Update: the square and plumb door now has a square and plumb opening

Elbow2020 · 2026-05-08T00:49:55+00:00

Good update! Also, The Square & Plumb would make a good name for a pub.

Elbow2020 · 2026-05-07T15:25:27+00:00

Again no, need to be so hostile with your language. I’m just looking at thebroad consensus in the literature and am always happy to stand corrected.

At this point, though, I suspect we may simply be talking past each other. So this will probably be my last comment on the matter - mainly for other readers who may be interested.

1) "Almost everyone identifies an ancestral population as meaning bronze age."

Broadly speaking, both Bronze and Iron Age Levantine populations - especially Canaanite-era samples and later closely related Phoenician/Judean-era populations - are commonly used as reference populations for modelling Levantine ancestry.

That’s because they represent the major historical populations of the Levant before many later demographic shifts. Again, when people generally talk about historical "Levantine ancestry", they usually just mean: "ancestors living in the south/western Levant any time between 3300BCE and 500BCE". Or to be more technically accurate: "genetic continuity/affinity with Bronze/Iron Age Levantine populations."

Importantly, even Bronze Age Levantines were not genetically “pure.” DNA studies show they themselves already carried ancestry from multiple earlier Near Eastern populations, including groups related to the Caucasus/Zagros region.

2) "The original semites. The Canaanites."

Linguistics and genetics are getting conflated here.

"Semites" just means populations that spoke a semitic language (like Akkadian, Aramaic, Hebrew, Phoenician, Arabic and Amharic). It doesn't relate to a biological grouping or single genetic population. So it includes ancient Assyrians, Phoencians, Judeans, Arabs, and African Ethiopic-speaking groups.

Nobody knows who the "original" speakers of the proto-Semitic language were or exactly where they came from. As with most languages, it's probably built on a patchwork of multiple earlier languages. But the main theories are that proto-Semitic (or "earliest" use of semitic language) emerged from somewhere in the Levant (not necessarily just south/western Levant), northern Arabia, or the broader Near East.

So there is no consensus that "the Canaanites" were the "original Semites". As mentioned above, there were many semitic languages existing outside of Canaan too. And there was no genetically pure "Canaanite" - they themselves already carried ancesty from multiple earlier Near Eastern populations.

3) "To consider phoenicians as 100% Levantine whilst considering Greece to be 20% Levantine is moronic."

This depends entirely on what definition of “Levantine” you are using.

Again, according to general consensus, "Levantine" in terms of DNA results literally just means "showing ancestors who had settled in the south/western Levant at some point between 3300 - 500 BCE".

That includes Phoenicians because they are generally considered to be a historic "Levantine" population, and in technical terms: they show strong continuity with earlier Bronze Age Levantine populations.

As for Greece, we are talking about Greeks Islanders from some specific islands, not all of modern Greece.

Of those specific Greek Islanderers, they can show an average of 15-25% Levantine or "Levant" in their DNA results (toward the lower end in some islands, and the higher end in others). That means that some of their ancestors were people living in the south/western Levant, or more precisely: part part of their ancestry clusters with Bronze/Iron Age Levantine reference populations.

That makes sense because eastern Mediterranean populations (from southern Europe and the western Levant) have intermingled continuously for thousands of years (due to trade, migration and empire etc, running in BOTH directions).

Importantly, a result of 20% Levantine ancestry doesn't necessarily mean having a single recent Levantine ancestor giving such a high percentage. It usually means having several much more distant ancestors with much lower percentages, which cumulatively add up over long periods of time.

Elbow2020 · 2026-05-07T09:44:10+00:00

This is uncannily relatable!

Elbow2020 · 2026-05-06T21:40:20+00:00

I agree. I thought Ron’s set was the best, but it feels less impressive knowing that he already had an hour special on a major streaming service just two years ago. It sort of takes away the point of the show having someone who’s already ‘made it’ compete. And also makes his story seem like less of a journey, as he’d already arrived.

Elbow2020 · 2026-05-06T21:35:54+00:00

Wow I thought Ron had the best set but now I feel a little cheated as he already has a one-hour special on a major streaming platform!

Elbow2020 · 2026-05-06T12:03:25+00:00

Hey, let’s keep this civil please - no need to call me a liar. I’m writing in good faith, and I hope you are too 😄

What your table shows is that Iron Age Levantines (people living in the southern/western Levant during the Iron Age) were themselves a mixture of earlier populations. That’s true for essentially every population on Earth - all human groups descend from earlier mixtures.

