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    1. If I want to bulk up a box of cake mix or muffin mix, do I need to add extra eggs/oil?

      For example, if I want to add ground flax to a brownie mix or oats to muffins? What if I want to add some extra dried blueberries to boxed blueberry muffin mix? The box instructions usually say...

      For example, if I want to add ground flax to a brownie mix or oats to muffins? What if I want to add some extra dried blueberries to boxed blueberry muffin mix? The box instructions usually say 1/4 cup of oil and 1 egg, and I'm wondering if I need to double both or either if I want to add some more dry ingredients. Or is there maybe a max level at which I don't need to add extra oil/eggs, like a quarter cup at most of oats?

      I know baking is a science and ratios are important, but still it'd be nice to have a way to make storebought convenience mixes a wee bit more filling or healthier. I'm used to substituting applesauce for oil in brownies, but I'm curious what else I could do with a storebought mix.

      17 votes
    2. Looking for audiobook ideas that have TV/movies released

      Hey folks! I’m looking for some audiobook ideas (preferably fantasy and science-fiction). I want them to have a TV series or Movie about them though I could watch before listening to them. All...

      Hey folks! I’m looking for some audiobook ideas (preferably fantasy and science-fiction). I want them to have a TV series or Movie about them though I could watch before listening to them.

      All ideas welcome!

      14 votes
    3. Gemini protocol

      I’ve just heard of the new BBS style forum for Gemini space and wondered if the properties of Tildes could adequately translate to Gemini space. In other words; could Tildes become accessible in...

      I’ve just heard of the new BBS style forum for Gemini space and wondered if the properties of Tildes could adequately translate to Gemini space. In other words; could Tildes become accessible in Gemini space?

      gemini://bbs.geminispace.org/

      I’m also curious if there are other Gemini users here but that might be better off as a separate post on a different section of the site.

      20 votes
    4. I filed a complaint against Amazon to the US Federal Trade Commission

      Mods: I put this in Tech because Amazon is a tech company, if this is the wrong group I apologize. For the last several purchases I have made through Amazon, not only has the advertised "expected...

      Mods: I put this in Tech because Amazon is a tech company, if this is the wrong group I apologize.

      For the last several purchases I have made through Amazon, not only has the advertised "expected delivery date" been wrong, Amazon hasn't even shipped the product by the delivery date. The day I expect an order to arrive, I get a notice from Amazon saying it's "running late" and the new expected delivery date is anywhere from 4 to 10 days away.

      This is on top of the fact that I have Amazon Prime. Prime eligible meant "it would be delivered within two days" for the better part of a decade. They slowly transitioned away from that to "two days delivery after it ships," and now it seems like half of everything takes 5-8 days to deliver, even with Prime.

      Anyway, the reason I reported them to the FTC because I believe they are advertising misleading or downright incorrect delivery times in hopes of winning your business over a competitor who is honest about their delivery times. If I want a monitor and Best Buy has it for $200 with 3-5 day shipping, and Amazon advertises it being delivered on day 3, I'm probably going to go with Amazon if I'm in urgent need of a monitor. But then the third day rolls around and Amazon indicates "oh, well, it's probably going to be 3-4 more days." If I had known that, I would have just gone with Best Buy, where I know it would have at least been delivered in 5 days; now I'm stuck waiting a week for Amazon.

      I don't even know if this is something the FTC cares about. But it should. I encourage everyone to report this if they've encountered the same issue.

      80 votes
    5. Are you currently learning a new language? Are there any languages that are on your wishlist to learn?

      I grew up semi-bilingual (English as my native language, Spanish spoken at least once a day at home), and went on to study Spanish as my language of choice in middle and high school. Despite this,...

      I grew up semi-bilingual (English as my native language, Spanish spoken at least once a day at home), and went on to study Spanish as my language of choice in middle and high school. Despite this, I would still like to further my Spanish language skills/knowledge with some self-paced coursework, as the Spanish I grew up hearing in the house was much more colloquial and then the Spanish I studied in school was the "from Spain" Spanish, rather than the Central American Spanish my family spoke. I grew up being better able to understand more than what I could speak or write myself.

      When I moved onto to college, I wanted to try studying a different language, so I chose French (bad idea; I could never really get the hang of it between the spelling challenges and the pronunciation being so different from the written word). I took one semester and passed just enough to get credit for the class but moved onto to German -- which was a little bit easier than French but more difficult than Spanish. Beginner classes in it were easy for me to learn, but I started to struggle when I got to upper-intermediate. Plus, I'm not always great at spelling in English, and French and German are not "speller-friendly" languages haha.

      Now as I approach my midlife, I am thoroughly enjoying my ASL for Beginners course through my local community college. I find it incredibly intuitive whenever I learn new signs ("oh, that makes sense, cool" when I see a new sign). My mother-in-law has known and taught ASL (as well as SEE) for over 20 years so she is very helpful with me practicing and being able to correct any small mistakes I make. I don't know anyone who is Deaf, but have had a few friends growing up who used hearing aids (I don't think they knew ASL).

      So what about you? Are you currently learning a new language? If so, what is it, how do you like it so far, and what led you to want to learn it? If not, are there any languages on your wishlist that you'd like to learn someday?

      For me, I wanted to learn ASL as a way to connect more deeply with my MIL in our relationship, as well as have some level of ability to sign with those who are Deaf/deaf. I also wanted to learn it because I wanted an alternative way to communicate with my spouse if we are at a noisy event/party/etc. without having to shout to be heard.

