USA. Summer. It is 95 degrees outside, and I am shivering inside a sandwich shop.
I have discovered how Americans forge strong souls.
Outside, the sun is trying to kill everyone. Inside this small restaurant, it is winter. My breath does not fog, but it is thinking about it. A man near me is eating a cold sandwich while wearing a jacket. In summer. Indoors.
In Japan we would simply turn it down. Americans do not turn it down. And now I understand them better than they understand themselves.
This cold is not an accident. This cold is a gift.
The owner has built, inside his shop, a second season. He invites you in from the brutal heat and hands you the one thing the sun has denied you all day: a reason to be cold. To endure it is to be tempered. You walk in soft and sweating. You walk out sharp and clear, a slightly stronger person than you were.
So I did not complain. I removed my outer layer and offered it to the woman at the next table, who was hugging herself. She said, "Oh, no, I'm fine, thank you." She was not fine. Her lips were blue. But she, too, understood the training. She would not break first. I respected her deeply.
The owner asked if everything was okay.
"It is perfect," I said, through my teeth, which were chattering. "Thank you for the winter."
He said, "...I can turn the AC down if you want?"
I told him no. A man does not ask the mountain to be shorter.
I stayed two hours. I ordered a hot coffee to survive. Then a second one, to hold. By the end I could no longer feel my hands, but my spirit had never been clearer.
So now, on the hottest days, I seek out the coldest rooms. I sit. I shiver. I sharpen.
And when I finally step back out into the summer heat, and it wraps around me like a warm bath, I feel it.
Reborn.
A man who has survived the winter, in August, indoors, for the price of a sandwich.
I see a rich white man who's never known violence and is shocked to see a gore video of what a man with a machete can do. It instantly changed him.
This confirms the theory that when White liberals are confronted with reality, they become right-wingers. Thankfully, diversity is going to confront all of them at some point.
@Jellymayita_@goboee Then who the fuck cares? Just have someone fix them?
Also maybe the translation was bad but he says "I remember them based on where they are on the shelf" If they're labeled why wouldn't you remember them by name? Does his "silverwash" stop him from seeing shades so he cant read?
Finding out that this game relies on past players choices is so funny to me and the way THIS DUDE THREATENED SOMEONE FROM THE PAST IS FUCKING HILARIOUS WTF
@Mindu012501@owlfukuro_ This is why, even though English is my second language, I still have better grammar than those who grew* up in the US. You say, as your grammar is sub-par to begin with. Additionally, the "Americans" who do not process proper grammar are usually black or brown.
It's so cute that whenever Henya needs to solve a puzzle involving the alphabet, she starts singing the song to figure out which letter is the right one. She's so adorable!! 😊
@LUCYMALTIPOO@Whritenour1@RealAshlar To deter abuse (e.g., frequent openings for potential theft), many systems now require a manager override, PIN code, or physical key for NS access.