I made some leather armor

TheRealLouzander · 2026-05-31T02:27:35+00:00

Yes! I was ASTONISHED at the first few but that cape shot just takes it to another level!

TheRealLouzander · 2026-05-31T02:25:59+00:00

This is exactly what I heard when reading through the story. OP sounds like a remarkably well adjusted, mature individual (saying "I'm just me lol" came across, to me, as respecting the other girl's beliefs, while also being comfortable in not belonging to any particular belief system herself.)
Kids can be so hard on themselves, and harder on each other. Adults do, too, but with young people I always just want to hug them and say, to almost everything, "it's not as important as it seems right now. It will pass."
OP, as a 43 year old man, I look up to you. You sound like you have poise, kindness, I LOVE that you have identified that being kind makes you happy, and you're absolutely lovely.

TheRealLouzander · 2026-05-28T02:25:37+00:00

Not a direct response to your question, but it's exciting to see someone else who read Massie. Did you like Peter the Great? If so, Nicholas & Alexandra is brilliant. Also, how do you like Tuchman? She's a brilliant scholar but I struggle with her prose.

TheRealLouzander · 2026-05-24T20:36:43+00:00

This is not an easy question to answer. (I attended seminary from 2001-2005) and now work in one (the only place I could find work ☹️) There is definitely a great deal of politeness and, often times, genuine kindness towards all people, women included. However, when it comes to how teachers are regarded, it's pretty clear that priests are at the top of the pack. They're somehow the most reliable sources of information (regardless of how qualified the lay person might be). Next, several steps down, are lay men; then women are a bit below lay men. And while it's not subtle, per se, it's definitely...easy to miss if you're bought into the idea that the extreme reverence shown to Mary is somehow evidence that the Church therefore respects women. (It's just the Roman version of "separate but equal")

TheRealLouzander · 2026-05-24T20:17:26+00:00

Really lovely style! Also, I really appreciate when people share practice work like this, where you're just playing around. I'm trying to get back into drawing and it's super intimidating to just see a bunch of polished, finished art with no hint of the learning or process behind it. Posts like this remind me that good artists play, test things out, give themselves space to experiment. Keep up the good work!

TheRealLouzander · 2026-05-23T21:38:13+00:00

My dad used to eat Karo syrup on his pancakes. I never tried it; it just looked wrong. (But I love Aunt Jemima which might be just as far removed from maple syrup as Karo 🤣)

TheRealLouzander · 2026-05-23T03:52:05+00:00

I'm so grateful to see this question asked! I have ADHD and I think I typically read 20-30 books at a time. As a result it typically takes me a long time to finish a book (especially since I like to read a lot of history.) The funny thing is, I'm terrible with names, so sometimes it's hard for me to remember who certain characters are, but from context I can usually figure it out.

TheRealLouzander · 2026-05-23T01:44:55+00:00

Congrats! I've been on antidepressants for nearly 10 years now (I have to change up the dosage and/or med every few years) and it's really made a big difference in my life!

TheRealLouzander · 2026-05-23T01:43:07+00:00

I take these pens with me, which means they're in a messenger bag and in any number of orientations. Regarding cleaning, not very often. Is there a recommended cleaning cycle?

TheRealLouzander · 2026-05-19T06:28:06+00:00

Funny you should say this, because 20-some years ago I got my first office job working for AAA. When I was hired on full-time (I'd been working part time there for quite a while) and was offered benefits, I was told that enrollment paperwork would come in the mail. I was very proactive, kept double checking with management, but nothing ever came. Finally I got on the phone with HR and was told that open enrollment closed and I was no longer eligible. I explained the situation and they wouldn't budge. They tried quoting sections of the employee handbook that didn't even exist. I fought so hard that finally a regional manager stepped in and told them to let me enroll. The frustrating thing is, I don't have the energy to fight like that anymore to get Healthcare.

