My homie, not all rights are there because they’re part of the body.

The right to defense, which is core to the right to bear arms, is no more or less valid than the right of free speech, the right to due process, etc.

I agree that the right to body autonomy is of paramount importance. I would even argue that it’s the single most important right a human can have.

This does not invalidate the right to defense, or the extension of that which is necessary so long as any guns exist. If every gun on the planet turned into manure, and every mind was wiped of how to make them, I’d be perfectly happy. But as long as they exist, the right of anyone to defend themselves, their loved ones, their nation/region/culture requires access to them.

We go back to bows and arrows, spears, swords, and do away with anything like a gun, that’s great. Just be aware that there will always be some kind of object that is the top choice for a weapon. Even if that choice is limited to rocks and sticks with no changes to them, then access to them is mandatory for the right to defense.

You want to ban guns? Great. Start with the militaries of the world. Then the police. After that’s done, I’m open to negotiations regarding personal ownership and usage.

Man, I feel that.

I can’t say I love wasps and hornets, but I respect them (well away from me), but I try to. They’re terrifyingly beautiful.

But bees? As much as they make my nethers pucker up, I love those little guys.

But it took me years before I could stay chill around them instead of running away and screaming. Except bumbles, they’ve always been an exception to my phobia.

As long as the fuckers don’t try to build a nest near the house, they can have their fun. I don’t go messing with them otherwise. But my allergic ass ain’t playing when they’re right outside the door, helllll no.

My homie, go take a first aid/cpr class. You are wrong for so many reasons, and taking the class would remedy this one tiny section of that.

And, seriously, go take the damn class, everyone should know how to perform basic care like this, period. It should be taught in schools imo.

Man, that’s the total truth.

I got lucky with my wife. We were friends before becoming romantically inclined, so some of the awkwardness and nerves were gone by the time we realized it wasn’t only friendship any more. That friendship is still there, there’s just a big + to it now.

But, even having gamed together and bullshitted online for most of two years, along with the kind of non gaming conversations we had along the way, there’s still some of that butterflies in the stomach when we met in person the first time. And there were definitely a few days where the shock of being together made us act like we hadn’t spent a year and some big change cracking bad jokes, talking about farts, and otherwise letting it all hang out while we hung out via software.

Anyway, yeah, part of the great joy of a having a partner is the freedom to just be silly and honest and share the simple things.

I love that you recognize the original hillbilly usage :)

Nah, go bugger lol. One side of my family is mostly from potato famine Irish, and we all love some corned beef. It’s definitely on the menu for holidays

Nah, it has some irish origins, just not only Irish

Amen to that :)

You know, I ain’t mad at this.

Yeah, it’s totally unnecessary. Yeah, it’s kinda dumb.

But if it makes someone happy, it’s all good. Nothing wrong with colorful food until the colorant changes taste. Even then, that’s on the person making and eating it.

That’s a fucking party right there

Nothing wrong with that :)

Tbh, growing up it was either Duke’s or miracle whip, depending on whose house I was at between grandparents or home. I kinda preferred MW on almost all sandwiches until my mid twenties. Started getting more into cooking on a craft level, which meant exploring flavor combinations. Turns out that, for my tastes (because I hate food snobbery and recognize that all food taste is subjective), there isn’t a single “best” ingredient for most things.

When it comes to the mayo/salad dressing realm, the three big names, Duke’s, Hellman’s and miracle whip, all have their own distinct flavor and texture. I found that I prefer one over another for most things, and a combination of two or three for some. Like, the traditional potato salad on my mom’s side of the family, it’s Duke’s or nothing. You start with MW, and it gets muddied with the mustard. Hellman’s is too fluffy and eggy for that specific use, though I find Hellman’s and Duke’s mostly interchangeable with salads.

But my deviled egg s alad; Hellman’s and MW are the default in a 1 to 2 ratio. Then the sweet relish, paprika, and a hint of cayenne to make it come together. Duke’s makes it too thick, and MW by itself too sweet.

But I will never say nay to anyone making things the way they like them :). And I agree totally that there’s no real substitute for miracle whip when that’s what’s called for. Can’t even do a homemade version that’s better (and, being honest, not as good in my best attempt).

It’s kinda like mustards and ketchups. Each brand has its own recipe that can significantly change how it works in the mouth. One brand of yellow mustard just isn’t the exact same as any other brand, and there’s limited difference even possible. Hell, that’s like many of the liquors of the world; one distillery is going to be a huge difference from another once you get beyond the basic taste of a given spirit. Even from batch to batch, you’ll get changes.

Gods, I hate those. I won’t watch anything that does it

It’s a mayonnaise-like salad dressing. While it can be used just like mayo in general, it’s sweeter, slightly more acidic, and has a slightly different texture.

So, it’s mainly used in dishes where you’d add a bit of vinegar and sweetener to begin with. There’s some versions of potato, pasta, and egg salads that need the hint of sweetness to work right, and most benefit from a touch of vinegar. Miracle whip already has that, and at the right levels when used as a dressing that you don’t have to tweak as much.

