I am a father to a small horde of isopods (these guys: wikimedia commons image). Thus, my username. Isopods (and in general, invertebrates) get a bad rap. They're cute and wriggly and they eat...
I am a father to a small horde of isopods (these guys: wikimedia commons image). Thus, my username.
Isopods (and in general, invertebrates) get a bad rap. They're cute and wriggly and they eat leaves and eggshells and they are completely harmless. They're surprisingly good at winning people's hearts when they actually see 'em - there's something about how they wiggle around and peek out from behind leaves and gently nom on veggies that weirdly excites the "adorable" neurons in the brain instead of the "creepy" ones. (Or people might just be humoring me...)
Although I'm not nearly as committed to keeping invertebrates as some (I don't have the time or space), it's really made me more respectful of the tiny creatures around us. Nobody is exactly championing bug rights to world governments, so I don't see the situation getting better, unless someone wants to create the Arthropod Alliance and start collecting funds.
Roly poly bugs are some of the cutest little dudes. There are piles of them in my compost area. Also recently got to know a spider that predominantly eats those (woodlouse spider). It's so...
Roly poly bugs are some of the cutest little dudes. There are piles of them in my compost area. Also recently got to know a spider that predominantly eats those (woodlouse spider). It's so interesting to sometimes just stare at the ground in the yard :) so many little guys down there doin stuff.
I love cute lil isopods! I struggle with most bugs, to be honest, but I really adore isopod friends. Spiders and I have an understanding, though. I won't freak out and let my arachnophobia get the...
I love cute lil isopods! I struggle with most bugs, to be honest, but I really adore isopod friends.
Spiders and I have an understanding, though. I won't freak out and let my arachnophobia get the best of me as long as I can't see them. I understand that spiders are good, but my hind brain doesn't care.
I wrote a long reply to another comment with some general advice which I think might help you as well. Generally, isopods are not super enthusiastic about bright light, and you'll stress them out...
I wrote a long reply to another comment with some general advice which I think might help you as well.
Generally, isopods are not super enthusiastic about bright light, and you'll stress them out if you put them in the open - it's best if you keep them in a terrarium or enclosure where they can feel safe and out of the way most of the time. No worries, though - they'll typically be active when you open the lid or peek in, and if you give them some time to multiply, you will have plenty of little buddies to watch.
This is a great visual introduction to setting up your first isopod home.
Any good resources on taking care of them? I made a little terrarium out of an old pasta sauce jar and threw a couple in just to keep it interesting to look at ...couple of dead bugs later I don't...
Any good resources on taking care of them? I made a little terrarium out of an old pasta sauce jar and threw a couple in just to keep it interesting to look at ...couple of dead bugs later I don't think it's working out too well. But I share an interest in them and they've always been one of my favorite "bugs" since I was a kid and I'd love to keep some as pets. I just want to make sure next time around I do it right and don't needlessly slaughter ancient creatures.
They're actually really forgiving once you know a couple of ground rules! Isopods breathe through gills, so they need a certain amount of humidity and moisture. I use a spray bottle with a fine...
They're actually really forgiving once you know a couple of ground rules!
Isopods breathe through gills, so they need a certain amount of humidity and moisture. I use a spray bottle with a fine misting cap to wet down their enclosure once a day. You know things are right when you open it up and it smells like the forest, and the soil is moist but not muddy or clumpy when you press it with your fingers.
Ventilation is necessary. Different isopod species have different requirements, but in general, you want enough for them to be happy without getting dehydrated when all the water evaporates. A few holes the size of a large coin is typically enough for a small enclosure. Just put mesh over the holes to keep them from escaping!
Isopods are detritivores, so they eat decaying matter of all kinds. A good enclosure is going to have lots of different kinds of things for them to snack on, but none of it is hard to come by - think leaf litter, decaying wood, occasional old veggies.
I give mine a powdered food supplement with calcium and nutrients too. I've noticed they tend to breed much more prolifically while receiving it. It's Repashy's Bug Burger.
If you want to culture isopods, you probably need a bit more room (think: shoebox or larger) and at least 10 of 'em, since you don't know how many are male and female. Breeds differ in how often they reproduce but typically you can expect to see babies a few times a year. If you do things right, you will have MANY small friends within a year!
If you don't want to subject your new friends to package shipping, there are sometimes reptile shows that isopod breeders will travel to in person.
I wish you and your next set of small friends good luck!
I'm excited about joining this community! After over a decade of being on Reddit, I realized that I got complacent with my internet activity and centralized most of it to that website. So now I'm...
I'm excited about joining this community! After over a decade of being on Reddit, I realized that I got complacent with my internet activity and centralized most of it to that website. So now I'm scaling back my internet habits and going back to more community focused platforms like this and Lemmy.
This place reminds me of the good old days of the internet, when it was just actual people talking about stuff they found cool, not a bunch of bots pushing nonsense to make you doomscroll all day.
I agree. I was on Reddit for 10 years also and was mostly a lurker. I used it to doom scroll but Apollo made it tolerable enough that all the content included topics I wanted to see. I am aiming...
I agree. I was on Reddit for 10 years also and was mostly a lurker. I used it to doom scroll but Apollo made it tolerable enough that all the content included topics I wanted to see. I am aiming to be a bit more engaged here instead of just lurking around, but it’s exciting to be back in a place that feels like the earlier, simpler days of the internet.
Yeah, I feel like a dork being excited for platforms like this...but I am! I've always felt like a Pariah on reddit, almost like Frank Grimes in the Simpsons. 'Doesn't this shit annoy anyone.?!!...
Yeah, I feel like a dork being excited for platforms like this...but I am!
I've always felt like a Pariah on reddit, almost like Frank Grimes in the Simpsons. 'Doesn't this shit annoy anyone.?!! gahhhh......ahhh!!!'.
I 'grew up' on forums and moderated and small communities are so much better. Meme culture and the rise of bots and fake stuff just made Reddit feel so pointless after a time. I would see red when r/Gaming would have it's weekly mega-upvoted photo of someone posting a picture of a Nintendo Switch of Playstation[X] box in their car. Great content -.-
Years later I still remember certain stories and threads from SomethingAwful, great jokes and vibes...but what do I remember from my time on Reddit other than some VERY useful opinions/tech support on stuff i've googled with the -reddit suffix? hmmmmm :P
I used to make online friends in Livejournal, and Minecraft, and forums back as a teen. Spend years on Reddit and never made meaningful connections, it was all just doom scrolling. I am excited...
I used to make online friends in Livejournal, and Minecraft, and forums back as a teen. Spend years on Reddit and never made meaningful connections, it was all just doom scrolling. I am excited about being here too because I feel I can actually connect with people here, in a 'oh, it's you, we have X in common, you are nice' way where you actually recognise folks!
After a few years of getting increasingly interested in meditation and the apparent illusion of the self, I finally joined a local Zen center and have shocked myself by waking up at 5:30 most...
After a few years of getting increasingly interested in meditation and the apparent illusion of the self, I finally joined a local Zen center and have shocked myself by waking up at 5:30 most mornings to go spend an hour sitting in silence.
The group is so friendly and welcoming and when I'm there, I feel like I'm home somehow. I'm excited to deepen my friendships with the folks I've met while also strengthening my meditation practice and my experience of life overall.
I was debating whether or not "excited" was the right word to describe my relationship with Zen at this moment. After reading your comment, I'll go ahead and say "yes it is". I go through phases...
I was debating whether or not "excited" was the right word to describe my relationship with Zen at this moment. After reading your comment, I'll go ahead and say "yes it is". I go through phases where I'm more heavily invested Zen, Theravada practice, western mystery traditions, and depth psychology; but I nearly always come back to Zen. There's something profound in the logical contradictions and strangely simple practices. Something beautiful in the iconoclastic encounters described in Koans. And something comforting in its connection to Buddhism and the message that it's open to anyone, anytime, and anywhere. Especially at this very moment.
That sounds amazing, did you get into practicing meditation / Zen yourself before joining a local group? I took a course on Zen Buddhism and meditation and was blown away by what a profound effect...
That sounds amazing, did you get into practicing meditation / Zen yourself before joining a local group?
I took a course on Zen Buddhism and meditation and was blown away by what a profound effect meditation can have. I find that the busier life gets, the more beneficial meditation becomes but the easier it is to push aside due to lack of time. Glad to hear you found a group and practice that works for you!
Yeah, I had some experience meditating on my own for the past couple years. Back in 2020, a friend recommended the Waking Up app, and the meditation guidance there was really different than any...
Yeah, I had some experience meditating on my own for the past couple years. Back in 2020, a friend recommended the Waking Up app, and the meditation guidance there was really different than any other meditation I'd done, and made me consider that there was a lot about my own experience of consciousness that I had never paid attention to before.
Sometimes I feel like I've experienced most of the things that I'm ever going to do in life. I've traveled to a bunch of places, and I've seen life from a few different angles/cultures. I had a thought last year: if I knew I was going to die in a week, what would I regret not having time to do? And I realized I'd regret not having time to explore more of what non-dualism means and seeing for myself what I hear folks like Alan Watts, Rupert Spira, and Sam Harris describe.
