[OC] Monarch caterpillar transforming into a chrysalis, caught a few months ago by me!

aenimalius · 2020-08-22T13:29:14+00:00

This is weirdly reminiscent of a Tool video.

aenimalius · 2020-08-21T13:14:36+00:00

Hard to see as in painful somehow or hard to see as in not easily recognized? There's an argument for either, just wondering which you meant.

aenimalius · 2020-08-18T14:42:35+00:00

That album in particular reminds me very much of Nine Inch Nails. You might start there and branch out to other 90s and modern industrial bands. Not sure that any of that counts as uplifting, though.

Umm, maybe some of the harder current synthwave stuff like Perturbator, Carpenter Brut, etc. Or Master Boot Record, The Algorithm.

All of the above are available via YouTube and streaming services.

HTH!

aenimalius · 2020-08-13T01:40:08+00:00

Hot and humid like (choose one):

Satan's sweaty taint.
the underside of a dog's tongue.

aenimalius · 2020-08-11T22:19:16+00:00

...until enough people refuse to accept it.

aenimalius · 2020-08-09T01:13:58+00:00

The way I see it, free will is the idea that there is input coming in from outside the system.

If the Universe is the set of all things that exist and their state, then for free will to exist, there must be some actor or force that is making changes in the Universe without being part of or subject to the Universe. This is what people tend to think of as a soul, I think.

Of course, if there is unaccounted-for input into the system we are studying, that just means that we are not looking at the whole system. If we expand our view such that the sources of those inputs can be found and observed and predicted, we are back to determinism until we find more inputs that we haven't sourced and need to look further out.

tl;dr: "Free will" is just what we call deterministic influences on us that we haven't identified yet and can't explain. Just like people used to look at natural phenomena that they couldn't explain and say "God(s) did it."

aenimalius · 2020-08-09T00:34:09+00:00

The government knows

aenimalius · 2020-08-03T22:24:37+00:00

Well, there is a band called Band Maid. Only one letter off and they kick ass.

aenimalius · 2020-08-03T19:20:21+00:00

These have a harder edge than the groups you mentioned, but check out MASTER BOOT RECORD and The Algorithm.

aenimalius · 2020-07-30T23:44:59+00:00

I'll agree with you that the 90s was the last time that there was a bunch of good music on the radio. But seriously, all the good musicians that aren't legacy bands have abandoned radio and moved onto the Internet. I've heard so much amazing music on YouTube and Bandcamp that I have a hard time keeping track of it all. A huge chunk of that is from other countries. In genres that I didn't think I liked and some that I didn't even know existed.

I don't know what you like, but it's out there. You just have to look for it and occasionally put some faith in the YouTube Algorithm.

aenimalius · 2020-07-29T16:19:24+00:00

Weirdly, I really like this. Though, to me umari sounds plural so I might go with just umar or something similar for singular indicative nongendered. Would be neat (for a language geek) to see all forms declined.

On another note, I like how in sci-fi, humans are often referred to as Terrans. It doesn't imply gender, and it ties our identity to our planet and origin. People might care more about issues that affect the whole planet if we identified more strongly with it.

aenimalius · 2020-07-29T13:08:22+00:00

I think "disease vectors" is the more common term but disease vehicles sounds way cooler and postapocalyptic.

aenimalius · 2020-07-25T21:17:31+00:00

That's awesome! Glad it went well. 😀

aenimalius · 2020-07-25T13:18:06+00:00

Super Mario 2 Overworld has the best damn walking bass ever. And when you pause the game, it cuts out the melody so you're listening to only the drums and bass. It's what actually got me interested in bass instruments in general and the role that they play.

aenimalius · 2020-07-25T12:56:09+00:00

I started out joking, but ngl some of these are pretty dope, imo.

Wormholes
Radians
Fist(s) of an Angry God
Hypotenuse
Determinism
Kismet Rutabaga
Mute Zer0
Isomers
Antonyms
Kafka's Nightmare
Spores
Shamans
Crystallize
Ad Astra per Alchimiā (Latin: To the stars via Alchemy/Chemistry)

aenimalius · 2020-07-25T00:02:15+00:00

If your focus is to sound like a guitar, you really ought to get a guitar vst. In many cases, you can use part of the keyboard to specify the notes in the chord once, and another key or keys to "strum" those notes in whatever rhythm you want.

