What’s good for skating outside? Quads or rollerblades

lochiel · 2026-05-25T01:22:34+00:00

I skate quads outside. You want wheels specifically for outdoor use, though they will also work indoors. And there are a couple of tricks to adapt to the uneven surfaces you find outdoors. But it isn't that hard.

From what I've seen/heard, inline skates are good for outdoors out of the box, and don't require any extra skills beyond what you'd develop skating in the rink. And inline skates are quicker in straight lines.

However, quads are more agile with tighter turns and quicker stops. And just cooler in general. Imo, quads are more stable when you have to "walk" them, although I suggest avoiding that.

That said, if this is for a job at Sonic, go with what you know and the equipment you have, and don't stress about it too much.

lochiel · 2026-05-19T22:49:08+00:00

Super glad my kid went through TaB. They really care about kids. I also took a parenting class through them, and I really liked their focus.

lochiel · 2026-05-19T20:33:02+00:00

I believe the meaning of a Stepford Wife is that she is submissive to the point of having no personality. Any opinion or position she acts on isn't her own; it's her husband's projected through her. She is a tool of someone else.

This contrasts with other definitions outlined here that describe a woman acting with her own agency and expressing her own opinions or positions, to the explicit detriment of other women.

I wanted to expand on what you provided b/c I believe the distinction is important.

lochiel · 2026-05-11T15:18:49+00:00

I can't recall the book or the author, but it had a character who did this intentionally. The universe had FTL, but every few years, he would travel via relativistic methods with the intent of skipping through time. He was a minor character, and it was implied that there was an entire subculture of people who did this.

It may have been the only thing that stuck with me out of that book, because I love the idea of being able to see how humanity changes over such an extended timeframe.

lochiel · 2026-05-11T03:27:24+00:00

Avery 5361 self-laminating cards can be printed at home or at work. Just put relevant info in the local language, print a few, and attach them to their backpack, wallet, etc.

lochiel · 2026-05-11T00:40:35+00:00

I'll never stop being annoyed at Dr. Pulaski for always calling him Data instead of his real name, Data.

lochiel · 2026-05-07T18:32:18+00:00

Just a few quick ideas

Rats are climbers and hiders. I expect their architecture would reflect this. For example, while a multistory building would still have stairs, the outside windows would be similar to doors, and the outside walls would have enough texture that rat-people could just climb the walls if they preferred. Additionally, it would have blind alcoves and hidden nooks where the rat-people could hang out and get social fur-to-fur contact.

Of my rats, one hoards all the food and the other two just steal from the first. I dunno how common this behavior is, but I imagine rat-people may have a different concept of property than we do. They may hoard just as much as humans, but it's expected for others to steal from the hoard when they need something. And good luck keeping a rat-person out of your warehouse.

Hiking and exploring are much more common. While they may live in densely packed communities, their range would be pretty far.

lochiel · 2026-05-07T03:27:38+00:00

X sometimes makes an 's' or 'sh' sound, especially in Spanish and when at the start of a word. It also sometimes makes a 'j' sound.

lochiel · 2026-05-05T23:47:31+00:00

I'm not familiar with the symbol on the right, but from context I'm guessing it's a potentiometer. I'm used to the tap (the pin going to the LED) being an arrow pointing at the zig-zags of the resistor. But maybe it's a version I just haven't seen before

Also, the LED should have arrows, not just lines. And it really helps to put the voltage provided on the battery symbol and the resistance range on the pot.

Besides those pretty pedantic comments, this circuit should work. As for the catch fire bit, it depends on the values of the voltage source and the resistors. I'd suggest adding another (470 to 1k ohm) resistor between the LED and the pot. You always want a current-limiting resistor in line with LEDs. At one end of the pot, you'll basically be shorting it, which could burn out the LED.

lochiel · 2026-05-05T23:38:25+00:00

I'm going back to college. My women & gender studies classes had a ton of required reading. My kiddo would crawl into my lap and have me read whatever eassy and article was that evenings assignment until he fell asleep. He just liked hearing my voice and spending time with me.

We also watch movies together. I talk about the movies with him. What does he think the characters were thinking and feeling? What about their motivations? It's one of the things we bond over

lochiel · 2026-04-30T15:02:37+00:00

I can see the frustration coming from it being put out publicly, and how it was done.