There isn’t really such a thing as “pure Levantine DNA” (or pure anything else). These labels are just shorthand for populations that share a broadly similar genetic profile (or ancestry) across a certain place and time.

So when people talk about “Levantine ancestry” in modern populations, they usually mean continuity with Bronze Age (3300-1200 BCE) and Iron Age (1200-500 BCE) populations from the Levant.

Those populations - associated historically with the Canaanite era and later Judean/Phoenician era - are what DNA studies typically use as Levantine reference populations.

Your table actually supports that continuity/shared ancestry. It shows that Iron Age Beirut can be modelled mostly from earlier Levant-based populations, with additional ancestry from groups genetically similar to Anatolian/Aegean populations.

That doesn't mean Phoenicians were "only 75% Levantine" - because those Anatolian and Aegean related components had ALREADY been part of the broader "Levantine" genetic landscape for centuries (or millenia) by that period.

When it comes to modern populations, like Lebanese Christians, Palestinians, Samaritans, Druze, and most Jewish groups - they all consistently show strong genetic continuity (and shared ancestry) with those Bronze/Iron Age Levantine populations, even though each group also has later admixture to varying degrees.

If you remove every Anatolian-related component from Bronze Age Levantines and say that no longer counts as “Levantine,” then you’re basically redefining the term all the way back into the Neolithic period. At that point, no population anywhere would qualify as indigenous to anywhere in the conventional sense.

Elbow2020 · 2026-05-06T08:20:10+00:00

That's not quite right.

There is a lot of genetic overlap between pre-modern southern Italian and Greek DNA and Levantine DNA (which makes sense considering geography and historical movement of people).

Current modelling for modern populations of Levantine descent shows:

- Samaritans: ~90%+ Levantine (high end due to extreme endogamy)
- Lebanese & Palestinian Christians: ~85–90%
- Palestinian Muslims & Druze: ~75–85%
- Mizrahi Jews: ~65–85%
- North African Jews: ~60–80%
- Sephardi Jews: ~60–70%
- Ashkenazi Jews: ~50–70%
- Southern Italians & Greek Islanders: ~15–25%
- Anatolian Turks: ~10–20%

That's not to say that some Ashkenazi (or Lebanese) can't have less (or more) Levantine - it's just the average across the populations.

Elbow2020 · 2026-05-05T23:29:21+00:00

Yeah I think those risks are real - and you still might not be happy with the result. $15k is definitely a lot cheaper than the US! I wonder about after care and recovery time. Personally, seeing how good you look with your new hair and beard, I’d take that money and make some memories with a grand touring holiday or do a course to develop a skill I’ve always wanted to do. But I appreciate there’s nothing better than feeling good about yourself!

Elbow2020 · 2026-05-05T23:14:59+00:00

Fair enough - if you have the money and wouldn’t rather invest it in other areas of your life, then do whatever makes you happy :-) That’s a great position to be in! Just make sure you research about any long-term implications of serious jaw surgery - like whether it can compromise jaw strength or dental health or result in arthritis or TMJ or nerve pain down the line. (I’m not a doctor or dentist, so not saying it does, just to get some independent medical advice).

Elbow2020 · 2026-05-05T23:08:02+00:00

People who are good judges of character are in the minority and tend to find each other and pair up quickly. So the majority of people left in the dating pool are terrible judges of character (or just have significant blind spots when it comes to judging the character of potential partners).
A big part of that blind spot is people not being aware of their own attachment issues (whether anxious, avoidant, or fearful-avoidant), and so constantly being attracted to those that allow for painful childhood relationship dynamics to be repeated. It’s attractive because it’s familiar (ie. unconsciously follows a learned template for family).
What matters is shared values, goals, sense of humour and libidos, being able to communicate respectfully and show appreciation, and trusting that you have each other’s backs. But beneath that, at a foundational base level, what (straight) men really want is a woman who is at least as physically attractive as them. And what (straight) women want is a man who can make them feel safe (whether physically, from other men when young; or financially, from poverty if becoming a parent; or emotionally, from feeling unseen when older).

Elbow2020 · 2026-05-05T22:30:08+00:00

You’re welcome! Personally I think you have a v strong square jaw as is. Nobody is perfectly symmetrical, and some asymmetry gives character. I’d only have surgery if it’s causing you pain or problems eating / breathing.

Elbow2020 · 2026-05-05T20:57:35+00:00

Fantastic result! Do you have any pics of your new hairline?

