first-must-burn's recent activity
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Comment on Hate-reading? in ~books
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Comment on Hate-reading? in ~books
first-must-burn Link ParentI briefly dated an Objectivist in college, so I read it then, but I still had to skip the 80 page Jon Gault speech. Pro tip: do not read Any Rand if you're doing group work in college and often...I briefly dated an Objectivist in college, so I read it then, but I still had to skip the 80 page Jon Gault speech.
Pro tip: do not read Any Rand if you're doing group work in college and often carrying the team. It will make you both frustrated and insufferable.
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Comment on Idle complaints of indebtedness and isolation in ~talk
first-must-burn LinkI'm sorry. Sometimes it feels like you hit bottom, then life throws you a shovel. I want to tell you it won't last forever, but I can't promise that, so I'll settle for I hope it won't last...I'm sorry. Sometimes it feels like you hit bottom, then life throws you a shovel. I want to tell you it won't last forever, but I can't promise that, so I'll settle for I hope it won't last forever.
A couple practical things:
These window seal kits are relatively inexpensive, but they can make a surprising difference. Since you said the frame is rotten, you may be able to seal it to the trim instead. I have used them many times.
E6000 is a strong, flexible cement that would be perfect for gluing your shoe sole on.
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Comment on Zohran Mamdani wins New York City mayor’s race, capping a stunning ascent in ~society
first-must-burn Link ParentI know what you're thinking. What's a place like me doing in a girl like this?I know what you're thinking. What's a place like me doing in a girl like this?
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Comment on Is anyone here in or familiar with Tokyo? Going on a trip and have zero idea what to do as a non-tourist... in ~travel
first-must-burn LinkNever been to Japan, but I watched a travel video where someone took a sleeper train to (I think) Kyoto, and it looked pretty neat. Unfortunately, I cannot find the specific video and there seem...Never been to Japan, but I watched a travel video where someone took a sleeper train to (I think) Kyoto, and it looked pretty neat. Unfortunately, I cannot find the specific video and there seem to be 10 billion on YT, but it seemed like a neat experience, especially if you are traveling solo.
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Comment on Paid e-mail providers - your experiences, how you use them and how I would use it in ~tech
first-must-burn (edited )LinkI use MxRoute. It's just email, but if you have a lot of domains or want to create a lot of small accounts, it's a good value. I run email accounts for a lot of family members and all the email...I use MxRoute. It's just email, but if you have a lot of domains or want to create a lot of small accounts, it's a good value. I run email accounts for a lot of family members and all the email for my different domains. The guys who run it are a little prickly, but they provide good support via discord, and they are serious about providing high reputation email servers.
It requires you to configure email accounts, certificates, and domains using WYSIWYG tools - if you ever had email through one of the Cpanel shared hosts like bluehost, the level of configuration is similar.
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Comment on Tips for becoming a tea person in ~food
first-must-burn LinkAmerican south phoning in - iced black tea is very good without any sweetener or milk. If you find it too bitter, mint or lemon can be a good addition. That said, the thing that's worked for me...American south phoning in - iced black tea is very good without any sweetener or milk. If you find it too bitter, mint or lemon can be a good addition.
That said, the thing that's worked for me getting off of Diet Dr Pepper was separating caffeine and hydration. Now I just drink (a ton of) seltzer water and take a caffeine pill every morning. Everything just works better when I'm properly hydrated.
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Comment on More thread navigation options? in ~tildes
first-must-burn Link ParentI can vouch that this collapsing behavior also works great in Three Cheers for Tildes. H/t @talklittle for an awesome appI can vouch that this collapsing behavior also works great in Three Cheers for Tildes.
H/t @talklittle for an awesome app
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Comment on Hi, how are you? Mental health support and discussion thread (November 2025) in ~health.mental
first-must-burn Link ParentI read what you wrote and thought, "Are you me?" I am sorry you are feeling that, but boy, I can relate. I have always had trouble with a kind of aversion to social situations, but I was pretty...I read what you wrote and thought, "Are you me?" I am sorry you are feeling that, but boy, I can relate.
