I'm of the opinion we just need to stop focusing so hard on raising the birthrate and focus more on taking care of the people and population we have. We don't need more people on the planet - 8 billion humans is plenty. We need to figure out successful economic strategies that don't require perpetual population growth rather than trying to breed our way into economic security.
Honestly I just wish companies would stop trying to shove half baked AI into everything. I work for an IT consulting company and every vendor in the tech sector is shoving AI down our throats right now, and most of it, including Google's, just isn't ready yet. And they want our clients to pay subscriptions for the privilege of beta testing it. It's quite exhausting.
I freakin love succulents! One of the few plants my forgetful self can keep alive and thriving! I don't even have a watering schedule for them, I just water when I remember and know it's probably been at least a week? I have a friend that has a house full of plants and loves caring for them who came over last week and marveled at how good my succulents look. Told him the secret is neglect lol.
quietly adds shampoo to the grocery list...
My question is, why are concentrated soaps not bigger for human use like they are for animals? The shampoo and conditioner to wash my dog comes in a gallon jug and dilutes 50:1. That gallon jug lasts me years, and I'm bathing a golden retriever that has a lot of hair. If shampoo came by default in a gallon jug we just had to mix once or twice a month with water in a separate bottle we would save so much plastic, so much cost, and so much transportation weight!
And concentrated products for pets are more common than diluted ones. So clearly we know how to do this, why don't we do it for human stuff too by default?
I refuse to be part of that group. I'm a democrat living in KS and I vote in every single election I can. My candidate may not win, but damnit they will count my vote and know that I dissent.
That's so heartbreaking. We went through similar in the past year with our late lab and it crushed me every time because she clearly hated going in the house but couldn't help it.
I would argue that's not necessarily the case - see slavery, caste systems, discrimination etc. In many countries currently and throughout history it's been perfectly legal to treat the "other" as less than oneself, even up to and including murder and torture.
Also, often laws are created to enforce religious doctrine, which while perhaps morally preferable to those of that religion may be abhorrent to those outside it. (Abortion, burkas/hijab, education restrictions, prison sentencing, drug/alcohol legality, etc)
Absolutely. My 2006 car is in the shop right now getting fixed and will ultimately end up costing me around $3.5k. They were a bit surprised I told them to fix it, but I don't WANT a new car. I like my car, it has all the features I want, is a manual, doesn't connect to the internet, and most importantly, has physical buttons and dials to control everything! Overall it's in great condition as well.
I love my car, and like you will be keeping it until it becomes prohibitively expensive to repair vs buy something else, or I can no longer get parts. Hopefully by then something will be done about the privacy and touchscreen situations.
Dog training/sports.
Here I am thinking "I need to get more active and it'll be fun to do stuff with my best bud Link" (Link is a 4 year old golden retriever)
Starts with basic training obedience classes, no biggy. Then they offer Rally classes, which is basically obedience plus some fun stuff, cool, I'll take that class. Oh, I can get a cool title for him? Sure, we already trained him, why not! Ok he needs 3 successful runs, and each run attempt is $25...? k...
Rally Novice acquired...fun but... Was that really worth 150 for the class + $75 for the three runs? ...sure whatever
Ooooo agility sounds fun! Let's do that! $150 for a 6 week session, that's not bad! 6 months and many sessions later + buying practice equipment... I'm officially poor. My dog is a happy boy, and I'm more active, but FML this is a rabbit hole lol
We're having a lot of fun, and my dog is a happier more obedient boy, but man was I not expecting the crazy expense. Those people with the dogs that have a bazillion titles and letters after their names? They've spent a literal fortune on that dog. It's absolutely mind boggling.
As ridiculous as this sounds, spending time with my dogs. I didn't grow up with dogs, but got my first as an adult, and it's been a revelation. When I want to go run an errand, go out to eat, go take a walk, whatever...they're always up for it. The best part though is that when I'm done, they're happy to follow me in being done too. Outings last exactly as long as I want, they're always silly and fun, and when I get home I have a tired cuddle buddy for a nap.
I have a very healthy social life with friends I see every week, a husband, and family I love...but spending time with my dogs just scratches an itch I didn't know I had. They're just the least complicated and demanding relationships in my life, and I really value that. Taking my golden out for pancakes and a trip to the park on a Saturday morning is one of my greatest joys in life. It's simple stress-free joy, and if life gets busy and interferes with my dog time I'm just cranky and unhappy.
My big wool cloak is my absolute favorite winter garment. It is unbelievably warm and cozy, blocks wind better than any other coat I own, and as an added bonus I can wrap someone else up in it with me to keep THEM warm.
I am unabashedly the cloak girl. Bring back cloaks!