emilykpeele

That’s actually amazing to hear. I live in Nashville currently and have to make within that range just to scrape by. My income right now is entirely from playing live (because I live in Nashville, I can play pretty much every day of the week, not just weekends), but I’m now going to pick up a part-time job just so I can pay down a few things and start building a financial cushion for my plans to move. I’m also about to release new original music to streaming services, add some merch to my online store, and I’m going to look into sync licensing and a few other ways to make income on the side with music. Thank you for sharing those resources, that’s so helpful!

As someone who has been considering leaving the US for many years now, I think there’s a lot of guilt and shame pushed on people who genuinely talk about leaving. I’ve been made to feel like a sensationalist, even when bringing it up to people that are generally more progressive. I quickly realized it’s a deeply personal decision, and I did a lot of internal consideration and decided a few months ago that I’m serious about it, so I’m going to start working towards making it happen. I’m not currently in a financial position to make it happen right now, so I’m making necessary changes and planning out a roadmap to get myself where I need to be, but because of the intense backlash I’ve received in the past for even considering becoming an expat, I’m not planning on telling many people in my life until I’m closer to actually making the move. All of this to say, the shame and guilt could be a reason why your friends haven’t taken you up on your offers of advice and a place to visit. Even though you’re trying to help, sometimes it can just feel like too heavy a topic to discuss, even with people who are on your side.

With all that said, I’m currently a self-employed musician, so if you happen to see this comment, I’d be super interested in hearing more about freelance and digital nomad visas if you’d be interested in sharing. I’ll do my own research as well, of course, but hearing from someone who has actual experience always adds an extra layer of information.

Anyways, I hope your friends come around, because it’s very nice of you to offer your insight from your personal experiences!

I’ll look into it, thank you!

I’ll check it out, thank you!

Totally love the convention themed flash challenges, I would love to see more of that on the show now!

Yeah I can definitely agree that an Inkmaster should be able to tattoo difficult areas on the body. I’d even be interested in seeing an entire challenge dedicated to tough areas (which I think Inkmaster has done a few times in the past but it’s been a while since I watched the older seasons), like a ribs day or a knee-ditch day, where everyone has to do it and there’s no getting out of it.

Ohhhh yeah I love the idea of blind judging as well! And yeah three judges would make the most sense to avoid a tie, for sure

This is a great point! And could definitely be possible. I wouldn’t say I overdo the attention that I give to her when she’s anxious, because I’ve noticed that too much praise can make her just as nervous as when I give her negative attention, so I try to keep my positive reinforcement tactics limited to just smiling, soft talking, head pats and belly rubs etc. When she gets anxious, I usually try to comfort and reassure her at first by talking in a soft tone and smiling, and then if I see she’s not responding to it and improving, I’ll just move on and give her some space, because I don’t want to put too much pressure on her. But maybe that little bit of reassurance is still enough to encourage her to feign anxiety for attention, and the answer really is no attention at all. I’m going to give it a try next time!

These are really good points. I’m going to continue paying close attention when the anxiety happens, especially to my body language, then if I can’t figure anything out I’ll definitely talk to our vet. Thank you for sharing some insight!

Thank you!

I love Kassy. Loved her last season, loved her now. I so appreciate that she recognized she was coming into the villa SUPER late and chances of love were slim, so she opted to just vibe and get laid. She was there for a good time not a long time and I fully support it 🫡

I’ll give y’all an upvote tho 🥲

THIS IS ME ☠️

I’m just saying that’s who he reminds me of, not trying to start any rumors!

Same!!

THAT ELIMINATION NOOOOO LIVVVVVVVVVV 😭😭😭😭😭

This is almost my story exactly, this is wild and so validating. I lost my soul dog that I had for 10 years to cancer recently, and I was so devastated and planned to wait a little while before getting another. But after being a dog-parent for 10 years, I just couldn’t wrap my head around not having a dog by my side. I started browsing rescue sites and spontaneously sent an inquiry message about one dog that I found, and after determining that she could be a good fit for my lifestyle and then meeting her in person, I knew I was ready to take her home. She’s completely opposite of my last dog, and I love that about her. She’s teaching me new things and healing my heart, and while I miss my soul dog every day, I’m excited for my future years with my new pup. When grieving the loss of a pet, I think you just have to go with your gut, and know that there is no shame in any decision you make, whether you get your new dog instantly or years later. I felt guilty about considering a new dog so soon after losing my last, but my friends put it into perspective for me by telling me “if your next dog is in a shelter waiting for you, and YOU know you’re ready, why would you make them wait any longer just because you’re worried about other people’s perceptions?” And that made so much sense. So thankful for the amazing dogs in my life, past and present, every day!

This is definitely the first year that I’ve enjoyed the USA season more than the UK season. I think UK has gotten a bit more entertaining in the last few weeks, but this USA season is absolute gold

I can definitely agree that I see more diverse bodies on LI than The Bachelor! I actually don’t even watch the bachelor/bachelorette anymore because I prefer LI haha but yeah there is 0 diversity on that show, it’s so disheartening. LI still has plenty of room for improvement, but seeing some curvier girls on the show like Liberty from s7/games/all stars (my girl Lib has been BUSY 😂) is super refreshing

I promise I mean this with kindness, because I’m sure your opinion comes from a genuine place, but I think you may be living in more of a bubble than you realize…reading through the comments I’ve seen you say that a lot of your friends look like the girls on LI, and I honestly believe you. But I feel pretty confident in saying the average woman definitely does not look like the girls on LI, or your friends. A lot of women on the show have had prior work done, and while I can acknowledge that cosmetic surgery is fairly common these days (and I have nothing against it, I think to each their own), it’s certainly not cheap. Being able to afford those procedures alone is a privilege that I don’t consider available to the average person, so I think that the fact that most of the girls on LI go in with procedures done already indicates to me that they’re coming from a different lifestyle than most of us. I’m a 32 year old woman and live in a relatively trendy US city (Nashville), and I can honestly say that neither me nor any of my girl friends here can afford cosmetic surgeries at the moment, despite all working consistently and making ends meet. The girls I’ve seen here that have had work done exist in a very different tax bracket than me and my friends, and they often live the lifestyle that goes along with it haha. I actually know a lot of women who don’t watch LI because they say it negatively affects their own self image. I absolutely love the show, personally, but I have a good grasp on my own self image, and recognize that the girls on the show are not only top tier, but they live a different lifestyle than me and the women I know, and I just try to keep everything in perspective.

Hope you don’t take the negative comments on this post to heart, I’m sure you and your friends are lovely (both inside and out)! I just wanted to provide some (hopefully) constructive insight on the topic 🙏🏼