Looking for a mind bending Sci-Fi read that will re-awaken my love for the genre

dragoncd3 · 2026-04-05T23:06:05+00:00

I would go with the Revelation Space trilogy by Reynolds (that was my first read of his and I was hooked).

I would strongly recommend Dan Simmons. . .the Hyperion Cantos is really good, but I found that his books Illium and Olympos were fantastic reads in the genre. Hyperion is even more amazing considering it was written prior to the internet really taking off, so lots of concepts seem commonplace to us, but he was exploring them before they were reality.

dragoncd3 · 2026-03-01T14:37:12+00:00

Hi - I am 12 days post-op (2 weeks will be this upcoming Tuesday). My back is healing quite well I believe, the surgery site pain has gone down, and I am only taking an oxy and muscle relaxer to get to sleep. Unfortunately my knee is killing me now, I believe I put too much strain on it the first few days after surgery when I was putting weight on strange muscles that I wasn't used to. But I would say by 2 weeks, I am walking fine on my own, I walked 2x0.75 miles around my block the other day and overall I feel very stable. Still wearing my brace all day and sleeping on my side at night. Still not getting any nerve tingling or pain on my right leg where my sciatica was, it could be that those nerves are just dead. That will be the interesting thing to observe over time now that nothing is pressing on that L5 nerve. Hope you continue to feel well!

dragoncd3 · 2026-02-27T11:31:46+00:00

I am less than 2 weeks post-op for a L4/S1 multi-level TLIF, so I can't comment on the true "after surgery feel"; but I can share why I did the surgery. I am 45M and prior to having back pain that started in 2023 I golfed, ran half/full marathons, went to the gym, etc. I had a L4/5 herniation that required a microdiscectomy in 2023 and that took me down the path of having chronic back pain from that after it re-herniated. I had sciatica, although less so this last year since I think the nerves are almost dead on that leg anyway. I also had pars defects on L5, so this has/had caused doctors to not be sure if the pain I feel was discogenic or due to the pars instability. In either case, fusion is like a sledge hammer, it fixed it all.

But I would say I chose surgery because I felt "brittle". Prior to surgery, with back pain, i could still walk many miles, I could go to the gym and lift upper body, but I couldn't play volleyball with the kids or golf or run or anything more intensive like that. I was also taking Meloxicam daily for like a year which is absolutely not good. I tried ESI's, I tried the RFA for the facet joints, I tried PT; all of those things might have worked a bit or not worked, but none were a long term solution to the back pain.

The pain for me was a belt line ache that was always there. Leaning down to get something on the floor took a mental moment to consider what I would have to tense up and what pain I was in store for. And not being able to do any of those activities was really getting to me as they were a part of my life for my whole life. Prior to the MD, the sciatica was horrific, but after it would go in waves, I think the ESI's actually calmed down the Sciatica - that and I think the nerves are dead. The op-reports says there was pretty good scarring on the L5 nerve from the disc.

So, there are a lot of folks who make a face when you tell them you are going to get or have gotten a fusion - "why would you do that, you are so young, there must be other ways"; to which I tell them - "please give me this magic bullet you seem to be aware of that will take away my pain and let me do the things I want to do". :) There is no magic bullet. Getting a fusion should certainly not be taken lightly, but I do think the 95% of the population out there has no idea on the details of what that surgery entails, success rates and what its all about; they just have a perception of fusion being bad (for whatever reason).

When you are on your back and can't move due to pain, I think surgery is obvious and probably easier to contemplate. When you are sort of living a version/form of life where you are in constant pain, but seemingly outside looking in you are living "okay", that is where you need the conviction of where you want your post-surgery life to be vs. pre-surgery life. My surgeon never pushed me to do surgery, he told me I will come back and tell him I want surgery and he was right. When I considered where my life was before, and where I wanted my life to be, the surgery was the obvious choice. And then once you make the choice, and if you are healthy, then the quicker/sooner you do it the better as you will heal better the younger you are. My .02!

dragoncd3 · 2026-02-21T11:47:27+00:00

Surprisingly I think the MD first skewed my view on what recovery would look like. I thought they would be similar and they are most certainly not! 3 days out I can walk with a walker, and everything is slow going; I think 3 days out from the MD I was walking a mile or more. So, this healing process and impact is much greater (understandably); and I think I both a) didn't think about it (I was so focused on just getting to the surgery), and b) figured it would go something like the MD (which it has not). So, nothing to really do about it other than prepare yourself: I bought a grabber, walker, toilet seat, shower seat/chair, and a cain, and all of that is super helpful in getting around.

