Grendel's recent activity

  1. Comment on What keyboard do you use? in ~tech

    Grendel
    Link Parent
    It's actually a trackball. It's the Logitech M570. I love I will never go back to a regular mouse.

    It's actually a trackball. It's the Logitech M570. I love I will never go back to a regular mouse.

    1 vote

  2. Comment on What keyboard do you use? in ~tech

    Grendel
    Link Parent
    I know that it's thinner than the ergodox but it also has fewer thumb keys. I'm pretty sure they still sell the original ergodox Ez as well so I think it's just up to your preference.

    I know that it's thinner than the ergodox but it also has fewer thumb keys. I'm pretty sure they still sell the original ergodox Ez as well so I think it's just up to your preference.

    2 votes

  3. Comment on What keyboard do you use? in ~tech

    Grendel
    Link Parent
    It may take about a month to get used to, especially if you have never used an ortholinear keyboard before, but it's totally worth it. If you're interested you can look at my key map here

    It may take about a month to get used to, especially if you have never used an ortholinear keyboard before, but it's totally worth it. If you're interested you can look at my key map here

    2 votes

  5. Comment on What keyboard do you use? in ~tech

    Grendel
    Link
    This is my keyboard. I'm a software developer and I use the Ergodox-EZ with a custom key cap set and a trackball. It's fully customizable, so I can set the keys to whatever character I want. It...

    This is my keyboard.

    I'm a software developer and I use the Ergodox-EZ with a custom key cap set and a trackball. It's fully customizable, so I can set the keys to whatever character I want. It also has layers (like the function key on laptops). I've got mine set up so that whenever I hold down the space bar the keys under my right hand turn into a ten key pad. once I let go of the space bar it goes back to the original layer. Honestly it's one of the best investments I've made as far as personal comfort/productivity. It's fully open source (both software and hardware) and it's responsibly manufactured by workers that are paid a fair wage.

    You definitely pay for all of that, but it was totally worth it.

    9 votes

  6. Comment on If you're a parent, what is it like? in ~talk

    Grendel
    Link Parent
    Actually it's both. My wife and I have had foster kids in the past that lived with us for a time then got to go home. It's an intermediary, but can become permanent if bio parents can't get the...

    So if foster homes aren't an intermediary institution for kids 'not safe in their homes' but not adopted into a family, where are they taken once they're 'deemed not safe in their homes' and 'forcibly removed' from them? The Children's Division office you've talked about?

    Actually it's both. My wife and I have had foster kids in the past that lived with us for a time then got to go home. It's an intermediary, but can become permanent if bio parents can't get the crap together. It was designed to replace orphanages altogether.

    Some foster parents choose to never adopt, and they have different kids pass through there homes forever. Once a child is placed with you they could be there for weeks, months, or even years.

    2 votes

  7. Comment on Why the orange sky looks gray in some photos in ~tech

    Grendel
    Link
    Man, it's hard not to feel that film is superior in some ways. That algorithm I think is Bayer Interpolation, and it actually means that digital cameras have fewer megapixels than they actually...

    Man, it's hard not to feel that film is superior in some ways. That algorithm I think is Bayer Interpolation, and it actually means that digital cameras have fewer megapixels than they actually claim to have.

    2 votes

  8. Comment on What programming/technical projects have you been working on? in ~comp

    Grendel
    Link
    This is pretty small, but I needed a timer for my darkroom enlarger. This is basically a device that turns the enlarger for a set number of seconds then turns it off automatically. They're like...

    This is pretty small, but I needed a timer for my darkroom enlarger. This is basically a device that turns the enlarger for a set number of seconds then turns it off automatically. They're like $135 USD, so I decided to find an alternative.

    Instead I bought a timer relay on Amazon here for less than $20. It took me some trial and error to get it hooked up, but last night I got it working!

    It works great, and the digital display is probably easier to see than the clock face of the expensive timers.

    5 votes

  9. Comment on If you're a parent, what is it like? in ~talk

    Grendel
    Link Parent
    Sorry that I wasn't being clear. My home is the foster home. Once they are taken from their first homes, they go home with a foster family, like my wife and I. They live at our house with us as...

    Sorry that I wasn't being clear. My home is the foster home. Once they are taken from their first homes, they go home with a foster family, like my wife and I. They live at our house with us as our kids. My wife and I both work outside of the home. Things here are mostly like an average family. Our kids go to school, do chores and have a bedtime. Honestly most people who don't know us think we are just another average family.

    Our boys are past the reunification phase, so we are in the process of adopting right now.

    3 votes

  10. Comment on "Old News" in ~creative

    Grendel
    Link
    I had another good night in the darkroom! Getting a darkroom timer has made it much much easier to get good prints

    I had another good night in the darkroom! Getting a darkroom timer has made it much much easier to get good prints

    2 votes

  12. Comment on If you're a parent, what is it like? in ~talk

    Grendel
    Link Parent
    Sorry about the formatting, I'm still getting the hang of markdown. Correct. The kids were in a home with but the home was unsafe due to abuse. Someone reported the abuse and the state stepped in...

