#Golf fundamentals

[macrogolf12]

The best square stroke shaft handle by Macrogolf. Macro Golf shaft handle's patented oval shape and grip length make it effective for both standard,traditional handle placement putting applications. For more visit: www.macrogolf.com

[techdriveplay]

How to Improve Your Golf Swing

Mastering the art of golf is a journey that combines precision, practice, and an understanding of the game’s subtle mechanics. Whether you’re a seasoned player or just starting, knowing how to improve your golf swing can be the key to unlocking a better score and enjoying the game more fully. In this guide, we’ll explore the essential techniques and adjustments you can make to refine your swing,…

[thegratefulgolfer]

Finding Our Golf Game

If you are looking for ways to help your game, welcome to the club. As a life-long student of the game (sometimes an A student and other times a D) I continually look for easy ways to improve my golf game. With advent of the internet, the knowledge of how to lower my golf scores is at the touch of my fingers. Or is it?Continue reading Finding Our Golf Game

[pablogerbolesparrilla]

Mastering the Green: The Ultimate Guide to Reaching Golf's High Points and Sustaining Success

Golf is much more than a game of hitting a ball into a hole; it’s a journey of precision, strategy, mental fortitude, and relentless self-improvement. Achieving high points in golf—moments of peak performance and success—requires a blend of physical skills, mental discipline, and a deep understanding of the game. Here’s a detailed exploration of how to reach and sustain success in golf.

1. Master the Fundamentals

Every great golfer starts with a solid foundation. The basics of grip, stance, posture, and alignment are critical to a consistent and effective swing. Dedicate time to:

Grip: Ensure your grip is neither too tight nor too loose. Experiment with different styles, such as the interlocking or overlapping grip, to find what suits you best.

Stance: Maintain a balanced stance with feet shoulder-width apart and weight distributed evenly.

Posture: Keep a straight back, bend slightly at the hips, and keep your eyes on the ball.

Alignment: Use alignment aids like clubs or alignment sticks during practice to ensure your body and clubface are aimed at the target.

2. Develop a Practice Routine

Success in golf demands structured practice. Focus on different aspects of your game during each session:

Driving: Work on maximizing distance while maintaining accuracy. Use a launch monitor to analyze your swing path and ball trajectory.

Short Game: Spend significant time on chipping, pitching, and bunker shots. A strong short game can save strokes and make up for inaccuracies in long shots.

Putting: Practice both distance control and accuracy. Use drills like the clock drill to improve consistency.

Course Management: Simulate real-game scenarios during practice rounds to improve decision-making.

3. Strengthen Your Mental Game

Golf is as much a mental challenge as it is a physical one. Techniques to enhance mental strength include:

Visualization: Picture successful shots in your mind before executing them.

Focus: Stay present in the moment and avoid dwelling on past mistakes or future outcomes.

Resilience: Accept bad shots gracefully and move on to the next challenge with confidence.

Routine: Establish a pre-shot routine to create consistency and reduce anxiety.

4. Invest in Physical Fitness

A strong, flexible, and fit body can significantly enhance your golf performance. Focus on:

Core Strength: Essential for stability and power in your swing.

Flexibility: Improves your range of motion and reduces the risk of injury. Yoga and dynamic stretching are excellent practices.

Cardiovascular Fitness: Walking 18 holes requires stamina. Regular aerobic exercises like running or cycling can help.

Balance and Coordination: Incorporate exercises that improve balance, such as single-leg squats or stability ball workouts.

5. Seek Expert Guidance

Even the most successful golfers rely on coaches to refine their skills. Consider hiring a professional instructor to:

Analyze your swing mechanics.

Identify and correct flaws.

Provide personalized drills and strategies.

6. Leverage Technology

Modern technology offers tools to improve every aspect of your game. Popular options include:

Swing Analyzers: Devices that track swing speed, angle, and impact to offer actionable feedback.

Golf Simulators: Practice and play on virtual courses from the comfort of your home.

GPS Rangefinders: Help with accurate distance measurement on the course.

7. Cultivate a Competitive Edge

Playing in tournaments hones your skills and builds confidence. Start with local club events and gradually advance to regional and national competitions. Treat each tournament as a learning experience, regardless of the outcome.

8. Learn from High Points

Reflect on your best performances to identify what worked. Analyze:

Technical Skills: What techniques were particularly effective?

Mental State: How did you handle pressure?

Preparation: What aspects of your training contributed most to your success?

9. Network and Collaborate

Surround yourself with other passionate golfers. Join a golf club, participate in social games, and seek mentorship from experienced players. Sharing insights and experiences can accelerate your growth.

10. Stay Passionate and Patient

Golf is a game of lifelong learning. Embrace the challenges, celebrate small victories, and maintain a growth mindset. Patience and perseverance are essential as progress often comes in incremental steps.

Conclusion

Reaching high points in golf and sustaining success requires a harmonious blend of technical proficiency, mental strength, and strategic practice. By mastering the fundamentals, committing to continuous improvement, and staying resilient, any golfer can unlock their full potential and enjoy the rewarding journey that this game offers.

[nothing-an-iratze-cant-fix]

I don’t actually think we need to distinguish any of these at all. Anyone unclear on what a game is? Great, let’s all get on with our days.

Perhaps what defines a game is whether it judges you on your performance.

