#asks for ts

[nobledemons]

my shaker came in and ive been shaking them all day long. my mom loves it btw

yayy thank you so much!!

[ollieofthebeholder]

Hi! I know you do NaNo every year and are quite involved with it; have you seen their new AI policy? And what are your thoughts on it?

https://nanowrimo.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/29933455931412-What-is-NaNoWriMo-s-position-on-Artificial-Intelligence-AI

Hi!

So first off, nonnie: My involvement with NaNoWriMo has, uh, declined significantly in the last year. I was an ML through last November, and there were...a lot of problems that all culminated in me (and my co-ML ) not only making the decision to step down as MLs, but disaffiliate our region from NaNo altogether. We're not stopping people from participating, just taking the groups we manage independent and starting our own, localized version. Global communities are great, but when you get to as big as NaNo got and start having to implement rules and make them apply to wildly diverse regions - and then have absolutely no policies in place for people in those specific regions to adapt those policies - it stops being fun, frankly. For organizers and participants.

All of which is to say, no, I hadn't seen this until now.

My thoughts are that, like so many other things NaNo has tried to do since November, it's well-intentioned (probably) but poorly thought out and even more poorly executed. It's also too broad and overencompassing. And it violates the spirit of the program they've been belaboring us with for the last 25 years.

AI - Artificial Intelligence - covers a lot of ground. Spellcheckers are technically AI. Speech to text programs could be construed as AI. Predictive text is AI. ChatGP and its ilk is essentially an advanced form of predictive text, at least at this point. And if you had suggested five years ago that someone might write a novel entirely based on predictive text, the official NaNoWriMo stance would have been "I mean, sure, you CAN do that, we can't really stop you, if that's what you're happy with." If your goal is just to have 50,000 words, do whatever you want. I guess from their wording, they're saying that this is in general, not specifically for NaNoWriMo, but this is still a pretty bizarre stance for an organization that pushed for years for everyone to start on November 1 with a blank document and not a single word written ahead of time.

Arguing that "opposition to AI is classist and ableist" is the kind of reductive bullshit I expect from Tumblr, not a major organization that is supposed to promote literacy. I especially don't get the "not everyone has access to all resources" bit. Yeah...that's true...but if you have access to AI, you have access to everything you need to participate in NaNoWriMo, i.e. a computer with a keyboard and an internet connection. If you just want the fifty thousand words to get the prize and don't care if they're good, just fucking write "banana" over and over again until you hit it. Boom, you're a winner, and you've done just as much work as someone prompting ChatGPT, and it'll probably make about as much sense.

Also, most AI programs in existence use up a ridiculous amount of energy and resources, and encouraging their use is kind of an iffy stance for any company to take, let alone one that's been making this much of an effort to be sustainable.

Frankly, I think this policy is just one more sign that NaNo has gotten a) too big to be sustainable and b) too far from what it was originally meant to be, and I'm honestly debating if I'm even going to participate in the global one this year.

[keepyourpantsongohan]

"So... you think that is acceptable behaviour?"

XD for the sentence fic thingy

"So... you think that is acceptable behaviour?" Tsunade asks, with a look so acrimonious that makes Kakashi feel like an academy student again, being cast out to the corridor for getting into a fight with his classmates. Though, if they had been fighting, this might be easier.

"No, Hokage-sama," Kakashi and Tenzō say in unison, bowing just enough so neither has to meet her eyes.

"Thirty years in Anbu between you," she huffs, "and you haven't developed the decency to not get caught with your pants around your ankles in the jonin standby station?"

Tenzō aims a sidelong glance at him, which in Kakashi's opinion, is how all of this trouble came about. "The Anbu headquarters doesn't have so many windows," Tenzō says, and Kakashi stifles a laugh.

[hazard-and-friends]

wait a briard?? tell me more pls

ok so 1, they meet the aesthetic criteria of "impeccably papered purebred who nevertheless looks like i pulled it out of a dumpster"

2. as we all know i have a thing for herdy breeds. i currently have 1.5 of them and like it enough that i want more.

despite this, i also have a thing for, well, edginess? nonconformity. i don't want 17 identical black bi border collies. i both want variety in my dogs AND to be a special little snowflake with a pretty princess dog :)

3. briards are tending/guarding dogs, not focused on actually MOVING the livestock (ACDs, aussies, BCs, etc) but on Keeping Them Here Thank U. they share this purpose with GSDs and beaucerons, but unlike them haven't been sharply bred for war instead. this makes their brains a fascinating place. type A personality and a tendency to Solve Problems With Biting but less of the ALL OF THAT that you get in the shepherd club.

