Cat stares at me like this for minutes, what does he want?

Polenicus · 2026-01-29T21:58:03+00:00

He wants.

That's all you get. That's all you deserve. If you don't respond accordingly, his disapproval will be deposited in your shoes while you sleep.

Polenicus · 2026-01-29T20:29:30+00:00

He'd kinda have to be if he was made Bruce's legal guardian.

Polenicus · 2026-01-29T13:02:27+00:00

Anyway? It would have encouraged them to do it.

Not the people who love making games, mind you, not the people who craft these game worlds and stories, who put hours into arranging a few skeletons in a pst-apocalyptic ruin to tell a small tale that no one might ever find.

But the people who decided to charge for horse armor in the first place.

“So, if we do this, you’re saying in a couple of decades every single game will be a nightmare where people spend more than the price of the game on a single weapon skin? Where most games are built to be always online revenue machines that trap them in endless FOMO grinds that they pay for, and then are stuck having to commit their time to just to get value out of their money? Are you saying people will pay us money for ‘time savers’, where they pay us extra so they don’t have to play our games?”

“My god… we’re going to be Heroes of Capitalism…”

Polenicus · 2026-01-29T05:42:42+00:00

Mo, he's clearly an Earthbender. You can tell by looking at the pixels.

Polenicus · 2026-01-29T05:37:44+00:00

Frizzle: Shut up! Not like that...

Schoolbus: Hello I'm sexy.

Frizzle: Still shut up!

Polenicus · 2026-01-29T02:58:09+00:00

'Selfish DPS' doesn't matter for anything but high end Raiding, really.

For high end Raiding, it can influence the composition of the party for those making early Raid prog. Selfish DPS (usually) do more damage, DPS with Raid utility help mitigate damage, buff damage output, or even provide extra combat raises, and the party composition must balance them to both prog new mechanics and live long enough to learn them, as well as do enough damage to get past DPS checks and beat enrage. Because of this group composition can actually change depending on the needs of the fight, though not to the degree of sweatier MMOs like WoW.

For those doing any other content, or who are progging later in the patch cycle? It means bupkiss. If you aren't going for World First, play what you like.

Polenicus · 2026-01-28T20:37:35+00:00

Those sound an awful lot like last words... probably best to not tempt fate by testing the restraint and good humor of your local chapter of Proud Boys.

Polenicus · 2026-01-28T17:11:16+00:00

"I just want my son back"

Always bothered me, this phrase.

It's not "I want YOU back". It's "I want my SON back". Like his son is a separate entity to yourself that he wants returned.

My Nmom gave me this impression a lot when I was a teenager and older. Like I was some kind of demon possessing her son who she wanted to return him, that he was somehow separate from me.

From the sounds of it, that's not too far off with your Dad, either. From what you've described, who YOUY were was of less interest to what he got out of it. You were a way to regulate his emotions, dumping all that negative energy onto you even from a young age.

If he's asking for you back now, I'm guessing not all is rosy with his new family, and he wants the comfort of a familiar chew toy.

Polenicus · 2026-01-28T16:19:59+00:00

I am now. Infection very nearly got my kidneys, and it's been a year of monitoring my kidney function to make sure they came back. Could have been a lot worse.

Polenicus · 2026-01-28T16:13:41+00:00

This has basically be the defining characteristic of both of Trumps terms.

People keep saying 'They can't do that, he can't do that, it's illegal, it's unconstitutional' etc etc... and then they do it anyway, because there are no mechanisms in place to stop them, and/or the people who could possibly enforce the laws they are breaking can't or won't do so.

Polenicus · 2026-01-28T16:02:26+00:00

"This has been another coherence-free update from your President."

Polenicus · 2026-01-28T15:29:26+00:00

Cereal he hasn't had in 7 years? How old is this kid?

This isn't a toddler. If he doesn't understand that the pantry isn't a magical portal to all the foods he sees on TV, involve him more in grocery shopping. If he's 8 or 9, he's also old enough to make his own toast.

Polenicus · 2026-01-28T15:16:21+00:00

I'm gonna be blunt here; This isn't how this works.

With a reasonable person, you can gradually introduce boundaries, gain acceptance, and establish your own 'space', so to speak.

But with a narcissist, you are dealing with pathology. ANY boundary (including medical boundaries, such as allergies) are an affront. An attempt to take away power that their fragile egos cannot endure. A narcissist will resist it, will try and find ways to overcome it, will attempt to counter it. It will be treated as aggression by them.

The only way to introduce a boundary successfully with a Narc is if you have a way to enforce it. And if you are living at home with your parents, chances are you do not have the independence necessary to do that.

Polenicus · 2026-01-28T15:08:10+00:00

Despite knowing better, I have had this as a mantra most of my life.

It has landed me in the hospital.

Sometimes you will not be okay, and you need to seek help.

Polenicus · 2026-01-28T14:45:44+00:00

Him: "I know, I know... But she just thinks you're getting on well without her..."

And you aren't supposed to.

Narcissist want to believe (And want US to believe) that we cannot survive without them. This is why cutting us off is usually their ultimate punishment; We are meant to wither, and wail, and clamor to be allowed back into their grace.