If you want to get more regular with meditation practice, I hope you find the time for it. Or even if you don't meditate often, being mindful of just regular day-to-day activities can be an incredible experience. Hope you have a nice day :)
this might be worth making into a whole new topic, but what made meditation stick for you? i have a hard time forming habits or sticking to patterns or things in general (see: i've been forgetting...
this might be worth making into a whole new topic, but what made meditation stick for you?
i have a hard time forming habits or sticking to patterns or things in general (see: i've been forgetting to set up my adhd diagnosis appt for the past 5 weeks now) which complicates it. frustrating, especially because i feel like it could help me out so much if i could just make it stick, if i could wrangle the kittens in my head to at least behave a little
Yeah, forming habits is super hard for me too. Honestly, when it comes to meditation, I really have not been consistent when doing it on my own. I've had stretches where I've done it more, and...
Yeah, forming habits is super hard for me too. Honestly, when it comes to meditation, I really have not been consistent when doing it on my own. I've had stretches where I've done it more, and long periods where I haven't practiced at all. (It took me over a year to get through Waking Up's 25-"day" intro course 😂). And I try to just be kind with myself about that. For me, meditation is about accepting what is, as it is, and letting go of judgment. And I try to apply that gentleness to what my meditation rhythm looks like at any given time too.
I do find with all things that having some social pressure/motivation helps me a lot. Now that I've connected with this Zen center, I feel like I want to keep showing up, partially so I can keep seeing the friends I've been making (and, if I'm honest, also so that people don't see me as a quitter).
If you have people in your life you can regularly talk to about meditation, that might help if you're similarly socially motivated. Hope you find a rhythm that works for you :)
My son is a finally old enough to sit in the bike wagon we got, so everyday I look forward to taking a ride with him in the morning. Today we did a family trip to the coffee shop!
My son is a finally old enough to sit in the bike wagon we got, so everyday I look forward to taking a ride with him in the morning. Today we did a family trip to the coffee shop!
That sounds great :) My daughter learns new words every day and I'm super excited for every single one of them. Also, I can't wait for her first skateboard...
That sounds great :) My daughter learns new words every day and I'm super excited for every single one of them. Also, I can't wait for her first skateboard...
RISC-V becoming a serious competitor to Intel, AMD and NVIDIA (I hope) Earning a paycheck (a very low one) after 1.5 years (voluntarily) spent out of work and back to school Being here on Tildes...
RISC-V becoming a serious competitor to Intel, AMD and NVIDIA (I hope)
Earning a paycheck (a very low one) after 1.5 years (voluntarily) spent out of work and back to school
Being here on Tildes and on the Fediverse in its imminent heyday (I hope), learning from others, and sharing my own knowledge of anthropology and social theory when I can
Summer and hanging out with my friends
My newly potted herbs and watching them grow (I hope)
Repairing my laptop, refurbishing a couple of old ThinkPads, and setting up my own Lemmy and/or Mastodon by the end of the month (I hope)
RISC-V is looking like its going to be a complete game changer once it gets more widespread adoption. I work in the land of servers, and my center hasn't migrated off of x86-46 yet. I can only...
RISC-V is looking like its going to be a complete game changer once it gets more widespread adoption. I work in the land of servers, and my center hasn't migrated off of x86-46 yet. I can only imagine the power savings we will get if we were able to transition over.
I am in the 6th month at my new place, and so excited to see what summer is like here (in regards to plant life mostly). For the first time, I am living completely off grid. Solar panels,...
I am in the 6th month at my new place, and so excited to see what summer is like here (in regards to plant life mostly). For the first time, I am living completely off grid. Solar panels, batteries, and rain catchment systems. Super excited to see what I am capable of doing here. More sustainable living is SO HARD and I have a mountain of things to learn before I am not completely useless, but I am enjoying it a lot more than I thought I would. Slowly introducing more animals. Just ordered a baby goose to come in July.
Very cool. We had a completely off grid cabin for a few years. In Hawaii. On the wet side of the Big Island. Its not nearly as hard to live there as my home town in northern Canada. Catchment...
Very cool. We had a completely off grid cabin for a few years. In Hawaii. On the wet side of the Big Island. Its not nearly as hard to live there as my home town in northern Canada. Catchment water into two 1000 gallon tanks. Only 3 small solar panels feeding into two twelve volt batteries, but enough power to charge our phone and runs lights for the few hours we needed them (who needs lights when you get up and go to be with the sun?). Hot water with a propane powered tankless heater. And a propane powered fridge.
Im a terrible gardener but the yard gave us lots of passion fruit in season without any effort. The ripe ones were just laying the ground in the morning for a free breakfast. There were pineapples slowly growing around the perimeter of the yard, dont even know who planted those. The place was magical and gloriously rich - the question was never what can you grow here? The question was how do you keep stuff from growing here and overtaking the entire yard.
And then in 2018, lava came down the volcano and covered the entire place in 75' of hot lava, never to be seen again. It seems like a fairy tale now, but it was real for the 9 years we had it.
Shit, that is wild!!!! Lava! I'm glad you got to experience it while you could. Front yard pineapples sounds magical. I would love to be somewhere more tropical, where I am now is called...
Shit, that is wild!!!! Lava! I'm glad you got to experience it while you could. Front yard pineapples sounds magical. I would love to be somewhere more tropical, where I am now is called "chaparral" and I have definitely killed a lot of plants so far... figuring out drought tolerance, sacrificing my veggies to the sun god unfortunately... The propane fridge was something I didn't even know existed until I moved in.
Sitting in the summerhouse in the garden watching the lightning storm roll around me Looking forward to playing my new copy of Dark Side of the Moon on vinyl The sound of rain Planning our holiday...
Sitting in the summerhouse in the garden watching the lightning storm roll around me
Looking forward to playing my new copy of Dark Side of the Moon on vinyl
The sound of rain! This sounds so geeky but I have a soundtrack I listen to every night before falling sleep, of rain falling on tent canvas. It takes me right back to camping with my family as a...
The sound of rain! This sounds so geeky but I have a soundtrack I listen to every night before falling sleep, of rain falling on tent canvas. It takes me right back to camping with my family as a kid, safely in your tent while the weather outside is storming, but you are tucked safely into a sleeping bag, reading a book with a flashlight. Rain is honestly so soothing somehow.
Ive missed motorhoming. We have a big old diesel pusher that we bought several years ago in California and then drove it north to Canada. But then covid happened. And then, because Im an...
Ive missed motorhoming. We have a big old diesel pusher that we bought several years ago in California and then drove it north to Canada. But then covid happened. And then, because Im an optimistic fool I tried driving it in the dead of winter, just to stretch its legs a bit, and the air system died. No suspension, no brakes. After many months at a shop their answer is, "we cant fix it. Please take it somewhere else" I didnt buy it to sit uselessly on a yard for years... maybe we'll get to use it next year.
Right now, my biggest excitement is for the weather being more mild in the summer. I don't get out much due to health issues, but I'm sitting with my windows open and it's really lovely. I'm also...
Right now, my biggest excitement is for the weather being more mild in the summer. I don't get out much due to health issues, but I'm sitting with my windows open and it's really lovely.
I'm also excited about my desire to create coming back! I may be writing again soon. ♡
My wife and I bought a house back in April, but we don't take possession until September (it's a new build). So I'm excited about moving, but I also feel like I'm getting a little burned out on...
My wife and I bought a house back in April, but we don't take possession until September (it's a new build). So I'm excited about moving, but I also feel like I'm getting a little burned out on that excitement. Like I've been excited since we had a signed offer back in April, and now it's such a long wait. I guess I need to work on my delayed gratification.
It's summer so... my vegetables. I just love growing tomatoes mostly, it's not exactly high excitement but I love to see how fast they're growing and keeping them healthy, I love to try new...
It's summer so... my vegetables. I just love growing tomatoes mostly, it's not exactly high excitement but I love to see how fast they're growing and keeping them healthy, I love to try new varieties every year too.
I grow other things as well but tomatoes are my exciting crop.
I love growing hot peppers, we just had our first little pepper fruit start growing. We have had a rough year so far though. A severe storm with hail almost took everything out. Also, a pack rat...
I love growing hot peppers, we just had our first little pepper fruit start growing. We have had a rough year so far though. A severe storm with hail almost took everything out. Also, a pack rat ate all our Kale and stole two tomato plants right out of the pots. Fortunately a new tomato plant grew in one of the pots so I’m trying to keep that one safe. I’ve since built 2 elevated beds with metal wrapped legs that it doesn’t seem to be able to climb.
Good luck! I've bever had much luck with peppers, I find them so fussy compared to tomatoes! I do have a single jalapeno plant this year though, it's probably about as hot a pepper as I can use....
Good luck!
I've bever had much luck with peppers, I find them so fussy compared to tomatoes! I do have a single jalapeno plant this year though, it's probably about as hot a pepper as I can use. What do you do with them?
I usually make fermented hot sauce and will pickle some of the jalapeños (if we end up getting any this year). Regardless, I really enjoy watering them and watching them grow on a daily basis....
I usually make fermented hot sauce and will pickle some of the jalapeños (if we end up getting any this year). Regardless, I really enjoy watering them and watching them grow on a daily basis.