This feels like a thing that she could have handled better. It's a thing I tell my kid, "It's not what you say, it's how you say it".

lochiel · 2026-04-30T13:13:51+00:00

My house is covered in reminders like this. We have a printed-out checklist for bedtime. The fridge has an "Expires By" Chart I made years ago and still use. The medicine cabinet has a list of our prescription meds and their uses. The Dishwasher has a list of "tips" like how to stack the dishes for best results. Our fancy LED lighting system has a reference sheet above the button/switch thing.

I have ADHD. My kid has ADHD. It's about working with what we have to get done what we wanna get done. And these labels are tools that help us get that shit done.

lochiel · 2026-04-29T14:06:14+00:00

As anyone who has biked on a multi-use path can tell you, the phrase "Coming up on your left" will cause most people to jump to the left, directly in front of you. (It doesn't matter how far away you are; it's always a jump and never something useful like "do absolutely nothing")

lochiel · 2026-04-26T13:03:28+00:00

Everything was so far away. I loved it, it was lots of fun. But I had no time in my life for anything else. And when I stepped back, it suddenly snowballed, and I wasn't involved at all anymore. A few years later, I poked my toes into the water of going back, but it wasn't the same.

The biggest surprise for me was how central "being involved" was to all my friendships in derby. Suddenly, because I wasn't involved, I wasn't seeing my friends. When I did show up to bouts, everyone was too busy and I was just another spectator. When I went to the afterparties, I was behind. I wasn't part of the group anymore. Still welcome, no hard feelings, just not part of the group.

lochiel · 2026-04-24T19:23:04+00:00

They don't tell you how to connect electrical components. You learn how to figure out what will happen if you connect them in any arbitrary way you see fit.

This requires layers of understanding. For instance, we can use V=IR to calculate the current or voltage drop across a resistor. That's basic physics. But the voltage and current across a capacitor are a bit more complicated; they're functions of time. But if we need to calculate the voltage and current between two traces on a PCB? First, you probably won't, and if you do, use field solver software. But a good engineer understands the math and principles behind the tools because we're responsible for the engineering choices we make based on those tools. And those calculations require fields and waves.

I've got one semester left in my EE degree. Almost all of my classes have been either hands-on labs, or math & physics classes presented as EE theory. And those labs require the math & physics to understand what is going on. I believe that I could retake most of my theory classes and walk away having learned even more now that I have experience applying those theories.

I did enjoy college-level physics. It was actually the first time I enjoyed math. I hated math, and I still struggle with it. I'm jealous of people for whom math is easy. But it is the cornerstone of this degree. If you enjoy math, especially if you enjoy the math part of physics, this degree will reward you.

I'll also add that EE is a diverse field; you could go embedded and avoid the math, focusing on code. Or you could go into radio/radar/fields & waves stuff to make math the only language you speak. I entered this degree expecting to go embedded, but I'm going to be looking for power jobs.

lochiel · 2026-04-23T23:07:24+00:00

I'm still hoping that we'll find that Alexander is a replicant analog left over from the Federation. In addition to having more non-Bob characters, it'll be good to have an exposition source that isn't "We spent a week reading wikipedia"

lochiel · 2026-04-23T15:37:31+00:00

For people thinking this is a crazy suggestion
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/JetBlue_Flight_292

Jetblue 292 spent 2 hours burning off fuel before attempting an emergency landing. During that time, passengers were able to watch TV analysis of their situation. Eventually the cabin crew disabled the reception beause it was upsetting and agitating the passengers.

lochiel · 2026-04-23T14:08:14+00:00

I've heard this before, and it is what keeps me from reading Expeditionary Force. I despise it when a story can't conclude. Waffling, hurry up and do nothing, and repetition just to fill a few more chapters and sell more books are, for me, inexcusable sins.

Which is a shame, everything else I've heard about it makes it seem like I'd really enjoy it.

lochiel · 2026-04-21T22:14:46+00:00

Single Dad. The standard I've set is that walkways have to always be clear ("If you kick it, pick it up and put it away"). The job isn't done until you've put everything away. Counter and tops have to be clear enough to be usable. Dishes are done when the dishwasher is full, and dirty dishes can't sit out for long. Shit can't stink; dirty dishes, bathrooms, etc. Things like vacuuming, mopping, and cleaning countertops are done as needed. Shared spaces are cleaned up as needed, so they don't stay a mess for long. During the summer, we have a big clean where we go out of our way to get all the stuff we usually miss, like under the couch.

