pekt's recent activity
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Comment on Tildes Book Club Discussion - November 2025 - We are Legion (We are Bob) by Dennis Taylor in ~books
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Comment on How a flawed idea is teaching millions of kids to be poor readers in ~science
pekt Link ParentI should ask him about that again. I remember us sitting around and chatting about it over a few beers, since smell is such a component of taste and him lacking that means he is missing part of...I should ask him about that again. I remember us sitting around and chatting about it over a few beers, since smell is such a component of taste and him lacking that means he is missing part of that experience.
I know he responded that he tasted foods just fine, and we got in to how it would be hard for him to describe in detail how he experiences taste different from the rest of us, since that is the only way he's ever known how things should taste.
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Comment on How a flawed idea is teaching millions of kids to be poor readers in ~science
pekt Link ParentReading your comment reminded me of my friend who was born with a non-functioning olfactory nerve and has never been able to smell. He told me that when he was a kid he thought people just put...Reading your comment reminded me of my friend who was born with a non-functioning olfactory nerve and has never been able to smell. He told me that when he was a kid he thought people just put things close to their face to better appreciate the look of it and somehow inhaling in your nose would help you see the colors better, and then you would say "this smells nice".
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Comment on How a flawed idea is teaching millions of kids to be poor readers in ~science
pekt Link ParentI know exactly how you felt about being able to discern individual leaves. I'll occasionally go outside for a bit without my glasses and then put them on and try to not take for granted the...I know exactly how you felt about being able to discern individual leaves. I'll occasionally go outside for a bit without my glasses and then put them on and try to not take for granted the ability to see so clearly.
I'm not sure why, but it took me multiple years of mentioning to my parents that I thought I needed glasses before they got me some. I would even put on their glasses and say "I can see better wearing this, it is still blurry but less blurry than before". The day I got my own pair was amazing!
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Comment on Best recommendations for PC couch multiplayer games? in ~games
pekt Link ParentWe only ever played with 2 people. Some of the maps were challenging, but we 3 starred all of them eventually. They added 4 stars in Overcooked 2 but we didn't go back to do those, maybe one dayWe only ever played with 2 people. Some of the maps were challenging, but we 3 starred all of them eventually. They added 4 stars in Overcooked 2 but we didn't go back to do those, maybe one day
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Comment on Best recommendations for PC couch multiplayer games? in ~games
pekt LinkThe Overcooked series was a hit with my wife who doesn't game much. I'd highly recommend them!The Overcooked series was a hit with my wife who doesn't game much. I'd highly recommend them!
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Comment on What are your favorite simple pleasures? in ~talk
pekt Link ParentI didn't plan to join one going into college, but I had one of my best friends growing up rushing and other guys I knew from high school had joined that fraternity, so I thought I'd check it out...I didn't plan to join one going into college, but I had one of my best friends growing up rushing and other guys I knew from high school had joined that fraternity, so I thought I'd check it out and try pledging. I wasn't super active as a pledge or during my first year due to a bad relationship I was in with my ex-girlfriend, but whenever I was there the guys were welcoming and supportive. Joining ended up being a fantastic experience, I made lifelong friends, learned a ton about myself, how I approach things, areas I needed to improve, and had a very active social life all while being a home body. When you live in a mansion with 20-40 other guys and the other 20-30 members come over with their friends to hang out or have parties, you don't need to go out to the bars or random houses to see your friends.
Also, the part of common space care is very spot on! It always amazed me seeing the house go from trashed on a Friday night, to clean by noon on Saturday, trashed again Saturday night to squeaky clean again by noon on Sunday. We were also known for annually filling our basement with sand for an Egyptian themed house dance + follow-up beach party, and then removing all the sand from the basement by the following weekend. Amazing what ~30-50 college aged guys can get done in short order.
I'd recommend any young adult to check it out, or at least approach it with an open mind. The culture of different chapters on a campus can vary a ton, and things can change as new guys run the fraternity. I pushed for and implemented sweeping changes while I was in leadership to how we did things, and it was interesting hearing the guys who were a couple of years younger telling the pledges "this is how we've done things" even though those things were what I'd implemented a few years prior.
I had a group of high school friends who attended the same college, and I know that if I hadn't joined my fraternity, I would have mainly hung out with them and probably only made a few extra friends during my time on campus. They're awesome guys, but the support I received from my brothers was invaluable. We would support each other through things both big and small from mental health struggles, death of family members, or addictions to which professors to avoid, help with homework and studying, advice at the gym, or holding mock interviews and resume reviews.