I'll have to try that some time, I should make room in the greenhouse and give hot peppers a chance. I grow Black Russian, Black Krim, an old Scottish variety, Black Cherry and little polish...
I'll have to try that some time, I should make room in the greenhouse and give hot peppers a chance.
I grow Black Russian, Black Krim, an old Scottish variety, Black Cherry and little polish Koralik cherries. New this year is Tomate Canario which I picked up from the islands last year but I mostly like the black varieties :).
we just made our first planter boxes this year and we're pretty happy about it. Really loving how it turned out and already making plans for more next year.
we just made our first planter boxes this year and we're pretty happy about it. Really loving how it turned out and already making plans for more next year.
Sorry to come across as cheesy but I find I’m in a rare instance of being excited about life in general. My family is in a good school/work/exercise routine, the kids are only fighting a little...
Sorry to come across as cheesy but I find I’m in a rare instance of being excited about life in general. My family is in a good school/work/exercise routine, the kids are only fighting a little bit (cannot hope for perfection here!), I ran my first running race in 5 years at the weekend and did well, we had good friends over for dinner yesterday, we have leftovers of that delicious dinner for today…
Learning to appreciate the little things in life has done wonders for me mentally. I love seeing what other people are excited for too; great topic!
This is the goal, and I don't even know if I'll ever be able to reach it. But as you said, we don't need for perfect to be the enemy of the good life. I'm talking of course about myself. My life...
This is the goal, and I don't even know if I'll ever be able to reach it. But as you said, we don't need for perfect to be the enemy of the good life. I'm talking of course about myself.
My life could be perfect in any perspective: I'm full of debts, and my job doesn't have a future. But even then, I feel happy most of the time. I'm surrounded with good people that care about me (just a few) and that definitely changed everything.
I have some interesting opportunities I'm afraid to take, because it could destroy my house of cards. But I want to get out of the hole I'm in, so I'll probably take those opportunities. Wish me luck.
Thank you! That's true, but the payment is courage and I'm not rich on that. Even so, I'm certainly interested about having nothing to regret. And your words have given me some courage, so I'm...
Thank you! That's true, but the payment is courage and I'm not rich on that.
Even so, I'm certainly interested about having nothing to regret. And your words have given me some courage, so I'm grateful for more chances to roll the dice.
I have to tell my kids all the time that courage isn’t doing stuff you aren’t scared of, it’s being scared and doing it anyway. I tend towards being an anxious neurotic type of person, and I...
I have to tell my kids all the time that courage isn’t doing stuff you aren’t scared of, it’s being scared and doing it anyway. I tend towards being an anxious neurotic type of person, and I really have to force the “fuck it, I’m going in” mentality, but every time I do it gets a bit easier. Courage is like a muscle, you have to flex it sometimes to stop it atrophying
Life is what we can make from it. Maybe you can be excited about your life in general, because you're good in building an exciting life. That thing you tell your kids is what builds the skill to...
Life is what we can make from it. Maybe you can be excited about your life in general, because you're good in building an exciting life.
That thing you tell your kids is what builds the skill to go on when life isn't interesting, so they can make it interesting for themselves.
That's how I'll take it too. Thank you for the advice, seems like you have the credentials to back it up.
I'm excited for a few things: Joining a new team at work, will be working on a new feature for one of my favorite products Traveling quite a bit this year, either with family, friends or by...
I'm excited for a few things:
Joining a new team at work, will be working on a new feature for one of my favorite products
Traveling quite a bit this year, either with family, friends or by myself.
Hoping to move out early next year so I'm just looking at various apartments.
Playing guitar and discovering new music. I've been getting really into metal lately, and that has led me to a renewed interest in guitar playing....granted, I still suck and will probably never...
Playing guitar and discovering new music. I've been getting really into metal lately, and that has led me to a renewed interest in guitar playing....granted, I still suck and will probably never "shred" like some metal guitar gods, but I'm trying my best to play as often as I can and it's been so much fun to rediscover this hobby!
Also, tinkering around with Tildes has been a lot of fun after the Reddit implosion. I'm also on Squabbles and Lemmy, so I'm trying to figure out which I like the best and what will stick with me.
Something important to me about creative hobbies is letting go of the need to be “good”. If, when I sit at a piano or open a new word doc or draw with my kids, I can get in the zone and enjoy my...
Something important to me about creative hobbies is letting go of the need to be “good”. If, when I sit at a piano or open a new word doc or draw with my kids, I can get in the zone and enjoy my time - that’s success. I don’t need to be able to perfectly play a concerto or write the worlds best novel or draw a photorealistic daffodil.
I say this because your tone was almost apologetic, like “what right do I have to claim this as a hobby when I’m not as good as I’d like to be” and to that I say WHO CARES! Enjoy it. Be creative for the sake of being creative. Make terrible art and be proud of it!
I’m so grateful for this comment! I appreciate your encouragement and enthusiasm. Just yesterday, before I read this comment, I sat down and just jammed out on guitar for almost two hours. No...
I’m so grateful for this comment! I appreciate your encouragement and enthusiasm. Just yesterday, before I read this comment, I sat down and just jammed out on guitar for almost two hours. No structured practice, no “learning songs”, I just dabbled around with notes and rhythms and had so much fun. The time just melted away. Obviously, it’s good to have some focus and really practice and work towards my goals, but I need to remember that it is a hobby and it SHOULD be fun!
I've started putting together a little arduino workshop in my office. Got a folding table and have started to bring all of my misc collections of boards, components, etc. to it to start organizing...
I've started putting together a little arduino workshop in my office. Got a folding table and have started to bring all of my misc collections of boards, components, etc. to it to start organizing it. Even repurposed an extra laptop to be a great little dev machine for it and setup a TV so I can watch tutorials or movies while I tinker. I don't know much C or electrical engineering, but it's so much fun to just mess around with that stuff. It's like everything I love about programming and having something physical to show for it. It's great.
The problem is I haven't had hardly any time to work on it. My office is a shed out back and I've got kids and the only way for me to get out here is to leave my wife with the kids (which does all day while I'm working already) or cut into the few hours we have together w/o the kids at night. It may just be something I do on my lunch breaks or on weekends where I can slip away for an hour or two.
Reducing my mental energy spent on social media, and getting back into the real world. I started purchasing print subscriptions to the newspapers I read daily, and purchased an ebook reader/writer...
Reducing my mental energy spent on social media, and getting back into the real world.
I started purchasing print subscriptions to the newspapers I read daily, and purchased an ebook reader/writer (Kobo Elipsa 2E) to further distance myself from the online world. The timing for the fall of reddit is perfect for this as well. I'm excited to spend more time on Tildes instead, having amazing discussions with all of you.
Before I even got an invite here, I spent some time creating my own .css for the site, which has made my arrival here even more worth it. You are all welcome to check it out if you have the Stylus extension. There are a few errors...but that's because I just got my account today. https://userstyles.world/style/10278/tildes-mustard-dark Make sure to set your Tildes theme as White.
Boxing. I got a 1.20m, 30kg punching bag. I soon realized that punching without gloves is a no-go, they're absolutely not just a nicety and, without them, you will fuck up your hands unless you...
Boxing.
I got a 1.20m, 30kg punching bag. I soon realized that punching without gloves is a no-go, they're absolutely not just a nicety and, without them, you will fuck up your hands unless you punch like a 4-year-old. I've done taekwondo when I was younger so I tried some kicks and I'm just as good as 20 years ago (in my mind at least lol). I ordered a pair of 16oz boxing gloves, they'll arrive later this week. Maybe I'll join a gym at some point. For now, I'm looking at some YouTubers for a primer on boxing. It'll be awesome.
I got a pair of elastic hand wraps at the pharmacy. Each is like 2 meters long, my hand gets really bulky with them. Feels comfy. Maybe that's good enough?
I got a pair of elastic hand wraps at the pharmacy. Each is like 2 meters long, my hand gets really bulky with them. Feels comfy. Maybe that's good enough?
Meme Is this an Amazon bot? Joke aside, I'm not interested at all in boxing, but I'm interested in learning a little more about everything. The fact that now I know about boxing wraps made me...
Meme Is this an Amazon bot?
Joke aside, I'm not interested at all in boxing, but I'm interested in learning a little more about everything. The fact that now I know about boxing wraps made me remember that's the kind of thing I like about lurking. So now it's two people who appreciates your info, thank you.
my current start up idea. Just ran a landing page for a week to check product market fit and it seems like a winner! Buzzing about it. Summer is finally here and I have a bit more free cash this...
my current start up idea. Just ran a landing page for a week to check product market fit and it seems like a winner! Buzzing about it.
Summer is finally here and I have a bit more free cash this year so there are some trips to the mountains and back home for weddings that I'm looking forward to
I've been following some unity tutorials for a bit of "pointless" programming just for the fun of it without a goal. Looking forward to getting out of the tutorials soon and experimenting
Two weeks ago I removed Windows 10 from my sluggish 11-year-old Dell desktop PC and replaced it with Lubuntu - now it runs like a brand new machine. It's worked better than I hoped. I honestly...
Two weeks ago I removed Windows 10 from my sluggish 11-year-old Dell desktop PC and replaced it with Lubuntu - now it runs like a brand new machine. It's worked better than I hoped.
