Wake up
Sun is shining
Birds are singing
Have tea on porch
Watch the squirrels frolicking in the leaves
Despite everything, it’s all going to be okay
Oh, hiya neighbour
Doing some yard work?
BWARRRARARARRRGHGHHGHGHGHGHG

There’s a famous example of one of these bulbs that’s been in operation since 1901

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Centennial_Light

Context kind of matters for me, but if I’m screwing any in, it’s both of them.

My monitors are on a swivel bar, and plug into the underside. Those get screwed completely in if the cable has screws. But on the desktop, since it doesn’t really move and I’ve never yanked a cable, they’re usually left loose.

What, do you use the mouse?

Do you think of life as being an ordered system? It seems pretty chaotic to me.

Anyway, if I relate my concept of a ‘natural system’ to biology, then I’d point out that there isn’t really an upper limit to how fast animals go. I mean, sure, they’re limited by their size or aerodynamics, but a cheetah doesn’t have a ‘top speed’ that it bottoms out at, it could push harder or be induced to move faster.

If I think of it as a force of nature, I’d think about how water flows. The speed of a river isn’t constant, and it could be manipulated or induced to move faster.

So from that lens, it just seems odd that there are universal constants, like the speed of light. You’d think some lights would move faster or slower than others based on their composition, because that’s the behaviour we seem to experience in nature.

This isn’t a serious debate or belief of mine. I accept the laws of science because they’re testable, demonstrable, and repeatable. But when you contemplate the unknowable (what does God look like, anyway?), it’s a fun diversion.

Also we’re such an infinitesimally small part of the universe that I’m inclined to believe that if we are in a simulation, we’re the bug that crawled into the computer.

I’ve often had the thought that the universe is a simulation.

Like, why are there hard physical limitations on things like the speed of light? That doesn’t make a lot of sense for a natural system. Also what kind of bullshit is it that if you move super fast time goes slower?

The universe is a simulation, but it’s not very well put together.

If there is necromancy afoot though, I’d suspect it might be at the world’s largest cemetery.

Sure, when you do it it’s an efficiency hack and time saver, when I do it I’m told I’m ‘making a scene’ and get ejected from the Wendy’s

You can be narcissistic and still like cats. It’ll give you both something to bond over.

But for real, there are people who keep their cats on vegan diets because their beliefs are more important than their pets’ health.

There’s also people who insist that you shouldn’t spay/neuter your cat and still let them outside to roam free. That might not technically be narcissistic, but cats have a tremendous negative impact on the ecosystem, and feral cats suffer greatly in the wild.

All that said, I love my fuzzballs. They stay indoors, both for their protection and the local wildlife.

Well your conversation with Lucas has it identify itself as Claude, so I’d be a teensy bit skeptical myself

It’s not great to be queer in China.

Depending on how things go in the next couple weeks, we might say the same of the US though. It’s already true for certain parts of the country

smh r u fr rn?

Personally, I like the southern twang.

It feels almost lyrical

Engineer, reporting for duty 07

Frugal tip: You can get a lot more life out of green onions by setting them in a jar of water. Trim what you need from the ends, and the plant will grow probably 3-4 times before you need to replace it.

I love factorio, I have over a hundred hours in it.

I still haven’t launched a rocket yet

Instant noodles, peanut butter, and sriracha. Crack an egg in near the end.

It’s actually pretty close to pad thai, but screams of struggle meal

No problem, can you tell I’m procrastinating? ;)

Gosh, that’s actually a big question and not one that I’m sure anybody could come to a definitive, absolute answer.

Ultimately, I think it depends on an individual’s ethics. Some people believe there’s nothing wrong with hunting because it’s just predation happening in the ecosystem. Some people avoid certain ingredients or produce like palm oil or avocados because of the ecological harm. For some people, it’s eating only locally sourced food to minimize the impact of emissions from the global supply chain.

For many people, it’s a murky line between doing what’s right and doing what’s achievable. And as people get pushed to their limits they might not be able to afford the luxury of choosing what’s good.

For my part, I’m trying to do the best I can. Our grocery budget is quite frugal and we’re getting squeezed. Eating vegetarian is often a financial necessity. My wife craves meat, and I’m not going to argue with her body’s natural impulse. So if there’s a bargain or leftovers, we won’t pass up an opportunity.