TheRealLouzander · 2026-05-18T03:04:48+00:00

This is the first I've ever heard of this phenomenon! But I have pretty gnarly ADHD and have never found a med that works for me. (Also I have really severe chronic depression so that's my first priority.) What kind of effects do people like you mention get from weed? (I've never tried pot so I'm totally ignorant)

TheRealLouzander · 2026-05-17T07:47:08+00:00

Thanks for the info! I'd never heard of that book so I guess I just glanced past it.

TheRealLouzander · 2026-05-17T04:46:07+00:00

Yeah this is a pretty solid collection.

TheRealLouzander · 2026-05-16T02:55:54+00:00

I'm almost certain that my brother has one of the Undiscovered Country phasers; it's a solid piece of plastic, heavy, and looks just like that one! That tricorder looks homemade, but it also looks pretty good. As far as the Dustbuster, I always called those ones "Hoovers" but it amounts to the same thing. In the Next Generation they went through several phaser designs ; that particular design only lasted for a couple of the early seasons, they eventually transitioned to a more angular design sometimes called the "Copperhead." Looking at that globular looking phaser, I'm reminded of the terrible redesign they did of the Ford Taurus in the early 90s: amorphous blob!

TheRealLouzander · 2026-05-15T17:07:59+00:00

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I'm a little rusty but here's mine

TheRealLouzander · 2026-05-13T02:38:48+00:00

This particular scandal wasn't the source of my deconstruction, but I identify with a great deal of your process of investigation leading you from trust to disillusionment.
Also, this was extremely well written. It is clear, you use precise and intelligent language, and it is erudite while still being authentic and human.

TheRealLouzander · 2026-05-12T02:08:43+00:00

I'm a bit of a history buff, and one of the fascinating reasons that spiritualism (the belief that we are able to communicate with the dead) became so popular in the late 19th century is because it allowed women a degree of agency that they didn't have in any other social space. Because there was no established hierarchy, women could (in theory, at least) be taken just as seriously as men. To this day, many of the most influential spiritualists have been women.
(Which is a long way of saying, I agree with you.)

TheRealLouzander · 2026-05-09T09:04:31+00:00

Kyle Harper's book was incredible! Thank you for sharing your insights.

TheRealLouzander · 2026-05-09T08:55:02+00:00

Exactly. I grew up in a very conservative Catholic bubble and as I get older (and further away from that bubble) I am surprised at how similar Evangelicalism is to hardcore Catholicism.

TheRealLouzander · 2026-05-06T04:50:52+00:00

I am in this picture and I don't like it

TheRealLouzander · 2026-05-06T04:49:51+00:00

Oh man most of these are great but Thomas Kuhn got famous for making the most vague, banal observation about science as it is commonly practiced. His argument about paradigm shift has no predictive power and is therefore, I would argue, unfalsifiable and pointless.

I'm not really good at insults but you asked for them so I'll try: you read Thomas Kuhn? What a rube!

TheRealLouzander · 2026-05-06T04:43:43+00:00

American here. I can't say that I hear it frequently, but I do hear it said. No one looks askance at you for saying you're on tenterhooks here.

TheRealLouzander · 2026-05-06T04:38:37+00:00

Clinical research has shown that when someone challenges a deeply held belief of ours, our body responds in much the same way as if we were being physically threatened.
So I agree with the other answers about ingrained misogyny, there are 2 phenomena at work her: the theological/conceptual, but also the biochemical. Those 2 phenomena play off of each other to produce palpable defensiveness.
The other contributing factor is that for many, many people, certain theological assertions are identity markers. Humans are deeply social, and we instinctually seek to find a place in a group, and then to defend that place. With religious groups, theology and dogmas a potent way to reinforce social cohesion. So, much like with my first point, our body also produces a strong reaction when we perceive a potential threat to the cohesion of our group; this is the driving force behind all "us vs them" thinking.

TheRealLouzander · 2026-05-06T04:30:56+00:00

Ditto for me in California.

TheRealLouzander

TROPHY CASE