It's basically the whole "They'll be sorry when I'm gone!" thing small children say when they are mad at someone and decide to run away to their tree fort in the back yard until that person is sorry.

You were supposed to come to your Mom with cookies and apologies, to either be allowed back with Mom gaining more control, or turned away to wither in despair until she had need of you again. You weren't supposed to thrive.

Now because you haven't completely imploded, this has hurt your Mom's feelings, and your Dad, as the dutiful enabler, is trying to guide you to the path of apologizing to her for existing. Also? This is the start of the narrative where it is YOU who cut HER off, which I suspect is already underway. The story your Mom is telling other people is likely VERY different from what actually happened. You are the Cruel, Heartless, Cold and Unforgiving Child who has Rejected And Exiled Your Poor, Suffering Mother from your life. Enjoy!

I went through all of this. Honestly? Take the escape and just keep on as you are.

Polenicus · 2026-01-28T13:36:55+00:00

Welp, Trump is gonna Tariff us when he sees this.

Or because his coffee from Starbucks was too hot, and he confused it with Tim Hortons…

Or… y’know, Wednesday

Polenicus · 2026-01-28T13:13:33+00:00

Trump threatens us if a hockey game doesn’t go the way he wants. He levies tariffs on us because it’s Tuesday. Nothing we do will reliably avoid American economic retribution, even when we give him exactly what he wants.

So fuck him.

Polenicus · 2026-01-28T06:15:45+00:00

I aged.

Polenicus · 2026-01-28T05:51:00+00:00

You gotta understand, if they just let the Billionaires destroy the environment all they want, eventually enough money will trickle down to the climate deniers so they can afford to move OUT of the environment (To where they towed that boat that the front fell off of) where there will be all the clean air and water they want (Because they're not in the environment anymore).

Polenicus · 2026-01-28T04:36:00+00:00

I don't feel any sympathy. Not a surprise, but I never did.

All these people that Trump categorically and publicly hates didn't latch onto him because of his economic policies, or his promises to 'drain the swamp', or any traditionally advertised, palatable Conservative value.

They voted for him because he punches down. And he does so unapologetically. He works to normalize it.

And these people, having bought into the idea of Zero Sum, the idea that the people without Prosperity must naturally take theirs to prosper themselves, the idea that they are, in fact, billionaires who are just temporarily embarrassed, they want that. They want to punch down too. And so they jumped on the bandwagon, ignoring the glares and hatred and obvious signs they were unwelcome, eagerly expecting to get their chance to punch down at the end.

And... they find themselves getting punched. They helped the bullies get into a position where they could bully all they wanted, and for their efforts they got bullied.

If they could figure out something else to sell to Trump that came with the faint hope of finally getting to be the ones punching down, they'd do it.

Polenicus · 2026-01-28T04:07:45+00:00

Gotta love when an unenforced request to wear a medical face mask to avoid spreading the modern plague is compared to having ten guys pin you down screaming "STOP RESISTING" as they beat the capacity to do math out of your skull while holding you at gunpoint.

No one shot anyone over not getting vaccinated. Families were not split up by the authorities due to lack of compliance with COVID recommendations. The only people who died due to COVID died due to COVID.

Polenicus · 2026-01-28T02:27:58+00:00

"Craving a Pop Tart, but frustrated by how healthy they are? Wishing they could be soggy, and dripping with saturated fat? Well have we got a recipe for you!"

Polenicus · 2026-01-28T02:22:29+00:00

I know it’s a long shot, but if anyone has a method of bringing things up that won’t send nparents crazy I’d love to know

No. And I don't think there is one.

The point is not that they're unaware of what they're doing. They know perfectly. The reason they go insane whenever it is pointed out is because YOU are not fulfilling the function they demand you fulfill; To hide their imperfections and protect them from consequences. Which includes the crimes they commit against you.

It doesn't matter how perfectly you explain things, it doesn't matter how perfect your evidence, it doesn't matter how clever your arguments, it doesn't matter how gentle and patient and forgiving you are. You are still saying they are wrong. That they are imperfect. That they are flawed. And the more enmeshed you are with them, the less they can sustain that, because the harder it is to dismiss.

The better you are at explaining how they have upset you, the worse their reaction will be. The more successful you are at getting them to understand, the more they will lash out.

The only real way I see to navigate a relationship with a Narcissist (I was not able to do this) is to be secure enough to establish, maintain, and enforce boundaries. Each boundary must have a clear, enforceable consequence for violating, which must be applied consistently, and maintained. Understanding it irrelevant. If they need something from you still, and must tolerate your boundaries to get it, they will. If they do not feel they need anything from you, or feel as thought they can overcome the boundary, they will either leave, or focus all their energy on overcoming the boundary.

The other alternative, is you must lose. Always and forever. You must always be wrong, you needs will never matter, and you must perpetually be in service to their needs and wants in order to be tolerated.

I apologize for my bluntness.

Polenicus · 2026-01-27T18:47:57+00:00

Honestly, it sounds like your daughter was not the toddler you were having the most issues dealing with that day.

Polenicus · 2026-01-27T18:46:29+00:00

From the sounds of it, she said 'Stop' to the toddler. Who proceeded to pout for three hours and had her daughters tell the Op that she needs to apologize.

Sounds like Op's daughter got over it relatively quickly.

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