mat's recent activity
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Comment on Irish, Scottish and Welsh leaders meet to plan break-up of United Kingdom in ~society
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Comment on Behind the scenes at the Blackwing pencil factory in ~creative
mat Link ParentMidori paper is the best, but it's fairly silly on price. Mnemosyne is also great, as is Rhodia, and I like Caran D'Ache as well. All just in my opinion, of course. What you get is smoothness. Oh,...Midori paper is the best, but it's fairly silly on price. Mnemosyne is also great, as is Rhodia, and I like Caran D'Ache as well. All just in my opinion, of course.
What you get is smoothness. Oh, so smooth. Your writing implement just glides so nicely. If you're using ink you will probably see less bleeding as well.
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Comment on Behind the scenes at the Blackwing pencil factory in ~creative
mat Link ParentNaaa, Tombow Mono 100s for life yo. Blackwings are somewhat overrated and definitely overpriced. Not that the Tombows are cheap though. I have a bit of a soft spot for Midori's pencils but they're...Naaa, Tombow Mono 100s for life yo. Blackwings are somewhat overrated and definitely overpriced. Not that the Tombows are cheap though. I have a bit of a soft spot for Midori's pencils but they're not quite as good as the Tombows to use, despite looking much prettier.
I hear a lot of good things about Mitsubishi's Hi-Uni but for some reason have never tried one. Next time I restock I should get a few.
Anyway it's just pencils. All the good ones are worth a few quid each. Although I do think it's a waste of money if you don't buy nice paper to use them on. Oh no more nice stationary I have to buy oh no.
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Comment on Small talk, ice breakers, lines in ~talk
mat Link ParentSoak some raisins in seasoned (salt and sugar) vinegar for a few hours or, better, overnight and you have pickled raisins. Little nuggets of sweet, acidic, salty deliciousness that you can just...Soak some raisins in seasoned (salt and sugar) vinegar for a few hours or, better, overnight and you have pickled raisins. Little nuggets of sweet, acidic, salty deliciousness that you can just scatter over things. Salads, stews, into sandwiches, with eggs, just eat them on their own. They're delicious and everyone should give them a go HEY, THIS CONVERSATION STARTER WORKS
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Comment on What workplace absurdity are you forced to live with? in ~life
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Comment on What workplace absurdity are you forced to live with? in ~life
mat LinkMy boss. He's constantly expecting me to do more work for no extra money, always worried about deadlines and performance and whether the business is sustainable or whether it should go in another...My boss. He's constantly expecting me to do more work for no extra money, always worried about deadlines and performance and whether the business is sustainable or whether it should go in another direction. But yet he's constantly slacking off, distracted by other projects, putting stuff off until tomorrow and so on. Sometimes he'll wander off for hours at a time fiddling with some personal project or crazy unworkable idea that he thinks somehow might just be the next big thing. Meanwhile I'm expected to drop everything should something unexpected come up - be that production, marketing, customer service or whatever else happens.
It's exhausting and, frankly, at times downright unprofessional. I don't really know what to do about it because I mostly love my job and there are a lot of perks - I can take time off whenever I want, the commute is crazy fast, it's very easy for me to work around childcare requirements and so on. I can even take a few hours off just because it's a nice day, which is great. But that guy!
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Comment on Small talk, ice breakers, lines in ~talk
mat Link ParentI just get bored. If I'm at the point of consciously employing strategies to make talking happen the point is passing time and/or reinforcing the belief in other people that I care about their...I just get bored. If I'm at the point of consciously employing strategies to make talking happen the point is passing time and/or reinforcing the belief in other people that I care about their lives (which I might well actually do, but not always), not providing entertainment for me. Sometimes talking to people is boring but as long as you don't show it, people go away thinking you care about them and that's important sometimes - or at the very least you avoid some standing around in awkward silence.
Small talk isn't really about entertainment. That's what big talk is for. Small talk isn't about what you say, it's about why you're saying it.
"Hello I exist and the things I think and do are both real and important".