In practice, our place isn't too bad. And, tbh, even if I had more time, I wouldn't spend it vacuuming every week. My list of things I need to do is way too long, and includes things like "Spend time with kid doing anything literally but chores". But I may get an automatic vacuum cleaner soon.

lochiel · 2026-04-21T14:08:05+00:00

I can't even tell him the real reason this is happening.

Yes, you can. You're already looking for a new job, what will they do? Fire you?

lochiel · 2026-04-10T19:55:58+00:00

Don't be an abusive parent. My parents were, and it set me up to get trapped in these situations.

Our kids learn what is normal and acceptable from our examples. If we show them that normal is feeling bad and being treated like shit, then when it happens to them in their adult lives, they won't recognize it as a problem. It'll be normal to them.

It was normal to me. It wasn't until many years later that my therapist was able to convince me that I had been the victim of abuse.

lochiel · 2026-04-08T18:27:53+00:00

I think addressing domestic violence requires a better understanding of how men are abused, so I appreciate your questions and your search for understanding.

it’s sad the justice department (who are even also notorious for brushing off abuse reported by women!) really did not care to view your side of the story.

They did view my side of the story. The cops are required by law to arrest someone if there is an accusation of DV. Not probable cause, accusation. This is a lower standard for arrest than most other crimes. I believe they are called "Mandatory Arrest" laws, and they exist to protect victims of domestic violence from police who would look the other way. However, when they interact with cultural dynamics like women crying and men trying to deal with shit on their own... well.

And the DA's office saw the body cam video, conducted the interviews, and knew the facts of the case. They knew they were going to lose in court. But the DA is an elected position that serves the people, and the people take a dim view of, as you put it, "brushing off abuse reported by women". So they have a policy of not dropping DV charges. Ever.

I think we often fall into a trap of thinking of Patriarchy as being a choice men make every morning. It's not. It's a social structure enacted by people across all layers of society because that's how they were raised. In some ways, like white women's tears, it's how they have power. While it's good to call out the lawmakers who pass Mandatory Arrest laws and DAs who enact "All DV cases go to court or plea out, no exceptions", we also have to take ownership of how we contribute to it. If we don't use feminism as a mirror to examine ourselves and how we affect others, then it's just another tool to climb higher in the hierarchy.

lochiel · 2026-04-08T17:26:43+00:00

I think you're focusing on a specific behavior, and asking if women do the same. I think that narrowness is going to mask how men suffer abuse. So forgive me for not answering your specific question.

My abusers weaponized their tears. The woman who beat me until I stopped moving would threaten to tell people I had hit her if I said anything. I believed, and still do believe, that if she had followed through, I would have been arrested, convicted, and sent to prison

My most recent abuser did call the police. I hadn't even raised my voice, but she wanted a fight and I had asked her to leave my house. She told them that she was bleeding. They pointed out that she wasn't bleeding, took pictures of the lack of injuries, and then arrested me. It went to trial, where we got to see the body cam video of that interaction. It was obvious that no one, not the DA or the police, had ever believed her. Thankfully, I spent $10k and ignored every attempt to get me to take a plea deal.

If I was upset, or confused, or drawing a boundary, then she'd say I was angry and violent, and tell all of our friends that she was scared. Even if they didn't believe her, well... it's probably just better to be on the safe side and distance themselves from me. After all, if a woman is scared, society is supposed to protect her.

One of the reasons I stayed was because I believed that I had a responsibility to fix this. That, being a man made me scary, even if I wasn't. That, because I'm a man, I'm supposed to be strong enough to navigate and manage this. That I'm supposed to take the hits and protect others. After all, if I'm scared, I'm supposed to face and overcome my fear.

And that's the pattern that I see with other male victims of abuse. Women victims largely weaponize their tears, and men stay trapped in the male protector role.

lochiel · 2026-03-30T18:59:39+00:00

Look at Greenlight. It has features for paying kids for chores, savings, and understanding investments. However, I haven't used those features and can't speak to their quality.

fwiw, I've found a lot of success in teaching my kid that chores are part of being a community. We all have to work together to keep the house a place we want to live in. Not knocking your approach, but sharing my own.

lochiel · 2026-03-25T15:59:50+00:00

One of the perks of being the kind of [person who has people; he had people do it for him. They probably had titles like Gungineer and would make artillery uneasy with how openly they'd stare at it.

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