u/Ageofaquarius68

Hello - I am a foster parent to a 3 year old male beardie. I've had a few beardies before, and I enjoy their fun personalities. I volunteer with a small/exotic animal rescue and I've worked with many species in my life, so I have had experience with pets who have had varying degrees of fear or aggression issues.

This lizard came to our rescue with several others, and we think the previous owner was using him as a breeder. My guess is that he had little to no socialization with humans. At the moment, all I have for housing him is a 40 gallon tank. Obviously that's not ideal, but normally our fosters don't stay with us for long periods; only until we can adopt them. Unfortunately, we are having difficulty moving this guy due to his less than friendly personality.

Usually with a skittish or fearful animal, I will try to give them floor time, with me just hanging out around them, and allowing them to come to me. I work on giving them gentle pets, etc. Here's my issue with Mr. Grouchy, as I've been calling him. It's gotten to the point that I'm almost afraid to take him out of his cage.

Recently, he whipped his head around and bit my arm. Ok, so now I'm more careful about where his head goes. But the last time I had him out of his enclosure, he really wasn't happy about me taking him out. He mostly will cruise over to a corner of the room and just sit there until it's time to go back. When I finally went to put him back in the last time, he just lost his mind. He was thrashing around, trying to get hold of me. I let him calm down a bit before we tried again. I eventually put on my bite proof gloves, because I didn't feel safe. He still flipped out. By the time I lifted him up and back into his enclosure, he was twisted around and trying to bite his own tail. I felt so bad for the poor guy.

I'm kind of at a loss as to what to do next. He needs some enrichment, and he needs to be better with humans obviously. He will allow some gentle strokes on his head but that's about it. He will also allow hand feeding, but otherwise wants nothing to do with me. I've been afraid to try again since the last episode. Does anyone have suggestions about how I can gain his trust? I really want him to go to a good home, he deserves that. Thanks!

Hey neighbors! I am a Hoosier currently but was born in Illinois. We moved when I was a baby, moved back briefly when I was a child, then left again. I am now 58F, and really hate IN for obvious reasons. I have family and friends in Illinois and the CU area looks promising for my family and me. Along with myself, I will be moving my adult son (27), my mom (82) and my BF (64). Also our dogs.

We are currently living in an upscale suburb of Indianapolis. It's nice, but it's expensive, crowded, busy and of course it's very red. We need to get out of here. I admit I do love the access to great restaurants, shops, museums, events, etc. I don't love the pollution, traffic, and MAGA signs everywhere.

My son and I are planning a road trip to CU in a couple of weeks to scout out the area. In the meantime, I am hoping y'all can help me out with some questions. There are some things we need that are non-negotiable, and others that are interests but not deal breakers. With my mom's age and health issues, we need to be sure she has access to good medical care. How is the health care system in the area? Hospitals/doctors/specialists etc? I would appreciate any opinions or experiences. It looks like there is a bus system? Is it fairly good in terms of coverage? How about senior services? I know the area is geared quite a bit to younger folks as it is a college town, but I'm sure there are older people living there too.

Other places I'm interested in: is there a good farmer's market? Any good nurseries? (I'm talking plants, not babies) How about museums or cultural events? We are not sporty people so that's not on the table lol. We are definitely outdoors ppl but it looks like there are good parks and that's one thing we lack in Indy. I mean...we have parks but they are mostly kinda small and surrounded by city. If anything else comes to mind, feel free to mention it.

Thanks so much for your recommendations! This is a huge undertaking for me personally - I have to pack up and move 2 houses (mine and my mom's), sell both, find a new job and house and move us. My BF will follow at some point. So it will probably be a year before this will happen, but I'm looking forward to it. I appreciate any and all ideas/comments.

Here's the thing- I really need to make more money. Like, a lot more. But I have reached the point where I am so beat down by the job-hunting process, I have not been able to do it anymore.

I was laid off from a government job after 15 years in 2022. I had already begun looking, since I knew the layoff was coming. Since then, I have held 3 jobs, each one paying less than the one before it.

The position I am in now was supposed to be temporary, just a paycheck until I could find something more in line with my experience and skills set. But as literally years have dragged on with this burden, I am so beaten down, I cannot summon the mental energy to continue. I don't even like this job; my boss is an idiot and I've had to deal with workplace bullying and unprofessional behavior from coworkers the entire time. But I obviously can't quit.

I have applied for so many positions where the job description practically read like my resume, positions where I knew I'd be a great fit and I was super excited to work for the organization. Time after time, I get the rejection notice, and I feel like my heart and brain can't take it anymore.

I have tried absolutely EVERY suggestion, read everything I can about applying, interviewing, have hired others to coach me, I haven't left a stone unturned at this point. It doesn't matter, nothing works. Once again I spotted another job I know i would be great at; the pay is a little better than I am making, still not what I need but it would get me out of here. But I just can't make myself. How many years of rejection can someone take?? Not really looking for more job search advice, but anyone else struggling this much? How do you keep going?

Any good suggestions for Mother's Day brunch or lunch? We prefer someplace mid-range for price; not too spendy but not looking at Applebee's either. We live on the Northside so bonus if we don't have to travel too far. My mom is elderly and getting around is harder for her. We are foodies so are open to all cuisines. TIA!