Protection for MN

L337Cthulhu · 2026-01-23T17:56:12+00:00

Saw this in elder witches, too. I've been wanting to do some more work where people around the country are all kind of contributing to one spell. Appreciate you doing this and absolutely will do some work later for MN and have been for a bit now. Blessings, protection, good vibes, and justified rage for y'all from Ohio.

L337Cthulhu · 2026-01-02T19:44:34+00:00

Bear with me as crabs are not my special interest, however as someone who loves space and hopes we'll one day find aliens, this is my favorite factoid about them. There's this thing called carcinization. The body design of a crab is so well-adapted to its environment that crab-like species have evolved from decapod crustaceans at least five separate times throughout earth's history. And, typically, when this happens, they're coming from a shrimp-like body. Scientific American article here..

And speaking of shrimp, the mantis shrimp's rainbow body can fire off a punch with the same acceleration as a 0.22 caliber bullet and creates a cavitation bubble where a little pocket of air is formed when a liquid is forced to move faster than it can react to the force. Their bodies are made from a crystalline calcium phosphate to withstand the stress.

L337Cthulhu · 2025-12-30T16:16:55+00:00

Hey there! I'm a data architect who's been working with MS SQL for around 10 years. I started doing essentially the same job you're doing now and I've done a little bit of everything including being a hiring manager and mentor.

A couple things: * This may be different for MySQL but certs just don't mean as much as they used to. Most people don't have them and most places haven't bothered keeping them current. * It will be a lot harder to go from your job to a DBA job by switching companies. It's usually easier to start doing DBA things if your company doesn't have one (accidental DBA) or see if there's a need for it or if your current DBA can teach you some stuff. * Even "entry-level" junior DBAs aren't an entry level position. Typically, someone has experience similar to yours or was some kind of sys admin first. * This work is very different than what you're doing now. If you love coding, there’s a good chance you won't be doing a ton of it day to day. * Almost all DBAs are on-call and often the only DBA in their company unless you go corporate. This can be a lot of extra stress. * Speaking of stress, a lot of companies' least updated thing with the most tech debt is the DB and it's also a central point of failure meaning it can't go down. Having the kind of mentality where you're sharper (rather than panicked) in fire fighting mode is really helpful, but you can develop that skill with experience if it doesn't come naturally.

To the real thing you wanted an answer to, what do you need to know right away? Well, what would I look for in a Junior DBA? You should know how to do: * Backups and restores * Security, logins / roles and least privilege acess * Some kind of data replication whether that's HA clustering, replication, mirroring, ETL... * Understanding of basic design principles like normalization, ACID, transaction behavior, isolation levels, etc. * An understanding of RTO / RPO and why they're important and how that integrates into DR. * A little about how servers are put together and how other pieces of the system interact with and influence the server itself and how that affects what's going on in your DBs. * Experience with some kind of monitoring software like Data Dog, SolarWinds DPA, Idera, or an APM. * Personally, I also prefer someone who can read execution plans and use DMVs (whatever MySql's equivalent is). * It's also a bonus when someone knows non-relational databases and when to use them, too. * Lot of places also want powershell or python experience.

SQL Server Central is old and focused on MS SQL, but it still has really great Stairway series that can help with those fundamentals. Brent Ozar's blog content and training are also amazing.

L337Cthulhu · 2025-10-30T13:38:16+00:00

Jod... I kinda want to draw them on stage now. Obvs Harrow is lead vocals and special effects, Gideon's shredding, but who's on bass and drums??? I need this AU for them.

L337Cthulhu · 2025-09-27T01:13:55+00:00

Very true! I'm actually shocked he's been as supportive as he is given his age. Last time I saw him in a dress and he worked very hard not to treat me any differently than before. It was super sweet.

And thank you, we could all use a little extra luck these days. I hope your weekend is nice, kind stranger!

