Echeveria's recent activity
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Comment on What is a business/org that's so terrible no one should use if possible? in ~life
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Comment on What is a business/org that's so terrible no one should use if possible? in ~life
Echeveria Link ParentI read Erin Kissane's writeup of the situation a while back, it's as well written as it is absolutely horrifying. It's worth the read but it's definitely very emotionally charged.I read Erin Kissane's writeup of the situation a while back, it's as well written as it is absolutely horrifying. It's worth the read but it's definitely very emotionally charged.
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Comment on What happened to your first car? in ~transport
Echeveria LinkMine was a 2001 Honda Civic. My aunt bought it brand new when I was six years old, and when I came back home from college at 19, she'd bought a new RAV4 so the Civic became mine. She'd always...Mine was a 2001 Honda Civic. My aunt bought it brand new when I was six years old, and when I came back home from college at 19, she'd bought a new RAV4 so the Civic became mine. She'd always hoped it would last long enough for me or my brother to drive it.
It was a good car and I enjoyed driving it, but I only kept it about a year. I ended up deciding to move to a city 3 hours away from my hometown and my dad (who's both a mechanic and a bit overprotective) worried about the car breaking down on me while I was so far away - my aunt used to drive a lot for work and the Civic was up to 435k km on the odometer by the time I got rid of it. At that point it would have needed an engine rebuild or swap to make it safe for longer trips (like between home and the city I was moving to) and my dad didn't think it was really worth putting in the work for that considering the age of the car and the cost of doing it. I ended up selling it to someone he knew and bought a slightly newer Kia station wagon off a friend of his who'd just gotten a newer car. The guy I sold the Civic to was going to basically cannibalize it for parts for his Civic initially, but then decided to just drive it into the ground and see if he could get it to 500k before the engine died. It made it to 485k... close enough.
Later I ended up with another Civic, a 2004 Si, for about three years. I'd still be driving it if I'd been able to afford keeping it running, but the previous owner(s) were nowhere near as diligent with undercoating it as they should have been and over time it became a ticking timebomb of rust... on top of other parts failing on it over the years (the fan in front of the engine melted, the battery died, it started leaking coolant and I had to top it up weekly, a belt snapped, and finally the compressor died and I lost my AC). Maybe someday I'll get another one, I really love that generation of Civics.
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Comment on I have now donated five full gallons of blood products! in ~health
Echeveria LinkCongratulations on hitting a new donation milestone, that's awesome!! I like your perspective on it - that as annoying as the process can get, the person on the receiving end of your blood...Congratulations on hitting a new donation milestone, that's awesome!! I like your perspective on it - that as annoying as the process can get, the person on the receiving end of your blood donation is going through much worse, so in retrospect you have the easier side of the situation to deal with lol.
I would love to donate blood so I could somehow give back to the medical system that's done so much for me, but because I have Crohn's I'm not allowed to donate anything, even if I were to go off my meds in the future. I'm happy you're finally able to donate, at least - it's good to see the restrictive bans on gay men donating blood being finally lifted.
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Comment on What is a non-problematic word that you avoid using? in ~talk
Echeveria Link ParentTransactional is a good way to describe it, honestly. It makes the whole interaction feel dishonest.Transactional is a good way to describe it, honestly. It makes the whole interaction feel dishonest.
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Comment on What is a non-problematic word that you avoid using? in ~talk
Echeveria Link ParentThat's a good distinction to make, especially in regards to "consuming" in that context. I like your perspective on it. I guess I should have clarified I'm not an anglophone, so my perspective is...That's a good distinction to make, especially in regards to "consuming" in that context. I like your perspective on it. I guess I should have clarified I'm not an anglophone, so my perspective is from my interpretation/translation of the words.
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Comment on What is a non-problematic word that you avoid using? in ~talk
Echeveria Link ParentInfluencer irks me for a similar reason - too vague/generic, but also doesn't sound real. What does it even mean that your job is to "influence" people? What little I see of influencers' posts...Influencer irks me for a similar reason - too vague/generic, but also doesn't sound real. What does it even mean that your job is to "influence" people? What little I see of influencers' posts shows me a lot of them do put tons of work in their posts and videos and such, but then I remember it's all done to push people to buy things and it just starts to feel dishonest (as pretty much all advertising does, honestly).
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Comment on Duolingo is replacing human workers with AI in ~tech
Echeveria Link ParentYou got responses back when you reported something? Over the years I've lost track of how many issues I reported in the German for French speakers course (bad/unnatural translations or phrases,...You got responses back when you reported something? Over the years I've lost track of how many issues I reported in the German for French speakers course (bad/unnatural translations or phrases, voice errors, refusal to accept anything that wasn't European French as an answer, that sort of thing), and eventually I just gave up because I never got a response to any of those reports in ~3 years of doing the course. It felt like I was just sending them into the void.