    Sorry about the formatting, I'm still getting the hang of markdown.

    Huh. I've used the term 'orphanage' and you've used the term 'foster parents' and 'foster homes' and have noted that these kids weren't homeless before being foster(-ed.)

    Correct. The kids were in a home with but the home was unsafe due to abuse. Someone reported the abuse and the state stepped in and took them out of that home and placed them in a foster home. A foster home is just a regular house that has people who are licensed foster parents. The license is provided by the state and there is a lengthy processes of training to get one.

    So are the biological parents of (or at least the people responsible for taking care of) these kids known or know-able? (Not that knowing them would be necessarily or likely even slightly good of an idea.)

    Yes, the bio parents are known. In fact, when children first go into foster care the have to do weekly visits with the bio parent. during this phase reunification is the goal. The state gives the parents a list of goals and the parent has to get those things done to get their kids back. If they can't get them done after a certain amount of time (typically 15-24 months), then the goal changes to adoption. The Bio parents rights are terminated (visits stop) and an attempt is made for the kids to be adopted. The foster parents are given the option to adopt first, if they choose not to they will try to find someone else to adopt them.

    How does one become a 'foster parent' exactly?
    What do you mean by 'sibling group'? Are these biological siblings or just grouped together?

    There is a long class offered by the state, then a Home Study, which involves an inspection of your home and a very lengthy and detailed interview.
    Yes, by sibling group I mean a group of kids that are biologically related. They try to keep siblings together, but it's often hard to find someone to take in 4 or 5 kids at once, so they split them into smaller groups by age.

    You've talked about what it's like to pick up a kid (is it necessarily a kid? Nothing stops someone from staying there until 18 (or more?) right?) from these homes but what is it like for them in those homes before that happens?

    Correct, they could range from birth to 18. We definitely do not pick them up from their homes. By the time we come into the picture police have already been involved and the children have already been forcibly removed from the home. We have to pick them up from the local Children's Division (state entity in charge of this stuff) office.
    Concerning their home life before they were removed: It's always horrible. It takes a lot for the state to decide that kids need to be removed. I'd rather not get into what my kids went through with any detail, but most kids have suffered physical and/or sexual abuse. Sometimes it's neglect, like not having food, water, or a safe place to stay.

    What training and from who/where exactly?

    So some kids have extra needs. This could be physical, like having an illness, or mental like a cognitive defect. It could also be behavioral. Our boys have severe PTSD from their trauma, and a couple of other behavior diagnoses as well.

    More seriously, what trauma exactly? Were you told that?

    Yes, we were told everything that they (the state) knew. Our boys have told us a lot more, things not even the case worker knew about. Without getting into too much detail our boys were both physically and sexually abused in extremely horrific ways.

    3 votes

  13. Comment on If you're a parent, what is it like? in ~talk

    Grendel
    Link
    My wife and I are foster parents, which means we care for children that the government has deemed are not safe in their own homes > If it was an orphanage, what was it like there? (Can you even...

    Where did you (uhh) find them?

    My wife and I are foster parents, which means we care for children that the government has deemed are not safe in their own homes

    > If it was an orphanage, what was it like there? (Can you even find children elsewhere if they don't have parents?)How many children were there to choose from?What led you to choose the child you picked in specific instead of someone else? (Dear God, is this an ethical question to ask?)

    So when you foster or adopt, your given this sheet that has this long list of things and you have to mark your willingness to take on kids with those issues. It asks about medical issues, like kids with Diabetes, Cancer, or HIV. It asks about what race of children your willing to take in. It also asks about special needs, like taking in kids who start fires or harm other children.

    Once you become a foster parent you're number goes on this list, and anytime kid(s) get removed from their home the social worker goes down the lists making calls until someone says yes. So basically you get a call and they give you minimal information (mostly just age, gender, how many are in the sibling group, and brief details on why they were removed). If you say no, they keep going down the phone list. If you say yes, you go pick up the kids. They could be with you for 6 weeks, 6 months or even years. And they could go home at any time.

    How do you parent them?
    With a lot of special training. Our two boys, ages 5 and 6 have special needs due to their behaviors. Because of this my wife and I had to take extra training so we could take care of them.

    > Do you follow what they're doing on the Internet or how much they use it? How much?

    They do not have any tablets or way to access the internet right now.

    > Do you encourage them to have a good diet? How much?

    We mostly just focus on portion control and understanding when they've had enough. They have food security issues so we have to be very careful how we approach this.

    Do you encourage them to do more chores? How much?
    Absolutely. They each have a couple of "Jobs" that they do. Simple things like feeding our dog or clearing the table after dinner. They enjoy the responsibility and do a god job.

