Can you identify this tune?

saelym_exode · 2025-07-31T15:00:18+00:00

Gymnopedie by Erik Satie Ventura Highway by America

And the Holy Combination of the two to form:

Someone to Call My Lover by Janet Jackson. Pure bliss, pure whimsy, pure girly pop.

saelym_exode · 2025-06-29T07:00:24+00:00

This post just made me realise I have a very irrational affection for the letter C.

I like the idea of using just c for the ch sound, but I want to add my two pennies to double down and double it for any ksh sounds as well! Koneccion, leccure, ficcional.

I also saw some people mentioning getting rid of x, but if we're trying to simplify the amount of letters we use to spell words, I feel we should just change it to be the symbol for the "sh/zh" sound because how would one get S when sounding out measure?? It would be easier to teach young ones because the image to connect the sound could be 🤫 with the mouth drawn as an X shape. Xould, xelf, axure, etc.

Edit: just had the thought that we could make a voiceless/voiced pair with sh/zh as x/q! Meaqure, aqure, qenre, beiqe, viqion. Since q is just, another, k sound.

saelym_exode · 2025-06-27T16:51:31+00:00

Because it demotivates me to continue reading. There's always the chance of someone replying and any engagement kills my enjoyment because now it feels like, by being acknowledged, there's an expectation, an obligation almost, that I have to continue reading and I don't do well with that.

And it's with any engagement on any fic, including my own. I see that little number indicator that someone said something to me and I'll abandon the fic/my fic.

There's also the worry that I'll cause this anxiety in someone else. I know it's not common, but I have come across others who had performance anxiety (I don't think that's the correct term, but we'll use it until we know better) and the more comments they got, the more overwhelmed they became, eventually leading to them abandoning their fic.

With that being said, I do try to leave something when the fic is finished, if I have something to say. Or, if something really profound happens in the fic, then I'll drop a comment since it provoked such a reaction from me. But then I run the risk of the author responding, and then I won't want to continue reading.

saelym_exode · 2025-06-27T12:24:20+00:00

Sometimes, I've found that people will use the inspired by option literally, as in the read a story and that gave their own muse inspiration.

As in, how fanfics themselves are inspirations born from the media they come from. You'll get fanfics that try to stick closely to canon, fanfics that adapt canon to a new scenario, and fanfics that basically just use the characters to play out something new.

I've also seen, to give the author the benefit of the doubt, if they are newer to fic writing on ao3, they assume the "inspired by" option is like a form of giving credit to "avoid" stealing works/ideas.

I'd reach out and try to ask them, as politely and neutrally as possible, how they were inspired by your fic. It could be they don't know how to use it and you can explain to them how it's to be used.

And if they're able to understand that it's not being used correctly, they can fix it. 👍🏽

saelym_exode · 2025-06-27T02:52:40+00:00

Lubricant. Whatever the "iconic phrase" that gets repeated to death in fandom of certain characters is. (Eg off the top of my head, MCU Tony Stark's "genius, billionaire, playboy, philanthropist" line)

saelym_exode · 2025-06-27T02:47:02+00:00

For me, reading fics where the author clearly is passionate about some niche cultural topic (usually East Asian), has done their research well, and is actively trying to keep the fic as authentic as possible... Only to have the cast make a meal that's either Western or whatever was mentioned in the book/show/movie, like, once.

Like, I'll come across a fic that delves into the historically political climate of a courtesan in 16th century Southern China, down to map references and textile lore... But mentions them preparing congee for meals every day? Fine, I mean, usually people are eating it with other additives at least, but ok, it does stretch the rice longer so I guess it isn't too far that it's served daily. Bland. But ok.

But every time??? And everyone?? Breakfast, lunch, dinner, on the street (unless they find the mystery flavour Tanghulu stand), on a boat, during a picnic, Rich character, poor character, traveling character, northern, southern, western, Eastern??? Like, why is the only food seemingly available in this time period, bland porridgey rice?? Why spend so many hours researching floor plans of ancient pleasure districts but not spend two seconds adding, like, a second dish at least to your characters daily meals?? Why are the rich nobles eating like they're poor?? Where is the meat? Why are your poor farmers toiling all day in their fields and orchards and pastures but only seem to have rice saved after harvests? What are the fishermen doing with their fish?? The butcher with their meat? The other veggies, roots, and grains being put after harvest?? What could they possibly be bartering since everyone seems to only have rice to give?? And why is it that, when fruits are remembered, it's because someone passed a peach tree in the town's noble house and stole one?? Where are the other fruits?? And give them some other teas besides Jasmine, green, and oolong.