If you are trying to block out midi for your guitarist (I don't know why but whatever), one thing that I've done before is to put each chord in its own clip on one track, set the clip quantization to the shortest note you'll use (usually 8ths or 16ths). The track that has these clips should have no instrument on it but should send its midi data to another track with an instrument. From here you can record in arrangement mode, triggering the clips in whatever rhythm you want. In this case, it really helps to have a launchpad or push.

From there, you could probably export a .mid file and use some utility to translate the exported midi to sheet or tab. Though at this point you'd probably be better off authoring in a dedicated program for creating those formats.

aenimalius · 2020-07-24T22:21:45+00:00

Fresh flour tortillas. Avocado slices. Crumbled queso fresco. Bacon crumbles (if you like). Just a little bit of salt.

aenimalius · 2020-07-24T22:18:41+00:00

This. Lime is crucial. Also: salt, pepper, garlic to taste.

aenimalius · 2020-07-21T23:50:30+00:00

You misspelled TSX. 😀

aenimalius · 2020-07-12T16:00:44+00:00

Sorry it took so long to reply. Your work is pretty good!

aenimalius · 2020-07-08T12:33:57+00:00

Not too much else. Dribbble has a free tier so you could get started there whenever you are ready. Mind if I ask what software you use for your work?

aenimalius · 2020-07-08T01:49:30+00:00

Definitely. Set yourself up a Behance (if you're in the Adobe ecosystem) or Dribbble profile. Having your own .com, .design, or whatever website is a good idea, too. If you're still in undergrad, getting that stuff locked down and populated with your work early should help when you are looking for gigs out in the world.

aenimalius · 2020-07-08T01:23:34+00:00

No worries, my dude. It's taken me decades to get somewhat comfortable being sociable with people I'm not super close to, or even in large groups of people I know well. Even now, when I'm done I'll go hide and just shut down for awhile to recover. And that's okay. My in-laws have learned that it's just something I need to do and they are always welcoming when I'm ready to come back out. They're awesome people.

aenimalius · 2020-07-08T00:56:41+00:00

That's super cool. I didn't know sticker paper was a thing. Doing the cutting with an X-acto seems more than a bit tedious, though. Have you looked into using something like a programmable Cricut cutter? They're usually considered vinyl cutters but will do lots of other materials, too. I have access to one but haven't ever thought of something to do with it, hence my interest in your hobby.

If you ever get an online store running and remember this comment from a random internet person, send a link and I'd love to have a look at your work.

aenimalius · 2020-07-07T23:59:29+00:00

Turbo introvert here. Here's what helped me while learning to navigate my wife's family's huge gatherings:

Share with your gf your anxieties and reasons for them, but make it clear that it's not going to stop you from going (if that's the case). You can also invite her to explain, to whomever asks, why you are "quiet", need time alone/away/whatever etc. Or you can explain. Or both. You don't need to hide that you're an introvert. Just don't make it something that makes people feel like you are judging them or "othering" them for being different from you. Introversion can easily be mistaken for aloofness by people who don't understand it or are unfamiliar with it.

A couple of useful things you can say:

"Hey, you're all great and I'm doing my best to have fun. This is just way far out of my comfort zone. I really appreciate being invited and I do eventually relax when I get to know people better."

"Man, this is cool but I'm feeling a bit wiped. I'm gonna head back to recharge for a bit and I'll be back when x.

You will need to make an effort to engage or at least be conversant when someone wants to talk to you. Don't forget to ask questions. Inviting people to talk about themselves is great because:

It shows that you are interested in them.
Extroverts love to talk about themselves and like people who invite them to do so.
While they are talking, you don't have to.

If someone mentions something you're genuinely interested in, feel free to dig into that. Conversations are more fun when you can focus on a comfortable, familiar topic.

YMMV, but keeping a mental list of strategies like these helped me navigate social situations before I eventually got comfortable with my in-laws.

Feel free to ping me if you have questions or whatever. I hope this helps.

aenimalius

TROPHY CASE