also I don't think parents "these days" are uniquely terrible, I just think neglect is showing up in new ways as technology progresses. today's ipad kid would've been wandering around in a ditch alone all day and night before. parents not wanting to have to deal with children is not a new phenomenon.
You're right and you should say it. Long ago it was the occasional major injury or disappearance and some real high level abandonment issues, now its 9/10 kids developing ADHD because their brains never learned what the proper amount of stimulation and dopamine are and they WILL struggle because this all happened during the highest time of neurodevelopment for them.
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To be fair to Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, if I wrote some pulp short stories for a quick buck and an obsessive fandom sprung up around it at a time when fandom culture as we now know it didn't really exist yet, and I had to witness people being insane about my characters while having very little precedent for what the fuck was going on, I would also be confused and frightened and desperately trying to escape from the situation I'd ended up in.
To be fair, he also then immediately succumbed to the pressure of his fans when he tried to kill sherlock and had to bring him back, like fans have ALWAYS thought that their version of the story was best
As someone who HAS kicked a fish on purpose that bastard had it coming. It saw me wading through the creek bed and decided to repeatedly sneak up behind me and bite my heels. You better believe I kicked that fucker. No reason for it either, just senseless violence against me and me feet.
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Every attempt by medicine inventors to make it cheap, like insulin for example, has been entirely undercut by medicine manufacturing companies. AND IT ISN'T JUST MEDICINE.
Medical supply companies upcharge by several hundred times on what is basically plastic, steel, and linen most of the time. Sure, slightly more complicated due to sterility, but that IS IT!
Sometimes our roommate gives a little bit of leftover canned tuna to the cats but because of this they run over and wait expectantly whenever they hear a can peel open even though they don’t eat wet food
gentle reminder that if u feel hungry soon after eating, it might be bc you’re eating mostly carbs without adding enough protein. try eating a handful of nuts or smthing alongside your next meal.
and you don’t have to change the recipe or anything! you can eat what you were going to, just add some cheese cubes or a handful of nuts or salami slices on the side. u don’t have to change your meals, just add a little extra protein
thats nice but what do I need to do If I wake up around 3 am every other night with an unquenchable hunger for flesh even tho I ate normal balanced meals trough the day?
another way to manage the undying hunger for flesh is to eat 15-20 live crickets. their souls are weaker than most other animals that size but they are easy to get a hold of and have the best flavor
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Has anyone else noticed the cultural shift in media since Avengers: End Game? It probably started prior but at the very least, there is now a much larger push for media to have some level of Great Importance. The story is only worth making if the characters are saving the world and the theme and cinematography must reflect the Awful Reality of Real Life.
I think it also comes from the intellectualization of suffering and the idea of moral purity through suffering. The first is just that sad or dark stories are inherently more interesting or deep and therefore deserve more time and focus, and the second is the idea that we are better people purely because we suffer. While hardship can be good for building empathy it isn't required to build it, and this kind of thinking is also what created the "you must stand while working" and "kids have it so easy these days and I'm upset about it" mentalities, but I digress.
Regardless, all three of these are impacting media creation, despite it not making any sense given the current economic and political state. Its literally the opposite of what media production and marketing strategies should be at the moment, but I'll get into that bit later.
I can think of many examples of media written like this, and while a lot of these are remakes, not all of them are. The following are what came to mind in the short amount of time I spent considering it.
The new live action ATLA show is noticeably less cheery, with Aang the (cannonically) bubbly protagonist being somber a majority of the time.
Elle in the new prequel show of the same name moved to a rainy city (Seattle) becomes depressed and is bullied despite it defying her previous characterization and her established, sanguine personality and popularity in school.
The new Little House on the Prairie has a notably darker tone, and while it does provide a more accurate picture of frontier life, it is no longer a comfort show like the original is or the books are for many people.
People have clowned that one tweet about the Odyssey removing the rainbow because it was "too colorful and cartoonish", because it would seem any color at all doesn't match the aesthetic. This is in addition to the criticism surrounding the costuming, as ancient Greek and Roman clothing/armor was colorful and the statues were originally brightly painted. This film has done well so far though as of now.
Wednesday, the Addam's Family spin-off, has lost almost all of its original camp charm, even with the original macabre presentation.