The sad thing is, I live in a first world country and I know people who are way less food secure than I am.

Another one that kills me is eggs. I pay a little more for the free-range eggs from a factory farm, but I’m still buying from a factory farm. I have no illusions that the conditions of a factory chicken are good, but at the least they’re not battery-caged, so they must be suffering less. But if we were buying from a local farmer, they’d either be too expensive or not able to keep up with demand. We’d be kind of hard pressed to meet our nutritional needs without eggs, so I have to live with the fact that I’m supporting a factory farm

I’m going to stop procrastinating tomorrow.

But for real, when I was in high school and my first attempt through college, I had a terrible problem with procrastination. Doing homework at the very last minute worked well enough in high school, but at the post-secondary and professional level it doesn’t really cut it.

In my second and successful attempt at college, I made it a policy to just do all my homework right away. That meant working while I ate lunch, using free periods when they were available, and often staying after class. If I had time leftover by completing a lab early, I’d start on my homework then.

In all, it typically cost me an extra hour or two on my day. But in the end, I didn’t have to take any homework home with me. It became routine that I was staying late most days, so it wasn’t a big problem if I did end up late. There was also a very distinct separation between my work and home life, and I think that helped reinforce the behaviour.

This isn’t always a super healthy attitude to take. I burned out pretty hard after graduation. I’ve since learned to relax, but I do struggle with procrastination frequently now.

Never procrastinating isn’t achievable for some people. Nor do I think it should be. You can’t always summon willpower from where there isn’t will. If you struggle with neurodivergence or mental illness, then you probably know exactly what I’m talking about.

I believe to a certain extent it’s healthy to procrastinate. Often, your brain is telling you that you need rest, and it does so through procrastination. However, you can’t procrastinate yourself out of a problem, lest you end up with more severe problems.

If you want to find a healthy way to reduce your procrastination there are a lot of tips out there that might set you up for success. But if something isn’t working for you, it’s okay to be skeptical of it. There’s an entire industry of pop psychology scientific-sounding crap out there. The behavioural sciences are a constantly evolving field, and what was touted as a solution twenty years ago may be out of touch with today’s understanding.

Here’s a few tips that have been helpful to me, and with less eulogizing:

Tip 1 - Minimize

• Think of the smallest part of the task you have to do
• Find a triggering event to remind you to do the task
• Do that smallest part
• Congratulate yourself

Example: I have a sink full of dirty dishes that need to be washed. Whenever I get up for a glass of water, I wash one dish and fist pump.

This one’s great for building habits. The reasoning is that you have a reminder event to prompt you into action, and then you’re giving a positive association to the task. It’s also a good technique for large tasks made up of many small parts. Something is better than nothing, and often times I find that I take on more of the task because I’ve already gotten over the largest hurdle of starting.

Tip 2 - Randomize

• Make a list of the tasks you’re avoiding doing
• Randomly select a task
• Do the task

Example: I have six tasks I’m avoiding, so I write out a list and roll a six-sided die to pick a task.

The reasoning is that when we’re faced with too many options, we freeze up. It can take a surprising amount of mental energy to make a decision, so you’re allowing a system to make the decision for you.

Cop out: if you roll the die and it lands on Wash the Dishes and you have a strong feeling that you would have preferred to have selected Take out Garbage, then go ahead and take out the garbage. We can use randomness as a crutch, but we’re allowed to make our own luck too.

Tip 3 - Prioritize

• Accept that you’re going to procrastinate, even if it’s just a little bit
• Think of a task you could be doing that’s more favourable than the one you’re avoiding
• Do that task while you procrastinate

Example: I have to file my taxes and I’m dreading the paperwork. My floor also needs to be swept. I sweep the floor until I feel I’m ready to tackle my taxes.

This technique is mostly about minimizing the impact of procrastinating. Rather than procrastinating idly, you can procrastinate in a way that’s a little productive. It’s not really a solution to the problem of procrastination, but something is better than nothing.

If you’re struggling with procrastination and as a result have difficulty forming healthy habits, I wholeheartedly recommend Tiny Habits for further reading. I’ve tried a lot of self-help with mixed results, and this one has been the most impactful by far.