I honestly believe I can get another five years out of this PC now.
I was running Ubuntu from a USB stick for 3 months the first time I decided to change Windows XP from a minibook, back in the day. The excitement is real when you see the difference. What made you...
I was running Ubuntu from a USB stick for 3 months the first time I decided to change Windows XP from a minibook, back in the day. The excitement is real when you see the difference.
What made you make the change? In my case it's because it was unusable as it was, too slow for anything to open. I change OS almost immediately.
Under Windows 10 my PC was running so slow it was getting unusable. I’d start Chrome and it would take several minutes for it to open a web page. Even though the machine is 11 years old, I have...
What made you make the change?
Under Windows 10 my PC was running so slow it was getting unusable. I’d start Chrome and it would take several minutes for it to open a web page.
Even though the machine is 11 years old, I have upgraded components over the years (replaced the original HDD with a fast SSD, maxed out the RAM, upgraded the video card, replaced the power supply) so although it won’t run recent games it should still be fine for web browsing and basic apps.
I’ve used a few other flavors of Linux (Ubuntu, RHEL, etc) in the past and I work in IT, so I was able to work around the few stumbling blocks I encountered while making the switch.
Now that my PC is running Lubuntu it’s fast and responsive again. These days most of my computer use is done in the browser, and I’ve been able to find Linux alternatives to most of the other programs I ran on Windows. I’ve been really pleased with it.
Then allow me to ask you more questions: Is this the first time you use Linux outside work? Why Lubuntu? I thought KDE was more popular, Gnome was the standard, and being on Linux, it would still...
Then allow me to ask you more questions:
Is this the first time you use Linux outside work?
Why Lubuntu? I thought KDE was more popular, Gnome was the standard, and being on Linux, it would still be better than Windows.
I understand you practically resurrected your PC by this change, but after that, are you excited about doing something specific on Linux, you couldn't do on Windows?
Most of my Linux experience has been through work (developing C++, Java and Python applications on RHEL). I've generally run Windows at home (especially since my wife is used to it), but I have...
Most of my Linux experience has been through work (developing C++, Java and Python applications on RHEL). I've generally run Windows at home (especially since my wife is used to it), but I have experimented with Ubuntu in a VM a few times.
I chose Lubuntu because its a version of Ubuntu explicitly designed for older hardware (like my PC). I was most concerned about improving performance, and I like Ubuntu, so it seemed like a good compromise. The LXQt desktop in Lubuntu has worked fine for my purposes.
I'm most pleased that I'll be able to squeeze some extra years of productivity out of this PC (would prefer not to have to buy a new machine - its just not in the budget right now). This is our "home PC" that is primarily used for accessing the web, managing personal files, photos and videos (which are mostly on the cloud these days), and printing or scanning the occasional document. The fact that Linux is somewhat more resistant to viruses and spyware is an added plus.
Thank you for your answers! I completely forgot about the always looming danger of viruses and whatnot. It's nice to not have to worry (too much) about it. I'm on the other end of the spectrum:...
Thank you for your answers! I completely forgot about the always looming danger of viruses and whatnot. It's nice to not have to worry (too much) about it.
I'm on the other end of the spectrum: I'm always using Linux at home, but never at work (I have never studied something software related). I love the idea and principles of FOSS, but especially how easy is to install things and that you don't have to fight with MS for the control of your own computer.
Now that I think about it, what do you think about Snap? I don't hate it, but the fact Canonical is trying to force its users to have it installed, reminded me the reason I left Windows behind.
I am in the home stretch of my education. Just a few weeks and I will most likely get my masters degree (if I don't screw up that is!). Just need to focus for a bit longer. Very excited about what...
I am in the home stretch of my education. Just a few weeks and I will most likely get my masters degree (if I don't screw up that is!). Just need to focus for a bit longer. Very excited about what the future holds afterwards. I am currently in the daydreaming phase of my life where I am imagining all the amazing possibilities I'll be able to do. Currently I am working part time, so when I finish school I'd like to keep working only part time for some time and do some cool things in the free time I'll have.
We will see if I'll actually do anything or just do nothing. Honestly I think a month of doing nothing would be fine too, but I don't want to fall back into a cycle of just doing nothing besides working at a job forever.
I also don't know if it is because I am already getting old, but time is passing so so fast. I think it's probably just due to being busy for a really long time while also having a pretty rigid schedule. I hope I can do some interesting things to break things up and make time slow down a bit again.
There's a Smash tournament in an university building that's literally a three minutes walk from my apartment door, and it starts and ends at convenient times. It's been a while since I've gone, so...
There's a Smash tournament in an university building that's literally a three minutes walk from my apartment door, and it starts and ends at convenient times. It's been a while since I've gone, so I'm glad! It looks like it'll become a bi-weekly, too.
After many years I finally decided to get singing lessons. I really enjoy singing, but every time I do it at home my family sends me to another room and I can understand them :) I know I sound...
After many years I finally decided to get singing lessons. I really enjoy singing, but every time I do it at home my family sends me to another room and I can understand them :) I know I sound reall.y off … but hey…. maybe with a little practice and guidance I can make it work and I am very excited about it. Just have to find a teacher. I already called/texted some
schools yesterday … wish me luck!
four months ago i moved to europe (from south america!) and it's.... so damn different. weather is a big one, but also, it gets dark so damn late! i'm still not used to seeing the sunset at 10pm....
four months ago i moved to europe (from south america!) and it's.... so damn different.
weather is a big one, but also, it gets dark so damn late! i'm still not used to seeing the sunset at 10pm.
oh and it's SO SAFE. i was walking around town yesterday and i saw a bunch of people with expensive computers outside, just working and enjoying the weather. my first thought was "lmao some gringo is getting robbed" until i realized that no. that's not a thing.
another one: people just plain trust each other, without any fear of being "scammed". like, my neighbor is never at home, so his packages are constantly dropped at my place. when he arrives from work, he just rings the bell and assumes that i didn't mess with his things (ofc i never did).
SNORKELING! I recently just did a cruise to the Bahamas and did a kayaking/snorkeling excursion. Our guide was so knowledgeable and told us so many neat tricks and tips. I always knew what...
SNORKELING! I recently just did a cruise to the Bahamas and did a kayaking/snorkeling excursion. Our guide was so knowledgeable and told us so many neat tricks and tips. I always knew what snorkeling was but never have done it. I thought you had to be an amazing swimmer to stay near the top while keeping the snorkel head above water. However, our guide gave us a neat trick with our life vest, where we would place it around our west backwards and use it like a little boogieboard. It made it super easy to skim the surface of the water and peer into the super clear and salty waters in the Bahamas. Now that I am back in the west coast where the water is colder, I hope to get a wetsuit and my own snorkeling gear and see the wonder of the oceans out here!
I am a capable swimmer, but that said, I think staying near the surface without any floatation gear kind of happens naturally. I recommend trying it because when you can dive down while snorkeling...
I am a capable swimmer, but that said, I think staying near the surface without any floatation gear kind of happens naturally. I recommend trying it because when you can dive down while snorkeling it kind of unlocks a lot more things you ca see/experience.
I used to be a SCUBA instructor. If you ever get the chance to try that, I think you’d really love it! It is so peaceful being in the water, and it’s so cool having the fish above and next to you,...
I used to be a SCUBA instructor. If you ever get the chance to try that, I think you’d really love it! It is so peaceful being in the water, and it’s so cool having the fish above and next to you, not just around
That is the goal eventually! I just have to get over the hesitation and nervousness to actually try it. However, since I live by the coastline in San Diego, I think I will eventually muster up the...
That is the goal eventually! I just have to get over the hesitation and nervousness to actually try it. However, since I live by the coastline in San Diego, I think I will eventually muster up the courage to get the training and the license! Thanks! I am scared of the deep dark ocean and the seaweed forest, but I absolutely love the coral reefs and clear coastlines.
You could see if there’s such a thing as an introductory dive. The majority of my work as an instructor was doing this - it’s a dive that you don’t need any qualification for. The instructor is...
You could see if there’s such a thing as an introductory dive. The majority of my work as an instructor was doing this - it’s a dive that you don’t need any qualification for. The instructor is very close to you and takes charge of all the important stuff - checking your air, making sure your vest is inflated to the right level etc. we’ll even hold your hand if you’re nervous or not a great swimmer! I’m in australia, so no guarantee there’s an equivalent thing in your state, but I’d bet there is. Not many people would pay up for a whole course before they’ve ever tried it out
I've been in management for nearing a decade in a fifteen year career as a teacher and always had impostor syndrome as a manager. Finally I feel a lot more confident in the decisions I make and in...
I've been in management for nearing a decade in a fifteen year career as a teacher and always had impostor syndrome as a manager. Finally I feel a lot more confident in the decisions I make and in managing upward as well as laterally.
The new Minecraft map of my own server is going to open this Saturday. I'm excited for it, because I love to create lots of new and interesting custom items & blocks for the players. I'm also...
The new Minecraft map of my own server is going to open this Saturday. I'm excited for it, because I love to create lots of new and interesting custom items & blocks for the players.