(note: i also want some shepherdy things. i am a person of many tastes. but this is what i like about briards.)

4. haystack with Eers. or no eers, depending on ur flavor.

5. apparently they have a tendency towards biting parents who hit their children :) what's not to love

[eighthdoctor]

i think i have to stop sending adric anons. there are not many words that can be used in adric puns. this could only ever have been a passing phase.

i hate you

[mydearthisbe]

happy birthday! :)

Thank you!

[qqueenofhades]

Can Kamala Harris win? Does she really stand a chance? I’m so scared for my American friends, their families and every kind, decent human being who resides there.

She has a motherfucking chance because we are going to GIVE her a motherfucking chance.

No more talking about how "of course" the country won't elect a black woman (they also thought that with Obama in 2008). No more dooming. We can destroy the fucking billionaire donors as soon as the election is over. We can do everything else as soon as we have time to do it because we are not being fucked in the ass by Trump and his despicable orange fascists.

We are going to rally the fuck behind Kamala Harris and we are going to do it now. We are going to support whichever VP she chooses. We are going to be on the fucking lookout for any Purity Police whining about how Kamala isn't good enough either. We are going to keep our eyes fucking open for the Russian interference that frankly, I suspect, contributed heavily to this in the first place. We are going to learn our fucking lesson from 2016 and not whine about Third Party Protest Votes. We are going to pull together and quit fucking whining. Now Biden is out. You don't have to cOnDeSceNd yourself to voting for him. You are going to fucking help us get Kamala in office so fucking help us God. Then we can deal with the rest of it later. It is that simple.

The end.

[starskykarofsky]

how was therapy queen?? lmao i just finished my session and thought of my lovely mutual who has their appt at the same time :D

It was really good today! Beforehand I was depressed and not looking forward to doing it- like a task, and even began to feel nervous, but it was so good and I learned really helpful things and my mood is great. Does this happen to you? How has yours been?

[kedreeva]

You kill your birds? I thought you loved animals...

I do love animals. I breed quail for meat and eggs, and that means that yes, I kill some of my birds, just as I kill some of my mice who are unsuitable for pet homes or unnecessary for breeding, just as I have sent overtly aggressive peafowl that would be dangerous to other birds or humans home with someone to be dinner.

Loving animals and understanding meat source animals must be killed to be eaten and that domesticated husbandry requires some amount of hard culling for the benefit of the breeding program and species as a whole are not mutually exclusive ideas. It is my job to give my animals good, proper care, enrichment, and love until their time in this world is over (for some that's sooner than others), to ensure that death is as humane as possible, and to ensure that as little as possible goes to waste after.

And almost nothing here does go to waste; offal or unusable parts goes to the crows and other scavengers I feed at the front of the house (and in turn they chase off nosy hawks and eagles), meat gets eaten, bones get used to make stock and then composted for the garden. Mouse culls and quail feeder culls (quail hatched specifically to be feeders for other animals) almost all go to reptile owners who want ethically sourced animals kept in better conditions/fed better feed (the exception is when Bug eats some of them instead). And the two times I have ever had to cull aggressive peafowl, they both went to a hunting family that made use of the meat.

Additionally, on several occasions now, I have been called upon by others to help euthanize their fowl friends. Strangers who couldn't afford a vet bill but wanted to put an end to their bird's suffering. Strangers that knew it needed to be done but couldn't do it themselves, or that didn't know how. I have taught others how to do cervical dislocation in case the need arrives ever again, so the bird doesn't have to wait. I have held sobbing owners who thanked me for being able to do what they couldn't even when they knew it was necessary. And yes, I have demonstrated the butchering process to folks who want quail meat, so that I know they're giving a quick, humane end to their birds.

Death is a part of life. When you raise purpose animals, death is going to be a part of the deal at some point.

It doesn't mean I love them any less while they're here, or in general.

[insertdisc5]

im a little sick and need enrichment so im opening the asks for a bit again. read the faq beforehand or be cursed

[tendaysoftenzo]

What qualifies as underage for the purposes of the challenge? For example, Ao3 defines it as any characters under 18.