Doodle Jump is undeniably a game, but you can't win it, it just tracks how high you get before you fail.

Lego Star Wars is undeniably a game, but with infinite respawns, you can't fail it, it just judges your performance based on how many studs you collect.

Unfortunately this definition may include the dastardly Fitbit.

[are-we-art-yet]

Is AWAY using it's own program or is this just a voluntary list of guidelines for people using programs like DALL-E? How does AWAY address the environmental concerns of how the companies making those AI programs conduct themselves (energy consumption, exploiting impoverished areas for cheap electricity, destruction of the environment to rapidly build and get the components for data centers etc.)? Are members of AWAY encouraged to contact their gov representatives about IP theft by AI apps?

What is AWAY and how does it work?

AWAY does not "use its own program" in the software sense—rather, we're a diverse collective of ~1000 members that each have their own varying workflows and approaches to art. While some members do use AI as one tool among many, most of the people in the server are actually traditional artists who don't use AI at all, yet are still interested in ethical approaches to new technologies.

Our code of ethics is a set of voluntary guidelines that members agree to follow upon joining. These emphasize ethical AI approaches, (preferably open-source models that can run locally), respecting artists who oppose AI by not training styles on their art, and refusing to use AI to undercut other artists or work for corporations that similarly exploit creative labor.

Environmental Impact in Context

It's important to place environmental concerns about AI in the context of our broader extractive, industrialized society, where there are virtually no "clean" solutions:

The water usage figures for AI data centers (200-740 million liters annually) represent roughly 0.00013% of total U.S. water usage. This is a small fraction compared to industrial agriculture or manufacturing—for example, golf course irrigation alone in the U.S. consumes approximately 2.08 billion gallons of water per day, or about 7.87 trillion liters annually. This makes AI's water usage about 0.01% of just golf course irrigation.

Looking into individual usage, the average American consumes about 26.8 kg of beef annually, which takes around 1,608 megajoules (MJ) of energy to produce. Making 10 ChatGPT queries daily for an entire year (3,650 queries) consumes just 38.1 MJ—about 42 times less energy than eating beef. In fact, a single quarter-pound beef patty takes 651 times more energy to produce than a single AI query.

Overall, power usage specific to AI represents just 4% of total data center power consumption, which itself is a small fraction of global energy usage. Current annual energy usage for data centers is roughly 9-15 TWh globally—comparable to producing a relatively small number of vehicles.

The consumer environmentalism narrative around technology often ignores how imperial exploitation pushes environmental costs onto the Global South. The rare earth minerals needed for computing hardware, the cheap labor for manufacturing, and the toxic waste from electronics disposal disproportionately burden developing nations, while the benefits flow largely to wealthy countries.

While this pattern isn't unique to AI, it is fundamental to our global economic structure. The focus on individual consumer choices (like whether or not one should use AI, for art or otherwise,) distracts from the much larger systemic issues of imperialism, extractive capitalism, and global inequality that drive environmental degradation at a massive scale.

They are not going to stop building the data centers, and they weren't going to even if AI never got invented.

Creative Tools and Environmental Impact

In actuality, all creative practices have some sort of environmental impact in an industrialized society:

Digital art software (such as Photoshop, Blender, etc) generally uses 60-300 watts per hour depending on your computer's specifications. This is typically more energy than dozens, if not hundreds, of AI image generations (maybe even thousands if you are using a particularly low-quality one).

Traditional art supplies rely on similar if not worse scales of resource extraction, chemical processing, and global supply chains, all of which come with their own environmental impact.

Paint production requires roughly thirteen gallons of water to manufacture one gallon of paint.

Many oil paints contain toxic heavy metals and solvents, which have the potential to contaminate ground water.

Synthetic brushes are made from petroleum-based plastics that take centuries to decompose.

That being said, the point of this section isn't to deflect criticism of AI by criticizing other art forms. Rather, it's important to recognize that we live in a society where virtually all artistic avenues have environmental costs. Focusing exclusively on the newest technologies while ignoring the environmental costs of pre-existing tools and practices doesn't help to solve any of the issues with our current or future waste.

The largest environmental problems come not from individual creative choices, but rather from industrial-scale systems, such as:

Industrial manufacturing (responsible for roughly 22% of global emissions)

Industrial agriculture (responsible for roughly 24% of global emissions)

Transportation and logistics networks (responsible for roughly 14% of global emissions)

Making changes on an individual scale, while meaningful on a personal level, can't address systemic issues without broader policy changes and overall restructuring of global economic systems.

Intellectual Property Considerations

AWAY doesn't encourage members to contact government representatives about "IP theft" for multiple reasons:

We acknowledge that copyright law overwhelmingly serves corporate interests rather than individual creators

Creating new "learning rights" or "style rights" would further empower large corporations while harming individual artists and fan creators

Many AWAY members live outside the United States, many of which having been directly damaged by the US, and thus understand that intellectual property regimes are often tools of imperial control that benefit wealthy nations

Instead, we emphasize respect for artists who are protective of their work and style. Our guidelines explicitly prohibit imitating the style of artists who have voiced their distaste for AI, working on an opt-in model that encourages traditional artists to give and subsequently revoke permissions if they see fit. This approach is about respect, not legal enforcement. We are not a pro-copyright group.

