The local pub.

The food is awesome there and their beef schnitzels cover the entire plate.

Their chips could be a bit better - but I'm bias as I have a favorite haunt for those, too.

Sharing our poetry is trolling? Whoops. Guess I must have missed that memo on the old site. Lol.

I enjoy a lot of your posts, Natcho. Do not feel as if your expression and contribution isn't welcome here!

Oh, I definitely get where you're coming from. My parents divorced when I was 12, but in my personal experience, it was the best decision they ever made. I haven't spoken to my father in more than 3 days since (20 years ago now).

All I was saying is that I've been contemplating this for a long time, in 2015 I went through a donor program, it's my last resort, not my first, or even second. My concern is that people are saying (not you, just in general) that I'd need to be together with the father and that poses a hell of a lot of problems.

- I'm not that keen on even being in a relationship. Seriously. I'm underwhelmed by the idea.
- I'd not only have to search for someone I like and can see knowing and working with for the rest of my life, but they'd ALSO want to have children.
- I'm 32, almost 33, my reproductive organs aren't very co-operative already, and unlike men, I don't constantly produce eggs until I die...there's a cut-off point, and I'm approaching it without mention of the fertility problems, or the health risks of a later pregnancy.
-I have at best, about 7 years to both find a father, get pregnant OR 2 years to find a father, and hoping that 5 years of IVF treatments will work before I'm no longer eligible or approved for treatment.

I've been looking into and research for close to a decade, so it's not something I've just suddenly thought of. Lol. There are actual programs of women who are choosing to become pregnant without having a father involved, and research has been extremely positive on the outcomes.

I'm not saying that the traditional way doesn't work, but there are times when traditional isn't possible for everyone.

I completely understand where you're coming from.

I was 16 and I lived in a small town - I had recently left my last foster home out of frustration but I was still under guardianship of the state, so they found me a supported accommodation program. One of my best friends moved in with me (also 16, she just wanted to live independently from her parents, and by that point, we had both dropped out of school.

Some of my family lived in that small town, and it was a place that I spent many years of my earlier childhood growing up in. My aunt helped raise me when my mom was unwell and in hospital. The problem with small towns? Everybody always seems to know everybody. This wasn't an exception.

I wasn't popular. Hell, eve my best friend admitted to me that she only was nice to me in the beginning because she felt sorry for me. I was the punching bag of the social ladder. I was humiliated among groups of people my roommate was friends with (she was the popular one...I was the shy, awkward geek, no matter how many drugs I used to try and fit in with them.

We often had people around until late at night, smoking weed, drinking, whatever. We were young, stupid, and lived by ourselves. We had no rules.

A friend/connection of some of my family found his way into our circle. Let's call him Paul, not his name obviously. He was the brother of one of my cousin's ex's and well...all my cousins knew them anyway...small towns. Ugh.

Anyway, me being the complete loser of to radius of the small town area, didn't really think I had to worry about being "unsafe" I'm not attractive, didn't date, didn't "dress" any particular way that they all like to talk about (I don't even like my forearms being exposed). I was not anyone's "catch".

But, apparently one night after having a few drinks, Paul decided he'd try and be funny and sleep in my bed. Okay, fine. Wasn't the first time I'd shared a bed with another guy where nothing happened, and hell...he's a popular guy, I'm Jar Jar Binks' twin sister like he'd even think of me that way without wanting to throw up...or so I thought.

So, I figured we'd just sleep, after all, my roommate was in her room with a guy and they just slept.

Next thing I know, he's thinking I'm asleep and starts...well.

I won't go into details, but I was intoxicated and scared out of my mind. I couldn't move, I couldn't think, I couldn't speak or anything. I just froze. About 15-20 minutes later I heard him snoring after he'd...finished and rolled over, I got up and spent the night on our living room floor in tears.

The next day, I confided in my roommate, who went with me to talk to my cousin (who I was like sisters with and who I thought would support me...even though she knew Paul and his brothers.) What I got was "but...you know he and his brothers were abused right? That's how he shows love."

Side note, his little drunken fun apparently left me a couple of souvenirs. One in the form of a fetus than never made it to birth, the other an STI and the compulsory need for my first pap smear. Yeah, ****fuck you, Paul.

Oh, and to add insult to injury, my oldest cousin was abused by his father, and went of the complete deep-end. (Meth addict, alcoholic, anger and violence against authority issues issues, the whole nine) He's aware of what Paul did, I confided in him after we sorted stuff out, he was compassionate and even got angry.

But now... he considers him "family" and calls him his "brother" and yet if I was to even mention my uncle to him, let alone want to talk to him (I don't, but still) my cousin would probably lose control and call me every name under the sun and get friends to harass me in any way they can. He also has recently begun to spout the same excuses that his younger sister gave me the day AFTER it happened.

So yes, I definitely get your disgust on victim shaming. Even Australia is covering the damn thing and we are just as outraged.

I am so sick of feeling like women need to just "roll" with it because it's our fault for being a woman, and therefore we should just expect it. It's *******fucking exhausting.

There are thousands of single parents that do pretty well and can still raise well-adjusted children. I'm not saying that it's the only avenue I'm looking at - but it would be rather ridiculous to choose a guy within my limited biological clock (which is barely functioning in the first place due to infertility issues) just because of the concept that a child cannot be raised in a single=parent home.

I'm asexual for a start. There's not exactly a lot of choice to begin with, with just that alone.

But yes, it is a controversial thing for a lot of people who encounter SMBCs because there's still a lot of belief that children will only function in a two-parent home, but it's not impossible. I think my children would probably rather know that I adore them regardless, and if I was to force myself into a relationship in order to fit the standard, I'd be miserable. That would probably cause more damage to my children than the alternative.

32, no relationship in a long time and still a virgin - my brother is engaged after already been divorced and his fiancee is a psycho who gives me panic attacks and I suspect is living her life through psychosis.

I'm still rather content with being alone. I'm going through a Single Mothers By Choice when the time comes that I'm ready. I don't need a relationship to feel fulfilled.

That I can do! My specialty is fairy bread, party pies and sausage rolls.

Lol. Thanks, but I'm prone to relapse even if I entertain the idea. :P

I'm a recovering addict, so I won't be joining...but as long as you're safe, have fun.

Don't worry, even if Florida screws it up again, the popular vote doesn't always win.