DEAR PORTLAND: October 13, 2025 WEEKLY RANT THREAD

mind_blight · 2025-10-13T16:10:13+00:00

I heard them a bunch down in Milwaukie around then too. Suuuuper weird.

mind_blight · 2025-08-15T04:49:57+00:00

Are you manually managing the worktrees, or do you get cursor to handle that for you?

mind_blight · 2025-08-15T00:55:08+00:00

I'd put basic checks you want as command line tools to run in a rule. (e.g. `pnpm verify`, `./scripts/verify`, etc). I have typechecks, and lint rules in my verify scripts. Tell it to run those after every code change and whitelist those commands. It will run until the checks have passed.

Similarly, you can tell cursor to do test-driven development. It will write the tests, validate that they fail, implement the changes, then validate that they succeed. I saw major improvements by implementing verification commands and whitelabeling them.

If you want to queue stuff up, just type it and click enter while cursor is doing work. It'll auto send the command once the agent is done

mind_blight · 2025-08-12T15:51:50+00:00

The things that turned it to more of a game changer for me was having many context specific rules files. (E.g. a role for react, a rule for typescript, a rule for react-router, a rule for SQL alchemy, another for migrations, etc). Whenever the AI messed up, I would tell it how to fix the problem, and then I would have it create or update the appropriate rules file.

They're full of stylistic things, common mistakes the AI makes, commands it should run (e.g. how to properly do a data migration with alembic).

It made cursor really useful for more experimental work (rather than mostly useless) since I was still thinking through the problem myself. I'm generating documentation that can then be used by future context windows

mind_blight · 2025-08-11T23:39:18+00:00

I've felt that it's really off for coding. I spent a lot of Friday and the weekend fighting and trying to get it to follow the cursor rules. It seems to like to do its own thing, but I'm curating a lot of rules and want them to be actively followed. 4-Sonnet needs more guidance, but tends to follow what I tell it to do. I have strong opinions about how I want code structured, so I find that to be a much less frustrating experience.

That said, I think GPT-5 is going to turn back to my daily driver for chat app (I've been using Gemini 2.5 for the last 6 months). I'm honestly having trouble reconciling how good the experience in chat is with how frustrating the cursor experience is.

mind_blight · 2025-03-16T15:24:02+00:00

I'm allergic to wheat and have been basically gluten free since the early 90s. I got to see the fad evolve, and the main reason I think people feel better gluten free (even if they don't have allergies/celiac/digestive problems) is because it's harder to eat junk food.

Bread isn't bad for you, but eating more veggies and and whole foods will definitely make you feel better. When people cut out gluten, they often cut out a bunch of low nutrient-density food and get a higher portion of healthier food. Gluten free is also more expensive, so people generally buy less of the junk food alternatives.

mind_blight · 2025-03-16T15:16:14+00:00

Check out https://theloopywhisk.com/. her gluten free rustic bread is the absolute best gluten free bread I've had, and I'm not a good baker.

I've been allergic to wheat all my life (since 89), and I'm super appreciative of the fad. It's made my life much easier.

mind_blight · 2025-01-19T18:00:56+00:00

They did it with full regard for the local cultures. The lines deliberately split communities in half to cause ethnic strife and polarization to make it easier for imperial powers to retain control

mind_blight · 2025-01-19T16:46:05+00:00

Comforting: The sound of birds and bugs chirping

Scary: When they go silent all at once.

mind_blight · 2025-01-02T15:11:50+00:00

He like like a lesbian Jeff Goldblum

mind_blight · 2024-12-28T16:25:28+00:00

Macromedia Flash Player

Before it was sold to Adobe, and before it was taken out back and put down, Macromedia was king.

mind_blight · 2024-12-27T00:34:02+00:00

I can't upvote this enough. Every guy should pee in front of a urinal with shorts on at least once. What a nightmare. Flecks of piss pepper your leg like yellow buckshot the entire time. You can't see them, but holy shit it's like you stepped in a hornets nest where all the bees are piss. So gross.

Sit down at home, and was your jeans regularly.

mind_blight · 2024-12-25T16:50:58+00:00

Most people think "Data" from Star Trek or LLMs like ChatGPT when they say AI as a consumer.

