Mine sits politely at the counter while we cook (no paws on the counter) waiting to taste anything we are cooking.

I don’t think she knows she’s a cat.

I’ve found stolen tomatoes and eggplant that look just like that peach. It’s like they were playing with it.

Delivery had a lot to do with softening the approach.

Definitely not for all situations, but to be fair, no approach could be.

I had a friend in college that would just say, “So, what’s your deal?”

I’m shocked at how well it worked. Open ended, so you only get what they’re willing to talk about, but they’ll still be ok talking.

Because Bob usually knows, and/or did it.

(I use Bob too)

Blue Bells - For when you get left hanging under the mistletoe.

I think it was Lewis Black who said, “I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but the two party system in this country is a bowl of shit looking at itself in the mirror.”

I vote for who earns my vote. I refuse the forced choice of two terrible options.

Similarly, have they offered something worthy of my time and consideration?

Yes, consider engaging.

No? Next.

I have a coworker that had to talk to a colleague about something that they perceived as “difficult”. They worried about it for a month before finally scheduling it, and in the end, everything was fine. Our colleague took the “difficult” feedback very well, said they would make sure to work on it, encouraged further feedback, etc.

All this time, I encouraged them to just get it over with. When they finally did, I shared Seneca’s quote that, “We suffer more in our imagination than in reality.” They suffered for a month over something that was trivial in the end.

There’s no such thing as quiet quitting. I prefer acting your wage.

Debian. Stable and works for what I need.

300 hours of sick leave? I think I feel a fever coming on.

I was just thinking that I’ve mowed the lawn shockingly few times so far this year, between the heat and lack of rain.

Usually June and July are twice a week or more to keep up. This year, there were weeks I didn’t mow at all.

I know it’s anecdata, but it’s a meaningful metric to me…

Amazing music!

Flaked barley is for a bit of grain flavor, but mostly head retention. I added it because that’s what the recipe I used said to use… Not exactly a good reason, but it’s also pretty common in Irish Stouts.

I added some carbonation and your moka pot coffee trick, and that combination did the trick in my book. It’s much more interesting now.

Thanks for the tip!

“I don’t want to know, Dave.”

Haha, my niece, who just started learning guitar, told me I have too many guitars. I said, no, I don’t, you just don’t understand. Yet.

Be careful, brewing is just as much about collecting gear as it is making tasty beverages.

Welcome!

Sure!

First time using this recipe:

5 lb 2-row 2 lb flaked barley 1 lb black barley 3 oz Peat Smoked barley

2 oz Kent Golding

You can taste maltiness and just a touch of what I think is from the smoked barley, but mouthfeel is lacking, as is that “roast” flavor.

Probably could have bumped up the black barley?

Keep a Bullet Journal or similar. (I actually use tasks in Outlook this way.)

Break big projects into chunks, get chunks done, even small ones. Checking off boxes gives a good sense of accomplishment.

Schedule breaks, like with a Pomodoro timer. 20 minutes of work, take a 5 minute break. Repeat. After a bunch of work cycles, take a longer break.