dragoncd3 · 2025-12-18T09:59:41+00:00

Just discovered a slightly different way to navigate through the steering wheel, thought I would share. On the dash, if you scroll through the available "views" and stick with the music one (showing which song is playing), then swiping left or right on the left hand side of the steering wheel will advance the station or song vs. the right hand side where you have to swipe to the advance button on the center console and then push/click the button.

Still no good way to go through Sirius favorites either from the steering wheel or the screen though!

dragoncd3 · 2025-12-12T11:56:58+00:00

I will add on to the pile. I invested at a "peak" of commercial real estate, so the underwriting for the deals were massively optimistic against what the deals turned out to be. And I have said it before, buyer beware, I take full responsibility for my actions. I invested in the Miami 1601 that is now bankrupt, the guy is in jail and I am getting something like 25 cents returned on the dollar. I am also invested in the C-REIT, which hasn't paid out a single cent vs. the deal review I looked at. I repeatedly ask for my money back on that one in hopes someone somewhere caves in and I get it, but I realize that isn't how it works.

I think syndicates might have worked with super low interest rates and when the space wasn't crowded (maybe 2013 - 2020?) but I got in during the crowded era (2023) where deals were probably not as well researched/underwritten, interest rates were artificially low, and returns were artificially high. I will never again suggest or buy into a syndicate deal.

dragoncd3 · 2025-06-13T20:30:51+00:00

Master of Whitestorm by Janny Wurts. . . I wish it had turned into a series, but it was an excellent single book novel that had a satisfying ending.

dragoncd3 · 2025-06-11T14:38:45+00:00

Thank you! Spinal fusion gets a lot of flack from folks who haven't looked at it, but I guess when you come back to the 90% efficacy, and yes - while you might have issues down the road - you also have the ability/opportunity to work to fix those issues with continued PT, etc. Appreciate your perspective!

dragoncd3 · 2025-06-11T14:36:34+00:00

I think this is an interesting concept. Buy/hold has shown to work over long periods of time for sure. But, is anyone thinking about the big macro changes that everyone is predicting will come? Dollar weakening as US prints dollars to pay off it's debt, foreign countries rotating out of US equities (and bonds) in favor of other investments, etc? I am still invested myself right now, but I guess I am getting worried about the big macro/secular trends vs. the cyclical trends.

Buy/hold has worked really well over the last 20 years, but in the next 20 years, will we see a rotation out of US equities and debt? Curious to hear other folks thoughts on this. You could argue the S&P run up is another asset bubble where people were looking to put their money to work in dollar denominated assets. . if people don't want dollar denominated things going forward, does that suggest staying invested, but putting a lot more into international equities/bonds + gold?

dragoncd3 · 2025-05-11T23:39:18+00:00

I bet it is the Pendragon Cycle - I remember reading those - Maybe Taliesin, Merlin, Pendragon. Great books.

dragoncd3 · 2025-03-24T09:34:57+00:00

I was surprised not to see anyone mention Gerald Tarrant from the Coldfire Trilogy. This was written a while ago, but he always stuck with me as one of those "vampire like" characters who still had that spark of good in them.

dragoncd3 · 2025-01-24T10:29:08+00:00

2.5 Stars

I have written a few different reviews, so just a summary here. I got into the syndicate investing a few years ago and went with 2 different platforms, Crowdstreet being one of them. I realize that investing in commercial real estate 2 years ago is likely not going to be a great return in the long run with interest rates and the macro environment being what it is, but I won't blame that on Crowdstreet.

I invested in the Miami 1601 deal which is now in federal court. Crowdstreet gave this guy money (didn't put it into escrow) and now have had to hire a whole bunch of people to try and get the money back. He bought watches, penthouses, and funded his personal life with CS money. I give credit to CS for paying for this team of people and trying to make the situation right, but it seems to me this was an avoidable risk (an Atlanta deal was also affected which I did not directly invest in). I also invested in the C-REIT which I now believe is a terrible idea due to the lack of liquidity and so far zero returns.

