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Abby Marie Bolling⁩
12 hours ago, Your friends
I haven’t figured out the song connection between Meredith Gray, and chasing cars.
They played it in the background of this tribute, this post says it played in season 2 and 22, it was also playing in the background when Derek Shepherd‘s life support was being removed in season 11.

This song comes up in a lot in the show!
I would kind of like to know why.
But maybe it’s just mirroring what music does to some people in reality. I know for a fact, there are certain songs in my life that seem to come into my life at specific moments or I hear them during specific moments. One song can mean several different things to one person. So maybe we’ll never know that piece of the puzzle. That’s OK! Music still holds the magic, no matter who’s listening.
⁨
—-M
Monika, 2 days ago, Public: (1/3)

**"What do you want for dinner?"**

It's a simple question. But suddenly your brain short-circuits, your face gets hot and red, your eyes well up, your breath becomes shallow and you lose all sense of time and space. .

This morning started with 20 minutes deciding between leggings, blue jeans or black jeans. You picked the blue ones. They didn't feel right. Tried the black ones. Those felt weird too. Back to the dresser for a third pair of jeans because it's gonna be too cold for leggings today after all.

Okay, NOW which shirt goes with these pants—since they're not the ones you originally planned on? Jacket or no jacket? You need black socks because it's not Memorial Day yet, but all the black socks have holes. White socks it is. At least your trusty black boots are right there—one less decision.

Oh wait, did you take your medication yet?

What do you want for breakfast? If you're leaving the house—what are you packing for lunch?

Leaving the house do you have everything you need for the day? Computer or other technology, phone, purse, wallet, keys, medication, headphones?

Get to work. Do you get coffee first or log into your computer? Once you're logged in, which program do you open first? Browser? Email? Phone system? And as for the coffee, which creamer do you want today? Wait, is this your creamer to use?

At lunchtime, do you want to eat the lunch that you brought or do you want to accept the invitation and go out with coworkers?

When should you take a break? If you take it near the beginning of shift, you might need it and not have it later. If you take it in the middle, another coworker might need one and won't be able to go because you're on.

If you take it at the end, you might get an influx of calls and not be able to take a break at all. And if you don't take a break at all, your supervisor will remind you that you need to practice more self care.

On the way home, you have two routes that you can take. Which one should you take? It's Friday, so the highway is probably gonna be busy. But the other route takes you through school zones! It's not a holiday weekend though, so the highway might be OK!

By the time you get home, that simple question—"what do you want for dinner?"—feels so heavy it can literally take your heart to the floor. And when you say **"I don't know,"** you genuinely mean it. You really don't know.

**That's decision fatigue, and it's real as hell.**

Every choice we make drains a little bit of our mental battery. By the time we've made 47 micro-decisions, our brain is running on fumes. And when we're already stressed, didn't sleep well, or dealing with anxiety/ADHD/depression? That battery can start at 30% instead of 100%.

Decision fatigue is REAL; you're not being dramatic.

💜

Calling all my voiceover peeps!
Have any of y’all ever had a security system with simply safe?
How was your experience as a blind or visually impaired customer?
How long did/have you utilized their services?

How was the app accessibility?
Did the app accessibility stay consistent?
How user friendly was your system overall?
I want the unfiltered thoughts and opinions, please!
🤩🌻✨🫶🏻⭐️

PSA: If you're reading this and we're cool, stay cool - I've learned to be okay telling people when I'm upset with them (though it's taken me a while to get here), so you'd know if we had issues.

But since some folks seem to have forgotten what we learned from Mr. Rogers and every kids' show about friendship, here's a crash course in Being A Decent Friend 101:

• Listen to each other, even when you disagree
• You don't have to like what your friend likes, but mocking their interests is a dick move
• Real friends communicate directly - no passive-aggressive games
• If something's wrong, say it's wrong - don't make your friend play detective
• Disagreement doesn't equal disrespect - you can disagree and still be kind
• When your friend sets a boundary, respect it - it's not a personal attack
• If you fuck up (because we all do), own it and fix it
• "I need space" is fine - ghosting is not (except when boundaries are violated - then ghost away)
• Support your friend's dreams instead of diminishing them
• Real friendship survives honest conversations

Here's the deal: if one boundary is all it takes for you to ghost someone, you were never their friend - you just wanted something from them. And I'm done with that kind of 'friendship.'

If this sounds like an impossibility, if you're irritated reading this and think I'm asking for too much - that's okay. Everyone does life their own way. But then you're not ready to be my friend, and please don't pretend. I'm raising my standards and lowering my bullshit tolerance.

Let's talk about red flags in relationships - any kind of relationship. Here's what I've learned to watch out for:

🚩 When someone:
Claims immediate deep connection without building foundation.
Uses self-deprecation to manipulate your attention.
Refuses to respect your stated boundaries.
Demands constant emotional availability.
Gets pushy when you need space.
Uses guilt to keep you engaged.
Claims protective instincts over you without knowing you.
Love-bombs you with excessive compliments.
Tries to establish exclusive communication.
Records or monitors your interactions without consent.
Creates drama to keep you engaged.
Uses your kindness as an open door to demand more.

