Unicorn Rockstar

But one time at a work party he said something that I don’t even remember what it is, but it bugged him so much that THREE DAYS LATER (it was a long weekend) he pulled me aside to apologize. He said he was afraid he’d made me uncomfortable, and he felt really bad about it. He explicitly said he wanted to make sure I had a comfortable work environment. He assured me that if he ever said something that did make me uncomfortable, I could just tell him to knock it off and he’d stop. Or, he added, if that was scary, I could tell one of our coworkers and THEY could tell him to knock it off. He was terribly humble and earnest through the whole of it, and I was completely taken aback because, like I said, I couldn’t even remember what he’d done wrong. This coworker also, despite having at least twenty+ years of experience on me and being an expert in the field, has always taken the time to listen to my ideas and engage with me on solving technical issues like I also am an expert in the field. 

We are in the New Browser Wars. This time there’s a helluva lot of money up for grabs, because a lot of it is about running those ads. Monopolies are bad for consumers.

AdNauseam is an adblocker that generates false clicks on the ads it blocks, which costs the corporations that pay for them money.

Privacy Possum messes with the tracking data collected about you, rendering it essentially useless

TrackMeNot generates random search terms across sites, meaning that any data collected about things you actually search is buried in a sea of random bullshit. Makes it very hard for people to figure out what you’re actually doing. You can block terms in the options, which means it won’t search for anything incriminating on your behalf (I think the word bomb is blocked by default)

WhatCampaign replaces tracking analytics used in website code with data that can’t be used to track you. I’m pretty sure it replaces it with “fuck off” by default.

high unemployment and a lot of underpaying, pointless jobs = people are looking for things to do with their life, a purpose

skyrocketing cost of living = most young people will not be able to live on their own, meaning some will end up in a group living situation with people interested in recruiting them

it's a time of great cultural and political upheaval, nothing feels real, people are desperate for meaning and human connection. cults promise that

there is a new wave of acceptance and understanding for ways of life outside the norm, which is great! ...except for when cult leaders tell you abusive and controlling practices are just their culture, their religion, their lifestyle, their beliefs, their tradition, and if you disrespect it you are the problem

social media influencers have already shown us how easy it is to build a cult of personality and attract people from anywhere in the world who are interested in the exact brand you are selling

spirtuality is having a boom, as are things like astrology, crystals, tarot, meditation, energy... those things aren't bad on their own but they are often used as tools of cult spaces

wellness. i think a lot of people are already in wellness cults. you can make people do a lot of things in the name of "wellness" and a big factor of maintaining a cult is keeping members in a state of decreased cognition..... like say, with regular fasting

Y’all released a 1 hr and 9 minute cutesy collection of Pooh Bear short stories about trying to find Eeyore’s lost tail on the SAME DAY AS THE FINAL HARRY POTTER FILM, of course it didn’t do well

AND y’all went up against YOURSELVES because Cars 2 had just opened like three weeks before and was very much still in theaters

You remember what came out literally one week after it?

Also, if they already pulled a ridiculous amount of money from you… if you believe that the charges are for power that you did not use you likely can file a dispute with your bank.  If you lost power tell them about that and say that services were not received, or if there are sudden new previously not disclosed fees you can state that the price is different than disclosed. Those sorts of reasons should keep banking systems from messing with the account itself, as it would do for a fraud claim.  Filing a dispute against your power company might not get you your money back, but it MAY.  It may also allow the bank to waive a stop payment fee if you fear a second round of hiked rates.  Just ask the banker about that before filing the stop paymen as some systems will ONLY waive the fee if it’s done DURING the dispute process…. 

But!  You have to remember that the stop payment is there until YOU remove it.  While some banks may remove them after 6 months, or 1-5 years…. it will be your responsibility to remember to reestablish your payment relationship with the power company, and you’ll also then need to let your bank about it when you want to start allowing payments to process again so they can remove the block.

And for those worried that it might somehow look shady: No, the banker will NOT think you’re trying to pull a fast one.  The banker is 10000% likely to be on your side when you explain the situation and ask them questions. 

According to a few colleagues it’s either a plant, an algae, or a fungi. So that’s been helpful.

After a day with some sunlight I think I might be seeing some chloroplasts.

Today, Amazon announced the imminent launch of its newest endeavor, Kindle Worlds, a publishing platform for fanfiction. When I read the announcement, I was horrified, then angry, then sad. I want to take a moment to explain why this is such a tragedy.

“By using the platform, authors give all rights to the work to Amazon, who can then license your elements to other authors with no compensation to the original poster.”

Except corvids don’t only do this as a distraction. Sometimes they seem to just being doing it to mess with other animals/birbs. But to use my lunch room analogy, there are times you might thwap someone sneakily on the back of the neck just for amusement. Primates exhibit behavior that appears to be just be annoying other animals for amusement. Given how intelligent crows are, its not unlikely that this is a manifestation of an innate desire to just fuck with someone else for the fun of it. Such as this from the link above:

‘Where the hell is the seatbelt on this thing?’

I mean they deserve a medal for having such huge bird balls imo

And honestly? It should include having to spend time living on disability, navigating their district in a wheelchair, and taking public transit.

I was allowed full access to any books, movies, and internet I wanted fully informed about our family beliefs and practices but I was given no supervision once I reached about 13 because my parents trusted me to stick to the rules or not as I felt and come to them if there was anything that I had questions about.

As long as I said where I was going, who I was with, and when I was going to be back and then phone if anything changed I was allowed to do pretty much as I pleased from 13 onward.

I moved back in with my parents after university and the first conversation we had was my dad telling me that if I felt like they were treating me like a child to please tell them because they had no intention of doing so.

password protected my computer so i had to get permission every time i wanted to use it

put a passcode lock on our pantry so we couldn’t eat without permission

regularly checked our internet browsing history

shut off the internet at regular intervals, including when i needed it for university homework

did monthly checks of our bank statements and would confiscate money if they didn’t approve of our activities

in response, i went behind their backs and opened a new bank account, got a secret job, bought my own groceries, and used the wifi from the school across the street. they didn’t succeed in disciplining me. all they did was force me to distance myself from them.

Rainbow Cupcakes

Calling a hotel and telling them a KKK chapter rented their ballroom for a meeting is antifa action

Pulling down posters promoting hate groups is antifa action (and if you do, use your keys, not your hands. Some groups put razor blades behind their postings to hurt anyone who takes them down)

Addressing local tensions in your community by participating in food drives and supporting disempowered folks can be antifacist, as facist groups will use community fears to stir up hate and gain power.

Going to an event where a figure whom fascists tend to align with and peacefully protesting is antifa action, whether that speaker thinks they’re fascist or not.