EsteeBestee's recent activity
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Comment on You get to choose your favorite director's next project. What is it, and why? in ~movies
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Comment on Confess your food crimes in ~food
EsteeBestee LinkCinnamon in pasta sauce… I don’t think it was terrible, but definitely odd and many Italians may want to kill me for it.Cinnamon in pasta sauce… I don’t think it was terrible, but definitely odd and many Italians may want to kill me for it.
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Comment on Do you have games that you play (almost) exclusively? in ~games
EsteeBestee LinkI’ve been like that for a few games in my life and I’m mixed on if I like that style of gaming for myself or not. The most recent was Destiny 2, in which I played 1300 hours between August 2022...I’ve been like that for a few games in my life and I’m mixed on if I like that style of gaming for myself or not. The most recent was Destiny 2, in which I played 1300 hours between August 2022 and July 2024 (and still play, but only about 100 hours since July) and while I did have periods in that time where I wouldn’t play for a few weeks and where I did dabble in other games, I could have exclusively played that game without complaining. As much as I did and still do play that game, it at least doesn’t feel like an addiction to me like some games did when I was younger, I just really like the game and I have a few dozen friends that play, which helps to keep me interested even in stale seasons/expansions.
In the past, mostly between the ages of 28 and younger, I had periods where I almost exclusively played (to the point of a clear addiction), World of Warcraft, League of Legends, and StarCraft 2.
Nowadays my relationship with WoW is normal and I go back to it from time to time, but it’s the game that makes me question how much I want to put into a game. There was a period of my life where I was depressed, going through a gender and sexuality crisis, was poor as fuck, failed out of college, was losing friends, had an alcohol dependency, and instead of solving my problems, I hopped into Azeroth for 4+ hours a day almost every day.
My relationship with Destiny 2 has been much healthier, though, and I don’t mind if a game hooks me like that where it’s all I play, I just don’t wanna go back to my 2015 addiction levels that I had in WoW.
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Comment on What are you reading these days? in ~books
EsteeBestee LinkI just finished A Court of Thorns and Roses! It’s the first book that I’ve actually finished in a few years (there have been others I got halfway through and never finished) and it very much...I just finished A Court of Thorns and Roses! It’s the first book that I’ve actually finished in a few years (there have been others I got halfway through and never finished) and it very much gripped me, I finished it in three days.
Spoilers
My feelings on it are mostly positive, but somewhat mixed. I thought the story started off a bit tropey and hand-waivey (yet another story of a late teens huntress providing for her useless family and who gets whisked away under weird circumstances to just get the story going), but that once the world building kicked in, the story got extremely good. Once I was a couple chapters into Feyre living in the Spring Court, I just kept turning pages as the world that was being built felt inspired and massive. I thought the use of first person to tell the story also kept me as hungry for answers as Feyre was. I found the lore intriguing and still want more.When going into the book, I didn’t know how heavy the romance would be, but I enjoyed what was there, I think the pacing worked for me to enjoy the budding relationship between Feyre and Tamlin.
Another thing I greatly enjoyed was the characters and dialogue, I appreciated how witty Feyre, Tamlin, and Lucian could be while also each having their own personality quirks shine through, I felt the dialogue really did build most characters as people.
That all said, the book fell a little flat for me in the last third. The exposition dump from Alis felt like it was there to just get us to the conflict, Amarantha was not a very compelling villain, imo, and the three challenges and riddle Feyre faced were not as grand as I would have expected from a high queen of the fae, though I did like the spy craft going on and Rhys’s plan hatching.
The ending was… okay? I have a feeling there will be another conflict set up in the next books (which I plan to read), but everything here was kind of tied up for now instead of there being a looming threat and I feel there could have been another chapter or two of what happens next, it kind of just ended without exploring Feyre’s new mindset after the whole ordeal, killing innocents, and coming to grips with immortality. I’m assuming this will be addressed in the second book, though.
One thing that was also never addressed is that after the reveal that Tamlin planned for his scouts to get killed so that he could kidnap and seduce a human, Feyre never has a single thought or doubt about their love. I’m glad it didn’t do the trope of the woman being like “you never loved me” when the man clearly does, but at least some inner dialogue about it would have been nice, especially with how much doubt Feyre usually has.
Overall, definitely not perfect, but I enjoyed the world and characters even if I felt the plot was weak and I’m looking forward to reading the next book in the series!
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Comment on Life altering PostgreSQL patterns in ~comp
EsteeBestee Link ParentThat was an incredible read and now I suddenly don’t feel as bad about my situation. HOW DO YOU RUN OUT OF COLUMNS?!That was an incredible read and now I suddenly don’t feel as bad about my situation. HOW DO YOU RUN OUT OF COLUMNS?!