In Conclusion

AWAY aims to cultivate thoughtful, ethical engagement with new technologies, while also holding respect for creative communities outside of itself. As a collective, we recognize that real environmental solutions require addressing concepts such as imperial exploitation, extractive capitalism, and corporate power—not just focusing on individual consumer choices, which do little to change the current state of the world we live in.

When discussing environmental impacts, it's important to keep perspective on a relative scale, and to avoid ignoring major issues in favor of smaller ones. We promote balanced discussions based in concrete fact, with the belief that they can lead to meaningful solutions, rather than misplaced outrage that ultimately serves to maintain the status quo.

If this resonates with you, please feel free to join our discord. :)

Works Cited:

USGS Water Use Data: https://www.usgs.gov/mission-areas/water-resources/science/water-use-united-states

Golf Course Superintendents Association of America water usage report: https://www.gcsaa.org/resources/research/golf-course-environmental-profile

Equinix data center water sustainability report: https://www.equinix.com/resources/infopapers/corporate-sustainability-report

Environmental Working Group's Meat Eater's Guide (beef energy calculations): https://www.ewg.org/meateatersguide/

Hugging Face AI energy consumption study: https://huggingface.co/blog/carbon-footprint

International Energy Agency report on data centers: https://www.iea.org/reports/data-centres-and-data-transmission-networks

Goldman Sachs "Generational Growth" report on AI power demand: https://www.goldmansachs.com/intelligence/pages/gs-research/generational-growth-ai-data-centers-and-the-coming-us-power-surge/report.pdf

Artists Network's guide to eco-friendly art practices: https://www.artistsnetwork.com/art-business/how-to-be-an-eco-friendly-artist/

The Earth Chronicles' analysis of art materials: https://earthchronicles.org/artists-ironically-paint-nature-with-harmful-materials/

Natural Earth Paint's environmental impact report: https://naturalearthpaint.com/pages/environmental-impact

Our World in Data's global emissions by sector: https://ourworldindata.org/emissions-by-sector

"The High Cost of High Tech" report on electronics manufacturing: https://goodelectronics.org/the-high-cost-of-high-tech/

"Unearthing the Dirty Secrets of the Clean Energy Transition" (on rare earth mineral mining): https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2023/apr/18/clean-energy-dirty-mining-indigenous-communities-climate-crisis

Electronic Frontier Foundation's position paper on AI and copyright: https://www.eff.org/wp/ai-and-copyright

Creative Commons research on enabling better sharing: https://creativecommons.org/2023/04/24/ai-and-creativity/

[linskywords]

Key takeaways from the WillMack podcast episode so far:

Omg I can't tell these boys' voice apart. How dare they both be boys of a certain age and why can't one of them have more of an accent

However, I did manage to suss out that Mack punched a hole in Will's windshield because Will was taking too long getting new golf clubs?? And then Mack just, like, not having another side of the story. They both agree that's what happened. Though Mack does maintain that Will's windshield was fundamentally unsafe for cracking that easily.

Also he refused to apologize because he was going to pay for it.

Their favorite song is Pony.

By Ginuwine.

From Magic Mike.

At least that's how they introduce it.

Will HAS A DANCE TO THIS.

Neither of them could remember the words to it on the air. (Or so they said.)

They think the idea of wearing each other's suits is gross. Not, like, weird, or they wouldn't fit, but gross. Cooties, probably.

They never go out to dinner without each other, unless they have family in town.

They do, however, get tragically separated on the road sometimes if other guys are called up. This resulted in Mack missing out on the best hotel cookies, which were in Fort Lauderdale. They bravely took this in stride.

Mack (probably) was quiet when they first met at rookie camp, but he opened up quick.

They think Cat and Toff can't take a joke. It's possible they're actually joking a lot more of the time than it seems and they're just really deadpan about it.

Mack thinks Will looks like a donkey, which seems fairly accurate.

Will thinks Mack looks like a parrot, which is completely wrong. Mack is obviously a capybara.

They go to coffee shops to people watch (but it's not weird!!) either once a month or every other day. Unfortunately due to my voice blindness I don't know who was making which claim.

It may have been Toff who suggested that if WillMack moves in with him, Cat will have to leave. Toff begs to differ.

WillMack is going to discuss living arrangements for next year after the end of the season. That has now happened, presumably. We need them to go on another podcast so we can find out what happened.

I'm sure I have forgotten many magical moments. Please remind me at your leisure!

[sirfrogsworth]

Early voting to beat the lines... the best-laid schemes of mice and men often go awry.

So... yesterday was quite the day.

After being stuck in bed for the past 6 weeks with some mystery slump, I was finally feeling better. So I decided I would try to cram as many errands into my day as possible. That works better for me when I drive out into the world because I end up only having to do one big recovery instead of a bunch of little recoveries.

My to-do list...

Go to the doctor

Vote early

Return oxygen machine to FedEx store for scammy eBay guy

Return Amazon package to the UPS store

Get gasoline for my whip

Go to Discount Tire to get my tires filled for free

Drop a check off for my lawn guy

Mail a secret package to Katrina at the US Post Office

It would have been nice if I could have gone to just one shipping place instead of all three, but the universe has a sense of humor and likes to do shit like that to me on a regular basis.

So, I get my checkup, it goes quick, no long wait, I'm feeling good.

