u/Pristine-Display-697

​Hear me out on this one.

​Sometimes when I’m driving, I’ll turn on Joel Osteen Radio on SiriusXM and pretend I’m a completely different person—like a middle-aged mom driving to her job at a craft store. I’ll nod along, throw in a sincere "Yep," "Amen," or "Hallelujah," and recite the opening and closing declarations right along with him ("This is my Bible...").

​It started out as just a weirdly fun roleplay, but it got me thinking. Part of me wants to believe, but I can’t fully commit because I was raised pretty agnostic. At the same time, growing up in the English-speaking world, you absorb a lot of Christian culture through osmosis whether you mean to or not.

​I guess I’ve always been a bit "Bible curious." One of these days I think I’m actually going to attend a Sunday service just to experience it. Walking around as someone who genuinely believes and talks about Scripture with total conviction seems like a fascinating perspective to step into.

​Anyone else ever catch themselves doing something like this, or exploring faith from the outside just to see what it feels like?

I grew up in the 2000s and grew up with old YouTube and limewire. My parents were young adults in the 90s so I grew up pretty familiar with 90s music. I wanna say Mazzy didn't really hit my radar until the late 2010s. I think it was because of Rick and Morty featuring a song that got it to the next generation. Am I onto something here?

I'm the lowest seniority LC at my post office (relief on-call). The rumor is, once the walking routes get phased out as the new contract permits, our post office will only need 3 urban LCs to fill CMBs down from 7 routes which we currently have. Surely this will put me out of a job, no? If so, will employees who are let go recieve severence pay? Back when we were on strike and picketing, there were rumours of people getting laid off, and I was concerned I'd be one of those people at the time— I heard mumblings that they have a way of not having to pay you severance. Is this true? Surely i could get EI at least tho right? What will happen to the people Canada Post let's go on this downsizing effort? Also when exactly will this CMBs across Canada business be implemented? Nobody at my PO can seem to give me a straight answer on anything. Our union local fell apart over this last walk-off everyone quit the executive positions. I feel I have no guidance. The management, while they are nice, it seems like they can't tell us anything even if they wanted to.

Once in a while this happens to me. Like one time I dreamed I was smoking a cigarette and every inhale felt like I was breathing candy air and it tasted like drinking a cold glass of fruit juice and it got me a little light headed and euphoric like when you take the first drag off a cigarette for the first time in a while. I have had cigarettes, but have never been someone who buys them regularly or anything.

I've also tried LSD in my dreams. Never tried in real life. But when I was dreaming, I was standing in a back yard that resembled something like the back yard of the yellow house in Nuke Town, the famous Call of Duty map. I was standing with someone I knew and when I took the hit, I started levitating and I suddenly realized I could control the dream and became lucid. It all fell apart pretty quickly and I woke up..

I also have other vague recollections of other types of drugs and substances I may or may not have tried in my past with no memorable in-dream side effects.

What about you?

​

I’m a 30-year-old guy with a pretty limited dating history, having mostly relied on apps in the past to be forward for me. Due to some severe financial uncertainty with my job last year after my union went on strike twice, I decided I couldn't chance it. I chose to rent out my house to save money and moved back in with my dad and stepmom for a bit. Through my cousin, let's call her Bailey, the stars aligned and I found a tenant. It turned out to be her close friend, who we will call Polina. Polina had just gone through a bad breakup with her ex, James, who essentially ghosted her despite them living together at his house. So she desperately needed a place. It was a win-win situation for both of our situations at the time.

​Over the last nine months, the three of us (Bailey, Polina and I) have hung out in a group about five times, and Polina and I have developed a really great rapport. Lately, I’ve been over at the house a few times doing small renovations and repairs. Just yesterday, I spent an hour and a half installing a portable AC unit for her bedroom because she was having trouble sleeping in the warmer weather. The whole time we were laughing, goofing around, and teasing each other. At one point, she even left her belongings alone with me to run to the store and buy us blizzards. I have a massive crush on her, but I’m struggling with how, or even if, I should try to escalate things.

​The biggest hurdle is the landlord and tenant dynamic. I am trying hard to maintain an air of professionalism because this is her place as long as she is paying rent. I don’t want to impose on her space or make her feel uncomfortable in her own home. On top of that, I recently got some confusing intel. Bailey’s dad told me that Bailey mentioned Polina seemed jealous of a road trip I took. Apparently, Polina saw my Snapchat stories of me out at night and told Bailey something along the lines of, "Oh, I say no. Now he's off partying out in the city with girls?!" The only way I can interpret that "I say no" part is that Bailey must have previously asked Polina if she’d ever date me, and Polina said no.

​To add to the complexity, Polina is currently pretty tight on money, working part-time, and doesn't even have internet. Because we share a massive love for quoting Family Guy to each other, I'm planning a nice gesture soon where I'm loading all the seasons onto an SSD for her PS3, along with a witty note telling her to brush up on her references. Everyone I ask in person gives completely different advice, ranging from asking her to a formal dinner, keeping it strictly casual, or just not doing it at all to protect the peace. I''ve been told things like "There's plenty of fish in the sea" and "You're operating from a scarcity mindset".

​On paper, part of me thinks this is a wash and I should just disregard, continue the friendship without ever attempting to initiate anything further with her, since a rejection would make things incredibly awkward for the future. But I also don't want to live with the regret of always wondering "what if." How should I handle this dynamic? Do I take that Snapchat comment as a sign she’s truly not interested, or is her jealousy actually a good sign? If I do move forward, how do I safely ask her out without crossing professional lines?