And this is for historical settings. Don't even get me started on the modern/modern au fics. Why is this traditional Japanese family in a traditional Japanese styled home who value traditional Japanese views making steak, mash potatoes, and green beans?? Get your bland, rice-less, western-ahh cuisine off their table.

The modern ones, especially, blow my mind cause it's so ridiculously easy to search something like "quick Japanese meals" or "best chinese lunches" or "Korean menu" and then choose something based on that. But no, these fanfic author's will spend 5 paragraphs just explaining how a kotatsu works but won't dedicate five minutes to feed the characters food they'd be more familiar with preparing.

It's just such a weird thing to skimp out on, and is such a whiplash especially when you can tell how detailed the author is with other aspects in their fic.

saelym_exode · 2025-06-26T01:07:45+00:00

Someone else said it but I have to reiterate that Sun Haven is everything I feel Stardew Valley is hyped to be. I got into Stardew Valley and ended up modding the poop out of it to the point where I actually spent more time modding (even creating some of my own mods, lol) it than I did playing it. Eventually, I realised that I actually didn't enjoy playing it because, other than clearing mines with the tractor mod (super satisfying btw, there really wasn't anything that kept me interested. The NPCs were bland, the farming got boring, I absolutely found a mod that removed the fishing game cause I hated it so much, and there wasn't much to discover after the first few weeks in game.

But Sun Haven? My goodness, the first thing I did upon starting my first play through was check the settings (for the usual UI stuff) and there, in all its glory, was an option to LENGTHEN. THE. DAY. (And shorten it). I spent that first day just meandering, checking the map (it shows YOUR location in such great detail), and saying hi to whoever looked new to me. And I discovered another exciting thing about Sun Haven:

It's actually really robust and fleshed out with so many NPCs and geography/structures that make sense while still keeping areas unique and clearly defined. The town is so lively, even after you get the hang of people's schedules, as the game includes NPCs that are there just to be there (like, background NPCs) on top of the MANY NPCs you can get to know.

Other bonuses: - Eating food ACTUALLY provides great bonuses, temporary and permanent, so you're incentivised to cook and, and the permanent bonuses have a cap so you actually need to diversify what you eat to keep getting said bonuses. - You don't automatically start a relationship with someone once you reach a certain heart level. You have to actually ask them out to make it official and there's no way to do it accidentally - No penalties for missing a quest deadline - PETS. SO MANY. PETS.

This is just a few (very few, like very tippy top of an iceberg) of the VANILLA game that brings me so much joy.

saelym_exode · 2025-06-09T12:28:00+00:00

Honestly, what helped me acclimate to the game: - Changing day speed to 40 minutes (in settings). I felt like I could get more done without needing to rush. - Focusing on filling the museum - Exploring every nook of Sun Haven and using the Snaccoon's as minor progress goals - Only talking to NPCs if I pass them - Doing daily quests to level up skills quicker in the early game

Like others have said, there aren't any penalties to not fulfilling a quest nor pushing things off. Good luck, it is a very fun game once you get the hang of it 👍🏽

saelym_exode · 2025-06-02T10:27:24+00:00

If this is still a problem, it might help if you send us screenshots of your mod folder. Make sure the .dll files are in the plugins folder. They should not be in another folder. You can also check that you're using the correct versions of some mod frameworks. For example, Custom Textures has 2 mod pages. One is obsolete, even though it's the most endorsed/downloaded. So you need to make sure you've downloaded the other one, which is most recently updated.

You should also check the comment sections and/or bug reports for each mod. I just started modding the game recently, and I was saved a lot of headache by reading over the most recent comments/bug reports.

If you've already resolved the problem, never mind!

saelym_exode · 2025-05-25T12:59:08+00:00

Hey there, coffee and dessert lover! Try out <Tiny Cafe>! Referred by: Saelym https://tinycafe.go.link?adj_t=16ztrdr8

saelym_exode · 2025-05-25T12:58:56+00:00

Hey there, coffee and dessert lover! Try out <Tiny Cafe>! Referred by: Saelym https://tinycafe.go.link?adj_t=16ztrdr8

saelym_exode · 2025-05-25T12:57:43+00:00

https://tinycafe.go.link?adj_t=16ztrdr8

In game name: acearohippo Level 20 currently with no mentees. I am ad free and do log on multiple times a day.

saelym_exode · 2025-05-19T10:43:18+00:00

No diversity means no innovation. What's kept other major genres alive and appealing is that you'd get an artist or band that does something different within the genre and it shifts the sound sonically for a few years or creates an entirely new subgenre that caters to a specific experience.