I started using Duo during the pandemic just to have something to do, and right now my account is on a share Super family plan that a relative pays for. It started out decent, but it's only gotten worse over time. I'm really only still using it because of said relative and a couple others using it regularly, and because it's kind of become part of my routine at this point.
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Comment on What is a non-problematic word that you avoid using? in ~talk
Echeveria Link ParentOn a similar note, I find the expression "consume/consuming content" (and "content creator" too while we're at it) incredibly dystopian-sounding in a way I'm not sure I can properly articulate....On a similar note, I find the expression "consume/consuming content" (and "content creator" too while we're at it) incredibly dystopian-sounding in a way I'm not sure I can properly articulate. The mental image of someone "consuming content", to me, is closer to someone stuck on their phone being spoonfed Tiktok brainrot by the algorithm than someone actively enjoying a movie/TV show/video/song/whatever. It's like someone just shoveling more and more crap in their mouth just to say they're doing it. It makes everything feel very passive and transactional.
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Comment on Seven39 - Social media that’s only open from 7:39 PM to 10:39 PM, EST in ~tech
Echeveria Link ParentYou can effectively do this with browser extensions on any site you want. I use LeechBlock NG on Firefox (both desktop and Android) to control my access to sites I tend to spend a bit too much...You can effectively do this with browser extensions on any site you want. I use LeechBlock NG on Firefox (both desktop and Android) to control my access to sites I tend to spend a bit too much time on. I've set a lot of them to only be accessible between 3 PM and 6 PM, and only on my computer - outside of that, I just get a message that the website will be unblocked at 3 PM (or if I'm on my phone, a message saying the site is fully blocked).
I chose those times because I work nights and wake up at the latest at 3 PM, and my partner also works nights but he's slightly offset to my schedule, usually waking up closer to 5:30-6 PM. That means if I want to look at those sites I'm not neglecting him or anything else equally important in favour of the internet. Most days I don't even turn my computer on, so it works out. Each site also has a time limit set - as an example, Facebook might be unblocked for those three hours, but in those three hours I can only spend twenty minutes on it; after twenty minutes, the website is blocked again.
Mind you, a lot of this also relies on self-control since LeechBlock has an easily accessible override function, but I find the initial block, and the message that follows, is enough for me to realise I'm just trying to open that site out of habit and snap out of it, so to speak. Nowadays the blocks feel a bit redundant as I don't look at the blocked sites nearly as much as I used to, but I keep them on anyway.
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Comment on Confess your food crimes in ~food
Echeveria Link ParentWe make it with onions most of the time now, it's that good! We use one medium onion per person since it loses a lot of volume as it cooks (we also just really love onions), but feel free to...We make it with onions most of the time now, it's that good! We use one medium onion per person since it loses a lot of volume as it cooks (we also just really love onions), but feel free to experiment till you find what works for your tastes.
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Comment on Confess your food crimes in ~food
Echeveria Link ParentI can't easily find guanciale out here either (or pancetta, which I've seen recommended as a good substitute), so I feel you on that one. Lardons (cubed pork belly) works nicely too. That specific...I can't easily find guanciale out here either (or pancetta, which I've seen recommended as a good substitute), so I feel you on that one. Lardons (cubed pork belly) works nicely too.
That specific recipe started out as a combination of "I need to find something to finish this Boursin with" and "we have too many apples and I don't want to make pie again" (we live near an orchard, so in the fall we're drowning in apples) and it worked surprisingly well. Add the apples towards the end so they don't get too mushy - I throw them in the pan for a couple minutes when I'm finishing off the bacon. If you don't have maple bacon on hand, I recommend adding a bit of maple syrup in your egg mixture (and honestly, you can do that even if you do have maple bacon).
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Comment on Confess your food crimes in ~food
Echeveria Link ParentUnfortunately broccoli is even worse for me than romaine, but the rest of it sounds quite tasty!Unfortunately broccoli is even worse for me than romaine, but the rest of it sounds quite tasty!
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Comment on Confess your food crimes in ~food
Echeveria LinkI use shredded cabbage or just bagged coleslaw mix as a base for Caesar salad instead of romaine. In my defense, I have Crohn's and lettuce doesn't like me much. I used to use spinach (which I can...I use shredded cabbage or just bagged coleslaw mix as a base for Caesar salad instead of romaine.
