Dad's in the hospital again. I don't think he's in danger of death, no. But I'm still a little scared. He's been having blood pressure scares for several months now, and the pneumonia he had yesterday is not cause for comfort.

I'm frightened he may not have much longer to live.

Went to work. Nothing happened. Thought you all would like to know.

We had to call the police. Twice. In the same shift.

The first time, it was this really horrible excuse for a mother. She thought it was more important to play on the computer than comfort her crying 2-year old. When my boss told her that she could not do that, she started screaming some really horrible things at her. We both had to escort her out of the building, her screaming all kinds of nasty words in front of her own son. You can imagine how fun that was.

But that's not the worst part. Just before closing, this lunatic of a woman started screaming about how someone had been harassing her for the past half-hour. Assuming that was even remotely true, her reaction was considerably less than appropriate- she tried to push someone down the stairs after swinging her fists at the poor guy. Both my co-worker and I called the police. They never came.

And she came back to scream at us some more. I am not ashamed to say that I dragged my coworker by the arm to a safe place- that's how scared I was. Thank God, she left the library, still ranting and raving like a lunatic the entire time.

I am really really grateful I have tomorrow off. When I go back to work Wednesday, if I see her, you better believe I will be calling the cops at the first opportunity.

Well, I have since returned to Washington D.C, (been back since yesterday morning,) and I plan to have the photos from the journey up and posted soon. I hope you will excuse me for not posting these while I was there, but I felt rather tired most nights.

Well, on Saturday, I walked through the French Quarter again after having breakfast at Treme (Treh-may) Coffeehouse. Had a good time exploring the French Market. I had beignets for the first time- they're a kind of French doughtnut shaped like a pillow, covered in powdered sugar and stuffed with caramel. They were lovely! I also bought some incense and some tapestries- one for me, and one for a friend.

I also attended Vigil Mass that Saturday night at St. Peter Claver Catholic Church. (If you don't know, vigil mass is a way for Catholics to satisfy the Sunday mass requirement the night before, celebrated on Saturday nights.) After that, I had dinner at a Mexican restaurant called El Gato Negro that was very good. I remember the owner was very pleased when I said I had come all the way from D.C.

The next day was Sunday. The highlight of that day was going to the library to print my boarding pass for the flight home. But I saw my future place of employment for the second time. (Having visited shortly after taking that test.) The New Orleans main library is an interesting one- outside looks brand new, but the interior makes you think of the 1970's. My kind of decade!

After that, I took the streetcar to the Market so I could buy lunch, and after that, I went back to my hotel so I could finish working on that story I posted. Finally, I got a few photos of Louis Armstrong Park- I'd wanted to go inside and stroll around for y'all, but the park was closed by the time I got there. Sorry! But I got a few good photos all the same.

Early Monday morning, I got my taxi to the airport, got on the plane and flew home, went to work in Silver Spring immediately afterward, and here I am! Also, I got the test results back- I got 88 out of 99, which is a solid B+. Awesome! Now I just have to hope someone calls me in for an interview.

A successful journey all in all, I would say.

The next day was Sunday. The highl

Yep, so I arrived in New Orleans last night. Flight was awful, though- had to sit next to this middle-aged couple who drank like fish and swore like sailors the whole way. I was glad when we arrived at the airport. I hope their bags get lost!

Anyway, today I walked to New Orleans city hall and had my exam. I think I can safely say I aced it! It was all basic high school math and reading comprehension, not to mention customer service aptitude. The next step is going to be harder, though. I have to wait a few more months to see if they like my talents and my test score enough to ask me for an interview, and of course, I would then have to ace that.

But even so, it is pleasure as well as business that brings me here! After sitting to rest a spell, I walked through the French Quarter for a while. Got some great pictures, which I promise to upload when I get back. Saw some nice sweets, things on sale, and a lot more cool stuff!

Anyway, I'm thinking tomorrow, I'll visit this coffeeshop for breakfast, and then go see the Quarter again.

Y'all have a good night!

Next Thursday, March 9th, I will be traveling to New Orleans, Louisiana. I have applied to be a library associate there, and they like me enough to say 'Charles, you're not just qualified, you're overqualified! Can you please come to take the service exam?"