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Comment on Life altering PostgreSQL patterns in ~comp
EsteeBestee Link ParentOh my god, holy shit. That also reminds me that we have 80 tables prefixed with “xx_” because someone wanted them grouped together in the schema and THAT’S NOT HOW THAT SHOULD WORK!!! I also...Oh my god, holy shit. That also reminds me that we have 80 tables prefixed with “xx_” because someone wanted them grouped together in the schema and THAT’S NOT HOW THAT SHOULD WORK!!!
I also checked this morning and we’re now up to 666 tables in our cursed platform DB. At the very least we have a data warehouse with good architecture so that I can use that for queries instead in most cases.
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Comment on Introductions | March 2025 in ~talk
EsteeBestee Link ParentI like the unsettling (in a good way) vibe that your music gives!I like the unsettling (in a good way) vibe that your music gives!
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Comment on Introductions | March 2025 in ~talk
EsteeBestee Link ParentHello fellow Minnesotan! And that Pokémon fact is kind of wild!Hello fellow Minnesotan! And that Pokémon fact is kind of wild!
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Comment on Introductions | March 2025 in ~talk
EsteeBestee Link ParentKubernetes is my favorite word! I don’t work with it directly, but a team member does so it comes up in standup.Kubernetes is my favorite word! I don’t work with it directly, but a team member does so it comes up in standup.
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Comment on Life altering PostgreSQL patterns in ~comp
EsteeBestee (edited )LinkThere's some obvious sounding, but very sound advice in there. I have direct experience with being fucked over by bad database designs. Like you would think it's obvious to have created_at and...There's some obvious sounding, but very sound advice in there. I have direct experience with being fucked over by bad database designs. Like you would think it's obvious to have created_at and updated_at everywhere you can, but please for the love of god make sure you actually have those columns and actually write to them. Our damn schema has those in most tables now, but there are still some using created_on (and some tables with both created_on and created_at and different bits of code write to one or the other, no I'm not joking) and some with no indication of any sort of creation date at all and it's a fucking nightmare to run queries against to generate reports.
One that maybe isn't super obvious but I will say is super great advice was "Represent statuses as a log". You never ever know if 5 years after you create a table if you need to audit the data in there for some reason and need to know past values instead of current values. For example, we have an integration with a vendor that sends us account data with statuses. The data is under a lot of scrutiny as it has to do with financial shit and there are statuses linked to the accounts we see and sometime shit hits the fan with one of our customers and they need to have a data trail of the statuses on their accounts at certain points of time in the past and you/they are just fucked sometimes if you only keep the current state of data. At the very least, if you have an 'account' table or something, at least have an 'account_status' table, too, that can be joined on 'account.id' or whatever and tracks all status changes per account.
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Comment on What games have you been playing, and what's your opinion on them? in ~games
EsteeBestee Link ParentThe ones my friend linked me are below: https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1637663252 https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=445589127...The ones my friend linked me are below:
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1637663252
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=445589127
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2105755179&searchtext=
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2560782729&searchtext=
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2487213155
https://steamcommunity.com/workshop/filedetails/?id=2862121823
With the last one, I disabled it since I'm not building cities that big yet and it kind of messes with the game a little. But the others are quality of life mods, mostly. The steam workshop has so many different assets to use, though, I was downloading things like skins for the basketball courts, different buildings, etc., it's great.
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Comment on Yuki Tsunoda set to replace Liam Lawson at Red Bull in ~sports.motorsports
EsteeBestee Link ParentI’m being a bit hyperbolic about it, but it’s just ridiculous how many drivers have failed in that car who have been good in other cars, there just has to be something wrong or unusual with it if...I’m being a bit hyperbolic about it, but it’s just ridiculous how many drivers have failed in that car who have been good in other cars, there just has to be something wrong or unusual with it if Max is the only person that can drive it consistently well.
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Comment on What games have you been playing, and what's your opinion on them? in ~games
EsteeBestee Link ParentYeah, I was hoping I could go for the newer game, but I don't think even my RTX 3070 would be up for it, judging by even recent steam reviews. I wasn't too beat up about getting Cities 1 with its...Yeah, I was hoping I could go for the newer game, but I don't think even my RTX 3070 would be up for it, judging by even recent steam reviews. I wasn't too beat up about getting Cities 1 with its 10 years of mod support, though!
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Comment on Yuki Tsunoda set to replace Liam Lawson at Red Bull in ~sports.motorsports
EsteeBestee LinkI don’t know what will be funnier: if Yuki kills it in the Red Bull and embarrasses the last 6 years of non-Max drivers in that car or if Yuki finishes at the back, Liam is faster in the vcarb (or...I don’t know what will be funnier: if Yuki kills it in the Red Bull and embarrasses the last 6 years of non-Max drivers in that car or if Yuki finishes at the back, Liam is faster in the vcarb (or whatever it’s call these days), and it turns out the car is just garbage.
