/~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~\

Title: Things Happened
Date: July 30, 2025

|~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~|

  So, catchup. My uncle passed away on June 27th, and it's
been a wild ride ever since. Found out that I'd actually
been part owner of my home, complete with survivorship
rights, so there was never any threat of a lein or
otherwise against it. I've been going through all of the
things left behind, getting the utilities into my name
where possible, dealing with my partner's employer being
absolute shit[^0], and just trying to survive. I haven't
/really/ given myself a chance to grieve yet, because as I
see it, I'll be able to do that once I know we're not in
danger of anything. Surviving comes first.

  We've been moving furniture, removing furniture, cleaning
places I didn't know existed, finding problems that need to
be taken care of, and just trying to get comfortable again.
I even moved to the other side of the house, taking over
the master bedroom where I and my grandparents slept when
we first got this house, and leaving the room I'd been
given when I turned 6 years old. It's not decorated, but
I've got my writing desk and laptops, a large drawer
cabinet[^1], 3x3 cube organizer shelves, a walk-in closet
with plenty of space, a bed, a recliner, and even a new
office chair to sit in while I work. I can honestly call
it /my/ room, and a place where I can relax a little.

  My partner's mother visited us for most of last week as
well, and helped with cleaning things up and just generally
being there for us both. Funny story as well: We knew she
was coming, and she mentioned she was bringing us a Kirby
vacuum to keep, but was disappointed that she didn't have
the shampoo kit to go with it. The next day, I wanted to
finally check out the thrift store about a block away that
I hadn't had a chance to go to yet. We go there, and
there's a Kirby shampoo kit sitting high on a shelf, which
my partner needed me to pull down. They sold it to us for
**$10 USD**, and of course we said yes to that. It was a
great find, and one with amazing timing.

  I've also been getting a *little* help from my extended
family in the area. My last uncle (late uncle's brother) has
been getting all of the photos and  family history stuff for
safe keeping, and I gave some of my grandmother's old
jewelry ("costume" jewelry) to his wife[^2]. Several of my
cousins also got pens and other items that my late uncle
made, and I gave one cousin my mom's old collectable dolls
for her granddaughter (who is adorable and awesome). Above
all else, we're getting things cleaned out, and keeping
family stuff in the family where possible.

  It's also going to give my partners and I a chance to make
this place our own while we live here. Yes, I said
/partners/, as one of our other mates is moving back here to
live with us again. It'll be good to finally see them after
our time apart. I've missed being with them, but that'll
happen within the next month or so, once they've secured
their promotion and can transfer.

|~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~|

  Right now, I'm sitting back in my recliner[^3], writing
this phlog post, but I've been working on things on my blog
on Dreamwidth a bit. It's just easier to upload there most
of the time, despite my preference for gopher and the like.

\~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~/

[^0]: Dollar General is forcing store managers to use *AI*
      to make schedules, and ignoring employee scheduling
      needs. They're also trying to enforce overhiring of
      employees, while also giving very little hours to
      the store he's working at.

[^1]: I plan on replacing the old drawers with something
      smaller and lighter, but I'm not getting rid of them.
      They'll make for great storage elsewhere in the
      house.

[^2]: She suffers from early stages of dementia, but her
      memory seems to get better with specific triggers,
      like photos and objects. I want /her/ to be happy as
      well, because she's family, and has been very kind to
      us all.