Have you considered checking out your local Community College?

Orchestra is back!!! The Fall season starts today and I am so excited to start playing again.

For me it’s that I have to think less about my choices. I don’t have a ton of time anymore so if I pick a book I am not vibing with I can just return it and pick another in a matter of seconds. It’s led me to taking chances on books I normally wouldn’t read.

I love my local library because they’re keeping me sane on my work commute! I looove audiobooks and it’s so nice to be able to try so many and not have to worry about if I will like them because it’s all free!!!

I guess South Park called that.

https://y.yarn.co/ee732a42-0e9c-4467-b1ed-021ae33e2050_text.gif

I try to buy local loose leaf.

If you are looking for a grocery store recommendations, I love Celestial Seasonings herbal teas. They have an amazing peppermint tea.

Porphyria’s Lover by Robert Browning just rolled around in my head for day after I first read it. It’s really dark but feels so completely human at the same time.

https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/46313/porphyrias-lover

I am really happy that people are willing to consider how toxic that aggression is. It’s so engrained in our culture that it’s considered normal when a father threatens to have his gun out when first meeting his daughter’s partner. Nobody really thinks about the effects of this normalized violence.

I apologize but this will be kind of dark. As a father I know you are going to be desperate to protect her, but don’t wax poetic about dealing violence to anyone who would do her wrong. For example, don’t talk about beating her current boyfriend/girlfriend if they cross her. Girls are going to have shitty relationships because that’s a part of growing up. Don’t make her think talking to you about them is the nuclear option when she’s still trying to figure out what is acceptable and her boundaries. If she thinks you’ll go beat the shit out of any one who looks at her funny, she might not come to you with her problems until she is willing to accept her dad going to prison for a long time. Everyone is right about listening to her, but make sure she that she knows that you can be trusted. Listen, accept her decisions, work with her, and not to fly off of the handle. Best of luck new father, since you’re asking the right questions I think you are going to be fine.

Good on you for sticking by her while she was working it out. Changing medication is so hard and takes a while especially if you’re taking more than one kind. I am really happy you both got through it and that she found something better!

Take my meds- man I never thought I was that different on or off meds until the recent ADHD medication shortage combined with some personal issues last Fall made me fall apart. My poor SO was worried sick because I was losing my damn mind, turns out I do not mask well. I didn’t realize that being properly medicated is as much of a public service as a personal one. May your meds always be available and well balanced.

Absolutely this! I work in tech and it’s shocking how much casual racism and sexism gets tossed around. It is super hard to build a cohesive team when one of the men won’t let a woman coworker speak because he doesn’t like their use of the word “we” when describing their team.

Dumb tic-tok trends and stupid dance videos are not what employers are looking for.

I am assuming they’re referencing South Park.

https://southpark.fandom.com/wiki/Tolkien_Black

Can’t stand listening to tech “evangelists” talk about tech. It’s so hard no roll my eyes when someone goes on and on about how the _____ (block chain, AI, whatever buzz word we’re on now) will change the world. Like yes, but not in the way you are describing because it clear you fundamentally misunderstand the technology. I work in tech and there are really cool projects out there, and discussions with my peers are really insightful. However, when a person starts telling me how excited they are to get I chip in their brain to control their phone, I can’t help but wonder if they already have brain damage.

In this instance I am definitely pro owl. The humans ignored very clearly posted warnings about a territorial animal in the area and are shocked that the animal behaved aggressively. In this case, the owl was defending its territory and not going out if it’s was to target anyone.

As for a case of an animal being problematic enough for action, I am going to refer to our local menace Otter 841. Otter 841 is behaving very uncharacteristically for an otter. Instead of giving humans wide breadth, she actively swims up to surfers and climbs aboard. The issue here is that she is seeking out humans and engaging with them, which is dangerous for both the surfers and the otters. I guess the line for needing to take action is when an animal is both aggressive and actively seeking out humans. If the wild animals are only aggressive in situations where humans antagonize them, like violating their territory or cornering them, then the wild animals shouldn’t be put down. In the case of Otter 841, I like that their approach is to attempt to capture the otter and relocate her to a rehabilitation facility with no possibility of parole. I know it’s not always realistic to do so, but I don’t like defaulting to putting down wild animals. I agree though that aggressive domestic animals like dogs are a completely different situation.

Portal. I have terrible FPS skills but love puzzle games. Having a FPS where I could proceed at my own pace and wasn’t constantly letting down teammates let me develop the skills needed to actually play.

I had heard that Mark Twain was a fantastic orator, so I would love to be in the audience for one of his shows.

If you want to get into things but are unsure how to get started, I recommend checking out your local community college. Having a class is nice because it provides the starting point and goal so you don’t get overwhelmed with where to start. I find I really benefit from the schedule that taking classes enforces, otherwise I find myself really struggling to make progress when I do learning on my own. Also it comes with its own built in community that you can reach out to if you’re stuck. Classes tend to be really affordable so it’s a way to try things out casually.

Dude learning music is so fulfilling. I picked up the viola at 30. Am I good, no, not at all. However, it’s been super gratifying being able to hear gradual progress. I have improved enough that playing with other people is no longer a pipe dream. Learning music has given me so much happiness. I felt so anxious and stalled in my paid work because of the vagueness and lack of direction, so small achievable goals like learning a new piece has been really grounding. It’s also really peaceful to have something so completely selfish. My viola skills are not for anyone but me, so I always smile a little whenever I pick it up. I sincerely hope that the guitar brings you the same joy.