Evkob (they/them)

u/Evkob@lemmy.ca
90 posts · 1.8k comments

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on Languages · c/memes · 4 pts · 7d

As someone who has also spoken French their entire life; I disagree. Is French orthography messy? Sure, but it's a consistent mess. Like the other commenter said, once you know "eau" is pronounced "o", you know. Un beau bateau sur l'eau.

Contrast with English, where rough & thorough thought is required throughout tough sentences such as this one just to figure out what the Fuck sound "gh" will make.

I really came to appreciate the difference in English and French when I used to work in pharmacies; my first job was in a French place, and I intuitively knew how to pronounce drug names at first encounter.

I later worked in a place with only Anglophones and I never got the prononciation on the first try. It was a guessing game.

on #1 c/Coffee Meta Thread · c/coffee · 1 pts · 12d

I don't have a lot of ideas for more summery flavors

I recommend lavender. Simple syrup infused with the stuff is delicious in an iced latte on a hot day.

A mix of over and under extraction could be a couple of things, but IMO the most likely culprits are either inconsistency in the grind or pouring technique.

If you have a mix of really fine and coarser particles in your grounds, that'll definitely cause these problems. If you're grinding at home, you can try getting some beans ground for pourover from a café to see if your grinder has this issue.

As for ensuring your pour is giving you an even extraction; start from the centre, pouring in a spiral until you reach the edge, making sure to water all the grounds. You can also give your pourover a swirl during the brew, I tend to do one right after pouring the water for the bloom, and one after my last pour.

The mix in over- and underextracted might also come from me not stirring before drinking the coffee.

I honestly prefer not stirring the coffee afterwards. I like the slightly different notes on the first sip vs the last, but maybe I'm a weirdo.

Honestly, by asking here you're already way ahead of like 99% of people in your situation.

I think openness to learning/listening is key, which you seem to have going for you, but I'd recommend an approach where you state your openness and let them come to you with that information when they're comfortable to. Example; instead of asking "do you have new pronouns?" just say "if you want to try out new pronouns, let me know!", that kind of thing.

on Have a nice NB day <3 · c/transmemes · 12 pts · 31d

I wish I got gendered as a trans woman, it's not what I am but it's a better guess than being assigned male at sight.

The occasional ma'am always quickly gets "corrected".

I've definitely struggled with these exact thoughts a lot in the past.

As the longer I've been vegan, and as I've gotten older too, my perspective on veganism (and other decisions I've made for the environment, such as being car-free) has shifted.

I used to be really motivated to try and save the world. Surely, by leading by example, and sharing the facts and science, I could inspire the people around me to make more eco-friendly decisions. While a couple people I know have slightly reduced their meat intake, or now opt for a bicycle instead of a car for the occasional commute; most people only offer excuses and refuse to put their money where their mouth is, values-wise.

My perspective is now somewhat egoist; I'm vegan (and car-free, and other things) for myself. It makes me feel better to not participate in systems which actively harm society, our planet, or any living beings. So I do it. I've accepted the futility of trying to keep our planet livable for our species in the face of capitalism, but it still feels better for me to be vegan.

Do you think you'd feel better if you started eating meat again?

But I'm from New Brunswick! I've been told that if we don't let the Irvings refine oil and clear-cut our forests, our economy will collapse!

on What do you collect? · c/asklemmy · 5 pts · 42d

An extremely subjective and esoteric set of criteria. Sometimes it's because the representation of Jesus is hot, sometimes the crucifix is rather ornate, sometimes it's just different from what I've seen before.

on What do you collect? · c/asklemmy · 5 pts · 42d

I ended up with three crucifixes by various happenstance, and then I kinda just started buying cool ones whenever I'd see any in thrift stores.

Seriously, our flag is like the best thing Canada has going for it.

Although as much as I loathe little corner Union Jacks on flags, I have to admit I'd probably get a kick from the reaction of the entire province of Québec if it were to happen.

::: spoiler Full text from article (warning: transphobia) In 2014, my son started to ask for the popular block-building computer game known as "Minecraft." Later that year, my wife and I decided to get said game for him, and he loved it. He constantly showed us his latest creations and buildings.

Little did we know, this seemingly innocent game was a gateway drug to cross-sex hormones, wrong-gender pronouns, and a replaced name.

You see, while it may seem like a healthy outlet for creative expression, Minecraft is actually a very popular game among so-called "trans-identifying children." The reason for this is because the game allows for expression of dangerous ideas, and has little to no moderation, being primarily singleplayer.

One of the most problematic parts of this horrible game is the ability for players to upload their own "skins" – essentially, each player can create a character for themselves in simple photo editing apps such as photoshop. This means that the selection of characters is limited only by the players' imaginations. On the surface, this seems to be a positive of the game, but it turns out that it is not.

This unlimited customization dangerously blurs the boundaries of gender and sex, and, especially considering the predominantly young player base of Minecraft, can be very confusing in terms of gender. One of these confused young people is my son, now 21 years old, who, it turns out, had been using the default "girl" skin of Minecraft, often shown in marketing alongside a more fitting masculine character. While this is not concerning on its own, having done so since the age of 11 will surely have contributed to his gender confusion.

However, this dangerous, confusing option is not the only element of Minecraft that contributed to my son's gender confusion. You see, while Minecraft is most often single player, or on large-scale "mini-game" type servers – essentially giant online arcades made in the block game, it can also be played in the traditional "survival" mode in multiplayer. While multiplayer games are an excellent way for kids to interact with each other, it can also provide a way for them to communicate dangerous ideas without the guiding hands of their parents.

Ever technically minded, my son set up a multiplayer server to play with his boyfriend when they were 14 years old and just started dating. Unfortunately, due to Minecraft's neglectful failure to include any filters or safeguards against dangerous and confusing ideological statements, it served as a funnel for the two of them to encourage each other in their "transitions." Yes, that's right – my son's boyfriend is also gender confused. What's worse is that these two, who are perhaps the worst possible people for each other, are engaged to get married in a "lesbian" wedding later this fall. I, of course, was not invited. Heaven forbid I try to save my son from his horrible confusion.

This other boy, I suspect, is the reason that my son is so confused as to his gender. And if another confused youth, with no malicious intent, was able to confuse my son through the game of Minecraft, imagine what maliciously intending adults can do to children whose parents are less vigilant about who their children are connecting with online. Not everyone has as much time for supervision as my wife and I had. And even then, we failed to save our son.

So, this is a warning to parents to be very wary of Minecraft, and other such online games without strict parental controls. And if your child already has Minecraft, as it has become much more popular in the past few years, be sure to check what "skin" they are using, and to have a talk about the possible confusion that could arise from using one that does not align with their gender.

Sincerely, a forgotten father.:::

It's apparently attested since at least the 2nd century BCE; Roman playwright Plautus is usually credited with coining the term.