Even after being out of college for nearly a decade, I look at the time I spent there as very valuable and, like you, I encourage anyone to look in to it. I'm still passionate about the organization, and if I hadn't gotten married right as I graduated, I was slotted to work for our international body for a few years after graduating and/or continuing on in the international governing body and running my local alumni board. I try not to talk about it often in person since my wife lived through most of my time in the fraternity and supported me during it when I was putting too much time into the chapter and not in our relationship, but I'm always happy to talk about the positives of Greek life, while also acknowledging that there are problems present in some chapters and that, like other huge groups [there are hundreds of thousands of active members in Greek life], we have our share of bad apples and room for things to grow.
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Comment on What are your favorite simple pleasures? in ~talk
pekt Link ParentAs someone who was in a college fraternity, the indoor leather couch outdoors under a covered patio/porch is so spot on. Reading that brought back so many memories of hanging out with the guys...As someone who was in a college fraternity, the indoor leather couch outdoors under a covered patio/porch is so spot on. Reading that brought back so many memories of hanging out with the guys sitting on those couches and chatting. One of the best memories from there was waking up in the middle of the night during summer and not being able to sleep. I finally got up and took my blanket outside to sit on the couch. One of the other guys who was living in over the summer came out a few minutes later and handed me a beer without saying a word. We ended up sitting there drinking while a storm blew in. Finished our beers and went back to bed.
Thanks for sparking that memory.
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Comment on What are your favorite simple pleasures? in ~talk
pekt LinkThe first taste of durian for the season Seeing my kids help each other or learn something new Sitting down with a good book and no distractions Eating a good street food dish or a new combination...- The first taste of durian for the season
- Seeing my kids help each other or learn something new
- Sitting down with a good book and no distractions
- Eating a good street food dish or a new combination of curries in a big plate of nasi kandar
- Holding my wife's hand
- Listening to a podcast while doing housework
- Stumbling across a new album of background music to listen to during work
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Comment on What have you been watching / reading this week? (Anime/Manga) in ~anime
pekt LinkMy slow watch through of Initial D First Stage finished this weekend. I've been watching the series in bursts and have been forgetting to post my thoughts about the episodes I did watch. I really...My slow watch through of Initial D First Stage finished this weekend.
I've been watching the series in bursts and have been forgetting to post my thoughts about the episodes I did watch. I really enjoyed watching the second half of this season. I felt like the pacing of the show was really enjoyable. Seeing the build up to each race and seeing the slice of life in between each episode made the highs of the euro beat filled street races that much better.
The early CGI of the cars was something that grew on me. I'm not the biggest fan of CGI in anime, I know it can look great when done right, just like the older cel animation can look terrible when done poorly. For some reason this incredibly jarring old CGi just worked, though this could be nostalgia since the cars looked like they were lifted from a PS1 era game and transplanted in to the anime.
One of the aspects I found myself enjoying more than I thought I would was the sound of the cars. It felt like I was right there with the cars. I watched a review of this season and the youtuber mentioned that the sound of the cars is toned down in the remake/remaster of this season, and he felt like it toned down some of the feeling of the action. I haven't watched any of the newer stuff, so I'll wait and see if I notice it when I finally get there.
I can see why this is a classic, and I'll definitely be watching the later seasons of the show later on and probably finish the manga eventually as well to get some of the storyline/side plots that didn't make it in to the anime.
I do get to announce that my new slow watch through of Soukou Kihei Votoms or Armored Trooper Votoms has started! I've watched through episode 1 so far.
The creator of this series, Ryousuke Takahashi also created Taiyou no Kiba Dougram, which I also shared my thoughts on as I watched it, and still plan to write a longer review to post on here at some point. I felt like changing genres and still don't feel like diving down the Gundam rabbit hole, so this series which is more self contained as it only has a few short prequels and a short sequel felt like a nice option to dive back in to some gritty mecha anime.
Planning to share my thoughts on VOTOMS a bit more regularly as things go. My schedule for watching anime fluctuates as always, but hopefully you all find these somewhat interesting.
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Comment on Hate-reading? in ~books
pekt (edited )LinkIt's rare that I'll finish a book that I actively don't like. When I was younger I would pick one book and read straight through it, and there were a few books I remember not enjoying as much but...It's rare that I'll finish a book that I actively don't like. When I was younger I would pick one book and read straight through it, and there were a few books I remember not enjoying as much but wanting to finish so I could "get on to the next book" that I wanted to read. Now that I read books based on my mood, I'll often stop reading a book where I'm not excited for it and come back (sometimes years later) to finish it.
