Something related to add that a lot of people don’t realize is that Windows has a way to add ASCII emoji by pressing Win + .

It’s a pretty comprehensive list too.

I worked a precinct that was right next to a huge nursing home. One guy who was 98, came in and after getting his ballot fell down and was unresponsive. Luckily the home had their own staff join the groups that came to vote and resuscitated him and he continued exactly where he left off at tortoise pace.

Also lots of people who were not registered or at the wrong polling place but insist on voting anyways despite me patiently explaining and showing them how to solve the issue. They demand to “vote” so they get a provisional ballot that we dutifully process which likely will be rejected. All of them are certain we are stealing their ballot, or trying to keep them from voting. I always say to them, “you seem like you are someone who knows a lot about the election process and has the time, we need people like you to volunteer” while offering them the volunteering paperwork. They leave pretty quickly after that.

There was a weekend in 2006 where I had absolutely nothing to do despite a full schedule for months on either side. I stayed in my apartment and played video games and just existed happily without being molested for three whole days.

I have had children and received promotions and all of that, but all of those experiences are laced with a bit of anxiety. That weekend though was just pure, light joy for three days and it is something I revisit mentally, constantly. Make sure to enjoy those little times too.

As an counter example as something that you may not think of as therapeutically relevant, there are a whole class of Platinum based anti-cancer drugs.

Ultracrepidarian

An ultracrepidarian—from ultra- (“beyond”) and crepidarian (“things related to shoes”)—is a person considered to have ignored this advice and to be offering opinions they know nothing about.

The word is derived from a longer Latin phrase and refers to a story from Pliny the Elder

The phrase is recorded in Book 35 of Pliny the Elder’s Natural History as ne supra crepidam sutor iudicaret[1] (“Let the cobbler not judge beyond the crepida”) and ascribed to the Greek painter Apelles of Kos. Supposedly, Apelles would put new paintings on public display and hide behind them to hear and act on their reception.[2] On one occasion, a shoemaker (Latin sutor) noted that one of the crepides[a] in a painting had the wrong number of straps and was so delighted when he found the error corrected the next day that he started in on criticizing the legs.[2] Indignant, Apelles came from his hiding place and admonished him to confine his opinions to the shoes.[2] Pliny then states that since that time it had become proverbial.[2]

Well I use mine every night and sleep fine. I could also be a robot as you suggest too.

Check out bone conduction headphones.

The audio quality is not the best but it more than enough for podcasts or youtube content. They are much more comfortable for me as long as the volume is relatively low or else the vibration starts to become annoying. I would recommend trying them out if you can from a friend or order some expecting to return them because they aren’t for everyone but if you are like me you won’t want to use anything else.

I went to a John Kerry Rally in 2004. I got there about 30 minutes late and for whatever reason was ushered up to the front corral of people. Inexplicably, Bon Jovi takes the stage and shouts, “You what George Bush’s financial policy is? Bad Medicine!” and launches into the song ‘Bad Medicine’. I started laughing my ass off because it was corny as shit and Bon Jovi and I made eye contact for a brief second.

YMMV

If you’re down for a retro RPG via an emulator, Earthbound. The overarching story is about dealing with traumatic events as a child and coming of age while hitting the endearing but quirky note similar to games like Undertale that was a cult classic on the SNES. It came boxed with a full color, complete strategy guide made to look like a travel guide so it’s intended not to be too difficult and really experience the story.

Bill Laimbeer’s Combat Basketball for the SNES.

It’s referencing the final scene of The Graduate (1967). You can watch it here..

I didn’t realize they actually used the exact church. Wayne’s World 2 scene for reference

This adds a whole new dimension to the lore.

One day a coworker of mine was walking into our huge office building and thought he saw a mitten on the ground of the lobby. When he picked it up it was actually a pair of lacy women’s underwear. Ostensibly it fell out of someone’s gym bag or got caught in their pant leg in the laundry and dislodged there. He drops it immediately and comes into the office. He doesn’t mention this to anyone.

Two hours later the main receptionist comes in with the underwear in front of our whole group and says she saw him drop these this morning and she wants to return them. He’s denying the whole thing and at this point none of us have the previous context and all locked in to the conversation and silent laughing. She says, “We just want to give these back in case they have sentimental value!” and the the whole group is dying laughing now. He eventually convinces her he isn’t interested in a stranger’s underwear (which she bare handing) to which she says she’ll keep them in case he changes his mind (???).

It’s been 5 years and it gets brought up nearly daily

Here’s a picture of the stamp.

It’s just a 3mm thickness disc with the picture on the top at 2mm. I use a 6 ton shop press to compress it with a 1" steel plate used to distribute the force. The print is a no name brand black PLA printed at 0.2 at the fast setting on an AnkerMake M5. You can also see the residual ink, the stamping only takes a small amount. I did a few at one time without having to reapply.

One of the chillest, good vibe albums I have ever listen to blind was Masayoshi Takanaka’s - All of me.

The youtube comment that was at the top of the video that I listened to years ago summed up the experience nicely, "No one searches for this album, it finds you when you need it.

The Mafia/Werewolf social deduction type games can be played without any equipment if someone knows the rules well enough. Alternatively you can use the free companion app that is meant for the One Night Werewolf version guides you through it.

I have two:

1. I was the main tank of a raiding guild in WoW during the Burning Crusade era. Our guild was the best on the server, but nothing too notable outside of that community. However, when a new quick raid encounter came out (Magtheridon’s Lair), we unintentionally completed the encounter in a novel way. I know that because the next week when we went to clear it, a developer whispered me and asked me if he and a few others could watch us because they noticed through some automated log to prevent cheating that we completed the encounter last week without engaging with a major mechanic of the fight. They let us know they were there, but you couldn’t see anyone and when you looked up the character name it wouldn’t show up if you searched the name. We showed them how we did it, they congratulated us for our ingenuity then told us they were changing the encounter for next week. It was really cool.

2. A few years ago I got into Enter the Gungeon. For those unaware it’s a bullet hell, rogue-like, dungeon crawler with a steep learning curve but great graphics and snappy controls so it is a great time. The first time I beat the game I posted a screenshot on Reddit and the entire community was convinced that it was fake because of my build and the lack of max health I had. At first I was annoyed then I realized that if they didn’t believe me then it meant I did something, literally, incredible.

I’ll add an experience I had in the inverse.

Friend of mine who works in film and has a great appreciation for interesting movies recommended me the movie Barbarian. He was talking about the major plot points but only got about 20% of the way through before saying there was a twist and I stopped him because it sounded interesting. I downloaded it on my tablet and promptly forgot about it.

About a year later I was on a flight and decided to give it a shot. At exactly 21% of the way through the movie the plot shifts and becomes exactly the type of movie you should not be watching on a flight surrounded by coworkers. I was too engrossed to register that, watched the whole thing, then had the pleasure of explaining to my pearl clutching coworkers what it was.

Great movie by the way.

Just listened to it and god she is amazing. Great recommendation!

If you want to hear a surf rock instrumental cover that is actually phenomenal check out The Surfrajettes. Also amazing name.