If I do well enough on the test, I might just get the job. Still, even if I don't, the trip will be treat aplenty. I could use a vacation.

I will admit this though- I hope I don't end up disappointing too many people if I get the job. I can't stay here forever, but there are still people who need me. I want to be loyal to them, but I hope I don't end up letting them down.

Regardless, I promise to let you all know how it goes.

Madeline dug her heels into the blanket. She was going to do a big jump from the bed! And then she'd do another! And another!

Mika came into the bedroom to ask if Madeline had seen his toy car when he saw what she was about to do.

"Madeline, wait!" he cried.

"What?" Madeline asked.

"You can't just jump off the bed, you could really hurt yourself!"

"But I'm a bunny Mika, and bunnies always jump from the bed," Madeline pouted. She didn't like it when big furs tried to stop her from doing something fun.


"Wait right here," Mika said, and scurried out of the room.

Madeline wondered if he was going to tell Daddy on her. But Mika came back carrying the cushions from the living room couch!

He spread them in a row in front of the bed and said "Now you can do it!"

"Yay!" she said. She ran as fast as she could and took a huge leap!

She landed on the cushions and rolled in a heap.

"Hahahahaha! That was fun!" she giggled.

"I'm a bed jumpin' expert!" Mika said.

"Lets do it again!" said his little sister.

And Mika and Madeline climbed on the bed to do this next jump together.

Saturday night, I was assaulted. No, I'm not hurt, and nothing was stolen from me. It was these punk kids whose idea of a good time on a weekend night was to terrorize random people.

I was biking back from Waldorf, and I'd been delayed due to a wrong turn, so I went to Minnesota Avenue metro station in D.C. There's a bike trail nearby that connects with my home in College Park. I take the elevator down with my bike when I hear screaming and yelling. I come out from the elevator to see this group of 10-15 teenagers running by. I don't think anything of it, just kids being kids, you know? I walk by, and one of them throws a rock at the back of my head. Luckily, I'm wearing a bike helmet, so it doesn't matter.

I try to walk on, minding my own business, when I feel one of them grab me from behind and shove me. I turn around, and he dances back in this punk kind of way like he wants to get me to fight. Still I try to walk away. This time, someone else grabs me from behind and tries to shove me to the ground. I get back up and talk to the stationmaster. She's already on the phone with the transit police.

Well, I spend the next hour and a half explaining to both of them what went down. (Ftr, only 2 or 3 actually attacked me; the rest were just there for the fun.) Why so long? Well, it was because those same kids ran by us later, with five officers in hot pursuit. They arrested three of them that night, and I got to identify one of them.

I went to the police station in Washington D.C this morning to give my statement one more time to the detective and the victim's counselors. Because the perpetrator is a juvenile with no prior record, they think he'll get 6 months probation for simple assault. Which I'm completely fine with; I don't want him punished for the rest of his life over one mistake, but I do want it made clear that this kind of behavior is not socially acceptable, and that there are consequences for it.

I'm not angry at him, much; mostly I feel sad that he had so little love for himself that he felt the need to take it out on other people. If he's willing to admit guilt, then it may be probation; if not, then we may have a trial.

I would appreciate it if you would pray for him. That is all.

So, I decided I needed a vacation of sorts, not to mention a change of scenery. I've missed Southern Maryland too much, so I biked to Charles County. (Yes, I am so important that I have an entire county named after me in my home state.) Specifically the town of Waldorf.

Let me tell you, that was no easy feat. It was almost all uphill for 36 miles. And before I even got to the hills, I had to navigate a plethora of streets through Washington D.C. More than once, I was tempted to go home. But after 5 and 1/2 hours, I finally made it!

I rested at the local library, and had Pupusa with yellow rice for lunch as fuel for the journey back at Simply Good Salvadoran. (The owner complimented my Spanish.) I loved eating as the sun shone on me. I wish I could have shared it with Sarah.

I made it back to D.C by 7 p.m yesterday. One serious bad thing happened though. But I don't want to burden you all with it until tomorrow, when business is done. Let's think about the happy things until then.

In all, I biked at least 64 miles. That beats my previous record of 44 miles by 20. Legs are a little bit sore, but other than that, I'm fine!