I did have two books that I dropped in recent years because of characters I found I didn't enjoy after loving the first book. I wouldn't say I was hate reading, but I definitely went further in to the book because I really enjoyed the first one, hoping that it would get better or click for me.
The Wall of Storms book two in The Dandelion Dynasty series by Ken Liu. I think part of why I bounced off the book was reading it as an audiobook. One of the main characters of the series is a young girl who is essentially a genius, who also the type of character to poke holes/question everything. Having her come before the emperor and start giving a critique of the Confucian style monarchy, and then later poking at the character system of writing, felt annoying to me.
Honestly, I could be misremembering details since I dropped this book ~6 years ago. The reason I think this book just didn't land for me was probably that it was an audiobook. I read the first book in that way and loved it, but I think spending the extra time with a character who I didn't really enjoy by needing to listen to the narrator talk through their thoughts instead of just reading through it led me to stop. I've thought about picking it up again since I loved the first one, but I've got 1k+ books on my read list that I'd like to get to so I'm not if/when I ever will.
I listen to a ton of podcasts and would take breaks from listening to them to listen to an audiobook. After this book, I decided to only use my listening time for podcasts. There are tons of great performances I'll miss out on from not listening to audiobooks, but I have more podcasts that I want to listen to than time to listen to them (hundreds of them that I've found that I think are interesting that I bookmark in my podcast app).Zomblog II by T.W. Brown. I'm a sucker for post apocalyptic stories, especially ones that involve zombies. I'm a fan of a slow zombies, the fast ones can be interesting, but the element of the unrelenting horde of slow zombies that hone in on your location and one wrong move can spell the end of you and potentially the group of survivors you're with is interesting to me. I dropped this book purely because I couldn't stand the main character. The first 3/4 of the original Zomblog followed a character I really enjoyed in the form of a blog/journal about his experience in a zombie apocalypse. It's not the best written work, but it scratched an itch for me, and it was by an independent author, so I'm happy to cut him some slack. The book also took place in the area I grew up and lived in the US (the Pacific Northwest which can be fun seeing characters go to places I've been to personally). I would encourage anyone interested to check out the first book, the last quarter will likely determine if you will enjoy the following books in the series.
I've included spoilers below as to why I dropped the second book here in case anyone doesn't want to get spoiled on the series and try it for themselves.
Spoilers below
Around 3/4 of the way through the original Zomblog the main character gets infected and dies. The narration is picked up by the woman he was romantically involved with, whom he had helped rescue from your generic apocalyptic band of "raider" bad guys. This leads to an abrupt narration shift, which was a bit jarring but makes sense as you have a new person recording their thoughts, and I was down to explore things further.
She was immediately more callous and cold-hearted, where the previous main character was a bit warmer and wanting to save people. I initially wrote it off as someone who had been through a lot, especially a lot of sexual violence at the hands of the "raider" group. As things progressed, I just couldn't find myself liking or even rooting for her as a character.
She led a group of women splintering off from the group they were a part of because she wanted to explore some of the US before fuel stopped working, and they would be forced to stay in one location. Seemed like they had a good thing going on in their group, and I tend to enjoy a rebuild narrative, but I could understand her wanting to do this, and it lets us explore more of the country. Where things started to go completely downhill was this group's decision to raid a town, not for general survival supplies, but specifically for batteries for their sex toys, as I remember it saying they "have needs". She even remarked on this being potentially dangerous, but those "needs" must be met. This decision led to a sizable portion of her splinter group being (I want to say 1/3-1/2 of the group) being killed. Just such a brain-dead decision, and there was absolutely no remorse about the loss of life from the new main character about this, or really any reflection on this being a terrible idea. I would totally of understood mentioning this in context of running low on supplies or just looking for batteries for that as part of their normal scavenging, but they were good to go on everything else and chose specifically to do just so they could get off.
She also finds out that she is pregnant, and her immediate plan is to go to the compound that the previous main character was previously at but left to go scouting and to see who else was out there (can't remember the specifics), and once she is there to have the baby and immediately leave so she can continue her exploration. I know being a parent isn't for everyone, but this ended up being something that she continually focuses on, as obviously pregnancy is a huge thing and this is a diary format book. As someone who is a parent who puts his kids first, this is a headspace I found myself not really connecting with, and all her previous actions and general callous nature made me realize that I wasn't enjoying the books anymore. I tried giving the book breaks and every time I came back I just couldn't stand the character. I read in the other synopsises for the books further in the series that she was the main character, so my hope that she would be swapped out for someone else was dashed.