"Hello I am listening to you tell me about the things you think and do which proves those things do matter and you are also a human being, we are together and alive here today"
"It is nice that somebody cares about me, thank you for being that person, we are perhaps fractionally closer to being friends now"
"We are here in this social situation and this situation demands we do Chat, I am doing Chat with You because you are a human person and so am I"
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Comment on Small talk, ice breakers, lines in ~talk
mat LinkIf people have kids, ask them about their kids. Most people will talk about their kids for as long as you need them to. (note: as a parent, a significant proportion of the new people I meet are...If people have kids, ask them about their kids. Most people will talk about their kids for as long as you need them to.
(note: as a parent, a significant proportion of the new people I meet are other parents so it's a fairly reliable topic to ask about but obviously this won't work if you're starting university or something)
"Name a food which doesn't go with cheese?" was quite a good one in the past. There's a cheese for almost every occasion, sweet or savoury.
I like pickled raisins.
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Comment on What is the oldest file you still have? in ~tech
mat LinkOh, that's easy. It's one of these, which will mean something to a very small subset of UK viewers of a certain age, and absolutely nobody else. We were told it would be so important and literally...Oh, that's easy. It's one of these, which will mean something to a very small subset of UK viewers of a certain age, and absolutely nobody else. We were told it would be so important and literally nobody ever asked me about it even once.
The oldest digital file I have is this one from 1997
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Comment on The hall of shame: the worst AI-generated flyers in ~design
mat Link ParentThey are a traditional staple of the British village fete, but I have recently found out that my city-kid friends have never heard of such things. I grew up in a fairly rural area so saw several...They are a traditional staple of the British village fete, but I have recently found out that my city-kid friends have never heard of such things. I grew up in a fairly rural area so saw several different ones every summer along with the equally traditional raffles, tombolas, apple bobs, maypoles and so on.
(something something a fete worse than death etc etc)
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Comment on Choosing a printer in ~tech
mat Link ParentThe very few times I want/need colour it's either photos, in which case I pay a photo printing service a few pounds for the use of their insanely high quality photo printers (which I could never...The very few times I want/need colour it's either photos, in which case I pay a photo printing service a few pounds for the use of their insanely high quality photo printers (which I could never afford to own one of); or it's just a document that I can print at my local library on a colour laser for a couple of pence (I can even email a document from home and have it ready at the printer when I get to the library).
Of course your mileage may vary on that front, but I don't miss having colour printing at home at all.
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Comment on Choosing a printer in ~tech
mat LinkSomething over ten years ago I was in a very similar situation to you and I bought the cheapest Samsung wifi-capable mono laser I could find, an M2020-W, for I think £50 and it's been rock solid...Something over ten years ago I was in a very similar situation to you and I bought the cheapest Samsung wifi-capable mono laser I could find, an M2020-W, for I think £50 and it's been rock solid ever since. Sometimes I don't print for months, sometimes every other day. It sits on a shelf out of the way and it Just Works. Every few years I buy an unbranded toner cartridge for £20 and that keeps me going perfectly well.
If I ever need to replace it, I'd look at Brother devices first, a friend has one and it's equally rock solid but looks slightly nicer. I don't know if Samsung even make a cheap mono laser any more. I just checked and toner carts are still available for mine.
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Comment on The hall of shame: the worst AI-generated flyers in ~design
mat LinkThis one almost crosses the line from awful slop into terrifyingly amazing. There's been a LOT of sloppy event posters around where I live this year but this has also led to some actively not-AI...This one almost crosses the line from awful slop into terrifyingly amazing.
There's been a LOT of sloppy event posters around where I live this year but this has also led to some actively not-AI posters showing up, I was tempted to drive three hours to get to this event. Dogs, ice cream, BBQ AND cake. Perfect.
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Comment on Ray Bradbury's "There Will Come Soft Rains" as read by actor Burgess Meredith (1962) in ~books
mat LinkIt's kind of sad how almost attractive the glossy, modern, instantaneous, fiery end of the world the Golden Age authors envisioned seems compared to the slow, sad slide into fascism and climate...It's kind of sad how almost attractive the glossy, modern, instantaneous, fiery end of the world the Golden Age authors envisioned seems compared to the slow, sad slide into fascism and climate collapse that's actually happening is.