I'm also excited for System76's new Cosmic desktop environment, built with Rust. I'm hoping for (and visually it's looking like) a Gnome-ish look & feel, but with less restrictions and less resource usage.
Won't be out for quite a while, though.
Passkeys. There's just something neat about entering a website/app with just a fingerprint and I believe it's more secure than passwords; and it's not necessary to use 2FA since technically...
Passkeys. There's just something neat about entering a website/app with just a fingerprint and I believe it's more secure than passwords; and it's not necessary to use 2FA since technically passkeys works as a password and the 2FA. Sadly, it hasn't been adopted by many websites but passkeys have gained more recognition and I hope there will be more availability in the future.
Summer! Grabbing the kids and the wife and diving into the pool or a lake. Apart from that: ARCHERY!!! Started 2.5 years ago and can't get enough. At the same level: AI !! Now, I know it is a hype...
Summer! Grabbing the kids and the wife and diving into the pool or a lake.
Apart from that:
ARCHERY!!! Started 2.5 years ago and can't get enough.
At the same level:
AI !!
Now, I know it is a hype topic for many, but for me... oh boy!
I started reading scifi around the age of 11...
The biggest fascination was robots, then AI. (Ian M Banks, anyone?)
I studied and even implemented neural networks at University, but alas, that was 1998/9, and no one saw what was coming. Actually asked the profs what if "we take millions or billions... of neurons, etc.." and was dismissed.
And now...
I can "talk" to an AI, I can describe pictures and have them generated, I can get assistance for tasks, etc...
I'm living in the future and loving every minute of it.
Actually, I inherited an old compound bow from my estranged father. Not knowing what to do with it, I googled archery clubs.. well, the rest is history. For the first year, I rented a bow from the...
Actually, I inherited an old compound bow from my estranged father.
Not knowing what to do with it, I googled archery clubs.. well, the rest is history.
For the first year, I rented a bow from the club, and bought an arm protector, a quiver, some arrows, and a "tab".
So the cost for the first year was a bit of equipment, club dues, and the rent for the bow.
(You will really have to look in your area / clubs for pricing, because I live in Switzerland, and Money is gaga here.)
I bought a used bow after the first year, when I tried out some different types of bow, and knowing this is what I want to keep doing.
I landed on a longbow, which has to be shot with wooden arrows in tournaments for the SAA.
That bow was about 350$, and I still shoot it.
I did buy myself a traditional recurve bow middle of the year, custom-made by a bowyer in Bavaria.
That cost me 1200$.
In general, archery is a sport that has a cap of a few thousand for the most expensive equipment.
(Very professional olympic or compound bows with sights, weights, stabilizers, etc...)
Recurring costs are low, as we are looking at club fees, and the eventual arrow or string replacement.
The big ticket item is always a bow. After saying that, please know that a bow will last you 10-20 years minimum, very likely a lifetime.
The compound I inherited is 40 years old, and I shoot that one, too.
So.. more expensive than knitting, and less expensive than motorsports.
I am currently on my first vacation outside of North America. It has been WONDERFUL! I have a few days left in the areas around Bath UK. This trip has reignited my hope for the future. I am...
I am currently on my first vacation outside of North America. It has been WONDERFUL! I have a few days left in the areas around Bath UK. This trip has reignited my hope for the future. I am already fleshing out my plans to emigrate from the USA. My current plan is to do a bachelor’s degree program that I found in France and try to turn that into a residency, and eventually citizenship. I’m not too particular for France (although it seems really nice), but I want to be in the EU. I am also really liking the UK though, so I might end up there instead. Too bad brexit happened.
It's my last day or work before I start an 8 week paid sabbitcal. I get to spend the summer with my kids doing all of their activities plus having them help with household projects like working on...
It's my last day or work before I start an 8 week paid sabbitcal. I get to spend the summer with my kids doing all of their activities plus having them help with household projects like working on our deck, finishing my workshop, and we're going to turn their play structure into a fort.
AI, and in particular LLMs. I've been playing around with them for a lot of personal projects, and the speed at which they're improving is insane. There have been a lot of creative ways to get...
AI, and in particular LLMs. I've been playing around with them for a lot of personal projects, and the speed at which they're improving is insane. There have been a lot of creative ways to get better results and better performance, and I'm excited to see where they'll be after a year or two, once the "easy" wins are fully developed.
I'm excited for vacations! In my mid-to-late 20's and I've decided that I want to spend as much time as I can out of my comfort zone and out of America. Only thing that really holds me back is my...
I'm excited for vacations! In my mid-to-late 20's and I've decided that I want to spend as much time as I can out of my comfort zone and out of America. Only thing that really holds me back is my dog and money, but I have a trip planned for Japan soon and I'm trying to go back to the motherland in Taiwan in the fall. I've spent about a month out of the last six in Europe too and I've been really enjoying it.
My partner is moving in with me next month! I'm really excited about it. It's been years since I've lived with a partner, or really anybody other than my cats. :)
My partner is moving in with me next month! I'm really excited about it. It's been years since I've lived with a partner, or really anybody other than my cats. :)
Honestly…nothing. There are things I’m interested in or looking forward to, but nothing I’m excited about. Hoping that changes, and keeping optimistic though!
Honestly…nothing. There are things I’m interested in or looking forward to, but nothing I’m excited about. Hoping that changes, and keeping optimistic though!
One of the things I do, is update a five year plan. I put on it big things I want do to (get a better job) but also little things that are just for fun (learn to sail) It's forced me to think...
One of the things I do, is update a five year plan.
I put on it big things I want do to (get a better job) but also little things that are just for fun (learn to sail)
It's forced me to think consciously about what I want to do, where I want to spend my time.
As a result I have learned fire dancing, attended burning man, learned windsurfing, toured Europe, bought an eMTB (OK, that had more to do with @NaraVara & @Autumn than my 5 year plan to "Exercise more, " but the five year plan justified the insane expense.)
It's OK to not be excited by anything right now, but it's good to spend time trying new things to see what excites you...
Oh man, Im with you in spirit. At least a couple of times a winter I say to my wife (as I put on my three layers of thermal clothing to keep from freezing to death at -40c): "You know, some people...
Oh man, Im with you in spirit. At least a couple of times a winter I say to my wife (as I put on my three layers of thermal clothing to keep from freezing to death at -40c): "You know, some people rolled out of bed today and put on shorts and a t-shirt and they were done for the day" She likes winter. I prefer Hawaii or anywhere tropical near the ocean.
I am a father to a small horde of isopods (these guys: wikimedia commons image). Thus, my username.
Isopods (and in general, invertebrates) get a bad rap. They're cute and wriggly and they eat leaves and eggshells and they are completely harmless. They're surprisingly good at winning people's hearts when they actually see 'em - there's something about how they wiggle around and peek out from behind leaves and gently nom on veggies that weirdly excites the "adorable" neurons in the brain instead of the "creepy" ones. (Or people might just be humoring me...)
Although I'm not nearly as committed to keeping invertebrates as some (I don't have the time or space), it's really made me more respectful of the tiny creatures around us. Nobody is exactly championing bug rights to world governments, so I don't see the situation getting better, unless someone wants to create the Arthropod Alliance and start collecting funds.
Hmmmm...
Roly poly bugs are some of the cutest little dudes. There are piles of them in my compost area. Also recently got to know a spider that predominantly eats those (woodlouse spider). It's so interesting to sometimes just stare at the ground in the yard :) so many little guys down there doin stuff.
You would think at least beetle rights would be a thing.
I love cute lil isopods! I struggle with most bugs, to be honest, but I really adore isopod friends.
Spiders and I have an understanding, though. I won't freak out and let my arachnophobia get the best of me as long as I can't see them. I understand that spiders are good, but my hind brain doesn't care.
My kid is absolutely obsessed with roly-polys right now. Do you have any links/suggestions for any sort of in-house "ant farm" setup for pillbugs?
I wrote a long reply to another comment with some general advice which I think might help you as well.
Generally, isopods are not super enthusiastic about bright light, and you'll stress them out if you put them in the open - it's best if you keep them in a terrarium or enclosure where they can feel safe and out of the way most of the time. No worries, though - they'll typically be active when you open the lid or peek in, and if you give them some time to multiply, you will have plenty of little buddies to watch.
This is a great visual introduction to setting up your first isopod home.
Any good resources on taking care of them? I made a little terrarium out of an old pasta sauce jar and threw a couple in just to keep it interesting to look at ...couple of dead bugs later I don't think it's working out too well. But I share an interest in them and they've always been one of my favorite "bugs" since I was a kid and I'd love to keep some as pets. I just want to make sure next time around I do it right and don't needlessly slaughter ancient creatures.
They're actually really forgiving once you know a couple of ground rules!
If you don't want to subject your new friends to package shipping, there are sometimes reptile shows that isopod breeders will travel to in person.
I wish you and your next set of small friends good luck!
I'm excited about joining this community! After over a decade of being on Reddit, I realized that I got complacent with my internet activity and centralized most of it to that website. So now I'm scaling back my internet habits and going back to more community focused platforms like this and Lemmy.
This place reminds me of the good old days of the internet, when it was just actual people talking about stuff they found cool, not a bunch of bots pushing nonsense to make you doomscroll all day.