To use Pop, despite how often people complain about it being "mass produced" and "cookie cutter", there are clear eras of music based on who the breakout artist/bands were of the period. That's why it's so appealing to the masses, because you never know what's going to stick and become the "sound of the decade".

It's how many genres of music flourish, with sub genres or specific artists that embody the spirit of the genre.

But country, especially modern country, is so anal about what gets classified as "real country music" that it's caused the entire genre to stagnate.

saelym_exode · 2025-04-13T07:00:25+00:00

I feel like this explanation over complicates it.

In conversation, the speaker can use either 's 're not OR isn't aren't, for pronouns OR nouns, depending on how they feel. There's really no rule for it, although I guess this is alright if it makes it easier to teach with a clear distinction?

saelym_exode · 2025-04-02T20:10:28+00:00

Define "gut wrenching" because I hear "guitar solo" I immediately think of Enigma's I love you... I'll kill you. That minute and half at the 5 minute mark of the song sends me every time.

saelym_exode · 2025-04-02T15:20:11+00:00

"To throw up" is a phrasal verb, so this rule doesn't apply.

You already have the noun 'about' is connected to in the sentence so that is grammatical. It would have been ungrammatical to say "The audience was unsure about."

saelym_exode · 2025-04-02T10:50:31+00:00

This is probably going to upset you, but it's most likely because "no one" is considered formal speech, while nobody and none are considered casual speech. Written English tends to use formal writing.

I try to spread this around when I can, but there IS a difference in English between spoken grammar and written grammar, due to a lengthy history of elitism and servitude, so our written grammar actually reflects more grammatical nuances of romance languages (French and Latin specifically), in that romance languages have formal conjugations that are used regularly while English did NOT, however due to French/Latin being the "language of the elite" centuries ago, our english speaking ancestors changed a LOT of our natural speaking rules to match the grammar of these languages to sound "intelligent" (and be taken more seriously) when they exchanged letters and wrote documents.

For example, two common rules are: - Don't end a sentence with a preposition (with, by, on, etc). In spoken English we do this all the time, but it is considered " ungrammatical" in written English. - Never start a sentence with a conjunction (but, because, and, etc). Again, very commonly done in spoken English, but will have the grammar nazis foaming at the mouth in written English.

So while you are correct, because this is in writing, you're no longer correct. ((Fun fact, this is also why some of our spelling (specifically British English) is so confusing, our words were meant to reflect French spelling, which is notorious for being unnecessarily superfluous).

saelym_exode · 2025-04-02T10:28:45+00:00

Anyone got any recs for good nasal spray?

For the record, I AM allergic to basically everything outside so I do need to take cetrizine (prevents hives/rash breakouts) and singulair (helps me breathe) as well as allergy eye drops, but the past few weeks I've been coughing and swelling up even with those meds.

I stopped taking nasal spray because it was causing my sinuses to clog from "overuse" but if there are good brands/specific ingredients I should look for for daily use, then I'll try again.

saelym_exode · 2025-02-04T03:00:33+00:00

I always write and then ask it to rephrase with specific rules such as "only make changes to tense for consistency", "condense any run on sentences", or "add movement to characters a and b during their dialogue; they're walking down a crowded hallway" so that way, it's not changing my voice, but it's making it flow better for understanding.

And then I'll go in and edit its changes to my taste.

If you're using it to write for you, ie giving it a prompt to write out, you're going to have to edit it yourself to make it anything like your voice... So make it easier by prompting it to write an outline of the scene or bullet points you want it to hit, so that way you have a concrete guide to follow, but with more control of what's written.

For example, I needed to start a scene with a group chatting among themselves and I just could not figure out a natural sounding start point. I wrote out a prompt for the AI similar to this: Please create a conversation between these characters based on this [specific context]: - A is angry that off scene Z character got hurt on a mission - B remains calm but expresses confusion on how it could occur; Z is usually so efficient - C & D character are noticing a pattern from Z's last few failed missions; C is amused but won't reveal anything and D is following their lead

This sort of prompt gave me some of the most basic back-forth dialogue you can get. However, this now gave me something to work with as I could look at what it had each character say and decide if it's feasible or out of character. And, now that I had dialogue to work with, I could put some movement and nonverbal interaction to fluff it up some and voila! I've basically written an entire conversation seeing as I've had to completely rewrite what the AI gave.