I have always had trouble with a kind of aversion to social situations, but I was pretty good at managing it. Work went abruptly, fully remote during the pandemic. I barely left the house (except grocery shopping every ten days) for almost a year. Even though we were sporadically back in office in 2022 and after, I have realized that my default mode is now to be home, and everything else feels like work / a performance I think in those years at home, I really lost tone in that mental muscle.
I'm interviewing for a job that will be fully in office, and I'm both scared and excited because I think that will be good for me to regain some of the connectedness I had before. Or I will run screaming because it's too peoply outside. But I try to remain optimistic.
I hope you find therapy that resonates with you and brings you to a better place.
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Comment on Grieving family uses AI chatbot to cut hospital bill from $195,000 to $33,000 — US family says Claude highlighted duplicative charges, improper coding, and other violations in ~tech
first-must-burn Link ParentCan you expand the LE acronym for me?Can you expand the LE acronym for me?
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Comment on Honk your horn in ~health.mental
first-must-burn Link ParentHonking culture varies so widely from place to place, I hesitate to make a universal statement. Maybe a good system would be: the first N honks are free, then they are taxed at a rate that...Honking culture varies so widely from place to place, I hesitate to make a universal statement. Maybe a good system would be: the first N honks are free, then they are taxed at a rate that increases the more you go above N, where N is set based on GPS at some regional average based on traffic density.
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Comment on Double meaning Tildes post tag writing prompt in ~creative
first-must-burn LinkNothing too exciting, but here are a few I got by putting single letters into the tag suggestion on the submit page: Ask.recommendations - seeking info or seeking flights to the ivory coast Bugs -...Nothing too exciting, but here are a few I got by putting single letters into the tag suggestion on the submit page:
- Ask.recommendations - seeking info or seeking flights to the ivory coast
- Bugs - code flaws or centipedes
- Hacking - subverting use cases or coughing up a lung
- Long watch - extended video runtime or staying awake all night
- Rust - code or corrosion engineering
- Python - code or sneks
- Ada - wheelchair ramps or female role models or code
- Windows - glass panes or a pain in the ass
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Comment on How do you volunteer your time? in ~talk
first-must-burn LinkOur library (nowhere near you) has an after school tutoring program. I'd be surprised if there wasn't something either with the schools or the library. My daughter does a lot of programs at the...Our library (nowhere near you) has an after school tutoring program. I'd be surprised if there wasn't something either with the schools or the library.
My daughter does a lot of programs at the boys and girls club, and I know they can use volunteers as well.
You may have to get your clearances to work with kids. I don't know how it is in NY, but in PA, there's a state component that's just a form, and usually free if the org requiring it gives you a code or whatever. Once I started volunteering in my daughter's school there was an additional step where I had to go to the UPS store and get fingerprinted. I thinknitncost around $30 and should be good for several years.
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Comment on Supermarkets intentionally charging full prices on sale items in ~food
first-must-burn Link ParentI am not in Europe, (US, Pittsburgh) but I did detailed price comparisons between our local stores when I was out of work: Aldi, Giant Eagle, Target, BJs (warehouse club), and the local stores....I am not in Europe, (US, Pittsburgh) but I did detailed price comparisons between our local stores when I was out of work: Aldi, Giant Eagle, Target, BJs (warehouse club), and the local stores.
Aldi is about half the cost of Giant Eagle, Target falls somewhere in between. The local stores are more expensive than Giant Eagle.
The real surprise to me is that Aldi is competitive with BJs on price per quantity without having to buy a larger quantity. This is especially true of produce. Though Aldi's selection isn't huge, the quality is very good.
There are a few exceptions, like meat and a few other more "name brand" things, that are cheaper at BJs. But really the gas discount puts us ahead on the membership fee, so its worth having it for that, and what other deals we find are just gravy.
Which all just to say, double check your prices, you might be surprised about the bulk buying assumption.
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Comment on Tiny adds up: Unshittification and "The Pawshank Redemption" in ~life.pets
first-must-burn LinkThis is so lovely. And not just because of a good pun, though I do love one. There are so many things we can't fix about the world, but there is real power in not walking past a problem that you...This is so lovely. And not just because of a good pun, though I do love one.