      41 votes
    6. Is there anyone here who is interested in upholstery as a hobby? If so, we'd love to hear about it! What's your favourite fabric to use?

      My upholstery hobby is a fulfilling and creative outlet that allows me to revive old furniture and give it a fresh, stylish look. My favorite fabric to use is velvet. Its luxurious texture and...

      My upholstery hobby is a fulfilling and creative outlet that allows me to revive old furniture and give it a fresh, stylish look. My favorite fabric to use is velvet. Its luxurious texture and rich colors add a touch of elegance and sophistication to any piece. Velvet not only looks stunning but also feels incredibly soft and comfortable

      20 votes
    7. Any hardcore leftists here?

      What do you think of popular figures like Noam Chomsky, Jason Hickel, Richard Wolff, David Graeber, and Bernie Sanders? Why does grotesque inequality persist? Will the lot of the downtrodden and...
      1. What do you think of popular figures like Noam Chomsky, Jason Hickel, Richard Wolff, David Graeber, and Bernie Sanders?

      2. Why does grotesque inequality persist? Will the lot of the downtrodden and the oppressed ever improve?

      3. What do you think of Anarchism?

      Just looking to learn from the community members here. Thanks.

      103 votes
    8. How do you keep track of expenses/budget?

      I used to be happy paying $45/year for YNAB (grandfathered plan). But then "lol no, $90/year" happened and I started looking into alternatives. I tried out a bunch but none felt the same....

      I used to be happy paying $45/year for YNAB (grandfathered plan). But then "lol no, $90/year" happened and I started looking into alternatives. I tried out a bunch but none felt the same. Eventually I found Actual (open-source). I've been using it for ~6 months now and it offers everything I want/need. I self-host the container on my PC (no sync/etc.).

      39 votes
    9. How to deal with a deep-rooted feeling of apathy?

      My mind is way annoying to listen to and I don’t like it! I'm 45 years old and I have a hard time coming to term with the fact that the majority of my life---the one which supposedly should had...

      My mind is way annoying to listen to and I don’t like it!

      I'm 45 years old and I have a hard time coming to term with the fact that the majority of my life---the one which supposedly should had been my golden years---lies in the past. I know I'm still alive but I just can't drum up much enthutiasm for an existence which I mostly see as sad leftovers of something which wasn't worth much either. I simply don't care much. I can distract myself for some time, but I have this deep feeling that, well, what's the point.

      And I can ignore it, for some time. But ignorence can only go so far. At some point you need some hope, some sliver of meaning and purpose. And I just don't see it.

      And this is all awful impractical, because whenever I try to strive for anything, my brain just goes, “narh, why bother struggle when it doesn’t lead to anything”

      Is there any clever way to turn stuff like this around? Some NLP stuff to nudge me towards a less self-defeating mindset?

      59 votes
    10. Do you tag your music? What's your method?

      I started the monumental task of tagging all my music for the purpose of organising but also autoplaylist generation. I decided to tag only by genre because it suits my listening behaviour (e.g. I...

      I started the monumental task of tagging all my music for the purpose of organising but also autoplaylist generation. I decided to tag only by genre because it suits my listening behaviour (e.g. I feel like reggae, so I pull up my reggae category and scan through album art till I find something that fits my mood).

      I've started tagging and retagging a few times now. I haven't quite figured out a method that works. I started off too specific (many subgenres with few artists in each), then too broad (hundreds of artists per genre). The sweet spot is elusive. I've been doing this work manually, but I've also had the idea of scrapping RYM because I've found this source to be fairly similar to my own judgment. The idea of automated tagging is appealing so I can "let the gods decide" and reduce the mental tax.

      Anyways, please share your methods! Im sure someone has "solved" this delimma. TIA

      14 votes
    11. ADHD friends, how do you organize your clothes?

      I'm failing. My usual tricks aren't working and I don't know what to do with my clothes anymore. One of my ADHD symptoms is that needs to see everything. My "pantry" is open shelves in my kitchen....

      I'm failing. My usual tricks aren't working and I don't know what to do with my clothes anymore.

      One of my ADHD symptoms is that needs to see everything. My "pantry" is open shelves in my kitchen. Everything in the fridge is up near the front of the shelves. I have a giant desk so I can spread out when I'm working. I need to see it all at all times.
      So the issue becomes, how do I do that with clothes. My alligator brain wants them all over the floor so I can see everything. That's not gonna work lol. I used to be good with a closet with no doors, but my new apartment isn't laid out in a way I can do that.

      Does anyone have any interesting clothes storage advice? The clutter is stressing me out, so I need to figure out whatever my new system is going to be.

      27 votes
    12. PS5 and Xbox Series closing in on three years of use

      Curious to hear what the people of tildes think. As we close in on 3 years of use with these newer consoles, what are every one’s thoughts? Has “next gen” been what you thought it’d really be or...

      Curious to hear what the people of tildes think.

      As we close in on 3 years of use with these newer consoles, what are every one’s thoughts? Has “next gen” been what you thought it’d really be or are you kinda just feeling whelmed?

      I have a PS5 and I use it every now and then for pretty much the first party games. PC is my main platform but as I think back, I’ve been pretty happy with my PS5 and the games to come so far. I also really enjoy the UI (although custom backgrounds would be great).

      I don’t know how the Xbox side is so I’d love to hear your thoughts to!

      Thanks for taking the time to read.

      28 votes