Friendly reminder that a common propaganda tactic is to discourage your opposition from voting

Cilantro, with the soapy gene. It tastes like soap, but eh, I kind of like it.

I keep coming back to it and catching more references and recurring characters. It’s very rewatchable!

I think as far as shows that I love and come back to, and that I keep thinking of and want to own on physical media:

Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell
She-Ra: Princesses of Power
The Good Place
The Addams Family (the black and white one)
Parks & Recreation
Star Trek TNG, Lower Decks, and Deep Space 9

Strawberries are fantastic. I planted some last year and was really bummed that I didn’t get to eat a single one. Then this summer, we had wild strawberries ALL over thanks to the greedy critters pooping seeds all over. This year I finally got a handful of delicious, perfectly ripe berries and the critters ate the wild ones. Perennial, self-propagating, and delicious. What else could you want?

The way our urban design influences society and community, and how the loss of third spaces and the dominance of cars in Western society has led to the loneliness epidemic and influence bubbles. I would talk about the movement to reclaim main street and encourage “traditional development”, and how that leads to the micro-encounters that help people feel like they belong somewhere. How parks, plazas and pedestrian areas create third places where people can casually encounter diverse individuals and create friends and community connections. Also with a hearty side about public transportation and how efficient it is, and what a better neighbor a tram rail is than a road of similar passenger load. This speech is pretty much 30 seconds away from coming out of me during any conversation anyway and it’s a conscious effort to stop myself. Would be nice to let it out.

The books in that series all seemed to follow the same pattern of something weird, interesting and mysterious happening, having no idea what was going on, spending the whole book getting a slightly better picture of it only for something else totally incomprehensible to happen and the cycle started again. I wanted to like it but I got sick of the antics. Really interesting world though

Who says a collection has to be material or unused?

Pretty clothes, hats, jewelry, crystals and cool rocks, musical instruments, board games, video games, antique wooden puzzles, books, ice cream recipes, crafting supplies and good fabrics, vintage kitchen equipment and appliances, solid wood furniture, projects, skills, hobbies… everything is interesting and my house is a glorious mess full of fascinating things.

Depends on where you are. Where I am, we have little farm shops and bakeries that sell frozen pies that are the real deal. Unfortunately that’s very dependent on location but might be worth a look.

An ally would listen to feedback from the minority they claim to support… just sayin’

My opinion as a pragmatist and a woman: an engagement shouldn’t be a surprise. The formality of the proposal itself can be a surprise, but just like a birthday party it should be something expected and at the very least loosely discussed with the person. Asking “what kind of proposals do you like?” and figuring out if they want something public or private, or in front of friends or something small is really important. What kind of engagement ring should go in this discussion. She might hate diamonds, she might love them, she might have a metal allergy, she might have a stone that means a lot to her, she might hate rings with stones at all because they catch on things. You don’t know until you ask, and by asking you’re showing her the respect and that you value her opinion.

Yes but that’s not the cat people are usually referring to when they say "I have a cat I let outside "

Cats outside are an aggressive invasive species in every continent except Africa. I love them but they need to be kept inside, and neutered/spayed. Cats do fine indoors, even ones who have gotten used to going in and out. They may complain but with enrichment and regular play they will get over it. If not, then a catio is a good solution.

In places hostile to cars, it’s perfectly possible for delivery trucks and emergency vehicles to use streets intended for pedestrians. Trucks make deliveries at early hours before there are many people around, and emergency vehicles use sirens and drive at slower speeds. As far as general package delivery, people just use smaller scale methods.

OP mentions their age but not his. If this person is in their 20s, or even 30s, the story changes dramatically

Yes, he’s attracted to you. However, his behavior could be a warning sign depending on how old he is. Is he your age? If so I think he’s excited and enthusiastic about getting your attention, but if he’s older, I agree with other posters this sounds like he’s trying to buy your affection. It’s a warning sign if he’s in his 20s, and a huge blaring red alert if he’s over 30.

If he’s one of your peers, I would be cautiously optimistic but NOT go fishing and definitely do not let him drive you again. This is women’s safety 101: do not ever rely on a date for transportation, do not meet in isolated areas, and let someone know where you will be and when you should be home. If you are in a place that is car dependent, you are at the total mercy of whoever is driving, and giving them too much control over your freedom. Even with ride shares available that is a risk you should try to avoid.

Unless he has already told you where he’s going fishing and it’s somewhere visible and well populated, or you’re going with friends as a group, then you should suggest an alternate activity that puts you around people. Other people are safety, and accountability. If his intentions are good, he should be happy to accommodate you and won’t mind.

I remember when I was 19, I was not the beauty standard, so I didn’t have my guard up as much as my peers. It was flattering and exciting to have someone overtly interested in me. I was frankly naive and oblivious to the fact that I could be preyed on and manipulated. I thought I was smart and confident but I had no idea what was going on around me and a lot of people I thought were “just being nice” were wolves circling. You should know that there are a lot of men who see someone young and inexperienced in dating who might be kind of insecure and see them as a juicy target for control, abuse, and manipulation. Just take precautions. Things might be totally fine, but the consequences for them being a predator can be severe.

They still keep servers up and even do minor patches for Guild Wars 1 twenty years later. I am optimistic that we will have plenty of time to enjoy the current Guild Wars 2 content.

There’s tank/support/dps in GW2 for sure, but pretty much every class can build for any role and it’s only relevant in raids.

My Mesmer (a mage with the lowest health and lightest armor) is my best and toughest tank in my character line up.

Not just aging, I would say intelligence is highly variable just on an individual level due to all sorts of factors. How much rest you get, the quality of said rest, current physical comfort level, distractions, stress, whether you’re hungry or have eaten recently, time of day, whether there’s a time constraint, etc etc etc. I wonder how many “stupid” people are genuinely that way even in the best conditions, or if the majority are just suffering from any of multiple detractors on them. Because of this I try not to judge, because I don’t know their lives.