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    1. In 2025, the mundane can still be sacred

      It's 5am. My family is asleep. I slide out of bed, creep down the stairs, and enter the kitchen. Through the window, faint light dapples the horizon, teasing a rising sun. I turn on the stove....

      It's 5am. My family is asleep. I slide out of bed, creep down the stairs, and enter the kitchen. Through the window, faint light dapples the horizon, teasing a rising sun.

      I turn on the stove. While it heats, I prepare my station. A knife. A bowl. An old plastic mixing fork.

      I inspect the fork. It is old and worn and made of cheap plastic. I don't remember where it came from, perhaps a dollar store. It seemed like something we've always had, following us from home to home to home, always finding its own place to settle amidst our ever-changing lives.

      I like this fork.

      The dogs grow restless. They wonder if I have forgotten them. I have not. I fill their bowls with food and water. They thank me with wagging tails. I return to—Oh right, the cat. I haven't forgotten you either. Heh. Sorry about that. Here you go.

      I return to the kitchen. I can smell hot metal. It's time.

      Oil. Hashbrowns. Sizzle. Nice.

      I lean my back against the counter and close my eyes. The oil crackles on the stovetop. The rest of the world is still. The day ahead will hold many moments for many people, but this one belongs to me.

      I open my eyes. The sun is showing a bit more of itself now. It peeks through the window and spies on me. It wants to know how I make my eggs.

      One egg. Crack. Two egg. Crack. Three egg. Crack. Into the bowl they go. A splash of milk. The mixing fork does its job. Around and around and around. Good job, fork.

      I turn back to face the sun. Soon, the Earth will finish a single rotation and the sun will rise high into the sky. It has completed this ritual 1.6 trillion times. More times than every breath I will ever take.

      I hear a creak from above. My family is awake. They come down the stairs. My wife smiles. My son smiles. I smile. Away they go. They have rituals of their own to attend to. The sun, the fork, and I will attend to ours.

      I dump the eggs onto the hashbrowns. The mixing fork does its job yet again. Fried salami joins the fray. I top it all with melted cheese. Nice. I grab plates, utensils, napkins, and orange juice. The ritual is complete.

      In the next room, my wife has finished feeding our son. I set her breakfast down. She thanks me. She doesn't know I'm the one thanking her.

      I sit down beside her and grab a remote. I press shuffle. The music plays. David Bowie. Nice.

      ♫ I heard the news today, oh boy
      I got a suite and you got defeat
      Ain't there a man who can say no more?
      And, ain't there a woman I can sock on the jaw?
      And, ain't there a child I can hold without judging?
      Ain't there a pen that will write before they die?
      Ain't you proud that you've still got faces?
      Ain't there one damn song that can make me
      Break down and cry? ♫

      We eat our breakfast. The sun has risen. The world is awake.

      Today will hold many moments. But this one is ours.

      69 votes
    2. What programming/technical projects have you been working on?

      This is a recurring post to discuss programming or other technical projects that we've been working on. Tell us about one of your recent projects, either at work or personal projects. What's...

      This is a recurring post to discuss programming or other technical projects that we've been working on. Tell us about one of your recent projects, either at work or personal projects. What's interesting about it? Are you having trouble with anything?

      13 votes
    3. Suggest a remote desktop program?

      TL:DR: Need a remote desktop program that will let me get into my desktop from another network with no action required at the desktop itself. Will be out of town for about two weeks, have a...

      TL:DR: Need a remote desktop program that will let me get into my desktop from another network with no action required at the desktop itself.

      Will be out of town for about two weeks, have a Windows 10 desktop and a Windows 10 tablet. Desktop stays home, tablet is going with me in case I need something from my desktop. Need a way to connect and access and control my desktop from the tablet (I'll have KBM with me) with no interaction at the desktop itself (most remote desktop programs require confirmation at the desktop to access and/or gain control).

      Suggestions? FOSS preferred.

      18 votes
    4. Looking for lighthearted action anime

      I've been watching Sakamoto Days and I'm looking for something similar to it. I like how it has violence and stuff but it's not sad or grim. another example is Spy x family. even better if it has...

      I've been watching Sakamoto Days and I'm looking for something similar to it. I like how it has violence and stuff but it's not sad or grim. another example is Spy x family. even better if it has colourful animation like those two

      25 votes
    5. Canadian VPS providers?