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Comment on Project N - a fork Daggerfall Unity seeking to add all of Tamriel in to the Daggerfall engine in ~games
pekt Link ParentThe original Daggerfall game had a built-in fast travel system which most people leaned in to cover the vast distances. While it is possible to walk everywhere or ride a horse, it can take a...The original Daggerfall game had a built-in fast travel system which most people leaned in to cover the vast distances. While it is possible to walk everywhere or ride a horse, it can take a while. There is a video of someone walking from one corner for the map to the other in the vanilla game, which iirc took them ~70 hours to do.
The creator of Project N is opposed to fast travel and certain modern conveniences, and while he is the one that is creating this project, and he can do what he wants, I do hope that he leaves some forms of fast travel as a toggleable system. Some suggestions I saw were limiting fast travel to specific forms of transit (i.e. going to a port to use a ship, or joining a caravan that travels from certain points), but we'll see what the final result is.
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Comment on Project N - a fork Daggerfall Unity seeking to add all of Tamriel in to the Daggerfall engine in ~games
pekt Link ParentI agree with you on the original game having a lack of things to see. I've seen videos showcasing mods that really add variety to the terrain and make exploring more interesting (i.e. this Enhance...I agree with you on the original game having a lack of things to see. I've seen videos showcasing mods that really add variety to the terrain and make exploring more interesting (i.e. this Enhance and Eroded Terrian mod or World of Daggerfall which adds more discoverable locations in the wilderness and looks to add variety to the terrain as well).
I don't think I played enough to really get annoyed at the NPC interaction, but I also think that it is something that mods really add to as well. I feel like the base game had such ambition, and with the completion of the Daggerfall Unity project it opens the doors for additional projects to fork the code and build on it or mods to expand upon what is there.
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Comment on Project N - a fork Daggerfall Unity seeking to add all of Tamriel in to the Daggerfall engine in ~games
pekt (edited )LinkI thought I would highlight this project in case anyone finds it interesting. The guy heading this project is forking the Daggerfall Unity engine to add in all of Tamriel. The map that he is...I thought I would highlight this project in case anyone finds it interesting. The guy heading this project is forking the Daggerfall Unity engine to add in all of Tamriel. The map that he is currently working on for this project is over 94x the size of the vanilla Daggerfall map.
Edit: for scale the vanilla Daggerfall map is roughly equivalent in size to Great BritainHere is a link to the Daggerfall Workshop Forum post that he also links to in this Reddit post announcing the project: https://forums.dfworkshop.net/viewtopic.php?t=6460
The Discord is also somewhat active, and you can view progress and discussion around the Project there: https://discord.gg/HJSgJKxK
I've not played a lot of Daggerfall, as I wasn't too interested in it when I was younger and decided to wait until the Unity project hit 1.0 to try that out, which happened when I was trying desperately to find a job and didn't have time for games. In the ~10 hours I've put in, the game really clicked for me and I could see myself sinking in a lot of hours role-playing different characters, especially with the extra features and improvements mods add to the base game.
This project also sparked a really cool sense of that I could go somewhere in Tamriel that no one else had visited yet (in this mod). It also got me interested in contributing to the mod in some way eventually. Maybe even adding in some custom towns or something down the line when I have some more time to work on projects I'm personally interested in.
The creator of the project does have some particular ideas on how he wants this implemented, and when he is finished the game will be much different than vanilla Daggerfall. My hope is that some of the changes he wants to implement will be forgeable on and off, but we'll see how things shape up or if someone mods the fork when he is finished to add other options to it.
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Project N - a fork Daggerfall Unity seeking to add all of Tamriel in to the Daggerfall engine
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Comment on What indie competitive games do you play? in ~games
pekt Link ParentI opened the link and thought "hey this looks like Verdun!" and then scrolled down and saw that those other games are from the same developer and set in a different WW1 front. I really enjoyed...I opened the link and thought "hey this looks like Verdun!" and then scrolled down and saw that those other games are from the same developer and set in a different WW1 front.
I really enjoyed Verdun, but had a hard time getting my friends to play with me. I've always enjoyed bolt action rifles in WW2 shooters, and having the game mainly focused on them felt really fun to me.
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Comment on What indie competitive games do you play? in ~games
pekt (edited )LinkI played Advance Wars by Web competitively for a bit, and by that I mean I played ranked games and stopped playing when I realized I was spending more time than I had planned thinking through my...I played Advance Wars by Web competitively for a bit, and by that I mean I played ranked games and stopped playing when I realized I was spending more time than I had planned thinking through my turns. The game is asynchronous, and you can play many matches at once. There is a live league where the turn time is reduced from days to minutes to force more real time play.
The Discord server is very active and there are several content creators who regularly put out match recaps, tutorials/strategy videos, and other content related to the game.