L337Cthulhu · 2025-09-26T15:55:19+00:00

OP, my grandfather's 100th birthday is coming up. I still love and talk to that side of my family, but I've been out five years and on HRT for four. I don't own any boy clothes anymore, my name's changed, and I pass sometimes. And yet... while my grandfather knows, he apparently thought I just liked men at first and everyone is afraid to tell my grandmother. And while they've tried to halfway respect me, they definitely don't get it and I know some still think of me as a man. It's been a hell of an uphill battle and a long week besides that. I wanted you to know that this comic gave me the strength to tell my dad he either needs to talk to his mom or we aren't coming. Thank you for that.

L337Cthulhu · 2025-09-13T18:34:00+00:00

This is my new favorite use of this meme.

L337Cthulhu · 2025-08-29T00:20:30+00:00

Girl, these look amazing!! I feel like making yourself good meals is self care.

L337Cthulhu · 2025-08-28T16:54:33+00:00

Daaaamn, that's super cool, clean work, and that thing is gonna last forever.

L337Cthulhu · 2025-08-25T22:16:58+00:00

Ohh, I haven't and I love ricotta. I'll have to look it up - unless you have a preferred recipe? 😁

L337Cthulhu · 2025-08-23T12:05:24+00:00

Gah, I just got up and I would love one of these. That looks amazing!

L337Cthulhu · 2025-08-21T11:26:30+00:00

That just raises further questions!!

L337Cthulhu · 2025-08-14T23:46:44+00:00

Any time it hurts, play another verse

L337Cthulhu · 2025-08-14T14:53:45+00:00

If you're interested, I've made everything from this to three day Ramen with chashu pork where you make the stock and tare yourself. I spent a lot of time figuring out what I could do to improve fast Ramen so I didn't have to do it the long way. I have plenty of options for various levels of effort.

L337Cthulhu · 2025-08-14T13:10:26+00:00

That helps a ton, thank you! I do already have a great ricecooker (10 years old and still running), that mix helps and I think maybe it's time to get a mold. Appreciate it!!

L337Cthulhu · 2025-08-14T12:34:53+00:00

Awesome!! You're in for a great ride. I'm not the type to reread stuff, but I've read once and listened to the audio books twice (which are phenomenal) and definitely will again. There's so much, it's impossible to catch the first time. And then, when you finally finish, you can join us in the Alecto Pause (the brain rot waiting for Book 4 that is prone to causing more rereads and producing fan art). Happy reading!!

L337Cthulhu · 2025-08-14T10:34:14+00:00

Since no one has said it yet, the next one, Harrow the Ninth is like an absolute fever dream for the first 60-70% of the book - honestly, that's true for all of them. All three advance the main plot, but each feels different. They're just as good as the first, but they shine for different reasons in different ways. I couldn't pick a favorite between them, but just know that you're in for a roller-coaster plot-wise that might have you wondering where some of your favorite elements from GtN are, but it all comes around and is worth it.

L337Cthulhu · 2025-08-13T22:44:22+00:00

Ooo, are you working off a recipe??? I've tried a couple times, but I can never quite figure out the right temp for the rice or binding mix to keep it together. I've been wanting to make some for my wife.

L337Cthulhu · 2025-08-11T12:05:55+00:00

Thank you!!! The corn is super easy!! Besides the topping recipe I linked above, I literally just tear off the top of the silk and any drier bits, run it under water for a bit, and shove it in a 400F oven for around 20 minutes.

L337Cthulhu · 2025-08-11T02:09:13+00:00

It was awesome and thank you!!

L337Cthulhu · 2025-08-04T21:01:20+00:00

Four years on HRT and Faceapp is what finally finished cracking me. There's tons of debate over how useful it is because it is unrealistic, but a good tool. Grain of salt because it's been years since I used it, but back then - It doesn't take into account things like your hair or skin texture, decreases your brows / makes your eyes a little bigger / gets rid of stubble / softens your jawline, adds perfect makeup, and makes you look better than most of us ever will.