There are so many things we can't fix about the world, but there is real power in not walking past a problem that you can fix. Not to be too mystical about it, but I often feel like there is a still small voice that says, "pay attention to this, this is your time." I try to be open to that feeling, and some of the most rewarding things in my life have come about because of it.
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Comment on A 'death train' is haunting south Florida in ~transport
first-must-burn Link ParentIn this case, the town is literally named College Station because the university is basically the town. And they have a strong alumni network all over the state. So they probably have more...In this case, the town is literally named College Station because the university is basically the town. And they have a strong alumni network all over the state. So they probably have more influence than normal.
I assumed they restructured the blocks (is that the right thing?) so that there was enough room outside campus for the whole train.
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Comment on A 'death train' is haunting south Florida in ~transport
first-must-burn Link ParentIn college, our (very large) campus was bisected by an at-grade train line. It was very inconvenient if you got stuck on one side with a class starting on the other, though most faculty were...Even some grade seperations don't eliminate risk. I was stoped once at a location with a major road underpass. Litterally as I was about to pull, a passing train warned me that a man with a bicycle was crossing over my train. People get killed doing this...
In college, our (very large) campus was bisected by an at-grade train line. It was very inconvenient if you got stuck on one side with a class starting on the other, though most faculty were understanding. Early on, the train would regularly stop on the tracks blocking the intersection. I saw a guy attempt to carry his bike and climbed between the cars. The train started suddenly, he dropped his bike on the tracks, and the train cut it in half. Very lucky that was all that happened.
There was a pedestrian overpass, but so far from the main traffic point that I never used it or saw anyone use it during my whole time as a student there.
Eventually they made some change to the train line so that the trains no longer stopped on the tracks on campus.
As I was graduating, they were taking on a major capital project to make pedestrian underpasses and some provision for the bus lines. Though surprise, surprise, the main goal of the project seemed to be making it easy for crowds from the west famous commuter lots to get to the football stadium.
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Comment on Supermarket rewards card- yes or no? in ~finance
first-must-burn LinkI will just point out that if you're purchasing your groceries with a credit card, they already can (and probably are) tracking your spending habits and possibly correlating this with data from...I will just point out that if you're purchasing your groceries with a credit card, they already can (and probably are) tracking your spending habits and possibly correlating this with data from other sources. I have sort of given up because I don't have the energy to worry about any but the most egregious privacy invasions. Also, when I was a grad student, I had a lot of friends who didn't have cars, and they would buy their groceries with my loyalty card (which got me free gas) and I would take them places. It was a pretty good trade.
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Comment on Do you have a favorite setting shared amongst multiple authors? in ~books
first-must-burn Link ParentI'm glad it happened this way. Riker is just milk toast and smarm.I remember being incredibly annoyed when Troi ended up with Worf in season 7
I'm glad it happened this way. Riker is just milk toast and smarm.
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Comment on Honk your horn in ~health.mental
first-must-burn Link ParentYeah, I mean that's so logical and practical. But it doesn't get me a paintball turret on my car! In all seriousness, computer vision is good enough and AI speech interaction is good enough that...Yeah, I mean that's so logical and practical. But it doesn't get me a paintball turret on my car!
In all seriousness, computer vision is good enough and AI speech interaction is good enough that you could make a dash cam where you can say "tag the last thirty seconds of the grey Mazda" and it is uploaded to a public shaming site that correlates submissions based on license plate. Privacy nightmare, but ring cameras caught on, so ... I should not give the Bez any more ideas.
I have pretty much arrived at the point where I will allow myself to DNF any book I am not enjoying. I even DNFed a three-book series halfway through the last book.
The most useful hate read I ever had was Digital Fortress by Dan Brown. The research is exceedingly bad, the plot is shallow, and his understanding of the tech is laughable.
Spoiler
A critical element of the plot turns on the fact that, in the inner sanctum of the government's most secret digital spy agency, people don't lock their workstations, they just turn down the brightness on the monitor. Not even just, you know, turn the monitor off. But actually dial the brightness down. Totally absurd.
But, I was on a very long drive when I was listening to it, and my annoyance helped keep me awake. So there was that.