As I get in my car, it starts to rain. It was an ugly day and it actually has not stopped raining to this very moment a day later. Just gray, windy, chilly, and wet. I look up the voting place and start the GPS.

Wipers and music on full blast, it's time to get my vote on.

When I reach my destination, I realize early voting is at some kind of private golf club. And at the center is a recreation center—which is a public building.

So it's like this private/public turducken situation.

I was expecting this errand to take 20 minutes. Because early voting always seemed like a way to get in before the crowds of election day for a more convenient voting experience.

But the parking lot was packed and I feared my expectations were about to be subverted.

As I walk through the parking lot I see a bunch of signs in the ground.

And a particular one caught my eye.

This is bullshit.

Like, just a straight up lie. No truth to it whatsoever.

Amendment 3 in Missouri basically restores abortion rights in the state. And Republicans have taken issue with the following language...

"The Government shall not deny or infringe upon a person's fundamental right to reproductive freedom, which is the right to make and carry out decisions about all matters relating to reproductive health care, including but not limited to prenatal care, childbirth, postpartum care, birth control, abortion care, miscarriage care, and respectful birthing conditions."

They claim the phrasing "but not limited to" means you can give an 8-year-old kid "sex change surgery."

This is how their online flyer puts it...

It could also include a free puppy.

Or a zillion bucks.

Or a clown will come to your house after the abortion and honk your nose.

It's ridiculous and desperate. I honestly don't know how it is legal for them to put a lie like that outside of a polling location, but here we are.

The organization "Missouri Stands with Women" is run by... a man.

It was set up by a lawyer named "Edward Greim" on behalf of the Federalist Society.

His law firm has a lovely biography about him. And a bunch of publicly available contact information. I say that for no reason whatsoever.

The Federalist Society funds all kinds of shit like this. Their main thing is installing conservative judges all over the country who will reinterpret or negate legislation. And they do it all to "stand with women" by taking away their reproductive rights.

Here is the board of directors of the Federalist Society.

Ya know, before I looked this up, I said to myself, "I bet it's going to be a sausage fest." I am psychic.

I think it would be more accurate to say they stand with A woman.

Just one.

And she sucks.

Nicole is a law professor at Notre Dame. She chose her Catholicism over her right to choose. The Catholic Church will fuck your rights and your children and Nicole will help them do it.

Anyway... back to my quick and easy voting experience...

So as I'm walking in to vote I keep passing a ton of these awful signs. I notice an older woman standing next to the aforementioned "child sex change" sign and she says, "Can I talk to you about Amendment 3?"

At this point, I'm pretty angry. I look her dead in the eyes and say with my most assholish tone, "NO." as I walk past her.

And then she finishes her sentence...

"...to protect the reproductive rights of women."

Ah, dammit.

I thought she was an old Karen but she was cool as heck. Standing out in the rain telling people the sign is bullshit. I wanted to turn around and apologize but I was stuck in full social anxiety mode so I just kept walking.

If that old lady happens to have a Tumblr and follows me and is willing to read this giant story... I just want to say I am sorry. I thought you were awful and I should have let you finish your sentence. You're super cool and I'm happy there are folks like you fighting for what is right.

I get inside and a young woman greets me. She tells me the line is in the next room and points. I still wasn't quite sure what the situation was. The parking lot being full gave me pause, but I was still hopeful I could have a swift early voting experience.

But I walk through the doors and into a huge gymnasium and my heart sinks.

It's hard to represent in pictures how long this line is.

It goes all the way to the end of the gym, loops around, and comes back. At first I was not too discouraged, because there was a nice gentle ramp at the start of the line.

But then I notice several sets of stairs at different stages of the line. And I'm just thinking how hard it would be to stand in this line and then also having to go up and down several sets of stairs.

So I go back to the young woman working there and ask what their accessible voting options are. And she told me I could do curbside voting and points outside. I then notice a line of cars wrapped around the parking lot. I don't know how I didn't see them walking in, but I guess I was too busy being a jerk to elderly progressive women.

My biggest concern was time.

The longer this takes, the more energy I use up, the longer my eventual recovery will be.

They tell me the car option is the slowest. And I could be in line for 2 to 3 hours. And then an old man who seemed to be in charge walks over and tells me the fastest option is to stand in line.

So I walk back out to my car and grab my cane and decide to try the long serpentine gynasium line.

I start walking up the ramp and some of the other folks see how slow and labored I'm walking and they start encouraging me. "You can do it! You got this!" Which I suppose was meant to be a positive helpful thing. But I found it to be embarrassing.

I get to the end of the line and notice most of the line has bleachers directly next to it. So I decide to sit down and rest and figure out how I am going to survive this experience.

It took me a while to recover from the long walk to this spot. I watched a bunch of people pass me by and the line was actually getting much longer as I rested. I was not really sure what to do. I was trying to problem-solve this situation but the answer that kept popping up in my mind was just... "go home."

But I felt this was too important and that wasn't really an option.

My best idea was to ask someone if they would hold my spot in line. Perhaps I could just sit in the bleachers and follow them around in the line, staying as close to them as I could. But my social anxiety was set to maximum and I was not finding the courage to ask someone.

After about 10 minutes of sitting, resting, and thinking, I basically say, "Fuck it, I'll try to stand in line."