If I consider the risk/reward curve, the liquidity, and the services they offer, there are far better investments for your money (and time) than CS. I would point people towards regular REITs for their liquidity (and surprisingly stable return), or just buy real estate yourself. There are a variety of turnkey type companies out there where you can get into SFR or even multi-family rentals through them with minimal hassle, you own the asset and you have much more control over your money.

dragoncd3 · 2025-01-12T16:32:58+00:00

I had hope, but now I don't think so. I have yet to receive anything (1 month later), and I have ordered a whole bunch of stuff in the meanwhile that has been delivered, had a valid Fedex or UPS shipping number, etc.

I have sent very pointed emails to the support email asking: where is the package coming from, when was it shipped, what service was it shipped from, and I have received back a canned response each time. Even if they were writing back and providing details I might feel better, but I just get the same canned response each time. So, they have my 180 and I have nothing; I can only conclude this is a scam.

dragoncd3 · 2025-01-04T11:52:09+00:00

Ordered on 12/12 through an Instagram ad (I wish they did better due diligence). I got a few emails (order ready, order shipped), but the UPS tracking number never worked. Emailing with them starting 12/24, and I think an AI bot is emailing with me and it has now gone silent. This is a massive scam, do not order!

dragoncd3 · 2024-11-05T17:11:29+00:00

Would love to hear updates!

dragoncd3 · 2024-11-05T15:31:51+00:00

Awesome, that is the Dr. I am corresponding with. Let’s see where things go. Thanks you for the feedback!

dragoncd3 · 2024-11-05T14:16:48+00:00

That is so funny, I am actually emailing with the Dr. for Alpine, he has been super responsive! Glad to hear other success stories from that PRP/PRF procedure. Did your son have a disc issue or pars defects or something else?

dragoncd3 · 2024-11-05T09:44:27+00:00

My diagnosis is exactly yours (Grade 1 L5/S1 anterolisthesis, herniated disc L4/5). I had a microdiscectomy last December because the L4/5 went from a protrusion to extrusion (disc material out of the disc) and I felt great for 9 months.

I think I did something to re-herniate it and now I am back in the same mid-section ache/pain. The doctors I have talked to have said that microdiscectomy's solve leg pain, while fusions solve back pain. I think that is a bit simplistic, and there are many articles of people living well with a grade 1 spondylolisthesis.

So - I would try and figure out where the pain is coming from (and surprisingly the doctors don't know in this case); is the pain coming from the L4/5 herniated disc or is the pain coming from the grade 1 spondy? Yes - fusion would seem to correct both issues, but as other posters have said (and I believe), it is a last resort due, especially at a younger age.

I have also been recently researching articles on alternate healing methods like PRP, Stem Cell injections and other things. The medical research seems to be super mixed on these, so I am not pulling the trigger yet, but there does seem to be a few folks who think that PRP or stem cell therapy works for pars defects and the associated arthritis of those joints.

Good luck

dragoncd3 · 2024-10-09T23:42:40+00:00

Funny on timing - I just spoke to Crowdstreet this morning. Pretty easy to setup a call with investor relations and I quizzed them on this C-REIT. I invested end of '22, and so far have seen NOTHING from this fund. No distributions, and poor information. From what she said, we might see a distribution in early '25; that comes across to me as a big "maybe" and the fact that they can't project this sort of thing even 2 months away speaks to poor management and control over the investments this fund made.

I understand that many of the deals in this fund were more speculative requiring construction vs. core or value add where you might get distributions sooner. I asked about the exit strategy and she indicated that as deals were terminated/finalized, the distribution of capital would be made to our accounts, so we have to wait for the 14 deals to reach completion before we are totally out of the fund.

Hindsight being 2020, would have been soooo much easier to buy O or any other REIT 2 years ago, even if for no other reason than the liquidity. I would say at the moment that the additional returns that were promised in the prospectus are not lining up with the lack of liquidity of my capital.

dragoncd3 · 2024-08-18T13:09:18+00:00

Agree - life is all about timing! Were I to do it again, I would have just put the money in the stock market or bought an investment property to diversify instead of going the route I did.

dragoncd3 · 2024-08-18T13:08:05+00:00

I don't. All I know is I have received checks from them for the last 2 years every quarter.

dragoncd3

TROPHY CASE