I agree. I was on Reddit for 10 years also and was mostly a lurker. I used it to doom scroll but Apollo made it tolerable enough that all the content included topics I wanted to see. I am aiming to be a bit more engaged here instead of just lurking around, but it’s exciting to be back in a place that feels like the earlier, simpler days of the internet.
Yeah, I feel like a dork being excited for platforms like this...but I am!
I've always felt like a Pariah on reddit, almost like Frank Grimes in the Simpsons. 'Doesn't this shit annoy anyone.?!! gahhhh......ahhh!!!'.
I 'grew up' on forums and moderated and small communities are so much better. Meme culture and the rise of bots and fake stuff just made Reddit feel so pointless after a time. I would see red when r/Gaming would have it's weekly mega-upvoted photo of someone posting a picture of a Nintendo Switch of Playstation[X] box in their car. Great content -.-
Years later I still remember certain stories and threads from SomethingAwful, great jokes and vibes...but what do I remember from my time on Reddit other than some VERY useful opinions/tech support on stuff i've googled with the -reddit suffix? hmmmmm :P
I used to make online friends in Livejournal, and Minecraft, and forums back as a teen. Spend years on Reddit and never made meaningful connections, it was all just doom scrolling. I am excited about being here too because I feel I can actually connect with people here, in a 'oh, it's you, we have X in common, you are nice' way where you actually recognise folks!
After a few years of getting increasingly interested in meditation and the apparent illusion of the self, I finally joined a local Zen center and have shocked myself by waking up at 5:30 most mornings to go spend an hour sitting in silence.
The group is so friendly and welcoming and when I'm there, I feel like I'm home somehow. I'm excited to deepen my friendships with the folks I've met while also strengthening my meditation practice and my experience of life overall.
I was debating whether or not "excited" was the right word to describe my relationship with Zen at this moment. After reading your comment, I'll go ahead and say "yes it is". I go through phases where I'm more heavily invested Zen, Theravada practice, western mystery traditions, and depth psychology; but I nearly always come back to Zen. There's something profound in the logical contradictions and strangely simple practices. Something beautiful in the iconoclastic encounters described in Koans. And something comforting in its connection to Buddhism and the message that it's open to anyone, anytime, and anywhere. Especially at this very moment.
That sounds amazing, did you get into practicing meditation / Zen yourself before joining a local group?
I took a course on Zen Buddhism and meditation and was blown away by what a profound effect meditation can have. I find that the busier life gets, the more beneficial meditation becomes but the easier it is to push aside due to lack of time. Glad to hear you found a group and practice that works for you!
Yeah, I had some experience meditating on my own for the past couple years. Back in 2020, a friend recommended the Waking Up app, and the meditation guidance there was really different than any other meditation I'd done, and made me consider that there was a lot about my own experience of consciousness that I had never paid attention to before.
Sometimes I feel like I've experienced most of the things that I'm ever going to do in life. I've traveled to a bunch of places, and I've seen life from a few different angles/cultures. I had a thought last year: if I knew I was going to die in a week, what would I regret not having time to do? And I realized I'd regret not having time to explore more of what non-dualism means and seeing for myself what I hear folks like Alan Watts, Rupert Spira, and Sam Harris describe.
If you want to get more regular with meditation practice, I hope you find the time for it. Or even if you don't meditate often, being mindful of just regular day-to-day activities can be an incredible experience. Hope you have a nice day :)
this might be worth making into a whole new topic, but what made meditation stick for you?
i have a hard time forming habits or sticking to patterns or things in general (see: i've been forgetting to set up my adhd diagnosis appt for the past 5 weeks now) which complicates it. frustrating, especially because i feel like it could help me out so much if i could just make it stick, if i could wrangle the kittens in my head to at least behave a little
Yeah, forming habits is super hard for me too. Honestly, when it comes to meditation, I really have not been consistent when doing it on my own. I've had stretches where I've done it more, and long periods where I haven't practiced at all. (It took me over a year to get through Waking Up's 25-"day" intro course 😂). And I try to just be kind with myself about that. For me, meditation is about accepting what is, as it is, and letting go of judgment. And I try to apply that gentleness to what my meditation rhythm looks like at any given time too.
I do find with all things that having some social pressure/motivation helps me a lot. Now that I've connected with this Zen center, I feel like I want to keep showing up, partially so I can keep seeing the friends I've been making (and, if I'm honest, also so that people don't see me as a quitter).
If you have people in your life you can regularly talk to about meditation, that might help if you're similarly socially motivated. Hope you find a rhythm that works for you :)
My son is a finally old enough to sit in the bike wagon we got, so everyday I look forward to taking a ride with him in the morning. Today we did a family trip to the coffee shop!
That sounds great :) My daughter learns new words every day and I'm super excited for every single one of them. Also, I can't wait for her first skateboard...
That's so wholesome. Relish those days! I love spending time outside with my daughters, and doubly so when we're doing something active like that.
RISC-V becoming a serious competitor to Intel, AMD and NVIDIA (I hope)
Earning a paycheck (a very low one) after 1.5 years (voluntarily) spent out of work and back to school
Being here on Tildes and on the Fediverse in its imminent heyday (I hope), learning from others, and sharing my own knowledge of anthropology and social theory when I can
Summer and hanging out with my friends
My newly potted herbs and watching them grow (I hope)
Repairing my laptop, refurbishing a couple of old ThinkPads, and setting up my own Lemmy and/or Mastodon by the end of the month (I hope)
I recently bought soil, pots, and seeds and am looking forward to (and hoping that I'll end up) having my own little plants and flowers to tend!!
RISC-V is looking like its going to be a complete game changer once it gets more widespread adoption. I work in the land of servers, and my center hasn't migrated off of x86-46 yet. I can only imagine the power savings we will get if we were able to transition over.
I am in the 6th month at my new place, and so excited to see what summer is like here (in regards to plant life mostly). For the first time, I am living completely off grid. Solar panels, batteries, and rain catchment systems. Super excited to see what I am capable of doing here. More sustainable living is SO HARD and I have a mountain of things to learn before I am not completely useless, but I am enjoying it a lot more than I thought I would. Slowly introducing more animals. Just ordered a baby goose to come in July.
Very cool. We had a completely off grid cabin for a few years. In Hawaii. On the wet side of the Big Island. Its not nearly as hard to live there as my home town in northern Canada. Catchment water into two 1000 gallon tanks. Only 3 small solar panels feeding into two twelve volt batteries, but enough power to charge our phone and runs lights for the few hours we needed them (who needs lights when you get up and go to be with the sun?). Hot water with a propane powered tankless heater. And a propane powered fridge.
Im a terrible gardener but the yard gave us lots of passion fruit in season without any effort. The ripe ones were just laying the ground in the morning for a free breakfast. There were pineapples slowly growing around the perimeter of the yard, dont even know who planted those. The place was magical and gloriously rich - the question was never what can you grow here? The question was how do you keep stuff from growing here and overtaking the entire yard.
And then in 2018, lava came down the volcano and covered the entire place in 75' of hot lava, never to be seen again. It seems like a fairy tale now, but it was real for the 9 years we had it.
Shit, that is wild!!!! Lava! I'm glad you got to experience it while you could. Front yard pineapples sounds magical. I would love to be somewhere more tropical, where I am now is called "chaparral" and I have definitely killed a lot of plants so far... figuring out drought tolerance, sacrificing my veggies to the sun god unfortunately... The propane fridge was something I didn't even know existed until I moved in.
WoW …. sounds like you really enjoy life. Happy holidays and may the scent of the roses make you dizzy (in a good way)
The sound of rain! This sounds so geeky but I have a soundtrack I listen to every night before falling sleep, of rain falling on tent canvas. It takes me right back to camping with my family as a kid, safely in your tent while the weather outside is storming, but you are tucked safely into a sleeping bag, reading a book with a flashlight. Rain is honestly so soothing somehow.
Ive missed motorhoming. We have a big old diesel pusher that we bought several years ago in California and then drove it north to Canada. But then covid happened. And then, because Im an optimistic fool I tried driving it in the dead of winter, just to stretch its legs a bit, and the air system died. No suspension, no brakes. After many months at a shop their answer is, "we cant fix it. Please take it somewhere else" I didnt buy it to sit uselessly on a yard for years... maybe we'll get to use it next year.
Right now, my biggest excitement is for the weather being more mild in the summer. I don't get out much due to health issues, but I'm sitting with my windows open and it's really lovely.
I'm also excited about my desire to create coming back! I may be writing again soon. ♡
My wife and I bought a house back in April, but we don't take possession until September (it's a new build). So I'm excited about moving, but I also feel like I'm getting a little burned out on that excitement. Like I've been excited since we had a signed offer back in April, and now it's such a long wait. I guess I need to work on my delayed gratification.
It's summer so... my vegetables. I just love growing tomatoes mostly, it's not exactly high excitement but I love to see how fast they're growing and keeping them healthy, I love to try new varieties every year too.
I grow other things as well but tomatoes are my exciting crop.
I love growing hot peppers, we just had our first little pepper fruit start growing. We have had a rough year so far though. A severe storm with hail almost took everything out. Also, a pack rat ate all our Kale and stole two tomato plants right out of the pots. Fortunately a new tomato plant grew in one of the pots so I’m trying to keep that one safe. I’ve since built 2 elevated beds with metal wrapped legs that it doesn’t seem to be able to climb.