In my defense, I have Crohn's and lettuce doesn't like me much. I used to use spinach (which I can digest just fine) but Caesar dressing is too heavy for spinach and the whole thing just wasn't as pleasant as the real deal. A coworker has similar issues with lettuce and he's the one that suggested it. It's nice and crunchy and it works better than you'd expect it to. I'd like to try it with napa cabbage next.
This is mostly a food crime if you're Italian, but my (Italian, ironically) partner loves putting caramelized onions in carbonara. I find the sweetness of the onions balances out the richness of the pasta quite well. Then again, in the fall I love making a bastardized carbonara with diced apples, maple bacon, and half hard cheddar/half maple apple Boursin cheese, so I'm not much better when it comes to authentic pasta.
This one isn't quite to the extent as other things in this thread, but my partner thinks I'm insane for putting sliced bananas in my PB&J. My parents suggested I try it as a kid and I loved it so much I still do it. Then again, both my mom andy brother also put ketchup on things it doesn't belong, so I may not have had the best food role models lol
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Comment on Confess your food crimes in ~food
Echeveria Link ParentMy partner is lactose intolerant and I need to be mindful of my dairy intake too, so I swap out coconut milk for a lot of things. We usually have lactose free milk on hand (nothing else froths to...My partner is lactose intolerant and I need to be mindful of my dairy intake too, so I swap out coconut milk for a lot of things. We usually have lactose free milk on hand (nothing else froths to his liking for lattes) but we've actually grown to like the coconut flavour in some dishes more than using regular dairy. I buy coconut yogurt instead of regular yogurt too, for recipes that use it. (Plus coconut doesn't curdle/split in hot dishes like regular dairy does.)
As for peanut butter and curry, I have a peanut butter chicken curry I make every once in a while that turns out really good - it's a great combination. I should try your recipe too, it sounds just as tasty.
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Comment on How often do you replace your phone? in ~tech
Echeveria (edited )LinkI tend to replace phones when they get so old they don't function well (slow, freezes a lot, etc.), or they start having battery problems (if I can't replace the battery). My average is about 4...I tend to replace phones when they get so old they don't function well (slow, freezes a lot, etc.), or they start having battery problems (if I can't replace the battery). My average is about 4 years per phone.
Here's a timeline of what I've owned:
2008-2011: Motorola Razr flip phone (gave it to my dad when I changed phones, he kept it until the 2G towers shut down in Canada)
2011-2016: Samsung Galaxy Nexus (still in use by my grandparents, who needed a basic phone just for phone calls when the aforementioned 2G shutdown killed their old cellphone)
2016-2017: LG Nexus 4 (aunt's old phone that was already ~2 years old by the time I got it, developed battery issues and had a finicky screen because of a poorly calibrated replacement screen)
2017-2021: Samsung Galaxy A5 (2017) (I loved this phone to death and only got rid of it because the battery life was harder and harder to work around and I couldn't find a replacement battery anywhere - my brother uses it for basic calls/text now)
2021-now: Pixel 4a 5G (battery replaced last November)
Soonish: Pixel 6 Pro (partner upgraded to a S25+ and is giving me his old phone)I don't do anything super exciting with my phone so I don't need a top-of-the-line model - my main priorities are battery life, the camera, and now repairability as well. As you can see, most of my phones have been in decent enough shape by the time I'm done with them that someone else got some use out of them. I might offer the 4a to my grandparents, as the GNex is so old that the battery dies after a couple hours, which makes it useless on longer trips out of the house.
I'm not sure what I'll get after the Pixel 6 though. My plan was to change the battery in my 4a so it would last until I could pick up a Sony Xperia on my next trip to the US, which would have been in the fall (Sony doesn't sell phones in Canada anymore) but for obvious reasons that isn't happening. I'm hoping HMD or Fairphone will have branched out here by that point. I don't like how "proprietary" (for lack of a better word) Samsung's phones have become, I don't like the direction Google is going in now (I'm only taking the Pixel 6 since I'm not paying for it...), and I've never been an Apple fan, so that doesn't leave a lot of options nowadays.
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Comment on Stellantis introduces pop-up ads in vehicles, sparking outrage among owners in ~transport
Echeveria Link ParentOh, I'm jealous of that Miata! I'd love to get one of those someday, I'm a sucker for those pop-up lights. Older cars are definitely a lot easier to maintain overall, I've also noticed that over...Oh, I'm jealous of that Miata! I'd love to get one of those someday, I'm a sucker for those pop-up lights.