I'm sure there are others but I won't comment on media I've not at least seen some of so that is my list for now.
Obviously there are a ton of other things contributing to the problems with media at the moment such as AI usage, refusal to pay writers, obsession with remakes, and a lower amount of disposable income for consumers. But even with all of that it certainly isn't helped by media being plain depressing.
I said I'd get into marketing strategies later and now it is later so here we go. During times of economic and political hardship, people seek out and consume goods and services that provide comfort. There is literally an established concept called the lipstick effect that posits that during times of economic hardship, lipstick sales increase because in the desire for joy, indulgence, and luxury, lipstick is an affordable alternative to things such as vacations, appliances, and vehicles. Similarly, part of why the original Snow White did so well is because the economic and political struggle of the time (1937) made the story more comforting by comparison. Modern Girls on YouTube has a more thorough explanation of this in their evolution of the princess formula video essay, and a whole video dedicated to the lipstick effect (when the economy effects the height of heels). So with all this in mind, it serves to reason that people would value media that supports a soft, stable life as a form of escapism right? Well, not according to producers and marketers it would seem.
And the wild bit is that we can SEE that this is true to an extent.
Project Hail Mary has done intensely well, even with its world ending catastrophe being a central plotline. The film is bright, generally positive in its outlook despite its dark moments, and is a film about what it means to be human/alive and the community that comes with that. I would compare it to the LOTR trilogy in that while it is high stakes, it is Noble Bright rather than Grim Dark.
I have seen OVERWHELMING online statements that PHM has become comfort media for a lot of people, even in just the short time since its release, while LOTR has been comfort media for years. So its clear that the comfort of the media is not the lack of harship, but rather the portrayal and handling of that hardhip. People know that life is hard. They are depressed, anxious, and do not see a way forward, they do not need reminding.
As I said there are tons of reasons why a lot of media is subjectively bad these days, or at least objectively uninspired, but there is a huge issue with the mismatch between what people want vs what they're getting thematically. Even remakes function only because of nostalgia value which is an intensely powerful emotion if used to invoke good memories of the past. Do you know how bad your remake is for it to break someone's nostalgia? To leave them emotionally tired from watching what might have been their favorite franchise??? Stop it, I will start squirting you people with spray bottles. Make positive media again I BEG OF YOU
Alright so I keep seeing things about this and as a kind of nurse (one semester worth of classes left in my bachelors) I want to address it personally.
The cyclosporiasis outbreak in America is not something you need to fear or freak out about.
I understand, I really do. We have a level of cultural trauma from Covid-19 and the millions of deaths that went with it. Quarantine sucked, I don't know anyone who doesn't know someone who died from Covid, and many of us missed out on life experiences that we can't get back. But please, listen, *that is not happening*.
Fear comes from lack of knowledge, so let's tackle that, what do you need to know?
To start, cyclosporiasis is not a virus like Covid, it is a parasite, which sounds really scary, but is actually better in a lot of ways in this instance.
It cannot be passed from person to person unless there's some form of fecal-oral transfer, or simply put, you accidently eat the poop of someone who has it. This isn't a common issue I'm aware of people having and is really gross so no worries there.
Secondly, *people are not dying from this*. Yes, there have been some hospitalizations, but its from dehydration and electrolyte imbalance. The parasite itself is not threatening your life.
Third, if you do have it, go to the doctor and they will prescribe you antibiotics, and thats it, it'll clear up! If you don't have a doctor, you can go to an urgent care and get antibiotics there. Since this is a reportable illness in most states, they will be happy you told them.
Some more things that I think are encouraging are that our bodies literally have a type of white blood cells specifically designed to fight parasites like this, its called eosynophil (cells at work anyone?) and they do a good job if you have a healthy immune system. Because of this, if you are healthy and you didn't get treatment, it would probably still clear up on its own because your body would kill it. I'm not saying you should avoid getting treatment, but its certainly encouraging to think about.
If you do end up with this illness, go to a doctor or urgent care when you can, and do your best to stay hydrated. It is so common for the average person to be dehydrated in general, so this is very important because you'll lose even more fluid if you vomit or have diarrhea.