Because I think we could use some right now.

http://www.ibtimes.co.uk/israel-acc.....by-war-1603450

So, apart from the inauguration (which makes me want to crawl under my blanket, and snuggle a teddy bear, and not come out for several days...or weeks...,) I do have something to look forward to.

We're having a ComCon at the Silver Spring library today! We'll be having panels on Pokemon, Harry Potter, Doctor Who and Marvel Superheroes, among others. We'll also be having workshops on SciFi and Fantasy writing! And I get to be a part of the whole thing! I can't wait to start work!

I'll try to take pictures for you all, so you can see the results. See you soon!

It was a slow Saturday afternoon at the apartment. Charles didn't have to work, and Madeline didn't have to go to daycare. So Charles read his book while his daughter played with her blocks on the living room carpet.

Eventually, Charles got bored, and decided to have some fun with his little one.Walking over to his bunny, he covered his eyes and said "Where's Madeline? Where is my little baby bunny?"

Madeline's ears perked up. What was Daddy playing at? She was right here!

"I wanna give her lots of tickles! And a great big kissy, too!" said Charles.
Daddy reached down and tickled Madeline's tummy!
"Eeek! Heeheeheeheeheehee! Daadyyyyyy!" Madeline squealed.
"C'mere you!" Charles cooed, scooping her into his arms. He tossed her in the air, catching her in his arms, each time kissing her cheeks. "Mwah! Mwah!"
"Hahahahahaha!" the little bunny girl laughed.

Charles cuddled Madeline in his arms. Madeline put her ears over her Daddy's chest, where she could hear his heart beating. It was very soothing. The two of them snuggled very close. "Hey, Madeline, guess what?" Charles whispered.
"What?"
"I love you!"
The two of them giggled quietly at that silly secret!
"Hey Daddy, guess what?" Madeline whispered back. She shifted upwards so she could whisper in his ear.
"What?"
"I love you too!"
They giggled even louder!


"Do you always love me, Daddy?" Madeline asked.
"Yes, darling. Always!"
"Even when I'm feeling sad and mad?"
"Even when you're feeling sad and mad."
"Even when my diaper is stinky and poopy?"
"Heheheh! Yep, even when your diaper is stinky and poopy!"

Madeline put her thumb in her mouth and chewed it for a few moments. Then, she had an idea! "Can we go to the zoo?"
Why not! Family time didn't come like this too often. "We sure can!"Charles said. "I'll get the stroller! Can you get your shoes?"
"Yeah!"

While Daddy got the stroller out of the closet, Madeline found her shoes by the front door. She put them on, lining the velcro tape on top of the other. It was a little tricky, but she did it just in time!

"Lookit me, Daddy! I gotted my shoes on all by myself!" Madeline was so proud!
"Good girl! I'm so proud of you!" Charles said. "Are you ready for me to buckle you in?"
"Yeah!" Madeline yelled. She was so excited! She couldn't wait to see the tigers, bears, and elephants together with her Daddy.
With Madeline strapped in tight, father and daughter went out to go have the best kind of day! And that was just how they wanted it.

Today, of course, is Martin Luther King's birthday. I decided, in order to celebrate it, I should do something that he would be proud of. That is no small matter, considering that racism has been given a highly dangerous and unnecessary leg up by that disgusting creature.

I visited the Holocaust Museum. It was my second time. I wanted to remind myself what can happen if ignorance and hatred are left unchecked too long in a society, not to mention the full consequences of turning people into an 'us' and a 'them'. Am I being too paranoid? I'm not sure. To be fair, Trump has not yet attempted murder against an entire group of people. But half this country did take a good honest look in the mirror and decide there was nothing wrong with endorsing an utter abyss of a human being so long as he did not hurt them. The parallels are rather uncanny, aren't they?

I took Violet and Daisy with me. I want to practice being a Dad in the ways I can, and that includes teaching tolerance and empathy for other people as early as possible. Compassion and love taught from an early age are the best protections from evil we can ask for. They may well protect us from having to experience Trump a second time, and what will sustain us for now. May God bless us. Amen.

# I thought I would visit the African-American museum tomorrow if I'm not called into work. We have a lot of museums here in Washington D.C

There are times where I feel more like a woman wearing men's clothing. (In spite of having a beard.) No, I am not 'coming out' as transgender or anything like that- but then, I've never been like most men.