I get up and start walking to the end of the line.

Then I hear a voice yell out to me.

"Hey, man! Come over here! This is your spot!"

A young man was waving at me. He was accompanied by his wife. Both of them were dressed in black and they had a sort of goth skater aesthetic going on. He had a competitively bushy beard, but with less gray. And she had very vivid purple hair.

I was a little confused and still processing what was happening. Then they both started waving at me to join them in line. They remembered I got there just before and told me I should be in front of them. I walk over and thank them. Then he suggests...

"Hey, why don't you just sit in the bleachers and follow us around the line."

He suggested my idea!

Without me asking!

I felt like he read my mind or something.

Can bearded people read each others' minds? Was this some beard skill I was unaware of?

"I got you, man. You just sit and we'll keep your place."

And his violet hair'd significant other agreed. "Yeah, we got you."

The kindness of strangers was more accessible than my polling place and I was just so thankful in that moment.

So I sat in the bleachers and watched them traverse the line. In the middle of the gym there were some teenagers playing basketball. And so I just rested and watched them play.

That young man in the red pants was like a goddamn Harlem Globetrotter. He was just embarrassing the others. He was bouncing the ball behind his back and through his legs and then he just danced around his opponents like a figure skater. It was such an unbalanced matchup. He might as well have been playing 4th graders. Not only was he significantly faster and more maneuverable, but he was consistently hitting 3-pointers.

And then during a break, he ran towards the hoop, jumped from the free throw line, flew all the way to the net, grabbed onto the rim, and proceeded to do several pull ups as if they were the easiest thing in the world. I don't think I've seen anyone jump that far and that high in real life and it was just a bonkers display of athleticism.

I spent the entire wait watching him humiliate the others—hoping he would get a full ride scholarship to some prestigious university.

And I hoped the other boys paid attention in school and got straight As, because basketball was not going to work out for them.

As my new goth skater friends progressed through the line, I would make sure to keep sight of them. Every once in a while I'd give them a head nod to acknowledge we were in this together. After an hour and a half they were at the final segment of the line, so I sat next to the wheelchair folks.

I probably could have argued to sit with them in the first place. But I really did not feel like making the case that I was just as disabled as them and needed that level of consideration. The old man running things seemed quite stressed and was putting out 8 fires at once. And my anxiety wasn't really cooperating enough to be assertive in my needs.

But it worked out in the end, so I'm not going to dwell on the lack of accommodation for people who weren't *visually* disabled.

My new bearded friend neared the end and waved me over. I thanked him and his wife profusely.

I joked, "Thank you for adopting a voter."

They seemed confused by my joke.

"No problem, man. Happy to help."

I told him and his wife they truly saved me. "I honestly don't think I would have made it through the line." And then I looked back...

I said, "As crazy as this is, I do find this kind of turnout encouraging." His wife agreed and said, "We were saying the same thing!" And then I thought, "Can the wives of bearded people absorb the mind reading ability? I hope she can't read my mind right now. Although, I'm mostly thinking that her hair is a really cool shade of purple, so she'd probably find that complimentary."

As I waited to get my ballot I could hear the happy couple behind me. They were very cute. They were making fun of each other in a very lovey-dovey fashion. I had high hopes they were going to grow old and gray and purple together based on their chemistry. And I was just so thankful they were able to recognize that I needed help without me asking. Because I probably would have just caved to my anxiety and not asked for help otherwise.

I got my ballot and sat down to fill in all of the appropriate squares. Thankfully I had prepared a cheat sheet on my phone.

It was an exact replica so I was able to copy it and finish quite rapidly.

Then I fed my votes into the vote-eating monster and they gave me a sticker.

My quick 20 minute adventure to vote early only took 2.5 hours!

And because I didn't want to buck tradition, I stood outside in the wind and the rain and took a voting selfie.

Yep, that seems about right.

Ah, crap... that was only the second thing on my to-do list.

Let's speedrun the rest of this story, shall we?

I drove to FedEx. I hauled a 40 pound box inside. I plopped it on the counter and said, "Man, this thing is heavy!" as I tried to catch my breath. The 20 year old working there then lifted it like it was a feather and I felt great about that.

I drove to the gas station because I was nearly on empty—that is both a metaphor and not a metaphor. I filled my ride with go juice.

I noticed I was a mile from the tire store and they fill up tires for free. So I did that and the guy was super nice and complimented my tires. I felt both weird and proud about having my tires complimented. Like, I had nothing to do with my tires being nice. But I accepted the praise on their behalf.

I drove to the UPS store. The last time I was there I made a scene. They refused to box up a return and I got upset and wasn't feeling well and they had to find a chair for me to sit in because I was going to faint. So I was hoping the same woman wasn't there, but she was. She didn't recognize me, so it was fine.

I drove to my lawn guy's house. He wasn't home. I dropped a check in his mailbox. My checks have corgis on them. My checks are cute.

I drove to the post office. I sent a secret package to my bestie, Katrina. I'd tell you what is in it, but it is an inside joke and you wouldn't get it. The woman noticed my voting sticker and I couldn't help thinking about what I just accomplished to get that sticker.

On my way out I noticed a miracle.

2 of the 4 doors were fixed!