Good luck!
I've bever had much luck with peppers, I find them so fussy compared to tomatoes! I do have a single jalapeno plant this year though, it's probably about as hot a pepper as I can use. What do you do with them?
I usually make fermented hot sauce and will pickle some of the jalapeños (if we end up getting any this year). Regardless, I really enjoy watering them and watching them grow on a daily basis.
What kind of tomatoes do you like growing?
I'll have to try that some time, I should make room in the greenhouse and give hot peppers a chance.
I grow Black Russian, Black Krim, an old Scottish variety, Black Cherry and little polish Koralik cherries. New this year is Tomate Canario which I picked up from the islands last year but I mostly like the black varieties :).
I’ve never heard of any of those but I’ll look them up! What do you like to do/make with them?
Oh just eating tomatoes! I usually end up making sauce when I have a glut but I eat most of them as they come.
we just made our first planter boxes this year and we're pretty happy about it. Really loving how it turned out and already making plans for more next year.
Sorry to come across as cheesy but I find I’m in a rare instance of being excited about life in general. My family is in a good school/work/exercise routine, the kids are only fighting a little bit (cannot hope for perfection here!), I ran my first running race in 5 years at the weekend and did well, we had good friends over for dinner yesterday, we have leftovers of that delicious dinner for today…
Learning to appreciate the little things in life has done wonders for me mentally. I love seeing what other people are excited for too; great topic!
This is the goal, and I don't even know if I'll ever be able to reach it. But as you said, we don't need for perfect to be the enemy of the good life. I'm talking of course about myself.
My life could be perfect in any perspective: I'm full of debts, and my job doesn't have a future. But even then, I feel happy most of the time. I'm surrounded with good people that care about me (just a few) and that definitely changed everything.
I have some interesting opportunities I'm afraid to take, because it could destroy my house of cards. But I want to get out of the hole I'm in, so I'll probably take those opportunities. Wish me luck.
I think it’s easier to regret things we haven’t don’t than those we have. Take the opportunities! See what happens! Good luck!!
Thank you! That's true, but the payment is courage and I'm not rich on that.
Even so, I'm certainly interested about having nothing to regret. And your words have given me some courage, so I'm grateful for more chances to roll the dice.
I have to tell my kids all the time that courage isn’t doing stuff you aren’t scared of, it’s being scared and doing it anyway. I tend towards being an anxious neurotic type of person, and I really have to force the “fuck it, I’m going in” mentality, but every time I do it gets a bit easier. Courage is like a muscle, you have to flex it sometimes to stop it atrophying
Life is what we can make from it. Maybe you can be excited about your life in general, because you're good in building an exciting life.
That thing you tell your kids is what builds the skill to go on when life isn't interesting, so they can make it interesting for themselves.
That's how I'll take it too. Thank you for the advice, seems like you have the credentials to back it up.
I'm excited for a few things:
Playing guitar and discovering new music. I've been getting really into metal lately, and that has led me to a renewed interest in guitar playing....granted, I still suck and will probably never "shred" like some metal guitar gods, but I'm trying my best to play as often as I can and it's been so much fun to rediscover this hobby!
Also, tinkering around with Tildes has been a lot of fun after the Reddit implosion. I'm also on Squabbles and Lemmy, so I'm trying to figure out which I like the best and what will stick with me.
Something important to me about creative hobbies is letting go of the need to be “good”. If, when I sit at a piano or open a new word doc or draw with my kids, I can get in the zone and enjoy my time - that’s success. I don’t need to be able to perfectly play a concerto or write the worlds best novel or draw a photorealistic daffodil.
I say this because your tone was almost apologetic, like “what right do I have to claim this as a hobby when I’m not as good as I’d like to be” and to that I say WHO CARES! Enjoy it. Be creative for the sake of being creative. Make terrible art and be proud of it!
I’m so grateful for this comment! I appreciate your encouragement and enthusiasm. Just yesterday, before I read this comment, I sat down and just jammed out on guitar for almost two hours. No structured practice, no “learning songs”, I just dabbled around with notes and rhythms and had so much fun. The time just melted away. Obviously, it’s good to have some focus and really practice and work towards my goals, but I need to remember that it is a hobby and it SHOULD be fun!
That's a good idea even if it's not just a hobby.
I'm probably moving overseas. I'm excited and terrified at the same time.
From/to which countries?
I've started putting together a little arduino workshop in my office. Got a folding table and have started to bring all of my misc collections of boards, components, etc. to it to start organizing it. Even repurposed an extra laptop to be a great little dev machine for it and setup a TV so I can watch tutorials or movies while I tinker. I don't know much C or electrical engineering, but it's so much fun to just mess around with that stuff. It's like everything I love about programming and having something physical to show for it. It's great.
The problem is I haven't had hardly any time to work on it. My office is a shed out back and I've got kids and the only way for me to get out here is to leave my wife with the kids (which does all day while I'm working already) or cut into the few hours we have together w/o the kids at night. It may just be something I do on my lunch breaks or on weekends where I can slip away for an hour or two.
Reducing my mental energy spent on social media, and getting back into the real world.
I started purchasing print subscriptions to the newspapers I read daily, and purchased an ebook reader/writer (Kobo Elipsa 2E) to further distance myself from the online world. The timing for the fall of reddit is perfect for this as well. I'm excited to spend more time on Tildes instead, having amazing discussions with all of you.
Before I even got an invite here, I spent some time creating my own .css for the site, which has made my arrival here even more worth it. You are all welcome to check it out if you have the Stylus extension. There are a few errors...but that's because I just got my account today. https://userstyles.world/style/10278/tildes-mustard-dark Make sure to set your Tildes theme as White.
Boxing.
I got a 1.20m, 30kg punching bag. I soon realized that punching without gloves is a no-go, they're absolutely not just a nicety and, without them, you will fuck up your hands unless you punch like a 4-year-old. I've done taekwondo when I was younger so I tried some kicks and I'm just as good as 20 years ago (in my mind at least lol). I ordered a pair of 16oz boxing gloves, they'll arrive later this week. Maybe I'll join a gym at some point. For now, I'm looking at some YouTubers for a primer on boxing. It'll be awesome.
Don’t forget proper hand wraps, or you’ll fuck up your wrists.
I got a pair of elastic hand wraps at the pharmacy. Each is like 2 meters long, my hand gets really bulky with them. Feels comfy. Maybe that's good enough?
I would get proper boxing wraps, you don’t generally want much elasticity. You can get good enough ones for $6 off Amazon, eg sanabul.
I'll look this up, thanks!
Meme
Is this an Amazon bot?Joke aside, I'm not interested at all in boxing, but I'm interested in learning a little more about everything. The fact that now I know about boxing wraps made me remember that's the kind of thing I like about lurking. So now it's two people who appreciates your info, thank you.
Two weeks ago I removed Windows 10 from my sluggish 11-year-old Dell desktop PC and replaced it with Lubuntu - now it runs like a brand new machine. It's worked better than I hoped.
I honestly believe I can get another five years out of this PC now.
I was running Ubuntu from a USB stick for 3 months the first time I decided to change Windows XP from a minibook, back in the day. The excitement is real when you see the difference.
What made you make the change? In my case it's because it was unusable as it was, too slow for anything to open. I change OS almost immediately.
Under Windows 10 my PC was running so slow it was getting unusable. I’d start Chrome and it would take several minutes for it to open a web page.
Even though the machine is 11 years old, I have upgraded components over the years (replaced the original HDD with a fast SSD, maxed out the RAM, upgraded the video card, replaced the power supply) so although it won’t run recent games it should still be fine for web browsing and basic apps.
I’ve used a few other flavors of Linux (Ubuntu, RHEL, etc) in the past and I work in IT, so I was able to work around the few stumbling blocks I encountered while making the switch.
Now that my PC is running Lubuntu it’s fast and responsive again. These days most of my computer use is done in the browser, and I’ve been able to find Linux alternatives to most of the other programs I ran on Windows. I’ve been really pleased with it.
Then allow me to ask you more questions:
Most of my Linux experience has been through work (developing C++, Java and Python applications on RHEL). I've generally run Windows at home (especially since my wife is used to it), but I have experimented with Ubuntu in a VM a few times.
I chose Lubuntu because its a version of Ubuntu explicitly designed for older hardware (like my PC). I was most concerned about improving performance, and I like Ubuntu, so it seemed like a good compromise. The LXQt desktop in Lubuntu has worked fine for my purposes.
I'm most pleased that I'll be able to squeeze some extra years of productivity out of this PC (would prefer not to have to buy a new machine - its just not in the budget right now). This is our "home PC" that is primarily used for accessing the web, managing personal files, photos and videos (which are mostly on the cloud these days), and printing or scanning the occasional document. The fact that Linux is somewhat more resistant to viruses and spyware is an added plus.
Thank you for your answers! I completely forgot about the always looming danger of viruses and whatnot. It's nice to not have to worry (too much) about it.
I'm on the other end of the spectrum: I'm always using Linux at home, but never at work (I have never studied something software related). I love the idea and principles of FOSS, but especially how easy is to install things and that you don't have to fight with MS for the control of your own computer.