Yes, under 18 would qualify as underage.

[nobledemons]

Hey so I bought the poolverine honda odyssey keychain, and i loved it, however it died in December, ironically to my car door. it's still in the shop right?

I have the shattered pieces still, and luckily the gays survived, but the car is broken. So I suppose the car did it's purpose of keeping the people inside safe.

omg you broke them out of their enclosure...

yes this is a permanent addition to my shop until my poolverine brainworms die (they never will, I'm working on a blanket)

[ollieofthebeholder]

would you rather own a fish that always sings somebody’s watching me (including the instruments) or fight 9472 bagels from hell

Having made the mistake of looking up the music video for that song rather than listening to it on Spotify where it would have been less likely to be what I end up talking about in therapy this week, I'll take the bagels, thanks.

[keepyourpantsongohan]

Hi.....if you don't mind me asking, can I ask your top 5 (or top 3) favorite characters from Naruto? And why you loved them? And your top 5 favorite moments from the series? Sorry if you've answered this question before....Thanks...

Sure, I don't mind at all!

For top five characters, I'd say the top three are pretty static, where the other two positions can fluctuate. I love a lot of characters! For today, I'll go with:

Tenzo: So many things! I love that that he is both stern and compassionate with the Team 7 kids. I love that he makes them a Welcome Team Kakashi sign, and I love how he can be a bit of a show-off. I love how he is enamoured by Kakashi's flattery but also enjoys arguing about soba with him. I love how he makes Naruto porridge and tucks him into bed after a panic attack. I love that he has a place in his heart for Sasuke even though they weren't teammates directly. I love that he likes scaring teens with his spooky face. I love that he is willing to question anyone (including Tsunade, Kakashi and the Raikage). I love how he radiates Tired Old Man Energy despite being 26. I love that despite having one of the most difficult origin stories in the series, he is only ever kind-hearted. I love that he has this jutsu which is all about nature, but his creations are often structured and architectural, because that's who he is. I love that both his powers and decision-making are affected by being around Team 7. I enjoy him a lot!

Kakashi: I love his love of not only Team 7, but of all of his friends' students. I love his compassion towards his enemies. I love how much he stands by Sasuke in particular, both in a sense of physical protection but also emotional outreach. I love that he grows from feeling like a failure in leadership at Kannabi Bridge to leading his whole village. I love how he wants to be socially off-putting, but he's actually the most popular guy of all of his peers. I love that in the face of immense loss he opens his heart again and again. I love that he's self-effacing about his personal qualities, but unbelievably competent and hard-working with his ninja abilities. I love his dynamics with Gai, Tenzo, Tsunade, and so many more. I love how neither him nor Tenzo want the kids to see him kill Kakuzu. I love that he's a dog person. I love that his hair's a little stupid. I love that he writes Naruto notes about eating more veggies. I love the ongoing bit of covering half of his face. I love him!!

Sasuke: This post has already gotten quite long, but I love how Sasuke's greatest struggle in the series is fighting how much love he feels. I love his body "just moves" when Team 7 is in danger. I love that he ran to protect Naruto when Itachi was after him. I love that he thanked Sakura and laid her gently on a bench to say goodbye. I love that he is an extremely competent ninja, but can't come up with his own answers the Chunin written exam at all. I love that he reins in his curse mark by thinking about Naruto and Sakura. I love how he constantly changes his aesthetic in questionable ways. I love that he causes international incidents. I love that he uno-reverses Orochimaru. I love how desperately he tries to understand Itachi, the Hokage, Konoha, and himself. I love that he's a snake expert who gets parenting advice from Aoda. I love that he's a cat person. I love his narrative is not about him being home (in Konoha) but about having a home, as in a place to return to where he is loved. He is Teenage Ninja Batman and he is Me, The Baby.

Gaara: I'll try and keep this brief(er): I love that he is so, so unhinged during the Chunin Exams and EQUALLY, so well-adjusted after. I love his relationship with his siblings. I love that he is the first person we see to be both jinchuriki and Kage. I love that he's like, "Wow, Lee, you're slower," during the Retrieval Mission as if he did not personally rearrange Lee's legs. I love that he calls out the other Kage for forsaking themselves. I love that by default his power is defensive. I love how much he adores Naruto. I could talk more, but you get the idea!