I mean, I don't know why they couldn't fix all 4, but now the employees won't freeze in the winter. So I take that as a win. It only took a year and a half to accomplish and I'm sure all of my phone calls and emails did not help at all. But I'm going to pretend I saved the day regardless.

And then... I drove home.

5 hours of errands.

I was so fucking tired. My back was on fire with pain. I immediately collapsed into my bed. I passed out. And I slept for 14 hours.

The End

[rosemarytales]

okay so I rewatched the terror and this time around I understood more because I could somehow tell them apart. here are some random thoughts

jopson's fate was among the cruellest things that happened

hodgson's speech to goodsir made me understand just how deep the writers went when analyzing the psychology of the characters. what is truly interesting is how they also had to forget parts of it because humans barely ever know why they do what they do and yet it still defines who they are (that kieran culkin golf analogy)

I missed so much stuff on my first watch, but Idk how I missed hickey wearing fitzjames' boots, how people were turning against the lieutenants, sophia going barefoot in the snow, etc. those were all fundamental things, no wonder I didn't understand anything

hickey was much much smarter than anyone gave him credit for. the fact he figured out the ritual to become shaman is mind-boggling

goodsir is painfully good and painfully english. both are the reason why he could not have lived on the way crozier did, because he would have never accepted silna leaving and that would have been his demise (because he loves her and because he refuses to see things according to the culture they are happening in). I also know he started realizing he coould never go back to england the moment he said goodbye to silna, when he hesitates saying people there are good. he knew then that it wasn't necessarily true and that was not a fact he could live with, but he still went out trying to save the man he deemed worthy of it

tozer definitely started hating people when they didn't help him save heather

doctor mcdonald's death?? what??? insane

goodsir's visions :((((( I think a lot about goodsir

NO ONE talk to me about bridgens and peglar. no. one.

on that topic, I was surprised this show was actually this queer. I thought people were mostly going off on subtext and the only explicitly queer characters being. well. insane. but no we are talking hms faggot here, this is crazy. I was pleasantly surprised because I know tumblrinas were not the target audience for this show

collins breaks my heart. he just wanted peace :((

for some reason I grew so attached to hodgson and mcdonald. they are like potatoes to me and I grow them on my windowsill

fitzjames. just. 23 layers of façade to hide his insecurities. relatable queen

crozier, hickey, hodgson and goodsir monopolized my attention tho. don't ask why

[whereserpentswalk]

Sometimes you'll meet a Fae, and it won't look like it's supposed. It'll be broken looking, missing pieces like shattered glass, deformed and distorted features to the point where they're twisted and uncanny, discolored body, erratic or dangerous behavior, sometimes even so distorted it looks more like an eldrich horror then a creature of the Fae courts.

These Fae have lost their lands. Great desert spirits whose dunes have been turned into golf courses. Creatures of forests and fields whose lands have been overtaken by malls and parking lots. Protectors of cities and towns whose communities and natural ecosystems have been replaced by highways and lawns. These creatures are in pain because the very places they were part of are dead. They lost something so fundamental to them that they can't heal without it.

The people who made the world this way will complain that the Fae react naturally to what happened. But what else do they expect? This is the world they made. They'll try to solve this problem with iron bullets, but this isn't a Fae breaking its rules so it's just not going to work that way.

When you're working to heal these types of Fae you're working to heal the land. And that will take time. That monstrosity made of plastic and concreate isn't going to return to being a forest spirit the momment you plant a tree where that mall and that parking lot was, that wandering horror isn't going to switch back into being a town guardian the momment you sign a bike lane into law, you have to make space for them and give them time to heal, and then mabye you'll be making space for humans too.

[probablyasocialecologist]

“Last summer, anti-drought actions multiplied. This summer, activists will act with even more fearlessness and creativity: cutting off hoarders’ water supplies, putting golf courses out of action, dismantling megabasins, squatting the swimming pools of the ultra-rich and the air-conditioned offices of their insurers, banging saucepans outside pool manufacturers offices, building beaver dams to revive our rivers and their banks. Our inventiveness must have no limits.” This kind of activist communique follows two years of unseasonable drought across France. As of 30 June, 42 of France’s 96 mainland départements (administrative divisions) contain at least one area with water restrictions. 15 of these 42 are officially in crisis, meaning water usage is restricted to priority functions: health, civil security, drinking water and sanitation. It’s no surprise, then, that French climate groups are escalating their tactics in the fight over water. In August last year during water restrictions in Vosges in eastern France, activists drilled holes in jacuzzis at a holiday resort. Over the winter, others sabotaged artificial snow canons at Clusaz, south-eastern France, while others set up a ZAD (autonomous zone) in the area, citing the winter drought as their motivation.  The most contentious of these groups is Les Soulèvements de La Terre, or ‘Earth Uprising’, which is currently waging 100 days of action against “water hoarders” across the country. In response, the French state is cracking down on so-called eco-terrorism – and hard.

[...]

Earth Uprising doesn’t use the word sabotage to describe its militant action. In French jurisprudence, sabotage denotes an attack on infrastructure that’s vital to the “fundamental interests of the nation”, Basile explains. “A cement production site or a megabasin is the opposite – it’s private infrastructure which puts the possibility of a living future on the earth in peril.” Instead, activists prefer the term “disarmament”. Victor Cachard, author of A History of Sabotage, adds that this term is also a reference to the actions of the ecological movement in the US against the industries building weapons for the Vietnam War and later the Gulf War. “There was the idea among ecological activists to join their environmental struggle with their anti-war struggle, as they recognised that war pollutes,” he says.