F1 is just so god damn intriguing right now. Now that Max has his championships, I’m cheering for the rise of Williams more than anything, I’m expecting to be able to laugh at Red Bull, Ferrari, and McLaren all this year.
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Comment on What games have you been playing, and what's your opinion on them? in ~games
EsteeBestee LinkI finally found a game that’s hooked me, Cities: Skylines. I was in the mood for a city builder and it was free to try on steam this last weekend and is currently on sale ($3 for the base game and...I finally found a game that’s hooked me, Cities: Skylines. I was in the mood for a city builder and it was free to try on steam this last weekend and is currently on sale ($3 for the base game and I got some dlc too). I have a friend that’s really into city builders and management games so he helped me get some essential DLC and mods as well as give me some tips to get started. In two play sessions, I’ve already played 10 hours, good god. My first session was from the start and my city ended up sprawling pretty badly. At the start of my session tonight, I redid my downtown section as well as my bus routes and bike lanes to have a more efficient downtown area!
Living in Minneapolis of course I’m drawing some inspiration for my own city. Once this one (my learning city) is done, I’ll have a lot more ideas for a second city! The one downside is that there’s no mod to add the Target Center into the game (I want the Timberwolves and Lynx in my city, dammit).
I’ve also been watching a ton of City Planner Plays on YouTube, his content is excellent and I’d recommend watching him even if you don’t play city builders, yourself.
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Comment on What games have you been playing, and what's your opinion on them? in ~games
EsteeBestee Link ParentUNGA BUNGA HIT THINGS GOODUNGA BUNGA HIT THINGS GOOD
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Comment on What games have you been playing, and what's your opinion on them? in ~games
EsteeBestee LinkI’ve been feeling a bit weird about games lately. I’m having trouble getting into new games and keep going back to ones I’ve put tons of time into. That isn’t a bad thing or anything, but I feel...I’ve been feeling a bit weird about games lately. I’m having trouble getting into new games and keep going back to ones I’ve put tons of time into. That isn’t a bad thing or anything, but I feel like I should be more interested in some others games I’m trying than I am, but I keep bouncing off. The main ones I’m still playing are Destiny 2, iRacing (12 hours of Sebring this weekend!!), and Euro Truck Simulator 2.
Recently I’ve tried Returnal, Heroes of Hammerwatch 2, Factorio demo, Manor Lords, Assassin’s Creed Mirage, and Dragon Age Veilguard, none of which I feel I played enough of. I did get 2/3 through Mirage and Veilguard and do want to finish them, but with the rest, I just keep putting games down to go back to my “go to’s” and I’m not sure what’s wrong.
I’m just finding it hard to be hooked on new experiences and one thing with my tastes that I’ve been conscious of is that I’ve been trending away from complex games. For example, I bounced off Factorio’s demo pretty quickly even though it was cool, but liked the Shapez demo I played on my phone, a much simpler automation game. I’m not sure if that’s why I’m bouncing off games like Returnal (having to learn something new) or if I’m just kind of jaded on games in general.
I did get Pacific Drive this week and played for a couple hours and intend to keep going, but we’ll see if the same thing happens. Maybe I just need to go read or watch movies/tv for a few weeks as a palate cleanser from gaming. Games like Avowed would have been 100% a day one purchase for me two years ago, but I just keep feeling “meh” about picking up new games.
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Comment on What games have you been playing, and what's your opinion on them? in ~games
EsteeBestee Link ParentTHE CORRECT CHOICE. KING’S HONOR, FRIEND.THE CORRECT CHOICE. KING’S HONOR, FRIEND.
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Comment on What games have you been playing, and what's your opinion on them? in ~games
EsteeBestee Link ParentAlright, if I do decide to hop in, I’ll let you know. Are you Horde or Alliance?Alright, if I do decide to hop in, I’ll let you know. Are you Horde or Alliance?
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Comment on What games have you been playing, and what's your opinion on them? in ~games
EsteeBestee Link ParentI’m starting to get bit by the MMO bug once again. I was thinking of going back to wow classic and trying hardcore (never done it), but turtle wow seems neat! Destiny 2 still has claws in me for...I’m starting to get bit by the MMO bug once again. I was thinking of going back to wow classic and trying hardcore (never done it), but turtle wow seems neat! Destiny 2 still has claws in me for now, but I’ll probably tire of the current season at some point in the next few weeks.
I would love to see Villeneuve direct a Mass Effect movie! That franchise is just screaming for a movie about something like the Human-Turian war or recovery after the genocide by the reapers (or any number of stories) and after his work on Blade Runner 2049 and Dune, I have to assume it would be nothing short of a visual masterpiece.