There is no tutorial or bot matches, so if you are brand new to the game, you could always play the GBA and DS games that this is based off of. I would also recommend anyone who is new to AWBW to check out the wiki, even if you have played the Advance Wars games before. Certain mechanics function differently in AWBW, one of the main ones being how transport units function at the end of a turn. I.e. you can bring an infantry into a transport copter that has already moved and deployed a unit and then use that same transport copter to then deploy the infantry unit on the same turn, which can be used to extend the movement of that infantry by an extra space.
If anyone is interested in trying it out, you can add me on AWBW (pekt99) and I'd be happy to play some friendly matches with you.
Edit: if you want to play one of those friendly matches you should DM me on here first. I haven't played AWBW in the last year and so I probably won't see your friend request for a long time if you add me there. -
Comment on Do you have a favorite setting shared amongst multiple authors? in ~books
pekt Link ParentI can give some recommendations on what I think are some good places, so start with 40k. There's other great series out there besides these, and I think @cfabbro could drop in some others...I can give some recommendations on what I think are some good places, so start with 40k. There's other great series out there besides these, and I think @cfabbro could drop in some others suggestions as well.
- Eisenhorn - Follows an inquisitor and features a great look at 40k outside the area of armed conflict in a theater of war. Series and contains two sequel series. I also just found out looking up the Goodreads link that there is a 4th novel that has been published about Eisenhorn, so thank you giving me a cause to look this up. I need to read this.
- Gaunt's Ghosts - Fantastic imperial guard series. If you've heard of the Richard Sharpe series by Bernard Cornwell, this series was inspired by it. I do want to note that the first two novels in the series are collections of short stories, and the third novel is the start of full novel length stories. I would highly recommend this series. I've read the first 11 books and plan to read the rest of them at some point.
- Ciaphas Cain - Follow an imperial commissar and his trusty aide who is very cowardly, but manages to save the day while saving his own skin. I've read the first 6 books in the series and loved it. Planning to read the rest soon.
- Night Lords - Great chaos space marine books. It was interesting as this was my first series from their perspective. I thought it was done well and explored them essentially being unaligned chaos space marines trying to get by and fight their war.
- Ultra Marines - Learn more about the post boys of the Space Marines from their standout member who goes against the grain of their chapter.
- Titanicus - Standalone novel about titan's fighting titan's on a forge world.
Edit: Since you're exposed to the lore through the games, the Horus Heresy may also be a good starting place. The first three books should be read in order, but after that you can find suggested reading guides online if you want to follow specific plot threads/characters. I was reading through them in publication order before I got annoyed at Games Workshop and stopped (23 books in), but I'll probably pick the series up again eventually and read them all.
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Comment on Do you have a favorite setting shared amongst multiple authors? in ~books
pekt Link ParentI remember hearing about this when I had first read A Song of Ice and Fire, and I told myself I would give it a try after he finished that series. I should probably revise that thought and just...I remember hearing about this when I had first read A Song of Ice and Fire, and I told myself I would give it a try after he finished that series. I should probably revise that thought and just give the series a try since there is no telling when (or more accurately - if) the series will be finished.
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Comment on Do you have a favorite setting shared amongst multiple authors? in ~books
pekt Link ParentWhen I first got in to 40k as a teenager, I mainly read books about Space Marines since that was what was available at my local book store. I then got my hands on Gaunt's Ghosts, Eisenhorn, and...When I first got in to 40k as a teenager, I mainly read books about Space Marines since that was what was available at my local book store. I then got my hands on Gaunt's Ghosts, Eisenhorn, and Ciaphas Cain, and it really opened my eyes to what else the setting could offer. Games Workshop please write more books about non-space marines, there are dozens of us who would buy them, like @cfabbro and myself who would buy them or check them out from a library!
I enjoy a Space Marine novel occasionally now, usually enjoying how it fits in to the greater narrative (like in the Horus Hersey) and fleshes out the lore. That being said, sometimes a nice action book about giant guys with giant guns and chain saw swords can be fun when I don't want to think too much. This has become rarer since taking my break from reading 40k books and diving in to other works.
I came in knowing that this book was popular, and I had heard that it wasn't the most "serious" of books, with it having some comedy as well.
I thoroughly enjoyed it and found it was a very enjoyable read that I kept wanting to come back to see what happened next. There were some slow parts here and there, but it was overall a page turner.
I thought how he handled the copying process not being exact for each replication of the original replicant added some variety and interest to the series, since I thought before he started making more copies that he would essentially have a ton of carbon copies of himself running around.