[macrogolf12]

Square Stroke Golf: Transforming Precision and Power on the Course

Golf, often revered as a game of precision and skill, is constantly evolving with new techniques and equipment that redefine how players approach each shot. Among the many advancements in the sport, the concept of "Square Stroke Golf" has gained considerable attention. This technique has gained traction for its ability to enhance control, precision, and consistency. With roots in simplifying the swing mechanics, Square Stroke Golf presents a powerful alternative to traditional techniques, allowing players to experience a new level of accuracy. This article delves into the importance of Square Stroke Golf, exploring the unique elements that make it a game-changer for golfers at all levels.

Special Elements of Square Stroke Golf

Square Stroke Golf incorporates a few distinct principles that set it apart from traditional golf techniques. One of its most defining aspects is its emphasis on alignment. By focusing on maintaining a square alignment throughout the stroke, players can achieve more effective body mechanics. This alignment fosters a direct path for the clubhead, promoting a straighter shot and reducing the likelihood of misalignment at the impact point.

Another key component of Square Stroke Golf is its minimalistic approach. This method reduces the complexities of traditional swings by eliminating unnecessary movements in the wrists and shoulders. By simplifying the swing, players can avoid common errors that arise from over-complicating their form.

Benefits of Square Stroke Golf for Different Skill Levels

Square Stroke Golf offers benefits that are advantageous to golfers across the spectrum, from beginners to advanced players. For beginners, the technique’s simplicity provides an excellent foundation to build upon. Many new golfers find traditional swings complex, as they involve multiple adjustments that can lead to inconsistent results. Square Stroke Golf, with its emphasis on a direct and linear swing, allows newcomers to focus on core principles without being overwhelmed by complex mechanics.

Why Square Stroke Golf is Here to Stay

As more golfers and instructors recognize the benefits of Square Stroke Golf, it has established itself as more than a passing trend. Its focus on control, simplicity, and alignment resonates with the fundamentals of effective golf. In addition, it appeals to a wide range of golfers, making it a versatile technique that can be adapted to individual needs. In a sport where precision and consistency are paramount, Square Stroke Golf offers a method that is both accessible and highly effective, which is why it continues to grow in popularity.

Square Stroke Golf is a powerful technique that appeals to golfers seeking accuracy, simplicity, and consistency. Its focus on a square clubface alignment and controlled swing path brings out the best in a golfer’s natural abilities, reducing errors and boosting confidence. By integrating Square Stroke Golf into their routine, players across all skill levels can enjoy a more rewarding and effective golfing experience.

[whiskawaybelf]

I saw someone post about Pacifica only ever getting mentioned in relation to the twins and I can’t find that post (if it was you, I'm so sorry, let me know and I'll update the post with your username) I thought that was so fair and valid and I love her, so I have like five big things about her character that fascinate me but I’ll just do one at a time.

One of the first things was Pacifica finding out that her family didn’t found Gravity Falls. Her parents know this, they don’t seem affected but she is. We hear her take it badly and ask them if this is true.

Here’s the thing, Pacifica is introduced as someone just generally awful and she is but she also has been fed a steady stream of bullshit about why the Northwests deserve to be adored. How they’ve earned it, they founded the town, they made deals and worked for their money and have elevated themselves with their own fundamental skills and talents. They have a right to their pretension. (I think that’s partially what the bell is, you have to earn your place as our perfect daughter. If you don’t behave correctly then this family has no use for you. Only the best and brightest and the most compliant, if you won't be that then what is your use?).

We see from her introduction that her fear of failure is worth more than her earning that crown, she paid McGucket in order to win, but she makes a hell of an effort where surely she could have thrown some money into the crowd and won without breaking a sweat.

She, again, makes a massive effort to beat Mabel at the mini golf, we know she's good. Genuinely, has put in a lot of work kind of good. She needs to prove herself. She got the hole that Mabel didn't get before their competition, that could have been enough, but no, it has to be official. She had to prove she is actually, actually better. Faking it isn't enough. And she ends up respecting that Mabel is also good and put up a hell of a fight (I also super duper want to get into her anger and punching the door in that episode but I have a whole separate post about Pacifica's anger, so we'll get to that at a later date.)

In Northwest Mansion Mystery, she's so proud of herself and this dress she chose, and her parents inform her that it's not good enough. And she shrinks. She finds out her whole family legacy is a lie and it genuinely affects her, she's disgusted and disappointed in her family. If they behaved that way and all the things her family earned were actually stolen, then does she actually have a right to her pride and pretension? Is shrinking herself to be the right kind of daughter, one that deserves her family name even worth it? And she's been repeating her family's cycle of cruelty, deception, and unearned entitlement . It rattles her to the bone. She doesn't deserve what she has, she hasn't worked for it, her family hasn't either. She's confronted with her family being the worst, her being the worst and the fact that it's not everyone else that is the problem. It's her. All this work only to be... worthless. She didn't know that. She was so conditioned (bell is another post, obvi) to never question, so she didn't. She gets a crash course in guilt and so many things slot into place that fundamentally alter how she sees her life. In the course of one evening.