Ho hum. This is a great story.
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Comment on Why socialists should embrace luxury apartments in ~society
mat Link ParentFortunately the fact that your country elects a temporary King once every four years, and is so broken it's done that twice with Donald Fucking Trump, doesn't really affect me. At least on this...Fortunately the fact that your country elects a temporary King once every four years, and is so broken it's done that twice with Donald Fucking Trump, doesn't really affect me. At least on this issue. And I'm not sure, if it did, whether that would affect what I would like to have happen in an ideal world. If we're making wishes for the removal of the leech/landlord class entirely, why not tack in another wish to have a President who isn't... well, that guy. Neither thing is going to happen anyway.
I don't know if America has what we'd call "council houses", which are owned by the city/town/area they're located in but it's just that really, but more.
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Comment on Why socialists should embrace luxury apartments in ~society
mat LinkI don't care what kind of housing gets built, I care about who owns it. The state (aka the people) should own anything - anything - that's being rented. All new builds should be state projects. No...I don't care what kind of housing gets built, I care about who owns it. The state (aka the people) should own anything - anything - that's being rented. All new builds should be state projects. No private landlords, no private developers.
If my local council builds and owns a string of £5m luxury properties they rent out for £10k/month or sell for a profit then I'm fine with that. That's revenue we can spend on social care, education, etc.
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Comment on The candidates standing in the Clacton by-election in ~society
mat LinkMy friends kid went to school with Kai Stephens and apparently there were always a LOT of stories about him, um, getting far too friendly with the family dog. Like, way more stories than just...My friends kid went to school with Kai Stephens and apparently there were always a LOT of stories about him, um, getting far too friendly with the family dog. Like, way more stories than just general school gossip.
Make of that what you will.
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Comment on Silicon Valley has a science fiction problem in ~tech
mat LinkRemember that brief period where Musk was naming stuff as if he was founding The Culture? I recall thinking at the time how much he had utterly, absolutely, galactically not understood Banks's...Remember that brief period where Musk was naming stuff as if he was founding The Culture?
I recall thinking at the time how much he had utterly, absolutely, galactically not understood Banks's creation and if this was how The Culture got started then I didn't want any part of it.
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Comment on Need advice about work in ~life
mat Link ParentThe reason I'm not a software developer after 10+ years in the industry and instead work in a physical trade is that sitting at a desk for 8+ hours a day poking at a keyboard was horrendous for my...A lot of those jobs are hard on your body.
The reason I'm not a software developer after 10+ years in the industry and instead work in a physical trade is that sitting at a desk for 8+ hours a day poking at a keyboard was horrendous for my body.
Sure, bricklaying is a young person's job but plumbers and electricians and so on are not under the same kind of physical stress.
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Comment on Gift ideas for niece who’s into sewing? in ~life.women
mat Link ParentWhat @Banazir said, or you can get scissor sharpening tools/jigs which are not quite as good as doing it "properly" on a stone - but much better than having blunt scissors and have a much...What @Banazir said, or you can get scissor sharpening tools/jigs which are not quite as good as doing it "properly" on a stone - but much better than having blunt scissors and have a much shallower learning curve.
Polls, and in one case an actual referendum, almost always show that the majority in those countries want their destinies to remain part of the UK. Especially so in Wales where independence has very low support. In parliamentary elections lots of people vote Plaid/SNP/Sinn Fein for reasons other than independence - up to and including actual fascists elsewhere on the ballot - and FPTP requires tactical voting.
Northern Ireland is very close though, but if that particular situation was easily resolved with a simple vote then there wouldn't have been decades of unrest both political and physical. Northern Ireland is a mess and won't stop being one just because Sinn Fein signed a piece of paper. I'm not defending British colonialism, but there's a lot of people in Northern Ireland who are happy to be UK citizens and want to continue being such.
I'm fairly sure none of them can choose to leave. They can ask Westminster for a referendum and Westminster will say no. This is just performative politicking from the leaders of three pro-independence parties, nothing more.