I have almost no appetite for violence or competition, I rarely swear, and I love the idea of being a Daddy some day. In addition, I enjoy cooking and work as a librarian, two traditionally female occupations. It could be my personality, but I think a part of it has to do with upbringing as well.

I thank God that I don't have much in common with my Dad. He frequently judges and condemns other people he knows nothing about, often to the point of being bigoted. I don't think we've been that close- I remember he lost his temper easily when I was a child, and he yelled and spanked whenever we did something wrong.

My Mother was never like that, and she usually listened before judging me. I remember I could play with her as easily as if she were my best friend. She is a very gentle and loving woman. Mrs. Creighton, my teacher for 1st and 2nd grade, was like that too- very kind and very open towards me, even when I wasn't an easy child. And I did not take well to being schooled, I can tell you.

Even as a child, I felt more comfortable in the company of girls. When I was around 7 or so, I remember most boys seemed to enjoy being mean, both to me, and to one another. I remember being made fun of for playing the wrong video game, for being bad at sports, and for daydreaming. Most of my female friends never did that, and so I tended to have more of them until I was about 10 or so.

I hope you don't get the impression that it was all misery. I'm just thinking out loud here. Maybe my inner child is a young girl.

I pray that the coming year may bring us safety and peace, especially considering what will happen 3 weeks from now. But enough of that.

Here are my resolutions so far-

1. Lose 15 lbs. I currently weigh 155 lbs, and my ideal weight is 140. I plan to accomplish this by eating when I am hungry and biking to work as often as possible.

2. To read and write more often.

3. To improve in art.

A nice, ordinary set of resolutions that may prove useful. Good luck to all.

Each and every one of us is a child of God, and in the eyes of God, we never age beyond childhood. Your inner child is therefore not only real, but a living and sacred part of your very being.

God is our mother as well as father, and she dearly loves us every little bit. There is not one thing she would not do or suffer for us, therefore is no reason to be ashamed of our mistakes beyond what is needed.

Deep within us is a godly will that does not consent to sin, and always moves us to love and redeem. There is no part of you that is beautiful and wonderful in the eyes of God.

Heya folks!

Its the holidays, and I need some inspiration. Yes, I do have other things I'd like to draw, but I want to hear your input. So lets see who responds to this. I will open two slots for now, because I don't want to give myself too much of a backlog.

RULES
1. No porn. Of any kind. I define this as anything sexually explicit.
2. Used diapers I will draw on the condition that it is in a way that your average cartoon would consider acceptable, or if your character is a baby/toddlerfur.
3. No gore, scat, or inflation drawings. Really, this could go with number 1, but I want to close loopholes that lie in wait.

SLOTS
1.  KennyTwilightSparkle16
2.  TheHotrodHero

 Orangetabby106 Sarah Kitty is having a YCH sale for the holidays. To my surprise, given her grand talent, she still has a lot of slots to fill. $20 each folks, pretty dang good bargain if I may say so. Why not give her a try?

http://www.furaffinity.net/journal/7980244/

The life of a librarian, as I'm sure you know, is usually a quiet one. I don't bust down doors, I don't get to see many explosions, and I don't usually punch bad guys in the face. I just go to work and quietly tell people where to find their books, how to fix their computer, or where to find this or that address.

That being said, I do work with the general public, which means I get to see the good and the bad alike. Now, most of my customers are perfectly ordinary people doing perfectly ordinary things. But occasionally, I get to meet people who are so dumb that they think they can argue me into thinking they have clothes on when in reality they are naked. They are not people I forget easily, nor do I think it would be wise to do so. Here are my four most memorable examples, for you all to enjoy.

4. There are two kinds of patrons I hate and despise. The first is the kind that walks in with an overpriveleged attitude. The second is the kind with an overpriveleged attitude demanding computer help. Although, in this case, it was at least partially my own fault.

I am at Gaithersburg. This middle-aged woman walks up to me and asks if she can use my computer to check if her documents have uploaded to her USB. Now, I let her do this the day before, since it was a slow day. However, we are severly understaffed this day, and I really do not want to hold up the line. So I tell her why I cannot do that today. She snarls at me "But you did it last time!" I can tell this is not going to go well, so I offer to work with her on her own computer to see her documents upload.

