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š» š³ļøāššš»š²š married poly cisgender gay man, he/him/his, Black Lives Matter, Trans Lives Matter, anti-fascist, writer, sci-fi fan, Trekkie, TTRPG GM, cruise addict, SF Bay Area Blog: https://www.johnkustersjr.com Telegram: https://t.me/jkusters
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Iām watching the Spanish instructional YouTube videos from a guy calling himself āQroo Paul.ā After four lessons, I feel like Iām understanding how to put together simple Spanish sentences with his instructions better than I have after a year with the Owl app. Much better fit for my neurodivergence.
"Another issue that could provide a barrier to COVID vaccine access is insurance. According to KFF, almost all payers are required to cover ACIP-recommended vaccines at no cost. If ACIP does not recommend the COVID vaccines for certain groups, that could mean some people have to pay out of pocket."
www.erininthemorning.com/p/dem-congre...
The āproblemā with vaccines? They so effective at preventing deaths that they create generations of people that question whether disease was a problem in the first place because they have never experienced the horrors of a world without vaccines.
@khanna.house.gov I am simply aghast at you making an equivalence between Oscar Wilde and notorious TERF Graham Lineman. Not comparable in the least! Linemanās over-the-top and violent tweets are nothing like Wildeās writings. Your āfree speech absolutismā will lead to the murder of innocent people.
No problem, Boss
The new expedition in No Manās Sky is out! Yay! Lots of fighting Sentinels. Meh. It crashes every 20 to 30 minutes on my Mac. Sigh. I need to be better at remembering to avoid trying to run the Expeditions in NMS until theyāve been out for a few days for the first round or two of bug fixes.
Thatās possibly true, though I learned the most about English grammar while studying German in high school. Iām somewhat autistic, so learning rules instead of being forced to puzzle them out, is always going to work better for me.
I canāt imagine any possible negative repercussions from thisā¦ apnews.com/article/flor...
I know it's a really petty thing, but the continued insistence by so many people, books, apps, etc. that the "immersive" method of learning languages is the *only* way to learn a language chaps my hide. Not everyone learns efficiently the same way. I need to know the rules as I learn the vocabulary.
Drug trafficking is not a capital crime; it doesnāt carry a death sentence. I genuinely cannot think of anything under U.S. law that would permit premeditated government assassination of people suspected of drug trafficking.
Lethal force against a civilian vessel in international waters is a war crime if not in self-defense. If not in self-defense, only non-lethal actions, such as warning shots or disabling fire, are allowed. "Not yielding to pursuers" or "suspected of carrying drugs" doesn't carry a death sentence.
I wish I was better with this sleeping thing. Itās a lot of effort for me to get to sleep, and despite the apnea therapy, I rarely wake up feeling rested. It would spare a lot of bother if I just didnāt have to sleep.
I donāt know if itās been the heat or if Iām slowly coming down with something. All through the weekend, my energy levels have slowly been dropping, my chest is feeling more restricted, and my brain more wooly. I hope it clears up soon. Iām not enjoying it. No stars, do not want to try it again.
We finally saw the recent Captain America movie. While I thought the whole mind control schtick had been done to death well before this film, I did enjoy the character arcs, Samās, Joaquinās, and even Rossās. And I welcome Ruth Bat-Seraph to the MCU. Didnāt care for her at first, but did by the end.
Hey TikTok bears, check out my friendās feed!
With O'Neill (apparently) taking over CDC (if they ever get around to firing Monarez), I think it's worth looking back to Project 2025 and asking what they actually intend to *do* to CDC. So, I went to remind myself today. Here's what's in store:
Yep, I have Sleazy. Waiting for an opportune time to indulgeā¦ š
Do you happen to know if itāll eventually make its way to Appleās bookstore?
One of those is definitely Bostonian ;-)
Thereās still plenty of kits for kids, but yeah theyāve definitely realized that thereās a market for adult kits.
Understood. This was a gift to myself with some birthday money.
Itās a great build. Nice and solid, much bigger than expected.
AMERICA: āItās a mental health issue.ā REST OF THE WORLD: āWe have those. But donāt have mass shootings.ā AMERICA: āItās video games.ā WORLD: āWe have those too. But donāt have mass shootings.ā AMERICA B: āItās cause they took Jesus out of the classroom.ā WORLD: āGod, youāre stupid.ā
If an industry cannot exist except through theft, it does not deserve to exist.
That feeling when you have plenty of details about the situation the player characters will discover in the next TTRPG session, but no idea where the players will go with it so donāt know which if any maps and adversaries will need to be designedā¦ *flounder, flounder*
I quite enjoyed this one!