Older cars are definitely a lot easier to maintain overall, I've also noticed that over the years even the most basic car maintenance has become harder and harder to do yourself... I definitely feel like it's being done on purpose. It's nice to just be able to fix it up yourself and not have to worry about a ton of other failure points on the car.
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Comment on Stellantis introduces pop-up ads in vehicles, sparking outrage among owners in ~transport
Echeveria Link ParentMy partner and I are in the same boat, though our current vehicles are a little newer than 2005 lol. He drives a 2015 Cadillac and he's told me that he actually wants to go for an older car as his...My partner and I are in the same boat, though our current vehicles are a little newer than 2005 lol. He drives a 2015 Cadillac and he's told me that he actually wants to go for an older car as his next one, for similar reasons as you. The Cadillac doesn't have much enshittification done to it compared to newer cars but it's just annoying enough to make him want to move away from that. (The fact that most of the dashboard controls are touch rather than physical buttons/knobs are his main issue with it.)
I drive a 2016 Toyota that I'd like to keep as long as I possibly can. It's fairly basic and the small touchscreen does absolutely nothing but basic phone call and music functionality, but that's really all I wanted/needed it to do (it has no connectivity besides the radio antenna and Bluetooth so a situation like the Jeep ads is impossible). Before that I had a 2004 Honda that I was really happy with and would have kept forever if I could, but I got it secondhand as a beater car and the previous owner wasn't diligent with upkeep (particularly the undercoating) so it unfortunately ended up rusting to death. Hold on to your Honda, their older cars are really solid if you take good care of them.
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Comment on Headlamp tech that doesn’t blind oncoming drivers—where is it? in ~transport
Echeveria Link ParentI've had the same experience in my hatchback. Somehow, with the height my eyes are at when I sit down and how my mirrors line up, it feels like every single SUV and truck has their lights at the...I've had the same experience in my hatchback. Somehow, with the height my eyes are at when I sit down and how my mirrors line up, it feels like every single SUV and truck has their lights at the perfect height to reflect in all of my mirrors and perpetually blind me. That combined with a bad case of astigmatism has made me absolutely hate driving at night.
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Comment on I hate alcohol. Totally hate it. in ~talk
Echeveria LinkI sympathize with what you're going through, even if I haven't lived it myself. My dad was apparently effectively a functional alcoholic at one point, but he stopped after my mom told him she...I sympathize with what you're going through, even if I haven't lived it myself. My dad was apparently effectively a functional alcoholic at one point, but he stopped after my mom told him she wouldn't have kids with him unless he gave up drinking. I'm 29 now, almost 30, and I can count on one hand the number of times I've seen him have a drink in my lifetime. He does enjoy non-alcoholic beer, though, and over the years those options have grown a lot (it's surprising how many restaurants have it on their menu now, even).
I was on antidepressants on and off from age 16 to 23 and had strict orders from my doctor to not drink at all while I was on them. I did once, accidentally (didn't realise there was alcohol in the punch at a party), and it ended up being a horrible experience. Even though it's only been a few years since all this happened, I remember it felt very isolating to not be drinking because that still hadn't really been normalized at the time. My classmates in college never invited me anywhere because they all wanted to go drinking and I couldn't, so making friends was extremely difficult during those two years (and ten years after graduation, I don't talk to anyone from there anymore). When I did go out, turning down alcohol turned into a contest of who could convince me to have "just one drink"... The peer pressure was unlike anything I've ever seen even now, years later. People wouldn't let it go until I went through half of my fucking medical history with them to "justify" why I didn't want to drink. I think situations like that are part of the problem - for each person like me who doesn't back down and refuses to drink, how many more cave in because of peer pressure, and then keep doing it again and again, and don't know how to regulate themselves because of how often they end up doing it?
People are a lot more open and candid about not drinking nowadays compared to before, and I'm really happy to see it. I have a lot of friends who openly talk about not drinking because of addiction issues in their families, and not even wanting to chance it at all because of how destructive it can be. I respect that a lot and I wish more people were willing to speak up about it. There's also a lot more options for fun non-alcoholic drinks now, so you can still have something nice when you go out with friends or whatever but you don't want to have any alcohol.
I hope your stepkid is able to overcome their addiction and comes out of it a healthier and stronger person.
Also in Atlantic Canada, can confirm. I've at least been able to get away with not having it on my phone and just logging in via browser if I do need to look at something, but it's unfortunate how many things still rely on it. My town posts more about local events and happenings on Facebook than on their own website, it's pretty sad to think about.
My partner doesn't have his own account, and though he's perfectly happy with that decision, he does find it annoying that he gets left in the dark so much due to that.