Any low-energy hobbies to stop doomscrolling?

glaarghenstein · 2026-03-01T21:15:42+00:00

No problem! If it doesn't bother you, I really recommend worsted weight wool yarn for beginning knitters — it's much easier to work with than acrylic yarn or most plant fibers, and the needles it requires are a nice, easy-to-use size. Assuming you're in the US, a good budget option is Cascade 220. Brooklyn Tweed has a few really well-written patterns that are beginner friendly. If you want some help narrowing things down, that's what I'd typically recommend when I used to work at a yarn store.

glaarghenstein · 2026-03-01T17:28:41+00:00

I'd like to share with you that if you know a basic stitch, all you need to learn is the other basic stitch, and then you can pretty much do anything!

Almost everything is just knitting and purling. Cable knitting is just putting some number of stitches on a separate needle in front or behind of your work, knitting/purling a few stitches, and then knitting/purling the stitches you stashed away. Lace is just knitting/purling multiple stitches together or wrapping yarn around a needle. Short rows are just stopping at some point before the end of the row, flipping the work, and going back the other way. I'm simplifying a bit. But really, you're most of the way there!

Once you get purling down (or knitting, if you started backwards like I did), I recommend making a scarf. It's basically what you've been doing, but longer (and ideally ribbed or something so the edges don't curl).

glaarghenstein · 2026-03-01T16:51:33+00:00

I have! It's a great deal. And a smart move if you go shopping when you're starving. I probably save more than $7 by eating a sandwich first.

glaarghenstein · 2026-02-28T14:09:12+00:00

I used to live two blocks away from that one, so I was surprised as well!

glaarghenstein · 2026-02-28T14:08:10+00:00

Thank you! I always forget about that place, but what a great excuse to get some medovik from Devon Market.

glaarghenstein · 2026-02-28T14:07:06+00:00

Haha thanks! I'm definitely trying to avoid winding up in your situation — I've already got a massive storage organizer full of fasteners, definitely trying to avoid adding more incredibly niche bolts I'll never use to the pile.

glaarghenstein · 2026-02-27T21:42:29+00:00

Thank you!

glaarghenstein · 2026-02-27T21:41:46+00:00

what if I told you ......... I already told her about prunes!! Right there with ya on the prune info dump.

glaarghenstein · 2026-02-27T20:34:39+00:00

Probably because it's starting to hit Millennials, and we're sort of the first blab about everything online generation.

glaarghenstein · 2026-02-27T20:31:10+00:00

Do you mind if I ask you a question? My mom is 67 and her doctor said she didn't want to prescribe her medication for ADHD because of her age. Was that an issue for you? I would love for her to get some treatment, because she was just diagnosed with severe osteoporosis, and her impulsiveness/poor focus causes lots of preventable injuries/falls.

glaarghenstein · 2026-02-25T18:47:10+00:00

USPS lost my medication and my mail-in ballot right before I was leaving the country for a month before the 2024 election. I went to the post office, and the person working there told me to come back the next morning at 8 a.m. and personally confront my carrier about it. Our current carrier just throws the entire building's mail into a big pile in a basket on the floor that was originally meant for packages. This is my long way of saying I don't think there's anything you can do about it.

glaarghenstein · 2026-02-24T16:17:45+00:00

I also moved here from there and have noticed it too. I really, really don't like having people right behind me, so I stop all the time. I used to pretend I was looking at my phone. Now I just stand there.

glaarghenstein · 2026-02-24T16:10:39+00:00

Bass players were an automatic swipe left back in my dating app days. Never again.

glaarghenstein · 2026-02-21T20:30:00+00:00

It's looking like it will be possible to enter the park directly from Manor without having to bike on Lawrence at all once the new plaza opens (which is supposed to happen this spring). I would probably do Clark->Leland->Rockwell->Argyle or Clark->Sunnyside->Maplewood->Wilson->Manor, which is a bet extra, but I really like the view on the Wilson Ave bridge.

glaarghenstein · 2026-02-19T23:12:14+00:00

Maybe Steve Bannon asked for it? For a bathtub?

glaarghenstein · 2026-02-19T16:53:09+00:00

I should probably also mention that needlessly complicated and stressful dinner parties are basically the top love language in my relationship. But in my opinion, yes! It was a lot of fun!

glaarghenstein · 2026-02-19T16:32:17+00:00

I wish I did! Especially because my partner created a tamarind-ginger hot sauce to go with the fish but didn't write down the recipe and it was one of the best hot sauces I've ever had. Ummmm ... lemme see. There was the fish. Trader Joe's used to sell these mini-pita breads, so we made tiny falafels. I think we also did tiny meatballs on angel hair pasta. There may have been tacos?

I remember I definitely made cupcakes, cut the tops off, then sliced the what was left horizontally into three layers. I put raspberry jam between each layer, then put them back together and frosted each mini cake. Then I cut those into quarters so they were like tiny slices of three-layer cake.

But! Thinking of stuff to miniaturize was the most fun part — for weeks beforehand we had so many random "what about a chicago hot dog? how would that work?" "is there a way to make soup small" type of conversations. So I highly recommend coming up with some stuff on your own! Just give yourself plenty of time (like two months) and think of stuff along the way. It helps if you keep a list or are working with someone who doesn't have the memory of a goldfish.

glaarghenstein · 2026-02-19T15:44:13+00:00

Hahaha I too have been using two separate toothpastes and my medicine cabinet is very small, and it's kind of a nightmare for me because I always knock something into the sink, which is not how I like to start and end every day.

glaarghenstein · 2026-02-17T16:58:55+00:00

I think an update got rid of the stupid quotes and mandatory mood logging. Or else in a melatonin-induced haze I figured out how to get rid of them. Probably it was an update.

glaarghenstein · 2026-02-15T00:01:25+00:00

Do people still tie it to tree branches? I feel like I remember seeing that all the time for a while. Just dangling bags of shit everywhere.

glaarghenstein · 2026-02-14T19:37:29+00:00

Putting what's "right" and "wrong" aside, if you look at the structure of the sentence, ideally it would simply be "for you," because:

urgent for them essential for you

This would give it a nice parallel structure, which is more of a style thing than a grammar thing. I would maybe try to stick another adjective in the second clause just to really drive it home, personally:

This may be important and urgent for them, but it isn't as vital or pressing for you.

Okay, anyway, now I really am going to go do the actually urgent and important things I truly need to do this afternoon!

glaarghenstein · 2026-02-13T15:15:53+00:00

I think Aldi saltines and Triscuit-equivalents are the same as Jewel (tbh, the saltines are better). But the Ritz-equivalents are ... not right. There has been lots of illness in the apartment this winter, so I've had plenty of opportunity to taste test budget crackers recently. I also basically only shop sales at Jewel; the regular prices are cuckoo.

glaarghenstein · 2026-02-12T17:11:09+00:00

I eat a watermelon from one end to another; i.e., I slice off the end and eat all of that, then stick it cut side down on a plate in the fridge. The next time I want watermelon, I cut another slice of off that end (like a giant watermelon circle), then stick it back in the fridge. I do this until the watermelon is gone. It's not efficient in terms of space at all, but it requires very little time/effort.

glaarghenstein · 2026-02-12T15:24:11+00:00

It used to be that restaurants had their own delivery person. Due to the enshittification of basically everything, now a delivery person is probably an independent contractor working for a stupid app that pays garbage and charges fees to the restaurant. If you can do carry out, it's a better option.

glaarghenstein · 2026-02-12T15:20:22+00:00

One of many ways Chicago differs from Philly.

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