Disgustingly weird.
Turns out that Kaiser has no Covid vaccine doses available, and is hoping to get more in the fall. Thatās not gonna happen, I expect, since all indications point to RFK jr. banning them. Ah, well, Iām as protected as I can be, I guess. I hate this timeline.
My heart breaks into 10,000 pieces once again.
An unexpectedly rough day today. Couldn't fall asleep until after 2am, had a long difficult discussion with my husband over mismatched expectations regarding our "big adventure," with him not believing I'm open to it, then stupid brain weasels chasing around in my brain about the stuff I'll miss.
Yeah, there was the expectation in my health provider that a new vaccine would be made available in the fall. But Iād say thereās a high likelihood that, in the US at least, RFK Jr. will be banning it instead.
Given the news regarding the COVID vaccine out of DC the last few days, Iām wondering if I can convince my PCP to sign me up for one more dose before they get banned. My last booster was almost a year ago, so itād be the same formula, I expect. Would it help? I dunno, but Iād feel safer.
Similar for me.
100%
Me
Making 55 look great!
I donāt think weāll be that luckyā¦
Looks like a good time! :-)
The problem comes when trying to dine with friends. Iām okay going to places that have food I wonāt eat just to be social, but their desire to include me results in them not choosing to go to places theyād go to if I werenāt with them. I hate that.
And delectable!
America now
āBut when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security.ā Just a bit of history repeatingā¦
Youāve been kidnapped. The characters from the last TV show you watched are trying to rescue you. Whoās coming to save you? Iām kinda liking my chances hereā¦
He sure aināt leaping tall buildings in a single bound any more, is he?
My score is 27. I loathe all seafood, canāt tolerate most vegetables, some deathly food allergies, and have both the super taster and cilantro mutations, along with severe food neophobia. And this all makes me feel subhuman and horrible. š¤·š»āāļø
27 from that list are on either my deadly allergy list of my ick! list.
Always sexy
Iāve been following him since the song āI Wish We Were Leavingā shattered my heart. I love his mix of dance and pop sensibility with his occasional songs that as so poignant they hurt.
Another delightful song from @brightlightx2.bsky.social, with a video that features a delicious variety of boysā¦ youtu.be/EGcgpuPx6KI?...
But letās not count up the crew on other Starfleet ships *cough*Locutus*cough* ;-)
I donāt disagree at all. But to call their donations a campaign to end hunger is thoroughly disingenuous. The donation might help temporarily alleviate it for some, but hardly ends it for everyone for all time. Thatās what ending hunger must include if words are to have any meaning at all.
Iād be happy to donate towards ending the scourge of childhood hunger, but none of these grocery store fundraisers actually intend to do that. At best theyāre attempting to put an adhesive bandage on a wound while an assailant continues to stab.
Saw it tonight on the big screen. Made me so happy.
"I don't care what anyone says, I like that movie"
Well, that was truly fun! Hackers on the big screen. Iāve loved this film since it first came out. Johnny Lee Miller, Angelina Jolie, Matthew Lillard, all with stellar performances. And the soundtrack really kicks.
bsky.app/profile/jkus...
LOL! Sure now that it affects *them* itās time to stop. Get Texas, other southern states, and Trump to back off first and then make your pitch again. The CA plan is a direct reaction to undemocratic moves by his own party, who canāt win on the issues so must resort to cheating.
Congratulations!
This song came up on my shuffle whilst I was out driving, and it still seems relevant today, just replace the mention of the Tea Party with MAGAā¦ youtu.be/s4babovPnWI?...
And if you believe a word that comes out of that adjudicated perjurerās mouth, I have seaside property in Kentucky to sell yaā¦
This feels very alarming to me. It feels like something Mussolini would have demanded in fascist Italy. Am I wrong to be alarmed by this? Trump says Intel agreed to give US a stake in its company apnews.com/article/trum...
It is possible to applaud Gavin Newsomās attacks on Trump in social media *and* oppose his presumed presidential bid for 2028. We donāt have to be āall in,ā 100% love him or hate him. Weāre not in a cult.
This camera stores video on miniDVC tape cassettes. Itās that old. Mac OS X had just come out when this camera was made available.