Well, they haven't. So I work with her to try and get them uploaded, since our scanners are not so obvious to the untrained. She doesn't want them named, or anything else that might prove useful in finding them. So we go back and forth between the computer and the scanner 3 or 4 times, her getting angrier at me every time. And I keep having to put her on hold, because other customers need me too, which she does not seem to get. What should have been a quick fix snowballed into a 20-minute nightmare. Then, on the 5th shot,as we're at the printer, she goes- "Oh, its because you're using TTFF. It only takes PDF."

I stared into space, openmouthed, for 30 seconds. I barely bit back the urge to ask her "Why could you not tell me this earlier?" And she shook me by the arm and snarled, "Hello?! Are you even home?!" At that point, I gave up. I told her that the instructions were on the printer, and that she would have to do it herself, because not only did I spend too much time on this, but we had too few people for this kind of attention. She then tried to forbid me from going back to the desk because she came first before all others. At that point, I walked away.

3. Some people are not only too dumb to be alive, but have no sense of common courtesy that might make up for it. One summer night, its my turn to work Germantown information desk. It has already been an eventful shift, with that dog poop trail on the carpet in front of me and the leaky toilet in the men's room. But that's not the meat of the matter.

A patron comes up to me and complains that a man is playing World of Warcraft in the quiet study room. That by itself would actually be okay, since he has headphones. The problem was, he was clicking (wacking, more like) his laptop so loudly that it distracted everyone else. After trying to get his attention three times, I finally tap him on the shoulder. I politely tell him that his behavior is annoying everyone else. He tells me "It's an online game, son. I can't help it." "That's not the issue, sir. Patrons have been complaining that your behavior is annoying. Could you please stop whatever it is you're doing wrong?" "Dawg. Once again, online game. Not your problem." He then tries to go back to his game.

"Sir, it is very much my problem. I am not going to stand here all afternoon and argue with you. You will either amend your behavior, or I will be forced to resort to sterner measures. I do not think you would like to see what those would look like." He then jumps up and goes "Dawg, what is your problem?! I've told you! Its an online game, look! I gotta clickit to winit or it won't respond." "Alright. If that's how you wanna play it, we will." I walk out and talk to the police officer on duty, since being civil is clearly not going to get through to this guy. He has him escorted from the room and that is that. Pretty tame compared to number 1. But first...

2. Sometimes I fear for my generation. This time, I have the morning shift at Long Branch library. Remember what I said about overpriveleged people demanding computer help? So, this young woman about my age makes a gesture with her hand at me to come over. Never even bothers using 'please', just gestures at me like I'm her dog. That kind of behavior never puts me in the most helpful of moods to begin with.

But her question was something else. She was taking some kind of online test to be a nurse, and she asked "Hey son, which of these do you think is the correct answer?" I stare for a few seconds and say "Ma'am, I really wouldn't know. You need to take your own test." "C'mon, guess." (Why is she even asking me? She's on the internet, so its not like she can't use google...) "I can look it up if you really want, but you need to do this on your own."

Not seeming to listen, she says "It says here anger and stress can cause a heart attack before you turn 40."

"No kidding."

I swear I heard the girl at the next computer snicker at that one.

1. Sigh... I'm just gonna leave this here. http://www.furaffinity.net/journal/7826973/

Dishonorable Mentions
The lady who complained about me having to answer the phone, and then about how she couldn't get the study room she wanted and how the children didn't deserve special rooms to study in of their own.

The man who requested we relocate the entire adults floor upstairs so he wouldn't have to hear the children screaming from the floor above. As if hearing them from below would have made a difference.

Happy Thanksgiving to all! I thought, in the spirit of the day before I go to bed, I would take the time to tell you all what I am grateful for.

First, thanks be to God, for taking me as I am in spite of everything, and helping me to aspire to more in life. That, and saving me many times. There is not one day I am not grateful to you, even if I do not always show it.

Second, to my friends here on furaffinity. I care about each of you very much, and I hope all may be well with you. May our combined talents serve to make the world a better place!

Third, to my flesh and blood family. I like to think our parents are proud of what we've grown up to be, and I hope we may all be proud of ourselves at the end of each day.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Alright, enough of that. I have some interesting news.