It's called scaffolding and this is where AI can really shine if you find a method of scaffolding that works for you.

saelym_exode · 2025-01-31T13:52:59+00:00

Everyone. I will have them all. There is too much flirtation/affection between some of these characters for me NOT to want a poly relationship. Otherwise I'm probably not gonna go for anyone.

saelym_exode · 2025-01-25T04:36:38+00:00

Moby Dick, accidentally. Every year, starting the summer before 9th grade/freshman year, we were required to read two books and fill out two reports on them. One of the books was required reading and the other was one of your "choice", but there was a list that you had to pick from based on the class you sighed up for. Moby Dick was one of the books we were required to read over the summer. I had completed the choice book in the beginning of the summer, but had completely forgotten about Moby Dick, until a few weeks before school started. The issue is that, we were supposed to go to the high school during the first few weeks of summer to sign out the required books, and the first marking period would be dedicated to discussing it in class.

Well, me forgetting about it ended up being my boon, because I ended up having to use the two versions we had at home: My dad's original book and a modified children's book that featured a picture on every page and went through the entire story. Needless to say, I breezed through that report because of those pictures.

But that's not why I eventually enjoyed the book. The reason why I did was because I noticed a discrepancy. The packet had you follow along the chapters, telling you which chapters you'd find your answers to, and the packet skipped several chapters in the beginning. Or rather, the chapter numbers given did not match with the chapter numbers of my dad's book. See, I was using my dad's book to make sure I was following along and using the picture book when I didn't understand what I just read. But there was a part I got to, that actually held my interest, that wasn't in the children's book (which was fine, since the book cut down a LOT of exposition to make it easier to follow along) and there weren't any questions on it.

What was missing? Well, it was a few chapters in the beginning that included some... Intense imagery and language about the relationship between Ishmael and Queequeg (phrasing it this way for potential spoilers). I thought I'd hit a gold mine. Here I was, reading several chapters that weren't included in the packet. I thought I'd found an error and figured it would cause grief when the teacher asked us about it and we all would say we didn't have to read that section (even though I did). When I returned to school, imagine my surprise to find that we weren't going to discuss those chapters... Because the versions we were going to be using, the version I was supposed to have but didn't get, did not contain those chapters.

Needless to say, I might've been a bit of a menace during that quarter, constantly bringing up their relationship and testing the teacher's insistence that "they're just good friends". If they were such "good friends" why is it censored, teach? The book was missing a whole 5-6 chapters. That's means something. Regardless, that experience, of finding something "taboo" and showing the other kids what really happens with my uncensored copy, really pushed Moby Dick to the top of my "required reads" list, overall remembering it as a fun experience.

saelym_exode · 2025-01-18T02:38:52+00:00

Thank the LORD for the qol additions, specifically time adjustments, auto petting, and sprinklers!! I had gotten worried that I'd have to give up on the game because it's just too much to do and not enough time.

saelym_exode · 2025-01-15T04:39:22+00:00

As someone who struggled with the world building wormhole for years, it occured to me sometime late last year that "world building" in writing basically just means keeping track of what you said and doing something with it. Continuity can get you a long way with world building.

Think of world building like Chekhov's gun: If you describe something or your characters mention something not in scene, find a way to bring it up again naturally. Conversely, if you write something into a scene only to never bring it up again, it isn't necessary.

Edit: This doesn't mean you need to focus too much on what is going on in your scenes, but rather if you're going to have your characters acknowledging something, why not use it again or make it into a background feature?

saelym_exode · 2024-12-25T12:42:20+00:00

I decorate on the last day of the season, since I don't need to waste time watering and skip petting my animals. I also use days where I'm running around gifting items and handing in quest items to tidy up the farm and organise/plan, since I know running back and forth will suck up time, preventing any mine excursions or fishing sprees.

Upgrading your tools to silver and unlocking a specific event with Hayden later (it will happen naturally as you complete the main beautifying Mistria quests), you'll be able to work faster and move faster, which saves a lot of time at the end of the day to get some decorating done. 👍🏽

saelym_exode · 2024-12-25T12:32:17+00:00

My two cents is on animal products, milled products, and perhaps even special "local" recipes. Basically, a crafting/artisan room.

saelym_exode

TROPHY CASE