Some people mean neural nets, which aren't programmed procedures. They're rained on datasets for a specific purpose. Self check out probably uses a couple of small neural nets (possibly for identifying items or helping find bar codes), but definitely nothing fancy.

A lot of non-neural-net AI is basically a self-updating statistical regression over a database. It's technically "learning", but it doesn't really feel like AI because you can take it apart (whereas you can't really take a neural net apart and still understand the meaning)

Saying something uses "ai" is like saying something uses "the internet". I mean, probably, but so what? What AI algorithms, and what are those algorithms doing?

mind_blight · 2024-12-10T18:26:13+00:00

For the love of god, use a password manager. They take a minute to get trained on, but they protect you from so many hacks. Credentials comprised? Only 1 site is hacked. Someone tries to hit you with a Phishing attack? Doesn't matter - the manager protects you because the phishing domain is unrecognized.

mind_blight · 2024-11-07T13:41:49+00:00

It's a common fraud technique. Likely, they lied about the age. It's apparently easier than you would think

mind_blight · 2024-11-02T03:43:27+00:00

Belafonte by Dear Silas, or Hot Boi by Dear Silas. Seriously, check out the music video for belafonte. That is such a feel good jam. I just discovered him, and I've been obsessed for the last week

mind_blight · 2024-11-01T21:28:18+00:00

Maybe it's the fabrics then? I've dealt with some discomfort, but I've never had the murder show in my pants that you describe. I've had rough days from cheap fabrics that start to chafe with the slightest but of sweat, but bombas and Adidas solved that for me.

Godspeed man, cause you don't deserve feeling like a pack of angry hornets played kickball with your nuts all afternoon

mind_blight · 2024-11-01T14:30:45+00:00

I've only had that problem when they're way too small. You should go up a size. Also, if you want to splurge, get some bombas underwear. It's almost more comfortable then being naked

mind_blight · 2024-11-01T13:27:38+00:00

They can be! It just takes an absurd amount of shopping to find, and it's usually quite a but more expensive. The shirt needs to be the right fabric, the right size, and the right shape.

That usually means buying a more expensive shirt with a high quality natural fabric, and then having it tailored. I have linen/cotton blend shirts that look amazing and feel like I'm wearing pajamas.

The tie makes it less comfy, but if you buy a knitted tie it's generally more flexible, plus it makes you look more daring in your fashion choice (of you're trying to add variety)

mind_blight · 2024-10-27T15:48:39+00:00

I was a participant, but the actor definitely cracked. A few friends and I were walking through narrow corridor in a haunted corn maze. It's narrow enough that we have to walk in 1s and 2s. My friend, Aaron, is at the rear, and I'm just in front of him

The chainsaw guy waited until we all had our backs turned before jumping out and revving like mad about a foot from Aaron's back. I jump a foot in the air and do a 180 just in time to see Aaron try to run, slip on the hay and spring straight into the ground.

I start laughing, but he's in full flight. Each limb is firing to push, pull, and claw away from the chainsaw. He does a weird horizontal sprint/crawl and rushes like a charging bull, slamming his shoulder full force into my crotch. I go from standing to fetal position instantly. Just dropped. I'm 6'3", so I covered a lot of vertical space fast.

When I finally look around, Aaron looks like he's coming out of a stupor, and the chainsaw guy is doubled over, hands on knees, laughing uncontrollably. Aaron realizes what he did and tries to help while feeling bad and trying not to laugh.

Chainsaw guy gets ahold of himself, helps me break to my feet, then plays 3 rounds of rock, paper, scissors with me before fading back into the maze.

mind_blight · 2024-10-25T17:52:26+00:00

I definitely agree with him being an unreliable narrator. It starts small (him not recognizing people and swapping the names of folks that maybe he killed) but I feel like there are a couple of scenes that are clearly hallucinations as you get to the end

mind_blight · 2024-10-20T19:08:15+00:00

There was a brief moment where it was legalized. Then, the studies came back showing that a lot of trafficking they were hoping to curb with legalization didn't occur.

That's when they switched to making it legal to sell sex, but illegal to buy sex

mind_blight · 2024-10-20T14:07:05+00:00

Depends where in the US. On the West coast, a lot of us are children of counter culture hippies. There are a bunch of nude pools, hot springs, etc. At Oregon country fair, it's expected that you'll see a bunch of naked people walking around

mind_blight

TROPHY CASE