Hashirama: I love how he is smart enough to found a village and invent a whole style of jutsu, but at the same time he's extremely silly. I love his relationship with Madara, calling him a "gift from the divine" to begin with, and saying that he's "fundamentally kind" after he's killed thousands of people. I love that he puts matching statues of him and his ex at the border. I love that as he also had this loving relationship with Mito, he invented bisexuality in the Naruto universe. I love that he bows his head to the other Kage. I love that he teaches his granddaughter to gamble (poorly). I love his dynamic with Tobirama, and his love for his siblings. I love him saying, "I'll deal with you later!" I love him patiently explaining to Sasuke his entire origin story. I love that he is willing to die for peace, but also willing to fight for it.

(Honourable mentions to Minato, Kushina, Tsunade, Naruto, Sakura, Neji and Zabuza who I also thought about putting on this list.)

As for favourite moments, here are a few:

Kakashi standing up to Orochimaru on Sasuke's behalf, without mangekyo, back-up, and after signfiicant blood loss

"I liked them! Is that weird?" "No... I liked them too." Kakashi and Naruto's retroactive dialogue about Zabuza and Haku

Gaara using his sand to have Naruto shake his hand

Naruto meeting Kushina for the first time and hugging her

Hashirama and Madara's simultaneous warning to each other to run away when their fathers were trying to attack

[hazard-and-friends]

good evening! i was wondering if you had any advice on How To Learn How To Own A Dog, or more generally How To Figure Out If I'd Enjoy Having A Dog. i'm starting to daydream about getting a dog in a few years but i've never lived with a dog and i would like to see what it's like before i Commit with a Living Creature. if someone asked me a similar question about cats (i've had cats my whole life) i'd maybe tell them to volunteer at a shelter or try to catsit for a friend, but i know the experience of keeping cats is VASTLY different from dogs. would you have any advice? how does one become a first-time dog owner without Fucking It Up?

You're going to fuck it up

I think this is the first point for any pet, that you're going to screw it up somehow, and if you can accept that and be okay with that, everything is much less stressful.

Would you enjoy having a dog?

There's a huge range in dog lifestyles.

I live with dogs where I do special feedings, take (one of) them for two 30+ minute walks a day, do daily training, prep food in advance, go to sports, go to group classes, plan weekly outings to take them new places, etc. Hazard in particular had me completely adjusting my work schedule to accommodate his needs.

I also have clients who--and their dogs' welfare needs are met--walk their dogs once or twice a week, if that, and the dog exists in the house and yard. Their time investment in the dog is about as extensive as owning a cat.

And if you get the right personality, they're not more needy than cats either--depends on the neediness of your cat.

There's a reason why toy/companion breeds are popular (or should be! should be very popular!!!!), and it's because they should be easy to live with. They want to hang out with you, they want to spend time with you, but (as adults) they're not naturally destructive, aggressive, high energy, etc. They may be higher maintenance because many of them have long or curly coats, but otherwise...they should be comparable to a spunky cat.

Similarly, depending on your region, a retired racing greyhound would be an excellent first dog. They tend to be neurotic in their own special ways, but they're also low maintenance, low energy (as long as you can provide a space for running once a day for 10 minutes or so), and a low need for stimulation/training.

How to trial it? Many shelters do fostering, but--at least in my experience--the dogs they are most desperate to get into foster homes are the ones least suitable to first time owners.

I would find a good friend with dogs and ask to hang with them for a day. Or dogsit for a weekend. Some dogs this is a huge imposition (Hazard has multiple pages of 12 pt font instructions), some dogs this is "feed him twice a day and let him into the backyard and try not to let him get eaten by eagles".

A thought experiment would be "how would you feel about owning a bengal cat?" Dogs aren't terribly extrinsically different from cats, except that they tend to be higher energy and need more novelty/stimulation on a regular basis.

In general biggest differences tend to be that we expect to walk dogs and do deliberate training with dogs. Not that cats don't benefit or need such things, and I've met cats where both were an absolute need. But we expect to walk our dog (and get upset if the dog, for various reasons, cannot be walked) and we expect to invest time/money/effort into training.

How's that for a non answer?

[eighthdoctor]

i'm tired i don't have the energy to think of anything radric

it's so sadric that you're badric at these when the whole fadric is to drive me up the wall