I had so many experiences like that. I was a voracious reader as a kid. I was reading books in English (my second language) about topics such as aeronautics and space exploration. I was reading far, far above the level of any classmates. And that lead persisted all through college.

Every time a new teacher would give us an essay assignment, I’d get called out to stay after class once they graded it. And they’d casually accuse me of plagiarism.

My usual response? Quiz me, right the fuck now, on any paragraph you want from that 20 page paper. And ask me the definition of any word you’re unfamiliar with. That shut them up right quick.

A large vocabulary is its own reward, but not so much when those who’re supposed to teach you are lacking in that department.

Exactly. Back in 1995, my dad could never get online. Heck, he couldn’t even remotely figure out a PC. We tried to teach him some basics like ‘click with the left mouse button to open something’, but he was downright scared of the thing. He never, ever touched it.

But ‘thanks’ to the iPad, he’s e-mailing, on Facebook, on YouTube, TikTok etc. Which also has the unfortunate effect of subjecting him to boomer brainrot. He’s now more actively misinformed than he used to be because of that fucking iPad.

We’ve made the web accessible to people who shouldn’t be on it. Because it’s hurting them and hurting society as a whole.

I’ve been online since 1995. I weep for what we lost. The web should have stayed a nerd domain. We’d have been better off as a society.

Do watch Andor. It’s not just good Star Wars, it’s ‘good TV’ in general. And I say that as someone who hates modern Star Wars with a passion. Andor’s excellent.

God yes. I was one of the first people to buy it. Back when you had to send Notch himself five bucks to play it. I was interested in the concept, but frankly didn’t think it would have much appeal beyond people who enjoy completely self-guided experiences with no set goals.

How wrong I was.

It’s been wild seeing it rise to the top of the pop culture heap, become popular with 12 year olds and eventually result in me seeing a movie starring Jack Black based on it.

It’s wild that it started with me and a handful of guys sending Notch a fiver.

Goddamnit yes. It’s why I’m very pro-gatekeeping. Because people who are new to a hobby because it got popular tend to ruin every-fucking-thing.

For example: flight simulator. That used to be an exclusively nerd domain up until the FS2020 version, which was released on Xbox. The result: a massive influx of new garbage payware and a decline in quality of established brands. While also making the sim worse in order to chase broader appeal. It’s gotten a bit better after covid went away and the normies dropped the hobby, thankfully.

Also: film photography. The popularity of instagram and YouTube ‘influencers’ got a lot of people into our hobby the past decade. It’s lead to increased gear prices, film being more difficult to get and the forums flooding with the dumbest possible questions, since these newcomers are allergic as fuck to reading manuals or watching any tutorial longer than thirty seconds. It’s also lead camera manufacturers to chase this new demographic by making their cameras shittier and more ‘instagram-friendly’. Here’s looking at you, Fujifilm and your shitty X-half.

Take it from someone who’s been around a bit: if you like a thing, keep newcomers away from it. Gatekeep it like the Berlin Fucking Wall, lest they completely fuck up your hobby.

Having experienced math, I’d choose satanism for sure.

Nah, I wouldn’t worry about that. We obviously know the difference between the US, Canada and Mexico. And here in the Netherlands, you can be assured that we would choose Canadian if possible. We love Canada.

The ‘buy EU’ trend is solely focused on US goods. If the Canadians stick a maple leaf on their exports, it’ll sell for sure.

I love French cheese. You can buy a lot of them here in Dutch supermarkets. Personally, I really like a nice soft brie. That’s considered a ‘snack cheese’, usually enjoyed on a small cracker. Also really nice in a baguette with some tomatoes, cucumber, sliced cheese….

Guess I’ll add some to our shopping list this week; might as well stimulate that EU economy in these trying times. Cheese certainly does make me smile :D

Lactose intolerance is very rare here in the Netherlands, as you can imagine. I always feel bad for people who have it, since milk and cheese are pretty fundamental to the Dutch diet.

I’m with you on giving up meat vs. cheese. I’ve gone days without meat, and could probably go vegetarian if I needed to. But vegan? Absolutely not. Cheese pizza is life. I’d sooner kill myself than give up cheese. It’s not happening.

Too… much? That’s a thing? You’re yanking my chain. As a Dutchman, cheese is my religion. We eat about 22 kilos per capita here, US is about 18. And seeing the overall state of the US, I can only assume low cheese levels are to blame.

Can I offer you a nice block of Gouda in these trying times?

I’m taking a shit. It’s either memes or existential dread, so I’m doing this.

Exactly. If someone wants or needs to avoid certain products, that’s great. There’s plenty of options. But it’s not a restaurant’s job to cater to every whim. They can’t always have everything.

I can’t have fish. My brother is allergic to peanuts. So I eat dishes without fish, he eats them without peanuts. I’m not going to ask for the ‘fishless salmon’.

The French are right. When you have fabled cuisine, lauded all over the world as the gold standard… you get resistant to change. And rightfully so.

Putain, non, is indeed the proper response to said question.

I’ve owned a fair few Fisher Space Pens throughout the years. It’s an interesting bit of space memorabilia that’s functional and affordable. It’s an impressive bit of engineering.

As a space nerd, I love the pen. As a pen guy…. There’s better options. The cartridge just doesn’t write as smooth as I like, nor is it a really bold, saturated line. For daily actual writing use, I use a Lamy Safari rollerball or a Pilot B2P.

Airplanes have very particular maintenance schedules. Some things are based on the amount of hours flown, others are calendar items on a set schedule. They are also periodically stripped down completely to check every last part.

Basically, every critical component on it will have been recently replaced, overhauled or checked. If done correctly, a 50 year old plane is not inherently more dangerous because of its age. The caveat to that being: if it’s done properly.

God yes. The obnoxious, extroverted sales monkeys are a menace. We’re finally getting some new walls at our workplace so we can work in peace as non-sales, actually-doing-work employees.

When US policy can change in hours, based on the whims of a madman, it’s not exactly difficult to see why people lose faith in that stability. Investors want long term stability, and right now things are complete chaos.

Sure, plenty of small phones with good battery life back then. Owned a new phone every three months or so, innovation went that fast in the 90’s.

But those small phones have a few drawbacks. Too small for my hands and you can’t really shoulder it like we used to with landlines.

I also mis proper flip phones like the Motorola Startac. You could snap those closed with authority. Can’t quite do that with those modern folding screen flips.

Don’t threaten me with a good time.

I’d looooove a return of the brick phone. Modern phones feel small and dainty in my giant hands. Meanwhile, battery life absolutely sucks. I’d love a modern brick phone that does calls, text and nothing else. And a battery life of a fulm week.