Mark Treasure Berger

I will say this, because I want it on record - denying that your child is neurodivergent, especially when medical professionals tell you about it, and then raising them as if they are neurotypical, IS A FORM OF ABUSE. A very common form of abuse at that. THAT is what I will call you out on.

You could get halfway to this now by hiding a camera on the cat and watching the recording. Not being in direct control of the cat would make it trickier, though...

Hardly a radical idea—I'd say it's even the modern norm—to want get to know a person first. Literally being the cat, though, is a unique chance to see the see the suitor off guard, as they probably don't expect the cat can understand them or judge their thoughts or words.

Screenshot of a Tumblr post by user siniristiriita relating a story idea of a popular woman offering to marry whomever can successfully collect a key from her cat and open her front door...

Fable level stuff, I'd say, as those often come with a lesson: a lot of people—especially women, due to how they are often treated—are the cat. They want to see someone has the capacity for patience, respect, forethought, and kindness, ideally well *before* committing to an intimate relationship.

I want to hear some hard metal polka now, please!

Netflix introduces a new kind of subtitles for the non-hearing impaired Just the dialogue—no sound effects or music cues.

More options are good in this case, I think. I might still stick with the English CC subs over the non-CC variant as often as not, but I look forward to seeing how these ones are.

Here's hoping for no cancer.
🤞🏼🤞🏼🤞🏼🤞🏼

I feel like I ought to have seen this one coming... And yet.

Total lunar eclipse tonight! 😃
Starts in about 30 minutes, starts to get visible an hour later, peaks 2 hours after that. Go look!
🌕🌖🌗🌘🌑🌒🌓🌔🌕

Nice! Reminds me a bit of Miles Vorkosigan (longtime protagonist of author Lois McMaster Bujold) being urged to "Unpack, Miles!", as other characters looked at him sideways for leaving out the obvious-only-to-him details.

Screenshot of three lines from a Wordle-style game, reading ARTSY AWFUL ALBUM. In first line, "A" is green and the rest is grey. In line 2, "A" and "U" are green, "WF" is grey, and "L" is yellow. In line 3, "ALBUM" is entirely green.

The world has probably heard a lot of these.

As I sat here and pulled it up on my phone, it had the audacity to say "This character is terrible with technology and doesn't know how to use a smartphone."

I LOVE the sign that says "IMPEACH Musk and the FELON".

See, that one I like! That one is uplifting, encouraging. I want a cookie to make me feel hopeful, not guilty!

In the moment, since we'd talked about responsibilities in relation to living through Big Bad Bullshit, it felt like it was trying to say "accept some responsibility". Whether that meant for its coming about or for fixing it wasn't clear but, either way, it was not what I wanted to read just then.

Right! I mean, I think they meant it to be like the classic adage, "The first step to recovery is realizing you have a problem." They just broke down the concept of realization into two stages—first awareness of the possibility of a problem and then acceptance that a problem genuinely exists.

Panel 4 from comic "Truth" by Tate Parker. An adventurer stands in ankle-deep water, with a satchel on their back and a broad hat on their head. Having just read the long-sought Scroll of Truth, they now shout "NYEHHH" and hurl the scroll away in disgust.

Yeah, I was actually kinda grumpy about that first one. We'd already been having an unlovely conversation about The Current Political Climate, and then I opened a cookie and it hit me like a Scroll of Truth.

Three paper slips from fortune cookies, reading: "The first step toward change is awareness. The second step is acceptance." "Your involvement in sports will keep your mind sharp and your body strong." "Don't let financial stress define your worth."

These are honestly the three worst "fortunes" I've ever found in fortune cookies. I mean, yes, they're all thoughtful, decent advice, but that's not what I want from a fortune cookie. I want a sweet snack with a brief, vague, broadly-interpretable message about the future. A horoscope dessert.

This experiment brought to you by KFC, who gave me a quart of their absurd version of cole slaw instead of a quart of mac & cheese last night, and me, who failed to consider checking the bag before getting home.

TIL KFC's cole slaw gets half-decently edible when mixed 1:1 with fresh chopped spinach. It's still almost dessert-grade sweet, but it begins to actually taste like vegetables.

One of the funniest parts of this for me is realizing there are people in this world who do NOT immediately go there with that phrasing.

I initially read that as "Dormant"... Which is possibly more accurate.

I also want a Most Interesting Man in the World–esque ad campaign based on the slogan "WHO IS BENEDICT McGRIDDLE?", because that just sounds absurd and hilarious.

Okay, now I want a Benedict McGriddle, and that not a thing I ever imagined I'd say.

🗣️🎶🎙️
Lazyyyyyy, lazy vac ribs.
Sous vide lazy vac ribs!
(Hold all the sauce!)

Wish I could imagine this happening in Denver without folk getting run over...

What's the word? Break or sprain?

Brilliant! Thank you!

I have spent decades not being fully engaged, and now it's time to turn it around. I don't even know who Pettersen is.

Gonna be a busy week for me, if I can get myself to do the work.