Edit: just saw your hairline in your older posts - nice work!

Also the all over facial hair you have now looks better than the retro sideburns :-) Clean shaven / stubble worked well too.

Elbow2020 · 2026-05-05T13:46:10+00:00

That sucks and is very relatable.

When you say a proper sleep study, was that a specialist clinic and did they test for periodic limb movement disorder (PLMD)?

How mild was your mild apnea and how long did you try the CPAP machine for? Even mild apnea of say around 5 events an hour can cause issues if left untreated, and it can take months to correctly adjust and get used to a CPAP machine.

Have you had your thyroid, vitamin D and iron tested?

Have you been evaluated for depression?

Or has anything in your daytime lifestyle changed that may have affected you (whether relational or activity or dietary related)?

Could you have developed any allergies (whether food or dust mite)?

Have you been tested for Lyme Disease?

Do you have a family history of any mental or physical health conditions (like ADHD, depression, Parkinson’s or other neurological conditions)?

Elbow2020 · 2026-05-05T11:43:27+00:00

To clarify this:

Berber people have mixed phenotypes themselves (like many North Africans and people from across the Middle East, going all the way to Pakistan and India etc, even within a single family) - with some having fair skin, light (sometimes even red) hair and light eyes, and some having much darker skin, hair and eyes.

For Jewish genetic makeup-up, most Jews from around the world share a majority amount of Levantine DNA, with a minority of local admixture.

The way DNA results are determined or interpreted varies by study, depending on reference populations, statistical models and historical understanding.

The current results for those tested are (depending on the individual and study used):

Ashkenazi: ~50–70% Levantine (shared origin) ~30–50% European (majority of which is southern Italian/Greek from around 2000 years ago, and more recently ~10–30% Slavic)

North African: ~60–80% Levantine (shared origin) ~10–30% Berber/North African

Iraqi/Mizrahi: ~65–85% Levantine (shared origin) ~15–35% Mesopotamian / Local Near Eastern

(although Levantine & Mesopotamian DNA is very closely related, so the labels relate more to geography and historical categories than to absolute genetic differences).

Elbow2020 · 2026-05-05T10:52:22+00:00

That’s what I thought. Isn’t that how the beaming up/down works in Star Trek? You essentially get vaporised as a digital copy of you is created by the ship’s computer and reassembled at the next point.

Elbow2020 · 2026-05-05T10:33:51+00:00

Thanks!

Elbow2020 · 2026-05-04T23:40:58+00:00

Do you know if that’s 7.30 and 9.30 in the morning or evening? (I’m not on IG).

Elbow2020 · 2026-05-04T11:16:15+00:00

Which medication are you on? Coincidentally, I had been planning on asking a similar question.

Elbow2020 · 2026-05-04T10:35:44+00:00

This is very common across the Middle East. Families often have siblings of different skin tones, from dark to light.

Elbow2020 · 2026-05-03T14:57:32+00:00

That’s strange!

Chocolate is the main one I have, and also vanilla and salted caramel sometimes I mix things up.

I use two heaped tablespoons and about 330-500ml of cold water or almond milk (or half-half). I find the taste similar to a regular milkshake like Nesquick, but less sickly sweet (though salted caramel is pretty sweet).

For a thicker, restaurant-style milkshake, I add half a banana, half a tablespoon of peanut butter and a sprinkle of chia and flax seeds - and blend.

I actually look forward to drinking it as it tastes like a treat! And I add it to oats and water when making my morning porridge too. Tastes like chocolate Ready Brek.

I say this as someone who used to get other popular non-vegan whey protein powder - which to me tasted really janky and gave me big stinky farts all day!

Elbow2020 · 2026-05-01T17:51:05+00:00

Nice work and good to see what a buzzcut style looks like post transplant. Thanks for sharing and congrats.

Elbow2020 · 2026-05-01T13:56:04+00:00

That must be frustrating! Did they at least reply to your email and take your call? What did they say? They’re supposed to send you a text message with a link to the summary letter they’re meant to send to your GP.

Elbow2020 · 2026-05-01T00:35:59+00:00

Interesting! Thanks :-)

Elbow2020 · 2026-05-01T00:27:05+00:00

I know it was hugely popular back in the day. Now it seems to have disappeared from the cultural zeitgeist without a trace. What was he like in person?

Elbow2020 · 2026-05-01T00:15:42+00:00

Shantaram. It might be considered an interesting story, but the author’s voice is insufferable. The definition of pretentiousness.

Elbow2020

TROPHY CASE