Pacifica protests her father's bootlicker attitude towards Bill, she's on the team sent to go rescue Ford even though she probably could have refused. She's trained to be the best because that's what the Northwests are. But then when they're not, she has to alter what all her work has been for, who she can trust and who she wants to be. She was always a spoiled rich girl, but she's also one who never rested on her laurels and who did have a fundamental moral compass (really, really, really deep inside) and the changing of her world view was traumatic for her in a million different ways. And then she went, 'Well, fuck it, it is what it is, let's start breaking the cycle, I guess.'

Anyway, I love my abrasively perfectionist gremlin child. The end.

[thegratefulgolfer]

Gripping The Golf Club Properly

The only connection between your body and the golf club is through your grip. Understanding the fundamentals of a good grip is probably the first fundamental every golfer should learn. Over the years, I have tinkered with my grip, but I have always reverted back to my interlocking neutral grip. This particular position works best for my game and as explained by Jack Nicklaus, it is likely best…

[a-book-of-creatures]

Can you explain why fly fishing is as bad as golfing? Never heard that before and I'm curious

They're different kinds of bad but they have the same root cause that makes me associate them with each other. Namely, they attract rich, entitled upper-class twits.

Disclaimer: I'm sure there are plenty of fine, upstanding golfers and fly fishers out there. Real salt of the earth folks that wouldn't harm a (heh) fly. This doesn't invalidate the fundamental issues that I'm going to talk about here.

You've probably heard about how golf takes perfectly good land that could be used for parks and turns them into sterile, boring, manicured lawns for rich assholes to toss their balls around.

Fly fishing... there's probably a lot you could say about sport angling as a part and why it's bad for fishes and the environment, but I'm focusing on fly fishing, and this book is largely to blame.

Published in 1895, this accumulation of dead trees was what pushed the idea that a good fishing fly should be made of exotic feathers, the more exotic the better.

And with anglers being a superstitious lot (perhaps as superstitious as professional athletes, who we all know are the most superstitious people in existence), it makes it far more likely that those with the means will shell out top dollar for feathers from rare, even extinct birds. They will buy research skins from museum collections for the sole purpose of tearing them to bits and making gaudy simulacra of insects that may bestow a higher chance of a salmon biting them.

This is what led to a guy breaking into the Tring Museum and stealing almost 300 bird skins to sell off on eBay for fishing fly materials. And it's happened elsewhere too. I know this because one of the museums I worked at had a researcher walk in to look at birds, and when they left a number of skins were gone. There are still enough people out there ready and willing to pay for those feathers that the market is there.

[vicsbasement]

Do you think Charles and Carlos will stay friends after 2024? I know they are not gonna be as close as now but I fear that their friendship is gonna sideline like Carlando when Carlos gets a new teammate. 😭😭😭 Carlos is very friendly with his teammates (versainz/carlando/charles) but I feel he has a different bond with charles. A soft spot in his heart. So I don't think I can handle him being all lovey-dovey with another teammate. 😭😩

Oh, I absolutely think they will remain being good friends after Ferrari. Look, I'm not a Carlando girlie, but I've seen Carlando girlies spiral about divorce rumors as often as a person can tolerate, yet, to be frank, I feel this is overly dramatic. Carlos and Lando hang out outside the paddock all the time. And to talk about Charlos, Carlos has been very open about his liking of Charles, even saying just yesterday that him and Lando are both his favorite teammates. Yet, his situation in Ferrari sort of prevents him to air out his location whenever he's with Charles. They're extremely private with their off-track friendship and Charlos girlies have been fed crumbs for years at this point, just putting together dots on a map whenever someone posts a separate selfie of Carlos with a fan and then Charles with a fan in the same location.

Carlos, still, has said very openly that he thinks that him and Charles will be even *better* friends when they're in different teams. I mean, we've seen it, there's a rivalry there, and I'm the first one to see Charles get bitter over Carlos besting him at anything in the same machinery. Still, he does admit (as he did yesterday) than when Carlos does everything better than him, Carlos wins. And funnily enough, even though I felt that Charles was a little bitter in the interviews immediately post-race (the ones with Guenther), it's not the same as before. Because their friendship reached a different level altogether, and the respect they feel for each other is even more palpable now. I really do think that Charles has matured a lot.

And see how Carlos was so excited to celebrate with Charles that he asked Ricky to tell Charles to come closer so they could celebrate their joint win at Australia? That's love. That's devotion and that's friendship, right there. That's respect. Carlos does, absolutely, have a really soft spot for Charles. He followed his career in F2, for crying out loud. He admires him as a driver, he respects him as a competitor and he likes him as a person. That's the most fundamental part of their relationship. And I think it will definitely get better after Carlos leaves Ferrari, because he will be even more open with his affection. We might even see them off track together, finally! Sharing car rides and meals and probably even playing golf with Lando, like we've seen Carlos do before.

Do not fret! The relationship between Charles and Carlos is only getting better this year. I can feel it.

And about the other teammate... it really does depend on the other teammate, does it. Because we know Carlos to be an affectionate man, a tactile person. But if the other teammate doesn't like it, then, well. We might just not see it. He might show his affection other ways, like simply being verbal about it. I don't know. It just depends in whether he knows the next teammate and has a good relationship with them or not.