Now, it can also be used for anything mayo can be used for, but the sweetness is a bit too high for most people’s palates compared to regular mayo. So, using it on sandwiches, or as a component of sauces or mixed dressings (like honey mustard dipping sauces, as an example) isn’t very popular.

The texture differs from most brands of mayonnaise enough to be notable, though people rarely complain about that part. Most mayo is whipped enough to be rather “fluffy”, and miracle whip tends to be thicker, with less of that mayo mouth feel.

Now, if you compare it to home made mayo, it’s essentially not the same thing at all. But regular brands of mayo are as different from home made, just in other ways.

Imo, it’s a great product. Used judiciously, it can improve damn near everything that uses mayo. I tend to use both, rather than just miracle whip, and it gives a great balance of texture to things like deviled eggs, and the salads I mentioned (with the caveat that there are multiple types of those salads, and not all will be good with MW in the mix). And I love the stuff on a cheese sandwich. Couple slices of cheddar and some miracle whip is a pretty unique combination of tastes that works very well.

Looks great, but how about some love for that corn over there looking all sexy and whispering sweet things until you eat it?

Man, I’ve been disabled since 2005, so I feel the pain of having to find purpose and satisfaction without a job. I miss working, though I would have preferred to be able to work less and still make a living lol.

I find that diversifying my interests helps. I have a lot of down time where being productive isn’t possible (you know, chores and such), so I’ve had to find multiple things to do while recovering from activity. But you can only play so many games, read so many books, do so many crosswords, etc.

Meditation is a big plus. Learning how to be in stillness is a powerful tool.

Picking up skills is a huge benefit. Doesn’t have to be anything big. Just watching some videos and reading up on something like sketching can fill weeks of down time, and then you either learn a new skill that’s useful, or improve an old skill (I used to be pretty decent, but years of working and not drawing had atrophied my sketch skill). Could be anything like that with a low investment in supplies.

If you are capable of it, pick up some coding. Doesn’t have to be enough to do anything, but you’ll have a better understanding of things.

Keep your brain active is what I’m getting at. There’s zero pressure to be good at anything you try, it’s all about the process, the exercise of your mind to keep the boredom and ennui at bay.

Me too, tbh. Just remember it being interesting and friendly

Ah, there we go!

Heck yeah. Mind you, I respect other people’s contact preferences and don’t push a hug on anyone. Made that mistake some in my younger days, but realized it was shitty behavior eventually.

But I hug the hell out of anyone I care about enough to call friend or family. I’m a hugger, that’s just how I am.

I got lucky tbh. My dad wasn’t particularly huggy, but he always welcomed us kids when we hugged him. And I had one uncle that was never a hugger, and would avoid them when he could. But otherwise, the men in my life growing up were comfortable with demonstrative affection. Hugs, putting an arm around you, pats on the back, gentle pats on the head, just those little touches that say “I love you” in a way that doesn’t need words because they’re done without thinking, they just reach out and that connection happens.

Oh! And kisses on the top of the head. Big thing on my mom’s side for the men to kiss kids on the top of the head.

My dad was more of the sort to put an arm around you when you sat beside him, but he knew the power of a hug when someone is upset and never hesitated to do so, despite not really liking hugs much. And he was definitely a patter lol. Pats on the head, on the back, just affection by touch.

So, by the time I was a teenager, I was without much of a barrier to hugs. Never got indoctrinated with the stiffness and emotional distance that comes with that barrier. My friend group in high school, we hugged every damn day, usually multiple times a day. We’d meet in the library of a morning and as each of us rolles in, a round of hugs would happen. We’d freely express love for each other verbally too. And not even in the forced jocular “love ya bro” way that started being more acceptable back then. But full on “I love you, I’ll see you tomorrow” type goodbyes.

Shit, some of us would hug our teachers, when they’d let us. Obviously, most of them would not allow it, but there were a couple that didn’t mind. Gods! The principal! Old guy, retired at the end of my senior year. Handing out diplomas at graduation, and shaking hands. Every one of our group just took the diploma and hugged the guy. He was shocked by it, but he knew how we were, and ended up just smiling for the rest of the ceremony. After the first few of us did it, other students not in our group did it too. He was a superb principal, and was sorely missed.

Imo, there is nothing that builds and maintains healthy relationships like regular hugging.

This is already long, but you mentioned other forms of contact. Snuggling depends on the person, but I gladly snuggle with friends if they’re down for it. Can’t play wrestle what with my age and bad back, but used to.

And I’m down with cheek kisses with friends too. Hell, I don’t even object to non sexual lip kisses in theory, though it isn’t a thing that happens very often. Only times it ever happened with male friends was in moments of distraction when saying goodbyes in a group that included spouses lol.

Dude, never complain about votes.

I agree with you, at least in principle, but once you start making edits because of votes, you lose ground. Restate, explain, whatever, but just don’t bring votes into it. All that does is create an adversarial situation that may well not happen otherwise.

You take the downs votes and the up votes as they come, and deal with them without referencing them. You’ll have a much better experience if you stick to that, I promise.