Now that I think about it, what do you think about Snap? I don't hate it, but the fact Canonical is trying to force its users to have it installed, reminded me the reason I left Windows behind.
I am in the home stretch of my education. Just a few weeks and I will most likely get my masters degree (if I don't screw up that is!). Just need to focus for a bit longer. Very excited about what the future holds afterwards. I am currently in the daydreaming phase of my life where I am imagining all the amazing possibilities I'll be able to do. Currently I am working part time, so when I finish school I'd like to keep working only part time for some time and do some cool things in the free time I'll have.
We will see if I'll actually do anything or just do nothing. Honestly I think a month of doing nothing would be fine too, but I don't want to fall back into a cycle of just doing nothing besides working at a job forever.
I also don't know if it is because I am already getting old, but time is passing so so fast. I think it's probably just due to being busy for a really long time while also having a pretty rigid schedule. I hope I can do some interesting things to break things up and make time slow down a bit again.
There's a Smash tournament in an university building that's literally a three minutes walk from my apartment door, and it starts and ends at convenient times. It's been a while since I've gone, so I'm glad! It looks like it'll become a bi-weekly, too.
After many years I finally decided to get singing lessons. I really enjoy singing, but every time I do it at home my family sends me to another room and I can understand them :) I know I sound reall.y off … but hey…. maybe with a little practice and guidance I can make it work and I am very excited about it. Just have to find a teacher. I already called/texted some
schools yesterday … wish me luck!
four months ago i moved to europe (from south america!) and it's.... so damn different.
weather is a big one, but also, it gets dark so damn late! i'm still not used to seeing the sunset at 10pm.
oh and it's SO SAFE. i was walking around town yesterday and i saw a bunch of people with expensive computers outside, just working and enjoying the weather. my first thought was "lmao some gringo is getting robbed" until i realized that no. that's not a thing.
another one: people just plain trust each other, without any fear of being "scammed". like, my neighbor is never at home, so his packages are constantly dropped at my place. when he arrives from work, he just rings the bell and assumes that i didn't mess with his things (ofc i never did).
SNORKELING! I recently just did a cruise to the Bahamas and did a kayaking/snorkeling excursion. Our guide was so knowledgeable and told us so many neat tricks and tips. I always knew what snorkeling was but never have done it. I thought you had to be an amazing swimmer to stay near the top while keeping the snorkel head above water. However, our guide gave us a neat trick with our life vest, where we would place it around our west backwards and use it like a little boogieboard. It made it super easy to skim the surface of the water and peer into the super clear and salty waters in the Bahamas. Now that I am back in the west coast where the water is colder, I hope to get a wetsuit and my own snorkeling gear and see the wonder of the oceans out here!
I am a capable swimmer, but that said, I think staying near the surface without any floatation gear kind of happens naturally. I recommend trying it because when you can dive down while snorkeling it kind of unlocks a lot more things you ca see/experience.
I used to be a SCUBA instructor. If you ever get the chance to try that, I think you’d really love it! It is so peaceful being in the water, and it’s so cool having the fish above and next to you, not just around
That is the goal eventually! I just have to get over the hesitation and nervousness to actually try it. However, since I live by the coastline in San Diego, I think I will eventually muster up the courage to get the training and the license! Thanks! I am scared of the deep dark ocean and the seaweed forest, but I absolutely love the coral reefs and clear coastlines.
You could see if there’s such a thing as an introductory dive. The majority of my work as an instructor was doing this - it’s a dive that you don’t need any qualification for. The instructor is very close to you and takes charge of all the important stuff - checking your air, making sure your vest is inflated to the right level etc. we’ll even hold your hand if you’re nervous or not a great swimmer! I’m in australia, so no guarantee there’s an equivalent thing in your state, but I’d bet there is. Not many people would pay up for a whole course before they’ve ever tried it out
I've been in management for nearing a decade in a fifteen year career as a teacher and always had impostor syndrome as a manager. Finally I feel a lot more confident in the decisions I make and in managing upward as well as laterally.
The new Minecraft map of my own server is going to open this Saturday. I'm excited for it, because I love to create lots of new and interesting custom items & blocks for the players.
I'm also excited for System76's new Cosmic desktop environment, built with Rust. I'm hoping for (and visually it's looking like) a Gnome-ish look & feel, but with less restrictions and less resource usage.
Won't be out for quite a while, though.
Passkeys. There's just something neat about entering a website/app with just a fingerprint and I believe it's more secure than passwords; and it's not necessary to use 2FA since technically passkeys works as a password and the 2FA. Sadly, it hasn't been adopted by many websites but passkeys have gained more recognition and I hope there will be more availability in the future.
Summer! Grabbing the kids and the wife and diving into the pool or a lake.
Apart from that:
ARCHERY!!! Started 2.5 years ago and can't get enough.
At the same level:
AI !!
Now, I know it is a hype topic for many, but for me... oh boy!
I started reading scifi around the age of 11...
The biggest fascination was robots, then AI. (Ian M Banks, anyone?)
I studied and even implemented neural networks at University, but alas, that was 1998/9, and no one saw what was coming. Actually asked the profs what if "we take millions or billions... of neurons, etc.." and was dismissed.
And now...
I can "talk" to an AI, I can describe pictures and have them generated, I can get assistance for tasks, etc...
I'm living in the future and loving every minute of it.
How did you become interested in archery? Is archery expensive to get in to??
Actually, I inherited an old compound bow from my estranged father.
Not knowing what to do with it, I googled archery clubs.. well, the rest is history.
For the first year, I rented a bow from the club, and bought an arm protector, a quiver, some arrows, and a "tab".
So the cost for the first year was a bit of equipment, club dues, and the rent for the bow.
(You will really have to look in your area / clubs for pricing, because I live in Switzerland, and Money is gaga here.)
I bought a used bow after the first year, when I tried out some different types of bow, and knowing this is what I want to keep doing.
I landed on a longbow, which has to be shot with wooden arrows in tournaments for the SAA.
That bow was about 350$, and I still shoot it.
I did buy myself a traditional recurve bow middle of the year, custom-made by a bowyer in Bavaria.
That cost me 1200$.
In general, archery is a sport that has a cap of a few thousand for the most expensive equipment.
(Very professional olympic or compound bows with sights, weights, stabilizers, etc...)
Recurring costs are low, as we are looking at club fees, and the eventual arrow or string replacement.
The big ticket item is always a bow. After saying that, please know that a bow will last you 10-20 years minimum, very likely a lifetime.
The compound I inherited is 40 years old, and I shoot that one, too.
So.. more expensive than knitting, and less expensive than motorsports.
Local prices NEED to be sourced.
I started a new job as a Product Architect last week. I'm trying to get up to speed ASAP, working on some really cool projects.
I am currently on my first vacation outside of North America. It has been WONDERFUL! I have a few days left in the areas around Bath UK. This trip has reignited my hope for the future. I am already fleshing out my plans to emigrate from the USA. My current plan is to do a bachelor’s degree program that I found in France and try to turn that into a residency, and eventually citizenship. I’m not too particular for France (although it seems really nice), but I want to be in the EU. I am also really liking the UK though, so I might end up there instead. Too bad brexit happened.
It's my last day or work before I start an 8 week paid sabbitcal. I get to spend the summer with my kids doing all of their activities plus having them help with household projects like working on our deck, finishing my workshop, and we're going to turn their play structure into a fort.
I'm probably not gonna last the whole day.
That sounds.... utterly amazing.
AI, and in particular LLMs. I've been playing around with them for a lot of personal projects, and the speed at which they're improving is insane. There have been a lot of creative ways to get better results and better performance, and I'm excited to see where they'll be after a year or two, once the "easy" wins are fully developed.
I'm excited for vacations! In my mid-to-late 20's and I've decided that I want to spend as much time as I can out of my comfort zone and out of America. Only thing that really holds me back is my dog and money, but I have a trip planned for Japan soon and I'm trying to go back to the motherland in Taiwan in the fall. I've spent about a month out of the last six in Europe too and I've been really enjoying it.
My partner is moving in with me next month! I'm really excited about it. It's been years since I've lived with a partner, or really anybody other than my cats. :)
Honestly…nothing. There are things I’m interested in or looking forward to, but nothing I’m excited about. Hoping that changes, and keeping optimistic though!
One of the things I do, is update a five year plan.
I put on it big things I want do to (get a better job) but also little things that are just for fun (learn to sail)
It's forced me to think consciously about what I want to do, where I want to spend my time.
As a result I have learned fire dancing, attended burning man, learned windsurfing, toured Europe, bought an eMTB (OK, that had more to do with @NaraVara & @Autumn than my 5 year plan to "Exercise more, " but the five year plan justified the insane expense.)
It's OK to not be excited by anything right now, but it's good to spend time trying new things to see what excites you...
Oh man, Im with you in spirit. At least a couple of times a winter I say to my wife (as I put on my three layers of thermal clothing to keep from freezing to death at -40c): "You know, some people rolled out of bed today and put on shorts and a t-shirt and they were done for the day" She likes winter. I prefer Hawaii or anywhere tropical near the ocean.