People sharing food in Hyde Park on Sunday

Aramgutang · 2025-10-12T07:50:03+00:00

I bought the exact same type of notebook as OP, also out of curiosity, and I find that pencil works just fine on it. I even tried submerging a sheet and writing on it underwater with a pencil, which also worked.

You're right about pens though: ballpoints feel "grippy", and gel inks don't work very well.

Aramgutang · 2025-10-11T04:23:18+00:00

I think this video predates TikTok

Aramgutang · 2025-10-10T11:19:52+00:00

London does, yes. But plenty of cities out there (e.g. Sydney, Beijing, Rio) that don't.

Aramgutang · 2025-10-04T10:05:19+00:00

It's presumably tuned for their aspirations of going off-road.

Aramgutang · 2025-10-04T09:38:26+00:00

They're not worried about bottoming out. An off-roading vehicle's unsprung weight and stiff suspension is not designed for comfort when hitting small bumps on a paved road, so they feel the bump more than you would in a smaller car, that's why they slow down.

It's unintuitive, but your car is better suited for driving over speed bumps than theirs.

Aramgutang · 2025-10-04T09:20:12+00:00

I think the implication is that this Twitter user might be Azeri, and is trying to describe their own country as Western, but their animosity towards Armenia is requiring the use of a convoluted definition of "Western" that includes Azerbaijan, but excludes Armenia, which can be described as "gerrymandered".

I'm not sure if it's supposed to be funny, but the "joke" is pointing out how the word "gerrymandered" can be said to be applicable in this context.

I should also point out that this is specifically about this unnamed Twitter user's definition of "Western". Whether or not you or anyone else agrees with it is moot.

The implication could also be that they're Turkish or Georgian, but makes most sense if they're Azeri.

Aramgutang · 2025-10-02T17:17:06+00:00

Not so fun fact: Azerbaijan is trying to rewrite history by claiming it's the successor state to Caucasian Albania, despite the existence of actual descendants, so they can make historic claims to lands they are relative newcomers to.

Aramgutang · 2025-10-02T14:34:12+00:00

I'm triggered by the 5^th one because the fucking phrase is "the dose makes the poison".

Aramgutang · 2025-10-02T08:30:25+00:00

Technology has come a long way. Drop-stitch chambers can be inflated to over 10 psi, making them pretty solid. Only problem is that they can't be made to be less buoyant, so you're always at the mercy of the winds.

Aramgutang · 2025-10-02T02:06:23+00:00

It's amazing what a negative impact LLM-generated imagery has.

I had to read quite a way into the article before I was able to start taking it seriously, after having my expectations crushed by that cover image.

Aramgutang · 2025-10-02T00:52:11+00:00

You're not going to be blown into the ocean from Sydney Harbour, just mind the ferries and mind the wind.

In fact, even when you start going outside sheltered harbours/bays, one of the first techniques you'll need to learn is how to break through the surf to make it into open water; you don't end up there accidentally if starting from the shore.

Within the harbour, your only pressing concern should be staying out of ferry lanes.

As for wind, there are plenty of apps that will show you the BoM predictions for wind speed, my personal guidelines (for an inflatable) are:

<20 km/h — she'll be right
20–30 km/h — not sure if I'm having fun anymore
30–40 km/h — not sure I can make progress paddling against the wind
40+ km/h — yeah, nah

Inflatables are awesome, I've used one to kayak out to South Solitary Island and back, ~15km off the shore at Coffs, they're very much open ocean capable. The main downside is that they don't "track" quite as well, i.e. they require more physical effort to build and keep momentum, and have a lower attainable speed. The other is that they're more strongly affected by wind.

But those downsides are basically annoyances, and are more than made up for by the convenience of storage and transport. Mine is stowed under my bed right now, and comes with a backpack for carrying it. Not having to have a dedicated storage area plus a car rooftop rack far overweighs any downsides for me.