    > When you do this, how cooperative are they? If they aren't, what do you do to convince them?

    Again, with their behavioral issues we have to handle conflict carefully. At the moment, they really enjoy their chores so we haven't had issues with that specifically yet.

    How do you and your partner split the time spent taking care of them?
    Because of their issues and past trauma we have to have eyes on them every second that they are home with us (we've already had one attempt at setting the house on fire). It's completely exhausting. We take turns as best as we can.

    Feel free to comment or PM me if you have any other questions!

    7 votes

  14. Comment on My startup (Buderflys) has made it to the semi-finals of Denver Startup week. Any chance you would vote for us? in ~misc

    Grendel
    Link Parent
    This looks great and I've voted! I've been looking for something like this for a while now. Please let me know when beta starts because I'd love to test and provide feedback.

    This looks great and I've voted! I've been looking for something like this for a while now. Please let me know when beta starts because I'd love to test and provide feedback.

    2 votes

  15. Comment on Fox News urged to fire Tucker Carlson for defending Kenosha shooter Kyle Rittenhouse in ~news

    Grendel
    Link
    That article was informative but hot damn don't venture too far into the comments below it unless you like being inundated with conservative "law and order" type rhetoric.

    That article was informative but hot damn don't venture too far into the comments below it unless you like being inundated with conservative "law and order" type rhetoric.

    5 votes

  16. Comment on What are your thoughts on piracy? in ~talk

    Grendel
    Link
    I used to pirate everything. Movies, Music, and video games. Now I try really hard to pay for things, with one exception: Books. I don't know why but I have a hard time paying for books. I almost...

    I used to pirate everything. Movies, Music, and video games. Now I try really hard to pay for things, with one exception:

    Books. I don't know why but I have a hard time paying for books. I almost always pirate them, and I'm much more likely to do so if the original author is dead.

    3 votes

  17. Comment on What was the first game you ever loved? in ~games

    Grendel
    Link
    The first console my family had was the PlayStation 1. My cousin gifted me a bunch of games (he had moved on to PS2, this was around 05-06ish). One of them was Crash Bandicoot 2, Cortex Strikes...

    The first console my family had was the PlayStation 1. My cousin gifted me a bunch of games (he had moved on to PS2, this was around 05-06ish). One of them was Crash Bandicoot 2, Cortex Strikes Back.

    I loved that game. We would play for hours, taking turns when we died.

    The next game I fell in love with was Tomb Raider Legend for the PS2 which we got about 3 years later. Seeing a game combine puzzle solving, platforming, and action/gun play just blew my mind.

    2 votes

  18. Comment on What creative projects have you been working on? in ~creative

    Grendel
    Link
    I'm working on getting set up for medium format photography. I managed to pick up a Kiev 88 camera that's in good condition. The new lens for my darkroom enlarger that will let me print medium...

    I'm working on getting set up for medium format photography. I managed to pick up a Kiev 88 camera that's in good condition. The new lens for my darkroom enlarger that will let me print medium format came in over the weekend.

    Now I just need to have the negative carrier I designed 3D printed at my local library and I'll be ready to go!

    1 vote

  19. Comment on In 100 years' time, what do you think society will look back on and view with distaste? in ~humanities

    Grendel
    Link Parent
    I've got to speak up on this one. You are right that people don't choose to have pedophilia desires, but they do choose what they do with those desires. I have strong desires to view pornography,...

    We're blaming people who had no choice in the matter

    I've got to speak up on this one.

    You are right that people don't choose to have pedophilia desires, but they do choose what they do with those desires. I have strong desires to view pornography, however I choose not to give into those desires because I feel that pornography is wrong, and also my wife would be very hurt by it. I can recognize that giving into my desires would hurt someone else, and act accordingly.

    I'm not trying to say that pedophilia is easy to overcome, rather I'm saying that I believe there are people who struggle with those desires but never give into them. It is possible to get help.

    I feel strongly about this because I'm a foster dad of two children that were sexually tortured for several years before they were finally rescued from that house. Living with that trauma, seeing it's effects first hand makes it hard not to get angry. I do believe that the social stigma prevents some people from getting help, and that needs to change. However, it's important to remember that these crimes are still heinous.

    10 votes

  20. Comment on Neighborhood fixer upper in ~creative

    Grendel
    Link Parent
    Thanks! I'd like to be able to get really crisp and clear prints. This one also has some fogging since I was out of proper fixer chemicals and had to improvise with salt water instead. I also...

    Thanks!
    I'd like to be able to get really crisp and clear prints. This one also has some fogging since I was out of proper fixer chemicals and had to improvise with salt water instead. I also ended up with some vignetting since this is a medium format negative that I tried to print with an enlarger lens made for 35mm.

    I do like the old-school artsy look, but so far everything I print has that and I'd like to improve to the point where I can create professional level prints.

    4 votes