lived in the house Carlos Ortiz rented, while others "always knew that guy (Ortiz) was a fucking creep". (With the state of his house, he probably was.)

Based on the pictures/posters on the wall, Ortiz was a fan of boxing, baseball, and porn.

One of the CSIs was named Miked, he was tasked with taking samples. The team was also waiting for another CSI to arrive. (I just realized that what the CSIs are saying are actually hints for things that you should investigate, i.e., "There's something weird in the bathroom.")

Chapter: Waiting for Hank

In the Lobby, a man and a woman were reporting a crime to an android receptionist beside the one that Connor's supposed to go to. The crime happened to the woman, and Mark, the man, was giving her moral support. She was saying that she's getting nervous, and Mark was telling her that any detail she could give them would help. (IMO, her valuables were probably snatched since she kept on saying "it happened so fast".)

On the seats, near the TV, Kim Yo-han (we met him in "Partners", but there was nothing notable about him except for the fact that he's unemployed and has a criminal record for DV) was there with a woman. He was visibly shaken and troubled, and the woman was trying to keep him calm, she even got him a glass of water. (Strange that he would be in a Police Station looking frazzled and being calmed by a woman when he's a convicted wife beater.)

The news reported on the escalating US-Russia conflict in the Arctic and revealed Connor's involvement with the DCPD.

The DCPD has desks for Po. Person, Po. Brown, Det. Reed (Gavin), Po. Miller, Det. Collins (Ben), Lit. Anderson, Po. Wilson, and there's an empty desk that's going to be Connor's. (But I've noticed that there's no more desks for the white male officer who's cataloguing evidence on the center table, the Asian female officer with Reed in the break room, and the four other officers in the meeting room. Also, I often encounter a Po. Tina Chen in fanfics. She even has her own tag on ao3. However, I've been unable to locate her desk or name tag within the station. Is she the woman with Reed in the break room? How is she so known in fanfics when she's basically a throwaway character in the game?)

Apparently, the first book written by an AI (named VOLTAIRE) is #1 in every best-selling list. What kind of book is "Do Humans Dream of Mammalian Sheep?" anyway? LMAO

The DCPD uses two types of Android Police, the PC200 (male) and the PM700 (female) commissioned in January 2035 and August 2037, respectively. So, they're fairly new models. I wonder if the DCPD only started using androids in recent years or these are already upgrades.

Po. Wilson (the one Connor asked about Hank's usual time of arrival) is engaged in extramarital affairs! His side-chick called him and he went to the only secluded corner in the office and answered. I had to position Connor at a distance to avoid detection, but I overheard him say something along the lines of, "Don't call me here again... my wife is starting to notice." (For some reason this doesn't happen every time I replay the chapter. Idk what you have to do for it to happen tho.)