The amount of water you need per day is kind of a debated subject, but the amount that I was taught was half your weight in ounces. So if you weigh 160lbs, you need 80 oz of water a day, more if you're sweating a lot. Water comes from the food we eat, as well as any non water fluid too, just be aware that some are actually dehydrating in the long run like alcohol or energy drinks. So if you're losing fluid from tummy stuff, try to estimate how much you lost in volume and add that to your intake for the day.
Which brings me to electrolytes. Electrolyte and acid/base balance are a very complicated topic, so I'll try to keep this as simple as possible. For the average person, extra electrolytes aren't needed because we get them from the foods we eat. Certain health conditions like POTS require more to maintain normal body function, or if you're an athlete or manual labor worker who sweats a ton. Vomiting and diarrhea both lose electrolytes, so adding them to the fluid you drink is good to offset that if you're having tummy issues. Its good to try to find something without added sugar or caffeine, like Gatorade lite or liquid IV (not sponsored). Your body has built in mechanisms to try to maintain its balance, but it can only do that if it has the ingredients to do so.
Vomiting can cause something called metabolic alkilosis, which is a fancy way of saying the pH of the blood is too high. Diarrhea can cause metabolic acidosis, which is where the blood is too acidic. Both vomiting and diarrhea can cause specific electrolyte imbalances such as low potassium, but low sodium, chloride, and bicarbonate are also all possible if you drink plain water to rehydrate after tummy upset. All of these can be tested and monitored in the hospital, and can be varying levels of dangerous if you reach that point, so the best thing to do is to be proactive and stay hydrated with electrolytes.
You *should* go to the ER if you develop any of these while sick
You are vomiting or defecating fluid faster than you can consume it
You notice any kind of irregular heart rhythm, such as inconsistent beats, fluttering, pounding, or heart palpitations (feeling your heart beat)
Any changes in breathing
Muscle twitching, spasms, tingling or cramping
Confusion
Headache
Weakness and fatigue beyond being sick
These are symptoms of the electrolyte imbalances and the acid/base imbalances and its better to be safe than sorry if you do experience them.
I know this post is really long but I hope its been at least a bit anxiety relieving to some of you if you've stumbled across it. I'm ngl part of what inspired me to write it is I think I might have had it myself a couple weeks ago but I didn't put it together because I have IBS. And if it was the parasite, I cleared it on my own, even with my disabilities, though I will go get antibiotics if it comes back (which can happen if you clear it on your own)
Regardless, there are lots of scary things in the world, but modern medicine has truly made so many things easier and we don't need to worry about this if at all possible. Sending you love, hugs, and clean veggies my friends!
Some Sources if you'd like to know more: (I didn't specifically cite things because I learned most of this in nursing school and this is an informal discussion, however I encourage you to do your own research too!)
Wondering what’s causing your watery and/or explosive diarrhea? Here’s what you should know about cyclosporiasis, including causes, symptoms
An electrolyte imbalance happens when there are too many or too few electrolytes in your body. This imbalance may indicate a problem with yo
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I'm currently living in a two-cat household, and there's a thing that happens where the first cat is calling for me, the second cat shows up like "you rang?", and the first cat immediately smacks the second cat in the face like "not you, knucklehead". They do this every day.
Its so wild to me how differently cats communicate sometimes.
Growing up we had a brother sister pair who were both void cats and the girl was very smart and the boy was very stupid. We'd put them up in a shed at night with a heat lamp when it got cold and the girl cat would always be at the porch waiting because she knew the routine. Boy cat would be off doing whatever caught his fancy, chasing butterflies or some shit. However, when we came out to put them up, girl cat would leave and always without fail would come back with boy cat and they'd go in together.
My freshman year of college we moved from living with my grandparents (derogatory) into a new house, and my mom devised a plan to tell them that this was the new home. She put the girl cat on her bed with the quilt they'd used for years and years (the cats weren't usually allowed on the beds if they were even in the house at all) and then she let her outside with boy cat. That was enough, girl cat told boy cat that this was the new home and they never tried to leave.
This is cool because its generally accepted that cats don't have object permanence, but she does??? Like this was our first day in this house, not everyone had moved in yet. From what the cats knew this was just a random place we'd come to visit, but the quilt said it was home.
Boy cat is gone but Casey, girl cat, is still alive and kicking at 14 and is too smart for her own good consistently