I acually had a long-ish conversation in Spanish the other day! It was when I was at work. This young Hispanic woman came with her two kids, and asked if anyone here spoke Spanish. I was feeling confident, so I said I understood a little. Well, it turned out she wanted picture books for her 9-year old son, both for his enjoyment, and to help him learn how to read. We actually understood 70% of each other! I am impressed I managed to get that one satisfied, and satisfied well!

One random facts- I love singing, and I'm pretty good at it. I am a tenor for my church choir, and I can sing in G2 through G4. (Short- I can sing very high notes.) But I've always loved music, ever since I was a little boy. Its been a way for me to touch the world using my soul. (I would sing all the songs from 'The Land Before Time', and 'The Search for Christopher Robin.')

First of all, yes, I have returned to Maryland. I've been back for a week now. You see how bad I am at keeping things updated? I promise to have photos up soon.

And now for the meat. The unthinkable has happened. In spite of all sounded warnings, the first open fascist has been elected to the oval office. I'm still having trouble accepting it. Ignorance has not only triumphed, it has triumphed savagely. How could this have happened? Most Republicans I've met not only did not want Trump, they also refused to vote for him in the election. Its not just a question of politics as usual; its a question of common decency, not to mention the fact our democracy is now in serious danger.

One terrible thing is certain. The next four years will be long, dark, cold, and painful. But I will not let all be lost. I solemnly swear on my honor as an American not to let that disgusting garbage sack of a human being have an easy time. Still, I am hopeful that we shall overcome and prove better in the end. Education and courage are now both needed now more than ever.

It can't possibly be true. This has to be a nightmare from a bad place. He can't actually have won, can he?
What's gonna happen now? What are we gonna do?
We've knowingly elected a fascist. This country may well be in serious jeopardy. What can we do now?

Today I met Sarah in the flesh. I am pleasantly surprised we pulled it off! We met together with her Father at Flavors of India, which is an Indian restaurant/buffet in downtown Bradenton. We talked about the usual subjects- work, interests, etc- but also about drawing and fursuiting plans. For those of you who do not know, or do not remember, I adopted two of Sarah's old characters at her request, who will be making their debut soon. But not before I do Madeline's backstory. (No Spoilers!) I did show her the first sketch- she said I have improved nicely! (I still think I'm better at writing, but drawing's fun too, of course!)

Afterwards, her father drove us to this path called the Riverwalk, which runs along the northern half of the city. (I think.) We walked there together for half an hour, feeling the wind brush our cheeks, and the sound of children's laughter on the air. I loved that part the most.

Afterwards, I was taken back to the hotel, where we talked over skype some more. I hope Sarah enjoys the Salvadoran cheese and Honduran cream cheese I got her. Still more do I hope to see her again!

Afterwards, I went out to DeSoto Square, but it was closed. So instead, I hit the nearest ATM and bought tomorrow's brekfast and lunch- apples and half a slab of cornbread, which I plan to have with cream cheese. Tomorrow, I take the long train back to Washington D.C. But I hope to return to Bradenton again one day. It was wonderful.

I visited Anna Maria Island/ Bradenton Beach today. I loved it! If I find myself back in Bradenton, I'll be sure to rent a room closer to there. I'll have the photos up sometime tonight.

I wanted to avoid taking a busman's holiday, and after all, this is Florida. So I took an uber to Cortez St., and from there I walked to Manatee County Public Beach (I think that's what its called?) I had a lovely time, bathing in the Gulf and feeling the sun. I also got to practice my Spanish a little. This woman asked me in Spanish if I thought the water was cold. I answered "Un poco frio, creo." (I little cold, I think.) She responded, no, she thought it was just right. I can't remember what language it was in though.

When the water got too cold, I took the bus back to Cortez st near the drawbridge. I waited there for my second bus. I smiled for the longest time at the sunset, and the palm trees dancing in the wind. The bus ride was nice too, though I could have done without that drunken couple arguing in the back.

In the meantime, I had leftover Chinese food for dinner, and bought breakfast for tomorrow, as well as two surprises for Sarah. I hope she enjoys them when she sees them!

Hope you all have a nice day!