      I'm currently using AWS to run a couple of t4g.nano instances for a few little services but I'm wondering if there's a good hosting service in Canada, owned by Canadians, etc. Basically I don't...

      I'm currently using AWS to run a couple of t4g.nano instances for a few little services but I'm wondering if there's a good hosting service in Canada, owned by Canadians, etc.

      Basically I don't really like handing money over to daddy bezos and due to current political tensions I'd rather not support US companies, but I have NO IDEA how to find a reputable VPS provider.

      22 votes
    6. What are the best truly unbeatable E2EE, presumably P2P messaging apps?

      My thoughts are that apps can have end-to-end encryption, but if the app on the end is still connected to someone's servers, there's nothing stopping them from pulling the contents of the chat...

      My thoughts are that apps can have end-to-end encryption, but if the app on the end is still connected to someone's servers, there's nothing stopping them from pulling the contents of the chat after it's been decrypted on the other end. What options do we have for messaging that don't have this issue? I understand that anything that I can see can still get taken by the OS, etc., but I'm curious about that first step.

      28 votes
    7. Is anyone else frustrated with the eBay buying experience?

      I've used eBay for many years. It seems to me their support is just getting worse and worse, and their buying experience is beyond confusing. Most recently, I've been getting an invoice for items...

      I've used eBay for many years. It seems to me their support is just getting worse and worse, and their buying experience is beyond confusing.

      Most recently, I've been getting an invoice for items that I never committed to buy, I merely asked the seller if combined shipping was a possibility on these items. eBay support first told me that I made a bid on the items. I responded that is incorrect because the items weren't even up for auction, it was a fixed price. They responded with "oh sorry, I see you did not bid, but you did send an offer and if the seller accepts, you must pay the amount". But I never sent any monetary offer, I didn't even request a shipping price.

      This is the most recent of a few experiences that just seem beyond confusing to me. Is anyone else having these kind of experiences?

      25 votes
    8. TV Tuesdays Free Talk

      Warning: this post may contain spoilers

      Have you watched any TV shows recently you want to discuss? Any shows you want to recommend or are hyped about? Feel free to discuss anything here.

      Please just try to provide fair warning of spoilers if you can.

      12 votes
    9. Humble Choice - March 2025

      March 2025's Humble Choice is now available with the following games (2 EA, 6 Steam). Steam Page Opencritic Steam Recent/All Operating Systems Steam Deck ProtonDB Pacific Drive 80 77 / 83 Win 🟨...

      March 2025's Humble Choice is now available with the following games (2 EA, 6 Steam).

      Steam Page Opencritic Steam Recent/All Operating Systems Steam Deck ProtonDB
      Pacific Drive 80 77 / 83 Win 🟨 Playable 🟨 Gold
      Homeworld 3 77 45 / 38 Win 🟨 Playable 🟨 Gold
      WILD HEARTS (note: EA key) 79 47 / 48 Win ❌ Unsupported 🟨 Gold
      Tales of Kenzera: ZAU (note: EA key) 76 92 / 81 Win ✅ Verified 🟨 Gold
      Gravity Circuit 86 94 / 95 Win, Mac, Linux ✅ Verified ✅ Native
      Sir Whoopass: Immortal Death -- 63 / 84 Win ✅ Verified 🟨 Gold
      Racine -- -- / 69 Win 🟨 Playable 🕙 Awaiting Reports
      Cavern of Dreams 72 88 / 95 Win 🟨 Playable 🎖️ Platinum

      Does anyone have experience with any of the games and, if so, would you recommend them? Is there anything in here that you're particularly excited to play?

      18 votes
    10. Offbeat Fridays – The thread where offbeat headlines become front page news

      Tildes is a very serious site, where we discuss very serious matters like diplomacy, baby boomers and great depression. Tags culled from the highest voted topics from the last seven days, if...

      Tildes is a very serious site, where we discuss very serious matters like diplomacy, baby boomers and great depression. Tags culled from the highest voted topics from the last seven days, if anyone was astute.

      But one of my favourite tags happens to be offbeat! Taking its original inspiration from Sir Nils Olav III, this thread is looking for any far-fetched offbeat stories lurking in the newspapers. It may not deserve its own post, but it deserves a wider audience!

      16 votes