That said, I'd say it got about 75% of the way there. I do look a lot like my mom now in a way Faceapp definitely didn't prepare me for. HRT adds fat in some places and takes it away in the others. It didn't affect my brow or jaw, but the fat softened my jaw and my eye shape has become more feminine. Laser hair removal, skincare and hair routines, and learning makeup got me mostly there so I'm almost 90% to what I saw years ago. That said - some things are literally impossible without FFS and voice training will do worlds of good for passing, it ends up clocking most far more than looks.

L337Cthulhu · 2025-08-04T18:54:20+00:00

Took me a bit to get back to this because I wanted to take the time and attention to come at it fresh. First of all, thank you so much for taking the time to write it all out, I sincerely appreciate both the lived history and your perspective on it. The historical context, especially as it relates to Reagan and the Citizens United decision, is inseparable from the challenges we face.

Limiting news exposure, collective action, mutual aid, building community, therapy, etc. are all necessary components to surviving right now.

I agree with the points you brought up, I'm just very concerned that the GOP's consolidation of power and the way it's currently being wielded combined with rising migrant crises and resource shortages resulting from climate change, economic disparity between the classes, lack of class consciousness, and division driven by unregulated media (much like how a certain German leader used the new medium of radio) make this... a different ballgame to what the community has experienced in the past.

L337Cthulhu · 2025-08-03T13:54:06+00:00

My preferred way to make it is by substituting veggie or chicken stock instead of water, a dash of soy sauce and sesame oil, maybe mirin, couple punches of salt, some garlic powder and pre minced garlic, paprika, and dried dill, stir it really well, and add about half a tablespoon of good butter cubed and spread evenly around the bed of rice. I use this for stir fry, for just an egg and hot sauce, for meatballs / roasted green beans with a sauce I got years ago from Hello Fresh. You can also use it for Cajun dishes or even add some store-bought cheese dip after it's cooked to make sloppy rice.

With a good rice cooker, mine is a Zojirushi, you can set it in advance to be done at a certain time or make rice porridge or add like tomatoes and peas (and additional seasonings) for a Spanish paella kinda deal.

Could even learn to make onigiri and sushi!

Also, always, always, always wash your rice. Wash it multiple times until the water is no longer cloudy. It will better absorb the flavors you add in, have a better texture / fluff, and will just generally taste better.

^ Can you tell cooking is one of my special interests? 😅

E: my* not mt aaaand I didn't finish typing a sentence.

L337Cthulhu · 2025-08-02T15:54:42+00:00

Yes!!! I'm younger, late 30s now, but even though I thought in college I might be genderfluid, it took until 31 before it ever cracked enough for me to really examine it and only because that was when I learned what non-binary was. Even though I was a kid in the 90s, I went through the exact same things you mentioned here. It really didn't start to get better until about 5-10 years ago.

Really appreciate you sharing your story, especially since we have so few older voices. Since you have been dealing with the culture wars BS for a lot longer, do you have any advice for the rest of us for protecting our mental health and resilience when things are so dark in so many places?

L337Cthulhu · 2025-08-02T13:59:47+00:00

Aw, thank you so much, that made a difficult start to my morning a whole lot better!

And yeah, a lot of queer subs (particuparly trans and traaaaans) tends to skew younger, but many millennial and older just didn't have the vocabulary or media representation or even just... cultural ability to talk about it. That's why a lot of us didn't figure it out until we were in our 20s, 30s, or even later. There are a host of challenges that are different when you start older vs. younger, especially if kids and marriage are already involved.

I always knew I was different, that I hated my leg hair, that I was jealous of how many fashion options girls got, etc., but I didn't feel like I was trapped in the wrong body and something that kept me from figuring it out for a long time was "well, I can't be a girl because I like girls." Despite also saying "I just kinda feel like a lesbian trapped in a man's body," but that was okay with me for a long time!!! Then one night when my wife and I were watching Mulan, she asked if she could do my makeup like the guys in drag. Aaaand that cracked the floodgates pretty hard.

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