But let's specifically talk about family titles. Being called 'sister' or 'brother' isn't cute when it's forced. These aren't labels you can just slap on someone you just met. They're titles that are EARNED through:

Mutual respect.
Time and patience.
Genuine connection.
Natural development.
Actual conversations about comfort levels.
Trust built through actions, not words.

When someone immediately claims you as family, they're not honoring you. They're trying to stake a claim on your heart without doing the work to earn a place there.

I love my chosen family deeply. But you know what makes them family? They never demanded that title. They earned it through consistency, respect, and understanding that real connections can't be rushed.

Remember: You're not obligated to accept someone's self-appointed role in your life. Your heart isn't a free-for-all. It's a garden that deserves careful tending. 🌱

And to anyone who needs to hear this: It's okay to feel uncomfortable when someone rushes intimacy. That discomfort is your intuition telling you something isn't right. Listen to it.

🐕‍🦮 Adventure Time with Ona Update!

First off - my girl CRUSHED her button-finding mission yesterday! Complete with celebratory puppy party at each success. 🎉

We also tackled a mile-long walk to Shooter's, which brings me to some friendly PSAs for our awesome community:

🤝 Walking Together: Think of a guide dog team like someone riding a bicycle - grabbing their shoulder/arm while they're moving is like grabbing a bike's handlebars. Even with the best intentions, it can throw off our balance and make navigation tricky!

🚗 Traffic Tips: For our wonderful drivers wondering why we sometimes wait at crosswalks even when the walk sign is on - here's the scoop! Since we can't see traffic signals, we rely on traffic patterns to know when it's safe to cross. We wait for cars to move through the intersection so we know which way they're turning and that it's safe to cross.

(Pro tip: If you're genuinely curious about how guide dog teams work, there are tons of amazing videos and explanations from handlers on YouTube and social media! We love sharing our knowledge - just maybe not mid-crossing! 😉)

📊 Restaurant Report Card:
Today's training stats from Shooter's:
- Touch command holding strong at 90% (high five, girl! ✋)
- Under command PERFECT at 100% (someone knows where their safe space is! 🌟)
- Stay coming in strong at 75% (pretty good focus there!)
- Sit success rate dipped to 25% (we're working on it!)
- Down... well... let's just say 10% is a starting point 😅

But hey, this is why we track progress! Every challenge is just another training opportunity. Plus, it helps us identify what's working (Under and Touch for the win!) and what needs more practice. Sometimes your service dog just decides to be a teenager and forget everything they know... except the commands that might earn them treats! 🤣

🔍 Detective Work Update: Just noticed something interesting - Miss Ona's obedience is spot-on when I'm standing or sitting with feet on the floor, but throw in a high-top chair or booth seat and suddenly she's like 'Commands? What commands?' 🤔 Looks like we found our next training focus! #AlwaysLearning

Proud of my girl for handling everything like a champ! #GuideDogLife #OnaTheExplorer #BlindnessAwareness #ServiceDogTraining #WorkInProgress #TheMoreYouKnow

🐾 Let's Talk Service Dogs - A Reality Check

🦮🐕‍🦺
As a seasoned guide dog handler, I need to address something that's becoming a serious problem. Real service dogs are medical equipment, not status symbols.

REAL Service Dog Handlers DO NOT:
• Use their dog to intimidate others or ego-flex
• Brag about how their dog would "protect" them
• Ignore or justify aggressive behavior
• Flash ID cards from online registries (These are SCAMS)
• Need to prove their dog's status with registration numbers

📢 To Business Owners, Staff, AND THE PUBLIC:
You have the right (and responsibility) to speak up when you see a "service dog" acting aggressively or inappropriately. You don't need to be an employee to advocate for safety and legitimate service dog teams.

Yes, owner-training is legal - but with that comes the responsibility of proper training and behavior standards. A legitimate service dog should be:
• Calm and controlled in public
• Focused on their handler
• Non-reactive to people/other animals
• Clean and well-groomed
• Working, not socializing

When Encountering a Service Dog Team:
DON'T:
• Pet the dog
• Make eye contact with the dog
• Call the dog's name or make excited noises
• Feed the dog anything
• Touch the harness or leash
• Make squeaky sounds or try to play
• Distract the dog in any way

DO:
• Direct all conversation to the handler, not the dog
• Maintain eye contact with the handler when speaking
• If interested in petting, ask the handler first
• Wait for the harness to be removed and the handler to release the dog before any interaction
• Respect the handler's right to say no to interaction

When we stay silent about fake service dogs, we put legitimate teams at risk. Speak up. Know your rights. Protect those who rely on these amazing animals for their independence.

#ServiceDogEducation #DisabilityRights #ServiceDogAwareness