As part of our downsizing, I wanted to pull video off of an old Sony video camera weāve had for a long time. Sadly, even with newly purchased cables, neither the PC nor my Mac recognizes the camera. I guess itās too old. Ah well, if we havenāt missed the videos after all this timeā¦
After reading about the Trump administrationās latest anti-trans move (open.substack.com/pub/erininth...), Iām at a loss for understanding why?!? Why so much animosity towards trans folks?!? Am I so outside the norms in that I see trans people as, well, people? Do I just count too many as friends? š¤¬
I keep seeing pundits and even some historians saying weāre on the road to authoritarianism. I beg to differ. We passed that city limit sign weeks ago. Military patrolling the streets of the capital. Texas kidnapping elected officials. Trump making demands of eqity. Itās not coming, itās here.
I have done that. Silver star for 500, gold for 1000+. It worked well until I stumbled for a week or so and then the shame was strong, too strong for me to overcome. May you have greater strength to handle stumbles than I had/have.
If true this is outstanding news!
He votes by mail.
Does anyone have a list of the six wars Trump has stopped? I canāt find such a list yet he keeps taking credit for them.
Precisely. Nessee was the second dog we had to have euthanized, and those wounds never fully heal. For M itās too much, and he wonāt put himself in the position to have to go through it again.
Three years ago today, my husband and I made the terrible decision to relieve our dogās suffering by having her euthanized. I wonder if that was the cause of the gut-wrenching and guilt-tripping dream I had about her last night.
For reference: youtu.be/j7lp3RhzfgI?...
Iām no George R. R. Martin, but I can still take inspiration from the @paulandstorm.bsky.social songā¦ ;-)
No one holds a candle to the amount and destructive capacity of the US military. Even our castoffs are more potent than just about anything Russia has any more. If Ukraine wants to survive intact they may feel they need that equipment. š¤·š»āāļø
Yeah, it was a head scratcher to me as well. But Ukraine probably desperately needs US equipment and support, so whatās he gonna do?
So, Zelenskyy is coming to the White House to talk with Trump about a peace deal. What will Trump urge Zelenskyy to do in order to secure the peace? Give up occupied land? Thatās proportionate to giving up the entire eastern seaboard of the US, ME down thru FL. Would Trump accept such a proposal?
On several occasions today, Iāve tried to engage in the news of the day, in the commentary on both sides, but I keep bouncing off it all. Message received, brain: time to take a break for a couple of days and keep busy with other stuff. Hope everyone has a relaxing and recharging weekend!
I love driving. Whether it's driving long distances or driving along winding mountain roads, it relaxes and centers me. Unless I have to deal with other drivers, especially the dangerously aggressive ones or the dangerously passive ones. I might be happy to give it up to avoid them forever.
I decided to start listening to Apple Music's "Top 100: Spain" playlist to get my ear accustomed to hearing the language. The second song it played? Golden (in English) from the Kpop Demon Hunters OST. LOL!
Honestly great work, sir!
šØ ICE chases man into freeway where he is struck and killed by a vehicle. ICE killed this person.
Iām finding businesses on yelp that provide hard drive shredding. That might be the way to go.
I did this ā writers, heads up.
Anyone have practical suggestions for how to dispose of ancient hard drives that might have personal data on them? Bonus points if you know someone in the South Bay Area who can take care of them safely and sensitively.
Whew. Another couple of hours excavating the junk room. Starting to organize the stuff weāre keeping for now just to have space for more excavation. Found an old inkjet printer/scanner we can give away as well as an old MIDI keyboard. Now itās time to cool off under a ceiling fanā¦
My heretical UU opinion: I hate the word ācovenantā. It makes me think of the biblical ādo as I tell you or burn in hellā. Or worse, ādo what I tell you so you donāt make me hit you againā. Iād rather use words like āpromiseā or āpledgeā, not words that have such an āOld Testamentā vibe to them.
A fascinating history of how important indigenous Americans were in the construction of modern skyscrapers, a history that the Trump administration would like to ignore. open.substack.com/pub/thinkbig...
The most sickening thing about Trump deploying the national guard in Washington DC is that his name is all over the Epstein files and theyāre still refusing to release them.
ICE looted their restaurant and tried to break into the safe. News chopper footage caught them backing their cars up to the door and carrying out cases of food.
Itās time for Timer!
Woke up out of a frustrating and anxiety-inducing work dream, then Facebook reminds me that three years ago, our dog was declining quickly from a mysterious illness. I hate this feeling of emotional precariousness, a crash thatās just one step away.
The Stonewall Inn released a response to the National Parks Service removing the word transgender from the park outside of the Inn. A great reminder that we have to look after each other
What is this, some kind of MAGA White House g(r)ift shop?
Washington Post: āIs fascism bad? The answer may surprise youā Teen Vogue: āHere are three fun tips you can use this summer to disable an armored personnel carrierā