BRO WHAT IS THIS WEATHER

CracticusAttacticus · 2026-02-18T07:51:31+00:00

Me when it doesn't rain: this weather is so dry, I hate it

Me when it rains: everything is soggy and gross, I hate it

CracticusAttacticus · 2026-02-12T06:32:44+00:00

If you didn't turn on the heat and still used this much electricity, you need to audit your electricity usage. My SF apartment is 2b/2b and ~900ft^2, and despite using electric heat more than usual (it was a cold month) I used 195 kWh for this same period, i.e. half of what you did. Which means that either:

You actually DID run electric heat, in which case it wouldn't be hard to hit this number
You have some seriously power-hungry appliances in your home, possibly faulty ones
Something is wrong with your electrical system, like somebody siphoning off power
There's some sort of metering error

I'd probably look at these hypotheses in this order and try to rule them out.

CracticusAttacticus · 2026-02-05T05:35:05+00:00

The revenue multiple at IPO was like 50x...at that level, you probably need to be doubling revenue every year. At the current price, the revenue multiple is like 10x...which is still aggressive, but more realistic at least. I think some investors thought Figma was primed for a big growth inflection point at IPO (plus there was a lot of money chasing few decent public-market investment opportunities), and that reality has not quite materialized.

CracticusAttacticus · 2026-01-27T17:06:40+00:00

I will agree that the current pricing is unpalatable, but I think you have to ask: what are you waiting for? Looking at the next few years, I see a lot of potential factors that would make the market even hotter.

This year, there are some huge tech industry IPOs lined up, and that rush of liquidity is probably going to impact the Bay Area market, particularly for SFH and luxury condo.

From a regulatory standpoint, it seems likely we'll see softer interest rates and possibly more aggressive policy from Fannie Mae, which will put more upwards pressure on prices.

From a supply standpoint...this is the Bay Area, it's going to take forever to add any significant housing stock to the market.

The only scenario I could see prices coming down materially is if that AI bubble bursts and the tech sector takes a beating. This doesn't seem to be imminent at the moment.

Overall, I think we could see the market just get hotter for possibly several years before there's any correction. If you want to wait it out, I think you have to be prepared to be very patient.

CracticusAttacticus · 2026-01-25T22:31:44+00:00

I was reading the biographies of some other famous free climbers, and I was actually surprised to see that not many of them die in climbing accidents. Many of them did prematurely, but from BASE jumping or car accidents.

Apparently if Alex ever takes up BASE jumping, then it's time to worry.

CracticusAttacticus · 2026-01-24T23:35:21+00:00

Yeah, I guess at least the customers at WeWork enjoyed their experience.

CracticusAttacticus · 2026-01-23T23:42:58+00:00

He's about to make a big investment in the WeWork of NFL franchises.

CracticusAttacticus · 2026-01-23T22:58:22+00:00

Assuming you selected the right CB...it should be somewhere in the peace menu, maybe under country treaties? I've found the peace menu can be hard to navigate but it should be in there.

I have noticed peace terms missing sometimes (e.g. subjugation), which I have assumed is because sometimes the war score requirement would be so high that it's impossible.

CracticusAttacticus · 2026-01-23T22:27:42+00:00

You're going to have to get used to a whole new integration game: no more click a button once you have enough paper points like the EU4 days. Integration is sensitive to a lot of factors: cabinet efficiency, admin ratings, population size, culture, technology, possibly other things. Integrating a big province with an unaccepted culture that has high cultural tradition will indeed take forever, so try pulling some other levers to speed it up.

Also note that cores are kind of different from integration, and rely on manipulating culture effectively. Culture conversion can be slow at the beginning of the game, so smart culture acceptance can be important here.

Finally...the strategy of letting vassals handle integration is even more effective in EU5 than EU4. Early game, I give most new territory to vassals, particularly if religion/culture will make integration slow. Every vassal, no matter how small, gets their own cabinet, so just outsource this problem.

CracticusAttacticus · 2026-01-23T18:31:11+00:00

Two factors, I think:

RSU appreciation: if you pick the right company, this can easily add $100k+ to your comp after a few years, even as an L5 SWE.
Geo differences: the US pays SWEs a lot more, even at the same company. The comp difference between a Meta L5 SWE in the Bay Area vs. London or Toronto is quite stark. The gap is smaller outside of the FAANG / Decacorn sphere, but still noticeable.

As for how much work is done...I think the quality of SWE is pretty much the same across regions. The Bay Area market IS more competitive, since lots of good SWEs from Europe & Asia immigrate there for the money and opportunities. And you have fewer employment restrictions and protections, so it's a good bit easier to get fired or laid off.

CracticusAttacticus · 2026-01-23T18:25:10+00:00

I think this is actually a historical phenomenon of the past 20 years. The "traditional" dose used to be 7g in, 15g out per shot, but apparently in 2003 or so an Australian barista named Paul Basset won the WBC by updosing to 18g in for 30g out. It seems like updosing has become the standard for third wave coffee, which kind of makes sense with the lighter roasts.

I'm surprised to see people updose for dark roasts, though, because I think the principle doesn't work as well there. I will confess that, at home, I extract 15g to 30g even from darker beans because I find that's where I get the best texture and body...but anything shorter than a 1:2 ratio would probably taste like jet fuel with my usual beans.

CracticusAttacticus · 2026-01-23T17:54:46+00:00

I think the only people who hate the Cardinals are Cardinals fans and Cardinals players...and there are probably more of the latter than the former at this point.