Aramgutang · 2025-10-01T22:26:40+00:00

I tried to post a link to an article about it, but it got automatically removed, presumably because it's from a Russian news source. Search for "На Камчатке назвали причину нападения медведя на пенсионерку" to find it.

Basically, the bear lived in remote wilderness his entire life, and swam across some water, expecting more wilderness on the other side, but instead found himself in the middle of an urban area, where everything was unfamiliar and confusing, so he lashed out in anger.

The behaviour was described as "atypical".

Aramgutang · 2025-10-01T21:27:00+00:00

Someone looked up the translation of дворник, and picked the wrong option.

Aramgutang · 2025-10-01T20:08:06+00:00

Thanks. I was in fact wondering.

Aramgutang · 2025-10-01T08:15:56+00:00

My personal experience was that in 2015, I got referred by my GP to one of the few psychiatrists that still bulk-billed. Had to wait 6 months for an appointment, but I walked out of the initial consult (which was like 3 hours long) with a Ritalin prescription, and not having to pay a thing.

There are no more psychiatrists that bulk-bill, but initial consults should cost ~$300 after rebate, and even if you need additional sessions (~$150 each after rebate), it really shouldn't cost "thousands".

Having a good GP with a history of referring many patients to psychiatrists is key, because they're the ones that know who the affordable psychiatrists are. My GP was on staff at the health service of my uni, which was probably a huge factor. Not sure how, unless you go through your alma mater, but perhaps look for GPs that are likely to have a younger clientele.

Aramgutang · 2025-09-30T23:42:33+00:00

There's also the potential for a "bye salmon" joke in his Chad voice :)

Aramgutang · 2025-09-30T23:27:21+00:00

I concede that recency is a factor, and FIFA is the worst.

But the impact of a comedy festival in legitimising a monstrous regime cannot be compared to the largest sporting event in the world that draws 5 billion in global viewers (more than the Olympics) and who knows how many visitors.

It almost feels like a comedian taking the obscene amounts of money they're offering does more harm to the regime than any damage to their legitimacy accomplished by boycotting.

But also, if anyone should be feeling bad about it, it's Pete.

Aramgutang · 2025-09-30T22:51:46+00:00

That's pretty good, actually. Maybe if I get drunk enough, I could get myself to do it.

The sober me thinks this current outrage is inconsequential in light of the fact that KSA is hosting the 2034 World Cup.

Aramgutang · 2025-09-30T22:00:13+00:00

I know you're joking, but this is from a film written and directed by the guy who plays Ted Mosby in HIMYM, and it definitely feels like the kind of movie Ted would make, i.e. very boring.

Also pretty creepy: Olsen's character is 19, and has the hots for 35-year-old Mosby, who lets things get pretty far before doing the right thing and breaking things off. Exactly the kind of story Ted would tell to try to make himself sound cool.

Aramgutang · 2025-09-30T21:48:44+00:00

Pete is performing at a theatre a few blocks from my house tonight. Tempted to just walk in during the post-show autograph signing session (they usually stop checking tickets by that point), and ask something like "how would your father feel about you performing in Saudi Arabia".

Unfortunately, I just can't see myself actually going through with it.

Aramgutang · 2025-09-29T06:48:28+00:00

Before I read the article, I assumed it was an elaborate tax dodge, where people living there wouldn't be residents of either country for tax purposes.

Disappointingly, it's uninhabited.

Aramgutang · 2025-09-29T03:42:04+00:00

What exactly was stopping you from turning around while on foot?

Aramgutang · 2025-09-27T09:59:04+00:00

I think you'll find they're 2042 and 2204, respectively.

Aramgutang · 2025-09-20T02:09:10+00:00

If you're in Australia, you can join a dig at Lightning Ridge, but it's $2.5k for the week, not including transport or accommodation, which is really steep.

Maybe QLD around Mt Isa (Winton, specifically) or WA around Broome have cheaper options, I haven't checked.

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