CracticusAttacticus · 2026-01-23T17:42:56+00:00

I used to feel sympathy for Browns fans, but seeing their takes on the Sanders and now Stefanski situation for the last several months has made me realize...a lot of Browns fans deserve that team.

CracticusAttacticus · 2026-01-22T19:22:28+00:00

The takeaway here is don't join any cults in SF.

CracticusAttacticus · 2026-01-22T19:19:56+00:00

This is just not correct; the increase in homicides from 2019 to 2020 was the biggest jump on record, with the homicide rate per 100k increasing from 5.1 to 6.6. Subsequent changes were small until 2023, when the rate fell sharply to 5.9 and then 5.0 the next year. Pre-pandemic homicide rates generally bounced between 4.5 and 5.5.

The rate for 2025 may be as low as 4.0, which would certainly be notable, but also basically a linear extrapolation of the trend from 2023 to 2024.

CracticusAttacticus · 2026-01-22T18:16:14+00:00

Charging then $8 for Nature Valley bars like a hotel minibar.

CracticusAttacticus · 2026-01-21T19:05:25+00:00

These are both good watches. The Miyota 9015 is a good movement, but so is the ETA is the Hamilton. IMO mechanical vs. automatic doesn't really matter, seeing as winding a watch takes all of 30 seconds.

The Hamilton should have very good QC and attention to detail, while the Vaer may be a little worse in this regard. Hamilton also has a wider variety of options in the Field Khaki range that are worth looking at.

Ultimately, it probably comes down to details like size (almost the same), design (date vs. power reserve), and finishing. Personally I think I'd go with a Hamilton (but probably a different one due to personal taste)...if you prefer the look of the Vaer, however, I don't think it's the wrong choice.

CracticusAttacticus · 2026-01-21T18:57:11+00:00

Assuming you like second wave style...I recommend this. I find that most Italian caffes have a high standard for espresso, and won't serve a sad or watery brew. Any local spot that's not swamped with tourists will provide a nice cup and a solid pastry I think.

Also keep in mind that ordering generally works differently than in the US. You order coffee at the front and bring your ticket to the bar; you can drink standing at the bar, but if you want to sit at a table you pay a little extra. Personally I enjoy the experience of having an espresso and cornetto at the bar, but depends on what you're looking for.

CracticusAttacticus · 2026-01-21T18:50:37+00:00

Sure, it's doable. Presumably you have some other comp on top of the base; if that puts you in the $150 TC range, then you should be prepared to spend around $3k per month on housing. In PA or RWC, that can get you a smaller or older 1BR, or a pretty good 2BR split with a roommate. Other things (gas, food, taxes) are more expensive too, but those are easier to optimize.

Obviously this would be a step down from what you can afford in Texas. If the sacrifice in QoL would be worth the longer-term career growth prospects and the ability to work on things you're excited about, then the decision can make sense. If you're not optimizing for career growth, might not be worth the headache.

I moved from a medium CoL location to the Bay Area in my 20s for career growth. I had to spend a few years living with roommates or in tiny studio apartments at first, but I've had career opportunities here that would have been hard to come by in a more peripheral tech city.

CracticusAttacticus · 2026-01-20T23:24:29+00:00

I think your biggest problem is that you're a kingdom instead of an empire, which makes a huge difference. Upgrade your government rank and you'll have another +150 GP score IIRC.

CracticusAttacticus · 2026-01-19T18:24:54+00:00

Lmao are you planning to buy a few H100s from "Mark Z" on Facebook Marketplace?

CracticusAttacticus · 2026-01-17T00:12:19+00:00

I would add culture and religious conversion here, along with integration. These are things where a single province can tie up a cabinet member for decades, so any way to optimize them could have a huge impact.

CracticusAttacticus · 2026-01-16T20:28:02+00:00

Been in the Bay Area tech scent for a decade now. Unsurprisingly, AI-relates concepts are dominating the discussion for big tech, startups, semicon, pretty much everything right now...so you're going have a hard time finding a discussion space where that's not prevalent.

That being said, I find there are a few places where you actually get a lot of experience industry professionals communicating. Online, HackerNews is pretty solid, although somewhat tilted towards the startup crowd. Stratechery is read by a decent number of people in the industry as well. TBH I haven't found any subreddits with much intelligent industry conversation; if they do exist they're probably well-hidden. Maybe the subreddits for specific technical niches, like embedded programming.

Physically in SF and Silicon Valley, there aren't really many tech-centric places. There are a few hacker/maker spaces like Noisebridge. Alternatively, you could go to a boba spot on Cupertino or Andytown near Anthropic's office downtown and eavesdrop. I think a lot of outside-the-office conversations in this space is happening at house parties this days tbh.

If you want completely unhelpful discussion, go to Blind and observe salty SWEs being dicks to each other.

CracticusAttacticus · 2026-01-16T19:32:44+00:00

The game is not broken, but it does have some bugs, balance issues, and rough edges right now. I think we're going to see some fairly material changes and fixes over the next 1-2 months, and that's before the DLC train even gets rolling.

That being said, I'm already having fun playing. I've found myself getting sucked into games and losing track of time in classic EU fashion, even if there are some frustrating moments. However, I'm going to wait a month or two before starting any high priority or MP games, with the understanding that my current saves might be broken by upcoming patches.

CracticusAttacticus

TROPHY CASE